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wasn’t about to let either of them off so easily. “Sounds like P & P is little more than a guinea-pig project as far as you’re concerned,” she threw at Taye, not particularly liking what she’d heard and letting her displeasure show. To her, the whole thing smacked of a good-old-boy hire—done quickly to fill a gap, with little thought to how such a snap decision might affect the cast.

      Now, Fred Warner leaned low on one elbow, close to Jewel, obviously concerned about where this exchange was headed. “Nothing like that is going on, Jewel. Taye’s got what we…”

      “Wait a minute, Fred,” Taye interrupted, slicing the air at chest level with a sweep of one hand. “I can speak for myself. I’d like to clear up Ms. Blaine’s concerns.”

      “All right with me. Have at it.” Jewel sat back, ready to listen.

      Turning to Jewel, Taye rounded his shoulders, gave her a quiet stare and then said, “You need to know that I’m a man who is constantly learning. Maybe that’s why I went into stunt work in the first place. Every scene, every stunt, every movie was different and I like that, as well as the challenges that come with each new film. I view risky situations as opportunities to push myself, to see how far I can go with my talent and the talent of the actors. Daytime drama will expand my experience, diversify my body of work. I view every project as a collaborative effort to perfect a common creative vision.”

      “But what if the creative visions of the actor and the director are traveling separate paths?” Jewel tested, having no idea what his creative vision for P & P might be or if she’d share it once she knew. How could a hunky stunt guy whose head was filled with images of fiery action sequences and love scenes in the backs of race cars possibly grasp the nuanced passion, silky romance and complicated personal relationships that made up a daytime drama? A long shot, at best, Jewel decided.

      “If there’s disagreement, then we compromise, of course. It’s all about working together to get the best footage in the can, isn’t it?” Taye asked.

      A short hesitation while Jewel considered his remark, thankful that at least his answer had a ring of sincerity. Compromise was good. Working together was vital and she had no choice but to cooperate fully with Taye. After all, she had legions of loyal fans and was committed to protecting her hard-won reputation as a dependable actress who never failed to deliver exactly what her fans expected. And, she reminded herself, Taye Elliott was only a temporary hire. She’d be at P & P long after he was gone.

      Forcing a more rational attitude into play, she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. “Good approach,” she tossed back, a bit warmer. “You’re absolutely right. We all want what’s best for the show.”

      Taye sagged back in his seat, seemingly relieved to have passed that hurdle. “I’ve met with Lori, your head writer, and I’m up on the current relationships, but I could still use some help with the backstory on Caprice and Darin’s long-standing love affair.”

      “Sure, it’s very complicated. How can I help?” Jewel offered.

      “I was wondering,” Taye started, followed by a slight hesitation. “If it’s not an imposition, think you, Sonny and I might squeeze in an hour or so tomorrow to go over a few areas of the current story line?”

      In the lull that followed, Jewel calculated her answer. Should she agree? Demonstrate her willingness to help? Or let him know that Jewel Blaine had other things to do on Saturday than talk story line with her executive director? “Well, I don’t know,” she hedged, watching for his reaction.

      “I know it’s short notice and I’d hate to cut into your weekend,” he rushed to add. “So, if you’re busy, I understand. Just a thought…that maybe we could get a jump on Monday, but…”

      Jewel’s mind flipped to the weekend. For the first time in months, she had no public appearances, charity events, social engagements or a date with one of the devoted bachelors she partied with when she felt like hitting the club scene or going out for a quiet dinner. In fact, she’d been looking forward to a few days at home alone to catch up on fan mail or simply lounge by the pool before launching back into work on Monday. But did she really want Taye Elliott to know that?

      “Saturday’s not so good,” she decided. “Really busy all morning and most of the afternoon.” She swept her tongue over her teeth, appearing to be perplexed. “And I never work on Sundays if I can avoid it. That’s my day…totally mine to relax, do nothing I don’t feel like doing.”

      “I heard that,” Taye agreed with a knowing smile. “We all need downtime. But what about later on Saturday? Maybe the three of us could talk over dinner?”

      Startled by his persistence, Jewel inched one shoulder higher than the other in a subtle stall, thinking that one through.

      Fred shot Jewel an impatient glance, which she interpreted as It might be a good idea, Jewel, while she was telling herself, Don’t push too hard, Mr. New-to-P & P-Director. I don’t like to be crowded.

      Their shrimp salads arrived, temporarily letting her off the hook as they settled in to eat. During lunch, they discussed the shooting schedule leading into May sweeps and the kind of focus Fred wanted on the upcoming episodes.

      An hour later, over dessert of pecan praline cheesecake, Jewel finally answered Taye. “Tell you what,” she started. “Maybe I can squeeze in an hour or two tomorrow. Early evening. Can I call you later to set a time?”

      “That’d be great,” Taye replied with enthusiasm, handing Jewel his card, seeming pleased that his request might be accommodated.

      “And I’ll call Sonny. See if he can fit it in,” Jewel offered, praying her costar would be available because meeting alone with Taye Elliott didn’t seem like such a good idea. “Now, tell me how you see Caprice Desmond and Darin Saintclare’s love story unfolding during sweeps,” she asked, making a mental shift in the jumble of unanswered questions cascading through her mind.

      Sitting back, Jewel listened with interest to the man whose presence was sending all the wrong signals. Whose eyes were undressing her. Whose cologne was stoking a pleasure point deep inside her core and whose voice was challenging her long-standing, never-to-be-broken rule: no romantic involvement with anyone connected with her career.

      Chapter 5

      Taye drove away from Bon Ami with both hands tensed on the steering wheel of his truck, as if holding on to it kept Jewel Blaine’s image from slipping away too soon. Damn, she was hot! He could still feel her luminous brown eyes engaged with his, smell the delicate perfume that drifted from her beige-tan cleavage, hear the titillating chime of her voice in his ears. The heat of his reaction filled his gut, simmering there like hot coals banked to hold their warmth. Flushed with a strange sense of anticipation, he was not surprised that just thinking about her initiated the beginnings of an arousal that had no business existing and definitely no place to go.

      She was more beautiful in person than she was on TV. Soft sable-brown hair, pulled back into a cascading upsweep of curls that created a sophisticated yet playful appearance. Smoky brown eyes that could flash with intelligence or simmer in sexy seduction. Skin like satiny sweet toffee—candy that he’d love to feel melting in his mouth. A diminutive powerhouse of a woman with gorgeous curves and the electric chemistry that put her slightly out of reach, even though her low-cut blouse had exposed sufficient cleavage to tease him, to dare him to try to shatter that proper-public image she presented to the world.

      Taye smiled to himself. Jewel Blaine might not know much about him, but he sure knew a hell of a lot about her. Before their meeting today, he’d scoured the Internet for information about the mega soap star, checked out her Web site and viewed hours of past episodes of P & P. He knew that she came from a small east Texas town where she’d worked as a teenage model in a local department store before coming to Los Angeles to attend UCLA. Her first job after graduation had been as a pool secretary at Metro Artists United, a talent agency where she caught the eye of an agent who put her in a TV commercial and launched her career. She had never been married, had won two Daytime Emmys,

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