“The kind that leaves a splotchy mark somewhere,” she goads.
“Possibly.”
She squeezes my shoulder. “Twin powers.”
I smile and rest my head on her shoulder. “Nothing gets past you.”
“I don’t know if that’s true. But I want you to know you can tell me things. I want you to know that you can share with me.”
“I do. Especially since you told me aboutNotting Hill.”
A questioning laugh bursts from her. “Notting Hill?”
“That’s what I’ve been calling William in my head. He’sNotting Hill. Because he runs a bookstore, and you’re the movie star.”
She smiles, nodding. “Yeah, I get it. I’ve seen the movie. It’s a good one.”
“It is. Will you have a happy ending too?”
“I hope so.” She pauses, tilting her head. “And you?”
I tell her what happened this morning, and she frowns. “Ripley,” she says, full of sadness. “You took the fall.”
“I had to. I wanted to make it easier for him.”
“The shoot’s over in a few days, though,” she says, hopeful. “Maybe then?”
I shake my head. “I don’t think so. He needs to build his business. It won’t look right that he had a fling with a client. Reputation matters to him.”
She seems to give that some thought, then nods. “I get it,” she says.
That night, when she’s leaving, we do another switcheroo. Only it’s not me pretending to be her or vice versa. We switch bodyguards.
It’s just easier that way.
46
THE COLLATERAL DAMAGE
BANKS
Before I leave that night, there’s one more thing I have to do—apologize to Tabitha.
As I wait for Haven to finish up in the house, I hang out near the gate for Lavender Bliss. Tabitha often goes for a run early in the morning and again when the shooting is done for the day. She’s a creature of habit, so I find her returning to the property, trotting past the gate. I’ve been trying to grab a minute with her all day. This is the first chance I’ve had.
She slows to a walk, and I give a quick wave, the signal forgot a second. She takes out her earbuds and joins me where I’m waiting by some Hidcote bushes.
“Good run?” I ask.
“It was great,” she says, catching her breath. “I’ll miss the lavender when we’re gone next week.”
Me fucking too.But I don’t say that. I cut straight to the chase. “I wanted to apologize.”
She arches a curious brow. “For what?”
Is it not obvious? “For being distracted on the job.”
“Oh. Okay. Apology accepted.” She waggles her phone. “Can we talk more tomorrow? I need to jump on a call with Juniper for our next film.”
