Beneath His Darkness (Healing Hearts #3) by Renee Dyer Read Free Book Online Page A

take stock in tabloids, but I have learned there is some truth in every article.  You just have to dissect them to the barest bones to find out where the truth lies.
    The pictures I took of them shows a different story.  They aren’t dolled up to go out for a night on the town.  Instead, they are dressed down, the guys hiding under ball caps, trying not to be seen as they head to a small diner a couple blocks from where Eddie lives.
    Tucker practically ignores Victoria as he talks to Eddie.  The pictures show how uncomfortable she is.  Even when he has his hand on the small of her back to escort her into the restaurant, her smile is tight.  He seems oblivious to her discomfort.  He smiles and pushes the hair back from her face, but his smile is off, too.
    What is it about them that has my head screaming there is something wrong here?
    I hope to run into Victoria at my audition this afternoon.  Maybe I can get a better feel for what is going on.  It could be they had a fight before they met up with Eddie and didn’t want to air their grievances in front of him.  Maybe she didn’t want to go to dinner with Eddie and didn’t know how to tell Tucker.  Or maybe their relationship is a farce.
    Several scenarios roll through my head, but they all lead back to one conclusion—she’s not happy and that makes her an easy target.
    I place the pictures in the box with other pictures of Tucker and anyone else important enough to learn more about.  They rest on top of articles that have proven useful to me.  I close the box and slide it into the hole I’ve created under the floor in my closet.
    Confident my secret is hidden and no one can find it, I head to my audition.
    Crystal’s head pops up the second I walk in the door and her cheeks instantly grow pink.  I walk straight to her with long, confident strides.  I see her trying to breathe normally, but it isn’t happening.  I like the effect I have on her.  It doesn’t matter that I’m not attracted to her.  I enjoy the power I get from her emotions.  I can’t deny the high I feel.
    I prop my elbows on her desk and lift one corner of my lips into a smirk.  “How are you today, Crystal?”
    Her eyes go wide and she struggles to speak.  I stretch my lips into a full smile and she audibly gasps.  Instead of answering my question, she hands me the script for the audition.
    “Thanks, doll,” I say, winking at her before walking off to study the pages that will earn me this role.
    When I walk into the room, I greet everyone as I did before, but I get a surprise I wasn’t ready for.  Victoria is sitting next to Tucker.  I was hoping to run into her today, but I didn’t expect to see her sitting in the audition room.  This goes against everything I’ve learned about Eddie Carmichael.  He doesn’t let anyone bring significant others into his work time.
    What the hell is going on?
    I keep the surprise off my face and walk to the strips on the floor.  Eddie walks over to me and I hand him the script, just like I did last time.  He smirks at me and I just smile.
    Tucker walks over to me and offers his hand.  As much as I want to slap it away from me, I can’t.  I shake it, ignoring my skin feeling like it wants to melt from my bones at his touch.
    “Good to see you again, man.  Vic, my girl over there,” he says, nodding over his shoulder,  “she’s who you’ll be doing this scene with and she’s really worried about me seeing her kissing other guys.  I tried explaining that it’s part of the business, but she’s a bundle of nerves.  You were great in the last audition, think you can do me a solid and take it easy on her?”
    I peek around him to Victoria, who is trying to pretend she isn’t watching our talk.  It amuses me.  He doesn’t realize we’ve already met and I know it’s because she felt an attraction toward me.  She may not have felt much, but it was enough for her to keep the innocent meeting from him.
    Taking her from