I DIDN’T THINK IT WAS POSSIBLE for her to be any more beautiful than she is, but I was wrong. Her hair is a mess and sitting there with a blanket wrapped around her luscious skin is too much to handle. I have to be inside of her again. I may never get another chance.
I pull her close to me, kissing her shoulder, her collarbone, sucking on her nipples. She sighs and whispers my name. I want to tell her what last night meant to me. How I know it was hard for her to put her guard down and give in to desire. I want to tell her that I never, ever, spend the night with a woman, but how I couldn’t let her go. I want to tell her how sexy she looked lying on that blanket curled in front of the fireplace and how protective she made me feel when I carried her to bed. But right now, I just want to make love to her again.
As I enter her once more, she smiles and wraps her arms around my neck. When she comes, she holds her breath, tossing her head back and forth in pure abandon. I soak it all in, every moment. I don’t want to go back to the real world. I just want to stay here pleasing this woman.
“God, you’re amazing,” she whispers.
“I’m glad I made you happy.”
“You have.”
I pull out, and we both react to it. It’s like I was made to be a part of her. I fit her so well. She fits me. The only problem is she’ll never be a part of my life. She’s made that clear.
“What are you thinking about?” she asks, brushing her fingers over my cheek. I grab her hand and kiss it.
“You.”
She smiles before glancing out the window. “We should go. We have responsibilities.”
I can actually see her walls going back up right before my eyes.
“I know.”
“I’ll go freshen up.”
She climbs out of bed and disappears into the bathroom. I call the car company and make the necessary arrangements to get us both back to town without arousing suspicion. I wish to God I could tell the world she’s mine. I shake my head. She’s not though, really. When the movie is over, I’ll never see her again. At this point, all I can hope for is that she’ll agree to spend more time with me before I go home.
A few minutes later, she emerges, hair up, clothes on, all business. I stand and walk toward her, smiling as I notice her eyes checking me out. I walk past her and into the bathroom. I swear I hear her exhale as I pass.
When I come out, she’s sitting in the living room looking at her phone. The remains of our romantic evening are all around us, but she seems to be blocking it all out.
“Your car should be here in a few minutes,” I say.
“Thank you.”
“Will I see you again?”
“Of course. It’s a small town.”
“You know what I mean.”
“I need a little time to process everything.”
“Okay.” My phone rings, and it’s the driver. “He’s here.”
“Cool.” She stands and puts her coat on. Walking to the door, she pauses. “Thank you again for everything. It was honestly the best night I’ve had.”
I pull her into my arms, happy that she lets me. “We can have more of them if you want.”
“I know.”
“How will I know if you want to see me again?”
She grins and places a soft kiss on my lips. “I guess you’ll have to ask.” With that, she walks out the door, leaving me with a huge smile on my face.
THIRTY MINUTES LATER, my car shows up, ready to take me back to town. Dan didn’t care that I wouldn’t be there bright and early and chose to film a scene I’m not in. By the time, I get back, Giovanna should be at work. No one will be the wiser.
Sitting in the back seat, I scroll through the entertainment news on my phone and stop on an article about Yasmin and me. Once again the press has decided to speculate on our relationship. This time it works to my advantage. If they think I’m fucking her, they won’t pay any attention to Giovanna.
We finally pull up in front of my hotel, and I rush upstairs to shower and change. I skim over my script to mentally prepare for my day. Fuck. Major make out scene with Yasmin. In the bookstore. God, I hope Giovanna decides not to watch. I walk down to the set and look around. Everyone’s inside the store. I casually walk in and sit in my chair off to the side. Melissa and Sammy are being staged as extras. Giovanna is nowhere to be seen. Yasmin glares at me, and I know I’m in for a great day with her. Every time she pisses me off, I’ll just remind myself of last night.
A few minutes later, Giovanna appears from the back, and I swear to fucking God my heart skipped. Jesus, what the hell’s wrong with me? She sets out a tray of coffee and nods at me, but otherwise ignores my presence. She’s good. Every cell in my body is tuned into her right now, and she’s acting like she could give a shit.
Her hair is high up on her head, and she’s wearing red lipstick. She has a dress on with knee high boots. I’d love to get under that dress again. Fuck. Now that I know what she has, it’s even worse.
“Scene!” Dan yells, pulling my attention back. “We’re ready for you now, Antonio.”
I stand and move my head back and forth to stretch, trying to block her out. Just long enough to get through this.
“Okay,” Dan says, looking at the script. “This is where you walk in after your fight and force her to kiss you.”
“I know.”
“I have an idea,” Yasmin says. “I was reading over this part last night. One thing that is lacking is some spice. We want this movie to be different than other films we’ve done. I think we should turn up the heat a little.”
“What do you mean?” Dan asks.
“Instead of just the big dramatic kiss that always happens, why don’t we put some more in? Add some heavy petting, hand under the dress maybe? Kiss down the neck, you know, steam it up.”
“I don’t think that’s needed,” I add, right away, glancing at Giovanna.
“No, I think it’s good,” Dan says, nodding. “She’s right. We’ve talked about this many times. It’ll be good for both of you.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Well you don’t have a fucking choice,” Dan says. “What I say goes. And don’t fuck it up or you’ll just have to keep doing it.”
Yasmin smiles with satisfaction. Fucking bitch.
“What’s the matter, Tone? Worried your girlfriend will get mad?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I think you want her.”
“I don’t give a fuck what you think.”
“Does she know you were out fucking some other chick last night?”
I hide my grin, happy she doesn’t suspect I was actually with Gio. “How would she know that?”
“Maybe someone will tell her. News travels fast in a small town.”
“If that’s some kind of threat, you can knock yourself out. I don’t care what she thinks.”
“Whatever.”
“Yeah, whatever, Yasmin.”
I turn and walk away, not excited at all about having to get hot and heavy with her. Right now, I can’t even stand her. I know she’s doing this to piss me off. She knows I don’t want it. Whatever. I’m an actor. I can get through this. I’ve kissed worse.
“Action!”
I stand in the doorway and wait for my cue. Dan nods, and I start my approach.
“Susie.”
“What are you doing here? I told you to leave me alone.”
“I can’t. You know that.”
“I don’t want you here.”
“Just hear me out.”
“Cut!”
“What?” I exclaim turning around.
“Not you. Yasmin, you’re not coming across angry enough. He hurt you. You saw him in the arms of another woman last night. You thought you had something special. We need to feel that pain from you.”
“Okay.” She shakes her head. “I’ll try again.”
“Places.” I move back to my spot. “Action.”
“Susie.”
“What are you doing here?”
I pause, waiting for her to finish her line. She stares blankly at me. I whisper the next line, right as Dan yells cut again.
“Take a break, people.”
Dan heads to Yasmin, and I walk over to the snack table to pour myself a cup of coffee. Giovanna stands in her corner. She smiles when we connect. She fucking smiled.
“Places.”
I pull myself away and back to my space.
“Action.”
“Susie.”
“What are you doing here? I told you to leave me alone.”
We get through the dialogue, and now is the part I’m dreading. I rush to her behind the cashier stand and pull her into my arms. I kiss her hard, hating every second, especially knowing my girl is watching us. I try to block it out. I need to do my job, and I don’t want to do this more than I have to. I run my hand under her dress as she wraps her leg around me. I move down her neck while she runs her fingers through my hair.
“Ooh, Antonio,” she says.
“Cut! Dammit, Yasmin. His name is Michael.”
Yasmin’s cheeks turn bright red. I glance at Giovanna, who stands in her spot, stone-faced. No smile this time.
“I’m not feeling it,” Dan says. “Your heart’s not in the scene, Antonio.”
“I told you I didn’t want to. It was just sprung on me. I haven’t had time to prepare.”
“We really need to get this scene done today. What do we need to do?”
I look around the room, frustrated. When I look at Giovanna, she surprises me and gestures for me to come to her.
“I need to go to the bathroom. Can you just give me a few minutes.”
“Sure. Yasmin, let’s start with your part again.”
I walk to the back of the store and around the corner. Giovanna is waiting for me.
“Can I make a suggestion?” she asks.
“Of course.”
“Pretend it’s me.”
“Huh?”
“The scene. Do to her what you did to me last night. I don’t mind. It doesn’t bother me at all.”
“Are you sure?”
She smiles. “Trust me, it’s obvious you’re not into her. And frankly, I don’t want to see you make out with her over and over today. One and done. You can do this. You’re a great actor. Don’t let me be a distraction.”
“I can’t help it. I constantly think about you.”
She smoothes my lapels. “You have a job to do.”
“Have dinner with me?”
“Maybe.”
“I’ll take that.” I lean forward and quickly kiss her cheek. “You’re sure?”
“It’s called acting.” She winks, and I laugh.
“Thanks, Beautiful.”
“Go.”
I walk back out front, my confidence renewed. Just pretend it’s Giovanna. I can do that.
“Ready?” Dan asks.
“Yep. Let’s do this.”
“Places … and action!”
I walk straight behind the cashier stand, pull a surprised Yasmin into my arms and kiss her the way I want to kiss Giovanna. My hands roam her body as I kiss and nibble every exposed bit of skin. Without thinking, I rip open the bodice of her dress. She gasps as buttons fly everywhere. I lift her up so that she’s sitting on the edge of the counter and pull her hair back as I kiss her harder.
“Give me a chance to win you back, Susie. Say yes.”
She nods and breathlessly answers. “Yes, Michael.”
“Cut.” I release her and quickly step back. When I look up the entire room is staring at me. Yasmin is a panting mess as she pulls her dress closed to cover her exposed bra.
“Was that what you wanted, Dan?” I ask.
“Um, yeah, that was good, Antonio. Real good.”
“Great.” I walk back to my chair and sit down. When I glance at Giovanna, she grins and fans herself, before walking back to her office. God, that girl turns me on.