Chapter 9

EVERY MUSCLEin Lucas's body ached, and yet he felt amazing. The sun shone through the windows, and reflective sparkles from the water danced on the ceiling.

"Can we go swimming?" Carl asked as he hurried into the bedroom with his bathing suit on backward and his floaties on his arms. He still had on his pajama top.

"In a little while," Matthew told him. "I promise. Now why don't you go back to your room and take off the swimmies and your pajamas. Then we'll have breakfast and go down to the lake." Matthew checked the time, and as soon as Carl left the room, he got up and dressed in a hurry. "I need to get him ready for the day, and I have to be at work in an hour."

"It's okay. Get him settled. Karen and I can take them down to the water for a little while." Lucas got out of bed and dressed, then followed Matthew, who headed right upstairs.

"But Uncle Daddy," Carl called and began to whine.

Lucas let him handle it and went into the kitchen, where someone had made coffee.

"You can go swimming," Matthew said, carrying Carl down the stairs. He now wore shorts and a T-shirt, all of which were on the right way. "But first you have to have breakfast, and then you need to ask Lucas, because I have to go to work soon." Matthew set Carl down, and he came right up to Lucas with those big sad eyes.

"Please…?" he asked, and Lucas had to work to keep from laughing.

"Of course we're going swimming later. But you have to let Uncle Daddy get ready for work. Miss Karen will be up soon, and after breakfast we can all go down to the lake for a while. Can you get your brothers and sister up?"

Carl raced up the stairs. "Get up if you wanna go swimming!"

"Are you sure you're up for this?" Matthew asked.

Lucas chuckled. "Are you kidding? They're nothing compared to diva costars and wannabes who think they're hot stuff. Let's get you something to eat and on your way to work." Lucas helped make breakfast and then said goodbye to Matthew, kissing him before he drove off.

"He's going to be fine," Rachel said, coming to stand next to him.

"I just hope he doesn't have any problems. Word is going to have gotten all over town about him and me." He was less concerned about the guys Matthew worked with than the press trying to follow him.

"Matthew can take care of himself, and I made sure he has all our numbers if something happens. Now, I think we need to get inside."

Lucas just hoped Matthew made it through the day in one piece.

"HOW CANanyone do this day in and day out?" Lucas asked himself. He'd cleaned up spills and separated Gregory and Brianna, slathered all of them with sunscreen, and watched them do tricks in the water for what seemed like forever.

"Stay close to the shore," Lucas cautioned Will, who nodded. The last thing he thought he'd be doing on this trip was watching kids, and yet here he was with four of them all vying for his attention… in the best way.

"Carl can't swim yet," Brianna told him as she stood next to where he sat on the sand, dripping water all over. "But I can."

"Okay, but you need to stay close to shore." He had no idea what the kids' abilities were, but he was pretty sure that an eight-year-old was not going to be a strong swimmer, no matter what he wanted to believe. "We can make a sand castle if you want."

"A big one?" she asked, lifting her arms over her head.

"Sure. A big one." He got up and started helping the kids make a pile of sand. Will and Gregory came over, and soon they were all forming towers and the main part of the castle. Lucas helped dig a moat so the lake could fill it.

"Are you having fun?" Rachel asked as she strode over. Carl and Brianna nodded, barely pausing in their labors. She handed Lucas his phone, which he must have left inside. "It's been dinging constantly."

"Thanks." He checked the call log and groaned. "What's up, Leon?"

"John Kerrigan wants to meet with you. I can arrange it, but I think you should come back. That way you can meet him in person."

Lucas looked out over the water and let it calm him. He was not going to get caught up in Leon's dramatics.

"We can Zoom. It's fine. That's what he and I did the last time we worked together. I'm not going to travel hours for a twenty-minute meeting. Set it up and I'll meet him."

"But meeting him in person would be better. I'd think with everything that's happening out there, you'd be anxious to get home. We can control security here much better." He sounded so convincing—almost too much so.

"It's not necessary," Lucas said. "Just set up the call with John. It will be fine. He wants to go over his plan for the production and his ideas on my character. We can do that remotely, and it will free things up for him as well."

"I really think—" Leon continued.

Lucas wondered what the big deal was. "Why are you in such a hurry to have me back there?" he asked, cutting off Leon as he laid out his reasons for Lucas to come back to Hollywood.

"I'm not." The pause told Lucas that he had caught Leon off guard. "I just think it would be a good idea. You and John can meet and talk, and you'll be closer to where you can be protected. Who knows what kind of security they have there? It's the damned middle of nowhere. If someone is after you, then here you could have more backup and stuff." He paused. "Where are you exactly, anyway? Are you still in Scottville, or have you seen sense and left already?"

"I'm…." Lucas felt his ire rising, but he stopped himself. "I'm fine, and I'm safe right now." He grinned as the kids all worked together on their sandcastle. It was impressive, with Will taking the lead, explaining what he wanted the others to do.

"Are those kids?" Leon asked.

"Can you please just set up the meeting and let me know when it is?" He wanted to get this conversation back on track. "I'll be returning in a week or so. Until then, I'm trying to relax and get some energy back." He disconnected the call and wanted to chuck the phone into the drink just for a little peace. Was that too much to ask?

He shook his head, and Carl hurried over across the sand and sat on his lap. "You look mad. Was the man mean?" Carl hugged him, and instantly the anger slipped away. "If he's mean, then you shouldn't be friends with him anymore. That's what Uncle Daddy told Brianna."

"And he's right." Lucas wasn't happy with the job Leon had been doing lately. He'd been getting more demanding and pushy. Lucas hugged Carl back, and then he got up and hurried away to play with the others.

"Is there anything I need to know?" Rachel asked.

"No. Just my agent being a pain in the backside." He managed to stop himself from saying ass. "I don't know what I'm going to do."

She leaned down. "Are you sure that's how you feel?" He turned, because she was getting at something, and Lucas needed to look her in the eye. "I can see what I can find out about him. I never trusted Leon."

"Are you sure it's not because the two of you hated each other on sight?" Lucas narrowed his gaze.

Rachel shrugged. "I never hid the fact that I think he's a weasel." She leaned closer. "And what if my instincts turn out to be right? They have in the past." There were times when Lucas wished he wasn't surrounded by people who thought they knew better than him. "I'm willing to lay money on it."

Lucas leaned back, and the kids all grew quiet. "Okay." He nodded, and Rachel hurried off, probably to dig into the dark recesses of the web.

"Is she being mean?" Carl asked, his lower lip pooching out.

"No. Rachel is never mean. She's just fierce, like your sister is going to be when she grows up." Lucas grabbed a stick and a napkin from the snack bag and made a flag that he placed on the top of the sandcastle. "I think we should go in for a while." He was starting to wonder about their time in the sun.

"Can we have ice cream?" Brianna asked.

"Yes. After lunch, as long as you're good." He wasn't above bribery. With Will's help, he gathered everything and carried the bag and toys to the house.

Inside, the kids raced around in some dance of chaos centered on getting their suits off. Fortunately, Karen had made lunch, and once he got all the kids at the table to eat, he sat on the sofa, put his feet up, and wondered how anyone could do this each and every day. It wasn't like they were bad kids—it was just exhausting dealing with their normal behavior. Lucas felt grateful to every parent everywhere, and he'd only spent half a day at it.

"Is it good?" Karen asked, and Lucas listened as they all talked. He wasn't hungry, so he closed his eyes, trying to catch his breath.

A weight bounced on the sofa next to him. "When will Uncle Daddy be home?" Gregory asked, his blue eyes filled with mischief.

"Later this afternoon. He's at work now."

Gregory sighed and then leaned against Lucas. "I want Uncle Daddy."

"Aren't you having fun down by the lake?" he asked, and Gregory nodded. "Is something wrong?" Gregory shrugged. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He sat quietly with him, hoping that just being there was enough. The others talked and ate lunch, with Karen watching them.

"Are you hungry, Lucas?" Karen asked.

He shook his head. "Are you sure you don't want to eat?" Lucas asked Gregory.

He nodded and sighed once more. "Are you going to take Uncle Daddy home with you?" Gregory asked.

Lucas held him closer. "Are you afraid he's going to leave you?" he asked. "Because that isn't going to happen. Matthew loves you very much, and he isn't going anywhere without all of you. I'm not here to take him away, I promise."

Gregory looked at him with big, watery blue eyes. "Really?"

"Matthew is your uncle, and he'll always be there to love you. I know that," Lucas said, his throat aching, because that was what he had hoped would happen for him. But it wasn't and it couldn't. As much as Lucas cared for Matthew and was coming to care for these four kids, they were more important than him. Matthew had told him that, but now it was finally sinking in. These kids had to come first, and Lucas needed to make the most of the time he had with Matthew, because this was going to be it. Lucas was used to getting what he wanted, but Matthew was someone he couldn't have. The kids and their lives here needed to come first.

"But he loves you too," Gregory said. Damn, these were amazing kids, and sometimes they just blew him away. Lucas hoped that was true, but at the moment, it wasn't what was important.

"Sometimes we can't always be with the people we love." That was so damned true it made his heart ache.

"Why?" Gregory asked with all seriousness.

"Because sometimes someone else is more important." He smiled as best he could. "Now, go on back and finish your lunch. After you're done, we can play games if you want."

"I have colors for you, and you can draw your uncle pictures," Karen offered, and Gregory went back to the table while Lucas stared out the windows. What he'd said slowly sank deeper. As much as he wished he could stay with Matthew, his life and his energy needed to be spent on the kids. As much as Lucas would love to ask him to come to Hollywood and stay with him, it wasn't practical. The kids needed stability and a routine. Lucas's life was anything but routine. Just like before, no matter how he felt, Lucas was going to have to leave… only this time he wasn't sure his heart was going to survive.

"UNCLE DADDY,"Gregory called when Matthew came down the walkway from the house toward the water. All four kids stopped what they were doing and hurried over for hugs, clamoring to tell him what they had done. Lucas sat on the sand and gave the kids their time, watching Matthew.

The man seemed to have infinite patience, listening to each of them and giving hugs and big, warm smiles.

Rachel passed them on the walkway and came out to where Lucas waited. Her expression was as serious as a heart attack.

"I take it you found something," Lucas said as he got up.

"Maybe. I'm not sure," Rachel said, genuinely confused.

"Okay. Why not start at the beginning?" Lucas brushed the sand off his now dry bathing trunks.

Rachel showed him the screen. "It seems over the past few years that the number of clients Leon had under contract is shrinking, but his lifestyle…. Let's just say that it's expensive. Vacations, boats, a house in Beverly Hills as well as one at the beach in Malibu. All of which take a lot of cash to maintain." She showed him pictures of the various items. Lucas wondered where she got them but kept the questions to himself.

"Okay…."

Rachel looked at him like he was dumb. "Lucas, you're his cash cow. His other clients are somewhat successful, but nothing like you, and they don't bring in the revenue you do."

"What are you saying? That Leon is cheating me in order to live the life he has?"

Rachel shook her head. "I don't think so. You have an amazing team of business managers, and I'm sure they are on the lookout for anything like that." She bit her lower lip as Matthew slipped his arm around Lucas's waist.

"I think she's trying to tell you that Leon is working you like a dog so he can keep the money flowing in," Matthew whispered. "You already told me how tight your shooting schedule is. What sort of manager allows that and doesn't work to manage it? That sort of thing is part of their job, right? Yet he keeps you busy as hell and even bugs you when you're on vacation for a few weeks."

"So… what am I supposed to do? And how does this get us closer to finding the guy who won't leave me alone?" Lucas snapped and wished he hadn't.

Rachel lowered the tablet. "It doesn't." She seemed almost disappointed but recovered quickly. "But to that end, I made arrangements for us to try to set our trap for him on Friday. They are going to announce this afternoon that you are planning to make a special appearance at Pioneer Village to benefit their educational programs. Tickets will need to be bought in advance for the special event, which will happen in the evening, and they are limiting the number of guests. They asked if you would prepare a little speech about educational programs and how important they are to you."

"Of course."

"And how do we ensure that Ruetoyou is going to be there?" Matthew asked.

Rachel grinned. "I'm having one of the hackers back in the office who has been following this joker since you first hired us tweet it to him. Put the invitation right in front of his face. A small group with tickets open to the public—this is a stalker's dream. And we'll be there in the crowd as well. If anyone makes a move, we'll be on them."

"But how are you going to blend in?" Lucas asked.

"We'll be dressed in period costume and look like the players and volunteers. No one pays much attention to the employees at places like that. To most people, you become part of the whole setting."

"But how will you know him?" Lucas asked.

Rachel pulled up her tablet once more. "I think we might have pictures. I've had the team in the office going over every image we have, and look here." She pulled up one of Matthew's pictures from the day in the park. "See that guy right there…? Now look here." She flipped the image to a street in LA. "There he is in the background near the studio entrance. This was taken the day you received that note in your trailer."

"Why didn't we find this sooner? Not that I'm not happy you did, but…."

"Because the images aren't sharp enough for electronic comparison. Our eyes do a better job. We tried enlarging the pictures but can only get so far and get a huge number of possibilities. At an event with a limited number of people, though, we should be able to pick him out… if he decides to show up. All we can do is tease him and hope he takes the bait."

Lucas wasn't sure he liked this, but he was willing to give it a shot. "What do you think?" He turned to Matthew.

"I hate it, but I don't see where we have much choice. However, I am going to make a request. Since this is open to the public, let's stack the guests that are going to be there. Make sure we have as many friendly faces there as we can."

Lucas grinned. "What do you have in mind?"