“We have some time, but yeah. The plane is scheduled to leave in a few hours.”
“Okay. I’ll get all my stuff together.” She yawns and reaches over her head in a big stretch, letting the sheet fall around her hips.
“You did that on purpose.”
“Did what?”
I set the mug aside and tackle Liv back onto the bed. “Turned me on again.”
“I hate to break it to you, but it doesn’t take much to do that.”
I grin and then kiss her softly. “You’re not wrong.”
“Won’t we be late?”
“It’s a private plane, babe. They can’t leave without us.”
“Good. Because I want round two.”
“Happy to oblige.”
She doesn’t know that I’m doing this. And she might be mad at me later, but I’ll handle it.
Because it’s the right thing to do.
I should have done it before we went to LA.
“He’s expecting you,” the admin says with a smile. “You can go on in.”
“Thanks.”
I walk through the open doorway into Luke Williams’s office, then stop short when I see that he’s not alone. Calmly, I close the door behind me and then turn to the older couple.
“Vaughn, I invited my wife to join us. Natalie, this is Vaughn Barrymore.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” I offer Natalie my hand. While she shakes it, I can’t look away from her. “Olivia is the spitting image of you. Which means she’s completely gorgeous.”
“Thank you,” Natalie says with a genuine smile. “Come in and sit down.”
“I mean no disrespect, but I’m nervous, so I think I’ll pace a bit.”
Natalie and Luke share a look, and I walk over to shake Luke’s hand and then pace to the windows, taking a deep breath before walking back over to them.
“First, I need to apologize.”
Luke’s calm face doesn’t waver. “What do you feel you need to apologize for, exactly?”
I might as well just get it over with. “I’ve been dating your daughter for a couple of weeks now, and I realize there may be a couple of conflicts of interest here. For one thing, she’s working on the project I’m involved in, and for another, her father is my boss.”
Luke crosses his arms over his chest. “People in the industry get involved all the time, Vaughn. Even while they’re working on the same project. Especially when they’re working on the same project.”
“Yes, but their father isn’t usually the owner of the production company that’s fronting the money for said project.” I finally sit, though only on the edge of a long, black leather couch. “Not to mention, you’re someone I admire, and I’ve wanted to work with you for a long time. I should have come to you before I became involved with her. Well, once I found out you were her dad.”
Luke raises an eyebrow.
“But I didn’t because the chemistry is off the charts, and I didn’t think of it.” I clear my throat. “Olivia didn’t initially want to go to that party with me last night. I assured her that no one would take any photos of us because it was a private party, and phones were checked at the door. But clearly, someone broke the rule.”
“Clearly,” Luke echoes.
“Okay, you two are giving me a headache,” Natalie breaks in and rubs her hand over her face before looking at Luke. “You, my love, need to soften up just a bit here. He came to you. Not the other way around.”
“There’s a certain way things like this go,” Luke informs her. “I’m the father. I’m not going to go easy on him.”
“It’s true,” I agree with a half smile. “If the roles were reversed, I would have punched me by now.”
“See?”
“I know that Liv will be irritated that I came to see you without telling her. But she’s nervous, and she doesn’t want to let you down. I don’t see how starting something with me would let you down, but she has her reasons. I’m not an asshole.”
I lick my lips and reconsider.
“Okay, sometimes I’m an asshole, but not when it comes to Liv. She’s freaking incredible, and I’m not going to intentionally do something that makes her uncomfortable. I’m more pissed than I can tell you that someone took that photo when she clearly didn’t want to be public about us being together. I’ll find out who took it. I just want her to be happy. And, frankly, I don’t plan on doing anything stupid to hurt her.”
“You’re a celebrity,” Luke says simply. “Simply living the life you do, the lifestyle you do, can hurt her.”
“I can’t do anything about the fact that I’m famous, any more than you can.”
Luke shakes his head and shuffles his feet. “You’re right. You can’t change it. But that doesn’t mean that I’m fine with you pursuing my daughter.”
“So, you’re against us being together simply because of my name?”
“I didn’t say it was fair.”
“It’s ridiculous,” Natalie mutters. “Because if you had the same rules for yourself as you do for our children, you and I wouldn’t be together, either. And I seem to remember that you were unyielding in your pursuit of me.”