The Price of Fame

  The Price of Fame

  Hazel Gower

  Published 2013

  ISBN: 978-1-62210-000-2

  Published by Liquid Silver Books, imprint of Atlantic Bridge Publishing, 10509 Sedgegrass Dr, Indianapolis, Indiana 46235. Copyright © Published 2013, Hazel Gower. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

  Manufactured in the United States of America

  Liquid Silver Books

  http://LSbooks.com

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.

  Blurb

  Have you ever touched someone and known they were the one? Markus Pegios, European superstar, did as soon as he touched Kylie Breal.

  Markus needs a holiday—away from his famous life—and goes to Australia where he’s an unknown. One morning on his beach run, he gets hit with a dog’s ball. Going in search of its owner, he finds the dog and owner lying on the beach. As he introduces himself, he experiences an instant attraction, and when they touch, he knows she’s the one, but Kylie runs from him.

  Kylie has watched her fantasy man every day as he stretches and runs across the beach, but one morning he’s late, and she gives up on him. Lying on the sand, she throws her dog’s ball and who does it hit? Of course, Mr. Dreamy. As soon as they touch, her body come to life. Scared, Kylie runs, thinking she’s lost her mind, imagining things that aren’t there. Fate brings them together again, but can Kylie accept who Markus is, and all the drama that comes with him?

  Dedication

  To my wonderful hubby, I love you, and thanks for always believing in me.

  Acknowledgements

  Thanks to Imogene Nix, Donna Gallagher, Efthalia Pegios, and also my editor, Devin Govaere.

  Prologue

  “Where on earth are you?”

  Markus debated about whether to tell his manager where he was. Looking around the house he rented, he stared out the window to see bush and the Australian sun-coated ocean. He wondered where his week had gone. So far he’d enjoyed pure bliss at his current secret location, no paparazzi, no fake people, no crazy fans, and no agent, manager, or posse.

  “Nowhere you need to know. I need a couple of months, Gaelan. The album was released a year ago. Since then, I’ve toured and promoted the hell out of it. Give me some time away from everything.”

  He heard a heavy sigh on the other end of the phone. “This is Helena’s fault.”

  “No, it has nothing to do with her. We broke up months ago.” Groaning, he ran his fingers through his hair. “Look, give me two months. I’ll be back bigger and better than before.”

  “Fine. Markus, I’m giving you two months before I come and find you. Got it?”

  “Got it.” He hung up feeling lighter than he had in months and ready to continue his relaxing holiday, put up his feet, do some song writing, and explore the sights. Staring out at the Australian beach, he grabbed his running shoes and headed out for his morning run.

  Chapter 1

  Kylie sat on the sand, checking her watch again. “Crap. He’s late,” she muttered to her chocolate Lab. “Buddha, how long do you think we can sit here pretending to rest while I wait for Mr. Dreamboat?” The dog of course didn’t answer. He just panted away, leaving her feeling silly for asking.

  She lay back on the warm sand, sifting it through her fingers as she breathed in the fresh, salty air. Every morning for the last week, she had taken her dog for a run at six o’clock and paused around the same spot, throwing the ball for Buddha so she could watch her fantasy man stretch and warm up before he ran along the beach. Kylie groaned when she glanced around the beach and then back at her watch again, whispering to herself, “I think I’m becoming stalker material.”

  Buddha dropped the ball on her chest, his chocolate puppy-dog eyes begging her to throw it. “Fine, but I’m not moving.” Not even bothering to sit up, she threw the ball and watched Buddha bound off after it. Closing her eyes, she waited for her dog to come back with the ball.

  “You know, when you throw something, you should really sit up and look to see if there is anyone around it could hit.”

  A startled squeal left her as the heavily accented voice sounded from above. Opening her eyes, she gulped to see that Mr. Dreamboat himself stood over her, holding Buddha’s ball. Oh God! He was even better close up, with the most amazing sky-blue eyes she had ever seen. His short jet-black hair kept his face free so she could see his strong, masculine jaw adorned by a couple of days’ stubble. Her eyes noted his lips, which any woman would envy.

  Kylie’s cheeks heated as she realized she hadn’t answered him. With a deep breath, she slowly sat up. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbled. “I didn’t know anyone was on the beach.”

  Her fingers dug into the sand one last time before she rose, patting the sand from her body. Kylie stared at the man before her, storing every detail of his face. Her fingers itched for paper and a pencil. He was an artist’s dream. Buddha bumped him with his body, obviously trying to get the man to throw the ball. “If you throw it, he’ll leave you alone.”

  Mr. Gorgeous glanced down at the ball and then back to her. He threw it into the surf, and then wiped his hand on his shirt and held it out. “I’m Markus.”

  She stared at his hand for a moment before shaking it. “Kylie, Kylie Breal. Again, I’m so sorry.”

  Markus smiled at her, and she almost passed out. Maybe he was a male model or an actor, being so beautiful.

  A shiver ran down her back, and she felt a jolt of instant electricity from his touch. Oh no, this can’t be happening. Her mind whispered he was way out of her league. “It’s nice to meet you, Markus.” Then she turned and ran away from him, calling to Buddha as she rushed up the stairs and off the beach.

  Kylie ran all the way home, only stopping to put the lead on Buddha. She’d been stupid, imagining things that didn’t exist. She had taken this stalker thing too far.

  Grabbing the phone once inside her house, Kylie called her best friend, James. “I’ve become a freaky stalker.” She rushed through more words before he could answer. “I finally met the man who I’ve been stalking, and I convinced myself I felt sparks.”

  A woman’s voice answered, “Hello?”, and Kylie moaned loudly. Great, another one of James’ floozies. Annoyed, she gritted out, “Look, I don’t know which one you are, so can you just pass the phone to James?”

  The woman on the other end gave a loud huff and yelled for James. She waited, needing her friend to tell her she wasn’t being silly.

  “Hello, sweetheart. What did you say … because she just left in a huff.”

  “Nothing,” she answered tartly. “I just said I didn’t know which one she was, so I asked if she could pass me to you.”

  He laughed on the other end. “I love you. But when are you going to come to your senses and marry me?”

  “How about … when you stop sleeping with everything with a vagina?”

  He let out a dramatic sigh. “Okay. So what’s so important you scared away my guest on a Saturday morning?”

  She told him everything about the last week and finished with the event of the morning.

  She waited for James to answer, worrying her lip. “James, are you still there?”

  His answer came slowly, as though he was thinking before he answered. “No. You’re not a stalker. How about I come over? We could do lunch before we start our dance lesson.”

  She nodded with a smile. James
always made her feel better. And she loved weekends, especially Saturdays, when she helped teach ballroom and Latin dancing with him at the club. “Yeah, that sounds great. I’m looking forward to seeing if we got any new students from our flyer.”

  “Yeah, so am I. Look, I’m just going to shower, but I’ll be round in half an hour. Loves ya, bye.”

  He hung up before she could respond, but feeling better, she shrugged off his odd behavior, getting ready for the day ahead.

  She also told herself that she would walk the dog in the afternoons from now on.

  * * * *

  Back at his house, Markus’ mind was still grappling over his interaction with the tiny, shapely brunette. Her hair was a light tree-bark brown, and her eyes were the same color as her hair. She might not have looked like anything special to most people, but to him she was gorgeous. He couldn’t get over how her eyes showed every emotion. Her lips had been thin, not full and pouty, but the way she bit her lip, and then soothed it with her tongue, and her perfect Coke-bottle-shaped body had turned him instantly hard. He’d bet his fortune she was 100 percent real. No plastic surgeon had touched her shapely body.

  There had to be a reason his thoughts kept going back to her. His mind kept replaying their conversation, and when he thought about the entire package, Markus couldn’t seem to take his mind off her. To him, she was stunning. Not his usual type by a long shot, but when he’d touched her, his body tingled. He knew he should have picked up on the vibe then … that she was the one.

  Markus’ papa had always said that was how it had been when he meet Markus’ mama He’d seen her at a party and felt an instant attraction. As soon as he touched her, he knew she was the one. They had been married for forty-two years now and were still madly in love.

  Pacing his kitchen, Markus pondered what he should do since she’d run off scared, possibly from the chemistry they’d had. Now he had to go find her. “Kylie Breal.” He whispered her name. Markus hoped she would be easy to find.

  Picking up his mail, he quickly sorted through it, throwing out the junk mail, and then pausing as a pamphlet fell to floor. Picking it up, he noted it was advertising dancing classes for tonight. His night was free, so he decided to give it a try. Markus liked Latin dancing and knew basic ballroom, so it might be fun, and it would help keep his mind off Kylie until he could find her. He could perhaps also find some friends here in Australia who didn’t know his real identity.

  Full of inspiration, he headed to his makeshift music room to see what he could create.

  * * * *

  Markus arrived at the club just as the beginners class ended. The woman at the door, probably in her late forties, collected his money with a smile.

  “Welcome! It’s nice to see another new face. I can tell you’re going to be popular.”

  He nodded at her, and then he wandered into the room, placing his keys, sweat towel, and bottle of water on a table in the corner. Turning, he froze as he saw the woman he hadn’t been able to get off his mind dancing with a blond man as the class watched.

  “And this is how you’ll be dancing in a few weeks,” the man said to the attentive class.

  He stared as Mr. Blondie spun Kylie before leading into some basic cha-cha moves and ending with him leading her out into a fan.

  Enraptured watching the couple, he didn’t notice an older woman sit beside him until she spoke. “They look fantastic together, don’t they?”

  He turned, the spell of watching them now broken.

  The woman continued. “James has been doing this since he could walk, but Kylie? She started later, about twelve. They’re lovely people. She helps him with his weekend classes. They’re the busiest, you know.”

  He stared at the woman, at least in her late sixties, with snow-white hair and ice-blue eyes. “Are they a couple?”

  The woman cackled and patted his arm. “James wishes.” She chuckled. “I think he’s been waiting for her to get over her parents’ deaths. They died just over two years ago on the night of her eighteenth birthday. They were her only family. Well, besides a sister, who isn’t very nice.”

  Marcus let out his breath with a whoosh. He refocused his attention to the dance floor and watched the couple with new eyes, noting everything about his competition while the woman continued to gossip.

  “They’re best friends even though there’s quite an age gap. Ten years I think.”

  He tuned out the woman while he studied Kylie. At twenty, she was younger than he’d thought. He’d just celebrated his thirty-third birthday.

  The class broke up with people chatting and thanking Kylie and James. The older lady tapped his arm.

  “You’re in for a treat, you know. You’re twenty minutes early. They always go over the hour at every lesson, so he starts the lessons with a half hour leeway. But a lot hang around watching them practice.” The lady smiled as she looked at Kylie and the blond. “Tonight I think they’re practicing for a fundraiser show they’re doing. It should be great.”

  He nodded while his eyes followed the object of his affections. Once everyone was off the dance floor, Kylie changed into higher shoes, and samba music filled the air. He watched, enthralled as James and Kylie turned into the sexiest couple he’d ever seen. At one point, she made a wrong move in what he knew was called a hug. He watched as her face transformed, and she almost sparkled, laughing at her mistake.

  “Stunning.” He stared transfixed at the beauty before him. He knew watching her that he wasn’t going to give up until she gave him a chance.

  The woman chuckled. “Yes indeed. When she laughs, she transforms.”

  He watched the rest of the session in silence, unsure for the first time in his life of just how to proceed.

  *

  Kylie loved her best friend. He always made a bad day a hundred times better. Today, though, there had been something odd about him. By the way he looked at her and kept touching more than usual, something was up.

  They’d begun preparing to begin the intermediate class when she looked around the room to see they had some new people in the intermediate class too. She scanned the room and froze at the sight of the man she saw in the corner talking to Mrs. Dickstein. Kylie’s stomach churned at the thought of what was being said, as Mrs. Dickstein was the biggest gossip in the world. And she was talking to Kylie’s dream man. Kylie grabbed James’ hand and whispered, “He’s here.”

  James came over and stood blocking her view. “Who’s here?”

  “The guy I was talking about this morning. The guy I’ve been stalking. Of course, he’s the hottest man in the universe.” She looked into his forest-green eyes. “You know? The guy I ran from this morning. The one I imagined a connection with. He’s over in the corner talking to the biggest gossip in the universe, Mrs. Dickstein. Couldn’t she at least wait one night to tell everyone our life stories?”

  James spun so fast she didn’t even think she’d finished the last words.

  God! Embarrassment filled her as James and Markus stared each other down. What the hell is going on? Markus stood and walked over to her as though he were stalking prey. Kylie whacked James on the back. “That was stupid! Now he’s coming over here.”

  James shrugged, and she watched him eye Markus.

  Markus smiled, and she couldn’t contain a sigh. He held out a hand, introducing himself to James. The shake seemed to go on for a while before she cleared her throat. “Hello, Markus. It’s a small world.”

  He reached for her hand, but she avoided the connection.

  “Yes, a lovely surprise. I found your pamphlet when I got home from my run this morning.”

  Yep. That was just her luck. Now she had to put up with an hour-long lesson with Mr. Hunk in it and try to stay professional.

  “I was worried when you ran off this morning. Is everything okay?”

  She pasted a smile on her face and nodded. “Um, yeah. I forgot I had something to do at home. Sorry for being rude.”

  He grinned. “How about you make i
t up to me tomorrow by letting me join your morning walk?”

  Kylie glanced at James, hoping for some help, but his face was a mask of granite as he gave stony eyes to Markus. One part of her begged her to take up his offer. The other part, the more sensible part, kept telling her that she barely knew this guy, that he was way out of her league and not to expect anything.

  The begging side won.

  “Okay. I’ll meet you at your usual start time.” Kylie felt the heat rise in her cheeks as it slowly dawned on her what she had said. She cursed herself, and Markus’ grin turned into a huge smile, dimples and all. Her heart thudded in her chest at the sight of his perfect smile.

  * * * *

  The longest hour of her life had passed. Kylie sat in James’ car, and he brooded the whole way home. As she pulled into her driveway, she couldn’t take his sulking anymore. “What’s up?”

  “What’s so good about Greek boy?”

  “I don’t understand. Are you talking about Markus?” She knew he was, but she wanted to hear him say it.

  She heard him gritting his teeth as he snarled, “I don’t understand why every female was sighing and fighting to dance with him. What’s he got that’s so hot?”

  Closing her eyes, the image of Markus she’d saved in her brain popped up. Amazing blue eyes flashed as Markus smiled, and the dimples that peeked out were enough to catch any woman’s attention. Then when her eyes slid down his toned, muscular body… She fanned herself, and James snarled and opened his door. The car rocked as he slammed his door and stalked around to hers.

  She got out of the car and watched as he used his key to her house. When they reached the living room, she grabbed his arm. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have spaced. Look, he doesn’t have that much more than you. It’s just … he has a flawless face. You know, a model-actor type face and that accent… Then he has a body th—” She stopped as his face turned red and his fist clenched at his side.

  “That’s the type of guy you’re after? An actor or a model?”