Girlfriend? Juniper''d only been on set for a day and was already attracting attention. The girl had even followed her all the way here. Shanley couldn''t make out what they were muttering about. Only one thought hammered in his brain: someone was after his girl. And it was a goddamn woman.


    "Don''t get the wrong idea." Seeing the haunted look on Juniper''s face, Jiana quickly exined, “When I said girlfriend, I meant a friend who''s a girl, not..... you know, that kind of girlfriend."


    "Oh." Juniper nodded in understanding.


    "I just really want to be friends with you," Jiana said excitedly. "Next time you go horseback riding, can you take me with you?" Before Juniper could answer, she added, "I also heard you can race cars. Juniper, that is so cool! I absolutely love it."


    Juniper rubbed her nose, hesitating.


    "I''ll treat you to some amazing food,” Jiana added, afraid of rejection. “There are so many hidden gems in the alleyways of Era City."


    "It''s a deal.” The moment she heard the word "food," Juniper nodded eagerly.


    "Let''s exchange numbers." Jiana happily pulled out her phone and they quickly added each other. “Juniper, you''reing back for the next episode, right?”


    "Yeah." Juniper nodded. She was initially scheduled for two episodes, so she would be back for the next one. Besides, the theme for the next episode was "food"-there was no way she would miss that.


    "Awesome!" Jiana pped her hands, beaming. "When youe next week, I''ll bring you snacks.” The other guests on the show were all pretty boring, and she never had anyone to talk to. Juniper was different. For some reason, Jiana just really, really liked her.


    "Sure," Juniper agreed with a yawn. "You should head back and get some rest. See you next week."


    "See you next week, sweetie." The more Jiana looked at Juniper, the more she adored her. It reminded her of a popr phrase she''d seen online: *I wish I had a daughter just like her.* Beautiful, smart, and skilled at so many things... She was the daughter of her dreams.


    After saying their goodbyes, Juniper massaged her neck and pushed open the door to her dressing room. The celebrities had private ones. As she stepped inside and took off her vest, moving toward the mirror, she suddenly, senged something was wrong. It felt like someone was behind her. She clenched her fists, spun around, and aimed a sharp kick at the shadow. In the next second, both of her wrists were seized. A tall, imposing man stared down at her, a devilish grin ying on his handsome, well-defined features. "Careful where you''re kicking, Ms.


    Payne. Are you trying to ruin my future happiness?"


    Staring at the man who had appeared out of nowhere, Juniper was dazed for a few


    seconds before asking, "What are you doing here?"


    "What do you think?" Shanley applied


    a little pressure, easily pinning her against the locker door. His deep


    eyes roamed over her fine figur


    Without the vest, her delicate curves were on full dis


    especially


    ber


    her


    waist, which was so slender he felt


    he could circle it with one hand. With just a bit more force, she might just break in his grasp. "And you''re dressed like this..." Shanley cupped the back of her head with one hand while the other rested on her waist, his thumb tracing light circles that sent sparks of heat through her.


    "What''s wrong with how I''m dressed?" Juniper lifted her gaze, ncing down at her


    outfit before raising an eyebrow. "This seems pretty normal."


    "Not at all." Shanley leaned closer, his body almost pressing against hers, his voice low and tinged with frustration. The air seemed to turn sour with jealousy. "I don''t want other people staring at you." He lowered his gaze to meet hers making his jealousy perfectly clear. "I''m the only one who gets to look. Only me."