Seth dressed quickly in the hallway outside Heather’s room to the sound of her sobs. It took all his strength not to run back to her, take her in his arms and make her believe how sorry he was. He wanted nothing more than to soothe her through her pain, the pain that he’d caused.

But he’d come to know her well enough to know she needed time to think before she could listen to him. He’d give her that, if that was what she needed. Then he’d fight. It was the mistake he’d made with Erica—he’d let her leave. Not this time. Not with Heather.

He considered calling in sick to the set. He certainly felt sick—his head pounded and his gut twisted so tight he thought he might puke. But that wasn’t professional. And he wanted to be near Heather, in case she decided she was ready to talk to him.

So after stopping by his house for a change of clothes, he drove to the studio. He flashed his ID to the security guard and parked his truck, then headed toward the set to check-in with the Assistant Director, ignoring every instinct that wanted to turn him toward Heather’s trailer instead.

Time, he reminded himself. She needed time. He’d give her a day. Maybe two. If she still avoided his calls tomorrow, then he’d go to her.

So wrapped up in his regrets, Seth didn’t notice Joe Piedmont until he’d practically knocked into him.

“Joe. I didn’t know you’d be on set today.” Most of Joe’s work was already done in the planning and design. He rarely showed up on the lot. It was odd.

Odder still was that he was with the ass**le producer, Brandon, who had wanted to maul Seth’s girlfriend when he was finished with her.

Girlfriend? Not anymore. The knot in his stomach tightened. Maybe not a good time to think about that.

Seth nodded stiffly at the producer. “Brandon.”

“Seth.”

Joe gave an awkward smile. “Seth, can I talk to you a minute?”

“Uh, sure.” Yeah, something strange was definitely going on. The vibe was completely off.

Joe called over to the director, who was going over notes with a stand-in. “Don, we’re going to use your trailer. Brandon, I got this.”

Nothing good ever came from being summoned to the director’s trailer with your boss, who was also your friend. Had something gone wrong with the set crew? Had Seth f**ked up somehow? Again?

Once inside Don’s trailer, Joe gestured for Seth to take a seat at the table. Seth sat and Joe took the seat across from him.

After a deep breath, Joe said, “Seth, this is really hard for me to do, and believe me I wish I didn’t have to. Please know that this is in no way a reflection of your work.” He paused.

“Just say it.” Seth was eager to get the shit over with.

“We’ve had a request that you no longer work on this movie.”

Seth ran his hands through his hair as his heart plummeted to his stomach. “Are you f**king kidding me?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“There’s only a week left of shoot. She couldn’t deal with me for one damn week?”

“I’m sorry.” Joe looked about as bad as Seth felt. Which was pretty shitty.

He knew Heather wouldn’t want to see him, but he never thought she would go to those lengths to keep him away. Playing the movie star card…it was disgusting. The producers would bow to her demands. They had no choice. They couldn’t do the movie without her, but him—he was nothing.

He wanted to laugh. All the time he spent proving to her that he was worth something even though he was “just a carpenter” and now she’d proved exactly the opposite.

“So you know who the request is from?”

Seth leaned his elbows on the table and covered his eyes with his hands. “Yes.”

What did he expect? She was mad. She was hurt. This was the way she knew to retaliate. God, though, if she was this upset, did he even have a chance?

He slammed his palm on the table. “Fuck!”

Joe didn’t flinch at Seth’s outburst. “What happened?”

“Honestly? I fell in love.”

“With an actress? That’s always dangerous territory.”

“Tell me about it. But I’m the one who f**ked it up. Big time.” He let out a gruff laugh. “I can’t believe she won’t even give me a chance.” It was an immature move on her part, especially since it affected more than just him.

Suddenly, guilt hit him as hard as his earlier frustration. “Look, Joe, I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry. I know this puts you in a bind. I can get you a replacement by this afternoon if you need one.”

“That would be really great if you could.”

“It won’t be a problem. Again, I’m sorry. She shouldn’t have let the movie suffer because I was an idiot.”

Joe shrugged. “She doesn’t have a diva reputation for nothing. You know we have to keep the stars happy.”

Seth bit back his desire to defend Heather. “I get it. It’s fine. I’ll get on that replacement. Are we done here then?”

“Except I have to give you this.” Joe dug into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope. “Your final paycheck.”

“Of course.” Seth stood as he took it. “Thanks, Joe. I appreciate that you let me on the show in the first place.”

“Anytime you want to be my carpenter, the job is yours.”

“Ha, thanks. But I think I’m going to be happiest getting back to my old job.” Seth folded up the envelope, stuffed it in his back pocket and left the trailer.

He was surprised to see Brandon waiting for him. Or disappointed. Rather than deal with him, Seth walked past him without so much as a nod.

Brandon followed him. “So you and Heather are done then?”

“Shut the f**k up, Brandon.” Jesus, he had to deal with this shithead too?

“What? I’m just stating the obvious.”

Seth stopped walking and spun to face the other man. “Why? So you can rub it in my face or because you’re planning on making her your conquest? If it’s that last thing, trust me, you don’t have a chance.”

Brandon’s grin could be described as nothing but smarmy. “Are you sure about that? She got with you and she thought she was slumming.”

“I don’t have to listen to this.” He turned away again.

“I know her type, Seth,” Brandon called after him. “They’ll spread their legs for anyone who treats them like royalty. Not only do I know I can get her in bed, but I’ll bet it will be cake.”