Flynn Banks was now officially dating his costar. Whether he liked it or not.
Chapter 6
Livvy was running late to rehearsal. It wasn’t her fault. Harry Evets had insisted she stop by his office to discuss the terms of her contract. She’d been ten minutes early to the lot and even beaten Harry’s secretary there. Her nerves had her sweating through her blouse. She’d heard plenty of stories about what studio bosses tried to do with young, naive actresses after summoning them to their offices. She’d tucked a particularly long hatpin in her pocket that morning just in case.
But Harry hadn’t called her to his office to make unwanted sexual advances. No, what he wanted was something else entirely—for her to pretend to be dating Flynn Banks. The moment he’d told her what was expected of her, she’d lost all sense of time and place.
She hadn’t protested. Hadn’t even asked a question. The pronouncement had left her in shock. She’d nodded and said, “Yes, Mr. Evets. Thank you, Mr. Evets.” Harry would send further instructions for their first date and told her to lie low until then, and dismissed her. She had immediately run to the nearest dark, quiet, empty space she could find, which was the janitor’s closet. There were a broom and a mop and the lingering smell of bleach. The overpowering scent made her lightheaded. Or was that a result of Harry’s new dictate?
Ha! If Harry Evets only knew she’d dreamed of dating Flynn Banks for years. Now that she’d actually met the man, well, performing with a tiger sounded like a safer option. But what could she do? It wasn’t like she had a choice. If she wanted to keep her job and pay the rent on the bungalow, she had to obey Harry’s orders. She hadn’t even wanted to be an actress. But now she was here, making a picture. It allowed her to keep her sister safe, well fed, and in spitting distance of the studios until Judy got her own big break. So Livvy was going to have to pretend to date Flynn Banks. That was all there was to it.
Resigned to her fate, she squared her shoulders and left the broom closet, making a beeline for the soundstage where they had scheduled rehearsal today. It was then that she noticed she was ten minutes late. She sprinted the rest of the way, arriving at Soundstage 6 completely disheveled and sweaty. Between her nerves and her mad dash, she worried she was beginning to smell. The cramp in her side made her feel like she’d accidentally stuck herself with the hatpin in her pocket. At least she was wearing black-checked shorts with a cherry-red gingham blouse, having been told to come to set prepared for athletic activity.
After wandering her way through a mishmash of wooden backdrops and discarded furniture, she finally located Flynn Banks, who was standing near a capuchin monkey in a pirate hat—a miniature version of the hat she’d seen the wardrobe department preparing for Flynn yesterday. The monkey was perched on a stand and watching intently as Flynn chatted with a man she didn’t recognize. She didn’t want to get too close, lest she startle the monkey.
“Banks,” Livvy called out. She surprised even herself with her snappish tone and wished she was half as confident as she projected.
Flynn Banks snapped his head toward her, a congenial look on his face sharpening into something more wolfish when he realized it was her. “Well, if it isn’t the woman who’s going to sweep me off my feet.” So, at least he knew already. She could not imagine being the one to tell the man about Harry’s cockeyed scheme.
She ignored Flynn’s retort, deciding it was safest to avoid the subject for now. “Who’s your friend?” She gestured at the monkey and approached gingerly.
“This is Rallo!” Flynn made a face. The monkey made a face back at him, putting its fingers in its mouth, drawing its lips wide, and sticking out its tongue. Olivia couldn’t suppress a giggle. “He’s my sidekick. This over here is his trainer, Lionel Berry. Rallo has made three pictures with me now. This will be our fourth together.”
“You better hope they don’t start dating rumors about you two,” she joked. Flynn laughed, deep and resonant. It reminded her of a crackling fire on a cold night. Cozy and warm and deeply masculine. It was a reminder of why she’d found him absurdly attractive when he was merely a man on a screen.
She was pleased that her joke made him laugh. She’d spent their previous two encounters annoying him to protect herself, but this charade would be easier if they got along.
“I don’t know.” Flynn twisted his nose up and the monkey copied him. “I think he’s rather handsome, don’t you?”
Livvy bit her lip and pretended to think about it.
Flynn feigned a pout. “Rallo, the lady doesn’t think you’re handsome!”
The monkey frowned in dismay.
“Oh now, I didn’t say that!” Livvy protested. “I was just trying to find a nice way to tell you that Rallo is much better looking than you are.”
Flynn laughed uproariously, which made the monkey jump up and down on his perch in excitement. “I set myself up for that one.”
“He is awfully cute though.”
“Thank you.” Flynn batted his full, gorgeous eyelashes at her. Why was it always men who had the most wonderful eyelashes? They were completely wasted on them.
Livvy rolled her eyes at Flynn’s cheesy attempt to flirt. “I meant the monkey, not you.” She took another step toward them, and Flynn raised his hand in warning.
“Careful, he doesn’t like strangers. It took him a whole picture to warm up to me. But now we’re the best of friends. Right, Rallo?” Flynn looked at the monkey and the monkey nodded a demonstrative yes, showing all of its teeth.
“Here, Miss De Lesseps, try giving him a treat.” The tall South Asian man that Flynn had introduced as Lionel put a slice of a fresh banana in her hand. She extended it toward the monkey, waiting for Rallo to make his move.
The monkey sniffed gingerly at her before meeting her gaze. He seemed both impish and impossibly wise, and she immediately liked him. He reached out and plucked the banana slice from her hand, clapping it to his mouth and eating it in one bite.
She laughed again, and Flynn did too. The sound made something warm flare in her stomach.
The monkey made a grasping gesture with its fingers, and Livvy looked toward Lionel. “What does he want?”
“Rallo, the lady does not have more bananas,” the man told the monkey. But the monkey didn’t seem to care. Without warning, he jumped from his perch and onto Livvy’s shoulder. The sudden movement surprised her and she yelped.
“Rallo, no!” Flynn cried and leapt to remove the monkey. “Now, my friend, let’s leave the lady alone.”
