Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
She looked like a predator wanting to play with her prey.
Barb Benner.
He’d spent a few hours yesterday binge-watching The Benner Life, as well as watching episodes of the other shows that Barb had produced. In The Benner Life, Bluebelle came across as a spoilt and selfish brat who didn’t care about anyone else. But he was just hoping that she wasn’t like that in real life.
Although he’d felt sorry for her during the episode where she’d learned the truth about her boyfriend, Ericc, and how he’d been using her to get famous . . . ouch.
“Hello, gentlemen. I’m Barb Benner.” She held her hand up to Corbin as though she expected him to kiss it.
Yeah. That wasn’t happening.
While he knew better than to judge someone from what he’d seen of them on-screen, there was something about this woman that he didn’t trust.
So he grabbed her hand and turned it around to pump it. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance, her smile dropping slightly, but he didn’t care.
“I’m sure you’re very excited to meet me.”
Dear Lord. Seemed like she wasn’t putting on a show for the cameras. She just was like this. All the time.
This could get tiresome. Fast.
Corbin could already feel Hayes’ tension growing behind him.
“Mrs. Benner, I’m Corbin McIntyre. And this is my colleague, Graham Hayes.”
Hayes was now leaning against the wall, but he stepped forward and shook her hand. Her eyes lit up as she took in Hayes. He seemed to have that effect on some women. They either ran from him or wanted to help soothe the pain they could sense.
With this woman, he thought it was something else entirely.
“Please, call me Barb,” she said with a faint English accent. “Mrs. Benner sounds so old and stuffy, like my mother-in-law. She was a real piece of work. Oh, the two of you are going to look so good on camera,” she purred.
Corbin raised his eyebrows. What?
“We’re not here to be on camera,” Hayes told her. “We’re here to do a job. To protect your daughter.”
“Of course, yes, yes.” She waved her hand. “But I’m sure you wouldn’t object to a bit of publicity, would you? If you were on one of my shows, you could get any job you wanted afterward. You wouldn’t even need to work.”
“We have the job we want,” Corbin said as nicely as he could. “And we’re not looking for publicity. The Benner Life ended five years ago, right?”
“Yes, it did. But I have other shows. Everyone wants publicity. They want to be famous. It’s just part of the dream. Rich and famous equals power. And at the end of the day, that’s the ultimate goal. I am always on the lookout for . . . talent.”
“Sounds like my personal hell,” Hayes grumbled.
Barb gaped at him.
Oh hell. This was already turning to crap.
“Barb, perhaps it would be good to go somewhere quiet so we could talk about the job,” he said, trying to turn her attention to him.
“Yes, all right. Come through to my office.”
“Is your husband home?” Hayes asked.
Corbin shot him a look, trying to tell him to shut up.
“Is something wrong with dealing with me? Do you have an objection to a powerful woman, Mr. Hayes?” she asked coolly.
“No. I just thought it would be good to meet him. And your daughter. Is she here?”
“Oh, no, Bluebelle isn’t here. Lord forbid she should want to see her awful mother.” She laughed, but there was no amusement in her face.
Although her face didn’t really move even when she spoke. Botox? Facelift? He wasn’t sure.
Corbin shared a look with Hayes. He wouldn’t want to see his mother if she’d done what Bluebelle’s mother had done to her.
He’d already taken note of the security system at the house and it was a good one. They could have gotten the same company to put in a security system at their daughter’s place.
He’d seen the threats made against Bluebelle. While they warranted some caution, he was surprised that they wanted two bodyguards for their daughter.
Then again, you could never be too careful with the things that you love. Better to be over-cautious than not care at all.
He and Hayes followed Barb into an office, which was done all out in pastel pink.
It was . . . something else.
Corbin had no objections to the color pink. But there was a thing called overkill. Even the damn carpet was pink.
The only thing that wasn’t pink was the massive white desk.
“Please, have a seat.” She smiled as she gestured to the two velvet chairs across the desk from her. There was a darker look in her eyes.
Well, if she thought it was going to worry them to sit on a pink chair . . . she’d vastly underestimated them both.
They both sat and she lost the edge of her smile.
“Well, let’s talk about why you are here,” Barb tapped her clawlike fingernails on the desk.