Three Southern Beaches: A Summer Beach Read Box Set Read online

  “Here, have some coffee. It’ll get you going for practice,” Taylor smiled as she handed him a large to-go cup of coffee.

  After being together six and a half years, she knew his routine. He couldn’t have asked for a better woman to stand by him every day. But Trey still had to pinch himself when he looked at her. There was no question about it—he didn’t believe he deserved her. Having just turned twenty-five, she was even more stunning than when he met her in Keeneston seven years ago. She’d matured in all the right ways physically. Her hips curved in a way that begged his hand to cup them. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back. It was so erotic spread out on the pillow every night. But it was how she’d matured mentally that he loved the most.

  While Trey had been an All-American his senior year and been drafted into the NFL, Taylor had opted to stay at Vandy to get her degree in film. She studied hard and took summer classes in order to graduate early. While she finished school, Trey had been a fairly high draft pick and headed to the newly formed Georgia Vultures. At least the sweet but clueless owners had been talked into naming the team the Vultures over the Fighting Peaches, but they were still the worst team in the NFL. Not to mention the butt of every mascot joke possible.

  As soon as Taylor graduated, she moved into a small apartment near the football stadium and enrolled in the local university for a Masters program in Business. Every day after practice, Trey came home and was surprised to see Taylor was still there. He didn't know what she saw in him. When her books started taking up most of the apartment and when she started talking about forming a company, Trey knew they had to move. Both had jumped at the chance to buy the beach house on Hung Island, just across the bridge from the stadium. Sure, it was a quirky place to live, but they had all the privacy they wanted and nothing was more relaxing than sitting on their swing after a long day and pretending the ocean was their own little pond.

  “Are you excited about filming at Seawave Resort today?” Trey asked as he wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her to his side.

  “More like petrified. I can’t believe you let me start my own film company. What do I know about producing? Filming on location for Grant’s scenes were a nightmare and now we’re adding Melanie to the mix. Her agent has already called three times to complain about this and that,” Taylor sighed.

  “But you love it,” Trey chuckled before taking a sip of coffee.

  “But I love it. It’s everything I’ve always wanted. Being behind the camera is surreal. I can really see the movie for the puzzle that it is. And it’s such a good script. I shouldn’t let Melanie bother me.” Taylor paused and shook her head. “Did I tell you about the time I was fifteen and she ‘accidently’ stepped on my long skirt, causing it to fall off and me to flash the press corps?”

  “Why did you hire her then?” Trey asked with concern filling his voice. He didn’t like to think of anyone hurting Taylor. He knew how much she had gone through at the hands of her parents and the stresses that show business had taken on someone so young.

  “I know how much of a diva she is, but she was perfect for this role. I’m a big girl now. I can take care of one self-centered actress in my sleep with both hands tied behind my back. Besides, I’m behind the camera, not in front of it now. Melanie loves being the star and I’m happy to step aside and let her do just that.” Taylor looked down at her cell phone and sighed. “And it’s time for you to get to practice and gossip with all the guys,” she teased.

  Trey looked offended as he put his hand to his heart. “Men do not gossip. We do manly things like lift lots of weights and grunt.”

  Taylor rolled her eyes. “You men gossip more than the Rose sisters at the Blossom Café.”

  “With that insult, I’m going to practice.” Trey gave her a playful tug, turning her to be enclosed in his arms. He loved the feel of her body against his. Lowering his lips, he took his time kissing her goodbye.

  Trey pulled onto Hangman’s Highway and drove along the loop that went around the island until he came to Treasure Trail. Glancing at his mirrors, he made sure he wasn’t being followed as he headed toward downtown. The small shop came up on his right before he hit Main Street, the only other road on Hung Island. Looking around before he got out of his truck, he made sure no one saw him as he hurried into the shop.

  “Hello, Trey. We got what you want right here,” the woman in flip-flops and jean shorts said as she reached under the counter.

  “Thanks, June. How did it turn out?”

  “See for yourself.” June opened the small blue box and Trey nervously looked down at the large diamond he’d picked out for Taylor. It was perfect in its simplicity, just like her.

  “It’s perfect. Thank you, June.”

  Trey’s hand shook as he picked up the small, delicate box and put it in his pocket. He kept his hand on it the whole time as he made his way to the car. He was petrified there would suddenly be a hole in his pocket and it would fall out. Or what if it traveled all the way out of his pocket and fell onto the street?

  When he got in the car, he put the box in the cup holder and kept half an eye on it until he reached Captain’s Bridge. As he crossed the only bridge off the island, he rolled up his windows and kept his hand over the box. Somehow he feared a wind gust would lift the box from the car and hurl it out the window and into the ocean. He knew he was being irrational, but that box and what was in it symbolized too much for him to take a chance at losing it.

  Trey parked at the stadium and clutched it again in his pocket as he made his way to the locker room. When he pushed open the heavy door, he was met with the smell of manliness, or as Taylor called it, stinky sweat.

  “Everett, afraid your dick will fall off?” Morris, the center on the offensive line, yelled as he slipped on a practice jersey.

  Trey pulled his hand out of his pocket and the room fell quiet as the men moved forward to look at the pretty blue box in his hand. “I just picked this up today.”

  “What is it?” Morris asked as he pushed people out of the way. Trey opened the box and Morris stopped in his tracks.

  “No way. You’re not nearly good enough for someone like Taylor Jefferies."

  “Bullcrap. My man here has more touchdown runs than anyone else in the league. I say she’s not good enough for him . . . wait!” Tucker, the team quarterback , pulled out his phone and pulled up Taylor’s To the Max magazine cover. She had just turned eighteen and was in barely-there lingerie. “I take that back. She’s way too good for you!”

  The team broke into laughter and Trey rolled his eyes as he carefully placed the ring inside his locker. “I know that. Why do you think it’s taken me so long to propose? But someone like her deserves the perfect proposal.”

  “How are you doing to do it? Mine at halftime against Florida was pretty cool,” Morris puffed up as he bragged.

  “It was, but I want to do something that no one else has done. I have the perfect night planned. She’s shooting her movie on the island, so she’s away from home a lot right now. I’m going to cover the place in rose petals. After cooking her the perfect dinner, I’m going to propose.”

  “Not original, but that’s smooth,” Tucker said as he tied his cleats.

  “Not as smooth as Johnson’s up in Boston. Remember that one? Had our wives and girlfriends complaining for months we weren’t romantic enough,” Christian, one of the wide receivers, complained.

  “But what did it get him?” Morris asked rhetorically.

  “Laid!” Christian joked.

  “Wait, you haven’t heard?” Morris said with obvious glee.

  “Haven’t heard what?” Trey asked as he pulled off his shirt.

  “Johnson’s getting a divorce.”

  “No!” The room gasped as Morris went into full detail of the scandal leading up to the divorce.

  “That’s nothing,” Tucker said, quieting the room once again. “Did you hear the coach for the Prey has been sexting with . . .”

  “Gentlemen!” Coach Kru
pp called out, silencing the locker room immediately. “What’s this about sexting?”

  Trey followed the group out onto the field and banished the image of them all with white tufts of hair like the Rose sisters. They weren’t nearly that bad. Besides, they weren’t gossiping; they were just staying current.

  “I bet you a hundred bucks that Johnson…” Trey heard called out. Okay, so maybe they were a little like the Rose sisters, but he’d die before telling Taylor that she was right.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Taylor slipped into her skinny jeans and flowing white blouse. She slid on her ballet flats and looked at herself in the mirror. She took in a deep breath and tried to push aside her fear of the past. The more she’d been in the spotlight, the more her parents had pushed. They’d demanded money, attention, and perks. It was never enough. They had wanted to be her to the point she felt like a prostitute for them. When she’d discovered millions of dollars missing and her parents high on cocaine in a house she’d bought and paid for, she’d had enough.

  At sixteen, she’d turned to the stuntman who had always looked out for her for help. Cy Davies had helped her become emancipated from her parents. She had made the mistake of thinking that would be the end of her problems, but it wasn’t. It was only the beginning. Managers, promoters, and directors—they all thought they could step in and control her. If it hadn’t been for Cy's guidance in picking the right people to surround her, it would be scary to think where she’d be now.

  When she’d turned seventeen, she won an Oscar, and it had changed her life. Professionally, she gained a lot of respect. But then her parents had found her as she left her studio alone right before her eighteenth birthday. Her father refused to move from in front of her car as her mother screamed, ranted, and pounded on the car windows.

  “You’d be nothing without us! You’re worthless! We made you and you cut us off as if we’re nobodies. You ungrateful child!” Taylor could still hear the screaming echoing in her mind.

  She had gotten out of the car to try to contain a scene that was quickly spiraling out of control. Tourists had taken out their cameras, and Taylor started to feel each snap of the camera and each whisper closing in on her, mocking her.

  “Mom, please. You’re high. I’ll pay for rehab,” Taylor had begged. Her mother responded with a hard slap across her face. Pain and heat blossomed across her cheek. Silent tears fell as her mother reached up to hit her again. Security came rushing into the street and pulled her mother away.

  Cy’s arms were around her as the world blurred. All she heard, all she saw, all she felt were the cameras as people pushed in on her. While security handcuffed her parents and quietly collected the cameras from the tourists who would be paid off, Cy kept the dizziness from overtaking her. Her parents were placed in a police car and Taylor pulled all her courage together to walk over to the cruiser. With her cheek bright red from the hit, she leaned down and looked at her parents. “I never want to see you again. You will never see another cent from me. If you ever touch me again, I’ll press criminal charges. Goodbye forever.”

  The next day she’d shown up on the set of her new movie and sat in the makeup chair. She felt nothing. The excitement of being a movie star was gone. But when she stepped in front of the camera, all she saw were flashing bulbs and people closing in on her. Her head spun and the next thing she knew she was waking up in her dressing room. She knew right then she was done with Hollywood. Taylor left the studio and the town forever. Her hands shook and fear thundered through her as she hurried from the set.

  Taylor pulled out of the movie with the excuse of attending college. For the first two years, she’d taken all her required courses and loved learning. But something had been missing. When her sorority needed a video made for Greek Week, she hesitantly agreed to direct it. It was the best thing she’d ever done. She knew without a doubt that being in control of filming was what she wanted. There was no fear when she was behind the camera. Thoughts of film companies swirled in her head. She wanted her own to run. She wanted to hire the perfect people for the parts, not the ones who kissed the most ass. Once she knew what she wanted, she went after it.

  Everyone patted her on her head thinking she was just doing this as a little hobby. Everyone except Trey. Trey not only supported her, he moved them into a house with her own office and made her dinner every night for two months while she read scripts, books, and researched the industry news. It was then she found the book she wanted and started raising the money needed to get her first project started. It was also Trey who told her she could do it when she doubted herself. It was Trey who helped her raise the last funds needed to get the project started. She didn't know how she got so lucky to find a man who genuinely supported her. And he actually encouraged her to reach for the stars and beyond. And knowing that he would be there to catch her if she failed only gave her the courage to reach further.

  Looking in the mirror, Taylor nodded to herself. She was ready. Taylor grabbed her purse and script before heading out the door to start the first day of principal shooting.

  Taylor pulled up to the Seawave Resort and Hotel on the far side of the island and looked around in shock. The resort itself was breathtaking with precision landscaping and a mansion that had been converted into a hotel. The crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean served as a perfect backdrop. Taylor always thought it reminded her of what The Great Gatsby’s set would be like if set in the South. But today it wasn’t the resort that had her attention. It was the people around the old mansion. She hadn’t counted on media being there. Cameras were flashing and a small group of fans had gathered for autographs. Melanie was already in full make-up, taking pictures and talking to reporters. Figures. Melanie would run naked around the hotel if she thought it would get her press.

  Surprisingly, Grant was nowhere to be found. Taylor scanned the grounds looking for her lead actor. The cameras were in position off to the side of the hotel. The outdoor café was set up, and the extras were milling around in their 1960s attire. Taking a deep breath, Taylor slid the strap of her bag over her shoulder and stepped out of her car. Instantly, reporters started to call her name and wave her over. Taylor smiled and headed their way as she tried to control her breathing. It wasn’t rational, but it was still hard for her to be in front of cameras again.

  “Miss Jefferies! Miss Jefferies!” Taylor let out a breath and relaxed a little as she approached Millie Michaels, the reporter for the Hung Island’s Treasure Trove newspaper.

  “Hi, Millie. Miss Jefferies? Really?” Taylor asked the woman fresh out of journalism school. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail and she stood with her smartphone held out like the other reporters. Only the other reporters weren’t wearing a shirt that read Hung like a Pirate over jean shorts.

  “Well, I thought I should be all professional and stuff,” Millie replied with a shrug.

  Taylor smiled and congratulated herself on not laughing out loud. “Nice shirt.”

  “I thought you’d appreciate it, since I won it off you at poker last month. Next I’m raising the stakes to get your Oscar.”

  “I don’t think that will be on the table, even if I run out of cash again. But I’ll give you first dibs at questioning me about the movie right now as long as you don’t print the picture of me twerking after losing that last hand.”

  “Deal,” Millie grinned. Then the smile was replaced with a serious look and the phone was held out again. “I’m Millie Michaels with Treasure Trove newspaper. I'm here with Academy Award-winning actress-turned-producer Taylor Jefferies. Taylor, how does it feel to be back in the movie business after a seven-year break?”

  “It feels great. I’m loving being behind the camera and am honored that the famous Jim Peters is taking the time to guide me in directing.”

  “Mr. Peters is known for his crazy antics on set along with his four Best Director statues. He is rumored to have once put a snake in the purse of an actress to get a believable shot of fear and surprise from her. Has
he done anything like that on any of your sets before?”

  “Jim is known for his antics, but I've never seen him resort to any such extreme measures. And I doubt we’ll have to. We have a fabulous cast.” Taylor tried not to choke on her words while Melanie stared daggers at her. Reporters had moved away from Melanie and were all holding out their recorders in Taylor’s direction.

  “Can you tell us a little about the movie and the actors in the starring roles?” Millie asked as she elbowed a reporter from one of those entertainment shows out of the way.

  “Sure. The film is a love story set during the Vietnam War. Grant Elliott is playing Darin, a reporter covering the effects of the war on the young men being drafted and the women they were leaving behind. Kathy is a young woman bucking the tradition of getting married straight out of high school. She’s moved away from home and to the big city where she went to college. Melanie Grace is perfect for the part and is going to really bring Kathy’s character to life.

  “The movie follows these two as they meet at a restaurant when Kathy’s a student, and love blossoms during this run-in even though they don’t know each other’s names. The two meet again briefly as Kathy is on her way to a new job at this resort. She leaves only knowing his first name. The film continues as Darin searches for Kathy.”

  Millie nodded her head and threw another elbow at the plastic-looking reporter from the entertainment show. “It sounds different from the dramas you used to star in. Why did you decide to go with a romance for your first movie?”

  “When I read Gemma Davies’s book, it spoke to me. I could see it and I couldn’t get the story out of my head. One day, after Kathy and her best friend swear off men after a particularly bad date, there is a knock at the door and a dozen red roses from Darin appear. He never even knew her last name, but he’d found her all the way across the state. There’s drama, there’s laughter, and there’s a happily ever after. What more could you want?” Taylor asked rhetorically.