Page 7 of Men or Paws

She mentioned she needed money, but her behavior made no sense.

If Beth really did hate me, she must have been having second thoughts about staying on my property, but I still couldn’t help wondering what I’d done to piss her off since we had never met before. I considered myself to be a decent human being.

“I think there seems to be a misunderstanding,” I said. “This is really Rocco Romano. Seriously. I’m calling because I could use your help.”

“Sorry, but I’m not an acting coach.” Beth laughed into the phone.

Ouch.

“I mean, really,” Beth continued. “A superhero in spandex who blinks, then travels back in time to stop people from doing destructive things that affect the future? Why does he need to wear spandex to accomplish that? And why doesn’t his hair move when he’s flying at the speed of light?”

“Spandex is very aerodynamic, actually. As for my hair—”

“It’s nice—I’ll give you that much. And that butt is impressive, but I need more than a firm set of buns to hold my interest.”

“Aha! You admit that he has a nice butt,” I said.

I couldn’t believe I was talking about myself in third person.

And why would I care what she thinks?

“Oh, yes, it is soooo sexy,” Beth said. “I’m overheating just thinking about it.”

The sarcasm had returned in full force, but this time she kicked it up a notch by panting harshly in my ear.

At least she thought I had one or two redeeming qualities.

Not that I cared.

Okay, maybe I cared a little.

“By the way, he’s not fooling me with that bad-boy act,” Beth delightfully added. “Just because he wears black all the time does not make him bad. That just makes him unimaginative in his color choices.”

I glanced down at my black T-shirt, black jeans, and black tennis shoes.

“Anyway, someone’s at the door. Call me back when you’re ready to imitate someone who’s actually interesting. Love you.” Once again, Beth ended the call before I could respond.

I set my phone down and shook my head, replaying the conversation in my mind.

“What just happened?” I asked Houdini. “And why would I want to call her back again? I get less abuse from the paparazzi.”

Houdini ignored me and walked to the edge of the desk, sniffing another script.

“Go for it,” I said, trying to figure out my next move.

One thing was for sure, I wasn’t going to call Beth Myers back. The woman obviously had a few screws loose and it would be in my best interest to avoid her at all costs.

ChapterTwo

Beth

I froze when I saw who was at the door. “What are you doing here?”

It wasn’t the way I typically greeted my brother, Josh, especially since I rarely saw him in person. I was just surprised to see him standing on my porch since I had just gotten off the phone with him. I assumed he called me from his home in Malibu or from his comedy tour on the road. I was obviously mistaken.

Josh hugged me. “By the look on your face, it appears thatsomeoneforgot I was going to be in town. I hope you don’t have a naked man running around here.” He laughed and slipped by me, rolling his carry-on suitcase to a spot against the wall. “Oh, wait, that’s right, you gave up on men, so we don’t have to worry about that.”

“I didn’t give up on men,” I said, closing the door. “I’m just choosy. Finding the right person takes time, you know. And I wouldn’t be your sister if I didn’t forget things.”