Page 55

Eighteen

The sun peekedthrough the trees and glared down on Micah’s script, making it impossible to continue reading. He tossed it into the grass beside him and glanced around, taking in the scenery. It was beautiful. One day he’d maybe buy a cabin out here in the Rockies. Not anywhere as crowded as the star-populated Aspen, but in a quiet place like this Golden recreation area, not too far from Denver.

Of course, half the reason he was fond of Colorado had to do with the girl lying on her stomach next to him. Would he still be attracted to these mountains if Maddie wasn’t with him? Probably not so intensely.

He sprawled out on the blanket and propped his head up with one hand bent at the elbow to watch her struggle with the light, adjusting the top of her laptop down to see better. It was an unusual blanket to use for a picnic, a beige hotel standard they’d found in his closet, but it did the job. The sandwiches Maddie had picked up for them at a local deli had been devoured earlier and the remnants were gathered at his feet in a trash bag, also swiped from his room. Now, he was ready for dessert.

As if sensing his hungry stare, Maddie looked up from editing on her computer. “What are you thinking?” she asked.

“That it’s our one week sexiversary.”

She chuckled as she shut the lid of her laptop and pushed it to the edge of the blanket. Then she also propped her head in her palm to stare at him face to face. “One week, huh?” She furrowed her brow. “What do you get someone for that? Paper? China?”

“Condoms.” He wished he had one now, knew his wallet was empty. “We’re out at the hotel. We need to grab some from my trailer.”

She traced the line of his nose with her finger and tapped it once when she reached the tip. “You know, I am on birth control.”

Condomless sex. His cock pressed tight against the zipper of his jeans at the thought. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had unprotected sex. He knew Maddie well enough to know she was clean. He was too, had regular check-ups for STDs, but her trust astonished him, especially since he had a reputation.

It also astonished him that he wasn’t horrified at the idea like he could have been. It suggested a step forward in their relationship. Where was he going with Maddie? Why did it feel so nice? He hadn’t forgotten the reasons that relationships in show biz didn’t work, but he was willing to admit that maybe he’d been too black and white about the whole thing. Maybe there were instances where his career wouldn’t get in the way of a romance.

Maybe.

At least for the duration of the shoot.

She searched his eyes, seemingly trying to read his silence. “What?”

He shrugged. “I haven’t had sex without a condom in years. I’m hard just thinking aboutit.”

“No you aren’t.” She reached her loose hand down to his crotch. Her eyes lit up. “Oh. You are.” She scooted herself closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him in for a lingeringkiss.

When she leaned away minutes later, her face was flushed and her eyes dilated. “Happy sexiversary. I can’t believe I ran from you… I wasted so muchtime.”

He smoothed the hair behind her ear. “I liked the chase.” Then he remembered the days he’d spent alone and wishing for her. “Well, parts ofit.”

And he’d needed time. If she’d slept with him the day he’d made his first move, they’d be done with by now. But she’d pushed him for something more and here they were with a week under theirbelt.

“Parts of it were really nice.” She rubbed her lips together as if remembering something particularly juicy. “I’m going to have to thank Adam again for begging me to come outhere.”

He wanted to take her mouth again, but an old question niggled at him. “Why didn’t you do the show from the beginning? You said something about personal issues on the ride from the airport. At first, I thought those issues might beme.”

“Like I hadn’t gotten over our fleeting night from the past? Narcissistic as always,” she teased. “I turned the movie down because of Beaumont. I didn’t know you were on this film until I saw you at the airport.”

“All these years we could have ended up working together. I have to admit, if it had happened at a different time or in any other way, I might not have been ready for this.” He pulled at her earlobe, noticing she didn’t have any earrings in. There was a pair sitting on the counter in the bathroom of his hotel—their hotel, really. She’d spent every night there since they’d first slept together. He should invite her to bring all her stuff over. He bet she had more earrings back at her own hotel.

Sharing space. The concept warmed him. And terrified him. Mostly warmed.

“Would it have been Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am?” She pulled his hand from her lobe and sucked on the pad of his index finger, causing his cock to jump. “Could you really have resisted me after you’d gotten in my pantsonce?”

“I would have pretended that I could. And I might have been quite an asshole in the process.”

“Then I’m very glad it happened likethis.”

He traced the outline of her mouth, knowing he would take her soon. Still, he had time. They had the whole day off, and he’d already had her once that morning. With their exhausting workdays and their insatiable longing to fuck like bunnies, what they didn’t get much of a chance to do was talk. He wanted to know her, all of her, and he was taking the opportunity now while he had it. “So Beaumont? You’ve worked with him before?”

She stiffened. “I did. Years ago. It was a fiasco.” She chuckled to herself at some private joke. “A Beaumont fiasco.”

He wrinkled his forehead. “Tellme.”