“Maybe we should book him for consorting with a prisoner,” the sergeant said. “I don’t know how he got in here, but it’s a good thing he’s headed out. We don’t have animals in the jail. At least not the four-legged kind.”
“Well, he has good taste,” Jax commented. He turned to Nicole. “I came to give you a ride back to the set. We’ve got the action shot scheduled tonight and we can’t do it without you.”
He saw a series of emotions shift across her expressive face. One was relief, the other disappointment.
“Did John Hudson put up my bail money?”
Jax hesitated. He was tempted to answer in the affirmative, even though it wasn’t true. “John doesn’t know you were arrested. He wasn’t on the set today.”
“You came on your own?” Her surprise was evident in her voice.
“I did. We need you on the set. As stunt coordinator, my butt’s on the line if we get behind schedule.”
Nicole didn’t say anything. She took her personal belongings from the envelope the desk sergeant handed her. “We’d better get this scene shot, then. Once John Hudson knows I’ve been arrested for stealing jewelry from the cast, he’s going to fire me.”
Jax couldn’t deny that. Hudson probably would fire her—if that was all there was to the story. But Jax had a hunch there was something else going on. “John Hudson’s a fair man. If there’s another side to the story, he’ll listen.”
“I was framed,” Nicole said simply.
“Who would frame you and why?” Jax asked. It was a logical question, but he saw instantly that it annoyed her.
“If I knew the answer to that, I’d know how to start clearing my name,” Nicole said, heading out the door.
“Do you have any idea?” Jax asked. Even though he took long strides, he had to hustle to catch up with her. Nicole was long limbed and moving fast. But he couldn’t help but appreciate the rear view as she stalked away.
“Well, logically, I’d start with Angela Myers. It was her earring that was stolen and found in my trailer. I know I didn’t take it, but someone did. And that someone put it right where the cops could find it. And I’d be willing to lay you some pretty good odds that Angela told the police to search my trailer. I just wonder how she knew the earring was there if she didn’t put it there herself.”
“Why would Angela want to frame you as a thief?” Jax asked. He knew the women didn’t care for each other. The truth was, Angela didn’t care for anyone except herself—and whoever was the focus of her narcissistic passion.
“Because she’s psychotic?” Nicole asked with a heaping measure of sarcasm. “Because she’s mean? Or maybe because she doesn’t want to finish this film? I hear she got an offer from Paramount for a starring role in a drama that she’s itching to do. There’s a little time problem. She can’t finish this film and be on that set, too. If this movie were to shut down, she’d be free to rush right over to Paramount and become the belle of the studio.”
Jax pushed open the outer door for Nicole. “You really think Angela would wreck the entire movie just to get out of her contract?”
Nicole stopped dead and turned. She didn’t say a word; she only raised her eyebrows.
“Well, she is pretty self-centered,” Jax admitted. He saw the first hint of a smile at the corners of Nicole’s mouth. Before he could be certain of it, though, she bent down and swept the black cat into her arms.
“This cat’s a detective,” she said. “I read all about him. He’s going to help me figure out what’s going on here.”
“I’ll help, too.” Jax almost wanted to duck when he spoke the words. Nicole’s face showed extreme surprise, and then wariness.
“Why would you help me?” she asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe because I’m a sucker for the underdog. It’s a fine Texas tradition. Started at the Alamo, you know. All Texans like long odds. Or maybe it’s because I don’t think you stole the earring.”
“And why do you think I’m innocent?”
That question alone told him volumes about the kind of life Nicole had led. Her father’s conviction and incarceration had become part of her personality. Whether folks in the past had judged Nicole guilty by association, or whether it was just her interpretation of events, he couldn’t tell. But he did know she didn’t expect support from anyone. She’d learned to live life by her own wits.
He took a deep breath. “You’re building a solid career as a stuntwoman. You’re good at your job. You do your work and you do it with pride. I just don’t see you ruining all of this over some bauble.”
Nicole’s jaw muscle worked as she listened to him. “I didn’t steal anything. I’m not a thief.”
“I believe you,” he said. “That’s why I’m offering to help you.”
“Meow!” The black cat put a paw on Nicole’s shoulder as if to say “Me, too.”
“I don’t know exactly what we’re going to do, though,” Nicole said and her shoulders slumped a little. “The police found the earring in my trailer. They’ll never believe someone else put it there.”
“I have a couple of ideas,” Jax said, pointing to a pickup truck that was parked up the street. “But first we’re going back to the set and you’re going to finish that stunt.”
“I can’t do that,” Nicole said, putting on the brakes. Jax felt the resistance of a boulder as he gently took her elbow to move her forward.
“You have to,” he said, inching her toward the truck.
“They all think I’m a thief,” she said. “I can’t go back there.”
“So prove them wrong. Don’t act guilty. We’ll finish the scene and then maybe we’ll have some time left over to ask a few questions. Maybe someone saw something.”
Nicole gave in and got in the passenger side of the truck, placing Familiar on her lap.
Jax was grinning as he walked around the truck. By the time he got in it, he’d managed to control his expression. He knew Nicole wouldn’t take lightly to the idea that he was amused by her. But for the past three weeks, since the movie had started shooting, he’d thought she was such a tough loner. Now he found out different. Her tough act was just a way to disguise her insecurities.
Oh, well, Hollywood was the town of facade. But no matter what image Nicole projected, he didn’t see her as a thief. About the only thing he’d suspect her of stealing was someone’s heart. Lucky for him he was immune in that department. He’d paid out his heart a long time ago when he’d gambled and lost. Still, it was the Texas thing to do—rescue a damsel in distress. Hell, it was just the way he was brought up.
When he felt the grin creeping back onto his face, he wiped it off. Nicole was watching him with open curiosity, as was the black cat. He’d never heard that Familiar was a detective, but after watching the feline on the set, he’d believe Familiar was capable of anything. Anything at all.
NICOLE BALANCED OUTSIDE the window of the three-story house, Familiar at her side. She didn’t look down. It was a long drop, and even though the air-filled bags were there to catch her if she fell, she didn’t like the sickening sensation of dropping that distance. Familiar, with his claws in the siding of the house, had no intention of falling.
“Just a few more steps,” she whispered encouragement to the cat.
The spotlight on the ground swept over her and she froze, hoping that she looked like a black shadow amongst the other shadows of the house. That was what the script called for, and she