Page 24 of Dusty
“Where’d you grow up?”
“Hollywood, actually.”
Sharon blinked, surprised. “Hollywood? As in California?”
A half-smile tugged at his mouth. “The one and only.”
“What were you doing there?”
Dusty’s gaze drifted to the fire. “I was an actor. Appeared on a sitcom that ran for several years. ‘Most Wanted: A Family.’ It was big in the late nineties.”
Sharon’s eyes widened. “You were an actor?”
“I was.” He nodded. “Not the star, but I had a good supporting role. Played the wisecracking neighbor kid, Scotty.”
“Wait—” Sharon set her mug down. “You were Scotty? With the catchphrase? ‘Well, ain’t that a kick in the pants’?”
Dusty winced. “That’s the one.”
“I used to watch that show!” Sharon couldn’t hide her amazement. “You were great in that show. You stole every scene you were in.”
“Some would say that,” he admitted, looking slightly uncomfortable with her recognition.
“Why did you leave? The show ran for what, six seasons?”
“By the time I was thirteen, I’d outgrown the part. Not just physically—I was getting taller than the actor who played my dad—but emotionally too.” Dusty’s voice grew quieter. “I was burned out on all the Hollywood drama. The emptiness of it, the gossiping, the backstabbing. It became too much, even for a kid.”
Sharon watched his face in the firelight, seeing new depths there. She resisted an urge to reach out and touch his arm in comfort.
“What was it like? Being a child star?” she asked softly.
Dusty sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Complicated. The good parts were really good—I got to meet amazing people, travel, and earn more money than most adults. But the bad parts…” He trailed off.
“Like what?”
“Like never knowing who was genuine and who just wanted something from you. Like having adults tell you who to be and how to act, both on and off screen.” His voice took on an edge Sharon hadn’t heard before. “Like having your childhood mistakes plastered across tabloids.”
“That happened to you?”
“When I was twelve, I got caught joyriding in a stolen car. A stupid kid’s mistake. I wasn’t driving, but my buddies thought it would be rich to steal a car from the studio parking lot and have some fun. Only it didn’t turn out to be fun. They weren’t arrested, because they weren’t rich and famous, just kids who hung around the studio while their parents worked behind the scenes on the show. Basically, they got a slap on the wrist and told to not do it again. For me, well, it was the start of a downturn that got plastered on TV tabloid shows and magazines nationwide. It was the whole ‘Child Star’s Downward Spiral into drugs and alcohol.’ Didn’t matter that it was a pack of lies. I never did drugs in my entire life.” He shook his head, a rueful expression crossing his face. “My parents tried to shield me from it, but you can’t hide from that kind of attention.”
Sharon felt a rush of sympathy. “I can’t imagine dealing with that at such a young age.”
“I took responsibility for what I did. But it taught me a valuable lesson in choosing my friends better, who to listento, and that I needed to trust my gut. After my role ended, I walked away. Changed my name from Xavier Holloway to Dusty Warner. Wanted something completely different, so I couldn’t be tracked easily. My family moved around a lot after that—Oklahoma, New Mexico, Nebraska. Even tried North and South Dakota for a while. We wandered from state to state, town to town, until I turned eighteen.” He paused. “That’s when I decided I wanted to find a place where I could settle down. My parents were getting divorced, and I wanted something…more. A sense of stability. A place and a profession where I could make a difference.”
“And that’s when you decided on law enforcement?” Sharon asked.
He nodded. “Worked in a couple of big cities first. Dallas, Houston. Learned the ins and outs of the job. But big city living brought with it its own challenges. I decided I wanted to try a slower pace. A chance to just…breathe.”
Outside, the rain pinged against the roof, coating the pines with sparkling droplets hanging from their needles. A branch snapped somewhere in the darkness, and Sharon jumped slightly. Dusty’s hand instinctively moved toward his hip where his weapon would normally be.
“Just the rain,” he said after a moment, but his eyes remained alert, scanning the windows.
Sharon hugged her arms around herself. “Sometimes I feel like this is never going to end. I’m always on edge, feeling like I’m being watched. Even now.”
“You’re safe tonight,” Dusty assured her, his voice firm. “But tomorrow, I’m going to talk to Douglas and Ms. Patti about installing some security cameras, make sure they’re positioned right.”
“Douglas mentioned that tonight. Said that his sons are in security, and they could get added security installed. I said no,but now I’m thinking it might be a good idea. I just hate putting them out, making them incur a cost I can’t repay.” Sharon wrapped her arms across her waist, grateful for his presence, but hating the fear that had become her constant companion since she’d run from Cooper.
