Luxe Glamour (The Glamour Series Book 5) (5 page)

“Give me a minute.” I grabbed my duffel bag from the truck bed.

Yap! Yap!

“I know, buddy, just one more thing.” I reached around Bullet and grabbed my hanging bag. I hoped this monkey suit still fit. The last time I wore the Armani was when I’d won an Emmy. With the hanging bag folded over my forearm, I picked up Bullet with my other hand.

“Daaaaamn! You did bring me dogs!” The voice halted me in my tracks. Choo stood just inside the front door with his hip cocked. Bullet leapt from my arms like he knew Choo already. In an instant he was at Choo’s feet. Choo bent over and scooped up Bullet. Bullet’s little body wiggled and his tongue licked all over Choo’s face.

“Meet Bullet and Carson.” I said.

“Look at you! Aren’t you the cutest little boy on the planet?” Choo lifted Bullet up above his head and Bullet wiggled and whined with excitement.

“Looks like that’s a match.” Jackson walked up behind Choo. “Lots of personality.” Jackson looked toward me. “Just exactly what we need more of around this house.” He had a more solid build than Choo, but he was about the same height. Together, Choo and Jackson were an impressive couple.

Carson now sat in the center of the front sidewalk. His gaze traveled from me to Jackson and back again. I nodded at him. “Go on.”

Jackson stepped around where Choo and Bullet canoodled in the doorway of the house and bent forward. He spoke to Carson and patted his leg, “Come here, Carson, come here boy.”

Jackson didn’t have to ask Carson twice. Well-behaved and obedient, Carson was excited to meet his new human. Jackson stroked his hand over Carson’s thick fur and told him what a good boy he was.

Wow. I didn’t need to stay a minute longer. All four of them would do just fine. In fact, this little love fest made me odd man out until the adoption event tomorrow. A smile curved across my face. I’d take it. Two more saved lives and I wasn’t just talking about the dogs, although the dogs had found their forever home, too. Seriously, that’s how I thought of what we did at Pawtown. The dogs saved
us
most the time, not the other way around.

“Man, I’m sorry,” Jackson jumped to his feet and Carson pressed against his lower leg. “Trick it’s great to see you!” He slapped my back. “You got this right!” He looked at Carson and then his gaze turned to Choo and Bullet.

“Oh, my, God!” Choo said. “Honey, you had better look out because I have found my new love.”

“Okay, Baby,” Jackson leaned closer to me. “Thank you. If Choo’s happy then I’m happy.”

I couldn’t help but smile. I understood this to be the case with all couples. When one was miserable, everyone was miserable.

Jackson added, “He misses Kong and Bernie and Scorsese and Spielberg. I mean, we go over there nearly every day, but my man loves his dogs and he wants some at our house.”

Jackson walked toward the door where Choo, with Bullet still in his arms, had retreated. Carson walked beside Jackson as if he’d done it all his life. “And this guy,” Jackson’s hand patted Carson’s head. “I can already tell this guy is going to love running with me every morning.” Carson’s tail beat back and forth, because as much as humans think that dogs don’t speak our language, I knew otherwise. Carson was active and so was Jackson, and these two were a perfect match.

Their housekeeper greeted me at the door and took my garment bag. I followed Choo and Jackson through the house out to the back patio. Beers were in a bucket on the table.

“Stella?” Jackson asked.

“After that drive? Yes, please.”

Jackson grabbed a beer, twisted it open, and handed it to me. Choo sat on the patio couch with his feet tucked up under him and Bullet curled up on his lap.

“He is going to love meeting Kong,” Choo said as he stroked the top of Bullet’s head.

“I’m not so sure about that, Honey.” Jackson settled next to Choo. “They’re both pretty strong personalities in little packages.”

“They’ll have to check each other out,” Choo declared as he scratched behind Bullet’s ears. “But then they’ll be best buds. Isn’t that what it’s like when you meet someone that has a similar personality to you? You hate them, and then you love them.”

Jackson placed his arm around Choo’s shoulder.

Choo’s gaze landed on me. “How did you know?” I settled into a chair across from Choo and Jackson. “How do you know which pups are perfect for certain people?”

My hand scraped over my jaw and I tilted my head. I looked at this happy family. Bullet on Choo’s lap and Jackson with his arm around Choo while Carson lay curled at Jackson’s feet. How
did
I know?

“I’m not sure it’s got anything to do with me. Most dogs know when they meet their people. And these two? Well, to me, they felt just perfect for you and Jackson, like they’d complete your family.”

Choo’s gaze left me and turned to Jackson, his eyes traveling over his face. “They’re a start.”

Jackson’s body stiffened with Choo’s words. His smile remained on his face, but a quirk of his eyebrows indicated that Choo’s comment was just a few words in a long ongoing conversation. I sure didn’t want any part of
that
discussion. Better to change the subject. “What time is the party tonight?”

Choo’s gaze came back to me and his smile widened. “Red carpet is at five.”

“You want me to do the carpet?” I shook my head and closed my eyes. Damn, I hadn’t considered this. I hated being trotted out like a show dog at Westminster.

“You need press and donations for Pawtown, and this is a red carpet event. Aside from the dogs, you’re the best thing going for Pawtown. You do need to remember that the public still loves you. If I have my info correct, you get offered films and TV pilots every year.”

“Don’t tell Angie.”

“Oh, believe me, she knows. Angie and I talk. A lot. Baby, you gots to get on these connections to keep Pawtown in the black.”

A sigh escaped my lips. My sister. While I wanted to be annoyed, she was right to reach out to Choo. Choo and Angie could both ask people for things in a way that made people
want
to help. Me? I hated asking for anything. I wanted to do everything on my own. If I had my way, I’d sit out in Pawtown, using all my own money to save the animals. But, according to Angie, that was a complete no-go.

“Then we’ve got the adoption event on Saturday. Left Coast has been billing the adoption event as part of their anniversary celebration. There will be a ton of celebs there to bring in the press and get the word out about Pawtown. I’ve got my fingers crossed that we’ll find lots of good homes for the pups, and lots of bucks for the sanctuary.”

Fingers crossed.

“Plus, you know Left Coast is writing a hefty check? You can thank one of my clients for that and Amanda’s half-brother.”

“Rhett Legend?”

Choo nodded. “I’m working with his sister, Sophia. She’s on the upswing.” His hand lifted like a jet taking off from a runway.

“Damn, that’s an adrenaline rush.”

“But, on the QT, our numbers indicate that her fans are looking for a way to beat her back a little.”

“Maybe she won’t do anything to give them a reason.”

“Oh, Baby.” Choo pressed his palm to his chest and cocked an eyebrow. “You do not have to give the public a reason for them to decide it is your turn to fall. They will find one. Besides, no one is perfect, and while I like Sophia Legend, the girl has a whole lot to learn. She’s still a little”—Choo pursed his lips together— “maybe a little full of herself?”

I took a deep breath. When the public loved you, staying humble was hard. People gave you anything you wanted just to be close to you. But when the public turned? A shiver raced down my spine. I remembered all too well the anger directed at me after the accident, and I had to admit it had been well deserved. But I’d never sought forgiveness.

Eventually, after a couple of years, the public wanted to know where I’d slunk off to and what I had done with my life. I didn’t envy Sophia Legend. Like any tumble, a fall from grace hurt.

“Trick, you know about the Legends, right? How Steve had this secret family with his housekeeper, and Sterling and Amanda only recently found out about their siblings?”

“I think I heard something about it.” I settled back against the chair cushion. Choo was a big gossip. He loved to talk about what was going on with everyone in town, which really made him the perfect guy for PR.

“Amanda is determined to turn that entire crew into one big happy family.” Choo shook his head. “I do not know how the hell she’ll manage to pull that off. I mean Rhett seems okay now, after he and Sterling beat the shit out of each other at Amanda’s wedding. And Ellen, one of the twins, is good with Amanda and Sterling. But Sophia?” Choo waved his hand. “The girl is fabulous to look at and she’s already done a cover for
Cosmo
, and she’s just shot for
Vogue
. I appreciate any woman who can work a pair of heels and a Versace but, puh-lease, she has some serious I-must-rule-the-world-and-you-will-love-me issues. I’m doing her PR and the public is this far from turning on her.”

Choo squeezed his fingers together so a millimeter of space showed between his thumb and his index finger. “She needs to find a charity to work with. Something that will make the public continue to love her.” Choo’s eyes widened and he pressed his hand to his chest.

My heart thudded. I knew where Choo was headed and I absolutely didn’t want him to go there.

“Pawtown! Oh my goodness, Sophia should be the spokesperson for Pawtown!” Choo said.

Bingo. No. Way. The last thing I needed was an overentitled spoiled brat. Nor did I need a model working with me and my dogs. Nope. Beautiful women were my weakness. The more damaged the better. Women and blow were my downfall. I needed to steer clear of this girl. She had to have daddy issues with a father like Steve Legend.

My face must have told a thousand stories as my gaze latched onto Choo. His high-pitched voice and saucer-wide eyes attempted to show surprise. Did he think I was buying his act? Jackson pressed his fist to his mouth to stifle a laugh.

“What?” Choo turned toward Jackson. “Why are you laughing at me?”

“I love you, Babe.” Jackson tilted his chin toward his chest. “Honest, I do, but Dillon is the actor in the family.”

Choo narrowed his eyes, but a smile broadened over his face. “Obvious?”

Jackson nodded. “Completely.”

Choo turned back to me with a sheepish smile. “Okay, yes, I
did
think of this match before and I may have mentioned your foundation to Sophia, whose star
is
on the rise. But she
would
be a great spokesperson for Pawtown and Pawtown would be a great cause for her.”

“A high-maintenance model-actress with issues, who is about to take a meteor-like fall through the atmosphere? This is what you’re trying to sell me?” The cool glass of my beer bottle pressed against my lips and the bite of beer passed through my mouth.  “You know there are reasons I ditched L.A., and one of them was high-maintenance vapid women.”

“She’s really nice …
and
she’s a Legend.”

I couldn’t prevent my incredulity from showing and I looked at Jackson. “Notice he didn’t say anything about her
not
being vapid.”

“My man may know how to flip the truth but he absolutely does not lie. Sophia is”—Jackson paused as he searched for the right words—“enamored with her fame right now.”

“Riiight.” I drew out the word. My chest tightened. Anyone who’d ever been followed, recognized, or graced the cover of a tabloid remembered the addictive sensation of being recognized. Fame, like any addiction, quickly turned. You began to crave the attention and the spotlight. You started feeling needy and worthless and jealous of any other a-hole that graced the cover of a tabloid magazine. The aftereffects of fame could make you feel like shit. “The higher you fly the farther you fall.”

Jackson nodded. “You got to have pretty strong roots to keep yourself tied to the ground when fame hits you full force.”

“Amen.” Fame had almost stolen my life. My fame and my bad behavior had caused a whole lot of hell for me and my family. Money, fame, and luxury can’t save you, but they could sure destroy your life. Or, in my case,
lives
.

“Plus we all know how
low maintenance
the Legend family is.”

“Sterling and Amanda aren’t so bad.”

“You forget, I did a year of TV with Steve Legend when I was fourteen. I remember what Steve’s like. He was the guy who introduced me to bourbon. Not to mention the blow he always had stashed in his dressing room.” I tilted my beer bottle.  “There were always a lot of gorgeous women in and out of his trailer … and I thought they were running lines.”

“Sophia would be a perfect match for Pawtown and Pawtown could be just exactly what she needs.”

I took a long pull on my beer. Not exactly what I wanted, but I didn’t need to burst Choo’s carefully blown bubble tonight. We had an entire weekend to get through, and this discussion could wait.

Sophia

“Sophia, would you get off the damn Instagram?”

“What? How can I
not
take pictures of my rock-star brother in love?” I snapped another pic of him and posted it to all my social media accounts. “I do have to tell you, though, all this lovey-dovey stuff is going to ruin that bad-boy rocker image you’ve cultivated your entire life.”

“Fuck the image,” Rhett said. “I’m happy the way I am.”

“Okay, that is just a little bit too much for me to fathom.
You
?
Happy
? The apocalypse must be near.”

“Very funny. Now, will you put the phone away and go sit your ass down? We need to get started.”

“Right. You’re happy Rhett with the rest of the world, and cranky Rhett with me.” I put my phone in my purse, pulled out my compact, checked my lipstick and hair and then exited the backstage area. This little concert, celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of Left Coast records, had all the heavy hitters in Hollywood in attendance. I could definitely handle Rhett’s pissy attitude just to be here. Besides, he didn’t
really
think I was a pain in the ass. How could he? He loved me. Everyone loved me. How could they not?