Page 79 of His Every Move

The audition wasn’t too far from my hotel. It was down by the Financial District, a busy part of the city—as if the city had any spots that weren’t busy.

I took a deep breath as I entered the building. It looked like a run-down office building. I walked up a cramped staircase that smelled strongly of musty mold before reaching a long hallway. Silence engulfed the empty space. Strange. There were a few doors that were closed with different casting agency companies written across the frosted glass. Where were the other actors?

“Hello?” I called out, hearing my voice echo.

Hmmm… okay, this was weird. The hair on the back of my neck stood tall. I shouldn’t be here. I had to turn around.

A door creaked open. I nearly jumped out of my skin. A tall woman with bleach-blonde hair and a skimpy pink swimsuit walked out, holding a stack of what appeared to be her headshots. “Thank you!” she said cheerily over her shoulder.

“Tell your agent to keep an eye on her emails!”

The girl gave a giddy laugh and said she would before she strutted past me. She was nearly a foot taller than me and smelled like vanilla and suntan lotion.

Okay, so there were clearlyactualcasting offices in this building. It couldn’t be all that dangerous. It wasn’t like I was showing up at someone’s apartment for a casting couch moment. This must have been legit. I couldn’t turn back now.

I checked the email again. The audition was in room 1120. Judging by the numbers on the doors around me, that would be closer toward the end of the hall. I straightened my shoulders and strengthened my resolve. This could be huge. I didn’t have time to second-guess things or succumb to fear. I allowed myself to do that before. I gave in to my inner saboteur and almost abandoned my dreams of becoming an actor altogether.

Not today. I had hope. Things were looking up for me. I would bundle this energy up into a tight and inspirational ball, swallow it down, and stroll into the audition with the mindset that I’d already landed the role.

I walked past more closed offices. Milk Casting. Abbot & Abbot Casting. Sunshine Dreaming. I reached room 1120. There wasn’t a name of a casting company written on this door. I knocked first, but no one answered.

Again, those damn spindly little shivers crept up my spine. Instinct pulled against logic.

I jiggled the doorknob. It pushed open. I walked into a small room with black walls and a red leather couch set in front of a tripod and a camera. There wasn’t a desk behind the camera where the casting director likely sat. A box of cheap props was pushed up against the wall. There was a curtain that hung from the ceiling just to my left, covering what must have been the wall.

“Hello?”

I heard a shuffling sound from behind me. Before I could even react, a sharp prick pierced my neck, followed by an immediate, overwhelming dizziness.

“Wha—” My vision blurred. My knees buckled.

Darkness overtook me as I collapsed onto the cold, hard floor.

Oddly enough, I didn’t feel fear in those fleeting moments before the black. Instead, I felt dumb. So fucking stupid. I should have turned around and gone right back into bed with Benji. This had been a mistake, a huge one.

Possibly a lethal one.

Fuck.

Chapter29

Benji Morrison

I wokeup with a deep stretch under the covers. My morning wood throbbed against the mattress. I gave a sleepy groan and pushed down against the firm pressure.

Boyfriend. He can help.

I rolled over and expected to throw an arm around a snoring Eli but was met with empty space. That’s when I remembered him mentioning his audition this morning. It was the first audition he’d been to in a while, and he had sounded nervous when he brought it up. I told him I’d go with him, but I guess he didn’t want to wake me.

Hmm. Not great.

I didn’t like the idea of him being out there alone. We still hadn’t made all that much headway with Nomad, and the fact that they were bold enough to break into Eli’s apartment didn’t bode well. This person was growing more and more desperate for his attention.

I reached for my phone. Lucky stirred, lifting his head and watching me as I sat up on the bed. It was already ten thirty in the morning. What time had Eli said the audition was? Ten? It should have been over by now.

I sent him a text. He always kept his phone on silent, so I wasn’t worried about ruining his audition.

Morning stud. Hope you’re killing it at the audition. Text me when you’re done.

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