Page 47 of Such a Good Girl

“You know, I make movies for a living. And I bet you’re very photogenic. I can tell,” he said, as he smiled over at me. I couldn’t believe I was sitting across from this beautiful man, in this beautiful setting, on this perfect southern California night.

“I don’t know about that,” I deflected, trying to shake off any self-consciousness. “Are there menus?”

“No,” he said, with a dismissive wave. “I took the liberty of just ordering the tasting menu. They’ll bring a little bit of everything.”

“A little bit of everything?” I repeated, trying to contain my shock. “Sure, sounds great.” I hoped I sounded like I was used to this, but I absolutely wasn’t. Violet had done her best to drag me along to all of her fancy events, but ‘fancy’ was never something I was easily comfortable with.

We ordered drinks and the food began arriving in waves. Soon, the table between us was filled with tiny plates covered in artfully arranged sushi, garnished with tiny little pink and blue orchids. A platter of oysters arrived on a bed of dry ice mixed with river rock, creating a cloud of dramatic fog that rose over them.

West regaled me with stories of his life on set as we ate, but I was most interested in hearing about his childhood.

“I grew up here in LA. My mother was a D list actress, and my dad was a studio exec. They came from relatively humble beginnings. They wanted a better life for my sister Everleigh and I. She’s younger than me. My sister actually just got into town, maybe you’ll meet her.”

“How did you end up in movies?”

“Well, Dad didn’t want us in the business. He had plenty of connections, but he felt like we could do any other job and be happy. Not my mother, though. Mom met a modeling agent in a coffee shop one day, and showed them a picture of us. The agent asked us to audition for a cereal commercial and we both got the job. After that, it was just a series of other commercials. My Dad didn’t know I was even doing these spots at first. Then I got an audition for a small role in a sitcom pilot that never made it off the ground. But one thing led to another and I got offered more roles. When I got the part in my first series, Mom begged Dad to let me do it. I begged too, because it was more fun than attending regular old school. Eventually, he crumbled and let me act in the show.”

“Looks like it was a good move,” I said.

“Yeah. I mean, Dad was just looking out for me. He knew what kind of scum his fellow studio heads could be. He had good reasons to want me to do something else. And Everleigh… when she decided to follow in my footsteps, my parents fought about it so badly that I was sure they were going to get a divorce. Maybe we both should have listened to Dad back then.”

What was that I saw in his eyes? Regret? Pain?

“So you met Theo when you were in school here in LA?”

He nodded. “Yup. He was from a lower class family. But of course, I couldn’t know that. I just thought he was cool and passionate.”

I smiled at that. “When did you meet Rian?”

“When I was a teenager. We all met and went our separate ways for a while after high school, but we found our way back to each other.”

“They’re both very intense guys.”

“Don’t take it personally. They’re just protective.”

“Of what? You?”

“Well, I meant the club, actually. But yes, me too, in their own way,” he said. The moon was rising in the sky behind me, reflecting in his deep blue eyes. Bathed in the soft glow of the twinkling lights and the moonlight, he was positively dreamy.

“Why does the club need protecting?”

The waiter appeared to remove our empty plates, and West waited till he walked away to answer, “Profane.”

“It’s not exactly a secret, though, is it?”

“It’s supposed to be. That’s what everyone is paying for. You know what? I really don’t want to talk about work.” He reached over and grabbed my hand, his palm warm over my fingers.

“What do you want to talk about, West?”

“You,” he said, his voice lowering.

That was exactly what I didn’t want to talk about. I felt guilty now for lying to him. He had no idea that I was a cop. He was opening up to me, buying me dinner, lavishing me with sweet attention and affection. I had nothing to give back to him.

Not legitimately.

I pushed away the guilt, reminding myself that none of this was personal. I was here to do a job, and if he got hurt in the process, so be it. It was absurd for this man to be interested in me, anyway. For the first time, the thought that he might know exactly who I was popped into my head. Maybe he was just playing me?

I pulled my hands back and gave him a polite smile, ignoring the pangs of guilt.

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