Vintage Pride Read Free

picked up her shot glass and encouraged Ethan to do the same. She drained the whiskey in a single gulp.
    When Ethan followed her action, the alcohol seemed to burn a trail of fire down to his belly. Tears pricked at his eyes and he gasped for breath.
    Kim, sipping more sedately at her beer, grinned at his reaction.
    “And just how was that supposed to help?” he asked her once he could find his voice again.
    “Well, it stopped you thinking about Boyd for a minute, didn’t it?” She raised a hand, attracting Mac’s attention. “Could we have a basket of nachos over here? Extra guacamole, please.”
    Mac nodded. “Coming right up.” He ambled through to the kitchen to place their order with the cook.
    Billy Joel had given way to Bruce Springsteen on the jukebox and over at the pool table, a man’s voice whooped in celebration of completing his shot.
    “So what happened between you and Boyd, exactly?” Kim half-turned on her bar stool so she faced Ethan.
    “He’s gone and got himself another job. Sorted it out while we were filming in Silver Falls and waited till just now to let me know. But I got the impression he was trying to find a way out of the relationship anyway.” He took a swallow of his beer then blew out a long breath. “If I’d have known Boyd was angling to break up with me, I’d have fucked Hayden Skarz when I had the chance.”
    Kim’s eyes widened in her evident surprise. “Hayden Sk—? Wow, I didn’t realize he’s that way inclined. The guy does a pretty good job of keeping it under wraps.”
    “Well, whatever… That’s all water under the bridge. All I know is that I was looking forward to a relaxing break in the sun with Boyd, and now…”
    “Hey, you can do a hell of a lot better than Boyd Morrison. Trust me.” Kim bent her head closer to Ethan’s. “As soon as the guys find out you’re on the market again, honey, they’re going to be queuing up.”
    He sighed, wishing he could feel the same confidence in his ability to attract a new lover as Kim obviously did.
    “And it gets better,” she went on. “Soon, you’ll have the pick of hot men from all across Europe to choose from.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    They were interrupted by the reappearance of Mac, who placed a basket down in front of them. It was filled with tortilla chips smothered in sour cream, guacamole and jalapeño slices and topped with melted cheese.
    “Dig in,” Kim said before pulling a nacho from the pile and popping it into her mouth.
    That was another of the things Ethan liked about her. She enjoyed her food and didn’t care who knew it.
    “This is why I was coming to find you,” Kim said when she’d finished chewing. “I bumped into Dan just now.”
    She referred to Dan Albany, the CEO of Archer Film and Television, who had built the company up from a tiny office over a video rental store in downtown Burbank to the multi-million-dollar success it had become. Unlike some bosses, Dan still took a hands-on role in the various shows Archer produced. Ethan couldn’t decide whether that was because the man cared about maintaining standards or was simply an old-fashioned control freak.
    “Really? I thought he was at that industry convention in Vegas?”
    “He got back a couple of hours ago and came straight into the office. He told me he wants to set up a meeting with both of us this week to discuss locations for the next season of Spirit Seekers .”
    “But we’re only just wrapping up this one.”
    “I know, but he says he’s seen what a couple of the other networks are planning, and it’s very clear they’re trying to copy our formula right down to the last detail. Though why wouldn’t they, when we’re the number one show on the market?” Kim reached for another nacho. “And we need to keep ahead of the competition, capitalize on our popularity. According to Dan, he’s sold the new season into sixteen different territories worldwide. And he says all the foreign sales are