Page 52 of The Producer: Aaron

“I’ve never found anyone interesting enough to get my attention.” At least not until I got to know Aaron better. He intrigues me both physically and intellectually. He is the complete package.

“Speaking about interesting men,” she whispers as we sit at the table. “He’s someone I would sell my mother to go out with.” She points to someone behind me with a slight nod.

I turn around, and my heart almost stops. Aaron is walking toward us, tucked into a dark gray suit, white shirt, and tie that makes him look even more severe. He has a serious face, but I recognize the mask he wears in public, which doesn’t let feelings shine through. My heart bounces in my chest because I don’t know what he is doing here. Did he come to meet me? Do I have to get up and say hello to him or stay sitting? And if he kissesme in front of everyone? The terror of not knowing what to do in this situation freezes my stomach. I have no problem behaving normally with him at home. In public, it’s a whole other story.

Aaron joins and greets us, waving to the other people sitting at the table. They are all silent, with wide eyes and the meal intact on their plates. No one seems willing to eat since his presence on the set is as rare as it is worrying. Most of the time, he comes here to fire someone. He looks at everyone, and I hold my breath when he gets to me. His face is impassive, but for a moment that seems eternal, there is an emotion that I can’t decipher and that he cannot hide.

“We’re really in trouble if the boss of bosses takes the trouble to come to the set on his lunch break.” Emma’s voice is a mixture of fun and seduction that makes me look away from the man who fills my thoughts these days.

She seems to be blushing, almost with a shy smile. This is Emma’s beauty. She is never brazen in showing her emotions, which also applies to the interest she feels for him. The jealousy that fills my chest is so violent that I am almost surprised. I would like to push her head in the salad bowl, and this sentiment is so new and sudden that having even thought about it disgusts me.

“Are you misbehaving? Do I have to start worrying about something?” Aaron raises an eyebrow as the shadow of an amused smile bends his lips.

“No, but if the worry makes you come to the set, maybe someone will start behaving like a rascal to have you around here.” Her words include everyone, but the way she pronounces them is an apparent reference to herself. I suddenly realize that the bubble we lived in for the last twenty-four hours doesn’t exist outside the house.

I have never been a person who makes a scene because of jealousy, but when Aaron looks at me for a moment and then focuses again on Emma, showing off a smirk, I get up with my tray and avoid the confused look of my colleague. That insecurity accompanies me every time I am in public, and today it is heavier than ever.

“Sorry, I have to go,” I mumble and turn around, walking as fast as possible without looking crazy toward the trailer I was assigned for the breaks on set. Since I’m the star, I’m lucky I don’t have to share it with anyone.

I put the tray with my sandwich almost intact on the table, lower all the shutters to prevent someone from peeking in, and sit on the sofa feeling like a perfect idiot. When I saw Aaron, my heart stuttered in my chest, but when he didn’t deign to even look at me, it sank into my stomach, anchored by the harsh reality. Emma is much better suited than I am to be next to a man like Aaron.

She is a seasoned actress, knows how to behave in public without needing alcohol to relax her nerves, has never made the front pages of the newspapers for some scandal, and, above all, is almost the same age as Aaron. No one would see anything wrong with it if they were a couple, while I would be yet another scandal to be slammed on the front page.

The realization took possession of my brain for the first time since I set my eyes on him. Outside the protective walls of his mansion, the chances that he and I can function as a couple are slim. There are thousands of Emmas out there who could take my place next to him. I can only be a dirty secret for one of the most powerful men in this city, and the harsh reality hurts me. For a moment, last night, when he held me in his arms, my heart hoped that there might be other moments like these in our future. But I realized that only a naïve little girl could think sucha thing.

A slight knock on the door makes me jump. I grab a tissue and dry the corners of my eyes where tears have collected, threatening to fall.

I stutter the first excuse that jumps into my mind. “I’m coming. I’m… finishing changing.”

“I’m Aaron. Can I come in?” His voice is firm, raised as a question, but I suspect that if I say no, he will come in anyway.

“Come in.” My voice is quite firm, even though my chest is in total turmoil.

His imposing figure enters my trailer, making it look smaller. He closes the door and pauses a few steps away, frowning and watching me carefully.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes.” I bite my tongue at my insecure whisper.

“That’s not true.”

He is right, and I look down, trying not to meet his eyes. I’m a little ashamed to be seen like this, with tears in my eyes like a fifteen-year-old at her first breakup with her boyfriend.

“It’s nothing, really. It’s a stupid thing.”

He walks closer and kneels in front of me, surprising me with the kindness and intimacy of this gesture as he grabs my chin with two fingers and makes me meet his gaze.

“If it were really something stupid, you wouldn’t have locked yourself in here trying to hold back tears.” His tone is sweet, and the smile on his lips is reassuring.

My cheeks burn from the shame. He is used to women who know exactly what they want and how to keep it. He has never had to deal with the paranoia of an insecure younger woman,and this thought makes me uncomfortable.

“It’s stupid, really. It’s not worth your worries,” I say with a half-laugh that sounds anything but natural.

“I want to know anyway,” he whispers as he caresses my cheek.

I hesitate for a few moments, but then I give in to his request. I feel ridiculous clinging behind my position like a little girl throwing a tantrum.

“I realized that maybe it’s better if you go out with Emma. She is older, you can go out to dinner with her, and it certainly wouldn’t be a scandal because she’s not the lead.”

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