“Do you think someone’s trying to tell us something?” Tabby said.
He laughed, showing her the sexy gap in his teeth. “There is supposed to be a ghost haunting the rooms.”
Her heart thudded, the beat loud in her ears. How could he not hear it? She swallowed and saw his gaze dip to her throat before returning to hers.
He put his hands on his hips. “I knew you were going to be trouble the moment I saw you.”
“Me?” Her innocence was only slightly feigned. “How am I trouble?”
He gave a short laugh, still studying her, as if he were trying hard not to give in to whatever desires were raging through him. “Tabbs, I don’t date women I work with.”
The air between them seemed to crackle with electricity. Once again, her fingers itched to touch him. She was minutes from jumping on him and ravishing him whether he liked it or not. Perhaps she was sick, coming down with an attack of nymphomania.
She shook her head slightly. “I’m not looking for a date.”
His lips started to curve, and he moved a little closer to her. “What are you looking for?”
She hesitated. Something for me, she wanted to say. Something fun, a brief moment in time where she could enjoy herself without worrying about the future. She didn’t want a relationship. She didn’t want to have to share herself, to compromise, to start making decisions to please someone else. But then neither did he—he’d told her that. She’d never been so bold before, but for the first time in her life, she was going to be honest and tell a guy what she wanted. She took a deep breath. “Would you think badly of me if I said just a hot fling?”
He laughed at that and moved closer to her, his hands resting on her waist. “Why would I think badly of you?”
“I’m not normally like this.” Her mouth had gone dry.
He gave her a wolfish smile. “Being celibate for nearly a year must have been difficult.”
She rested her hands on his chest, his muscles hard beneath her fingers. She looked up at him helplessly. “I’d coped fine until I met you. But it’s been torture all week. You’re driving me insane.”
He laughed, slid one hand behind her head, and kissed her.
Oh, it was a heavenly kiss. His lips were soft, gentle, and he kissed her very, very slowly. He moved his mouth across hers with a tenderness that surprised her, given that she’d practically given him permission to rip off her clothes and do whatever he wanted with her. After a while, he brushed his tongue across her lips, and she opened her mouth to him, sliding a hand up to cup his face. She inhaled as he pulled her to him, one hand in the small of her back, the other threading through her hair as if he were afraid she might move away.
There wasn’t much chance of that. Tabby was so hot for him she was almost self-combusting, and she delved her tongue into the warm cavern of his mouth. He groaned and deepened the kiss as he pushed her back the four or five inches to the wall. She met it with a bump and gasped.
A crash from the other room made them both jump. Eli pulled back and met her gaze as the hum of a vacuum cleaner echoed around the room. Tabby pushed him away and walked over to the door, which was still open a tiny crack. Two women were moving around the room, collecting the garbage and sweeping up the scraps of tissue and glitter from the floor.
There was a soft pressure against her back, and Eli’s hands rested on her hips. She caught her breath as he pressed a kiss on her neck above the collar of her shirt. He didn’t say anything, but he traced his fingers down her back. He outlined her shoulder blades, followed her ribs, dipped into her waist, and came back up again to rub her shoulders and graze down the backs of her arms. He continued this gentle and sensual torture, and she closed her eyes, half-concentrating on his touch, half on the conversation of the women in the other room.
“I saw Daniells today,” said one woman. “I watched him do the fight scene.”
“How’d he look?”
“He’s putting on weight.”
Tabby felt, rather than heard, Eli give a short laugh where he’d started placing soft kisses on her neck. She smacked his leg, and he bit her earlobe playfully, making her inhale.
“He’s still good-looking though,” said the second woman.
“Oh yeah.”
They fell quiet for a moment, and Eli slid his hands around to draw patterns on her stomach under her shirt, rising to brush her ribs with his thumbs.
“His stunt double’s pretty tasty, though,” said the first woman.
“I’ll say.”
Eli chuckled and ran his fingers just beneath the low waistband of Tabby’s jeans, making her wriggle.
“He’s got a nice ass.”
He lifted his head and gave Tabby a querying look as she turned to glance up at him. She shrugged, and he whispered, “You want me to prove it to you? Okay, clothes off.” He began to undo the buttons on her shirt. She tried to stop him, laughing, but he pushed her hands away and continued to pop the buttons through the holes.
The two women continued their assessment of the actors in the movie. “That Mick Forstner’s pretty hot, too.”
“You’re telling me.”
“Which one would you rather do, out of the three of them?”
Eli’s hands paused. Tabby tried not to giggle as he awaited the verdict.
“The stunt guy, obviously.”
“Yeah, me, too.”
“Score,” he whispered in her ear. “Good to know I have options.”
“And a threesome as well.” Tabby peered through the door. “Although one of them’s at least ninety years old.”
“That’s all right—I’m used to false teeth.”
They shook with their silent laughter, and then he released the last button on her shirt and slid it down her arms, throwing it onto a chair to one side. Tabby’s heart thumped hard again, the speed increasing when he pulled his own T-shirt over his head before returning to hold her, his skin now warm against her back.
As he kissed her shoulder, she knew he would be admiring her breasts. Thank God she’d worn the pretty white bra with lacy half-cups.
He traced his tongue across her skin, tasting where her pulse beat in her neck, and she tipped her head to the side. He brushed up her arms to her shoulders and placed his warm hands on her breastbone, then slipped his fingers beneath the straps of her bra and slid them up and over her shoulders, down to the clasp at the back. Geez, he was going to undress her while the women were still in the next room. The thought made her mouth go dry with nerves but her panties grow damp with desire.
He took the clasp in his fingers and pushed the clips together, releasing the elastic, and let the bra slide down her arms and onto the floor. She fought the urge to cover her breasts, instead placing both hands on the wall next to the door as he slid his arms around her waist, his chest warm against her back.
“You’re beautiful.” His deep voice seemed to reverberate through her like a bell, and she flushed with pleasure, her breaths coming more quickly as he ran his hands along her ribs, bringing them up to cup her breasts. He took the soft peaks between his fingers and thumbs and squeezed them gently, and they tightened into firm buds beneath his touch. She inhaled and closed her eyes, arching into his touch.
“I’ve wanted to do this since the moment you walked up to me on the field,” he whispered. “I’ve been dreaming about seeing you naked,” he kissed her shoulder, “holding you against me,” another kiss on her neck, “making love to you as slowly as I can bear it.” His husky voice nearly made her melt into a puddle at his feet.
Her eyes fluttered open. One of the women stood only a few feet away on the other side of the door, humming as she picked up stray bits of tissue and cotton wool. Her hand fell on a small tray full of paints that Tabby had missed. Tabby stared, alarmed, as she realized the woman was going to bring it into the storeroom.
She turned and grabbed her bra, stuffing it in her pocket, and picked up their T-shirts from the floor. “Put it on.” She thrust Eli’s top at him and tugged on her own
, seconds before the door swung open.
Eli yanked on his top, grabbed a wig from a nearby stand, and pretended to be placing it back there, while Tabby studied the bottles on a nearby shelf.
“Oh.” The woman stopped as she saw them. “Sorry, I thought everyone had gone.”
“That’s okay.” Eli turned on his charming smile. “We were putting the final bits and pieces away.”
“Oh, well, here…” The woman appeared too flustered by his presence to have noticed anything amiss. Her cheeks reddened as he continued to smile at her. She shoved the tray in his hands and scurried out.
Eli chuckled and slid the tray onto the shelf.
Tabby shoved her hands in the pockets of her jeans. Her fingers tangled in the bra, and her cheeks grew warm. What on earth was she doing? She’d been inches away from getting down and dirty with him where anyone could have walked in on them.
Eli didn’t appear embarrassed. He brought her toward him and wrapped his arms around her. “That was unfortunate.”
“Probably for the best, though.”
He pulled back. “Do you mean that?”
“Not really. It sounded like something I should say.”
He laughed. Then he brushed the back of his fingers against her cheek. His eyes were gentle, and when he lowered his lips to hers, the soft kiss made her ache.
He sighed and pulled back. “Are you going down to Rock Salt?”
“I guess. You?”
“Yeah, I’m starving.”
“You’re always starving.”
“True.” He held out his hand. “Come on—I’ll buy you a beer.”
“Okay.” She let him lead her out of the room. The cleaners had gone, and she couldn’t decide if she was pleased or disappointed they’d appeared. It probably was for the best—neither she nor Eli wanted to complicate matters when they both had plans for after filming ended.
Still, she knew when she went to bed that night, she’d dream of Eli holding her in his arms, his lips warm on hers.
Chapter Six
On Monday, she arrived at the set at 5:30 to hear there was a meeting at six in the main conference room, so her services wouldn’t be needed for a while. She poured herself some coffee and decided to spend the time studying some more of Kelly Peters’s work, but she’d just sat at the computer and opened up the photo file when one of the crew came in and said Geoff Stone wanted her at the meeting.
She walked to the conference room as she nibbled on a nail, wishing she’d known earlier that her presence would be required so she didn’t have to walk into a room full of people. She paused in the doorway, took in the long table full of people, and gave Geoff a nervous smile.
He beckoned her forward. “Come in, Tabby. Take a seat.”
“Sorry I’m late.”
“No worries.”
The only seat left was next to Will, and he pulled the chair out for her so she could slip in beside him. Then he rested his hand on her knee as she crossed her legs. She pushed it off. Damn him. If he continued like this, she was going to end up smacking him before the film shoot was over.
Geoff began speaking, and she watched him for a moment. She was conscious of Eli sitting down the table, on the opposite side from her. She let her gaze drift along the line of people to him, only to find him watching her. The coolness of his eyes made it clear he hadn’t missed Will’s hand resting on her knee. She met his gaze for a moment. He wasn’t smiling, and she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Then, suddenly, he winked at her. She looked down, but couldn’t stop her lips curving, or the heat from spreading across her cheeks. It was only a wink. But no, it indicated both silent appreciation as well as quiet support.
She didn’t look back at him, trying instead to concentrate on what Geoff was saying. They were going on location at the end of the week, further up the North Island, to shoot the siege of Atlantis in a natural hook of the Waikato River near Taupo. Geoff ran through the plans for getting ready for the move and outlined some of the scenes he wanted to film while they were up there.
Excitement bubbled in Tabby’s stomach at the thought of going away on location. Her gaze again drifted to Eli. Listening to Stone, he seemed relaxed, one arm hooked over the back of his chair, but she could see his shirt moving where his leg was tapping. No doubt he was itching to get out there and start doing crazy things. The thought made her smile, and at that moment he glanced over at her again. Something shot between them, fast and sharp as an arrow. The memory of his warm hands on her breasts filled her mind. The corner of his mouth lifted, and she was sure he was thinking the same thing.
Eli Black was the best thing that had happened to her for ages. They probably wouldn’t have another chance to get together, but that was probably for the best. She would remind herself of how sweet he was to kiss whenever she felt worried, and that memory would have to do.
…
Several hours later, Eli paused in the doorway to the food tent and watched as Tabby scrutinized the craft service table. Clearly, the decision of what to have for her lunch was an important one, and she was taking time making her choice.
He studied her for a moment, his gaze skimming over her slim back and waist and her lovely ass, tight and high in her black leggings. She wore a pink shirt over the top that just skimmed her hips. He could easily have taken her by the hand, dragged her down the road to somewhere quiet, and done very naughty things to her.
She hadn’t exactly avoided him all morning, but she had kept her distance. He understood her indecision about what they’d nearly done. His brain yelled no, but his heart begged yes, please.
His mother had always said, “Follow your heart.” He was pretty sure she hadn’t meant it in this capacity, but who was he to go against his parents’ advice?
He sauntered through the tent, greeted a couple of people, picked up a tray, and joined her at the table. “Hey.”
She glanced at him, her face registering surprise. “Hiya.” Pleasure lit her eyes, but she looked back at the food as if she was trying to hide it from him. “What have you been up to?” She sounded nonchalant but her cheeks grew pink, and he couldn’t help but tease her.
“I’ve been busy planning.”
“Planning what?”
“Our next rendezvous.”
She stared at the selection of fresh fruit. “Oh.”
He’d thought she would laugh or push him playfully, but her wide eyes made him pause. Perhaps she’d decided it had all been a terrible mistake. He could have kicked himself. “Open mouth, insert size eleven. You’ve changed your mind.”
“I had. And then you walked in.”
His heart leapt at the thought that he hadn’t lost her yet. “Ah. That sounds more promising.”
She didn’t say anything, but the blush stayed on her cheeks and a hint of a smile hovered on her lips. She liked being teased, he realized. Warmth spread through him, and he moved a little closer to her, so their arms touched. She didn’t pull away, and it gave him the courage to continue.
“You need convincing?”
“Maybe.” She smiled and grabbed an apple. “What have you been planning?”
“Oh, I couldn’t possibly tell you. That would ruin the surprise.” His hand hovered over the doughnuts.
“That’s not fair. Don’t be such a tease.” She took a bite from the apple and reached for a napkin.
He couldn’t decide between a jelly-filled doughnut and a chocolate-covered one, so he took them both. “I haven’t decided actually. I’m thinking…either the sofa in the meeting room with you on top, or up against a tree somewhere, probably from behind.”
Tabby’s eyes nearly fell out of her head, her cheeks went scarlet, and she coughed as she choked on the apple.
“All right, love? Go down the wrong way?”
…
“That’s what she said.” Mick appeared beside them at the table and glanced over at her. “You all right, Tabby?”
“I’m fine,” she squeaked. Eli was incorrigibl
e. She’d been close to needing the Heimlich maneuver. He offered her a glass of water, and she took a large gulp before coughing again.
Mick looked at Eli’s tray. “Are you feeding the five thousand, or are you going to eat all that?”
“It’s all for me. I have a large appetite.” The twinkle in his eyes suggested he wasn’t referring to the food.
She would have scolded him for his wickedness, but she was enjoying it too much. The thought that he was still interested in getting together thrilled her.
“Coming outside?” Mick asked them.
“Sure.” She followed him, well aware Eli was watching her as she walked in front of him.
Outside the tent, the April weather was pleasant, and they sat at a table with a couple of other actors, enjoying the warm sunshine. She ate quietly, a little starstruck by them all, and watched Eli polish off his huge tray of food. Then, minutes after he’d finished, he jumped up and grabbed his skateboard.
“Shouldn’t you wait until your dinner goes down?” she called.
“That’s swimming.” He started going along the road in front of the food tent, back and forth, agile and nimble atop the precarious board.
“He’ll never sit still after a meal,” Mick said, collecting their trays. He nodded to her. “Catch you later—I’ve got a meeting.”
“See you later, Mick.” The other actors had already left, but Tabby remained sitting and soaked up the sun, enjoying watching Eli too much to go back just yet.
After another five minutes, he stopped in front of her, flipped up the board, and leaped onto the wide three-foot-high wall running down the side of the road.
“What are you doing?” she asked mildly as he balanced the skateboard on the top and stood on top of it.
“Trying to convince you.” He sailed along the top, pushed off the end, and flipped the skateboard over before landing on the ground. But he mistimed it and stumbled back, landing unceremoniously on his butt. “Ouch.”
Kiss and Make Up Page 5