Her phone chirped the second the yacht docked, and she was pleased to see Mervyn’s name. He was waiting for her.

The lower decks were buzzing with activity. Becky’s heart raced so hard she could feel it in her throat, but she told herself to stay calm. She’d been through this a million times before. No reason why she couldn’t hack it on her own.

“Oh, dear. What do you do in a situation like this?”

“Suck it up, then try to get the hell out of here as fast as I can. I’ll have to call Mervyn.”

She dialed his number.

“Babe, we have a situation. Sorry. It must have gotten out.”

“It’s okay, just try to get me out of here as fast as possible. Or do I have to jump overboard and swim?”

“No, you crazy woman. I’m waiting for security. They’ll pick you up soon. Where are you?”

“On the private deck.”

“Okay, stay where you are. I’m right outside.”

“I should just throw caution to the wind and leave.”

“Rebecca, no.” His voice was firm. “Please, just wait.”

“Okay, fine. I’ll wait.”

Jack came up the stairs, a perplexed look on his face.

“I told you she was huge,” Lilly reiterated.

“Why does everyone keep saying that? She really isn’t big, quite small if you ask me.”

“Ha-ha,” Becky sang sarcastically.

“Sue me. I don’t know you.”

“Your mom is one of her biggest fans, not to mention April.”

“April? The girl from the Meat Lover’s Grill place?”

“Oh, you really did meet her. She couldn’t shut up about you. Still can’t.”

“Well, at least your story will one-up hers now.”

His phone rang and he grunted.

“Answer it, or I will,” Lilly scolded him.

“Sorry.” He grimaced as he swiped the screen.

“Hello, Mother.” He sounded so formal that Becky struggled to suppress her laughter. “Yes, jeez, calm down, will you? She’s human like the rest of us.”

Finally, she mouthed.

Jack smiled. “No, I’m not stupid. I won’t throw her overboard.”

“Jack!” Becky heard his mother screech over the phone.

He laughed. “Where are you?”

She couldn’t hear his mother’s reply, but he closed his eyes. “Mom, it’s like eleven thirty, way past your bedtime. What on earth are you doing outside?”

“She’s here?” Lilly asked, but answered her own question. “Of course she’s here, she’s a huge fan.”

“So I gathered.”

“No, you are not going to speak to her. No,” he stated, walking away. “This is embarrassing. I’m switching off now,” he whispered, and did just that.

Becky snorted at the look of dismay on his face.

“So, what’s the plan of action? It looks like they don’t want to leave.”

“They won’t,” Becky said.

“How long am I going to sit with these people?”

“You really should rethink the throwing-me-overboard theory.”

“And become the most hated man in history for causing your death? Nope, you stay right here.”

She laughed softly. “Security is on the way.”

“Is it always like this?”

“Welcome to my world.”

“That is really depressing.”

“Gee, thanks.” Her tone came across more sarcastic than she’d meant it to sound.

“I didn’t mean it like that. How do you get any privacy, though?”

“I don’t. Not really. It comes with the job. All I wanted was to tell stories. I didn’t sign up for any of this.” She choked on her words and her voice thickened. She hated that she had to deal with these situations time and again. All she’d ever wanted was to write.

“Don’t worry, I’ll see what I can do.”

“Leave it, you’re just going to waste your time.”

He chuckled as he went back downstairs.

“He is going to be so disappointed that his attempt to handle the situation is going to fall on deaf ears,” Lilly said, her tone of voice sad.

“It’s a real learning experience. Sorry about this.”

“Don’t apologize. I love having you here.”

“Yes, so does the entire world.”

“You really don’t like all this crazy attention?”

“Stick around,” Becky said ominously. “You will see why.”

Footsteps approached on the stairs and Mervyn appeared.

“Let’s go. You want me to cover your head?”

“No.” She slapped his shoulder. “Please ask Mona to settle my bill.”

“She’s already on it.”

“And ask her to leave a generous tip.”

“She will.”

“Not just for the waiter, for everyone. They were simply amazing.”

Lilly gaped at her.

“Sure thing,” Mervyn said with raised eyebrows.

Becky nodded.

“You’re fucking crazy.”

“I know. It’s why you love me.”

“You bet your sweet ass, but now we have to get that sweet ass out of here.”

Becky nodded. “Thank you, Lilly.”

“Thank you,” Lilly yelled, as Mervyn steered her back down the stairs. “Nice meeting you.”

Becky’s lungs tightened as the crowd on the lower deck shouted her name. She looked among the faces, hoping to spot Jack, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Security had their hands full, trying their best to clear a path for her so that she could leave in one piece.

Mervyn’s arm was around her, leading the way, and she took the opportunity to burrow her face in his neck—hiding, of sorts. What she should have done was take off her shoes and made a run for it.

The main door opened, revealing the waiter who had served her and Paul. He grinned. “Nice meeting you.”

“Thank you for your lovely service.”

“We hope you’ll return.”

“I’ll try.”

“You ready?” Mervyn asked.

“I have no choice. Just take me back to the hotel.”

“Let’s go, then.” He covered her face with his hand and she followed him blindly.

As they walked to the car, she cringed with every shout of her name. How had her writing managed to make her life spiral out of control?

Jack’s words to her couldn’t have been more spot on. This wasn’t a life. It was sad. But she had no choice but to suck it up.

She sighed in relief when Mervyn pushed her through the door of his McLaren. Mona was in the backseat, and she settled in beside her.

“You paid them all, right?”

“Yeah, a long time ago. I’ve been waiting here for almost half an hour. This is really getting insane, Becks.”

“I know. But whatever happens, don’t you dare quit.”

“Are you insane? I’ll never quit. You are like my sister.”

“Damn,” Mervyn joked.

“Ha-ha,” Mona snapped as Mervyn honked his horn to get the crowd to clear.

“Becks, if they don’t move, I’ll be spending the night in jail.”

“They’ll move. Just be patient.”

Thankfully, the crowd parted, and as soon as they were clear of the fans, Mervyn put pedal to the metal and sped out of the parking lot.

Becky fell back into the seat in relief. The tightness around her lungs subsided. She could breathe again, although she hated the way the evening had ended.

“I met Jack,” Mona said.

“Yeah, he apologized for brushing you off on the phone. He said you should tell him the reservation is for me the next time you call.”

“Yeah, right, like that’ll happen. But that’s not why I brought him up.”

Becky frowned at Mona, eyebrows raised in question.

“He’s hobo man.”

---

Holy crap!

He couldn’t believe how famous his barefoot angel was. And damn it, he liked her, even after he found out how old she was.

But what he’d just experienced? Fuck. That was some scary shit. He couldn’t even imagine having to live like that. He genuinely felt bad for Rebecca.

Never in a million years had he thought an author could be that famous.

It just confirmed that he needed to listen to at least one of her books to see what all the hype was about.

With a sigh, he called Adrian on Skype, though this time it wasn’t an exciting call.

“Dude, what’s going on? I don’t like this feeling I’m getting.”

“You weren’t here tonight, Adrian. She’s crazy famous. Like Brad Pitt famous.”

“She writes books. How famous can she be?”

Jack shrugged.

From somewhere off-screen, Anna piped in, “Believe me, she knows a ton of A-list celebs. She’s been on Ellen like ten times. And Oprah is a major fan.”

“Oprah?” Adrian repeated.

“Yeah. Ooh, if Jack starts dating her, he’ll become famous, too.”

A heavy silence descended. Jack wanted nothing to do with the celebrity life. It was why he’d passed on all the opportunities agents had thrown his way. He didn’t want to have to go through what Rebecca had experienced tonight.

Adrian startled him out of his reverie. “How was Mom when she found out about your special guest?”

“Crazy. April, too. Dude, you should have seen—”

“Don’t. I know what you’re feeling, but didn’t you say Rebecca is human like the rest of us?”

“Yeah, but that was before I witnessed how crazy her fans are.”

“Okay, then don’t pursue her. If that’s not something you can deal with, forget about her and move on. I’ll never mention her name again, and Anna will stop reading her books.”

“Like hell I will. Speak for yourself!” Anna popped her head into the frame. “You are an idiot,” she said to Jack.

“She just met me. The woman doesn’t even know I’m interested in her. All I’m saying is that I’m not going to attempt to pursue her. It’s not the fucking end of the world. For all we know, she’s already seeing someone.”

Anna looked at him. “No, she isn’t. It would be all over the tabloids.”

“That’s reason enough not to pursue her. I’m a private guy. I’ll never fit into her world.”

“You’re giving up just like that?” Anna huffed. “You liked this girl before you knew who she was.”

“She’s far from a girl, Anna.”

She shot him a disgusted look. “She certainly looks like a girl. What if she’s your only chance at being happy again, Jack?”

“No, I can’t. And that’s that, Anna.” He shook his head emphatically. “She left us all a generous tip, which means I’ll be booking your cruise tomorrow.”

“Whoa,” Adrian said. “How generous are we talking?”

“Crazy generous. I’m going to have to hire fresh staff to fill the holes she’s undoubtedly left.”

“Shit. How much, Jack?” Adrian asked, taking a sip of his beer.

“Um, 40K each.”

“A 40K fucking tip?” Adrian yelled.

“Forty thousand dollars!” Anna yelled, too.

“Yeah, shocking. I don’t even want to know how much money she makes if she can tip the entire staff that. None of the other big leaguers we’ve hosted ever tipped even close to that.”

“The entire staff? Even the kitchen staff?”

“Yeah, even the kitchen staff. It’s a bit of a problem, don’t you think?”

“A huge one. I’m so fucking glad I’m not you.”

“Yeah, I’ll probably have to close the doors tomorrow night.”

“Sorry, dude. Though I doubt she realized what that would do to you.”

“I’m with you on that, but it’s okay, we’ve survived worse.”

“Forty. Fucking. Thousand.” Adrian laughed and disappeared.

Jack wished he had her number—he had a few choice words he’d like to impart on her. But only because, at that very moment, he was upset.

As far as his staff were concerned, he could almost bet that some wouldn’t pitch for work tomorrow. He just hoped that his best servers wouldn’t quit to pursue their dreams.

But that wasn’t the main reason he was upset.

Tonight had made him lose faith in humanity. How could anyone treat a person like that?

When all was said and done, he was left feeling sorry for Rebecca Finlay. She seemed like such a genuine person, but people couldn’t see past her superstardom.