Page 37 of The Prince's Game
“I’m not contractually obligated to make out on film,” Evan pointed out.
“No, but youarecontractually obligated to do what I need you to do to make this show a hit. If you don’t, I have to tell the producers that you were disagreeable, whichisa violation of your contract. Ask that fancy lawyer of yours what will happen then.”
From what I understood, if Evan didn’t try to make this work, they would take the company away from him. Rachel said Garrett was one of the best attorneys in the South. He no doubt looked for a get-out clause in whatever legal document Evan’s parents were holding over his head. That meant he had to do whatever was best for the show and go along with Paul’s rules, or he risked losing everything.What a predicament to be in.
“Look, it’s my job to make sure this show takes off, and if you continue holding back, I’m going to fail, which means youfail. So we’re redoing the kisses with Amber, Tiffany, and Kristin, adding a few more scenes between you and Sarah, and we’re doing it all tonight. I have six weeks to turn this shit show around, and we’re already behind schedule. So get with the fucking program.” He clapped his hands at the crew and started shouting orders while Evan’s expression blanked.
I placed a hand over his heart. It was the only comfort I could give him. This wasn’t how I wanted to spend tonight. His pupils were so dilated I couldn’t see any of the dark chocolate I loved so much. I leaned up to kiss him. It was meant to be a tender touch, to offer him peace, but the lights flickered on and ruined it.
Instead of pulling away, he deepened the kiss and gave them more of what they wanted. But it wasn’t the same. The passion was replaced by a man going through the motions. It was all skill and no depth. My toes didn’t curl, butterflies didn’t form, and my panties were dry. It was like kissing a robot. Not sexy, and it became the theme of the night. Every room they put us in, every kiss they forced on us was all the same. It lacked passion, but Paul liked it and said our chemistry was what the show needed.
I didn’t see the scene he recaptured with Amber or the ones they ended up redoing with Tiffany and Kristin. I was too busy putting on the assistant dress from last week and redoing my makeup and hair.
It was five o’clock in the morning when they put us back in the office together. I was exhausted, grumpy, and not in the mood to flirt with anyone, which was why I did everything Paul told me to do. I wanted it over with so I could get the hell away from everyone. Evan and I ended up making out on the assistant’s desk. It was so slutty and wrong that it turned my stomach. I had to bury my head in his shoulder after they were done filming to hide my revulsion.
“That’s enough for tonight. We need to sleep.” The authority in Evan’s voice reverberated in my chest. I wished he would have stepped in hours ago, but he went along with Paul’s requests on autopilot. He was picking his battles. I couldn’t blame him, but that didn’t mean I was happy to be awake and dressed in a tight black dress with my legs wrapped around his waist.
When I got back to my room, I collapsed onto the bed in the stupid outfit, kicked off my shoes, and curled into a ball. The whole office scene degraded my character, and that fucking pissed me off. I was not the kind of woman to bend over and pick up a pencil in an attempt to seduce my boss. But Paul insisted, and I was too exhausted to fight him on it. There were angry tears in my eyes when my phone buzzed. I picked it up to read Evan’s message.
They’re making me redo interviews now. Get some sleep, Sarah. We’ll talk tomorrow.
I texted back,Okay. I wasn’t in the mood to see him after all the crap the show put us through tonight. The emotional roller coaster that was today needed to end. I set my phone aside and refused to look at it again until the morning.
* * *
Paul’s madness continued the next morning.
There were eleven of us left after the recent eliminations, and we were all required to attend a pool party with our prince. I was surprised the director didn’t organize this scene sooner. Bikini-clad women groping the man of the hour in the hot tub seemed like opening-credit material after last night’s shenanigans.
Despite being surrounded by half-naked women, Evan’s smile never reached his eyes. He kissed women indiscriminately throughout the day, giving Paul exactly what he wanted and making me feel ill. The worst was Amber straddling him in the hot tub and sticking her tongue down his throat. I was trapped across from them and forced to watch thanks to the camera in my face. Acting wasn’t necessary. All the warmth drained from my body, making me frigid as ice.
When the torture ended, I couldn’t look at Evan. It was irrational and childish to blame him. I knew why this was happening, and it was my fault for developingfeelingsfor him beyond lust, but did he have to grab Amber’s ass like that?
He texted me while I was packing my suitcase, something we were given minimal time to do. I knew we were headed to his house next, but that didn’t explain why I needed to be in my formal wear.
“Be in the lobby by six o’clock in the formal gown we left outside each of your doors,” Carrie instructed after our playtime in the pool.
I scanned Evan’s message.I’m so sorry, Sarah. He sent a similar one after I fell asleep last night. I never replied and felt obligated to do so now.
Not your fault. I blamed Paul, and the archaic contract that forced Evan into this mess, more than anyone.
Every scene today left me feeling degraded and sick to my stomach, but I only had to film with him. I couldn’t imagine how he felt kissing a dozen girls on command and letting them grope him. I doubted he hatedit—he was a man, after all—but he couldn’t love it either. The intensity never touched his eyes today, nor did his dimples flash. Despite the easy smiles and laughs, there was a depth to every move that was missing, like he turned off his emotions to get through today.
It killed me. My heart hurt each time he touched another woman, and yet I felt worse for him than I did for myself. This was why I didn’t want to get involved with him beyond a sexual connection. It was too complicated. There wasn’t a future between us. There wasn’t even anowbetween us. Falling for an unavailable man was a stupid thing to do, yet my heart had other ideas. At some point, he cracked my emotional armor and wormed his way inside.
The solution was obvious. We needed to keep our relationship professional. That meant kissing for the cameras only and no more midnight rendezvous in my room. It would kill a part of me to do it, but better to feel that pain now than to let this go any further.
I turned off the phone and packed it deep in my suitcase. I wouldn’t put it past the crew to search my belongings. I hid the cord in a different compartment and put everything by the door. My laundry was in its own bag; one of the few perks of the show was that I didn’t have to wash clothes. Someone else would be doing that for me and leaving it in my new room at Evan’s estate.
I shivered.I’ll be sleeping down the hall from him. Last night, I was elated. Tonight, I was nervous. Putting a stop to our intimacy was going to be hard enough without the added temptation of him being a few feet away. I could kiss him mechanically on film. I did it all day. In private? There was nothing mechanical about it.Fuck. It was going to be a long night. I hoped the door came with a lock.
20
Friends with Minor Benefits
The key Evan handed me during the surprise elimination ceremony was a prop. The ceremony was an elaborate ordeal where he invited ten of us to move into his house. Kathy was sent home, while Amber and I were given the keys to his wing. I didn’t know what the damn thing opened or unlocked, but it wasn’t the door to my new suite.
The Mershano Estate was gorgeous, sitting on several hundreds of acres about thirty miles from New Orleans. It was dark when we arrived, but the grounds surrounding the illuminated mansion were astounding. We didn’t have to report to Paul until noon tomorrow, giving me all morning to explore. I planned to go for a run. My body was complaining about the rich food and lack of exercise over the last two weeks. I could also use the mental freedom that accompanied a good workout.
