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Tessa hadn’t even realized that her phone was vibrating on the table. Damon’s name was displayed on the screen.

She scooped up the phone and stood. “Excuse me.”

Stepping quickly out of the kitchen, she accepted the call and placed the phone to her ear. “Hey.”

“Hey. I’m still thinking about what you all did today. That was hilarious.”

Tessa laughed. “Yeah. I wish we’d recorded it! Though I guess ethically it’s best we didn’t. You know, because of Max’s naked ass.”

“He’s got to be livid. That guy acts all calm and casual but trust me—he doesn’t have a good sense of humor.” There was silence for a moment, then he said, “Hey, are you free tomorrow?"

“Yeah.”

“I need you again. Are you sure I’m not taking up too much of your time?”

“Not at all.”

“Is ten too early?”

“Whenever you need me. We’re going to accomplish our mission.”

“Yeah. Okay. Ten.”

“Ten.”

“Goodnight, Tessa. Sleep well.”

“Goodnight, Damon. You too.”

Once the call ended, Tessa repeated the mantra to herself.

“We’re going to accomplish our mission.”

But once again, Tessa wondered if her mission was the same as Damon’s.

Chapter Seventeen

Damon was a little shocked.

Okay, he had to admit he was actually very shocked after he thought about it some more.

He was sitting on the deck of his house, surrounded by trees, mountains, and fresh air. Or as fresh of air as one can find in Los Angeles.

Smog was always present in the city, though air quality had improved significantly since the height of the problem.

But that wasn’t what was on his mind right now.

She was.

And not the she he thought he’d be thinking of.

It didn’t make any sense either. He had actually seen Lissa with her new Daddy today. They’d been shopping, laughing, and talking like it was no big deal. Like she hadn’t belonged to another man just days earlier. And like that other man wasn’t there with his new girlfriend.

Yet it didn’t bother him nearly as much as he thought it would. He assumed it would wreck him, that he’d be a mess—drunk and inconsolable—that night. Wasn’t he supposed to be crying on the floor for Lissa? Thrashing about like a deranged man on his last rope?

Yet there he was. Drinking iced tea instead of booze. Feeling calm and peaceful as he gazed out over Laurel Canyon. The aroma of the sagebrush and chaparral shrubs reached him. He smiled and enjoyed the moment of peace even more.

He loved it up here. Sitting on his deck, smelling the vegetation and looking out over the tree-covered mountains always made him want to make a Western. He’d never starred in one of those yet. Maybe he needed to put the bug in his agent’s ear to start looking for the right project, though not too many from the genre rolled around these days.