“Aspen, Aspen, do you know who leaked the sex tape to the public?”

“How do you feel about it being released?”

“Aspen, do you think this hurts your chances at an Oscar?”

“What are your thoughts on the whole thing, Aspen?”

They shouted their questions at her, surrounding her like she was a gazelle and they were hungry lions. The looks in the eyes of the dozen paparazzi around her were enough to make her stomach clench and she sent up a silent prayer that she wouldn’t empty her stomach there in front of everyone. That’d be some wonderful footage for sure.

She shouldn’t have made the mistake of going out by herself. But she’d always gone out on her own and survived without some catastrophe like the one that was occurring. Yet, then again, she’d never had a sex tape leaked. But, damage was done and now she was in The Grove shopping center with shopping bags on her arms and nowhere to go. She tried to press through them, but they just moved with her, keeping her surrounded as if they had no intentions of ever letting her go. This was total humiliation and a tight pressure was beginning in her chest and slowly working its way throughout her body. She was going to have a panic attack for the world to see. Not good, Ted would have a fit.

Going out into the public five days after the tape had started circulating had been a major mistake. She should have called Ted or Jane and gotten a bodyguard or two. But she’d never had to have them before, save for a few appearances where the fans came in hordes. But the news of the sex tape seemed to make everyone crazy and not only were the tabloids and paparazzi suffocating her, but the more respectable news stations and entertainment shows were calling for comments or interviews. No one wanted to leave it alone and it was making her head spin. Ted had told her to ignore it, commenting would just feed into the frenzy and it would never go away, but if they ignored it then eventually some other celebrity was going to come along and her little leaked sex tape would be old news. Aspen hoped that would be the case, but at the moment as the flashbulbs went off in her face and the cameras rolled, capturing every little expression that she gave, she wanted to shove Ted’s advice down his throat.

“Please,” she choked out, thankful at least she had on sunglasses and no one could see the tears pooling in her eyes. “Let me through.”

But her words fell on deaf ears and they continued to press her about the video. Who had filmed it, did Reid really release it, what was she going to do, would it turn into a cheap porn like Paris Hilton’s film had?

Aspen felt like she was drowning, her heart pounding loudly in her ears and her chest heaving as her lungs begged for air. They were pressing closer now and she was trapped, not able to move. Her shopping bags were slipping down her arm and if they fell, she wouldn’t even have the room to pick them up, that’s how close they were. She was suffocating and trembling and the tears were starting to slide down her cheeks. She just wanted away.

And then, as if God were answering her prayer, the crowd parted and a newcomer stepped into the middle. He wore a black knit beanie and dark sunglasses. He was dressed in some faded jeans and a white tee with some kind of picture on it, but she was too upset to decipher what it was. She did notice there were no cameras in his hands or around his neck and he had tattoos lined up and down his arms.

“Hey!” He barked at the paparazzi loud enough to drown out their incessant questions, glaring hard at them behind his own pair of sunglasses. His lips were set in a thin, hard line and he looked anything but amused. “Hey, that's enough! What the hell is wrong with you people? You should be ashamed of yourselves. What are you? Animals?" And he was reaching out for Aspen, taking her gently, but firmly, by the wrist and leading her through the crowd.

"Leave the poor girl alone. I think you’ve had your fun for the day. Get the hell out of the way,” he growled as he finally managed to push through the snapping cameras and flashing lights to the other side.

Aspen allowed herself to be led from the circle, half in a daze at the scene that was taking place and half wanting to cry with relief and fling herself into this man’s arms. He was her knight in shining armor and she was suddenly in a fairytale.

“Aspen, Aspen, we just want your thoughts on the video!”

“How do you know AJ McLean?”

“AJ, have you seen the tape? What do you think about it?”

“Are you two dating? What’s the inside scoop?”

They continued to hammer them with questions, but didn’t press on and try to follow as closely. Instead, they trailed along behind, just getting the footage knowing it would be a juicy tale; hero rescues fair maiden.

Aspen shoved her bags further up her arm as her rescuer lead her along the sidewalk, his gait brisk and she had to hurry to keep up with him. “They’re still behind us.”

“I know.” He didn’t release her wrist and used his free hand to extract a set of keys from his pocket. “Where are you parked?”

“Um, on the other side.” She motioned that way with her free arm, the shopping bags draped in the crook of her arm at her elbow.

“We’ll take my car then.” And then he was guiding her around a group of tourists who were staring at the two and the ensuing paparazzi with slack jaws and out to one of the parking lots. “I’m the black Porsche.” He nodded his head toward the vehicle that sat parked a few rows over.

“They’re going to follow us.” She should have been surprised and objected at the thought of going with this man she didn’t know from Adam, but she would rather take that risk then stay and let the vultures feed off her carcass.

He checked for traffic before leading her across the roadway surrounding the parking lot and to his car. “They’ll have to keep up.” And then he was taking her bags from her and shoving them into his trunk.

Aspen watched him do that and cast her eyes to where the cameras were capturing their every move. A few crept closer and shouted more questions about her relationship with this man and then they seemed to grow even braver and began to descend on the duo.

“Get in!” He hissed at her, holding the passenger door open and motioning toward the interior of his car.

She blinked and quickly moved into action, sliding into the car and allowing him to shut it behind her. He jogged around to his side while she buckled then joined her, jamming his own seatbelt into place and turning the key in the ignition, the car roaring to life. And then they were peeling out of the parking spot and shooting for the exit, the tires squealing in their wake.

Aspen turned in the seat and peered behind them. She’d seen a few of them go running for their cars as they’d sped from the shopping center, but it didn’t seem anyone was behind them. “I think we’re okay for now.”

Her companion cast his eyes into the rearview mirror then back to the road ahead of them. “They’ll try to catch up, but I think we’ll be way ahead of ‘em. Besides, they won’t know where I’m going.”

“Do they know where you live?” She finally turned her baby blue’s his way.

“Yes, but I’m not going there.” He shifted gears and pressed harder on the accelerator, cutting around a slow moving Honda Civic.

“Doesn’t matter; they’ll camp out there until you come back home. They’re going to want to know what’s going on with us, how we know each other, if we’re together.”

“Let ‘em wonder; I don’t give a rat’s ass about it.”

Aspen winced some at the hatred in his voice. “They’re already camping out outside of my place and now that you’ve helped me, they’re not going to leave you alone.” She paused a moment and studied his face. “Why did you help me out?”

“Because those people are leeches and no one deserves to be treated like they’re living under a microscope.” He glanced her way then to the road again. “I’ve been there, done that with them and it really pisses me off when I see it happening to someone else.” A pause. “And you just seem too sweet and nice to be done that way.”

“Well, I really appreciate it.” She continued to watch him closely. “You’re AJ McLean, right? From The Backstreet Boys?”

“The one and only. Though you can call me Alex.”

“Alex.” She nodded in recognition of that. “I’m Aspen Grace.”

“I know who you are.” He glanced at her briefly. “But it’s nice to finally meet you face to face.”

“Unfortunate circumstance though.” A frown fell over her pretty features. “But thank you for helping me; you didn’t have to.”

“True, but our kind has to look out for each other, otherwise we’re no better than they are.”

Aspen mulled his words over. He did have a point; how could you leave your own kind squandering? That’d be like letting the paparazzi win and what actor/musician/celebrity wanted that? “So, what do we do now?”

He shrugged and made a hard right turn, flinging his passenger against her seatbelt roughly. “Hold on.”

“Ouch.” She used her elbow to push against the door and sit right again once the car had leveled out.

“I think we have company.”

Aspen readjusted her seatbelt and turned in the seat, peering out the back window. “What vehicle?”

“The blue Prius. It fell in behind us after the green light and it just turned like we did; last minute and hard.”

She frowned. “Great, how’d they find us so fast?”

“Who knows how they get the info they do.” He rolled his eyes behind his shades. “And they wonder why they get attacked.”

She stifled a giggle, knowing now was not the appropriate time to be laughing. “So, what do we do?”

“Well, whatever we decide, it has to be before his cronies join him. We can lose one car a hell of a lot better than we can ditch four or five. Anymore than two and it’s just playing with fire and plain dangerous. I don’t wanna risk any innocent lives.”

“No, I completely agree with you.” She glanced behind them to the blue Prius which was now closing the distance between them. “He’s gaining on us.”

Alex looked to her. “You buckled in securely?” When Aspen nodded, he shifted gears and pushed harder on the gas pedal, the Porsche careening forward. “Then hang on tight.”

Hang on tightly she did as Alex maneuvered through the streets of LA like he knew exactly what he was doing. They whipped around corners and cut around slower moving vehicles like it was nothing. The Prius tried to keep up, but it was like a bear chasing a Cheetah and eventually they were able to lose it somewhere between Wilshire Blvd and the San Diego Freeway.

The thrill of the chase left Aspen with a pounding heart and adrenaline pumping through her body. She had no idea the top speeds Alex had gotten the car up to, but she was thankful no police had been around because she knew they were speeding and breaking a few more driving laws while they were at it. But they’d lost the Prius and she giggled all victorious, suddenly realizing that was the first time in a very, very long time she’d actually laughed and not had to fake it.

Next to her, Alex gave a ‘woot’ and thumped the steering wheel. “That was fucken great!” Then he blinked and quickly apologized, “I’m sorry. I try not to swear around pretty girls.”

At the moment Aspen could have cared less. She giggled harder and leaned her head against the back of the seat. “That really was pretty awesome.” Her eyes shifted in his direction. “You handle the wheel like a pro.”

Alex cheesed at that and chuckled at himself. “Thank you. It’s not often anymore I get to drive like that.”

“They don’t hound you much anymore?”

He shrugged. “They still hound me, but they don’t follow me anymore. I’m not exciting enough.”

“Maybe if you drove like that more often you’d be more exciting.”

He slowed for a red-light and turned to look at her. “Oh, did you like that?”

She giggled softly; feeling lighter and better than she had since Reid had left her so devastated. “I did find it kind of exciting.”

“Oh?” His brows rose above the top of his sunglasses and he smirked slowly then gunned the engine. “Care to try it again?”

Aspen wet her bottom lip and let her gaze stray to the view out the windshield then to him again. She went against the voice in the back of her mind telling her how dangerous it was and they could get into serious trouble and sent Alex a cute grin. “Let’s do it.”
He smirked. “Thatta girl.” Then the instant the light changed to green, he was shifting gears and squealing tires and they shot from their spot and flew across the intersection.

Next to him, Aspen gave a squeal of laughter. “Holy cow!” She peered out the window and watched as the buildings passed in a blur. “How fast does this thing go?”

“About 275 miles per hour.” He smirked at that. “And she goes from zero to sixty in about oh, five seconds.”

The blonde’s eyes widened. “Are you serious?” Then she giggled. “How fast are we going?”

Alex let his eyes drift briefly to the speedometer. “Oh, about sixty-five.”

She laughed and watched the scenery fly by. “This is wild!”

“Well, I’m glad you’re enjoying it.” And he took a slight veer to the right and before she knew it they were merging onto the San Diego Freeway and heading north.

Aspen watched with giddy excitement as Alex handled the car with ease and maneuvered them around this vehicle or that. He’d slow down when need be, but as soon as it was safe, they’d leave the other cars and trucks in their dust. The miles flew quickly and soon they were heading away from the city and into the hillier region of Sherman Oaks.

“Wow,” the blonde breathed out as Alex was forced to slow down for some congested traffic.

He laughed and glanced to her. “Have you never done anything like this before?”

She shook her head. “Never.”

“Not even when you were a teen?”

Aspen laughed low. “The most exciting thing to do when I was a teen was to go cow tipping or judge whose tractor had the bigger wheels.”

Alex laughed, he couldn’t help himself. “Judge whose tractor had bigger wheels? Sounds like the male ego right there; whose is bigger.”

“Definitely and it was usually the guys who were doing it.”

He laughed more. “And cow tipping? Did you seriously do that?”

“Once,” she found herself giggling, “and it was a dare. I didn’t really like to do it because I felt bad for the cows, not to mention, it’s kind of hard to miss all the cow pies in the dark.”

He laughed and shook his head. “So, I take it you’re a country girl. Where’d you grow up at?”

“Was, was a country girl,” she corrected him. “And I grew up in Nebraska; this little town of probably about 500 people.”

He looked between her and the road. “What brought you to California?”

“I wanted to be an actress. There’s only so much you can do in a community theater with only 500 people in the entire vicinity.”

“I think I had more kids than that in my freshman class in high school. I don’t really remember the other years, because I was hardly in them to know.”

She turned her eyes to him. “Did you skip a lot?”

Alex chuckled. “No, that’s about the time my group took off and I was busy touring in Europe. I was tutored most of my high school years.”

“Oh, that must have been nice; not having to worry about all the crap most high schoolers have to deal with.”

“Eh, part of me is glad I didn’t, but then there’s part of me that wishes I hadn’t missed out on all the stuff that normal kids get to experience.” He shrugged his shoulders some and watched the road ahead of them.

Aspen nodded. “I can understand that.” She tilted her head. “Are you from California?”

“No,” Alex met her gaze briefly, “I grew up in Florida. I didn’t move out here to LA until about nine or so years ago.”

She arched her brows. “That’s about the time I moved out here.”

“Oh yeah?” He glanced to her again. “I’d been coming out here since way before that and I had a small house I was renting, but I got moved out here for full-time then and bought my own place.”

“That sounds really nice.” She smoothed her hands in her lap. “I didn’t get to buy my own place until about five years ago.”

“Where were you staying before that?”

“Um, different places. I rented an apartment for a few years then lived with a friend I made out here and finally got my own place.” She chuckled. “I’ll never have another roommate again. Once you go from living with someone to living on your own, you’re like …whoa, why didn’t I do this sooner?”

Alex chuckled. “I know what you mean; it’s nice to live by yourself because then you don’t have to worry about anyone else, or invading their space or being inconsiderate toward them.”

“Or the other way around,” Aspen interjected.

He nodded and studied her a moment before turning back to the road ahead of them. “So, where are we headed?”

She felt the weight of her problems settling back around him at her question. “Ugh, do we have to go back? I think I’ve about had as much as I can take.”

Alex merged lanes to move around and get ahead of a semi truck from some moving company. “It’s pretty bad, huh?”

“More than pretty bad; it’s completely disastrous and my life and career are ruined.” She slouched some in the seat and let her head fall against the back of it, her eyes closing. “I just want to go away and forget everything.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” her companion muttered low. Her quick down spiral from giddiness to depression was bringing his own onslaught of low self worth. All the thoughts he’d been trying to hide from and avoid were beginning to creep back in. The last few days had been hell and he’d fought tooth and nail against picking up a bottle. Every fiber of his being was crying out for it, begging and pleading and the demons in his head were playing nasty tricks, but he was doing his damn best to hold out. Oh he ached for it, thirsted and longed for even one drop, but one would lead to two then three and before he knew it he’d have a houseful of empty liquor bottles and one hell of a hangover.

Aspen pushed some hair from her face and let her eyes linger on her rescuer. “You having a bad week, too?”

He gave a snort in response. “Something like that.”

She turned her eyes back to the road. “Do you wish we could just keep on driving and not worry about what’s going on back in LA?”

“Like we’re running away?”

She drew up a shoulder in a half shrug. “Not really running away, maybe more so escaping it for awhile. I mean, sometimes you have to, right?” Her eyes were back on him. “A person can only take so much before they either lose their mind or freak out on everyone. And I know I don’t want either of those to happen.”

Alex mulled it over. “Sometimes a break is a good thing.”

“I just want to be somewhere where no one knows anything about any tape; no one asks me any questions about it or follows me or traps me and shouts questions at me.” She pouted some then pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to keep the tears that threatened to sting her eyes away from them.

He felt a lump in his throat. “Or, how about somewhere no one thinks you’re a worthless piece of shit.”

She kept her eyes trained on the road, despite the urge to look at him. “Or somewhere they don’t look at you all pervy and disgusting and you feel so violated because some stranger has seen every inch of you.” Her cheeks blushed at that and she quickly turned her gaze out the passenger window.

“Or somewhere they aren’t using you for your fame or money.”

“Or where they’re not ripping your heart out and tearing it to shreds.”

“Where they don’t cheat on you.”

“Where they don’t lie.”

Their eyes met and neither one spoke. Alex broke their gaze first and turned his attention back to his driving. “Where do you wanna go?”

“How ‘bout you just drive. We’ll see where we end up.”

“You seriously want to do this?” He peeked to her then back to the road.

Aspen pressed her lips together and studied him. “I do, but I understand if you don’t want to. I don’t know what’s going on in your life and I don’t really even know you. You already helped me once, I can’t really ask you to do this for me.”

He glanced at her. “I want to do this,” his tone serious and his eyes showing he meant every word. “I have nothing to lose and the idea of escaping from LA and the shit my life has become sounds like heaven right now.”

She smiled in understanding. “Then let’s drive and see where it takes us.”

“You’re on.” And they were off, shooting down the freeway and heading for an unknown destination; two lost souls trying to escape their lives and find some kind of solace.

~*~*~*~*~

“You’re where?!” Ted McNaught’s voice bellowed over the line filled with surprise and disbelief.

Aspen cast her eyes over to where Alex was lounging on one of the beds in the hotel room they’d acquired for the night. “I told you; I’m at the Day’s Inn in Oakhurst off of 41.”

“What the hell are you doing there?”

She sighed and sank down into the chair at the desk in the room, switching her cell phone to her other ear. “I need a break, Ted. Those leeches cornered me at The Grove and I nearly didn’t make it out alive.”

“Yes, I’ve seen the video clips,” he didn’t sound amused whatsoever. “AJ McLean playing the hero; they’re eating that shit up, Aspen. They now have you two pegged as the newest Hollywood couple after he played Beast to your Belle.”

She frowned at his tone. “I don’t care, Ted; he really helped me out and I’m very grateful.”

Ted sighed and she could picture him rubbing his temples. “You need to come back to LA, Aspen. You’ve got interviews lined up and the photo shoot for Vanity Fair.”

“Then reschedule them. All they’re going to want to talk about anyway is that damn tape and I’m not doing it. That lady from the radio swore up and down she wouldn’t go there and what was the first question out of her mouth?” She arched a brow at the phone as if he could see her.

“You can’t reschedule Vanity Fair; they don’t play those games, Aspen.”

“Then I don’t want the cover; not at that expense. I bet they’d even throw something on there about ‘The Hottest Sex Scandal’ and I don’t want that. I’m not going to let that stupid tape mold me into someone I’m not.”

Ted sighed again and she knew he was losing patience. “This is your career, Aspen. You’ve wanted this for too long and you’ve finally got it and what are you doing? Throwing it all away because of one bump in the road.”

“A bump in the road?” She pulled the phone away and stared at it as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You’re calling what I’m going through a bump in the road? How ‘bout it’s more like a freaken sinkhole that’s swallowed me whole.”

“Aspen-”

“No, you listen to me, Ted,” she interrupted him. “I need a break right now, okay? I know it comes at a very unfortunate time with the movie release and all the promotions and appearances, but I have to do this. Reid left me completely broken and any rebuilding I’ve been doing has been shot to shit, pardon my French, after the release of that damn tape. So, you need to cut me some slack and have my back like you say you always have. If I don’t take this time for myself, so I can get some peace of mind again, then any chance of the success that I want is gone and you’re going to end up unemployed while I go back to Nebraska.”

He was quiet for a long moment before finally speaking, “How much time are we talking?”

She bounced her leg in a nervous fashion. “I don’t know.”

“You can’t hide forever.”

“I’m not talking forever; I just need a little bit.”

“You’re going to have to face the music sooner or later.”

“Ted, why are you being a dick?” She glanced to the phone again.

He sighed. “I’m sorry, Aspen. I just don’t want this to ruin your chances at success. This movie is definitely Oscar worthy and I don’t want that to slip away from you.”

She didn’t want that either, but knew it had probably already happened. “It’s too late for that, Ted. No one is going to take me seriously anymore. I just have to hope that eventually it all dies away and somewhere down the road I have another opportunity to prove myself to the academy.” Then she added as an afterthought, “But that’s never going to happen if I lose my mind. Just give me a few days, okay?”

Aspen knew he didn’t want to, but he finally relented. “Alright, a few days, but you better be back in time for the London premiere that’s next weekend.”

She had forgotten about that completely, but instead of groaning at the thought, she nodded firmly. “London next weekend; got it. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah, you just be careful. I assume you’re with your hero of the moment. Just remember that you don’t know him.”

She risked a glance over to Alex to see him reading over a brochure from the nightstand drawer. “I’ll keep that in mind, thanks again.” Then with a final goodbye she finally lowered the phone and severed the call. “Well, that was fun.”

“It’s so great when you get your ass handed to you, isn’t it?” He looked up and met her eyes.

She chuckled. “My most favorite thing in the world.”

“Behind the scenes people just never seem to understand.” He shook his head then turned back to the brochure. “Are you hungry? There are a few restaurants around. Or we could order take-out from the Chinese place and they’ll deliver it here to the hotel.”

“How ‘bout the take-out?” She perched herself on the edge of his bed. “I don’t feel much like going out after the day I’ve had.”

After driving a few more hours, dusk had begun to settle so they’d looked up the nearest hotel that hopefully wouldn’t be crawling with bugs or be the sight of a drug deal and come up with the Days Inn. Neither still had any idea where they were heading, but as far from LA as they could get sounded pretty good at the moment.

The motel was nice and clean and they’d managed to procure two rooms that had a connecting door between. Earlier, they’d pulled into a Wal-mart and purchased any items they may need to get them through the next few days; toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, face wash, clean underwear…that kind of stuff. Luckily, Alex had some changes of clean clothes stowed in his trunk and Aspen was content to go with the ones she’d purchased while shopping before the horrible paparazzi encounter. So things were actually working out in their favor for once.

“That sounds good to me.” Alex stretched then took the phone from the nightstand and set it on the bed. “Whatcha want?”

“Maybe some sweet n’ sour chicken with rice and a spring roll.”

He nodded at that then dialed the number and placed the order, getting himself some teriyaki chicken with noodles and some sort of vegetables. Finally, he set the phone back in the cradle and onto the nightstand where he’d found it. “Okay, they said about fifteen minutes.”

“Wow, that’s pretty quick.”

He chuckled. “They’re right around the corner and, unlike LA, there’s hardly any traffic around here.”

“I keep forgetting about that.” She pushed herself from the bed and stretched then tugged her shirt back down around her waist. “So um, how much do I owe you?”

“For the Chinese?” He shook his head and settled against the headboard again. “It’s on me; you can get it next time.”

That made Aspen smile. “Okay, it’s a deal. And next time you have to get gas, I’ll get that too.”

Alex studied her a long moment, it being on the tip of his tongue to refuse, but he finally agreed. “Deal.”

“And maybe we can find a movie or something on TV to watch while we eat.” She nodded toward where the large television was housed in the entertainment cabinet which doubled as a dresser.

“As long as it’s not some gooey romance, I can deal.”

Aspen wrinkled her nose. “Ew, no way. Gooey romances are the very last thing on my mind at the moment.” She frowned then quickly pushed it away. “Okay, I’m gonna go take a quick shower while we wait on the food. You can pick out the movie if you’d like.”

“Sure thing.” He reached and grabbed up the remote.

She watched him a moment then smiled and headed off to her room. This was definitely out of the norm for the young female; taking off on an impromptu road trip with some man she didn’t know and shirking from her responsibilities with her career. But then again, she’d never had a private and personal tape leaked to the public on the verge of a movie that could possibly shape her career for years to come.

But her hopes for success had been dashed when news of the tape had reached her ears. There would be no awards or memorable movie roles or offers from top execs in the industry. If she got lucky, she might get another film or two, but no one who had a sex tape leaked was taken seriously and she was soon to join those ranks. So taking off so unexpectedly with a man she didn’t know was the least of her worries. After this, she’d be picking up the pieces of her career and trying to piece them together again. She needed this last moment to escape it all and get out of her head for a bit; after all, she had nothing left to lose. And hey, at least he made her laugh.