The Director's Cut by Js Taylor (if you give a mouse a cookie read aloud txt) 📕

you know,” her fingers sweep her tiny figure, “that does not happen with me and men. Ever.”

I can well believe this. Natalie is undeniably gorgeous. I have to admit, I am thrilled that James resisted her advances.

“And everyone knows that Madison and he aren’t really a couple,” she adds.

“Really?” I do my best to load my voice with scandalised surprise.

“Yeah.” She leans forward, delighted to be spilling the secret. “Stage marriage. For Madison’s career.”

“Oh.” I feign shock, trying not to let the relief show. Natalie’s inability to think of anyone but herself has finally become an advantage.

I remember Callum saying that Natalie wouldn’t guess about James and I for that reason. I didn’t realise just how right he was.

“Well, I’d best be going,” I say, affecting nonchalance. “Mr Berkeley is still in my chalet. I’d better hear what he has to say about the flowers.”

“Say they help your creativity,” Natalie urges. “Studios can’t argue with that. They need to get the best performance out of you.”

“Thanks for the advice.”

“Don’t mention it,” says Natalie, looking happier than I’ve seen her before. “Hey,” she adds, “you’re alright Isabella. Maybe we could hang out sometime. Figure out a way to stop James telling us what to do.”

It takes all my power as an actress to keep a straight face. But I keep my expression serious.

A way to stop James telling me what to do. I’m not sure he’d like that.

“It would be great to hang-out,” I say. “Thanks.”

And I turn on my heel, feeling a little sorry for Natalie. She might be a royal pain in the butt. But perhaps she’s just lonely.

“See ya,” calls Natalie, making for her own chalet.

“Yeah, see you,” I reply, breathing a huge mental sigh of relief.

I open the chalet door to see James standing there, like a man condemned.

“It’s ok,” I smile, “don’t worry. Natalie thinks you were telling me off for having flowers delivered.”

I smile again, but he doesn’t return the expression.

“James?” I walk towards him, confused. “What’s the matter?”

He’s holding his phone in his hand, and he waves it vaguely towards me.

“There’s been a leak,” he says. I’ve never heard his voice so serious. “Someone has been talking to the press. About us.”

Chapter 2

I feel my stomach knot. Someone has been talking to the press?

My first thought is of Callum’s fear when the paparazzi first arrived outside the studio. Press could mean the movie gets canned. And maybe worse.

“Who?” I ask. “Who has been talking?”

James’s face tightens further.

“I don’t know,” he says, “but it’s someone who knows a lot. It could only be one of the actors or one of the crew.”

One of the actors or the crew.

Immediately, I think of Natalie. James has already told me she has an addiction to publicity. Although, having just spoken to her, I genuinely don’t think she suspects there’s anything between James and I. It’s confusing.

“What information was leaked?” I say finally. Images of us dancing tango are playing through my mind. James went crazy when those pictures aired. I couldn’t stand for anything more incriminating to hit the press.

James runs his hand through his brown hair.

“That’s what I’m in the process of finding out,” he admits. “It only happened in the last few minutes. I have a hotline,” he adds with a half-smile, holding up his phone.

Not Natalie then.

There’s no way she could have got a story to press in the few moments between leaving my chalet window and when I caught up with her.

“As far as I can work out, it’s just a rumour,” adds James. “No pictures. No proof. But someone has leaked that there could be something between us.”

He waves his phone, maintaining his half-smile. “My press officers have good contacts in the newsrooms. They let me know the second a story is considered for publication. This leak only happened within the last few minutes.”

“It was a phone leak?” I ask.

“Yes.”

The mystery of it swirls in my brain.

The only other people who know about James and I are Will, Callum and Camilla. And I know for a fact that none of them would have leaked it.

Lorna is the only other person who has an idea that we’re a couple. I’ve not been able to get hold of her on the phone recently. But I know she would never betray me to the newspapers.

Who else knew?

“Could it have been one of the security who was hired to find the Lipstick Stalker?” I say finally, thinking out loud. From what I know of James, he’d only hire trustworthy crew. But the last-minute security might have tested his screening process.

James winces at the name, and then frowns.

“Perhaps,” he says, after a moment of consideration. “I did my best to keep a lid on the drama. But we had to get in a lot of security fast.”

Then he shakes his head. “We’ve been very discrete, Issy,” he says. “I really can’t imagine how anyone on the crew would have come to that conclusion. Even if they were motivated to leak stories.”

I’m not so sure.

His phone beeps, and he presses it urgently to his ear.

I feel myself holding my breath as he listens, then speaks.

“Thanks. Ok. We’ll manage it on our end. Do what you can.”

He clicks the phone off and turns to me.

“Looks like I’m going to have to make some important announcements,” he says, his eyes searching my face. “I think it’s time I made the divorce from Madison public.”

“What?” I can’t keep the horror out of my voice. We spoke about this before. And I told him I wasn’t ready. But part of me knows I will never be ready.

James face sets more seriously. “I just spoke to my press officer, Issy. Nothing has been confirmed. But the press are on the scent. They’ve been told there could be something more to our relationship.”

“How much do they know?” I hedge.

A public divorce. On my account. No, no, no!

I suddenly feel very sick.

James sighs. “It’s probably not too