Page 35 of Broken Rules

Claudia’s question made me pull my phone against my chest like I was hiding something.“What?”

Her nose wrinkled.“The posters?I thought that’s why you were smiling.”

Right.Because that’s what I was supposed to be doing, Checking out the attachments on that email.“Oh.No.I got sidetracked.”

She slowly arched an eyebrow, eyes narrowing, lips pursing.“Careful.”That was the only thing she said, but it was more than enough.I got the message.

And I was annoyed with myself that she even had to say it.I had no business flirting with the boss in the first place, but especially not while on set.He could send me a message like that, but it didn’t mean I needed to engage.The man was too tempting.He had the power to make me forget everything I cared about.

“Okay, everybody!”I took a seat in my chair behind the monitor.“Let’s have places.”Because I was here to do a job.

One thing was for sure.There was no distracting me while I was filming.Lex could have walked on set completely naked, and I might not have noticed.Could this be my life?Yes, I always planned on making movies.I had known that from childhood, making movies using an old camcorder somebody was going to throw out.

But could I do it here?Or somewhere like here, anyway.Once the movie was finished and took the world by storm because it would, I knew it in my soul—what happened next?If there was one thing I had learned, it was how much nicer it was to create art when there were resources available.Dad would’ve had a field day if he ever heard me say something like that, but it was true.Sure, magic could be created on a shoestring, but it was a hell of a lot more fun if the shoestring was a little thicker and longer.

Was it dangerousto imagine keeping my office at the studio?Not because I thought Lex owed me anything, or I expected preferential treatment since we were sleeping together, but because I was good.I did good work for him, and we worked well together, bizarrely enough.Even our disagreements were fun.My pulse picked up speed at the thought.

Would that be enough to build a future on, though?I wasn’t sure I could go back to shoestring budgets now that a major studio budget had spoiled me.

At noon, I called lunch, then chatted with electricians as they repositioned the lights for the afternoon shoot.All of them had been around the studio for years, decades in some cases.They were like a family, joking, laughing, and working together like they had been at it all their lives.

“Have you always worked here at Landry International?”I asked one of them, a man in his fifties with what could only be described as a glorious mane of silver hair, which he wore in a ponytail when he was working.

“Shit, no,” he drawled, grinning.“Don’t get me wrong.I’m always up for another project here.I’ve been all over the place.”

“What was your favorite job?”

“Oh, I lit the Oscars for a few years.”He scratched the top of his head, then rested his hands on his hips as he thought about it.“I’ve done sports events all over the country.And if you’re lucky, you work with a lot of the same people.You get recommended for stuff, you recommend your friends.It’s like a whole family helping each other out.”

It was corny of me, but the word ‘family’ brought me that same warm, chest-swelling feeling.There was nothing like the feeling of working together on a common goal, understanding each other, or pushing each other to work harder.There were no guarantees in this business.I had no idea if I would ever work again, and the thought was terrifying if I let myself sit with it long enough.Would I ever find this again?Or was this lightning in a bottle a one-time thing?

I headed over to grab myself something to eat from the craft service table, but Claudia intercepted me before I could fill a plate with kale salad.“Can I talk to you for a second?”she whispered, standing practically on top of me.

“You look like you saw a ghost.”And my stomach was growling, which was why I reached for a pair of tongs in the big salad bowl.

She took hold of my wrist and shook her head.“Not exactly, but I did see something you need to know about.Just come here.”

I let her pull me aside, looking around like she was afraid of being noticed.Right away, my thoughts went to Eric.What did he do now?Did he already have a star on the Walk of Fame?

“Don’t freak out.”She watched over my shoulder, nervous, while handing me her phone.“I’m sure it’s nothing.”

Nothing that looked a lot like photos of Lex and Danica flirting on the lot.“Does Danica have what it takes to tame the playboy?”I whispered, reading the caption beneath the photos.Somebody took them from outside the studio gates, some paparazzi looking for an excuse to start a rumor.

Whoever they were, they had found it.In the photos, Danica was laughing, touching his arm, and at one point, they leaned in like they were sharing a joke.They weren’t even all that close together, but whoever took the pictures and sold them to the highest bidder definitely wanted it to look that way.

“That’s fine,” I said, handing the phone back.But was it?Why was my heart racing?It was a stupid, lazy attempt at stirring up drama.It didn’t mean anything.

And even if it did, I had no right to get upset.That was what happened during casual flings, which Lex and I definitely were.There was nothing serious going on.We were having a good time.He wouldn’t be the first producer to hit on an actress.

But he didn’t.I couldn’t believe he would, and not out of any loyalty to me.That wasn’t how he operated.

“Are you okay?”Claudia asked.

“I’m fine.Really.”So long as I could keep myself from thinking too much about Eric.This wasn’t the same thing, not even close.Not only had Eric literally screwed around on me—more than once, as I found out—we were an actual couple at the time.Committed.At least, I was.

“Do you think she knows about it yet?”Claudia jerked her chin slightly.I didn’t have to look behind me to know she was talking about my lead actress.

“I’m sure her agent told her all about it by now.”

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