When she walked into the library, Kitty saw exactly what had enticed Jonas inside. It was as though the musty room filled with books had been transformed into a modern-day control centre. Laptops hummed, a Wi-Fi booster blinked and the desk was covered in paper. She looked a little closer. It looked like the pages of a printed script.
‘Where should I put these?’ Her voice sounded louder than usual, echoing around the tall-ceilinged room. Both men immediately stood up and swung around to face her, but it was Everett’s angry expression she noticed first.
‘You shouldn’t be in here. It’s strictly off limits. How many times do I have to tell you all? And stop looking at that script, it’s top secret.’
Kitty hesitated, still balancing the drink and cookies in her hands. She looked around in vain for somewhere to place the tray, but it seemed as though every surface was filled with computer equipment and piles of papers. ‘Annie asked me to bring some coffee in for you,’ she stuttered. ‘And there’s cookies, too.’ Part of her wanted to tell him where he could stick those damn cookies, and it wasn’t going to be anywhere near his mouth. But he was her boss, and more than that, her key to an internship. For better or worse, she needed him.
‘Are you deaf?’ Everett asked her. ‘Just get out. Now.’
Drake gave an uneasy laugh and walked over, taking the tray from her grasp. ‘It’s OK, Everett, it’s not as though there’s anything to see here. And she’s signed a non-disclosure agreement, hasn’t she?’
Non-disclosures were common for Hollywood staff, whether they were directly employed by the movie industry or not. The last thing a famous actor wanted was for his nanny to sell his dirty secrets to the newspapers. Pretty much everybody had to sign an NDA before taking up employment.
‘It doesn’t matter, if this gets out we could lose everything,’ Everett growled. ‘All it would take is the right word in the wrong ear and copycat movies will be showing up all over the place. I want this kept under wraps.’
He was being dramatic. Hollywood gossip always trumped secrecy, they both knew that. Whatever he was working on wouldn’t be secret for long. So why was he so tetchy?
‘Kitty won’t say anything, will you?’ Drake looked over at her, his eyebrows raised.
‘Of course I won’t. There’s nothing to tell anyway, just a whole load of flashing equipment and a script flung everywhere.’ It took everything she had not to roll her eyes. Any hint of excitement she’d felt during her first few weeks in Hollywood had long since passed. One thing was for sure, the movie business just wasn’t that glamorous.
Everett turned back to his assistant. ‘I want this room sealed off, you and I are the only ones allowed in here, and if it’s empty we lock it with a key.’
‘Sure, of course.’ Drake placed the tray on top of a pile of papers then gestured at Kitty. ‘I’ll show you out,’ he said, steering her towards the door.
Kitty didn’t resist; she couldn’t wait to get out of there. Everett was treating her as if she were a piece of dirt he’d found on the sole of his shoe. What with him, and his mercurial brother, she’d had about enough of the lot of them.
She couldn’t care less about whatever movie it was that Everett was producing, as far as she was concerned he could be making box-office millions and it wouldn’t concern her. She only wanted to look after Jonas for a few weeks, and then find an internship, with or without his help. Everett could keep his secrets to himself; she didn’t want them.
16
Friendship is constant in all other things,
save in the office and affairs of love
– Much Ado About Nothing
‘Are you OK?’ Annie asked, as Kitty pulled a couple of cans of soda from the refrigerator. ‘You seem kind of jumpy.’
‘Do I?’ Kitty stood straight, sliding the cans into her bag. ‘I don’t mean to be.’
‘Maybe it’s the way Mr Everett talked to you yesterday,’ Annie said sympathetically. ?
??There’s no call for him to speak to anyone like that.’
‘He’s just highly strung,’ Kitty said, pulling the cupboard door open to grab some cookies. ‘A lot of people in Hollywood are like that. I’m used to it. I used to work in a restaurant in downtown LA, and Everett isn’t any worse than some of the customers I had there.’
‘Hmm,’ Annie murmured from her usual chair – the one closest to the stove. ‘I noticed you didn’t go down to help out with the puppy this morning either.’
‘I didn’t think I was needed.’ She kept her voice light, even though her chest felt as constricted as hell. ‘It’s only a puppy, I think Adam can look after him. He doesn’t need me interfering.’
She’d been on edge ever since the previous day. It had been a hell of a one, too – with that kiss from Adam and the telling-off from Everett, and now neither of them appeared to want to acknowledge her presence. Jonas was the only Klein male who even seemed to take any interest in her right now.
And that was how it should be, she reminded herself. He was the reason she was here, after all.
‘Have you two had words too?’ Annie asked, taking a sip of her coffee. ‘I thought you were getting on well.’
If only she knew. ‘We’re fine,’ Kitty said, her voice a little curter than she’d planned. ‘I just want to spend some time with Jonas. And goodness knows that boy could do with a little attention.’