CLOSE-UP & PERSONAL

# CHAPTER 9 #

Both of these are so far away from my real persona it's laughable. I've barely even gone all the way with a guy and people think I'm a seductress. But that's what dark hair and grey eyes gets you.

"I see," he says. "But a femme fatale is different from being asked to act nude. Has someone ever requested you act nude?" His voice is tight.

I shake my head vehemently, shocked by the question.

"Good," he says, and the anger in his voice has abated. "In your case it would be completely unnecessary," he adds.

I look up at him, wondering what he means.

"I will wait until tomorrow for you to think about us working together," he says. "I don't wish you to rush the decision, but I am not a patient man and I have a schedule."

Work together.

The idea brings a flash of pleasure. I shake it away. This man is a control freak who dictates his actresses' personal lives. And it's not like I crave an Oscar.

"There is one more thing," he says, and the tone of his voice is almost apologetic.

I put down my glass of water, intrigued by the sudden softening.

"What?" I ask.

"If we are working together," he says, "nothing can happen between us."

I stare back at him in total shock. It would never have occurred to me that such a thought would have crossed his mind.

"Of course not," I mumble, "you're married."

He blinks in surprise, and then breaks into a surprisingly warm smile.

"I'm not married Isabella," he says.

I frown in confusion, and he continues.

"It's a Hollywood marriage," he says. "A marriage of convenience. Mainly for Madison's convenience," he adds, "to help her career."

Madison Ellis. Trouble singer, actress, nearing her forties.

I suppose this makes quite a lot of sense, and I'm embarrassed at my naivety.

Berkeley raises his whisky glass and takes another sip.

"She was a good friend having a hard time, so we got together for the press," he says. "But there was never anything romantic between us."

I feel a whirl of emotions sweep through me. He's just let me in on what should be a very intimate secret. How does he know I won't blab it to anyone?

"It's well known on the celebrity circuit," he adds, and I feel a little stab of deflation.