Kiss Me if You Can-Chapter 36Vol. 1

“We can’t change the actor now.”

He sighed and thought about it, but there was no way he could come up with a solution. In the end, the director left the room with a curse.

*@Punhap*

“… … That’s why… … It can’t be… … I did it… … .”

Laura continued to say something next to him. However, Chase still couldn’t hear anything. His head was filled with thoughts about Josh. Laura opened her mouth as if it was a given when Chase looked around.

“I heard Josh is working from the night. He’s probably resting in his dorm. Should I ask him to come?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Chase immediately turned around and headed towards the temporary building where the security guards were staying. Laura sighed and followed him. This was becoming a habit. Behind Chase, Laura, Isaac, Seth, and the manager walked in a line.

When they finally arrived at Josh’s makeshift lodging, Chase took a deep breath. He paused for a moment and then started walking again, faster than before.

However, to his disappointment, Josh’s lodging was empty. Soon, Chase frowned and turned around to go out, and the crowd followed him again. This was also a common sight.

“Even if Josh lied about being a beta, isn’t he watching too closely?”

Seth glanced at Isaac, who was grumbling in a hushed voice, and muttered to himself.

“How can you live in this world when you’re so dull… … .”

“Huh? What did you say?”

Seth shook his head at Isaac, who asked brightly.

“No, nothing.”

Laura suddenly turned around and asked Seth.

“Can I call Josh? Where is he right now?”

“Okay.”

Seth took out his cell phone without saying anything. After a couple of rings, Josh picked up the phone.

“Where are you?”

After exchanging a few words, he immediately told Laura the truth.

“He’s eating. I think he’s in the staff’s dining area… … .”

Chase stopped walking before he could finish his sentence.

“Where are you?”

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Laura quickly pointed in one direction at the quiet voice.

“Over there, Mr. Miller, I’ll call Josh, so you should wait in the trailer… … .”

Laura suggested a reasonable plan, but Chase, of course, didn’t listen. He immediately changed direction and a group of people followed him.

The restaurant was quite deserted because it was past mealtime. A few staff members who had come for a late meal were standing around in front of the buffet-style food. Chase immediately found Josh as soon as he entered the entrance. He was standing in front of the steak grilling counter, talking about something. Chase’s face brightened when he saw him.

“Josh… … .”

He stopped when he called his name without thinking. Josh wasn’t alone. The moment he saw the small woman standing next to him and talking, Chase’s mind went cold. It didn’t end there. When Josh said something, the woman burst into laughter.

Chase, who clenched his fist without realizing it, picked up where he had stopped and walked toward Josh at a frightening speed.

Josh left the dorm late in the afternoon and headed to the staff-only dining hall. He planned to eat and get enough rest in preparation for his evening shift.

Because of the thick trees and grass, the makeshift dining hall was often attacked by bugs, so the doors were tightly closed and the air conditioner was constantly on. Josh glanced at the outdoor unit of the air conditioner that was running without fail even at a quiet time, then opened the door and went inside.

It was an ambiguous time, neither lunch nor dinner, so the restaurant was deserted. He quickly found a plate and placed a salad in a corner. Josh, who happened to find an empty steak counter, walked toward it without hesitation.

“Oh my.”

Almost at the same time, a woman who arrived let out a short exclamation. Josh took a step back and smiled and held out one hand.

“You go first.”

“Thank you.”

She smiled back and spoke to the employee who was waiting.

“Well-done, please.”

The employee placed a large cut of steak on the fire and looked at Josh. As if asking what he would do.

“Would you like it rare? Thank you.”

After adding a greeting, he started to rummage through the meat and took out a large, appetizing piece.

“Oh, is this discrimination? That looks better.”

He didn’t laugh at the woman’s joke. Embarrassed, she looked away and then met Josh’s eyes. She laughed awkwardly, coughed, and then brought up a different topic.

“Mr. Miller’s bodyguard, right? How is it? Is it worth it? It’s rumored to be difficult.”

She introduced herself as another actor’s secretary and made a pitiful expression. Josh smiled as usual and answered.

“It’s worth it, it’s difficult, but… … .”

He wanted to add more compliments, but nothing came to mind. Josh had no choice but to finish his speech.

“I understand everything when I see your face.”

“Oh, that’s right. I admire you too. I used to think I was tired of seeing actors, but Mr. Miller… … .”

She made a blank expression as if recalling a memory, then turned her head and looked up at Josh.

“Did you see the cross-dressing photoshoot last time?”

“Yes, of course.”

“I still didn’t know you would look so good together. I was so entranced by it that I didn’t even realize it.”

Then she added slyly.

“Do you know that commercial?”

Josh narrowed his eyes and began to speak meaningfully.

“Sweet, sweet.”

“My friend’s chocolate bar.”

The woman burst into laughter at the song. Josh laughed back. Suddenly, someone grabbed his shoulder and turned him around violently.

“… … Uh.”

Josh let out a moment of surprise, but didn’t throw a punch. He could guess who he was without even looking.

“Chase. … … Mr. Miller.”

As expected, Josh quickly corrected himself after seeing the face in his field of vision and absentmindedly called out the name. Silence followed. Chase's gaze shifted from Josh to the woman next to him.

She shrugged her shoulders in surprise at the obviously fierce atmosphere, then hurriedly turned her head and looked around. Just then, a staff member placed the finished meat on a plate, and she hurriedly ran away without even saying thank you.

Josh glanced at her back and looked up at Chase again. Chase, who was also watching the woman leaving, turned his gaze back to Josh.

"Is that woman your sister too?"

Josh honestly answered the question with a no.

"We just exchanged a few words while we were waiting together. ... ... It was nothing special."

However, Chase had different thoughts. He immediately grabbed Josh's arm and started walking roughly. Those waiting followed him, running or walking quickly. Chase walked to the trailer without looking back or stopping, dragging Josh inside and closing the door.

Silence fell on the quiet empty lot after the last thud. The people who had been following him belatedly slumped their shoulders and sighed.

Laura, out of breath, swept her forehead with a pale face and said.

“Today’s filming is over, so you can all go back. If Mr. Miller needs anything, please contact me… … .”

“Understood.”

Seth added.

“I think Josh will take care of it since he’s in charge of security for two hours.”

“I guess so.”

Laura looked around the trailer with an uneasy expression and turned her gaze to Seth. Seth noticed what Laura was guessing but turned his head away, pretending not to notice. Laura became deeply thoughtful with a serious expression and muttered to herself.

“No way.”

Seth thought that it must be true. Soon, the staff including Laura greeted him and left. Isaac, who had been staying by his side until then, spoke up.

“Shouldn’t we go inside and take a look? What if Josh is getting hit alone?”

“Would Josh just get hit? Don’t come out for no reason.”

Seth dismissed his opinion without thinking. Feeling embarrassed, Isaac scratched his head and looked back worriedly.

Nothing should be happening.

The room was quiet. Chase didn’t say a word after he dragged Josh into the trailer. Josh was hungry and on edge, but he decided to focus on the current situation for now.

Josh was about to speak, looking up at Chase, who seemed like he wouldn’t open his mouth for a long time. Chase narrowed his eyes and looked down at him.

“What were you doing, with that woman?”

Josh answered truthfully.

“I was just about to eat. We just bumped into each other and exchanged a few words.”

As if to prove his point, Josh’s stomach gurgled. Josh felt embarrassed and laughed awkwardly.

“I was really hungry.”

“You think you had the luxury of flirting with a woman when you were that hungry?”

“… … .”

Josh just stared at him for a moment. A jealous lover was cute, but that also depended on the timing and the other person. Right now, he was so hungry, and Chase’s jealousy was beyond cuteness. Josh had to choose his words carefully, as if he was about to run out and find that woman and do something to her.

“I won’t do that again.”

“… … .”

“I won’t talk to anyone, except you.”

Josh smiled as if to say, “Okay?” If he didn’t put something in his mouth within 5 minutes, he might try to eat Chase. He really couldn’t stand being hungry.

However, unlike Josh, Chase wasn’t that interested in eating. He often skipped meals just because Josh saw him, so he didn’t care about Josh’s hunger right now. What mattered was the fact that Josh was talking and laughing with another woman right in front of him. Chase had to repeatedly clench and unclench his white-knuckled hands to hold back the urge to punch the wall and scream.

Chase barely suppressed his anger and took a deep breath. Josh suddenly tilted his head. Strangely enough, he didn’t smell any pheromones despite being so emotional. All he could feel was the faint scent of the trailer.

Now that I think about it.

Josh realized it belatedly. The pheromones that Chase had been emitting since returning to the set had noticeably diminished. He remembered Mark, who was always eating candy, happily saying that even Cessna Isaac had reduced the number of times he ate candy, saving money on candy.

“You.”

“Why don’t you give me your number?”

He tried to ask what was going on, but Chase asked him harshly before he could. Josh blinked, taken aback.

“Oh, you did?”

“Yeah.”

Chase ground his teeth. He hadn’t thought about it because it was always right next to him, and he didn’t need to. Now that he was embarrassed to exchange numbers, Josh slyly replied instead of apologizing.

“I don’t know your number either?”

“310-447-12XX.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Chase quickly recited the numbers. Josh narrowed his eyes at Josh, who was momentarily stunned.

“Call your number.”

This was definitely not a joke. Josh gave an embarrassed laugh and said the number. But it didn’t end there. Chase took out his cell phone, dialed the number, and immediately pressed the call button. Josh’s eyes widened at the sound of his own ringtone.

“What are you doing? You’re not answering?”

Chase asked annoyed. No, why are you answering the phone when there’s someone in front of you? Josh thought, but there was no need to provoke him. Josh pressed the call button, looked up at Chase, and said.

“Hello?”

Only then did Chase hang up the phone and immediately gave an order.

“Save it.”

Josh silently pressed the save button as he was told. Josh realized later that Chase had deliberately called him right in front of him to check if it was real.

He thought it was a cheap thing to do, even if it made him suspicious.

Josh couldn’t help but furrow his brows in embarrassment.

“I don’t lie.”

I have something to hide.

Pete’s face immediately came to mind, and Josh added inwardly. However, Chase didn’t listen at all.

He dragged him to the bathroom, took off his clothes, and checked everything. Josh was startled when Chase, who had been looking for any traces, including hickeys, buried his nose in his groin and even smelled his scent.

“Your scent is too weak.”

Chase muttered beneath him. Thanks to that, he was able to hide it until now. Josh thought to himself, “Yeah.”

“You didn’t like Omega because of the scent?”

“Yeah.”

Chase answered the same way as Josh. Soon, his expression became serious.

“So I… … .”

Chase, who was about to say something, closed his mouth. Josh was curious, but he didn’t have time to ask. Chase immediately overlapped his lips, and Josh groaned as he was hit by the pouring water.

Haaah.

Josh let out a sigh along with the cigarette smoke. Even for Josh, who had great stamina, it wasn’t easy to do it four times in a row. He barely managed to eat something in between, but as soon as the short break was over, he had to start over again. And he had barely managed to stop himself from trying to do more.

“Please look after me… … .”

Josh crouched down and covered his head. When he woke up at dawn, he carefully pulled away from Chase’s arm that was holding his waist and went outside. He couldn’t soothe his bitter heart without smoking a cigarette.

“Ouch.”

His waist, hips, joints, his whole body ached. Josh had no choice but to stand up again and inhaled deeply into his cigarette smoke with a serious expression.

How should I resolve this situation?

He was just waiting for the right moment to bring up Pete, but he felt that the worst might happen if he was not careful. However, he was worried about Chase’s condition if he just waited.

The wrinkles between his eyebrows deepened. He had never been in such a troublesome relationship. He would have gotten out of it by now. He hated burdensome relationships.

But why was it different this time?

Suffering from a headache over a problem that had no answer was completely against him. Josh spent a long time just smoking a cigarette, carrying his worries that would never be resolved. The sun was rising far away.

Ah.

Josh blinked with a blank face. He saw a familiar figure approaching. It was Mark, who had come to change shifts. He waited silently, but he came a few steps ahead of him and asked him in surprise.

“What’s wrong with your face? What happened last night?”

Josh didn’t look in the mirror, but he could tell what kind of condition he was in just by looking at his reaction.

“No, I’m just tired… … . Then I’ll go and rest now.”

“Yeah, you worked hard all night.”

Josh nodded to Mark, who was encouraging him, and thought to himself that he had worked hard all night. He was about to leave after a short greeting, when Mark suddenly spoke from behind him.

“Oh, by the way, did I mention that the security team was coming back today?”

“Yes?”

He turned around without realizing it, and Mark continued speaking with a brighter face.

“They said they’d come in the afternoon. Fortunately, it seems like they’ve filled the staff. Okay? I can go home now!”

Mark couldn’t hide his excitement as he thought of his wife and daughters waiting for him. Looking at him, Josh mumbled, “Oh, yes… … ” with a bewildered face.

*@Punhap*

It was close to noon when Chase heard from Laura that the bodyguards would be replaced. He had been sleeping late because he had an afternoon shoot scheduled, and he only opened his eyes after Laura came to visit him.

“… … What?”

Chase frowned and asked again, perhaps because he was still half asleep. Laura patiently repeated the same thing.

“They said they’ll fill all the staff and come in the afternoon. The bodyguards who were temporarily in charge will return as soon as the handover is completed. Now there won’t be any gaps in the security… … .”

Laura continued to say something, but Chase couldn’t hear her. After finishing what she wanted to say, Laura belatedly realized that his reaction was strange and cautiously looked around.

“Excuse me, Mr. Miller? Is there something wrong…?”

Chase’s response was a beat late. Laura smiled awkwardly at his startled gaze.

“The security team is going to be replaced. Is that okay?”

Chase’s response was completely different from what she had expected. Could it really be something to do with Josh? Laura carefully guessed, and held off on making a hasty judgment and waited for him to speak in an extremely businesslike manner.

For a while, he didn’t say anything. She just sat there blankly, blinking her eyes, and Laura just waited.

“… … .”

“Yes?”

When he finally opened his mouth, Laura couldn’t quite understand what he was saying, so she ended up asking again. Fortunately, she caught on before Chase could speak again.

“You mean Josh? Can I call him here now?”

Chase was silent again. Laura somehow thought he couldn’t make up his mind. Maybe he was still half asleep. She cautiously opened her mouth.

“Then I will.”

Chase nodded after a brief pause. Laura gave a brief greeting and left the trailer. Henry was standing guard outside, guarding the area.

“He wants me to call Josh.”

Henry didn’t respond much to Laura’s words. He just didn’t care about anyone else but himself, but Laura misunderstood that he might be making the same guess.

“Yes, Josh? It’s Laura.”

Suppressing her curiosity, she made the call and left. Henry was the only one left. She glanced at her watch and saw that her shift was approaching.

Who was it today?

Henry was casually wandering around the trailer, thinking about the schedule. As he changed direction without thinking, someone suddenly appeared in front of him. Henry stopped in surprise for a moment, almost swearing, but then he saw a familiar face. It was an actress who was playing a supporting role. She smiled and greeted him.

“Hello, I have something to discuss with Mr. Miller for the next shoot. Can I come in for a moment?”

Chase, who was drinking water after coming out of the bedroom at the sound of the door opening, instinctively turned his head.

“Joshua.”

He called out his name and walked out quickly, but was soon disappointed. The person who came in was another bodyguard. He frowned noticeably, but Henry seemed to have expected that reaction and said indifferently.

“An actor who is appearing in the same production said he wanted to discuss something about his role. Would you like to meet him?”

“Who?”

Chase asked absentmindedly, even though he didn’t know the name. Henry told him the name, but as expected, he didn’t remember it.

“Send him away.”

“Mr. Miller!”

A woman’s voice suddenly came from behind him as he turned around mercilessly.

“Wait a minute, you shouldn’t come in like this.”

“Mr. Miller!”

Henry stopped her, but Becky desperately called Chase. She continued to talk to Chase, who reflexively stopped.

“We met at Mr. Pitman’s party before. Do you remember? It’s Becky.”

Chase remembered her from the omega scent she emanated. But it was not good. Then all the memories came back to him one by one.

He could remember Josh’s lips trying to kiss him, his hands wiping his face with a handkerchief, and his affectionate gaze. And then he realized. That was where it all started. If he hadn’t gone out to the garden then, if he hadn’t smelled the pheromone scent.

If he hadn’t met Joshua in the first place.

If he had, he wouldn’t have known these feelings.

“I don’t know.”

“Yes?”

Becky asked back, embarrassed. But that only hurt Chase’s feelings.

“I don’t know you, so don’t bother me and get out now. What are you doing? Take me out.”

“Mr. Miller! Wait, listen to me… …!”

“Get out!”

Chase shouted, unable to bear it any longer.

“Don’t you hear me? Damn it! There’s no way I would remember someone like you!”

The color drained from Becky’s face in an instant. Chase turned around, swearing, leaving her behind, who looked stunned as if she was shocked. Henry tried to get her out of the trailer without hurting her. Chase ignored them muttering and opened the closed living room door.

“Chase, stand there!”

Her desperate cry turned into hatred.

“What?”

He heard Henry’s panicked voice, and then an unexpected sound echoed through the trailer.

Taang!

A loud gunshot was heard, followed by a thud, and someone fell behind him. Chase, who stopped walking reflexively, looked back.

It was Henry who had fallen. He looked away from the bodyguard who was groaning and bleeding, and saw the face of a woman who was shaking while holding a gun in both hands.