Shockingly Sensual

by Lori Wilde

  They were talking about her? Callie peeked over at the women. They appeared to be in their late teens or early twenties, Callie’s targeted demographic.

  “Callie Ryder!” exclaimed the women in unison and rushed her.

  The next thing she knew, she was surrounded not just by the two women but also by their entire group, a cheerful gaggle of sorority sisters from Tulane on their way to tour Hollywood.

  “We just love your show,” said one woman admiringly.

  “Can you give me some advice about my boyfriend?” asked a third.

  “What method of birth control do you think works best?”

  “What does it really mean when a guy sleeps with you on the first date and then never calls?”

  They crowded in on her. Callie felt besieged. In New York she occasionally ran across an avid fan, but she’d never experienced anything like this on the streets of Manhattan. A claustrophobic sensation squeezed her chest and she wanted to scream at them to back off so she could breathe.

  This is what you always wanted, remember? To spread the word to young women everywhere. Sex is fun. Dive right in and make no excuses for enjoying yourself.

  Well, apparently they were getting the message loud and clear. Problem was, Callie hadn’t expected this kind of reaction. She gulped and took a step back. The young women went with her. She tried to take another step back and trod on someone’s toe.

  “Oh, oh, I’m so sorry.” Callie put out a hand to cup the woman’s elbow.

  “Please don’t apologize.” The young woman giggled. “Now I can tell everyone the Midnight Ryder scuffed my Jimmy Choos.”

  “Please, step on my foot, too,” someone else begged.

  Okay, this was officially frightening. Callie was starting to regret running away from Luke. Come on, you’re the Midnight Ryder. Shake it off. Suck it up. You’re tough and bold and brave and nothing gets to you.

  “Um…I…have to…” she said, but the twenty or thirty coeds grouped around her never let her get a word in edgewise. Just when Callie thought she was going to have to throw back her head and scream in order to get their attention, a deep masculine voice broke through the chick chatter.

  “Excuse me, ladies,” Luke said.

  Immediately, the tittering women parted. He held out an arm to Callie and gratefully, she grasped it.

  “You ready to go, sweetheart?” he asked rather possessively as if he were her boyfriend.

  What was that all about? And why did she get this soft swoony sensation deep in the pit of her stomach at the thought of having him as her boyfriend? She didn’t even do boyfriends.

  Her heart was knocking and her breathing was shallow. She didn’t know if her unexpected emotions sprang from what had just happened with her fans or from Luke’s knight-in-shining-armor act or a little bit of both.

  “Thank you for rescuing me,” she said, once they were back in the terminal, out of earshot of the young women.

  Luke interrupted her before she went any further. “Save it.”

  She was startled by the fury in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

  “You have to ask?”

  “You’re mad because I ditched you?”

  His scowl said it all. “I only helped you out because you are under my protection and I have a duty to you. But no more. It ends here. I can’t work for a woman who does not accept my authority. You have nothing but blatant disregard for me and what I do.”

  She hadn’t expected him to get so angry. Nor had she expected to be so turned on by his anger. His face looked volcanic, as if ready to spew molten lava, and all she could think about was how much she wished he would just kiss her. She opened her mouth to argue, to defend her actions, but Luke held up his palm for silence.

  “Because of your irresponsible behavior, I can’t trust you. Nor can I assure your safety. I won’t put my reputation at risk. I will return your fee. You’ll have to find someone else to supply your security needs. Because as of this moment, I quit.”

  “Luke…I…I…” she stammered.

  But he’d already turned and stalked away, headed for the ticket counter. He was going home? Right now? But this was a good thing. It was what she wanted. Wasn’t it? Why then did she feel like such an ass?

  Luke stopped abruptly, turned around and marched toward her. He was coming back!

  “Yes?” she whispered when he stood directly in front of her.

  “Here’s your damned condoms. Enjoy them in good health.”

  She clasped the brown paper bag he’d thrust into her hands and stared after Luke’s retreating back, too surprised to know how she felt.

  “Callie!”

  Molly Anne’s voice had her swinging around to find her business manager coming toward her with what appeared to be a television reporter and a camera crew following a few paces behind.

  What the hell?

  “Where did you go?” Molly Anne asked. “We’ve been waiting for you in baggage claim for over twenty minutes.”

  “We?”

  Molly Anne stepped close and murmured under her breath so the reporter couldn’t hear. “I had an interview set up for you to promote the book tour.”

  “It would have been nice if you had clued me in,” Callie said.

  “They wanted to catch you on the move. As a surprise.”

  “Ambush is more like it.”

  “You’re going to be a superstar. It’s time you started acting like one.”

  “Maybe I don’t want to be a superstar.”

  Molly Anne looked taken aback. “Don’t say that. Of course you want to be a superstar. It’s what we’ve been working toward for ten years.”

  “Yeah, well, I was practically attacked by a roving gang of women and it was scary. And you know what? I’m getting tired of this shock jock persona. I’m just pretending. It’s not the real me.”

  “Oh please, everyone is pretending to be something they’re not. It’s the way the world works,” Molly Anne whispered and dragged her over to meet the reporter.

  “Callie meet Brooke Burnett from Celebrity Insider. Brooke, this is Callie Ryder, the hippest sex guru ever to hit the airwaves.”

  Callie mentally groaned. Celebrity Insider had a reputation for stirring up both controversy and idle gossip. What had Molly Anne been thinking when lining up this particular entertainment show for an interview? But she already knew the answer. In Molly Anne’s opinion any publicity was good publicity. Her friend lived and died by that motto. And Callie had to admit that without Molly Anne’s gift for public relations she would probably still be behind the mike in that dinky station in their hometown.

  This your dream job, this is what you’ve always wanted, why are you acting so weird about the attention? Trust Molly Anne. She’s rarely steered you wrong.

  “Hello, Callie,” the perky reporter greeted. “We won’t take up much of your time. We know you’re a busy woman. We have just a few questions. Mostly about your book tour.”

  Callie forced a smile. “Sure, Brooke. I’m flattered to be interviewed by the Celebrity Insider.”

  The camera crew set up and started filming. Brooke did a short intro about catching up with rising star, Manhattan shock jock Callie Ryder, at LAX just as she was beginning the first leg of her whirlwind West Coast book tour in Los Angeles. A crowd was gathering but Callie was barely cognizant of passersby. Mostly, she was aware of the hard knot of anxiety eating at her stomach.

  On the radio she was cool, calm, slick and urbane. When she slipped into her on-air persona, the real Callie became anonymous as she lost herself in the part. But here, in the airport, in person, on camera, on television, well it was different.

  She’d had no time to brace herself. No warning. No warm-up. No catching her breath. She shot Molly Anne an I’m-going-to-get-even-with-you-for-this-one look.

  “So tell us, Callie,” Brooke said, thrusting the microphone under her nose. “If you’re such a great sexpert, how come you’re twenty-eight years old and you’ve never been in a comm
itted relationship? Why should any young woman looking for love take advice from you?”

  “Uh…I…” Callie blinked, blindsided by the question. She’d never claimed to have the secret to a long-term relationship. Her message for women was about enjoying your sexuality, not how to get married and set up housekeeping. She was just about to say as much, when a woman in the crowd spoke up.

  “Hey, Brooke, do your research before you waylay people.”

  “Pardon me?” It was Brooke’s turn to look blindsided.

  “Callie’s in a committed relationship right this very minute,” another voice chimed in. “We met her fella and he’s one wicked hottie. You can tell from the way they look at each other that they’re madly in love.”

  Huh? Callie turned around to see the Tulane sorority sisters sticking up for her.

  Great. Terrific. With fans like these two, who needed detractors?

  Brooke motioned for the camera crew to stop filming and turned to Callie. “Is this true?”

  The reporter looked visibly disappointed. Her eyes said it all. If Callie was indeed in a committed relationship, her muckraking ambush had gone seriously awry.

  “Yes,” Molly Anne quickly interjected before Callie had time to deny the notion. “In fact, Callie and Luke are engaged.”

  Excuse me? Openmouthed, Callie spun around to stare at her oldest friend.

  But she just stood there, stunned. For once Molly Anne had shocked her and not the other way around. But how could she confront her friend in front of the reporter?

  “So where is this paragon?” Brooke asked, wrinkling her nose as if she smelled a rat.

  “Uh…” Callie detested lying but she had no clue how to get out of this. She gestured vaguely. “He’s around here somewhere.”

  “Well then.” Brooke gave an evil smile. “Go get your fiancé so we can congratulate him.”

  “He’s shy,” Callie said.

  “Oh, I’m sure you can persuade him to come over and say hi to the cameras for the sake of your career.” Brooke stared Callie down, daring her to deny she had a fiancé.

  Dammit. The smart-aleck reporter had screwed her to the wall and she couldn’t let the smug woman win this battle of wills. There was no way around it. She would have to get Luke back.

  “LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT. You not only want to rehire me as Callie’s bodyguard but you also want me to pretend to be her fiancé?”

  Luke glared at Molly Anne Armstrong. He couldn’t believe what the woman was asking and he wasn’t about to agree to it. He, Callie and Molly Anne were grouped at the ticket counter while some Hollywood television reporter and her camera crew waited just a few yards away.

  “That’s correct.” Molly Anne nodded. “It’s vitally important to Callie’s career.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “No. I won’t do it. I don’t lie. I’m not a liar.”

  “Not even if we double your fee?” Molly Anne tempted him.

  Luke hesitated for the briefest of moments. The extra money would go a long way to stabilizing the family security firm’s finances. But he simply could not accept the conditions. He was an honorable man and honorable men did not lie without a damned good excuse. And salvaging Callie Ryder’s attractive fanny from a fire of her own making was not nearly good enough.

  “What!” Callie glared at her business manager. “What are you suggesting Molly Anne? Doubling the Incredible Hulk’s salary just to have him pretend to be my fiancé. This is an insult.”

  Luke gave Callie a quick once-over and he realized Molly Anne was springing this on her for the first time and she was just as incensed as he by the suggestion. At least they agreed on something.

  “I’ve just okayed the additional expenditure with Roger,” Molly Anne said. “He realizes getting exposure on Celebrity Insider will bring a lot of attention to KSXX and he’s agreed to pony up the extra cash if Luke will agree to stay.”

  “I’d rather be engaged to a polar bear,” Callie said. “He’d be a lot more fun. Can’t we just hire some guy off the street?”

  “I’m sorry,” Luke reiterated, jerking a thumb at Callie. “There is not enough money in the world for me to lie about being engaged to her. So if you ladies would excuse me, the next plane bound for home leaves in less than an hour and there’s a backlog of passengers at the security checkpoint.”

  “Mr. Cardasian,” Molly Anne started in again, a wheedling tone in her voice. “Luke. What’s it going to take to persuade you to stay?”

  “Nothing could persuade me to stay, Ms. Armstrong,” he said firmly. “I’m not interested.”

  “All right.” Molly Anne’s tone turned frosty. “If you refuse to help us, then I must insist you pay back the retainer KSXX has already given your brother.”

  “Of course,” Luke said, fully realizing he was going to have to borrow the money in order to repay it. But it would be worth the hassle and expense of taking out a loan if it meant shedding these crazy women once and for all. “I’ll have the money to you within ten business days.”

  “I’ll need payment immediately.” Molly Anne extended her palm. “I will accept a check.” Who would have thought the wan blonde could be so hard-nosed? Luke barely hung on to his temper.

  “Let him go,” Callie said. “You can’t blackmail the guy into staying.”

  “Cal…” Molly Anne started to argue, but Callie held up a hand to silence her.

  “Mr. Cardasian has every right to be upset with me. I did violate his orders and slipped off without his permission. I’ll pay for his retainer out of my own pocket.”

  “I don’t want your charity,” Luke said.

  “It’s not charity. You’ve put up with a great deal from me,” Callie said. “You deserve the fee.”

  For a minute there he really thought she meant it, that her contrition was genuine. But then he reminded himself she was in the entertainment industry and most of those people would do anything to further their careers even if it meant pretending to be something they weren’t.

  He searched her eyes. She met his gaze. She didn’t shift or blink or look away. Oh, she was good. He had grossly underestimated her. She was much more than a pretty face with a sexy body. The lady was a worthy opponent.

  “Keep your money,” Luke reiterated. “I’ll pay back the retainer.”

  Their conversation was interrupted by a modulated, unaccented voice breaking in over the public address system. “Ms. Callie Ryder please pick up the white courtesy phone.”

  “You’re being paged,” Luke said.

  “So I hear.”

  He didn’t know why he followed her. Instinct maybe, more likely because he wanted to reiterate that he was not accepting her charity. But when she reached the courtesy phone and realized he was behind her, she motioned him away.

  “Go get back in line. You’ll miss your flight and neither one of us wants that.”

  “What are you going to do about Brooke Burnett?” He nodded at the reporter who was consulting with her camera crew.

  “Not your problem.”

  “She might cause you some trouble.”

  “Personally I could care less. This is Molly Anne’s show. Let her deal with Brooke.” She reached for the phone.

  He could have left. He should have left. But something told him things didn’t feel right. Who’d paged her? He scanned the crowd while leaning against the wall beside the phone. He didn’t see anything suspicious, but he couldn’t shake the nagging sensation that something was amiss. He would wait until she got off the phone. Just to make sure everything was okay and then he would be on his way.

  You already quit. You don’t have to protect her anymore.

  Problem was, he’d never quit anything in his life and it was starting to eat at him that he’d allowed this scrap of a woman to run him off the job. He flicked his gaze over at her, saw her complexion had blanched. She squeezed the receiver in a death grip.

  “Callie?”

  She stared at him, startled and wide-eyed. He jumped to
her side, pried the receiver from her hand and lifted it to his ear.

  “Hello?” he demanded. A click and then the dial tone. Luke hung up the phone and turned to look at her. He was alarmed to see her hand was shaking and even more alarmed to realize that her distress caused his own breathing to quicken.

  She reacted and he reacted. Not kosher. A good bodyguard did not allow himself to react emotionally to external events. If he acted from emotion that meant he’d already lost control. And without his objectivity, he was useless to her. He tightened his jaw, hardening himself against the tender feelings battering him.

  “What happened? Who was on the phone?”

  She raised a hand to finger her lips and shook her head. “Him.”

  “The man who’s been threatening you?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  For the first time since Luke had met her, Callie appeared totally defenseless. Her vulnerability tore at him.

  Stop reacting with your heart. Focus. Think. Get yourself under control.

  Luke grasped her firmly yet gently. “What did the guy say?”

  She gulped, raised her chin, squared her shoulders, marshalling her courage. Yes. A very good sign. The fighter in her was back.

  “Let’s not make a big deal of this, okay? You’re leaving. I’ll figure it out or get Molly Anne to hire me a new bodyguard.”

  He felt it then, the clutch of an unseen hook grabbing hold of his gut, digging in, twisting deep. A mortal wound. More than just his heart was in this now, his gut was reacting, too.

  “What did the guy say?” Luke repeated hoarsely, still holding her soft slender shoulders pinned between his big palms.

  Her eyes were dark, murky and worried. She was scared but struggling hard not to show it. “He says he’s watching me.”

  “Right now?”

  She nodded. “He described what I’m wearing. Right down to how many rings I have in my ears.”

  The hairs on the nape of his neck lifted. The guy was dangerous. Luke let her go and pivoted on his heel to survey the terminal. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion at every male passenger in sight.

  It could be any one of them. It could be the stocky man with the cell phone in line at the ticket counter. It could be the janitor pushing the floor sweeper. It could be one of Brooke Burnett’s team. It could be the basketball-tall clerk at the far counter, or it could even be the harried father of three trying to corral his kids.