“We were just talking about the burst pipe in the Los Angeles hotel.” Angelica pointed at Leanne. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so wet in my life.”

  Angelica didn’t look at Leanne for that one. Her baby blues were turned on Hope, locked together with her eyes in a battle that Hope wasn’t sure was even happening. Angelica reached up and snagged Hope’s fingers, lightly pulling on them.

  “It’s a joke, Hope. You should be laughing.”

  “Right. Sorry.” Hope shook her head a bit, trying to get her senses back, but it was so hard to focus right now. She’d never seen Angelica act like this before, and it unnerved her. “How did the pipe burst?”

  Leanne snorted, and she squeezed Angelica’s leg tightly. “One of the owners decided they wanted to do some renovation and had hired a questionable site manager. They cut right through it when they were taking down a wall. It was one of the fire suppression pipes.”

  Hope wanted to pluck Leanne’s hand off Angelica’s bare skin and flop it away so that no one would be touching Angelica—no one but her that is. Hope had to bite back that thought. Angelica wasn’t hers, but the possessiveness that stole through her was astoundingly sharp. She didn’t want Leanne to touch her. Not one tip of her finger.

  And to have Angelica be making sexual jokes with her?

  God, what world had Hope walked into?

  “There was six inches of water filling the ballroom—you know the room where we held the wrap parties?” Angelica asked, looking up at Hope and snagging her fingers again.

  Hope nodded her understanding. She knew what Angelica was saying, but the feelings roiling around in her stomach were another beast entirely. She didn’t understand those.

  “Six inches of water. It took a whole month to dry the place out and get everything fixed and back into place. After that the Kartalis refused to find another construction company without my approval.” Angelica squeezed Hope’s fingers tightly. “What did you bring me for lunch?”

  “Oh, just… something easy.” Hope bit her lip. The flip-flopping of the conversation and her emotions was getting to her. She wasn’t as good at keeping up with this as Angelica was.

  Angelica let go of Hope’s fingers and reached for the cloche, pulling it off. She breathed in deeply and hummed her pleasure. “It smells delicious.”

  “It’s a red potato and leek frittata with goat cheese and dill, but I didn’t use potatoes for you. I used patty pan squash instead to mimic the texture.” Hope slid her clammy hands against her thighs.

  “Why not just use potatoes?” Leanne frowned, confused.

  Hope’s lips parted in surprise. How long had Angelica and Leanne actually been together? She knew they worked together for years, and yet Leanne had no idea that Angelica had food allergies. How was that even possible? How much more had Hope learned about Angelica in the short time they’d known each other—and even shorter time they’d been in a relationship—than Leanne?

  “Just a preference this morning.” Hope flashed Leanne a fake smile. “I wanted to try something new and test my skills.”

  “Oh, well it smells delicious.” Leanne nodded toward the plate. “Is there any left?”

  “No, sorry.” There was, but Hope wasn’t going to feed a woman she wasn’t supposed to like. She’d fed the rest of the kitchen staff, knowing that Angelica wasn’t likely to ask for seconds, but there were still a few slices left as far as she knew. Hope moved her gaze back to Angelica, keeping her eyes locked there. “Let me know if there’s anything else that you’d like.”

  Angelica shook her head. “This looks amazing, thank you.”

  Hope was about to step away, not sure what to do or where to stand any longer, but Angelica snagged her hand again. “Stay for a minute.”

  “Uh… sure.”

  Angelica let go and stared directly at Leanne. “I need to talk to my costar.”

  “Oh, right.” Leanne’s smile faded instantly. She hadn’t been expecting that.

  Leave it to Angelica to always keep someone on their toes. She’d done that repeatedly with Hope over the last few years. Leanne shifted and stood up, nodding her head in Angelica’s direction.

  “Let me know if you need something and I can get it.”

  “Will do.” But Angelica’s tone said exactly the opposite.

  Satisfaction swirled in Hope’s chest. It was one thing for Hope to dote on her and it was another entirely for Angelica to accept help from Leanne. Hope stood strong, her chest puffed out as she stared down at Angelica while Leanne escaped the conference room. But then the memory of their laughter hit her again, and she bowed her head in dejection.

  “What was that all about?” Hope asked, folding her hands tightly in her lap. She was so confused. Angelica had willingly touched her in front of Leanne, not just on the arm or anything simple, but she’d held Hope’s fingers. It had been…intimate.

  “Leanne is trying to take over for me, Hope, and I want to know how close she is to making that happen. Josef has been giving me a wide berth the last few days, and I don’t know why.”

  “That might be my fault.” Hope frowned.

  “What do you mean?”

  Angelica moved the fork to the meal Hope had prepared and took a small bite of it. She hummed as soon as it hit her tongue, and that was exactly what Hope had wanted to hear. And when she went back for a second bite, Hope was even happier.

  “Hope, what do you mean it’s your fault?”

  Hope glanced around the room and toward the open door. She moved swiftly to shut it and then took up Leanne’s vacated spot, dropping her hand onto Angelica’s cold skin. She brushed her thumb gently against it, warming her. Angelica bit her lip when she looked down at where they were connected, and the look she gave Hope was so different from the one she’d given Leanne. Was there more interest there? More…attraction?

  Hope wasn’t sure that she dared to dream that up.

  Angelica had made the boundaries clear.

  “How does Leanne not know about your food allergies?” Hope asked, keeping the simple pattern of her thumb moving back and forth against the inside of Angelica’s knee.

  “I uh…” Angelica’s cheeks pinked, a stunning flush running through her cheeks and down her chest. “Is your mic on?”

  “No, I turned it off before I came in here.” Hope canted her head to the side, genuinely curious now.

  Nodding, Angelica flicked her gaze back down to Hope’s hand. “That feels good.”

  “This touch?” Hope asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Yes,” Angelica whispered, her voice breathy. She cleared her throat, and instantly refocused. Hope could see the shift in her features as she centered herself on what she was there to say. “Leanne and I didn’t share a lot of meals together.”

  “Because she’s not a chef.”

  “No.” Angelica bit her lip again, her gaze flicking down to Hope’s hand on her knee. “Because we were busy doing other things.”

  Cold washed through Hope.

  “Leanne and I didn’t have much of a relationship, reflecting back on things.” Angelica reached up, her hand pressing into Hope’s with a gentle squeeze before she released it. “Not like you and I did.”

  Did.

  It was that past tense again. It was a knife straight to Hope’s heart. She didn’t want what was between them to end. That kiss back in Maine had been everything, and yet, now they were still sitting here as if they were nearly strangers. At least, Hope thought Angelica wanted it that way until she started touching like this.

  “What are we doing, Ange?” Hope whispered. But she couldn’t force herself to look up into Angelica’s gaze.

  “Eating lunch,” Angelica answered as she took another bite of her meal.

  That hadn’t been what Hope wanted to know, but she would take that answer for now. Angelica wasn’t having the same thoughts that she was. It was all in her head, and she needed to accept that. Angelica didn’t want her anymore.

  “What was that with Leanne?” Hope pointed toward the door.

  “Sometimes to make difficult people cooperate, it’s necessary to make them think they’re the one in control.” Angelica looked directly at Hope, her gaze unnerving. Had Angelica done the same thing with Hope two years ago?

  Had that been what last year was about?

  Pushing that thought to the back of her mind as much as she could, Hope refocused herself.

  “I asked Rex to pull the audio from the confrontation with Josef the other day,” Hope said, staring down at her hand against Angelica’s knee because for the life of her, she couldn’t make herself move it.

  “You did what?”

  “I had a feeling that it was all recorded, and I wanted to hear exactly what he’d said to you, again. I wanted to know what threats he’d made.” Hope bit her lip, turning her face to look at Angelica full on. “How long has he been saying things like that?”

  “This isn’t your fight, Hope.”

  “You made it my fight when you asked me for help with Leanne.”

  “Leanne is one thing. Josef is another entirely.” Angelica shook her head, and her entire body tensed.

  Hope missed the relaxed woman she’d come in here and found. “I don’t think they’re all that different, and because Josef brought in Leanne, the two are really well mixed up in this.”

  “Leanne doesn’t understand the dynamics.”

  “No, she doesn’t.” Hope rolled her shoulders, sitting back a little but still keeping her hand on Angelica’s bare knee. “Leanne doesn’t know that you and I used to be in a relationship.”

  “Hope…” Angelica’s voice broke into a whisper. “We talked about this.”

  “We really didn’t.” Hope’s face hardened. “But since you asked, I listened to what Josef said to you and then I sent that recording to Logan. I’m tired of allowing a bully to run this show, and I’m tired of letting him walk all over you. Whether or not anything else happens between us in the future, Ange, you deserve to work in a place that isn’t antagonizing you.”

  Angelica’s jaw dropped.

  “Back to business.” Hope straightened her shoulders and moved her hand from Angelica’s leg. “I think I’ve solved the room service issues, and I’m working with the chef to tidy up some small things in the kitchen and to work on a new menu that will really up the level of their food. As for Ashlee, I think the best thing you can do for her is either tell her to step out of the business, hire a good manager to come in here and run everything, and be hands off—or send her to one of your hotels for three months to get a crash course and offer consultation after that. But that’s just my opinion and I know you’ll do whatever the hell you want.”

  Hope stood up and brushed invisible lint off her clothes.

  “Hope!”

  “I hear we’re scheduled to do a trial run of room service for filming tomorrow.” Hope shoved her hands into her pockets and rocked back on her heels. “I’ll make sure that the team is ready for it.”

  “Hope,” Angelica repeated, harshness to her tone that Hope hadn’t heard in a long time. “Don’t leave like this.”

  “Like what? As coworkers? As costars?” Hope bit her lip and shook her head. “I’m only following the lines you’ve set, Ange. Nothing else.”

  She turned on her toes and walked out of the room. She needed some air. She needed some space. Because whatever had just happened in there hurt too damn much.

  This wasn’t what she wanted.

  This attraction, this desire, this love she still harbored for Angelica hurt too damn much in moments like that.

  And she just needed a few minutes to herself—to put her head on straight, to breathe without the scent of Angelica’s perfume invading her senses.

  Chapter

  Seventeen

  “Ange, I need to talk to you.”

  “Of course you do.” Angelica sighed heavily. Josef always needed to talk to her, to yell at her, to put her in her place. And that stunt that Hope had pulled was only going to make it worse for her if it got back to Josef, which it would. Everything always did.

  She sat down in the chair they’d stashed behind the reception desk and put her leg up on the knee scooter. The ache had gotten much better in the last couple of days. Which was helping. Mostly. She still was sore, but she found it easier to move around. It’d be better when she could actually walk again, too. But she had another week before she could get clearance for that.

  “What do you need?” Angelica asked when Josef didn’t immediately launch into the conversation.

  “Can we go somewhere else? Somewhere private?” He looked around the lobby and all the people coming and going, Sy there with the camera.

  Angelica raised an eyebrow at him and shook her head. “No.”

  “Ange—”

  “No. It’ll take too much time for me to move, and we need to film the next sequence. Isn’t that right, Sy?” Angelica asked him directly because she knew he’d agree with her.

  “Yep!” Sy nodded at Angelica in understanding, and he kept the camera on and pointed directly at her.

  Good, he’d understood the assignment.

  “Fine.” Josef scoffed.

  He sat at the desk, crossing his arms and glaring at her the entire time. This really wasn’t what he wanted to do, but Angelica was glad she’d forced him into it. If Hope was going to continue to take recordings of Josef and send them to production and the studio, then like hell would Angelica impede that. In for a penny…

  “Josef, we don’t have much time. What did you need to discuss?” Angelica crossed her arms.

  “Vermont.”

  “All right.” Angelica lifted her chin. She had been looking forward to heading north and into the woods. It reminded her of Mountain View West—the magic they had there when they’d filmed and the home she’d found there afterward. “What about Vermont?”

  “Well, it’s about Leanne and Vermont. She’ll be coming with us.”

  “No.” Angelica shook her head in disbelief. “No, she won’t. I’ll be walking before we finish filming and then you can’t argue that I need her anymore. So no, she’s not going.”

  “She is.” Josef glared. “I’m not giving you a choice in the matter.”

  Angelica scoffed.

  “Leanne is going to replace you, Ange, whether you like it or not.” Josef said that quietly, so that only Angelica could hear it.

  “We don’t have the budget to pay her for a second episode. We didn’t even have it in the budget to pay her for the first one.” Angelica gave him a serious look. She was the one that primarily dealt with the finances of the production, so she would know the best. But she did often make accommodations as they filmed.

  “We got that new investor, remember?”

  Angelica did remember. Because it had been her and Hope who had locked that investor into place when they’d taken that trip back to Los Angeles during their filming of season two. And that investor wouldn’t be happy to find out that Josef wanted to replace her entirely on the show.

  “Don’t think that money is guaranteed if I’m not around.” Angelica pursed her lips. “Susan Navarro didn’t give that money to you. She gave it to Hope and me, for making the show what it is. And if you fire either one of us, then it’s going to be a problem.”

  “Oh, I’m not going to fire you.” Josef lowered his voice. “I’m just not going to renew your contract.”

  Angelica sighed. He could make that threat, but it had to be a decision between studio and production. He didn’t have that power. She shook her head and glanced at her phone as it buzzed. The number that came up was one she’d never expected to hear from again.

  “Excuse me, I need to take this.” Angelica held the phone up so he could see it before she answered. “This is Angelica Shields.”

  “Oh, hi.” The voice was soft, and nothing like it had been when Angelica had met the entitled woman. “This is Kayla. I’m, uh… I’m not sure if you remember me.”

  “I remember you. Tucson.”

  “Yeah.” Kayla nervously chuckled.

  “I fired you.” Angelica played her fingers along the edge of the desk trying to distract herself. Why the hell would Kayla be calling her? She’d been so drunk while they were filming that Angelica had been sure that she wouldn’t even remember anything that had happened that week.

  “You did. And… I deserved it.” Kayla groaned. “I should have been fired long before.”

  “You should have. But that’s why mixing family and business is so difficult sometimes.” Angelica rested back in the chair and settled herself in for this conversation. It didn’t seem like Kayla was trying to ask her for anything, so that was a bonus. “Was there something I could help you with?”

  “I was just calling to thank you for firing me, actually.” Kayla sighed. “It gave me the kick in the ass to get sober that I needed. I’ve been sober for ninety days now.”

  It’d been almost a year since they’d been in Tucson filming.

  “It took me a while to make it longer than two weeks.”

  “Ah,” Angelica said, understanding now. “Ninety days is amazing.”

  “It really is. And it feels good. I didn’t think it would, but it does.” Kayla chuckled nervously.

  “Keep riding that high then. You deserve it. Getting sober isn’t easy.”

  “Right, that was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about. I saw the accident in Maine on social media?” Kayla said that like it was a question even though it clearly wasn’t.

  Angelica licked her lips and bided her time. She wasn’t entirely sure what to say at that point. Had she been in an accident? Yes. But that’s all it was.

  “The news said you’d been arrested for a DUI.”

  “The news said I’d been arrested?” Angelica’s eyebrows rose into her hairline. She hadn’t seen that one. She’d seen where it’d implied that she had, but when people actually read the article, it’d rightfully said who had been arrested. “I wasn’t arrested, Kayla.”