Chapter 7
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Gravel kicked up from his tires as Evan pulled off toward the prearranged spot where he was meeting Kyle and Kyle’s trainer. He was going to be leading the men on a steep hike up the mountain wearing weighted backpacks. It was the same drill that Evan and Marco had taken their crew out on. It was a great test of strength, determination, and endurance and also served as an excellent team-building tool.
Evan had done his best to discourage the actor from attempting the grueling exercise that even his own people had struggled with. But Kyle insisted that he needed to do it to be “authentic.”
Since Evan was used to being active and had been going a little crazy being indoors all the time, he was looking forward to the hike.
They were scheduled to meet at four a.m. So, of course, Evan was there at three-forty-five a.m., sitting in his car and waiting for them to arrive.
Jake had pitched Evan on this job by suggesting that at least he wouldn’t be sitting around twiddling his thumbs. But that’s exactly what he felt like he was doing. And not just because he was here fifteen minutes early. The same thing had happened yesterday when he’d met Kyle at the gym.
He’d been there for hours, talking. Not working out. Talking. They discussed Evan’s life, the job, and the project. It was its own form of torture. Evan hated talking about his life, his feelings, his experiences, and that’s all Kyle wanted to discuss. Afterwards, he’d stopped by headquarters to regain some sense of normalcy.
Reyes and Spencer had everything under control, which partially put his mind at ease. He wasn’t worried at all about their leadership or expertise. He knew that they would be able to handle any situation that arose. But on the flip side of that coin, it was difficult for him to watch from the sidelines. He was used to being in charge. He liked being the one making decisions and having the final say.
He’d only stayed for about an hour and then he’d gone home. That’s when he realized he had way too much time on his hands to think. The object of his thoughts was a woman that he needed to steer clear of as much as possible.
The conversation with his brother had knocked him off balance again. He wondered if what he was feeling for Shayne was a rebound defense mechanism after he realized that he hadn’t thought about Noelle since he’d laid eyes on the young Marilyn Monroe look-alike. There was a very good possibility that perhaps she was really just a distraction from dealing with the news of Noelle’s pending nuptials and baby.
Or not. Maybe he and Shayne had a powerful connection that had nothing to do with anyone but the two of them. It was possible that what they shared was entirely unrelated to Noelle’s news.
Regardless, anything happening between the unlikely pair was impossible. He tried to limit the amount of drama in his life and from what he’d learned about the young actress, her entire life was drama on and off the screen.
Evan shook his head and decided to get out in the fresh morning air. If he sat in the cramped front seat of the toy car any longer, his legs were going to fall asleep.
As he stepped out into the cold, brisk conditions, he brought his hands up to this mouth and blew into them. He knew that he should enjoy the chill now, because a quarter mile into the steep, rough terrain and he was going to be dripping in sweat, no matter what the temperature was.
He tried to focus on the early hour’s peaceful serenity, but his mind kept boomeranging back to Shayne. From the sweet sound of her voice to the sensation her infectious smile inspired in him, he just couldn’t seem to shake her. Last night he’d lain in bed for hours thinking about her. He couldn’t get her out of his mind.
This hike was strenuous and would take all of his concentration. He was looking forward to having a few hours where she wasn’t all he was thinking about.
The mental fatigue that he’d experienced from obsessing over the blonde beauty was almost more exhausting than the physical fatigue he had from his recovery. She was all consuming. He was infused with her essence.
No matter what he’d done to divert his attention elsewhere, inevitably it would return to Shayne Fox. The more his mind entertained thoughts of her, the more questions he had.
Was she really the “party girl” that the media portrayed her as?
That didn’t seem like the girl that he’d met two days ago, but she was an actress.
Did she honestly have a torrid affair with her much older, married director when she was eighteen?
If that was the case, where was her family? Who was watching out for her?
What issues had she had that put her into rehab?
He knew that it was easy to hide demons and he also knew that it took people that really cared about you, that loved you, to help you through that. So again, where was her family?
When their eyes had met across the room, he’d been struck by a couple of things. Right off the bat, her beauty. She was mind-blowing. Breathtaking. Heartbreakingly beautiful. But that impression was brief, and then he was sucked into the vortex of her crystal blue gaze. There was a depth in them that conveyed both a strength and a vulnerability that he’d never seen in another human being.
And he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Or her.
The amount of time that he’d spent engrossed over a woman he’d briefly met was completely uncharacteristic of him. He’d loved Noelle and the times they’d spent apart, he’d thought about her and missed her. She’d been on his mind but he’d been able to focus on other things. She’d never stolen his ability to function. Whenever he’d needed to put Noelle out of his mind, he’d just…done it. There was no real effort involved.
He couldn’t seem to do that with Shayne. There was no putting her out of his mind. She’d moved in, and he was at a loss as to how to evict her.
At five minutes to four, Kyle and Rob arrived, and he couldn’t be happier for the distraction. He also appreciated their promptness.
“Evan Douglas Bishop!” Kyle announced as he stepped out of the SUV.
Evan lifted his chin. “Kyle.”
As much as he was truly growing to like Kyle, there was no way he was going to follow the actor’s lead and call him by his full name. He’d asked Eli about the whole first, middle, and last name thing and his brother told him that he should consider it a compliment. Apparently, Kyle only bestowed that honor on people he admired.
“Hey, man. Good to see you.” Rob extended his hand.
“You too.”
Rob and Kyle both pulled their packs out of the backseat, and Evan popped the hatchback to grab his. As he started to put it on, he noticed that both of the other men had set theirs on the ground. Rob was on his phone and Kyle was doing breathing and stretching exercises.
“We ready?” Evan had chosen the four a.m. time because he’d done this hike several times, and once the sun came up, it got unbearably hot. Since they were here a little early he thought they might as well get started.
Rob didn’t look up from his phone as he responded, “I think we’re waiting for one more person.”
“Yes. We are.” Kyle confirmed. “The lovely Miss Fox will be joining us. She’s as committed as I am to bringing authenticity and truth to the story.”
Shayne was coming.
Shit.
So much for a few hours of not thinking about Shayne. It looked like he was going to be sharing an experience that was designed to team build and create a form of intimacy for crews that depended on one another for their lives.
The last thing he needed was to feel more intimacy with Shayne.