Elsie

The cheese on the remaining pizzas congealed long ago. We’ve been sitting here for hours, talking about anything and everything. We haven’t spoken again about the media storm. At some point Xander changed chairs and is now sitting beside me. I shuffled my chair around to face him better and though we aren’t touching, our chairs are close and a charge regularly seems to jump between our bodies.

Xander got me to tell him all about working here, down to the nitty gritty details and then got me to tell him all about my boring, normal parents and my brother and about growing up in Trenton. My father is a bookkeeper and my mother is a kindergarten teacher. My brother is exactly two years older than me and became a high school math teacher. It’s all very bland but Xander seemed interested so I kept talking. Basically, I told him everything about me, except my never-ending medical tests because who wants to hear about that?

I glance at my watch, it’s after midnight. The air has a slight chill and I’m grateful for my blazer, but my legs are cold. Not that a bit of cold could make me want to leave this roof right now. I would quite happily sit here for another day, just talking to Xander. Everything between us is easy and natural. The realization of that gives me the courage to ask what I’ve been dying to know.

“So, are you ever going to tell me about this whole media thing?” I ask, my eyes probing his.

Xander takes a deep breath and exhales sharply. “I will tell you everything. I don’t know what it is about you but I’m going to take a risk and trust you.”

I can’t contain the smile that springs across my face at his words. It’s because I feel the same way about him, so the feeling is mutual. He is no longer Xander Whitman, world’s sexiest man, he’s simply a man. Albeit a damn sexy one.

“Well, I trusted you with my life story,” I say.

Xander shifts forward in his chair and our knees mesh together. He leans forward, cups the back of my head and brushes his lips over my cheek, unleashing a million butterflies in my chest. Placing his lips at my ear, in a low voice he says, “You’re not telling me everything. You’re holding back, I can tell.”

The truth of his words freezes me. I’m asking him to share everything, but I haven’t shared everything with him. I reason with myself that my issues don’t concern him and wouldn’t interest him whereas his scandal definitely has an impact on the next few hours of my life. Especially if he’s going to touch me like this.

As suddenly as he’d cupped my head, he straightens and sits back in his chair. I look at him, but he simply shrugs with a half smile.

“So, are you still going to tell me?” The words escape my lips before I can stop them.

He takes my hand in his and says, “Absolutely. This is what you need to know — the whole thing is bullshit. I’ve never been in a relationship with Luna. We are like brother and sister since our families are so close and we are both only children. I’ve known her since I was a baby. Well, we made up the relationship for the sake of Lunatics. I’ve never kissed her like this.”

He leans forward and strokes the back of his fingers down my cheek. I forget to breathe. I close my eyes and his lips are on mine, overwhelming me. Everything stops. My heart. The traffic below. I am focused on Xander, the only person alive. Our kiss deepens and our tongues twirl and entwine in a slow, leisurely way that reflects our evening. As he kisses me, my body remembers to breathe and my core flames with want.

Xander pulls away, his eyes bore into mine and he says, “See, Luna and I have never done that.”

I open and close my eyes slowly. “Not… not in any of your weird sex games?” I ask quietly.

“There weren’t any. Not with her, anyway.”

“So, is there any truth to the stories?” I can’t believe I’m saying these things right after he kissed me like that. Right now all I want is his lips back on mine.

He presses his forehead against mine and says, “I’m not going to pretend I’m some saint, but there is nothing to her stories, especially the pegging bullshit. In fact, I’m making her retract it.”

“But why is she saying these things?” My shoulders raise and my head shakes as I ask the question.

“Same reason we made up the relationship in the first place — her ratings.”

“So that’s all it is? Getting better ratings?”

Would you really create and live an entire fake life for the sake of TV ratings? Especially if you don’t need the money. It’s a strange conversation to have with our heads so close together but I have to know and understand, especially if I’m going to let him kiss me like that again.

All pretense of this being the good assistant manager entertaining a VIP guest went out the window long ago. This is all about me and him. I’d never had a one-night stand, even with my vow of having more fun, and I might be the most naïve person on the planet, but right now I swear there’s something more between us.

“That’s all it is, and tomorrow you will see Luna come out in the media and retract everything.”

“How can you be so sure she’s going to do that?”

“Because I threatened to leave the show if she doesn’t.”

My shoulders slump and I say, “Does that mean you’re still going to be her boyfriend?” Alarm bells ring in the back of my head. He’s still going to publicly be her boyfriend, or is he simply her boyfriend? My ex was a cheater, and cheaters are great liars.

“Only because she’s making me or else she won’t do the retraction and I’ll have the stupid pegging story out about me, along with all the other BS.”

“Why should I believe you?”

“Because, you are the only person I’ve ever confessed the truth about my relationship with Luna. I’m not kidding when I say no one else knows aside from our parents.”

“But why? Why tell me?”

“I don’t know, you make me want to be myself,” Xander’s voice drops and he looks away, his neck and jaw taut. Liars don’t act like that, they look you in the eye and challenge you not to believe them.

On reflex I rest my hand on his thigh and say, “This situation really seems to be bothering you.”

“Is it that obvious?”

“I’m glad you told me all of this. It’s always good to say things out loud and get them off your chest.”

Xander leans forward and crushes his lips against mine. There is no slowness like our earlier kiss, only raw passion. Hooking his arms under mine, he urges me up and we stand, our bodies pressed against each other. His arms are wrapped around my body, his erection impossible to ignore. The butterflies have turned to tingles and reach from my toes to the top of my head.

We kiss until it seems like we’ve sucked all the oxygen from the sky. I don’t think I’ve ever kissed anyone for so long, in fact I know I haven’t, but if we stopped right now it would be too soon. We carry on kissing, our bodies moving and pressing against each other’s in a sensual dance. My body wants more, I can’t help it. I lose control over myself around him.

Finally, he pulls his mouth from mine and says, “Did you feel that? That’s why I told you.”

“I most definitely felt that.”

“I knew it wasn’t just me,” Xander says and kisses me once more.

The intensity of the kiss increases and I am jelly in his arms. I also believe he’s telling the truth about Luna. There’s no doubt in my mind.

I break the kiss and whisper, “I’ve never had a one-night stand before,” And I don’t want to have one, but I really don’t want him to stop either.

“Who said this was a one-night stand?”