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"Thanks." I smile at her and then let Kaiden lead me from the trailer with his hand on the small of my back. Everyone else watches us the entire way.
"Think they're alerting the media already?" Kaiden asks, his voice suspiciously calm once the door closes behind us.
"What are you up to?" I ask, eyeing him sideways.
"Nothing."
If there's one thing Kaiden isn't, it's innocent. But I let him get away with playing the part, for now, knowing I'll get the truth out of him sooner or later. I have my ways. He may look tough, but he's not so hard to break once you know how. It just takes a little bit of effort.
Yay for me.
He leads me across the back of Stage 6. We dodge equipment, stepping over bundles of wires, ducking under balloon lights, and a camera boom. Kane and Scarlett are filming a fight on the main set, so most of the crew is over there, leaving this part of the set eerily abandoned. Then again, the dark corners have always been my favorite parts of film sets.
"When I first started acting, I used to climb up into the rafters and hide out," I murmur as we skirt around the edges of the set. "I liked being able to watch everything unfolding down below."
"Jesus, princess," Kaiden says. "You're lucky you didn't fall."
"Oh, I know. When I got caught, the director threw a fit. He threatened to fire me if I ever did it again." I smile at the memory, laughing quietly. "It scared me straight. Well, at least until I met Gage Bronx. He coaxed me back into the rafters when we were filming together. He was smart enough to secure us with straps so we didn't fall."
"Gage Bronx." Kaiden repeats the name, a furrow between his brows. "He quit acting years ago."
"Yeah. His brother had a heart condition like you," I say. "Gage only ever got into acting to pay for college. Once he did what he needed to do, he walked away and never looked back." We don't cross paths often since he left acting behind, but I'm always happy to see him and Troian when we do.
Kaiden stops walking and pulls me into a small recess where two large beams connect. He tucks his hand beneath my chin, lifting my gaze to his. "Why are you telling me this, princess?" he asks, his gaze searching my face.
"I don't know," I whisper.
"You do know."
"I…" I swallow the lie when he frowns at me, the bottom edge of his scar pulled taut. "I don't know. I sometimes think leaving it all behind wouldn't be so terrible if I did it for the right reason, that's all."
"I'm not the right reason, Laura." His firm tone sends my stomach sinking like lead. "You aren't giving up your career because you think it's what's best for me. I won't allow it."
"I…"
"So if that's what you're thinking, the answer is no," he growls. "You aren't giving up a fucking thing for me."
"Kaiden."
"No," he growls.
"You can't just order me around!" I cry, stomping my foot as tears well in my eyes. "It's my life. I get to decide what I do with it, Kaiden."
"Are you mine, princess?" he asks, his expression softening.
"Maybe."
"Don't piss me off." He wraps his hand gently around my throat to bring my face close to his. "I'll have you screaming my name right here."
"You wouldn't."
He eyes me levelly, and I know he means it. I see the truth peeping out from the depths of his wild gray eyes. He'll make me come here and now, just to hear me screaming his name. Just to remind me that I'm his and no argument will change that. This man loves me so much that he's here right now, doing what he hasn't done in years. And he's doing it for me.
"Of course I'm yours," I whisper, the fight draining out of me. How can I be upset with him when he's literally facing his worst nightmares and memories for me?
"Then you aren't giving up the career you love to be with me," he murmurs, brushing his lips across mine in a gentle pass. "It's my job to take care of you, not the other way around. You haven't sacrificed and worked your ass off for this long just to throw it away because you think I need to be protected. I'm a big boy. I can handle whatever they want to throw my way."
"We don't have to go public."
"I'm not hiding you," he growls, fire flickering to life in his expression. "They're not linking you to Abel fucking Clarke or anyone else in the goddamn press. It'll be my name next to yours."
"Is that what this is about?" I ask, biting my lip to hide an amused smile. "You're jealous?"
His scowl is dark enough to make me shiver. "I'm not jealous. I'm pissed that Clarke will have his fucking hands on you tomorrow."
