My Sexy Rival Read online

  Contents

  Also By Lauren Blakely

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  FRIDAY

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  SATURDAY

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  SUNDAY

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Epilogue

  Also by Lauren Blakely

  Contact

  My Sexy Rival

  Stars in Their Eyes Duet (book two)

  Lauren Blakely

  Copyright © 2018 by Lauren Blakely

  LaurenBlakely.com

  Cover Design by © Helen Williams

  First Edition Book

  * * *

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. This ebook is licensed for your personal use only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Also By Lauren Blakely

  Big Rock Series

  * * *

  Big Rock

  Mister O

  Well Hung

  Full Package

  Joy Ride

  Hard Wood

  * * *

  One Love Series dual-POV Standalones

  The Sexy One

  The Only One

  The Hot One

  * * *

  Sports Romance

  Most Valuable Playboy

  Most Likely to Score

  * * *

  Standalones

  * * *

  The Knocked Up Plan

  Stud Finder

  The V Card

  Wanderlust

  Come As You Are

  Part-Time Lover

  The Real Deal

  Unbreak My Heart

  Far Too Tempting

  21 Stolen Kisses

  Playing With Her Heart

  Out of Bounds

  Unzipped

  Birthday Suit (2019)

  Best Laid Plans (2019)

  The Feel Good Factor (2019)

  All Night Long (2019)

  Satisfaction Guaranteed (2019)

  * * *

  The Heartbreakers Series

  Once Upon a Real Good Time

  Once Upon a Sure Thing

  Once Upon a Wild Fling

  * * *

  The Caught Up in Love Series

  Caught Up In Us

  Pretending He’s Mine

  Trophy Husband

  * * *

  Stars In Their Eyes Duet

  My Charming Rival

  My Sexy Rival

  * * *

  The No Regrets Series

  The Thrill of It

  The Start of Us

  Every Second With You

  * * *

  The Seductive Nights Series

  First Night (Julia and Clay, prequel novella)

  Night After Night (Julia and Clay, book one)

  After This Night (Julia and Clay, book two)

  One More Night (Julia and Clay, book three)

  A Wildly Seductive Night (Julia and Clay novella, book 3.5)

  * * *

  The Joy Delivered Duet

  Nights With Him (A standalone novel about Michelle and Jack)

  Forbidden Nights (A standalone novel about Nate and Casey)

  * * *

  The Sinful Nights Series

  Sweet Sinful Nights

  Sinful Desire

  Sinful Longing

  Sinful Love

  * * *

  The Fighting Fire Series

  Burn For Me (Smith and Jamie)

  Melt for Him (Megan and Becker)

  Consumed By You (Travis and Cara)

  * * *

  The Jewel Series

  A two-book sexy contemporary romance series

  The Sapphire Affair

  The Sapphire Heist

  Author’s Note

  Author’s Note: This book was originally released as part of Stars in Their Eyes in 2014. It has been revised and repackaged into a duet for a new readership. If you previously read Stars in Their Eyes, you don’t need to read this book. If you’ve ready My Charming Rival, then you’ll definitely want to read on to learn what happens next! This is book 2 in a duet!

  1

  William

  * * *

  The noise from the Cessna rattled the sky as the dark blue jet hit air at the far end of the runway. Being a guy, it was nearly impossible for me to tear my eyes away from the plane as it began soaring. When I was younger, I had once imagined I’d be a fighter pilot because that is one of the most badass professions a guy can be. For now, I had to focus on turning my under-the-table part-time private eye gig into a full-time-working-visa job.

  I forced myself to look away from the plane as it stole through the crystal blue sky.

  “This baby looks good to go,” James said, patting the side of the silver helicopter on the tarmac of the Santa Monica airport.

  “Yes, sir. I’ll be all ready for Saturday,” the chopper pilot said, giving James a crisp salute. “And I will be sure to keep a good distance so as not to disturb the festivities.”

  “Excellent,” James said, and I noticed he was personable with the pilot. Maybe it was just family he saved his douche-y side for. He clapped the pilot he’d hired on the back. The helicopter was part of the security plans for Saturday, circling above Ojai Ranch as the eye in the sky. The pilot’s job was also to blend in, which meant make very little noise while somehow circling above the grounds for the whole event. A fine line to toe, and since James was a thorough fellow, he’d wanted to stop by the Santa Monica airport for a triple check.

  “Your turn. I’ve got three minutes, kid,” he said, crooking his finger at me to follow him across the tarmac, his bald spot gleaming in the sun like a bull’s-eye. “Tell me everything you’ve learned so far.” Too busy for even a phone call, he’d told me to meet him here to give him the update on the case he’d assigned me—I called it Days of Our Lenses, An Inside Tale of the Paparazzo Secrets. Well, that’s what I called it in my head. When speaking to my uncle, I simply gave him the specific details his client had asked for, and made a mental note to procure a fabulous thank you gift for Jess, since her insider information was the reason I still had this part-time job.

  “And hookups?” he asked. “Those are usually just a tip from someone in the know?”

&nbs
p; I nodded as the cool air of the terminal whooshed past us. James walked purposefully, taking long strides across the industrial carpet on his way to his car in the parking lot.

  “Yes. That seems to be the case,” I said, careful not to reveal details of who we’d staked out last night. Besides, James had never asked for those particulars—he just needed to know the how and why.

  “What about gym shots?”

  “I’ll get more info on those,” I said as he reached the gate to the lot.

  “Yeah, you do that. Because I need more,” he said, tapping his finger against my shoulder in a patronizing manner.

  I drew a deep, fueling breath. “Thank you, James. I’d love to keep doing this if this is helpful to you. Do you think you’d be able to bring me on for a full-time position and sponsor my visa?”

  God, I sounded like a fucking beggar and I hated it. But I had no choice. I’d been moonlighting for him for three months now and I was dying to know if he was seriously considering me for a job or was dangling me along.

  He lowered his shades and peered at me over the top of the tinted frames, only half his eyes visible. “Get me more details and we’ll see then and only then. I’ve got this wedding on my mind and I can’t think beyond that to your little employment situation.”

  He opened his car door and took off.

  I flipped him the bird once his car was out of sight.

  As I tracked down my bike, a small round of guilt went rat-a-tat-tat against my chest, like a mobster’s gun in an old-school crime flick. Yes, Jess was on the guest list, and sure, James had never expressly forbade photographers. But even though he was a dick, I was sneaking her into the wedding.

  Except sneaking her in was the price I had to pay to get the goods that he wanted.

  The goods that just might keep me in the country.

  As I gunned the engine and drove to see Jess, I wondered if staying in the United States was worth all this effort.

  * * *

  Jess

  * * *

  I ducked behind the fern, and a tumble of questions scurried through my head, as I registered who I was looking at — Keats, his older brother, and the other guy. I recognized the other guy from my flash cards.

  The embattled teen actor who’d decked a hotel clerk. The bleached blond with the broody brown eyes. Jenner “I Want a Room With a View on my Planet” Davies.

  The three of them were all laughing and toasting.

  Why would Jenner Davies meet with the owner of a photo agency? J.P. never ran around with stars and the people his photogs snapped pictures of. It would be the equivalent of a dog actively courting fleas. The fleas did their work quietly and in the distance, but never letting on they were setting up camp on the canines. Yes, I’d just compared J.P. to a flea, but I knew he’d be okay with the metaphor because he understood the roles, the system, the way things were supposed to work. Stars did not consort with photographers.

  And why was Keats’s older brother there? The other guy had the same ruddy cheeks and the same tiny little nose, as if they’d both procured rhinoplasty from an identical mold.

  Even as these questions flooded my brain, I didn’t let them paralyze me. My shooter’s instincts had kicked in, as I crouched by the plant, grabbed my camera, and began snapping pictures of Jenner. My main employer would happily take an unposed picture of Jenner Davies. J.P. would prefer it to the plethora of staged shots of Jenner glad-handing with recipients of his pre-planned charitable work. Plus, a random star sighting like this would earn me a few more bucks than a playground shot.

  They didn’t notice me, and the maître d’ didn’t, either, or else his palm had already been greased by many a photo agency to look the other way. After I’d snapped enough shots, I tucked my camera in my backpack and retraced my steps to the bathroom, this time on a dual mission. I retrieved my toothbrush and toothpaste, then ducked into a stall and quickly downloaded the shots, sending them off to J.P. from my laptop along with a note that said Special Delivery: Just a little surprise for you. I know how you like them unposed.

  A few dollar signs flashed before my eyes. The money would be good, and so would his reaction. I couldn’t wait to hear about J.P’s sure-to-be-gleeful delight when he discovered the unexpected photos. Forty-five seconds later I was rewarded with a reply: Bring that digital baby to papa. Selling these now!

  Pride from a job well done suffused me as I left the restaurant unnoticed, yet again. I’d need to research Keats Wharton in more detail later this afternoon, but I reminded myself that whatever Keats was doing with Jenner Davies didn’t impact me. It couldn’t impact me, right? Because the check, so to speak, had already cleared.

  A few feet away from the restaurant, I spotted a light blue Vespa, idling on the Promenade. On that blue Vespa was Flash herself, shooting away, snapping the same photos of Jenner.

  Satisfaction curled through me as I watched her.

  She was good, that girl, but this time I’d been first to shoot. That also meant I was hair’s breadth lucky. Had Flash been a minute earlier, she might have spotted me, and figured out The Dog Savior was really a paparazzo. I’d need to be as incognito as possible before the wedding. For my sake, and William’s.

  His name alone sent a rush of sweet tingles across my chest as I remembered last night and the words he’d said in Italian that I didn’t understand. But they had sounded undeniably sexy falling from his lips. My skin turned hot as I recalled his kisses, the way he touched me, the connection between our bodies.

  I swung by my parents’ house to leash up Jennifer, and as I worked through my volunteer shift at the hospital, I didn’t push aside the memories of last night. Instead, I let them skip happily through my brain, warming my body, keeping me company, until the clock ticked closer to William time. When my shift ended, I headed for the exit, the dog in a neat heel by my side, wagging her tail when she spotted Helen, who ran the program, rounding the corner.

  “Hey. Did you hear there’s going to be an It’s Raining Men, Part II?”

  “Thankfully, Hollywood is finally learning that male strippers are a big draw at the box office.”

  “I’ll be at the theater on opening night with my one dollar bills ready to toss at the screen,” Helen said, patting the dog and chatting more as she walked toward the lobby with me. William was waiting by the door, his jeans and T-shirt hugging him in all the right places, showing off his toned arms without making him look like a show-off. He was casual and cool; he didn’t try to appear that way. He simply was that way, from how he dressed to his laid-back grin. He flashed a smile when he saw me, and my belly flipped, then flopped, then flipped again with butterflies. He was so handsome, and so delectable, and he was here for me. As soon as Helen noticed him, the clipboard she was holding slipped from her hands to the floor with a loud clang. William bent down to retrieve it, quickly handing it back to her.

  Gallant William.

  “Helen, this is my friend William,” I said, and William extended his hand.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Helen,” he said, sounding so proper, and it occurred to me how that was yet another side to him. Funny, smart, and polite. Manners ruled.

  “I assure you, the pleasure is all mine,” she said with a wink, then said in a loud stage whisper. “He’s hot. Have double the fun for me, please.”

  “Helen!”

  “Get out of here, Jess. You’re only young once,” she said, then tra-la-la-ed down the hall and away from me.

  “I like your dog,” William said, as he petted Jennifer on the head, then turned his attention to the Great Dane–bullmastiff mix who was a gentle giant. “Well, hello, Jennifer. Aren’t you gorgeous?”

  Her tail thumped against the floor.

  “Don’t think you can work your little British magic on the dog, too,” I said. “She is immune to accents.”

  “But you’re not,” he said, wiggling an eyebrow.

  “Evidently not.”

  As we left, I shrugged an apology for Hel
en. “Sorry about Helen’s sauciness. She kind of has a thing for hot young guys.”

  Once outside, he grabbed my waist and pulled me in close, his dark gray eyes fixed on me. The way he stared at me like he wanted me made me molten. My knees felt wobbly from his heady gaze. Those tingles racing through my body an hour ago? They had nothing on the handsprings my stomach was executing now. “What about your friend, Claire Tinsley? Does she have a thing for hot young guys? Especially the ones who speak many languages and catch volleyballs in their bare hands?”

  “I thought we already made that clear,” I said, threading my free hand through his hair and planting a quick, hot kiss on his lips that soon became a deep, slow, intense kiss…the kind that melted me from the inside out and turned everything it touched into gold. His kisses made my head so hazy and my body so warm that I swore they could convince me of anything—the sky is purple, the sun rises in the west, and chocolate is calorie-free. All of that felt true in the way he kissed, turning my world inside out and upside down. All my ambitions, all my plans slinked away in the glide of his lips, the insistent explorations of his tongue, because all I wanted now was to spend the day in this cocoon of his sweet, sultry kisses under the sun.