CHAPTER 17
Cassie stormed into the gatehouse, Jolene trailing her. Apologies continued to spill from her friend’s mouth but they meant nothing. After riding home in silence, Cassie turned and lashed out.
“You know what this job means to me! You’ve totally blown it. Do you think a private man like Rhett Corrigan likes having his dirty laundry aired in public?”
Cassie slammed her purse onto the breakfast bar. “The tabloids and TV shows and blogs have sources everywhere. That woman took my picture and forwarded it somewhere. I guarantee you it and the hot gossip that Rhett is dumping Randi is already splashed across the Internet. Can you imagine how furious he’ll be? Not to mention that Randi will be humiliated. How would you like to flip on the TV and hear about Breck breaking up with you?”
“Randi James will thrive on the publicity, Cass. And Rhett will forgive you. He’s about the nicest guy I’ve ever met. He won’t hold a grudge.”
Cassie stared at Jolene. “I can’t forgive you, Jo. Our friendship is over.” She swallowed hard as her throat threatened to close up with tears. “You better pack. I assure you that Rhett won’t forgive me, much less want either of us hanging around. Not to mention that any money I’ve managed to save will now be eaten up in attorney’s fees as he takes us to court.”
She hurried to her bedroom and slammed the door. TJ sat curled against the pillows. She lifted the orange tabby into her arms and buried her face in his silky fur as she sank onto the bed. Hot tears leaked out and Cassie no longer tried to hold them back.
The Hollywood dream was dead. She hadn’t had a lick of success as an actress or agent and would now lose her job as Rhett’s assistant. She’d never stand a chance of landing another assistant’s job.
Yet Cassie refused to crawl back to Waco with her tail tucked between her legs. Nothing waited for her back in Texas. Her tenuous relationship with her mom wasn’t a reason to return. Her mom cashed the check Cassie sent each month and had never offered a simple thanks, much less had a kind word to say on the few occasions Cassie called. So, where could she go? At least she had a little money in the bank now, thanks to the generous weekly salary Rhett paid. Of course, she didn’t have a car anymore. It had been hauled away for scrap. She didn’t have much in material possessions, either. Everything she owned would fit into a single suitcase. After her move to the gatehouse, she’d culled through all her things and gotten rid of most everything.
Cassie glanced around the bedroom, the nicest place she’d ever slept. After only a few weeks, it seemed more like home than any place she’d ever lived. She regretted her harsh words to Jolene but they had to be said. Jo’s mouth would be her downfall. Still, she would miss her friend’s crazy sense of humor.
She stood and placed TJ on the bed before she went to her closet and removed his pet carrier and her suitcase. Instantly, TJ’s languor left. To the cat, carrier equaled vet, and he leaped off the bed and scampered under it. Low growls emitted from his throat, warning his owner to back off.
Cassie sighed and began emptying her drawers, making neat stacks on the bed of lingerie and T-shirts. She removed her few clothes from their hangers and, within ten minutes, had her suitcase packed. The last thing she placed on top was a notebook of ideas she’d started scribbling down for her and Breck’s joint screenplay. Cassie didn’t know why she wanted to keep it. She and Breck O’Dell would never write something for Rhett. Even if they did, it would be the last property Rhett would ever look at after such a betrayal.
Cassie closed the suitcase and fired up the laptop Rhett provided. She typed a brief resignation letter, printed it, and decided to run it up to the house. She prayed he was still out. She couldn’t face seeing him now. He’d plan to go to lunch with Becky to discuss a new series of automobile commercials to air in Japan and Europe in the spring. He wouldn’t be back soon, knowing Becky and her attention to every little detail.
Cassie entered through the kitchen and spotted Mimi rolling out a pie crust.
“Hello, Cassie. Are you coming to dinner tonight? Mr. Corrigan said that Breck and Jolene and that nice fireman Chris Whittaker and his wife will be here around seven.”
Cassie struggled to keep her voice nonchalant. “No, I already have plans. I’m just here to drop something off in Rhett’s office.”
Shep trailed her up the stairs. Cassie left the laptop on a nearby chair and her letter on top of the computer, along with the credit card Rhett gave her for expenses and the keys to the Range Rover. She looked around the office and a shooting pain zipped through her as she saw her scattered notes on the fundraising event spread out next to a couple of scripts to review.
Tears blurred her vision. She knelt and scratched Shep behind his ears.
“I’ll miss you, Shep. So will TJ.”
Most of all, she would miss Rhett. He wasn’t anything like his screen image—the tough talking, shoot-first and ask questions later, lady-killer. Instead, Cassie found Rhett Corrigan not only more devastatingly handsome in person than on film, but he was totally normal. No ego, full of generosity and concern, and one of the most caring souls she’d known.
Worse, she had an inkling that her feelings for Rhett went far beyond the typical employee to boss relationship. Maybe Jolene had done her a favor without knowing it. How embarrassing would it be for Cassie to fall in love with the sexiest man in Hollywood? Only a little less than having Rhett figure that out. She would get out while the getting was good.
Even if it hurt like hell.
She ruffled Shep’s fur and decided she’d book a cheap motel tonight and think about what to do and where to go once she arrived. She booked an Uber. Her pick-up time was in eight minutes.
Cassie returned to the gatehouse and shook a jar of treats to lure TJ out of hiding. As he gobbled some Tuna Delight bits, Cassie grabbed the cat and put him into the carrier. She glanced around and saw Jolene’s bedroom door closed.
Picking up her suitcase in one hand and the carrier in the other, she took a last look around the room and walked down to the front gate. She opened it and waited next to it for her driver.
A sleek blue Mercedes pulled up at the entrance. Melanie Cameron got out, leaving the engine running.
“Looks like you’re leaving.”
Cassie kept her voice even as she replied. “I don’t have a choice, Melanie. I left Rhett my resignation. I can’t fix the damage that’s been done but I can clear out.”
“Where will you go?”
“A motel for the night. After that?” She shrugged. “I’ve got a pretty spotty resume. No solid recs to provide a prospective employer. There’s no way Rhett would give me one now.”
Melanie frowned. “What do you plan to do?”
Cassie shook her head. “I have no idea.” She sat down on her suitcase and leaned down to the carrier to stroke the yowling TJ through the wire opening.
“Come stay with Ken and me.”
Her words startled Cassie. “No. I couldn’t impose on you. Besides, Ken is Rhett’s friend. I’d never ask him to break the bro code.”
“You know Ken. He’s not like that. Besides, with twenty thousand square feet? You could stay a month and never see him.”