“Spycraft?” Mom asked.
’Lexi and her big mouth.’
“I learned all kinds of stuff that I used in the movie,” he deflected.
“Like what?” Mom asked.
There was no use evading the subject. David had learned it was better to just come clean when his mom wanted to know something.
“Remember when the studio sent JD Ma to get me ready for my role?” David asked.
“The young woman?” Mom asked.
“She taught me skills like how to blend in, pick a lock, break into a car, and other stuff. They wanted me to know how to do it so when I did it on camera, it looked real.”
“That’s not worrisome at all,” Manaia said.
David was sure he’d offered that little jab because David had threatened to make him the kids’ chauffeur.
“Even if you change your appearance, don’t you think people will recognize your name?” Mom asked.
“He could go by his middle name,” Lexi suggested.
She was starting to remind him why she was the best PA he’d ever had.
“Why exactly would you bother? It’ll all come to light shortly, no matter how good your disguise is,” Mom wondered.
“I want to make some friends before they know I’m the actor. It’s hard to tell whether people really want to get acquainted or whether they think they can get something from me,” David explained.
Mom thought about it for a moment and then nodded.
“I think that has merit, but I still doubt you’ll be able to pull it off for long.”
David winked at her.
“Please. I’m an Academy Award-winning actor.”
“Here we go again,” Lexi moaned.
They all knew this was his pet peeve. People thought that since he’d won, it made him something or someone David never felt he was. A lot of people now thought that he was somehow better or some such nonsense.
“That reminds me of when, to fend off a reporter, David claimed that he put his pants on one leg at a time,” Lexi shared.
“That was funny,” he admitted.
“Why? What happened?” Mom asked.
“Tim and Wolf challenged me to see if that was really true. They had me try to jump into my jeans.”
“He just about killed himself,” Lexi said with a big grin. “But he was able to do it with a pair of shorts.”
Yep. Lexi wasn’t all bad, David decided. He’d just been spooked when she announced she loved him.
Drexler Motors was located in the heart of Hollywood, where all the movie studios were. They were the go-to place if you wanted to pick up something to show off in. Many actors used them to rent a car for a night out if they wanted to be in the gossip rags the following day.
When David pulled into the lot, he was a little worried. The first four cars he saw were a Lamborghini, a Bugatti, an Aston Martin, and a Rolls-Royce.
“This looks to be out of my league. If they weren’t giving me a car for a year, I’d give it a pass.”
“Tell you what: you can drive my car, and I’ll take that cute Rolls-Royce convertible,” his mom offered.
’I bet she would’ came the immediate thought, unbidden, to David’s brain.
As they got out of the Demon, it looked like two of the car salesmen were about to get into a fistfight. Commissions must be pretty good for that level of competitiveness. David was impressed when a young woman popped out from between two cars.
“May I help you?” she asked.
She seemed to feel the death stares she was getting from the two men who had been headed toward the group.
“I’m Lisa Drexler, and you’re David A. Dawson,” she said, recognizing him.
“Yes, I am,” he said as he shook her hand. “And this is my mom, Carol, and personal assistant, Lexi.”
“You’re here to pick up your car. My mom was just saying that you’re the last one to do so. Do you know what you want?” she asked.
“I’m going to use it as my car for college, so I want something smaller but big enough to seat four comfortably. I’d prefer it be something that isn’t too flashy,” he explained.
She gave him a wry look.
“Unlike your Demon.”
“Well, yeah,” he admitted.
“How about a small SUV? We just got one in that I think you might like.”
“That might work.”
She took them around the side of the building and towards the back. Some of the cars there looked like they’d just come off a truck. A team was busy detailing them.
She pointed out a red 4-door hatchback SUV with an all-black interior.
“That’s cute,” Lexi said.
They got closer, and he had to blink in surprise. It said it was a Porsche. He had no idea they made a hatchback.
“This is the Porsche Macan. It has a 3.6-liter V6 twin-turbo with the handling capabilities you would expect from Porsche. And, as you might also expect of a Porsche, it has nice pickup. The Macan will go from 0 to 60 in 4.6 seconds. It might not have the raw power your Demon has, but for city driving, it’s more than adequate,” Lisa explained.
She could see that David was doubtful.
“Honestly, this is the most ‘normal’ car we have on the lot. I can, of course, get you anything you want, but I think if you drive it, you’ll be happy.”
Forty-five minutes later, David drove off the lot in his new car.
Chapter 5
Lexi
She felt ready to explode, like a giant piñata full of secrets. Seeing Umberto Sandoval brought back a flood of memories that she wanted to suppress. He’d been part of her biggest regret.
Lexi had planned to use the day to fix her relationship with David. She knew that announcing that she loved him had made him gun-shy, and he’d been on guard when she got in the car. Lexi had watched as he began to relax as the day went on. She would bet that it was only a matter of time before she could win him back.
The plan had been to remind him what a great team they made. In her wildest fantasy, she’d hoped she could lure him into her bed, but she hadn’t anticipated seeing Umberto today. When Lexi and Umberto had seen each other, he’d almost given everything away. Lexi knew that David was more observant than people gave him credit for and had caught the momentary lapse.
When David had suggested that Manaia drive her home from the car dealership, she’d acquiesced. Lexi wanted to get away from David so that she could deal with all the feelings that had suddenly come flooding back. He knew her better than anyone else and would quickly figure out that something was off.
The irony was that all this really began with David. He’d unwittingly been the catalyst for her downfall, and now, in many ways, he was her redemption.
She found herself sitting on her couch with a bottle of wine, remembering what had happened.
Two Years Before
Lexi’s father, Paul Andon, was excited. He’d maneuvered to take over the Star Academy franchise. The first movie was set to be released shortly, and all indications were that it was going to be the next big blockbuster.
The board of directors wanted to get the cast locked in for the next two movies in the trilogy before the first one hit theaters. The fear was they would make the mistake that Marvel Comics had made with the Avengers series of films. It was reported that one of the key actors had negotiated a deal that would make him upwards of $75 million for just one movie. The board made it clear that they wanted to keep the salaries of the ensemble cast to under that number for two films.
Everything had been going well for Paul until the four actors had met and compared notes. The women had been unhappy with the revelation that they would make considerably less than the men. They’d ended up banding together and wanted to jointly negotiate their contracts, with Craig Wild’s manager, Kent Crain, leading the talks.