Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 93575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
Aiden was the security overseeing the event—with a long, damaged past, he informed Amber. She had laughed and patted his arm. “You work on that tortured look, Aiden. I’ll make sure to get a close-up.”
“Excellent.” He beamed.
Amber met my eyes, her gaze wide as she watched them rolling on the floor, bumping into furniture. “They are hilarious.”
“Wait until they say…” Mila started, stopping when her mom came from the kitchen.
“Food is ready!”
“Stand back,” Mila advised.
“Guests first,” Bentley said in a loud voice as the wrestling stopped and they all got to their feet.
I looked at the tables, shocked. I had never seen so much food. Surely to God even this lot couldn’t polish off the banquet set out. Eggs, meats, platters of pancakes, waffles, toast, and bagels. Hash browns, salads, and a massive roast that Van was carving. Desserts, cheeses, fruit. It was a spread fit for a king. An entire kingdom, to be exact.
I picked up a plate, handing it to Amber and then one to Mila. “What happens to the leftovers?” I asked.
All the women laughed. “There won’t be any.”
I found it hard to believe until I watched the food disappear. More platters appeared, and those vanished as well. I met Mila’s amused gaze.
“Told you.”
“Where do they put it all?” I wondered out loud.
“Football after lunch!” Ronan shouted. He grinned at me. “Friendly, of course. But you’re kinda scrawny, so I’ll let you be on my team. I’ll protect you.”
Scrawny?
I scoffed. “I think I can handle you lot.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “You wanna make a little wager on that?”
“Sure.”
“You’re on, Hollywood.”
I chuckled at the catcalls and taunts, as well as the nickname. It was said with no malice, and I kinda liked it. I laughed harder as voices shouted they wanted in on the action.
“I’ll take Hollywood!”
“I’ve got ten on my team!”
“Don’t touch his face,” Amber called out. “I need it on camera tomorrow.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I huffed.
“Maybe you should pass,” Mila said.
“You too, Mila?” I gasped.
“They are freakishly strong and fast. I would hate for you to get hurt.”
“I’ll be fine.” It was a friendly game of football. How bad could it be?
“Okay, Hollywood,” she replied. “I’ll be cheering you on.”
I sat in the hot tub, stifling my groan as the heat hit my sore muscles.
Realization had hit me ten minutes into the “friendly” game.
I was scrawny.
And I was going to hurt like a bitch by the time the torture was over. I was almost grateful to be sent to the sidelines.
Mila slipped in, gazing at me across the water. “You okay?”
“Never better.”
She laughed. “Will you be all right tomorrow?”
“If my legs can move, I’ll be fine.”
“I warned you.”
“Who won the bet?”
“Richard. He guessed you’d last thirty minutes. You lasted twenty-nine.”
“Liam took me out with an unnecessary hit.”
“You had the ball. It was legal.”
“I think he rearranged my kidneys.”
“He barely touched you, Nick. He rolled so you landed on top of him.”
“And he’s like a freaking stone mountain.”
She moved closer. “Poor baby. Can I help? Maybe kiss it better?”
I cracked one eye open. “Maybe.”
She got in closer. “Tell me where it really hurts, and I’ll make it all better…Hollywood.”
“Everything from my neck down.”
“Then I had better get to work.”
I groaned again as she wrapped her hand around me. “Yes, you had.”
“Cut!”
I rolled my shoulders, looking to Amber.
“Good. Take five, everyone.”
I wandered to my director’s chair, smiling when I found it already taken.
“Hey, Shortcake.” She was on set most days, and I loved having her around again.
With a grin, she handed me a coffee. “How’s it going?”
I sat beside her, taking a sip. “Far better today.”
“Has everyone recovered?”
I regarded her seriously. “Mila. No one will ever recover from yesterday.”
She bit her lip. “It was pretty damn funny.”
“It was the most awesome thing ever,” I agreed. “I’m not sure I have ever seen a film set disintegrate into mayhem so quickly before.”
I chuckled again, thinking of the day.
It started normally enough. We filmed Duncan and Roxie’s wedding. It took all day with the angles and all the extras, including almost the entire BAM clan. Amber had joked she’d never had so many extras with their own wardrobe. Every man owned a black tux. All the women had lovely gowns.
The most stunning of them all was Mila, who wore a red dress. I had seen it and begged her to wear it. Pleaded with her to be in the scene. “It’s your book. Your story. You need to be in it.”
She had finally agreed, and I had trouble taking my eyes off her until I slipped back into the role of Duncan.
Once the wedding scene was done and Richard gave his stellar performance, there was a quick scene outside on the large dock. “Guests” were to be milling around, and Richard stood to one side, supposedly having a conversation with Aiden, who was informing him someone was demanding to speak to the groom. It was the moment leading up to the big reveal in the book.