“Did you read your contract all the way through, baby?” I ask as I brush some wayward curls away from her face.
Her face screws up with indignation, and I almost laugh because it’s so fucking adorable. “Of course. I may be new to the business, but I’m not stupid.”
“I mean the addendum that was added at the last minute?”
Her eyebrows shoot up and she holds her hands out to the side. “The what?”
Knowing we were going to have this conversation, I’d come prepared. Stretching around her, I grab the packet I’d tossed at the bottom of the lounger. I hand it to her, and she gives me a curious frown before she opens it and pulls out the sheaf of papers. “What the heck?” she mumbles. “Why didn’t Sarah tell me about this?” Her eyes lift to mine, then narrow when I smile innocently.
“I cheated, little starlet,” I tell her with an unrepentant shrug. “Money can convince people to do a lot of things. Including adding this to the contract without telling you to make sure you’d sign it.”
Her mouth drops open, and she whips the addendum up to read it. I have it practically memorized (I wrote it after all) so I say it out loud anyway, paraphrasing without all the legal jargon. “One. No touching other men. Two. You’ll reside with Austin Hayes throughout the life of the contract. Three. You give your consent for Austin Hayes to assume complete guardianship of you, including, but not limited to, approving where you go, who you spend time with, what you wear, and the hard limits regarding your acting. As far as your money, it will be held in a trust for the life of the contract and you will allow Austin Hayes to pay for everything. If any of these rules are broken, you grant Austin Hayes the right to punish you as he sees fit.” I tap my chin thoughtfully. “I think that’s it.”
Nicole breaks my hold when she jumps to her feet and throws the contract on the table next to me. She’s standing over me with her eyes breathing fire and her hands planted on her hips. I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face. She looks fucking amazing when she’s riled up.
Chapter 4
Nicole
Meeting Austin isn’t anything like I thought it would be. I guess I figured the most I could hope for was a quick read to gauge my chemistry with him. Running a few lines together to see if we have that extra special something that takes a movie from good to great. A serious spark is the only way a no-name actress like me would ever have the chance to be a leading lady opposite Austin Hayes—especially in his first ever modern romantic role. How it snowballed into all of this I don’t understand. The kiss he gave me in Sarah’s office was completely unexpected, in the best possible way. A trip to his home in Malibu is a close second. But moving in and giving him complete control over my life? Along with the right to punish me however he likes? “Yeah, no.”
“Yeah, no?” he echoes, his head tilting to the side and his full lips curving up at the corners in a tiny grin. “I’m hoping that’s a yes and not a no.”
“Nope. Nuh uh. No way,” I growl, placing my hands on my hips and forcing myself not to stomp a foot in frustration.
Looking like he doesn’t have a care in the world, Austin leans back and stretches his legs out on the lounger. Threading his fingers together behind his head, he asks, “Which parts do you have a problem with?”
I figure it’s easiest to start from the top and work my way down to the biggest issues. “I can’t just move in with you. While it might feel like we’ve known each other forever, we legit just met like two seconds ago.”
His smile widens in satisfaction. “You feel like you’ve known me forever?”
“Of course, I do! I’ve had a huge crush on you for years.” My hand flies up to cover my mouth when I realize what I just admitted. I’m completely embarrassed, and judging by how hot they feel, I’m sure my cheeks are bright red.
Austin’s expression gentles, and his dark eyes hold so much warmth as he stares up at me. “It’s probably a good thing we’re just meeting now. If we’d met back then, it would’ve been torture to stay away while I waited for you to turn eighteen. You would’ve been irresistible, knowing you had a crush on me, baby.”
His confession eases some of my embarrassment, but my cheeks stay heated…just for an entirely different reason. It’s thrilling to know his reaction to me is so strong. It makes me want to crawl back onto his lap, but there’s still a lot for us to talk about before I can give in to the urge. And, I definitely can’t think straight when I’m this close to him. “Yeah, and moving in with you the day we met would’ve been a big no-no.”