Eli zipped up his jacket and shoved his hands into its pockets as he walked the beach. The crisp October air teased him, letting up one moment, then attacking the next. It had been warm the previous day when he’d arrived in the small coastal town, but it seemed he wouldn’t be able to count on weather like that every day. He glanced up at the clouds that were quickly rolling in. At least there wouldn’t be snow. That had been one reason he’d chosen Starlight Ridge for his debut as a producer—he’d be able to film through the winter rather than wait for spring, when the story was supposed to take place.

The sun was just beginning to lower, and he saw several surfers out on the water, wetsuits covering them from head to toe. He shivered just thinking of how freezing the water must be.

A golden retriever darted in front of Eli, seemingly coming out of nowhere, spraying him with sand. The dog’s owner jogged after it, calling for Donna to come back, while glancing over his shoulder and apologizing profusely to Eli. The man was a bit older than Eli, with specks of gray showing through his dark hair, but he seemed to recognize the actor, doing a double take as he continued to chase Donna.

Eli was used to that reaction—the second glance. Most people recognized him but couldn’t decide where they’d seen him before. He’d had people approach him and ask if they had gone to college together, and there had been that one lady who had sworn he had been the man she’d kissed at a New Year’s Eve party the previous year. She’d berated him on the street in front of a couple dozen people for leaving without her number. Eli hadn’t blamed the real New Year’s Eve culprit for slipping out of the party digitless. He would have too.

Of course, many of the witnesses on that street corner had known who he was, and by the next day, the gossip had ended up splashed across the internet, despite his assurances that he had been at a small gathering with his wife on the evening in question. Others had corroborated his story, but no one seemed to care.

Eli had hoped to escape some of that scrutiny here in Starlight Ridge, a town that seemed far removed from the rest of the world.

Judging by the backward glances the man with the dog was still throwing his way, he realized it had been wishful thinking.

He took a long breath, relishing the salty air, then turned to head back toward the bed and breakfast that his screenwriter, Leanne, owned. Or her family owned it, anyway. Everything about it, from the white wraparound porch to the palm trees that lined the property, added to the picturesque town, and Eli had already received permission to feature the business in several scenes.

Before he was able to take more than a couple of steps, his phone burst to life. Eli pulled the phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen. It was his lawyer, Jonathan. Eli didn’t want to answer it, wishing he could just take a couple of days to de-stress.

While filming a movie, Eli had to act as if he were someone else, while wishing he could just be himself. But when filming ended and he was himself again, he tended to wish he were someone else. It was a vicious cycle.

Eli turned back toward the ocean and stopped next to the water’s edge. His gaze scanned the area. Further down the beach, people seemed to be gathering, setting out chairs and blankets, but no one was within listening range. This would likely be a conversation that needed to be kept private.

Steeling himself for what Jonathan had to tell him, he managed to answer the call before it went to voicemail.

“Jonny,” Eli said. “Please tell me you have good news.” He could hear the lawyer clear his throat on the other end of the call. Eli had learned to read Jonathan’s mannerisms over the past few years, and throat clearing was never a good sign.

“She wants more,” Jonathan said after a moment, skipping any pleasantries. That was one thing Eli had always appreciated about the lawyer—he didn’t beat around the bush. On the rare occasion, Jonathan sent the bush up in flames, preferring to throw whatever awful news he had out into the open and watch it burn. But at least then it was over quickly.

This time, Eli thought he would have preferred a little small talk first—something to help cushion the blow. “How can she want more?” he asked. “I don’t have anything left. The house and half of my money isn’t enough for Diane?”

“Apparently not,” Jonathan said, his tone devoid of humor.

“Did you tell her lawyer that I’ve been couch surfing for the past month?” Eli was certain that his friends would be happy to give a statement, if for no other reason than to help the man move on. He’d needed the company of friends, rather than the bleakness of an empty hotel room. However, some of their wives had been complaining about the third toothbrush and the bag of clothes that had taken up residence. Not to mention the guest that accompanied them. It wasn’t like they didn’t have plenty of room—“couch surfing” was a loose term, considering the guest bedrooms he’d been staying in were nicer than most luxury suites. But his presence was still causing some disruptions, and Eli didn’t want to stay where he wasn’t wanted.

“Yes, I told her, but it was a moot point, because Diane isn’t after more money.”

Eli felt a surge of relief flow through him, but it was quickly followed by a wave of panic. What else could his wife be after? Ex-wife, he reminded himself. Or nearly. Eli had hoped to get all this cleared up before he left LA, and he couldn’t stall any longer, not if he wanted to get production under way.

And then it hit him.

“Oh, no. She doesn’t want—”

“The car. Yes.”

Not the Tesla.

Eli sat down hard in the sand. The cold seeped through his pants, but he didn’t pay it any attention. “She has plenty of money now. Why doesn’t she just buy her own?”

Even as he asked the question, he already knew the answer.

“Because it wouldn’t be your Tesla,” Jonathan said, echoing Eli’s thoughts. “And Mr. Musk refuses to make another.”

Eli’s car had been specially made—one of a kind—as a gift after he’d won his Oscar. And it was the only thing he’d cared about keeping throughout this entire debacle.

But it seemed Diane wouldn’t stop until she got it. He didn’t know how he could have been so blinded, so disillusioned when he’d first met her. It had been at the premiere for one of his movies—she had been invited as a guest by one of the other actors—and she’d showed up in ripped jeans and a camo T-shirt. Diane did things her way, throwing caution to the wind—just the type of woman Eli needed. She was someone who could keep up with him.

They had married only two months later. Now that he looked back, he could see the warning signs, but at the time, he’d seen her commanding nature as strength. She could hold up under pressure and be okay when he would go radio silent for months at a time. Eli had warned her that life with him wouldn’t be easy. As a method actor, he would completely immerse himself in a role and cut off ties until filming was complete. But Diane had said she could handle it, as long as she had him more months than he was gone.

Eli had kept his promise, and he’d even cut back on his production schedule so he could spend more time at home. But it seemed that in the end, she had actually preferred it when he was gone. Diane had enjoyed the lifestyle Eli’s money offered more than Eli himself.

And this was just further proof.

“Give it to her,” he said.

There was silence on the other end of the call, then, “I’m sorry?”

“Give her the car. Tell her that if she’ll sign the papers within twenty-four hours, she can have it.”

More silence.

“I don’t think that is wise,” his lawyer finally said. “I’ve said it before, but you don’t listen. The more you give that woman, the more she asks of you. It’s like you don’t trust me to get you what you need.”

Eli used his free hand to scoop up sand, then let it sift through his fingers. His lips tilted up into a small smile. “Awww, so you do care.”

Johnathan harrumphed. “Of course I do. And I don’t like to see women like that win. They take advantage of nice guys like you.”

Eli knew Johnathan was right. But he also didn’t have the energy to drag this on forever. The longer it took, the longer Diane would be in his life. “I do trust you. That’s why you’ve been my lawyer for the past four years. You’re the best. But I also don’t have time to deal with her right now. I need to start shooting this movie before Christmas, and preferably before Thanksgiving.”

“Fine,” Johnathan relented, though not without some grumbling. “But you know that this will make you more of a target for women like her. They’ll see how you gave in to Diane, and then they’ll be after some of the same.”

Eli snorted. “I highly doubt that.”

“How do you figure?”

He stood, brushing the sand from his pants. “They’ll also know that she took everything and there isn’t anything left for them to come after.”

Jonathan didn’t have a rebuttal for that line of logic, so he promised to have the papers signed by the end of the next day. Eli tried to ignore the pang he felt when he thought of his car in the hands of that woman.

He shoved his phone back into his pocket, noticing that more people had gathered at the other end of the beach. They were all talking and laughing, though also looking out toward the ocean. Eli could understand why. As the sun set, reds and oranges, mixed with a dark shade of pink, stretched out across the sky. The colors reflected off the water, making it seem the ocean was on fire.

Eli soaked it in, longing to feel at peace with his crazy, messed-up world. But, as he sat there in the cold sand, peace eluded him, leaving only loneliness.

And just like that, he couldn’t wait to start filming. At least then he could be someone else, pretending that, despite his character’s shortcomings, in the end it would all work out—he would meet the love of his life, the owner of a small chocolate shop, and she would love him forever.

Even if Eli couldn’t have a happily-ever-after, his character, Benjamin, could. And Eli owed it to Benjamin to give the performance of a lifetime.