Free Forgiven by Karen Kingsbury Page B

She had tried to kill him and Katy Hart on Katy’s last visit to Hollywood. Now he couldn’t pull into the studio lot without remembering the Madden woman and chiding himself.
    Why hadn’t he noticed her sooner? Katy might be starring opposite him in the film if not for her attack on them in Paradise Cove.
    Dayne let the thought pass. He was inside in two minutes, walking down the hall to Mitch’s office. The man had been hired as casting director for the film, but the big dogs with the money had put him in charge of the whole thing.
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    FORGIVEN
    Mitch was sitting at his desk, looking at something on his computer screen. His eyes lifted as Dayne walked into the room. “Hey.”
    “Hi.” Dayne sank into the leather love seat on the right side of the office.
    “Everything lined up for the location shoot?”
    “Yep.” He clicked his mouse a few times and spun his chair in Dayne’s direction.
    “Reservations are in order, and we’ve got the outdoor areas covered with local police assistance. Which wasn’t easy since we moved the schedule up a month.” He gripped the arms of his chair. “Yes, we’re all set in Bloomington, Indiana.” His grin was more than a little sarcastic. “Just the way you wanted it.”
    Dayne tipped the brim of his baseball cap. “Much obliged.” “Yeah, well…” Mitch lowered his chin and pointed at Dayne. “Mind yourself, Matthews. I have a funny feeling about this shoot.”
    “You know what it is, Mitch?” Dayne stood, crossed the room, and grabbed a fast-food wrapper from his director’s desk. “Indigestion. Cut back on the cheeseburgers and relax a little.” He leaned closer. “The location’s perfect.”
    “Fine.” Mitch motioned to the chair across from him. “Have a seat. You didn’t come here to talk about my eating habits.”
    “True.” Dayne chuckled, took a step back, and sat down. He waited a beat, his eyes locked on Mitch’s. “Okay, this is it. I’m going to Bloomington a few days early.”
    “A few days?”
    “I’m heading out Thursday. Just to look around.”
    Mitch wasn’t buying it. He had an eyebrow raised. “What’s to see? Come on—be straight with me.”
    “You want the truth?” Dayne felt the smile leave his face.
    Maybe it was time to open up a little with Mitch “I need a few days to myself, okay?” “I’m listening.”
    Dayne anchored his forearms on his knees and stared out the 63
    KAREN KINGSBURY
    window at the Hollywood hills. “I’m thinking about getting into Kabbalah.”
    “Madonna’s church?” There was no condemnation in the director’s tone. “I’ve heard good things about it.”
    “It isn’t a church.” He’d read half the book. Now he searched for a way to sum it up. “It’s a mind-set, I guess. Avoiding negative thoughts, finding the god within yourself, that sort of thing.”
    “Hmmm.” Mitch took a pencil from a holder near the edge of his desk and rolled it between his fingers. “You need Bloomington for that?”
    Dayne clasped his hands and stared at the floor between his feet. “Things are stale with Kelly.” He looked up. “I don’t want it to affect the film.”
    “Stale?” Mitch tapped the pencil on one of the files spread out in front of him.
    Fine lines appeared near the corners of his eyes. “Bad timing for stale, Matthews.”
    “I know.” He pursed his lips and exhaled. “I think a week apart would be good for us.”
    “Wasn’t she in New York the other day?”
    “Yep.” He sat up straighter and squinted. “It felt good as gold having the time to myself. I need more, that’s all.” He shook his head. “I’m worried about the chemistry.”
    Mitch stuck the pencil behind his ear. “You two sizzle on the screen. You always have.”
    “Yeah… before we lived together.” He hated talking about Kelly this way, but it was the truth. He’d asked her to move in with him because Katy Hart was gone from his life for good, and that left him with no one but starlets who