Wicked Grind (Stark World 1)

"There's a slight possibility it had something to do with me being a complete and total prick."

"You?" He turned and jogged backwards so he was facing Wyatt. "I'm shocked."

"Fuck you. And if you trip and fall on your ass, I'm going to take a picture and send that shit to Instagram."

Lyle flipped him the bird, but turned back around. "If I ask how you were a prick are you going to kick sand in my face?"

"Let's just say I gave her a rough time. I convinced myself she had an agenda. Or that she was playing some kind of head game with me. Or that she figured the job would earn her some sort of golden key to open the door to Hollywood."

"Seriously? You thought she was messing with you because of who you are?"

"Don't act surprised. I know you get that shit, too," he added. "More than me, I'd think. The non-Hollywood grandson isn't nearly as interesting as an actual movie star."

Lyle grimaced. "Yeah, lately I've got a wide range of options for female companionship. More than I want, that's for damn sure."

"You don't say." Wyatt's voice dripped with irony. After several years on a hit sitcom, Lyle Tarpin's star had gone supernova when he starred in two movies that turned out to be box office sensations. That's one of the reasons they were out for a jog--because Lyle had just signed onto an established action franchise, and the director wanted him in prime shape.

"I'm living on kale and hard boiled eggs," Lyle had complained the other day. "And people think Hollywood is all about the glamour."

"Anybody special among those options?" Wyatt asked now.

"Not a chance. Besides, we've known each other for what? Two years now? You know I don't date."

"Not even Rip?" Wyatt asked, referring to Lyle's former TV co-star.

"Seriously? Come on, man. You of all people should know better than to listen to rumors," Lyle said. "Besides, I'm not gay. And even if I was, that asshole would be the last guy I'd fuck."

"Fair enough." Wyatt remembered the buzz back when the show was hot and the costars were feuding. "Just be careful. All that female attention you've been getting? It's just going to get more intense. You're on a fast trajectory, my friend."

Wyatt had no idea why he was advising Lyle. God knew Wyatt had no special insight into women. He wasn't in the habit of kicking women out of his bed, true, but neither had he dated anyone special in, well, ever. At least not since he'd been an adult. And the one woman who'd piqued his interest was a woman he not only didn't trust, but one he'd managed to scare off.

Not a stellar record, all things considered.

"I'm fine," Lyle assured him. "I'm just focusing on work right now."

That sounded perfectly reasonable, but Wyatt couldn't shake the feeling his friend was holding something back.

"You still haven't answered me," Lyle continued before Wyatt could press the point. "Why did you think this girl--Kelsey, right?--had an agenda?"

"Are you asking me about now, or about twelve years ago? Actually, hang on," he added, coming to a halt and bending over with his hands on his knees. Lyle didn't exactly stop, but at least he stayed by Wyatt, jogging in place.

Wyatt had to admire his stamina.

"Let's start with twelve years ago," Lyle said, and Wyatt relayed what he'd overheard from Grace. A conversation he could recite in perfect, morbid detail.

"Okay, I get that you were pissed. I would be, too. But she was a kid. Did you seriously think she was doing the same thing now? Not fucking you for points, obviously. But for a job or access or some such bullshit? I mean, how would being in with you or your family even help her? You said she's, what? A kindergarten teacher?"

"And a dancer," Wyatt said.

"Even so. You do remember that your family is in the movies, right? It's not like they own a dance troupe."

"Funny. But my mom's working on that film adaptation. You know, the musical that won the Tony last year. Maybe she thought that working with me could get her an in."

"Sounds dubious to me."

"Maybe, but struggling actors and dancers will try anything. It's a fact of this business. My dad sure as hell saw it." He glanced at Lyle. "You'll see it, too."

"I will," Lyle said. "But that doesn't mean everybody's got an angle. And listen, buddy, about your dad--"