Page 34 of Behind the Scenes

“Hmmm. So you don’t like women who require work, and you don’t like women who are low maintenance and will take whatever you dish out to them. So what kind of woman do you like?”

Merging into the passing lane, he glanced over at her and saw by the eager look on her face that she genuinely wanted to know the answer to her question. He didn’t know exactly what to tell her, though. His history with women was nothing less than checkered, to say the least. That he didn’t hesitate for even a minute when Nick first asked him if he’d be interested in joining Project Artemis was a good indication of how single he’d been and for a long time.

He and women didn’t equal anything lasting, and his past was littered with ex-girlfriends who’d be happy to tell Alexis why he wasn’t good for any woman.

But she waited for an answer, so he gave her the best he had. “I guess it depends. For me, a woman should be herself. She should be strong too. There’s nothing sexier than a woman who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go after it.”

“So strong women don’t intimidate you?”

Hunter shook his head and smiled. “Nope. It’s a lie that strong men like weak women. We don’t. Strong men like a challenge, and any woman who can show them she doesn’t need a man even if she wants him is definitely a challenge.”

“Really?” she asked, her voice full of surprise.

He stared straight ahead as he drove north toward the penthouse. “Really. Nothing sexier.”

“Hmmm.”

The conversation ended, but when he glanced over at her a few minutes later, she looked happy, smiling as she watched out the window.

Chapter Eleven

Alexis saw Paulwaiting outside the building when they pulled up, and dread replaced all the happiness she’d felt because of her conversation with Hunter on the way back from Atlantic City. His deep frown and eyebrows drawn in like angry blond slashes told her she was in for a terrible lecture from her longtime manager. She knew she deserved it, but that didn’t mean she wanted to hear anything he had to say after the day she’d just been through.

She took a deep breath right before she opened the car door and braced for the shit storm that awaited her. Paul had been angry before, but she’d never seen him look so furious with her. This would make that chewing out he gave her that one time when she foolishly answered a reporter’s question about a director she didn’t like much look pale in comparison. Her truthful comment about his being a little too friendly had created a weeklong drama with Paul practically losing his mind.

His expression now told her this one would last even longer. Great.

“I’ll be up in a minute,” Hunter said with a smile.

If only she had to just deal with him instead of Paul too. Suddenly, she had the desire to shut the door and tell Hunter to drive to someplace where she could hide for a day or so.

She looked over at him and wondered if she asked, would he do that for her? Studying his rugged face, she guessed he probably wouldn’t. He was Paul’s hire, after all, so no matter how pleasant he looked and how nice he’d been since that rest stop, he likely wouldn’t understand why listening to her manager ream her out about her behavior once again was something she desperately wanted to avoid.

Stepping out onto the sidewalk, she made it two steps toward the front door before Paul rushed out toward her and took her by the arm like she was some kind of invalid. To the swarm of paparazzi nearby seeing his behavior, they might think he was someone who cared about how she felt.

“Miss Marchand! Alexis! Look this way!” one of the photographers ordered as she hid her face in Paul’s jacket.

“How are you enjoying New York, Alexis? Where were you today?” another one asked, yelling his questions as the group hovered far too closely for her comfort.

Paul stopped walking and said to the group, “Gentlemen, give our girl some space. We all know how much she loves her fans, but with the recent problem with someone stalking her, you can’t expect her to love what you all are doing right now. We ask that you respect her privacy, okay?”

His request fell on deaf ears, though, and they began hurling questions at her.

“Do you know the identity of the stalker? Have they contacted you again? What protections are being put in place for your safety, Alexis? How will this affect your filming schedule? Does this mean you’ll have to take time off from your career?”

She pressed her face hard into the soft fabric of Paul’s brown jacket as every question made her feel sicker and sicker to her stomach and tears welled in her eyes. Time off would be a death sentence for her career. God, when would this nightmare end?

Paul escorted her into the building, and as soon as the glass doors closed behind them, he pushed her away and started in on her. “What the hell were you thinking, Lexi? I’ve been pacing back and forth for hours sick about you out there on your own. Lauren’s upstairs and she’s a mess after all of this.”

Stunned at how much anger dripped off each word he spoke, she stood staring up at him for a moment and then turned to head toward the elevator, desperate to escape from him and everyone else. The doorman gave her a tepid smile like he felt bad for her as she passed by him. Paul walked behind her and continued to rave on about how he’d practically worn a path in the hardwood floor by pacing and how big the knot in his stomach had grown because of what she’d done.

As the elevator doors closed, he grabbed hold of her hand and squeezed it. “Look at me, Lexi. You took ten years off my life today. You can’t do this.”

She hated when he talked to her like this. Nobody needed to tell her she’d made a mistake. She knew. And she didn’t think he should treat her like she was some petulant child who deserved to be chastised for her behavior.

Turning to look at him like he demanded, Alexis apologized, just as she knew she needed to. Giving him big brown eyes full of sadness, she whimpered, “I didn’t mean to upset everyone, Paul. I’m sorry.”

But this time he didn’t seem to be buying her sad girl act.

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