Chapter Ten
Over the next two weeks, Spencer and Kristen shot many different scenes, some of them at home and the rest at different locations for the various dates the producers planned. Spencer still hadn’t managed to keep his hands off Kristen, but that was how husbands were supposed to behave with their wives.
The producers seemed happy enough with their chemistry. No one ever complained when they went off script. And the first episode had aired and received pretty good feedback.
Everyone seemed surprised that Kristen would be paired with him. There was of course the usual talk that she was on the rebound from Alvin and that he was using her to tone down his party ways until the accident in the Bahamas blew over.
All of that was true, but Spencer was having much more fun with the filming than he’d admit.
He and Kristen were surprised when they saw footage of their private time included in the aired episode. They’d never bothered to check if the cameras installed around the house were switched off. They’d both assumed the crew always switched them off whenever they left, but that clearly wasn’t the case.
The footage of Kristen dancing with him and their kiss had gone viral.
Spencer and Kristen never discussed their kiss again, and besides expressing disbelief that the cameras had been kept on and the footage used, they were mute on the subject.
The majority of the comments online were highly positive. Viewers thought Spencer was sweet to Kristen, and they got to see Kristen’s fun and playful side—something that Alvin had claimed didn’t exist.
Once that episode aired, another video—the video of Kristen singing with her fan—began raking up views, and Kristen’s phone began ringing non-stop. Several YouTube singers wanted to feature Kristen on their channels, and several different stars wanted collaborations on songs.
“Spence, look what Heidi sent me.” She came out of her room and almost walked right into the drone he was flying.
“Sorry,” he said and swerved the drone away.
“I’m glad you’re enjoying your present.”
“I am.” He landed the drone on her keyboard. “Thanks for that.”
She waved it off. “The prints for our shoot. Heidi sent a few to me.” She sat on the couch and waited for him to join her. “They turned out great.” She handed him the phone and leaned over.
Spencer scanned through the photos. He didn’t need the photos to remind him of the photoshoot. The image of Kristen in a man’s shirt—in what was supposedly his shirt—had been burned into his brain. He grinned when he swiped to the left and the second series of photos showed up. “You know what you said about your songs being you but not you?”
She nodded.
“I think I know why.” He swiped right and showed her the photo of her from their first series. Her sweet princess look. “You always try to be this, but I think,” he swiped left again, “there’s more of this and …” He swiped until the photos of Kristen in an oversized white shirt came up. “And this in you.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t see myself like that.”
“I do. I’ve seen these two sides of you,” he said and paused, both of them lost in each other’s gaze. “I think you’d have more fun writing your songs if you included these two sides.”
She blinked and looked away from him.
He returned to a photo of Kristen in a ball gown. “This Kristen makes me laugh.” He flipped to a photo of Kristen in the tight-fitting champagne gown. “This Kristen makes it impossible for me to take my eyes off her.” He shook his head when he got to the photos of Kristen and him on bed. “And this Kristen makes my mind go wild.”
He turned and found Kristen grinning at him. She pulled her lower lip between her teeth and looked away. He sighed and handed the phone back to her. “Try it. Be sexy in your songs. Have fun. Go wild.”
“I’ll try.”
He nodded and got up. “I’m meeting Keith later.”
“I’m going to be recording a YouTube video later.”
“Have fun.” He thought about how she sang and danced for him. “But not too much fun.”
“You just told me to go wild.”
With me. “With your songs.” He wasn’t sure if she heard him. She’d disappeared into her room by then.
He grabbed the drone from her keyboard and put it in his room, then changed and left the house. He hadn’t had time to start learning the song he owed her. Kristen hadn’t brought it up, but Spencer didn’t intend to go back on his word. So he’d asked his buddy and co-star, Keith Sutton, for a couple of lessons.
When he got to Keith’s place, he rang the bell and Keith’s wife, Sarah Carter, opened the door and let him in. “He’s in the basement. Do you want anything to eat or drink?”
He shook his head. “I’m good, thanks.” He headed down to the basement, where Keith was playing with one of his many arcade games. “I’m not here to play games with you.”
“Are you serious about learning guitar?”
“Yeah. I just need to learn one song.” He would rather learn from Kristen. That way he could spend more time with her, but he did owe her a song.
“What do you have in mind?” Keith finished up the game and switched off the machine.
“Something simple.”
“Is it for the show?”
“Yeah.”
Keith went over to the corner of the basement that he had turned into a game room plus mini home theater and shoe collection showcase and picked up a guitar. “I saw the first episode. You’re getting along quite well with Kristen.”
Spencer frowned. “What’s with that tone?”
“You know what you’re after, and I’m sure you know by now what happened between Kristen and her ex-fiancé.” Keith sat on the lazy boy lounge chair with the guitar in his lap. “If you’re not—”
“Nothing’s going on. We’re just friends.”
Keith nodded slowly. “Sarah thinks you’re crazy about her.”
“That’s the point of the show.”
“Don’t make her think so if you don’t mean it.” Keith strummed the guitar. “The women you hang out with don’t mind no-strings-attached fun. But I don’t think Kristen is interested in that.”
“I think I know her better than you do.”
Keith frowned.
“I know what she’s gone through. I won’t do anything to hurt her.” Spencer gestured to the guitar. “Can we start?”
Kristen thought about what Spencer had said about her music. Maybe he was right. She should be bolder with her music. Go wild. Have fun.
Just because she was a Christian and an ex-Disney star, didn’t mean she couldn’t have fun.
She made her way through the parking garage to her car. She pressed the remote and had her hand on the handle when she saw the man’s reflection in the window.
Kristen tried to scream, but the man cupped his hand over her mouth and flipped her around, pressing her back against the car. Her eyes widened at the man who’d attacked Spencer at the restaurant.
“I’m not going to hurt you. Promise you won’t scream if I take my hand away.”
She nodded, and the man released his grasp on her face. She sighed and swallowed. “What do you want? Spence isn’t here.”
“I’m here for you.”
“Me?”
“I saw your show. You need to stay away from Spencer.”
“Mr. Leigh, I’m sorry about what happened to your daughter. I really am, and I’m sure Spence is as well.”
“He’s the reason she died!”
Kristen shrank back from him. “It was an accident.”
“My daughter was just like you.” The man brushed her hair from her face and tugged it behind her ear.
Kristen clenched her jaws. She wanted so badly to scream, to run. But the man stood so close to her that she didn’t even have room to stand upright. There didn’t seem to be anyone else in the parking garage either. Oh, Lord, help.
“Melody was sweet and kind. She’d never taken drugs, but Spencer changed her. I know she would never have taken drugs that day if it wasn’t for Spencer.”
Kristen began shaking her head, but something in her gut told her it was better to just keep her mouth shut.
“Stay away from Spencer. Don’t make me take matters into my own hands.” Mr. Leigh stroked her hair again, then gave her a kiss on the forehead before walking away.
Kristen’s legs gave way, and she crumpled to the floor. “Oh, God.” She pushed her hands into her face, then dug into her bag for her phone. She was intending to call Ana, but she ended up calling Spencer.
Her hand was shaking so badly she couldn’t lift the phone to her ear, so she put it on speaker.
“Hey.”
She wanted to tell him what happened, but she couldn’t get her tongue and mind to work in unison.
“Kris? Are you okay?”
She sniffed and brushed her tears away.
“Kris? You’re scaring me.”
“Melody’s father was here.”
“Where? At our place? Where are you now?”
“I’m in the parking garage. He just left.”
Spencer cursed. “Did he hurt you?”
“No.” She shook her head and sighed.
“Are you in your car?”
“I’m next to it.”
“Kris, honey, get into your car and lock it.” He waited for a moment before asking again, “Kris, are you in your car?”
She pushed herself to her feet and got into her car, then shut the door and locked it. “Yes.”
“Lock the doors.”
“Done.”
“I’m on my way home,” he said. “I’ll call the police for you. Don’t go anywhere until you see the police or me. Okay?”
“Okay.”