“What poor girl?” Trent asked, taking the coffee and thanking Tinsley.
“Skye Jessamine. Someone just leaked all these fully nude pictures of her. They’re everywhere. I can’t imagine how violated she must feel right now.”
Trent broke the pencil he held in his left hand. The one he marked the wood with before he cut it. He didn’t like being used by Skye, but she didn’t deserve this. He picked up his phone almost expecting a text from her.
“You’re not going to look, are you?” Tinsley gasped.
“Of course not. I wouldn’t violate a woman like that. I was just wondering if she’d texted.”
Tinsley looked at him sympathetically. “Maybe now is the time to let her know you’re here for her. Well, I’m off to paint now that I’ve ruined your morning.”
“You didn’t ruin it. It’s Skye’s morning that is ruined.”
“Text her!” Tinsley called out over her shoulder as she left his shop.
Trent picked up his phone, then put it back down. She wouldn’t want to hear from a one-night stand. Not with everything she was going through right now. He’d text her in a couple of days. Trent went back to work and ignored the little voice in his head that was calling him a coward.
Skye sat curled up on the couch in her living room as Karri hovered around her. Her entire team had immediately descended on the house before the sun was even up. She’d heard them when she’d been on the phone with her parents and then she’d conferenced Karri’s parents in when they’d called. They all were worried about her and told her to come to either house or they’d fly out and rally around her.
At first, her parents had been taken aback by Skye’s closeness to Karri, her family, and the entire Onondaga Nation that blossomed quickly during their freshman year at Syracuse. That had dissipated after meeting the Hills at parents’ weekend that fall. Karri’s family would live-text the girls’ lacrosse games to her parents and basically wrapped the entire Jessamine family in love.
The truth was, Skye wanted to go home more than anything, but she’d told them she’d let them know after her meeting. So now she sat as everyone around her talked. Lenny was on the phone pushing back the bodyguard appointments until tomorrow. Jim was on the phone with the studio. Her lawyer, Bernie, was threatening to sue every outlet that was publishing the pictures. Rebecca Collins, her publicist, was spinning the hell out of the story.
Skye sat there for hours nursing hot tea and listening as her world collapsed and noticing that not a single person in the room, with the exception of Karri, had even asked how she was. That was until the deep sexy voice asking if she was okay drew her attention.
Skye looked up and almost cried with relief when Mason sat down next to her and pulled her into a tight hug. “I am so sorry. This double standard is such bullshit. If it were me naked, I’d be praised.”
“Thanks, Mason. You’re the only one besides Karri who understands. It’s real nice of you to come over.”
Her friend smiled down at her and reached over to the bag on the table. “I got your favorites. Has Trent called to check on you?”
Skye looked into the bag and pulled out all her favorite chocolates and junk foods. “You’re so sweet. Thank you.” Everyone thought Mason was Hollywood’s tough guy, but he really was just a good friend. They spent hours talking in each other’s trailers. And while he came off as arrogant in the press, he was far from it. The press liked to link them together, but the truth was that Skye was the only one in Hollywood who didn’t want him. She wanted Trent, and Mason knew and supported that. He’d never asked her for a date and their relationship had always been platonic.
“No,” Skye said sadly. “I haven’t heard from Trent since he left. After this and that article that made it seem like you and I are together . . . I’m afraid it’s time to give him up for good.”
“He doesn’t deserve you. I’m always here if you need me. Well, except for right this moment,” he laughed. “I have a meeting.”
He leaned over and kissed her cheek before walking out like the action hero he was. Skye sat in the silence for she didn’t know how long until a scream jolted her from her mind.
“Dammit!” Rebecca yelled, drawing a momentary silence before her team rushed to finish up their calls.
“What is it?” Skye asked as Karri perched herself on the couch above her and placed her hand on her shoulder to calm her.
“There’ve been more leaked photos and this time they’re really of you. They’re not fakes,” Rebecca told her.
“Where are they?” Bernie asked as all their phones pinged.
“I sent them to you.”
Skye clicked the gossip site link and felt exposed. It was her. She knew because the birthmark on her ass was on full display.
“Is this all of them?” Jim asked.
Rebecca shook her head. “The site says they have full frontal but they wanted to make sure it was really her before they ran with them.”
“I’m on it,” Bernie said as he yelled at his secretary through the phone to patch him through to the owner of the gossip site.
Jim looked to Rebecca for guidance but then his phone rang. “It’s Tony Ketron.”
Rebecca took a deep breath. “Okay, we can spin this. We can tell the public they’re test shots for Tony’s new film and Skye’s not some drug-induced, out-of-control actress like the press is reporting.”
“No!” Skye almost threw her tea at Rebecca. “Don’t you dare! I will not take that part. Is no one concerned that someone doctored photos of me and then someone obviously had a view into my bedroom to take these photos?”
“It doesn’t matter what actually happened,” Rebecca said gently. “The narrative is already out there. Now we just have to make it work for us.”
“No. I refuse to allow you to attach my name to Tony’s for any reason. These meetings are over. Everyone out!”
Skye leaned over to Karri and whispered her instructions. “Okay, ladies and gentlemen. Right this way,” Karri said as she picked up all her personal items. “Skye needs some time to think. Let’s give it to her.”
“You’re leaving too?” Jim asked Karri with surprise.
Karri nodded. “She said she needed space. So, we’ll give it to her. Let’s move everything to text, okay?”
Skye watched as Karri ushered everyone out the front door and waited. Ten minutes later, Karri was knocking on the back patio door. “What’s your plan?” Karri asked, plopping back down on the couch.
“I want to contact the FBI. This has to be illegal,” Skye told her. She wasn’t going to take this sitting down. She was going to fight it.
“Let’s do it.”
Skye Jessamine drew a deep breath and took the first step toward taking control of her life.
4
Skye kept it together as she gave her testimony. The FBI agent nodded as he took notes, all the while his phone recorded the entire conversation.
“Could your phone have been hacked?”
“Agent Shaw, I know you’re the head of the L.A. office and have dealt with people much more famous than me, but I’m not your typical gossip rag celebrity. There are no hidden sex tapes, there are no indecent texts, and no nude photos on my phone or anyone else’s.”