The Superhero Celebrity: A Sweet Celebrity Romance (Crystal Springs Celebrities Book 1)
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
EPILOGUE
Links
The Superhero Celebrity
Book 1 of
Celebrities in Crystal Springs Series
Olivia Burke
Copyright © 2019 Blue Fire Media, LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
Olivia Burke
PO Box 21301
Roanoke, VA 24018
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters and incidents depicted in this novel are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons (living or dead) is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of author or publisher.
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Rosie stared into the steel blue eyes of Hollywood’s hottest superhero, Jack Bennett. She could get lost in them, and she’d probably cut her hand touching that chiseled jaw. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that, celebrity or no celebrity, he was the world’s most attractive life form.
“Rosie,” a voice called out, startling her. “Earth to Rosie.”
She blinked in surprise, relaxing at the sound of her little brother. The cardboard cutout of Jack Bennett, dressed as his name to fame, General Justice, stared blankly back at her. Rosie stifled her daydreaming, still wondering how big his biceps were in real life.
“You’ve got a weird look on your face,” Robbie said as he came up behind her.
“What? I do not,” Rosie said quickly, a blush rising to her cheeks. She knew she probably looked like some lovestruck teenager.
“Do too,” Robbie argued. Thankfully, a cosplayer stomped by, distracting him long enough to forget about teasing her.
Rosie took advantage of the moment to change the subject. “So, what do you think of the comic con?”
“I can’t believe we’re here.” Robbie’s head swiveled on his thin shoulders like an owl, looking everywhere at everything.
“Calm down,” Rosie warned her little brother. “Or you’ll be on the six o’clock news as the world’s first fourteen-year-old to have a heart attack from sheer excitement.”
“I can’t help it! I’m so excited to meet General Justice!” He adjusted his belt for the fifth time, his own “General Justice” costume a tad too big for him.
Rosie rolled her eyes at him. “He has a real name, you know.”
Jack Bennett was Hollywood’s current leading man, a shining star amongst the diamond-filled sky. He’d worked in the industry since he was a teenager, but the last six years as “General Justice” had put him on the map. Between his skills and looks, the branding and marketing, two movies and another on the way, and millions of dollars worldwide, Jack Bennett was one of the most famous actors in the world.
And somehow the Crystal Springs Comic-Con had gotten him to appear as their celebrity guest. They must’ve signed him right before he made it big, Rosie mused. How else would they have gotten him here?
In all honesty, she liked him as an actor, but didn’t know much about his personal life; she didn’t keep up with the Hollywood gossip, knowing more than most how much of it could be a facade. Rosie hoped beyond all belief that Jack was the nice guy people claimed him to be.
All the same, she’d be lying to herself if she said she wasn’t a little excited to meet him. She was still a huge fan of his movies, after all. In reality, she was sort of so excited that she was pretty sure her entire insides were vibrating with anticipation. But she wanted to be cool about it; she knew from experience that plenty of celebrities craved what little normalcy they could get. She didn’t want to be the fangirl tripping all over herself and crying (very unlike the girl she’d seen leaving Jack’s photo area during his morning fan session).
Rosie would be cool. Calm, collected, and totally not some rabid fan girl–
A shoulder slammed into her, shaking her from any thoughts of being cool. Her guest packet fell from her hands, spilling its contents out. Papers floated to the ground, her pen and notepad hitting the carpeted floor as well.
“Ouch!”
“Oh, no,” a male voice said.
“Are you okay?” Robbie glared at the costumed man who’d bumped his sister.
She nodded at him, turning her annoyance on the perpetrator. He wore a generic enemy soldier costume from the “General Justice” movies, the kind of character that always got shot in the background scenes.
“Hey, have a little more care, would ya?” Rosie rubbed her shoulder, surprised at how hard he’d run into her. That or his body was made of pure steel.
“I’m really sorry,” the masked man said, his voice a little muffled. “Are you all right?”
He bent down to pick up her belongings, handing her the media packet and her notes. His fingers brushed hers, and Rosie blinked in surprise at the pleasant little shock that rippled down her hand.
“Oh, um, sorry,” Rosie said, accepting her things back. “I didn’t mean to sound so defensive.”
“Perfectly understandable,” the masked man replied. “A cute girl like you probably always has to be ready to defend herself.”
Wait, did he just call me cute? The corners of Rosie’s mouth pulled up and she found herself making conversation. “So, you went with ‘General Justice generic enemy?’”
“I know, really original,” he replied, gesturing to his outfit. “But it’s better than going in regular clothes.”
“Why’s that?”
“Oh, uh, no reason.” He tapped his chest with a plastic bump. “Just … easier to blend in.”
“Funny,” Rosie said. “Usually everyone wants to stand out at these things.”
As soon as she said it, a cosplayer walked by in an outstanding robot outfit, dozens of lights blinking while little beeps and boops emitted from a speaker on its chest.
“Impressive,” her new friend said, jerking a thumb at the robot’s back.
Rosie laughed. “Like I said, standing out is a real win here.”
“How come you’re not in a costume then?”
“I slacked off this year, I guess.” She didn’t offer more, not wanting to slip up and share the real reason she was there. Even Robbie didn’t know the truth, and she wanted to keep it that way to prevent upsetting him.
“I wish Poppy was with us,” Robbie said, reminding Rosie he impatiently waited by her side.
“Who’s Poppy?” their friend asked.
“Our grandmother,” Rosie answered. “She’s on her way back from a girls-only Florida beach trip, or she’d be here.”
“In costume?” She could hear his smile in the question and laughed.
“Probably.”
“Who would she be?”
“Clara Bolton,” Robbie piped up without hesitation. He referred to the wife of James Bolton, General Justice’s older mentor in the first movie.
“Really?”
“Really,” Rosie said. “She said at least it’d be age appropriate.”
The stranger laughed, the slightly muffled but deep sound not unpleasant to Rosie’s ears.
“She loves Jack Bennett. Says he’s ‘old-school handsome,’ whatever that means,” Robbie said, wrinkling his nose. “I don’t know about all that, but he’s definitely the best superhero ever.”
“Yeah,” the man said slowly. “I guess so.”
“You guess so?” Robbie repeated, stunned at his reaction.
“I don’t know, I mean, he’s all right, I guess.”
“All right? Jack Bennett has grossed more money for the ‘General Justice’ movies than most leading actors of the last decade. His work changed the entire genre into something more than comic book movies; he’s revolutionized the industry! He’s–”
“That and he’s a great actor,” Rosie said, stepping in to save this stranger from her brother’s trivia assault. “I mean, did you see ‘Wild Hearts’ last summer?”
Her little brother groaned, rolling his eyes as he turned to watch another cosplayer stroll by. No surprise there; Robbie wasn’t into romance movies, and was appalled Rosie loved them so much.
The man started, his voice quiet. “You saw that?”
“About seventeen times,” Rosie said, laughing at herself a little. r />
“Critics panned it.”
She waved him off. “First of all, who cares what a bunch of stuffy critics think? Besides, they act like all Jack Bennett can do is action hero roles. The guy’s got range. When he cried over losing Gillian, I sobbed like a baby. Still do, actually.”
“I’m sure he’d appreciate hearing that.”
The soft way he said it caught her off-guard, and she wondered why he felt however he did about that movie. Before she could ask, however, another group of giggling teens walked by, bumping into and apologizing to them on their way to a panel.
The stranger shifted his feet. “Are you going to meet him later? During his photo time, I mean?”
Robbie nodded enthusiastically. “I want to ask him about the next movie.”
“You know he couldn’t tell you anything even if he wanted to,” Rosie admonished.
Robbie waved a hand as if he couldn’t be bothered by such details. “It can’t hurt to ask, even if writers like you tell him not to talk about it.”
“Writers like her?” The stranger’s helmet turned to Rosie, and she could feel him studying her from behind the mask.
“Hey, do you want a soda?” Rosie asked her little brother. He eagerly accepted the dollar bill she offered, running over to a nearby vendor.
“Are you going to meet Jack Bennett?” she asked, changing the subject before he could ask again.
“Me?” Her costumed friend shrugged. “Uh, probably not. Don’t want to spend the money for a photo, you know?”
“Fair enough,” Rosie said. “Those celeb photo ops need to come with a payment plan.”
Her companion chuckled.
Robbie tapped Rosie’s shoulder. “We need to get in line soon, or we might not make the cut-off.”
“You’ll make the cut-off,” the guy said. “Don’t worry about that.”
Rosie’s brow furrowed. “How can you be so sure?”
“Uh, oh, I hear Jack doesn’t cut out early until everyone’s gotten a turn,” he said with a shrug. “Even the walk-ups.”
“That’s so cool,” she murmured. She always appreciated when a celebrity was as nice as she hoped they could be.
“Well, it was nice meeting you,” he said, “uh, even if it was because I practically chest-bumped you into next week.”
Rosie snorted. “I’m tougher than I look.”
“I believe it,” he said softly.
Something about the way he said it made Rosie’s heart beat a little faster, and she forced herself to step away. “I better go before Robbie has a coronary … see you around, maybe.”
“I hope so. Have fun meeting Jack Bennett.”
“Oh, I will,” she said, pink curls bobbing as she nodded. Robbie tugged at her arm again and she knew she couldn’t make him wait any longer. “Okay, well, bye.”
“Bye.”
Rosie allowed Robbie to drag her away, all the while her thoughts lingering on the masked stranger. She wasn’t sure why. I mean, I didn’t even get his name. She shook herself out of the stupor–it was almost time to meet Jack Bennett, and that was perhaps the most exciting thing that would happen to her all year.
Not for the first time, Jack Bennett wished he could wear earplugs at these con events.
“Oh my god, you’re Jack Bennett!” The squeal could pierce eardrums, heard over even the deepest bass that thundered a few booths over.
Jack chuckled. “That’s me. How are you today?”
The barely-teenaged girl went gaga at the sight of Hollywood’s most notable superhero, her body quaking with nervous energy. Without asking, she flung her arms around him, babbling incoherently about the sequel.
Jack smiled and nodded at the camera, trying not to wince at how hard the girl squeezed his waist. It was the job, he reminded himself, and the job sometimes came with well-meaning but a bit overenthusiastic audiences.
Blinking against the camera flash, one of the con workers waved the tween off, ushering the next people in line up for a photo. They came in droves, their faces a blur with only a few seconds at a time for each of them.
During the next break, he took a moment to step away from the camera. He checked his phone; no calls from his agent. Jack frowned. He’d hoped to hear about last week’s audition by now, but maybe it was a bad sign.
“Mr. Bennett?” The worker whispered behind his hand. “If you don’t mind, we need to get people through the line.”
“Sure,” he said absentmindedly. He stuffed his phone back into his pocket and stepped back into the camera view.
A flash of rose gold hair in the line caught his eye. His lips pressed together to suppress his smile as he strained for a better look, albeit as casually as possible. Flashing a smile at the camera for the attendee next to him, he let it grow into a real one at the sight of her. This was the girl he ran into earlier, though she, of course, hadn’t known it was him beneath the mask.
Jack always stole some time away to himself when he was on the road, and these comic cons gave him the perfect way to walk around in plain sight without inciting a mob. His standard costume of “General Justice generic bad guy soldier” never failed, and every once in a while, it let him feel normal, just another guy in the crowd.
Now that he’d seen her in line, he found it impossible to look away. A dozen more people came through the line for photos, oblivious to the superstar’s distraction just a few feet away. It was finally her time in line, and Jack had already decided not to let them shuffle her off after three seconds next to him.
Jack gave the young woman another subtle once-over, having already done so earlier. He couldn’t help but want a better look at this person who’d so fearlessly stood up to him, and talked to him like a regular human being, even if she hadn’t known who she spoke to behind the mask. He’d been touched when she spoke so highly of “Wild Hearts,” a movie he’d cared deeply for, despite getting terrible reviews.
Deep rose gold shone in her light brown hair, while a sprinkle of freckles across her nose added a certain youthful glow to her skin. She was cute, adorable, really, but honestly, it was the fact she looked directly at him without fainting that reeled him in more than anything. She looked him right in the eyes, a bright smile making the corners of her eyes crinkle. He’d always liked a woman with real confidence.
“Hi,” she said, a little breathless, which made him smile.
“Hi, I’m Jack.”
“Pretty sure you’re the last person in the world who has to introduce themselves to anyone.”
A snort escaped him, and her grin widened. She reached in for a handshake, which took him by surprise. Usually girls practically threw themselves at him, which, to be honest, made him very, very uncomfortable. But she was confident, her hand warm and firm and … he kinda hated to let go of it. He held on for a couple beats longer than normal, taking in the pink that bloomed on her fair cheeks.
He’d been so busy staring at her, he hadn’t even noticed the gawky teenaged boy at her elbow, eyeing him with total awe. Her brother, the one who’d been with her earlier, a clearly devoted fan.
Jack offered him a handshake. “And what’s your name?”
“Robbie Tanner,” the boy managed to get out. “I think you’re great.”
“Do you mind getting a photo with him?” she asked.
“Only if you’re in it, too,” Jack said without missing a beat.
“Oh, you have to be in it, Rosie.” Robbie tugged on her arm to pull her into the frame. “We’ll never, ever forget this day!”
“Fat chance of that,” she muttered, blushing as Jack put one arm around either of them.
He pretended not to hear her, though it did make him chuckle. At least she wasn’t completely oblivious to him. Rosie. He was just glad to finally have a name to put to the face, and was unsurprised that her name perfectly fit her.
“Thanks for the photo,” he told them.
“I think that’s my line,” she responded, guiding her brother by his elbow away from the photo area.
“Rosie?” Jack hesitated, unable to come up with anything clever. She paused to look at him, and he found himself drawn even further into her sparkling eyes. “It was nice meeting you.”
She rewarded him with a big smile. “Trust me, the pleasure is all ours. Thanks for the photo. Have fun at the con.”