“What do we think, Ethan?” Sally asked, leading Lauren, wearing a sundress, back into the room. “I’m thinking if we cinch it right here”—Sally pulled the fabric a little more to reveal the lines of Lauren’s waist—“we’ll eliminate the droop we saw earlier.”
“Looks great,” Ethan said. “Are we set otherwise?”
Sally nodded. “After this last alteration, we should be prepared for full dress runs.”
Ethan tossed a fist in the air, likely relieved to have one more thing squared away. Carly shook her head. She never would have imagined how many moving parts went into a play. She had severely undervalued the experience. Never again. In fact, she could imagine herself doing more theater in the future. How crazy was that?
As Lauren slipped away with Sally, Carly followed her to her dressing room and waited outside for her to change. When the door opened once again, she pushed off the wall and stuck her head around the door. “Can I come in?”
“You can.” Lauren looked around. “Anyone can. I’ve spent countless hours chatting with actresses in this room, and I don’t know that I’ll ever wrap my head around the fact that it’s mine. I’m acting, Carly. Weird.”
“All of this is. In the best way.” She fell back onto Lauren’s couch. “Do you know what Ethan just said?”
“What?”
“That our sexual tension is now off the charts.”
Lauren didn’t hesitate. “He’s not a wizard. I could not agree more. I’m now really regretting”—she glanced at the open door and closed it—“my decision at my place, because now I just have to stare at you and deal with the effects. And there are effects.” She exhaled slowly.
“Door is closed. You can kiss me, you know.” Carly batted her eyelashes innocently. She was aware that the top two buttons of her blouse were undone. She had a feeling the view wasn’t lost on Lauren. At least, she hoped it wasn’t.
Lauren’s interest seemed piqued. “At work?” A mischievous smile crept onto her face. “You think…we could?”
“You said it yourself. It’s your dressing room, right? I feel like a person should be allowed to do whatever they choose behind the closed doors of their private space.”
Lauren’s eyes darkened, and right on cue, her gaze dipped from Carly’s eyes, to her lips, and lower. The top two buttons were working. “Come here,” she said and crooked her finger.
Carly closed her eyes at the tingling sensation that quiet command inspired, but she did as she was asked. She moved into Lauren’s space and allowed her to slip her hands under Carly’s blouse to her waist. Lauren didn’t say anything before she kissed Carly and the only sound in the room was the quiet gasp of release. Carly was fairly confident it had come from her, as everything in her body responded to Lauren now. They’d barely gotten past second base, but Lauren controlled so much of what Carly’s body experienced throughout their workday. With just the right look or toss of her hair, Carly was deep-swallowing and forcing herself to focus. She’d never had that happen with someone before.
“You taste good,” Lauren said between kisses. She ran her tongue along Carly’s lower lip, which had Carly turned the hell on. Lauren was taller than her today, with Carly not in heels, and that had her going up on her toes for better access to Lauren’s lips, which, damn, she could not get enough of. She slid her hands around Lauren’s neck and deepened that kiss, exploring with her tongue and pressing her body as closely to Lauren’s as possible. The warmth between them had her breathing a little ragged, and her panties a little wet.
Things were moving very quickly. Hands had destinations. Hers landed on Lauren’s chest, over her shirt. Having Lauren’s breasts in her hands took Carly to another planet of arousal. Entirely new territory. She wanted to lick and suck and lavish them with attention. She imagined what they looked like, longed to see for herself. She pushed against them, felt the weight of them in her hands.
“We’re about to take care of that tension,” Lauren said, her head thrown back as Carly massaged her breasts. “Carly,” she whispered, desperation lacing her tone.
“Is that bad?”
“Not for me. God.” She bit her bottom lip.
“You’re incredibly sexy. Do you know that?” Carly asked. Her legs were shaking. That’s how badly she wanted to touch this woman, to be touched in return. If Lauren would just touch her, she’d ride herself to release. “Can you imagine if we waited until opening? My God.” She kissed Lauren again, long and good.
“Should we?” Lauren asked. She cupped Carly’s ass and pulled her hips closer. “No.”
“No,” Carly said matter-of factly. Her intellect was attempting to intrude upon this moment. “Maybe,” she said, still understanding how powerful their chemistry onstage currently was. “No,” she said decidedly.
“No. But maybe?” Lauren countered.
She loved the sound of Lauren’s ragged, hot-and-bothered breathing. “Because I want to take these boots off you and then these adorably cute jeans, and then slide your underwear down your legs until you’re mine to take.”
Lauren rolled her hips in response to the potent words. “Okay, maybe no waiting.”
A loud knock sounded behind them. They froze midkiss. Carly pulled her mouth back and they listened. Another loud knock.
“Yes?” Lauren called, though her voice didn’t sound like it generally did. Carly smothered a proud smile.
“Lala?” Trip said. “I don’t know if you’re naked or what, but we’re going for pizza tonight at Crazy Crust. You in? Listen, the crust is crazy. It’s hard to say no.”
“Yeah, um, sure,” Lauren said, then winced, probably realizing she now had to go out for pizza.
“Carly, too. But I can’t find her. Gee, I wonder where she could be.”
“I think she ran to her car,” Lauren fibbed, as she ran her fingernails up and down Carly’s back. “I’ll let her know, though.”
“Cool. See you in five for notes onstage with Ethan? Tell Carly when she gets back from her car.”
“We’ll—I’ll be there.”
“Thanks, boss.”
“I’m not your boss right now,” she called back.
“You’re always my boss.”
Carly heard Trip’s footsteps retreating and grinned. “I think you just told a lie. Lauren Prescott has a dark side? This is getting good.”
“I’m an awful liar,” Lauren said with a tiny wince. “I should work on it.”
“No, you shouldn’t. I like you the way you are.” Carly held her tighter. “Please remain an awful liar, and always stay a little bit uptight, and don’t you dare lose your cute little organizational skills that make my stomach tighten.”
“You think my color-coded sticky notes are cute?”
“And hot. Those sticky notes get me going. It’s embarrassing to admit that, but entirely true.”
Lauren grinned and pointed at Carly. “Use that onstage. In fact, we could use all of this onstage.”
Carly closed her eyes and dropped her head back like a child on the verge of tantrum. “You’re thinking we should wait until we’re through opening, aren’t you. Just say it.”
Lauren lifted a shoulder. “Well, if Ethan thinks our chemistry is suddenly exponential, it’s something to consider. At least through the reviews. Then, maybe…we reward ourselves, but hang on to that muscle memory of what it felt like. To…want.”
“And I do. Desperately.” Carly headed back to the couch, needing some distance between herself and Lauren if she wanted any hope of clarity on the topic. “I feel like I’m in high school all over again, trying to be good, when I just want to be really bad. Behind the gym. With you.”
Lauren mock-gasped. “There was a time when you tried to be good?”
Carly threw a pillow at Lauren who laughed and caught it. “I’m not a total screwup, you know.”
“Well, you are meeting people behind the gym.” Carly lobbed another pillow, this time smacking Lauren on the shoulder. “But you do have a great right arm.
”
Carly stood. “Me, my arm, and my newfound teenage abstinence are heading to our notes session. Coming?”
“Apparently not until we open,” Lauren said with a sly grin.
Carly shook her head and paused. The comment alone had her turned the hell on. “Let’s get out of here before that whole plan flies quickly out the window.”
“Right behind you. Just need to grab my sticky notes.”
Carly blinked. “You’re going to be the death of me.”
“Maybe it won’t be the worst way to die,” Lauren said with a wink.
Carly didn’t know how she’d ended up here. One minute she was living in the lap of luxury with fans and friends fawning all over her. The next, she was in freezing Minneapolis, of all places, in a historic old theater with a woman who now held the strings to her mind, heart, and body.
She wasn’t sure she ever wanted it to end.
* * *
“Where will we pick up our tickets? I want to make sure I leave plenty of time in case there’s any mix-up, and you know how your dad always putters when I’m trying to get somewhere.”
“I know,” Lauren said.
“That man is a putterer, and it’s not going to ruin my chance to see my baby on her big night. You’ll need to remind me where the bathrooms are, so I can beat everyone there during intermission.”
Lauren smiled. She had her mom on speakerphone in her dressing room as she prepped for their second-to-last rehearsal. “The tickets are at the box office, and there will be no mix-up. Dad is definitely a putterer, but I have a feeling you’re going to be able to light a fire under him. The restrooms are clearly marked, but I’ll send directions.”
“Good. That will help. How’s the show going, Boop? I just can’t believe this has all happened. I put it on Facebook. Did you see? I had sixty-seven of those like things, and also some hearts, and your uncle Gregory hit share on what I said, and now other people can see it who are friends with him.”
“Wow.”
“I was real happy you could share it. I really like that Facebook.”
“Social media is a wondrous thing. It’s going well, I think.”
“You think?”
Lauren sighed. “I second-guess everything I’m doing and sometimes feel like a total fraud working alongside true professionals, but I haven’t been fired yet, so I keep showing up.”
Her mother made a tsking noise. “You’re selling yourself short. You always do that, Ms. Type A. You’re talented, kind, gorgeous, and my daughter. I just can’t wait to see you shine. Uncle Frank is going to look down on this from Heaven with a smile.”
“Thanks, Mama,” Lauren said. “Knock my little brother in the head for me.”
“How about I just ruffle his hair a little next time he stops by for spaghetti and garlic bread? Did you know he’s up for junior partner at the firm?”
“I didn’t. I need to call him.”
“When you have a spare minute, you will. Right now, I’m just vibrating that the tiny being that lived in my tummy is going to perform in front of thousands. My Boop. Do you hear me? Vibrating. You can probably tell through the fancy phones they have now.”
“Mom!” she said with a laugh, though it was every bit as surreal to her, too. “We can vibrate together. I’ll see you soon, and don’t worry for a second about the tickets. I’ve taken care of everything.”
They said their good-byes, and Lauren clicked off the call and sighed. She felt a little better after speaking with her mother, but nerves were creeping in as opening night approached. There was a knock on her dressing room door, and a moment later, Carly peeked her head around.
“May I enter?”
“You may.”
“You were so on today,” Carly said, sitting on the arm of the couch.
“Do you really think so?” Lauren’s stomach tightened in that uncomfortable way it had been all week.
“I know so.” Carly wore jeans, a purple ribbed top with two buttons undone, and brown heeled boots. The beautiful color was not lost on Lauren who spent just as much time thinking about Carly these days as she did the play. She always looked forward to their quiet times alone. She’d grown so used to her presence. She tried to imagine her life before Carly. It felt so long ago.
“Here’s the thing,” Carly said. “You’re so precise. I can always count on you to be a reliable scene partner, but you always bring the emotion right along with it.” A small pause. “I’m flipping out a little bit.”
Lauren took in the compliment but moved right past it to Carly’s confession. “What do you have to flip out about? You’re a professional actress. This is what you live for.”
Carly’s eyes were wider than usual, and she chewed on the inside of her lip nervously. Her fists were balled, and Carly wasn’t someone who balled her fists. Ever. “No. Not at all. No. This isn’t what I do. I don’t have thousands of people watch me work. Film sets are filled with production crew, yeah, but they’re not there to see me perform. They didn’t pay money. This is wildly different.” She slid off the arm of the couch onto a cushion, in defeat.
It made sense. Carly wasn’t used to having eyeballs staring at her. “That part doesn’t matter. You’re just going to go out there and do the same show we just finished running today.” Lauren knelt in front of her and rested her hands on Carly’s knees. “You’re going to get angry with me, and then confide in me, and we’re going to laugh together, and kiss, and then get ripped dramatically apart so we can find our way back once again in a grocery store, of all places. It’ll be grand.”
“But the audience will be there,” Carly said, as if she was informing Lauren of something she didn’t seem to realize.
“That part is true. They might also be noisy. Gum wrappers, cell phones, and the occasional vocal participant are all things I’ve gotten used to, working here. The elderly crowd have some opinions.” She shrugged and tried to send Carly a reassuring smile. “Just part of what makes live theater unique. I think you might actually like it.”
Something unexpected happened. Instead of smiling back, Carly’s eyes brimmed with tears. “Sorry,” she said, trying to find her voice that seemed strangled and not entirely available. She paused to wait for it to return, and Lauren’s heart squeezed. She slid her hands up to the outsides of Carly’s thighs, trying to bring them closer. Her instinct was to shelter Carly in any way she could, even physically.
“Hey, look at me.”
Carly did, though her bottom lip quivered.
“I’m right here. It’s just us. You don’t have anything to apologize for.” Lauren had talked actresses down a million and nine times, but not a single one of those conversations had affected her as potently as this one was. She had a lump in her own damn throat.
“It’s just”—Carly wiped her eyes—“there’s always been this little part of me that’s wondered if my success in film was because of how I look, you know? That my talent mattered less when they could send a makeup artist onto set to touch you up every five minutes, and give you fifteen takes to make a moment work. Here…” She shook her head and sighed. “It’s so raw. There’s no smoke and mirrors. It’s going to be me just standing there, acting, sweating, and crying, and I’m pretty sure that’s not going to be enough.”
Lauren gathered Carly’s hands in hers. “I don’t know who in the world has gotten in your head and made you think that you’re not talented outright, but let me be the one to set you straight. Can I be brutally honest?”
Carly laughed. “I feel like you’re always honest. But yes, let’s toss in brutal, for God’s sake.”
“I wasn’t thrilled when I heard they’d cast you in this show.” Carly nodded, taking it in. “I’d read that you were unreliable, into partying, and held up production with your antics.”
“Most of that was true,” Carly admitted. “Not all. But most.”
Lauren wasn’t finished. “Never once, however, did I doubt your talent or ability to completely master this role in e
very sense. Not for one second.”
Carly blinked. “Really?” She touched Lauren’s cheek. “Come on. That can’t be true.”
“Except it is. I’ve seen many of your movies and have always admired your work.” She inclined her head from side to side. “I mean, if you think about it, the reason they put up with you in Hollywood for so long is because you’re good. Otherwise? You’d have been blacklisted years back.”
Carly laughed, and that felt like progress. “I never looked at it like that.”
Lauren straightened. “That’s me. Voice of reason.”
“Isn’t that the damn truth?” Carly said. “Come here, please. Let’s see if some of that reason will rub off.” She leaned in, her gaze dipping to Lauren’s lips. Lauren, as if pulled by that ever-present magnet, met her halfway. “Hi,” Carly whispered, just before kissing her softly. Lauren drank in every sensation that kiss brought with it. She’d learned to revel in each shiver, flutter, and hit of pleasure that came her way from being near Carly. If those things worried or scared her before, she’d now embraced the power that Carly had over her body. Touching her only intensified the effect times ten. Lauren joined Carly on the couch, first sitting alongside her as they kissed like lust-starved teenagers, then welcoming Carly into her lap as she straddled Lauren and cradled her face as their mouths battled and explored. With her hands on Carly’s ass, she wanted nothing more than her out of those pants. She imagined Carly naked in the same position and had to pause their kissing to ensure she received enough oxygen for basic survival.
Carly waited while she took several necessary breaths. There was the air, slowly returning. “You okay?” Carly asked.
Lauren nodded. “Sometimes it feels like we combust.”
“So I’m not the only one, then?”
“I don’t know if you experience what I do, but I can tell you it’s more than a little intense.”
Carly nodded and traced the line of Lauren’s collarbone. “You know something else?”
“Tell me.”
Carly shook her head but held her gaze on the progress her finger made, not meeting Lauren’s eyes. “I really like you. It’s not just the attraction. It’s…everything.”
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