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The few people between them had gradually edged their way back until it was a standoff. Landon versus Audrie. He didn’t want this kind of standoff, though.
“I didn’t lie.” Landon felt himself sinking deeper and deeper. How was he going to get out of this? “I wanted to tell you. I don’t agree with the decision.”
“You don’t agree with the decision?” Rourke asked. “We decided this was best for everyone. Audrie could go back to her clients, and we’d have someone on set with experience in doing hair for movies and TV.”
“That’s me!” Luann called out, a big smile on her face. She seemed to be completely oblivious to the tension around her.
“Excuse me,” Michael’s voice interrupted. They all looked over at him. “Could you all wrap up this three-act play you have going on over here? We have a movie to shoot.”
“Give us a second,” Landon said in a much sterner voice than he’d intended.
He had been fed up with Michael’s attitude all week. And right now was not the time to throw his weight around. Surprisingly, Michael gave a nod and turned back to the camera.
As he returned his attention to Audrie, Landon’s gaze skimmed past Jessica, standing there with her eyes narrowed, watching the whole scene. She seemed confused.
“I told you I messed up,” he said to Audrie, who now had her arms crossed over her chest. “I’ve messed all this up.”
Her stance made it clear she wasn’t really open to hearing what he had to say. Too bad. He was going to say it anyway.
“I didn’t expect to come here and meet such an incredible woman,” he continued. “When I did, it put the production in jeopardy. This is bigger than me, so I set my own best interests aside for the sake of the movie.” He glanced back over his shoulder quickly. “That’s one thing I can’t say for some people.”
“So, the whole thing with Jessica…” Audrie said, pulling his attention back to her face. The hurt in her eyes was impossible to miss. “That was because you had a financial stake in all of this? This is your business, too.”
He took a deep breath and let it out, nodding. “I didn’t want to. I’m not even the slightest bit interested in Jessica. Never have been. There’s only one woman I’m interested in and have been from the day I saw you. But Rourke insisted I keep our star happy.”
Rourke threw his hands up in the air and stepped back as if to say, “Don’t blame this on me.” But Landon wasn’t going to let him get out of this without taking at least his part of the blame.
“Rourke and I both were worried Jessica might walk off the set, and if she did, we’d have to start over with a different actress,” he said.
“Hmm.”
That sound was behind him, and he knew it came from Jessica—not just because he knew her voice, but it was such a predictable response. In her mind, there was no way they could replace her, and the sad truth was, she was right. They could replace her, but she was their bankable star in this series of productions. Having her attached meant more money, and more money put him that much closer to his dream of going back to ranching.
“I’m here for the investment,” Landon said.
Pausing, he glanced over at his brother. It was something Landon had never actually said out loud, but as long as he was opening up, he may as well throw it all out there.
“Rourke doesn’t like ranching. I love it. It’s in my blood. I invested in Rourke because I believe in him. I know he’s going to be a big success, which is why I put as much money as I could into this.”
He dared to take a step closer to her then, if only so she could see the humility in his eyes. All he could do was be as honest as possible and hope maybe, eventually, she’d see that he wasn’t going to hurt her. In fact, he’d spend his life making sure nobody hurt her again.
“Meeting you just made me that much more determined to get to the finish line,” he continued. “I want to buy a ranch and build a business on it from scratch, but I want to do it with you by my side.”
Her eyes widened slightly, and her arms dropped to her sides. For a heart-stopping moment, he was sure he’d gotten through to her. She saw what he felt for her was real.
But then she stepped away from him. Just one step back—not even a whole step—and she looked away. Her gaze went immediately to Luann, whose smile had faded slightly as she watched the exchange.
“I guess you have this all under control, so I’ll just go,” Audrie said. “Unless you want me to stay and finish out the day. I can do that.”
Rourke shook his head. “You can handle this, right, Luann?”
Her smile brightened considerably. “Of course,” she said. “I just need to grab my supplies. They’re in my car. I keep them in a cooler so the heat doesn’t get to them. I’ll be right back.”
Luann headed across the barn without waiting for a response. Audrie watched her go, then turned back to look at Rourke.
“Thank you for the opportunity,” she told him. “Let me know if you need anything else from me.” Then she looked at Landon. “Goodbye.”
And that was all she said before she turned and walked out of the barn—out of his life—for good.
