Code Red (The Sierra View Series Book 2) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Epilogue

  Synopsis

  Also by Max Walker

  Red Miller

  Caleb Forester

  Thank you!

  Acknowledgments

  Code Red

  The Sierra View Series

  Max Walker

  Walking Press

  Contents

  Synopsis

  Also by Max Walker

  1. Red Miller

  2. Caleb Forester

  3. Red Miller

  4. Caleb Forester

  5. Red Miller

  6. Caleb Forester

  7. Red Miller

  8. Caleb Forester

  9. Red Miller

  10. Caleb Forester

  11. Red Miller

  12. Caleb Forester

  13. Red Miller

  14. Caleb Forester

  15. Red Miller

  16. Caleb Forester

  17. Red Miller

  18. Caleb Forester

  19. Red Miller

  20. Caleb Forester

  21. Red Miller

  22. Red Miller

  23. Caleb Forester

  24. Red Miller

  25. Caleb Forester

  26. Red Miller

  27. Caleb Forester

  28. Red Miller

  29. Caleb Forester

  30. Red Miller

  31. Caleb Forester

  32. Red Miller

  33. Caleb Forester

  Epilogue

  Thank you!

  Acknowledgments

  Synopsis

  Caleb Forester, a charming nurse with a trademarked smile, is having a fine time at life. He left a terrible situation and found himself in a much better one at Sierra View, and for that, he was constantly grateful. He would have been perfectly fine without any waves rocking his boat.

  Everything was just… fine.

  Red Miller is the actor everyone wants to see on the big screen. Aside from having an overflowing bank account, Red was rich in charisma and sex appeal. From the outside looking in, anyone would have thought the action star and billionaire heir lived a great life with his girlfriend and millions of adoring fans.

  The tidal wave came the day Red and Caleb first met, wiping out both their boats and showing them there was much more to life and love than they let themselves believe.

  Caleb must now reckon with his past while Red with his future. When outside forces from all sides start pushing in, they both must find the strength to stop from crumbling or end up breaking from the pressure.

  Copyright © 2017 by Max Walker

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Also by Max Walker

  The Sierra View Series

  Code Silver

  The Guardian Series:

  Cover Me

  First Down

  Eagle Grip

  Fire Flow

  Christmas Story:

  Daddy Kissing Santa Clause

  One

  Red Miller

  Tires screeched across the concrete as they tried to gain some traction. The loud pops of gunshots filled the air, competing with the sound of the protesting car. A side mirror cracked in half immediately after one of those loud pops, sending the other half flying out toward the sidewalk. People looked out of a nearby cafe window with shock painted across their faces. One woman shielded her son from the window as the car swerved away from the building and took off down the empty street.

  Red Miller was running on a pure rush of adrenaline as he shifted the gears in the racing sapphire blue Lamborghini. He cut a sharp right and found the street narrowing. He slowed the sapphire blue race car down in a matter of seconds, just before he ended up pulling out onto the other side of the street.

  “You’re done, asshole,” Red said through gritted teeth, looking in his rear-view mirror as another car raced onto the street he was waiting on. It was a beat-up Nissan and had none of the speed Red had with his Lamborghini.

  Red reached across to his passenger seat and grabbed the jet black Glock that was resting on the white and blue leather cushion. He cocked it and got out of the car, just as Gage stepped out of his. He was looking like a mess. His suit and tie were all torn and muddied. There was a long gash across his chest, the white fabric of the shirt shredded and hanging in long strips.

  Red, on the other hand, looked like a movie star. His tux was sporting barely a wrinkle and his black satin bowtie was still hanging on tight, unlike Gage’s navy tie hanging limp around his scarred neck.

  “Come on, man,” Gage said, sounding exhausted. “You steal my Lambo and then expect me to not come after you?”

  Red kept his eyes on the gruff man standing in front of him, ignoring the sounds of police sirens drawing closer and closer. “You’re done. You can’t pin this shit on me anymore. Not like you did with the Wynwood murders or the Twilight heist. You’re caught.”

  “Oh really?” Gage drew his gun up, aiming it squarely at Red’s forehead. They were standing about ten feet apart, but Red could feel the barrel of that gun pressed to his head as if there was no space between them.

  The silence was loaded. No one made a sound. Red’s heart pounded. These were the moments he lived for.

  And then, like a searing hot blade slicing through butter, the tension was cut when Gage smiled, shook his head, and dropped the gun to his side.

  “Shit, sorry, guys. I forgot my line.”

  The director, Lisa Anderson, yelled “Keep rolling!” and then hopped off her chair and left video village—the field of screens that surrounded the director and crew as they watched the action through the lens. She walked over to Gage and pulled out a rolled-up script from her back pocket. Usually, the script supervisor would have just yelled the line from the side, but it looked like Lisa wanted to talk about a change. Red watched, trying to stay focused and grounded in the scene. He still had the adrenaline rushing through him from successfully completing his stunts just moments before. The producers hated that Red insisted on doing his own stunts, but he didn’t give a fuck about insurance prices. He just wanted to feel that rush and deliver as authentic a performance as possible.

  “Alright, you boys are doing incredible.” Lisa turned and walked back to video village. They were filming outside near a busy farmer's market. A crowd of people had formed against the police tape blocking them off from the set, watching with excited expressions as they got a surprise behind-the-scenes look at how a blockbuster action film was made.

  They went on with the scene, Gage implementing Lisa’s notes, and were able to wrap the day before nightfall.

  “Great job, Red. Seriously, great fucking job. This is going to be big.” Lisa’s genuine enthusiasm was hard not to catch. “Huge,” she said, waving her hands in the air as she walked away, her thick red hair bouncing with every step. The film was being shot out of order, and so the scene they had just canned was part of the climax even though it was only the fourth day shooting out of thirty. It was difficult but needed to get done right, and from the sounds of it, Red and Gage had nailed it.

  Red looked around to say bye to Gage but noticed he was off to the side talking to a sound guy about something. He seemed pretty into the conversation, so Red looked around for his assistant instead before remembering that Crow was home with food poisoning.

  “Hey, Red!”

  It was Gage. He ran up behind Red as he was leaving and slapped a hand on his shoulder.
>
  “Great job today, man,” Red said, meaning it.

  “Are you kidding me?” Gage scoffed and waved off the compliment. “You’re the one that drove like a damn NASCAR racer. I jumped in on the scene after my stunt guy rolled out the other side of the car.”

  Red shook his head. “Stunts are one thing, but you’re a good co-star. It’s only the fourth day and I feel like we click pretty well.”

  “Fuck yeah, dude. This month is going to be crazy. Tomorrow we’re shooting the actual heist scene right?”

  “Yeah, then the hospital scene after.”

  They reached the rows of trailers set up for them. Today they had taken over a parking lot in downtown Los Angeles, only a five minute walk from the streets they had blocked off to film on. Each top-billed actor got their own trailer while a few other trailers were brought in for wardrobe and makeup.

  Red stopped at his trailer, the first in the row, and said goodbye to Gage. The sun was already setting, and it had been a long day, he just wanted to grab his car keys and get back to his house.

  “Oh, shit, before I forget,” Gage stopped Red before he disappeared into his trailer. “Gina’s best friend is having a birthday party tonight, and she wanted me to see if you and Selena wanted to come along.”

  Red cocked his head. He was exhausted and didn’t think a party would be a great idea, but more details wouldn’t hurt. “Tonight?”

  “Yeah, you’ve met him. He was the one that danced on the bar for my thirty-third.”

  Red nodded his head, eyebrows raised. That night had been a little blurry, but Red remembered the guy Gage was talking about. “Steve?”

  “Yep, Steve. Anyway, the party is going to be at Cobra.”

  Red decided to play a little dumb. He knew exactly what Cobra was when he asked, “Cobra?”

  “Yeah, it’s that new bar in WeHo. Come on man, you’ll have Selena with you, she’ll deflect all the guys hitting on you. We can hang back and have some beers while they all get crazy, bro.”

  Red pretended to consider it. He already knew his answer, though. There was no way he was stepping foot into a gay club. For what? So he could see everything he was missing? So he could sit in the shadows wearing a baseball cap, wondering why the hell his life seemed so great from the outside but still feel so empty? No. His answer was always going to be no.

  “Thanks for the invite, Gage.” But I’m going to stay home and suppress my deepest desires until it eats away at my core and turns me into an emotionless husk. “You guys have fun tonight.”

  “Alright, bro, I’ll see you tomorrow then. Can’t wait to rob that bank,” Gage said with a laugh as he walked off, leaving Red behind to wonder if he would ever get used to hiding.

  Two

  Caleb Forester

  Caleb Forester was in heaven. He chomped into his grilled cheese and ham sandwich as he sank back down into his couch. He pressed play and sat back, enjoying his cheesy masterpiece while Judge Judy rained down some badass justice. He looked across his living room and quickly diverted his eyes back to his screen, realizing he had made a mistake.

  It was too late. Luna had locked eyes with her oversized feeding machine. She gave a bird-like chirp followed by a series of purrs that told Caleb he was in trouble.

  “Nope. You’re not having any of this.”

  Luna, who had made it to the couch in record time, looked up at Caleb with big green eyes. If Caleb didn’t know any better, he would have sworn his cat had made a stop to fluff up her calico fur so that she could look extra presentable. He sat up straighter, making sure his plate was as far from her paw-swipe range as possible.

  He went back to watching Judge Judy when Luna must have decided she was done playing games. She leaped up onto the arm of the couch and gracefully made her way over the back of the sofa so that she could reach a paw over to Caleb’s shoulder. He was beginning to worry that if he didn’t feed her a piece, she would just reach over and have him for her mid-afternoon snack.

  “You’re not going to like it anyway,” he said, chipping a piece of the crust off and reaching it over his shoulder. He felt Luna’s inquisitive sniffs and tentative nibble before she finally committed and grabbed the bounty. She gave another chirp and jumped off the couch, running to her tall, and overly-luxurious cat tree.

  With his stay-at-home tormenter satisfied, he went back to enjoying his day off. As a nurse, he worked long and sometimes grueling shifts, but that meant his weekends also felt pretty long and much less tiring.

  He was settling in when his phone rang from somewhere between the couch cushions. He dug around, feeling the vibrations, and finally pulling it out. Noah Silver’s name was written across the screen.

  “Hey, bud, busy?” Noah asked in a way that sounded like he expected the answer to be no.

  “No.”

  “Great, because you’re about to get really busy.”

  “Ok cool… why?”

  Noah gave a chuckle. “I’m getting you into a movie.”

  “No thanks,” Caleb said, getting up from his couch on realizing he had left his water in the kitchen. “The last time I sneaked into a movie I got caught and almost banned from the entire AMC chain.”

  “What? Really?” Noah asked, but before Caleb could elaborate, Noah went on. “But no, that’s not what I meant. I mean, I just got you a role on a movie.”

  Caleb grabbed his water bottle. “Oh… oh! What? How?”

  “Raquel—you’ve met her before—she’s working on a film, and they were looking for an actual nurse to deliver a couple of lines. They stressed on finding a real nurse so it could sound more authentic, and Raquel offered you up. She said she pulled up your Instagram and that they loved your ‘look.' Whatever that means.”

  “My look?! You mean the look I’ve been perfecting day-in and day-out in hopes of getting my big break one day?”

  Noah laughed over the phone. “Yes, that look. And, what do you know, it looks like your big break is finally here.”

  “Wow, ok. Hell yeah, when do I have to go in?”

  “Friday.”

  Caleb’s eyebrows shot up. “This Friday? Oh jeez. Ok, yeah, that’s fine. Shouldn’t I rehearse or something? Get in character?”

  “Do you need to do much to get into being a nurse?”

  Caleb put a hand to his forehead. “Right, duh.”

  Noah chuckled. “You’re going to be fine. I doubt they’re going to have you recite a Shakespearean-type monolog. Raquel said that someone would send you the lines in a few hours. The producers want to have a quick meet with you too, and then you’ll be good to go.”

  Caleb took a deep breath, suddenly feeling nervous. He was always interested in acting, but never went out of his way to pursue it. He was more than happy with his life— well, with his professional life. Plus, he leaned more toward the introverted side of the scale, preferring to stay out of the spotlight unless he was with his close friends or family. Then he didn’t mind being the center of attention.

  It’s going to be fun. I’ll be fine. No big deal. It’ll probably be a small part next to some unknown actor.

  “And,” Noah said, “I haven’t even told you the best part.”

  “What’s that?” Caleb headed back into his living room. Luna gave a chirp as she hopped off the couch, her hunt for crumbs cut short.

  “You’re going to be starring alongside the hottest actor in the industry right now.”

  Caleb’s eyes narrowed. “Who?”

  “Red Miller.”

  On the TV, Judge Judy gave three knocks of her gavel and closed the case.

  Three

  Red Miller

  The two men’s sweaty, chiseled bodies slammed against each other in a rhythmic beat. Primal grunts and husky moans from both of them filled the barely furnished room. The mattress protested under the weight, the springs creaking with every thrust. It was loud. Too loud. As though the bed was competing with the men over who could be the loudest.

  Eh, fuck this.

&nb
sp; Red, not afraid to be picky, exited out of the video and opened up another backup tab. He pressed play and sat back on the leather couch inside his trailer, his hard cock in hand as the video played on his laptop. The new video was a solo endeavor, with a hunky baseball player jerking himself off inside a locker room. It was one of the hottest things Red had seen in awhile. The guy raised a leg onto the bench and looked down at the camera, which seemed to have been propped up further down the bench. He jerked himself off, still wearing those sexy black baseball socks with the white bands wrapping around the calves and nothing else. Red momentarily wondered what would happen if someone walked in? In his fantasy, he pictured the coach offering to lend a helping hand. It would help build up team morale, Red was sure of it.

  He continued stroking himself off, feeling himself getting closer and closer. He had been horny all morning, but having a five o’clock call-time also meant he was working all morning. Thankfully, they got all the shots they needed in a reasonable time, leaving Red with some time to himself before he had to be back on set. He was supposed to spend that time in a meeting with Peter, but was relieved to hear that Peter had to cancel at the last minute. Red figured he had probably made a last minute appointment to go see his plastic surgeon. Red was one of the only people who knew Peter was getting work done. Subtle work, but definitely work. Peter was the epitome of vain, and Red knew he wanted to hold on to his youth for as long as he could.

  Red really didn’t want to spend his free time with his asshole of an agent. He was a great white shark both in his personal life and business.

  He tried to refocus on the hot hunk of a baseball player on his screen. His grip tightened around his thick cock as he felt himself getting closer and closer to the edge. He used his free hand to skip ahead in the video, wanting to see the hunk’s money shot before he blew his.