Vengeful Love: A Summer Love Story (contemporary romance) (Sizzling Summer Romance) by Jillian Leeson

Ryan McFarlane was by far the most infuriating Hollywood star I had ever worked with. But unfortunately, he was also by far the most good-looking. His handsome face, marked by a square jaw, straight nose, and bright cobalt-blue eyes, coupled with his smooth, bronzed muscular body, had the power to make most women swoon at his feet. Especially here on this tropical beach in Fiji, the set of our latest movie, Love At Last .  
    I was probably the only woman who was not least interested in Ryan’s good looks. Not after he’d snubbed me without any reason when I first arrived at the set. And definitely not after he’d made me look like a fool in front of the crew when he decided to change his lines and left me speechless.  
    So here I was, in the middle of filming a scene on the beach where Ryan and I, as the main characters of the movie, were having an argument. When we reached the end of the scene, Ryan took a step towards me and leaned down, ready to give me what the script described as a “smoldering kiss”.  
    “Ryan, kiss me! Ryan!” A pretty long-haired girl, fourteen or fifteen, in a low-cut singlet and shorts that left little to the imagination, was blowing kisses from behind the beach barricade, egged on by her gang of friends. The commotion caused Ryan to stop his line mid-sentence. He looked away, dazed, with his mouth still half open.
    “For Chrissakes, Ryan, concentrate!” I shouted, throwing my hat on the sand. I was so sick of working with him. He might have reached celebrity status with his part in the blockbuster Remorse , but that didn’t excuse him of slacking off.
    Ryan glared at me, sneering, “Hey, you’re not exactly inspiring. You’re supposed to show that you’re hurt, but still in love. All you do is bat your eyelashes once in a while. Is that what you call acting?”
    I was about to give him a piece of my mind when the director intervened.
    “Cut, cut, cut!” Becky came running towards us, her cheeks flushed with anger. “There goes yet another scene. Can you two please stop arguing? You’re just like a bunch of little kids. I don’t care if you hate each other, but leave that behind when we’re filming. We’re already behind schedule as it is. You’re actors, for crying out loud. This is your job. Pretend.”
    I stamped my foot on the compact sand. How could Becky put any of the blame on me, when it was Ryan who had slipped up? From the day we started shooting the movie, it seemed he had made it his goal to make my life as difficult as possible. It had resulted in scene retake after retake, not to mention explosive arguments between us.
    Turning my back to Ryan, I put my hands on my hips. “For your information, he’s the one who got distracted by his raving teenage fans, not me. It’s just pathetic; he can’t even concentrate on a few little lines.”
    Becky walked towards me. “Calm down, Kate. Think of the big picture. Once Love At Last is finished it’s going to be spectacular, a box office record breaker, I just know it. And think what it will do to your career.”
    “If it’s up to me, I wouldn’t do any more scenes with that idiot. I’d rather—”
    Ryan’s chilly voice cut in behind me. “Who are you calling an idiot? Sounds to me like a case of the pot calling the kettle black.”
    “I’m not the one who gets off by screaming underage fans.”  
    Becky squeezed my hand. “Come on now. You’ve only got a few more days to go, then you’ll never have to work with him again.”
    “Oh, let her whine. That’s what she does every day. She thinks that throwing those little tantrums makes her look more of an actress. How else would you know she’s one?”  
    Ryan’s mocking voice caused me to spin around to face him, my eyes blazing. “You think you’re such a big shot with those little girls at your feet. I hate to tell you, pal, but the only thing you have going for you is your pretty face.”
    To my surprise, Ryan broke out in a wide smile. “A