Evangeline

 

Things were better when I was actually on set.

At least then I had plenty to distract me from Cole and his constant, brooding presence.

But yesterday evening, after I’d finished on set, we left Baltimore to go to an upscale DC hotel that guaranteed absolute privacy—a kind of makeshift safe house we could stay in for the next few days, when I wasn’t needed on set. Cole had some sort of plan to entrap the stalker to reveal himself by giving the cast and crew a false schedule for me. He thought it would be an efficient way to catch the guy quickly so this whole ordeal wouldn’t have to drag on.

I was pretty sure he was just as anxious about getting this job done so he could be rid of me as I was excited to be rid of him.

It was very stressful to have him hanging around all the time—since he consumed my whole mind, especially when I was off set and had nothing else to do.

I was pretty sure the next few days were going to be hellish for both of us.

I slept in later than normal the next morning after we had arrived at the hotel suite, because I spent most of the night tossing and turning and thinking in turn about the stalker and Cole. It was almost ten by the time I came out of the bedroom.

I wasn’t surprised to see that Cole was there, awake, sitting on one of the stools at the kitchen bar, drinking coffee and doing something on his phone.

He glanced up, and his gray eyes went briefly hot when he saw me.

At least that was what I thought his expression meant as his eyes ran up and down my body. I was wearing a camisole and little knit shorts—which is what I’d slept in—and I hadn’t bothered to brush my hair or wash my face.

I felt a little jump of excitement at the idea that he was attracted to me. Sure, it wasn’t that unusual—since I had a pretty good body and I had a kind of sex-kitten thing going with my public persona. And Cole was obviously a normal man who was likely to appreciate a somewhat decent female body. But I couldn’t help but feel like he was too cool and competent to let himself react to any attraction he felt for me unless he was very attracted.

And I liked the idea of his being very attracted to me since I was more attracted to the arrogant ass every day.

“Good morning,” I said, managing not to leer at him, despite how sexy and masculine he looked in his T-shirt, which set off his tight shoulders, and his jeans, which looked great on his long legs and tight butt.

“Morning.”

We’d been pretty cool with each other for the past week, ever since he was such a jerk after I’d asked him about his background. We were occasionally snippy, but mostly we just circled each other, feigning politeness with absolutely no warmth.

I was used to getting along with most people, so the tension was very uncomfortable for me.

I went to the coffeepot and reminded myself that this would be over soon. Hopefully, Cole’s plan would work so the whole thing would be done by the end of the week.

“How did you sleep?” The mild question wasn’t friendly in any way, but it felt like a peace offering, just the same.

“Not too well,” I said, watching the coffee stream into my mug. “What about you?”

He didn’t answer, so I glanced back over my shoulder. He was giving a half shrug.

“Did you sleep at all?” I asked, as it occurred to me that I’d never seen him sleep—or even seen him go into a bedroom for the night.

I was still looking back at him, so I saw the second half shrug.

“You can’t stay awake all the time,” I said, sipping my coffee and watching his controlled face.

“I sleep when I need to. I’ve gotten used to going without.”

“It can’t be good for you though.”

“I do a lot of things that aren’t good for me.”

I could well believe that. He was in great shape, but I was sure it was because he was so active and not because he took really good care of himself. He seemed more like the kind of guy who lived hard and whose body had hardened accordingly.

“But still—” I began.

“You were just telling me you didn’t get much sleep, so you’re hardly a model of healthy living.”

As always, his dry tone only served to rile me up. “Well, these are unusual circumstances for me. I went to bed at a reasonable time, but everything going on makes me too nervous to sleep. I usually get plenty of sleep. And I try to eat mostly healthy, and I do yoga, and I don’t binge drink or anything. I guarantee I’m healthier than you.”

There was no good reason for me to feel so defensive, except it always felt like he was judging and attacking me.

“Yeah, right. Getting so high you dance half-naked on a table in a nightclub is healthy.”

I stiffened, realizing he’d seen that notorious video of me from when I’d been nineteen.

I hated that video—taken on someone’s phone—and I’d never be able to live it down.

I’d gone a little wild that year, trying to shake my child star reputation. I’d done some stupid things. But that video made it look a lot worse than it really was, and it had been shown all over the news and internet.

I controlled my reaction—made up of anger and something like betrayal—and narrowed my eyes at him. “It was one night. It happened to be documented. Are you really going to tell me you’ve never had a night that would look just as bad if it had been caught on camera?”

He met my eyes for a minute, and there was momentarily something like understanding in his gaze. Then he glanced away and muttered, “I’ve had hundreds of those nights.”

The words actually made me feel better.

How we’d gotten into this conversation, I didn’t know. We’d just been talking about how we’d slept the night before. But it was the best conversation we’d had in a week. He felt like a human again—and not some cold, sexy stranger.

I let out a breath. “Everyone has.”

He turned his head to meet my gaze again, as if in response to the softness in my tone. Our backgrounds might have been light-years apart, but we still understood each other. Knew each other somehow. Were similar in ways neither one of us could have predicted.

“Not everyone,” he said in a different tone, with almost a smile on his mobile mouth. “You should meet my buddy’s girlfriend, Kristin. I don’t think she’s had a wild night in her life.”

I laughed. “Maybe she’s had nights you don’t know about.”

“Maybe. But I doubt it.”

“Don’t you like her?”

“Sure. She’s great. I’m just not sure what she sees in Declan since he had nothing but wild nights until he met her.”

“Well, love changes people. And sometimes we’re drawn to people who are completely opposite from us.” I’d come over to sit on a stool beside him as we talked, but I flushed a little as I realized what I’d just said.

It was true. It was absolutely true—since Cole was as different from me as possible, and I was ridiculously drawn to him—but I didn’t mean to say it. What if he thought I was talking about us?

He didn’t react to the words. Just gave another half shrug. “Yeah. I suppose that’s what it is. They’re happy, so why should I question it? It’s all a mystery to me anyway.”

“What is?”

“Love. The way people couple up. It never makes sense, it always comes out of the blue, and I never expect it to last.”

I’d always felt the same way—like love was some sort of magic that happened to everyone but me. I’d sometimes watch couples and wonder in bewilderment how they’d gotten together and what they saw in each other and why something like that had never happened to me.

I’d dated plenty, but I didn’t think I’d ever really been in love. Whenever I dated someone, even if I really liked him, it always felt like I was going through the motions, like I was pretending to be someone other than me.

I couldn’t imagine what it was like to be with someone for real and just be me.

“Yeah,” I said at last, looking away from him since I suddenly wanted to reach out and touch him. “I’ve never gotten it either.”

We sat side by side, drinking coffee, lost in our own thoughts. But it felt like we were bonding somehow.

When I was feeling too vulnerable, I realized I needed to start thinking about something else. “So what are we going to do today?”

“Just hang out here, if it’s all right with you. I’d rather you not go out since you might be recognized, and then the news might get out about where you are.”

“Okay,” I said, realizing he was right, and it would be better to just catch this stalker as quickly as possible. I wasn’t thrilled about being cooped up, but at least I felt safe here—in this anonymous, impersonal hotel suite. With Cole.

“Malcom will report in if anything unusual happens on the set.”

“Okay. You’ll let me know if you learn anything?”

“Of course.”

I nodded and let out a long breath. The stalker must be in Baltimore, which felt very far away from me now. If nothing else, at least I’d have a break from the constant fear for a few days.

I’d take whatever I could get.

On that thought, Cole’s phone rang. He glanced at it and picked up. “Yeah.” After a minute, he said, “Okay. Bring it up.”

 “What is it?” I demanded, when he hung up.

“Delivery.”

“What?” I jumped to my feet. “No one knows I’m here. I shouldn’t be getting a delivery.”

“It’s from—”

I suddenly felt naked, completely vulnerable, as if there was nowhere in the world I could be safe. I kept reliving that sickening moment of finding the mouse in with the muffins. “How did he find me? How could he possibly find me here?” My voice grew shrill on the last words.

Cole reached out to hold my upper arms. “Evangeline, calm down.”

I tried to shake off his strong hands. “I’m not going to calm down. How the hell did the stalker find me here? Who is doing this to me?”

One little part of my mind recognized I was overreacting, but I simply couldn’t help it. I’d been feeling safe just a minute ago, but now it was all blown away.

Cole wouldn’t let go of me. “Evangeline, stop,” he said, his voice low and slightly hoarse. “Stop. It’s from Sebastian. It’s from Sebastian.”

The words finally broke through my panicked brain, and I froze, trying to process what he’d just said. “What?”

“The delivery is from Sebastian. He was just trying to be nice. It’s not the stalker.”

I was shaking helplessly as I finally understood what he was telling me.

“It’s not the stalker,” he said again as a knock sounded on the door.

The noise made me jump, and Cole’s fingers were still wrapped around my upper arms.

“Are you okay?” he asked, looking tense and concerned.

I nodded mutely.

“Can I get the door?”

I nodded again, unable to say anything.

Shit. I was an idiot. A fool. A silly, embarrassing nervous wreck. There was no justification for my breakdown, and I couldn’t believe I’d actually reacted that way.

I wasn’t normally so melodramatic and ridiculous.

Cole let go of me at last and walked to the door, where he accepted a potted orchid from the hotel staff member who’d carried it up.

It was a beautiful plant—a lovely, exotic violet color—but I stared at it suspiciously. “It’s really from Sebastian?” I managed to ask.

Cole nodded. “He said he was sending it over.” He put the orchid down, carefully inspecting the plant and the card and even the soil it was planted in.

“It’s okay?” I asked, forcing myself to step over, even though I was still shaking.

“It’s fine, Evangeline,” Cole murmured. He put an arm around my shoulders, pulling me against him in a comforting gesture. “I promise it’s fine. The stalker hasn’t found you.”

I nodded, staring down at the lovely, delicate blooms. It was really nice of Sebastian. He was trying to be a friend, make me feel better.

And I jumped to the conclusion that it was an attack.

What the hell was wrong with me?

“Shit, princess,” Cole said hoarsely, pulling me into a full hug. “It’s okay. It’s really okay.”

For some reason his obvious concern and the tenderness in his touch and voice completely broke me. I shook against him in silent sobs—not really crying but feeling completely broken.

I wasn’t much of a crier under normal circumstances. I had no idea what was happening to me.

Cole’s arms were tight and strong and protective, and they felt better than anything in the world. He wasn’t saying anything now, but he didn’t need to.

He was trying to make me feel better.

He did.

After a minute, I was able to control myself and straighten up. His arms loosened but not all the way. He gazed down at me, something soft and intense in his expression. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah.” I sniffed a little, although there were only a few tears. “I’m sorry about that. I have no idea what happened.”

“You were scared.”

“Yeah, but there was no reason for it. It was the epitome of an overreaction.”

“It’s normal,” he said. “You’ve been a trooper this whole time, but the stress and fear eventually catches up to you. It doesn’t matter how much protection you have. The threat of a stalker always does that. It keeps you from ever feeling safe.”

I nodded, feeling understood and much less stupid. “It’s been nothing but little things, but…”

“They add up. He wants you to feel this way.”

I took a few deep breaths, flattening my hands on Cole’s firm chest.

“I’m going to catch him. I promise.” His eyes were still intense and protective, but now they were something more, something hot.

I suddenly felt hot too, and I slid my hands up toward his shoulders. “Thank you,” I whispered, leaning toward him.

I wanted nothing in the world more than to touch him, kiss him, be with him in every way.

I knew he wanted it too. It was clear in his eyes, in his touch, in the way his hand slid up toward the back of my head.

But then he suddenly dropped his hands, and I realized what was about to happen.

I ducked my head, my heart racing and my body shaking again—this time for an entirely different reason.

Cole was so tense he was frozen, and I could see from a quick glance that he was aroused. It was strangely exciting but also terrifying.

I wasn’t sure what I would have done, but I didn’t have the chance. Cole gave himself a quick shake and said, “If you’re all right, I’m going to call in and get a report from Baltimore.”

I knew the words were intended to put us back into a professional dynamic, and they worked. Kissing Cole would have been a huge mistake—for both of us—so it was just as well to get some distance.

“Yeah,” I said, steadying my breath. “I’m fine.”

He walked out of the room quickly, a little stiffly—probably just to stand outside the door in the hall—and I tried to shake off the intensity of the moment before.

That was easier said than done though. I kept thinking about it for the rest of the day.

***

Cole kept his distance for most of the morning and afternoon, but he finally loosened up again after I had ordered room service for dinner and invited him to have some.

I didn’t want him to think I was angry or awkward about our moment. I’d much prefer for him to believe it was no big deal to me at all. So I made a point of being friendly with him and asking him to join me for dinner.

He did, and we had a conversation about his time in the Marines. I asked him some about his upbringing, but he evidently didn’t want to talk about that.

That was my fault. I never should have said I wanted to hear more about his childhood for research purposes. It hadn’t been true even then—I’d just gotten scared about how close I felt to him and had to do something to cover it—but I realized he wasn’t going to forget it.

As we were finishing up, I said, “I guess I should do some work this evening.” I hadn’t done much of anything all day, and I was starting to feel guilty about it—since this movie was important to my career.

“What work?” he asked.

“Go over a few of my scenes,” I explained. “There are a few I’m not sure I’ve really got yet.”

“Okay,” he said, looking interested. “Do you just read them out loud then?”

“Yeah, although usually Cali reads them with me since it’s kind of hard by myself.”

Then I had an idea. “Maybe you can go over them with me,” I suggested, almost smiling at the reaction I imagined he’d have to this idea.

I wasn’t disappointed. His mouth dropped open. “What?”

“Maybe you can do the scenes with me. Just read the lines for the other characters so I have someone to respond to.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Well, why not? You’re not doing anything but hanging out here this evening. How hard can it be to read a few lines?”

“I’m no actor.”

“Don’t act. Just read. Please?” I gave him an over-the-top, beseeching look, knowing instinctively that teasing him into it would be more effective than trying to make a rational argument to get him to agree to the proposal.

He rolled his eyes.

“Pretty please,” I cooed. “It won’t take very long. And the quicker I can get a handle on the scenes, the quicker the filming can take place, and the quicker we can wrap things up.”

The logic of this plea was rather shaky, but I was batting my eyelashes very prettily, so I didn’t think it would matter.

He obviously knew what I was trying to do, and he rolled his eyes again, muttering under his breath. But he said, “Fine. I’ll stand here and read lines. But don’t expect anything else.”

“Thank you!” I jumped up to grab the script, turning to the first scene I needed to work on. It was a good one since there was just one other character in it.

I explained the context and his character, and then Cole stood in the middle of the living area and started to read.

At first he just read the words blankly, with no inflection or intonation. I did my best with my own lines, but I was very distracted by him standing there with the script in his hand, and I had trouble not giggling over his delivery.

As the scene went on, though, he got more into it—especially when it turned into an argument between my character and her romantic interest. By the end of the scene, he was doing a pretty decent job, so I gave him appropriate compliments when the scene was done and asked if we could do it again.

He agreed with a bad-tempered expression, but I knew he wasn’t really reluctant.

“Try to give it a little more spirit,” I suggested, mostly just to tease him.

He glared at me and read his first line.

At first I thought he was heeding my advice since his lines were much more dramatic than they’d been the first time. But then I realized he was just being contrary. His delivery became more and more over the top until it was a farce of a genuine performance.

I was a little annoyed to begin with, since it was impossible for me to really practice in response to such melodrama. But eventually his over-the-top dramatics started to tickle me. I tried to hold back my amusement—since it would signal a victory for him—but I just couldn’t do it.

By the end of the scene, I couldn’t even say my lines since I was suppressing so much laughter.

He kept a straight face the whole time, but I could see he was pleased. His gray eyes reflected a kind of genuine pleasure I’d never seen there before.

“How was that?” he asked when I gasped out the final line of the scene.

“You know exactly how it was,” I said, trying once again—unsuccessfully—to keep from giggling. “You botched the whole scene on purpose.”

“I was going for a heartfelt performance.”

“If that was a heartfelt performance for you, I’d hate to see you when you get riled up and lose control.”

The words were supposed to be dry and aloof, but they didn’t quite work. Even as I said them, I had very wrong thoughts about how he might lose control.

He evidently had the same wrong thoughts because his expression flared with sexual heat that left me breathless.

But he turned away almost immediately, as I should have expected, and I decided I might as well go to bed because nothing more exciting was likely to happen tonight.

***

Four hours later, I woke with a start from a deep sleep when I heard an alarm blaring.

I had no idea what it was as I sat up straight in bed, my heartbeat and my breath both caught in my throat.

I managed to process that I was in a hotel suite, but I had no idea what the loud, grating sound might be. I even reached for the clock next to the bed, but hitting it with my hand did nothing to stop the sound.

Then Cole burst into the bedroom, dressed in a pair of jeans and no shirt.

“What is it?” I asked, barely able to speak over the lump of fear in my throat.

“Fire alarm. I called and it’s not a planned drill, so we need to go down.”

“Is there a fire?”

“I don’t know. It could just be something burning or a short in the electrical, but we can’t risk it. Get up.”

He looked urgent, and it made me even more nervous.

I certainly didn’t want to burn to death in a hotel fire, but the threat of fire seemed pretty distant. Under normal circumstances, I’d exit by the emergency stairs without a second thought.

But these weren’t normal circumstances. What if the stalker had found me? What if the stalker was responsible for the fire alarm? What if this was some elaborate ruse to get to me?

I would have thought the fears were silly, but I could see similar thoughts in Cole’s tense expression.

I grabbed for a hoodie and slipped on shoes as he hurried me out of the bedroom since I was wearing nothing but a short, sleeveless nightgown.

If nothing else, I didn’t want a picture of me in my lingerie to show up in the gossip columns tomorrow morning.

There were two men waiting in the hall when we left the suite, and I realized they must be hotel security. They walked down with us to the emergency stairs from this floor, which were separated from the main emergency stairs that most of the hotel guests used.

The hotel was designed to house very important clientele. I was pretty far down on the list, but I must be among the most important staying tonight.

Cole took my hand as we walked quickly down the stairs. It was probably just to make sure I didn’t dawdle, but it felt protective, almost intimate.

We were on the twenty-eighth floor, so it was a long journey down, with the alarms blaring the whole time.

When we got down and burst out of the building into the night, I shrunk back as I realized we weren’t far from the crowd of other hotel guests. But before I could feel vulnerable, a car drove up directly in front of us, and Cole pushed me into the back seat.

It was very nicely done, and we were driving away from the hotel before anything could happen—even before someone could recognize me and click my picture.

Cole got on the phone immediately, trying to figure out what was happening. We drove around for a while until it became clear the fire alarm was caused by a small fire in the kitchen that had generated enough smoke to set off the alarms throughout the hotel.

So it was just a fluke, I realized. Unfortunate but just one of those things.

Not about me at all.

I was relieved. Of course I was relieved. But I also felt weird and shaky and uncertain since it had all happened so fast, and I was having trouble keeping up.

We waited about thirty minutes after the firefighters gave the all clear, and the other guests were allowed to return to their rooms before we returned ourselves. It was after two in the morning, and the hotel was dead quiet.

We took the private elevator up to my floor, and I went right to my bedroom.

Cole was on the phone again, so I pulled the covers up over me and tried to calm down.

I wasn’t in danger. Everything was fine. I was as safe as I was going to be.

I just couldn’t stop trembling.

A few minutes later, he walked into the bedroom without knocking, and I sat up abruptly in bed, surprised by his appearance but kind of glad to see him.

He looked strong and solid and safe, and I liked having him near me.

I had no idea when that had happened.

“Sorry,” he muttered, pausing. “I didn’t realize you’d already be in bed.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Everything’s fine. None of this had anything to do with you.” He walked over closer to the bed, studying my face. The lights were off in the room, but light streamed in from the living area.

“Good.”

“Are you okay?” he asked, standing right next to the bed.

“Yeah.” I didn’t feel okay. I felt like my heart was going to explode in my chest.

He reached out to cup my face. “You don’t look okay. You’re shaking.”

“I’m fine. I don’t know why I can’t stop trembling.” I hugged myself. “It just all happened so fast. I was… I was…”

“Scared.”

“Yeah. I thought it might be…” I trailed off, not wanting to say the words.

“Me too.” He sat down on the edge of the bed, stroking his hand back into my hair. “But it’s okay now. It wasn’t what we thought.”

“Good.” His hand felt good against my cheek, against my hair, and I tried to lean into it. “Thank you, by the way. You handled it all really… really…”

“Really what?” His voice was strangely hushed.

“Really well.”

“Good.” His eyes were devouring my face. “So do you think you can stop trembling now?”

“I’m trying.” I really was, but if anything, I was trembling more now than I’d been before—not just from fear anymore, but from rising excitement.

His eyes continued to scan my face and it wasn’t enough. I wanted—needed—his touch.

Swallowing hard, I leaned in a little closer and gently licked my lips. I met his gaze. “I…I might need something to help me…relax.”

 He leaned toward me until his mouth was just a breath away from mine. “What would help?”

I knew exactly what would help, and I wanted it so much I was reaching toward him. “You know what would help. Stop being so stubborn.”

“Shit, princess,” he muttered, his expression blazing hot for just a second before he took my head in both his hands to kiss me.

I moaned softly in pleasure as his lips started to move against mine. They were gentle for just a moment before they became hungry and seeking. I opened to his urgency and wound my arms around his neck, pressing my breasts against his chest, which was still bare. He’d never taken the time to put a shirt on.

His arm moved around my body, tightening almost painfully as he became more passionate. My own lips and body were eager—almost embarrassingly so—but I couldn’t even care. I couldn’t remember ever wanting anyone so much.

The kiss deepened until my nipples had tightened and arousal pulsed between my legs. I could feel he was turned on too, and I tried to rub myself against him but was frustrated by our awkward position.

I was about to make things easier by crawling into his lap when he suddenly broke the kiss.

It was almost painful to be completely drowning in the embrace and then suddenly have it torn away from me. He jerked to his feet, flushed, aroused, and tenser than I’d ever seen him.

I had no idea what he would say as he stared down at me, but I was sure I didn’t want to hear it.