Page 29 of Chasing Christmas

I have a feeling she's going to need it with whatever is going on with her and Andrew.

Chapter Eleven

Kaiden

Ipacearoundoutsidethe set like a caged lion, four steps in one direction, six in the other. What the fuck is taking so long? They've been filming for an hour already. How long can it possibly take for them to get this scene marked and over with?

Luca closed the set for it. I have a feeling he did it to keep me out here. The rational part of my mind is grateful to him for that. The less rational part is mad as hell. My little star is in there right now, and she's pregnant with my kid. I can't see her. I can't touch her.

I don't even fucking care about Abel or the camera crew. None of them even register. None of them even matter. All I can think about is my shining star and how goddamn badly I want to be the one putting my hands all over her right now.

A thousand versions of the scene run through my head, each dirtier than the last. In every single one, she's with me, and this isn't a movie. I have her spread across the candy counter, eating her cunt while she's coated in sugar. I drive into her, fucking her from one orgasm to the next while everyone watches. She moans for me…begs for me. Screams my name repeatedly as I drill her tight cunt harder, faster.

I pace faster, a growl rumbling in my throat.

My hands clench and unclench. Sweat drips from my brow.

"They're together," a familiar voice whispers from behind me. "Liketogethertogether."

"Wow. She could do so much better. Have you seen his scar? Dreadful."

"Seen it? I talked to him," Loraine says.

"You didn't!"

"I did. He's quite rude. I don't know what she sees in him."

"Well, it's not his looks," her friend says.

"Or his personality."

"They won't last. As soon as word leaks, she'll drop him."

Jesus Christ.

My stomach clenches in disgust, white-hot anger pulsing through me. I wheel around, having heard more than enough. I have no idea what I'm going to say, and I don't get the chance to find out. Loraine and her redheaded friend slip around the corner, their heads bent together as they whisper back and forth.

"Fuck," I snarl, scrubbing a hand down my face. The action doesn't erase their words. It doesn't erase the yawning pit in the middle of my stomach, either. The shit they just spewed is mild compared to what other people will say once word about our relationship leaks.

I know because I've heard it all before.

Freak. Scarface. Krueger.I didn't disappear for the fun of it. I got sick of seeing my picture online and reading the endless parade of comments. I know what they're putting Laura through now because I've been there. People can be vicious, especially in this town. Especially when they think no one is looking.

Now, Laura will hear the same names. She'll endure the same whispers. Only, it'll be worse for her because she has more to lose. Because her heart is so goddamn big. What they say about me will wound her, hurt her. How is that possibly healthy for her or the baby? How is any of this healthy for her or the baby?

I'm the last goddamn thing they need in their lives.

"You know what I really hate?"

I glance back toward the set to find Scarlett Cassidy watching me with her head cocked to the side. Her brunette hair is pinned back from her face, her white blouse shimmering beneath the lights. She looks regal and composed, every inch a star. She doesn't stare at me in pity but with fire in her amber eyes. She heard every word Loraine and her redheaded friend just spoke.

"What's that?" I ask.

"People who have nothing better to do with their time than talk about things that are none of their business." Her lips compress into a thin, disapproving line, her amber eyes narrowed after Loraine and her friend. "In my experience, they're never worth the time we waste internalizing what they've said."

"You're probably right about that," I say quietly.

"Laura is glowing. If you're responsible for that, good for you." Her lips tip up into a small smile. "I hope jealousy eats the catty bitches alive while she's living her best life."