As she moved to make herself another drink, Casey stopped her and smoothly extracted the glass from her hand.
“I got it,” he said, pecking her quickly on the lips before he turned to start mixing.
Annie grinned as she leaned back against the counter to watch him measure the liquids separately, pouring everything into a stainless-steel cocktail shaker with a little ice. Covering the top, he shook the container with one hand, and then popped the lid to pour. All of his motions were smooth and practiced, a sure sign that he’d been doing this for years.
“So, Trisha,” she said as he turned to hand her the drink.
He laughed and ran his hand back over his head as he looked a little embarrassed. “Yeah, sorry about that. We go way back – old family friends, but she can be kind of protective of new people coming into my life… especially girls.”
Nodding, Annie took a sip of her second drink. Just as delicious as the first. “Did you guys ever… you know?”
“Nah, we’re just friends. She might wish it otherwise, but that’s never going to happen.”
“I see. Well, she didn’t seem too thrilled to meet me.”
“She just doesn’t know you, yet. Like I said, she’s protective. Just give it some time. Once you get to know her, I bet you guys would get along great.”
He sounded so hopeful that she hated to be a Debbie Downer, so she forced a smile and nodded at him.
“Yeah, I’m sure you’re right.”
“Come on—let’s go mingle for a while. I’ll kick them all out of here after an hour or so, two hours tops, I promise.”
A couple of hours seemed like an eternity, now that she had the pleasure of sitting across from Trisha while the girl glared daggers at her whenever Casey wasn’t looking. At least Chris had given up his spot, and Casey was now sitting next to Annie with his arm slung casually, yet possessively across her shoulders. She couldn’t help but shoot Trisha a smug smile at one point when Casey turned to her, smiled and then leaned close to kiss her forehead before returning to the conversation he was having with his other crew members. Trisha scowled in reaction, and then turned back to her conversation with one of the guys’ girlfriends.
Annie felt the effects of the alcohol slow her down and make her sleepy, but finally, people started to take off. As the last couple of people stood to leave, chatting with Casey on their way to the door, Annie started picking up empty beer bottles and glasses to take them to the kitchen.
Casey closed the door, turned around and leaned back against it, giving an exaggerated sigh of relief. “Alone at last,” he said with a grin, but then he frowned as he realized what Annie was doing. “Babe, you don’t have to do that. You’re a guest.” He moved to take the glasses and bottle from her, but she shook her head at him.
“Please, I’m not going to sit around and watch you clean up by yourself.” She turned and left to drop off a load in the kitchen, then returned to the living room. In the meantime, Casey had managed to snag the rest of the empty bottles and glasses and was already heading back to the kitchen.
“I got it,” he said, putting everything down on the counter before starting to load the dishwasher. She helped pass him dishes, then leaned back against the counter and looked around uncertainly, not sure what was coming next. After closing the dishwasher, Casey turned towards Annie, reaching out a hand to snag her waist and draw her to him. “As I was saying, alone at last,” he murmured before lowering his lips to hers.
She sighed softly against his lips as he ran one hand through her hair before gripping it to hold her more tightly against him as his other hand grasped her hip possessively with just enough pressure to make her feel wanted and sexy. After a few moments, he finally released her, his eyes closing as he rested his forehead against hers.
“Come on. Let’s go to bed.”
“Umm,” Annie said hesitantly. She wanted to go to bed with him. She really did. But she was tired of making the same mistakes over and over again. Biting her lip, she looked at Casey and prepared herself for rejection. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
Casey grinned at her. “I’m not going to take advantage of you, princess. I just want to hold you and cuddle.”
Annie laughed. “Did you just say you want to cuddle?”
“What if I did?”
Shaking her head, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his waist. “You’re adorable.”
“I know,” he said, hugging her back.
She laughed again and let him lead her down the hallway to his bedroom. It was huge and decorated in very masculine tones, with a big California King-sized bed sitting right smack in the middle of the room. Her overnight bag was sitting on the end of the bed, so she grabbed it and excused herself to change her clothes. She was impressed to see that his bathroom was just as immaculately clean as the rest of his apartment.
It didn’t take her long to change into her pajamas, brush and floss her teeth, but by the time Annie exited the bathroom, she stopped short and giggled at the sight before her. Casey had changed into a pair of red basketball shorts and a black wife-beater and laid down on the bed to wait for her. His head was already rolled back in the pillows as a soft snore came from his partially open mouth.
Tiptoeing so she wouldn’t disturb him, Annie set her bag down by his dresser and climbed onto the bed next to him. Bravely she snuggled close to him, and as she touched him, he woke with a sudden start. It took a moment for his eyes to refocus, but then he gazed down at her as she gave him what she thought was her cutest smile, making him smile lazily in return.
“Hey you. Didn’t mean to doze off on you there.”
“It’s okay. I know you must be exhausted. I’m pretty sleepy myself.” She leaned up to kiss his lips lightly, then snuggled against him more closely, sighing contentedly as she felt his arms wrap tightly around her. She couldn’t help but relish the complete feeling of perfection she was experiencing being held by him.
It wasn’t long before she was drifting off to dreamland, but before she was completely gone, Annie heard him whisper, “I’m so glad I found you.”
Something was tickling her ear, dragging her from a deep sleep. Annie groaned as she struggled to wake up. Did she leave the fan on again last night? Reluctantly, she cracked one eye open. She was staring at a ceiling fan, but it wasn’t moving. And it wasn’t her ceiling fan. Her ceiling fan was white; this one was wood-colored.
Suddenly, her other eye shot open as she remembered where she was. Looking beside her, Annie spotted the ear tickling offender. Casey laid there next to her, grinning smugly.
“Morning,” he said, his cool, minty breath giving away the fact that he’d been up at least long enough to have time to brush his teeth.
Oh God.
Annie was sure she had morning breath. Covering her mouth with one hand, she smiled at him through her fingers. “Morning. Could you give me just a sec?”
He nodded, and she scrambled out of bed, shooting straight into the bathroom to brush her teeth. She took an extra minute to floss and gargle with mouthwash before she wiped her mouth and returned to the bed. As she laid down next to him again, she propped her head up with one hand, resting on her elbow as she faced him.
“Better?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow at her.
“Much,” she agreed, smiling at him.
Casey smiled back and then slowly leaned forward to kiss her. As his lips touched hers, her eyes fluttered shut, and she sighed softly into his mouth. She ran her tongue along his lip before sucking on it gently. He made a sound in his throat—a deep, rumbling, very male sound of satisfaction.
Scooting closer to him, Annie slid her hand up his cheek and threaded her fingers through his short hair as she melted even deeper into the kiss. Finally, he broke away and pulled back slightly so he could look at her again.
“Okay, we’d better get out of this bed before I get carried away and do something I’ll regret.”
She pouted at his words. “You’d regret
it?”
“No, but I can’t right now.”
“Why not?”
Casey laughed at the crestfallen expression on Annie’s face. “Baby, I want our first time to be special. Just trust me, okay?” He kissed her forehead and chuckled as she nodded, struggling not to look too disappointed.
“Why don’t you jump in the shower, and I’ll make us some coffee. I left a towel and washcloth for you by the sink.”
“Ooh, caffeine. Yes, please,” she said with a big smile, this time nodding happily.
Grinning, he winked at her and rolled off the bed, heading towards the kitchen.
The water didn’t take long to warm, and Annie took a quick shower, shaving her legs as quickly as possible as she tried not to cut herself. Stepping out of the stall, she reached for the towel just as Casey was walking back into the bedroom. In her rush to get into the shower, she’d completely forgotten to close the bathroom door.
“Hey, did you want cream or sug—” he trailed off, staring at her standing there naked.
She grabbed the towel and quickly wrapped it around herself as she stammered, “Sorry, I forgot to close the door.”
“That’s okay,” he said, still staring at her, even though she was now somewhat modestly covered by a towel. “
“Cream.”
“Sorry?
“For my coffee?”
“Oh, right.” Casey gave a little shake of his head as if he were trying to clear the cobwebs from his brain. “Uh… right… let me get that for you.” He hesitated for a moment longer, then turned around and went back to the kitchen, muttering to himself as he left the room.
Annie couldn’t help giggling. She’d rendered him almost speechless. And he might be taking it slow with her, but he had definitely not looked away. After throwing on some clothes and brushing her hair, she wandered out to the kitchen. Casey smiled and handed her a steaming mug, which she accepted gratefully.
Sipping slowly, she hummed in appreciation. “That’s some good coffee, sir.”
“I take my coffee very seriously.”
Glancing at the fancy coffee press on the counter, Annie smirked and raised an eyebrow. “I can see that. But you have a regular coffeemaker as well?”
“Yeah, I’m too out of it when I first wake up in the morning to make the fancy coffee. Well, I just need to jump in the shower real quick and then we can leave for the Grove.”
“Okay, sounds good. I’ll just read for a bit while I wait.”
“Cool. Whatcha reading?”
“Oh, my sister told me about this new indie author she discovered… Kimberly Knight?”
He shook his head and shrugged.
Annie laughed. “No, I didn’t figure you’d have heard of a romance novelist.”
“Mmm, probably not. My mom reads a lot of that crap, but mostly like Danielle Steele and Nora Roberts.”
“Hey now! It’s not crap.”
Casey smirked at her. “I think that’s a matter of opinion, and it’s hardly Shakespeare.”
“It doesn’t have to be; it just needs to be entertaining.”
“Don’t you want to learn something when you read rather than just waste your time with fluff?”
“I don’t think it’s a waste of time. Do you play video games?”
“Well, yeah…”
“Okay then, ‘nuff said.”
“Are we having our first fight?”
Smirking, Annie rolled her eyes at him and took another sip of her coffee. “Well, if we are, I just won.”
Casey chuckled and drained the rest of his coffee before rinsing off the mug and putting it in the dishwasher. “Alright, shower time.”
“Enjoy,” she said as she stood, leaning against the kitchen door frame as she watched him walk down the hallway back to the bedroom. Not realizing it, Annie held her breath, waiting to see if he would also forget to shut the bathroom door. To her disappointment, after rummaging through his drawer for a clean pair of boxers, Casey went into the bathroom and shut the door.
She finished her coffee and headed back to the bedroom. Rummaging through her bag, she found her Kindle and cell phone and then wandered back into the kitchen. Wanting another cup of coffee, she fiddled with the coffee press, but couldn’t figure out how it worked. Sighing, she reached for her phone and Googled how to use a French coffee press.
Following the YouTube instructions, Annie made herself another cup of coffee, and then sat down at the kitchen table to read while she waited for Casey to finish getting ready. She was just starting the second chapter of Kimberly Knight’s, Where I Need to Be. A few pages into the chapter, her eyes widened and her jaw dropped open. When she finished reading the scene, she fanned herself with her hand and grabbed her cell phone to text her sister, Leah.
Annie: Holy shit! I just finished chapter two.
Leah: Is that not like the hottest dance scene ever or what?
Annie: I think I need a cold shower now.
Leah: Lol, glad you’re enjoying it!
Annie: Totally am. Thanks for recommending it. ;)
Leah: Anytime. When you’re ready for more, let me know and I’ll tell you what other books to get.
Leah: Cool. Luv u. TTYL!
Annie: xoxo
Before she had a chance to start chapter three, Casey re-entered the kitchen, looking and smelling all kinds of delicious. Annie couldn’t help staring at him as he walked over to the coffee press. She barely had time to wipe the drool from her mouth before he turned to look at her.
“I see you learned how to use the press,” he said with a lifted eyebrow.
“Oh yeah… I hope that was okay?”
Crap, she thought to herself. Is he one of those people who don’t like others touching their things?
“Of course. You want another cup?”
Relieved, Annie smiled and shook her head. “Oh no, I’m good. Thank you, though.”
“Do you mind if I make another one for myself? We can leave as soon as I finish it.”
“Yeah, of course, take your time. I don’t have anywhere to be today; I’m all yours.”
“Mmm… I like the sound of that.”
Annie grinned goofily at the back of his head, and then hid her mouth with a cough when he turned with his coffee and moved to join her at the table. She smiled awkwardly at him as he sat across from her, looking intently into her eyes as he raised his mug to take a sip.
“How’s the book?”
She flushed bright red as she thought back to the steamy dance scene she’d just finished. “I’m only on chapter three, but it’s pretty good.”
“Do you read a lot?”
“Yeah, always have. When I was a kid, it was stuff like The Babysitters Club and Nancy Drew. Now it’s mostly romantic fiction with a smattering of thrillers and fantasy. This is the first indie book I’ve ever read, but my sister insisted I give it a shot. Have to say, it’s not bad—not bad at all. What about you? Do you like to read?”
“Not a huge reader. Think the last thing I read was The DaVinci Code.”
“Well, that was a good book. I liked it anyway. Did you read it recently or when it came out?”
“When it came out.”
“Oh… wow, you haven’t read another book in ten years?”
“Has it been that long?” Casey squinted as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Huh, yeah, I guess so.”
“I can’t imagine going that long without reading a book.”
“I’ve had other things keeping me busy. When you dance, you have to devote a lot of time to honing your craft—especially with hip hop and breaking.” Just then, a buzzing came from Casey’s pocket. Fishing a cell phone out of his pocket, he glanced at the caller ID and frowned. He held up a finger and stood. “One second, I have to take this real quick.”
“Oh sure, of course,” Annie said, nodding. “Go ahead.”
“Thanks, sorry about this,” Casey apologized, then answered the phone as he turned to leave the room. “Hey, what’s up?” she heard
him say as he headed back down the hallway to his bedroom.
Well as long as she had some more time to kill, Annie figured she’d keep on reading. She only made it through a couple of pages before he returned with a big grin plastered across his face.
“Good news?” she asked, laying her Kindle back down on the table.
“That was Chris. He just got a call from one of the show’s producers. We fucking did it! We made it to the next round!”
“Hurray!” Annie exclaimed, jumping up from her seat to give him a hug. “Congratulations! That’s amazing news.”
“I’m sure you’ll get your call today, too,” he reassured her as he squeezed her tight for a moment.
Pulling back, Annie nodded. “Maybe, but I’m just happy for you. I know how hard you’ve worked for something like this.”
“That doesn’t mean you deserve it any less,” Casey said seriously, brushing her cheek softly with his thumb.
“Thanks for saying that. You’re a pretty sensitive guy, you know.”
“Don’t tell anybody,” he said warningly with a twinkle in his eye.
Annie crossed her heart and held up two fingers as she nodded solemnly, fighting the smile that twitched at her lips. “Your secret’s safe with me.”
“Good. You ready to leave, yet, or do you need more time to get ready?”
Snorting, Annie poked his chest with her finger. “Me more time to get ready? I’m just waitin’ on you. You’re the one taking forever,” she teased.
“Well, then let’s go. I’ll drive.”
“Cool. Let me grab my purse and I’m good to go.”
It took fifteen minutes just to find a parking spot in the monstrous multi-tiered lot that overlooked the Grove, an upscale shopping plaza nestled in the heart of L.A.’s Fairfax district. They got out of the car and started to head towards the elevator, Annie following a little behind Casey until he paused mid-step and turned around with an outstretched hand. She just stared at his hand for a couple of seconds and then tentatively put her hand in his. It felt just right.
All the Right Things (Love in LA) Page 7