Page 99 of No Holds Barred

“Ange, be honest with me, on a scale of one to five, one being you want to quit because of him and five being your favorite person on the planet, how do you feel about Josef?” Logan crossed his leg again and stared at her directly, as if he knew exactly what he was doing.

It was far harder to avoid questions like this than the typical ones that required a yes or a no. Pursing her lips, Angelica rolled her shoulders and settled into her chair even more. “One.”

Logan’s eyebrows shot up as if he wasn’t expecting that response. “One?”

“One,” Angelica confirmed. She rubbed her thumb over the pads of her fingers in a nervous gesture. She didn’t want him to pry any more. She just wanted to find her damn iPad and get back to filming. Avoidance was certainly the best way to deal with Josef.

“How long has it been that way, Ange?” A deep line formed in the center of Logan’s forehead, and he leaned forward, as if he actually cared about what she said.

“Since he was gone for the first part of last season.” Angelica sighed. “We’re much better at our jobs when he isn’t around.”

“And why is that?” Logan had eyes only for her, and it was unnerving.

She wasn’t used to being the one on this end of the questioning, and while she knew she needed to talk to Logan about Josef, it also meant potentially revealing her relationship with Hope. She tensed and pressed her lips together hard.

“Why are you here, Logan? You’re supposed to be on leave.”

“I am,” he answered, frowning. “But when I get enough calls to complain about Josef in a single very short filming season, I have to make myself available for the people who work for me.”

“How many complaints did you receive?” Angelica tried not to twitch. Maybe it wasn’t just Hope’s phone call that had tipped Logan over the edge.

“Last week there were three.” Logan rested back in the chair. “From three separate people.”

“Oh.” Angelica breathed out slowly. Was the crew so distant from her that they didn’t feel they could speak to her about any of this?

“I can see your mind working, and no, they would have come to you, but after the car accident, they didn’t want to put any more added stress on you.” Logan swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he tilted his head to the side. “And because the complaints involved you.”

“Involved me?” Angelica furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”

“The ones last week, specifically, were all about Josef’s treatment of you—well, you and Hope.” Logan sighed. “I didn’t know he was bringing Leanne in, I need to be clear on that. If I’d known, I would have told him no, and I suspect he knew that.”

Angelica’s cheeks heated, but a small amount of the tension in her chest released. “I don’t think anyone knew.”

“We’ll have to pay her, of course, but it’s not going to be easy finagling the budget to accommodate that.”

“I don’t think Josef cared about that.” Angelica crossed her arms, wishing she could cross her legs, but with the cast still on, she was stuck sitting in this awkward and uncomfortable position. “I mentioned it when Leanne showed up that first week. I was just as shocked she was staying for a second.”

“And glad she wasn’t staying for a third?” Logan asked.

Angelica breathed deeply and nodded. “Yes. It was… tense.” That was the most she was going to say about that.

“Do you think he brought her in specifically to goad you?”

“Why does Josef do anything?” Angelica lifted her chin, staring down her nose at Logan. “He wants drama and tension on the screen, and he knows exactly how to get it—with or without consent.”

Logan frowned. “How did you feel about Leanne being here?”

Damn, he was back to thosehowquestions. Angelica brushed her fingers over her legs. “I really need to get back to filming.”

“Ange, I need you to talk to me. Remember? Like we talked in Los Angeles, it’s no different now than it was then.”

Except that it was. Back then she wasn’t doing exactly what Josef accused her of, and everything wasn’t coming to a head where it’d all crash down on her. She had to be better than she was back then. Angelica clenched her jaw tightly as she stared at him.

“Logan, I don’t know who to trust right now.” Angelica looked around the room. “Every time I think I can trust someone, they prove me wrong.” She sighed. “Having Leanne on set was difficult. Personally, for me. Professionally for everyone else. Josef continually threatened my job and Hope’s job by having Leanne here, telling us that she would be one person to replace both of us.”

“He what?” Logan froze. “For the record, Ange, none of production is thinking about replacing you and Hope.”

“Well, that’s good to know.” Angelica rubbed her fingers again.