He looked at me with a blissful little smile.
“That was... that was very nice,” he rumbled slowly.
I suddenly became conscious of my nakedness, and grabbed my panties and top to get a little decent, at least. Then I sat down beside him.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “It was... just wonderful.”
I suddenly felt self-conscious. It was not as if I was his girlfriend. I had wanted what we had done, and I didn't feel cheap at all. It had been meaningful to me. But what now? I had just had mind-blowing sex with Archer Stratton. That anything long term would come out of this seemed completely impossible. He probably did things like this with fangirls daily. What was special about me? Nothing. And now, he probably wanted to leave, go back to his trailer and his movies. I would not try to hold him back. But I wouldn't kick him out, either. I could see that it was dark outside.
I looked up at him. He was looking right back, a small smile playing on his lips. I got the feeling that he knew exactly what I was thinking.
“Do you know what time it is? I don't have my phone.”
I consulted my own. “It's ten.”
“I should call the security chief, tell him I'm okay. Wouldn't want them to raise the alarm.”
I unlocked my phone and handed it over.
“Yeah, I guess they'd have to if you didn't return.”
“Maybe. They should be used to me being missing for a few hours. Happens all the time. That sound stage and the locations get suffocating after a while. Sometimes I have to get away.”
He looked at my phone as if trying to remember something.
“Thing is, I usually bring my phone with all the numbers stored. I have no idea what the security chief's number is. Or anyone else. I only remember Kate's number.”
“Your former personal assistant? Don't you think she still has all the relevant numbers?”
“Oh, I'm sure she does. But I don't want to disturb her now. It'd be a little weird if I called her at this hour, just to ask how she's doing, and then say “by the way, do you have the number for so-and-so, which you know I also have on my phone, so you know that I'm somewhere without my phone, and that's the real reason I called you?” Not so nice for her. Nope, not calling her. But it means... I have to go back there.”
And I thought, okay, this is it. This is where he leaves. He's doing it well, being very smooth. He has a good excuse. He got his rocks off, he was pretty well entertained all day, and now he goes back to his magnificent life. And suddenly I remembered what the medic had said that morning: “... until he's maybe not so nice”. Well, he'd been pretty nice to me. But maybe this was for the best.
Fine. I had a really good day to look back on and tell my grandkids about, although I knew I would spend the night dissolved in tears. And probably all the next day. And probably the next few nights. Because I was in love. Without any doubt. More than ever.
I would have done many things to keep him in my life at that moment.
I was already starting to feel empty, my throat already feeling sore from the grief that was starting to overwhelm me now that he was leaving. He was still here, but my little living room looked smaller and emptier than ever before. I had seen a slice of his life, sharing a whole day with him, and that was probably just as good as a lifetime with an ordinary man from my own unglamorous world.
He got to his feet and started to button his fly. Then he casually looked at me with his green eyes, his face open.
“Want to come?”
17
I was pretty much walking on clouds as I got on the bike again.
It was just a short ride to the anonymous and now almost-secret sound stage, and the fresh air felt good on my face and in my lungs. I was still recovering from my mind-shattering orgasm. I was pretty sure I'd never have sex like that again. But that was okay. Most women wouldn't even get it once.
He had known exactly what he was doing. There had been no anxious “is it okay if I” or a worried “are you sure?” every thirty seconds, like it seems every other guy feels is necessary.
No, Archer was an experienced and caring lover. He knew what he was doing and how any woman would signal if he would somehow go too far too fast. And he was experienced enough never to get to that point.
He was good, is what I'm saying. He was very, very good. And the fact that he was world famous didn't hurt. That was the thing that had given me the serial orgasms I'd had. He wasn't just a random dude with a big cock and great lovemaking skills – he was Archer Stratton.
We got there and turned into the lot. It was dark and pretty quiet outside the huge building. All the lined-up trailers had light coming out of the windows, except one, which I guessed was Archer's. I was right – we drove right up to it, and he turned the engine off.
“Welcome to Casa Archie,” he said as the took the helmet off. “The view isn't great, but the neighbors are nice. Mostly. Well, some of them are. I think. Sometimes.”
We got off the bike. It was a huge trailer, easily fifty feet long, in shiny metal.
“I'll just go inside and get my phone. Then we'll have to track down the security chief and tell him whether or not I'll spend the night here. I'm thinking... not?”
He looked quizzically at me.
So there was a chance he's spend the night with me? Oh my. And then I'd fall even harder, and then he'd leave a couple of days later when the shoot was over, and then...
He noticed my hesitation, and probably misunderstood.
“I mean, I'd love to go back to your place, help you wash the dishes after the Bolognese, finish the wine... and, you know...”
He gave me an innocent smile that was somehow not innocent at all. I knew what he meant – he wanted more sex. And so did I.
I just smiled. And I nodded. I couldn't find my voice right then, for some reason.
We asked the security guard at the entrance to the sound stage where the security boss was.
“He's inside, over by the new set.”
We went inside. The whole huge room was still brightly lit up, and carpenters and electricians were still working on building new sets. There were others around too, setting up various equipment, but the atmosphere was calm and relaxed, the end of a long work day. There were some sudden, subdued laughs and the typical shouts and instructions that you get when people are constructing things.
“They're still building stuff,” I said.
“I don't think those are our sets. Our shoot is pretty much finished, all that needs to be done are a couple of final scenes. Like the one we tried today.”
“So you'll be leaving soon?”
“Well, the shoot is almost done. But maybe I'll find other reasons to hang around. Who knows?” he said, mysteriously.
We spotted Magnus and a group of others over by the set that had been in use for Archer's and Lisa's scene, so we walked over. I suddenly saw that Lisa was there, so I fell back a little, walking a few steps behind Archer.
“There you are,” Lisa said, with a cheerfulness that any woman would be able to see was totally fake. She was still furious.
“I was looking for you earlier.”
“Oh, were you?” Archer's whole posture signaled disinterest.
“Yes, I was. Hector wanted you and me to do some more readings to get the scene to work. But I couldn't find you anywhere. We tried calling you, but you didn't pick up.”
“Really? I didn't hear any phone ringing,” he said, truthfully enough.
Lisa was more than furious, and she gave up her cheerful act. Now she was talking very loudly.
“Seriously, who ignores their phone halfway through a shoot?! When they don't even have an assistant? And security had no idea where you were. They were just about to start a search when you waltzed in here! Didn't you think you'd wasted enough time for everyone earlier today? Now it looks like the shoot will be extended by a day. I have no time for that! I'm booked full from Monday!”
“Congratulations,” Archer quipped, his attention on his b
odyguard.
“Magnus, I'll be here at seven tomorrow morning. Not spending the night here on the lot. Everything is fine. I'll pick up the phone any time.” He indicated his iPhone, then turned to walk out.
Lisa ran after him, her face not quite as angelical when she was this angry. She grabbed hold of him and turned him around, screaming in his face.
“No, you don't turn your back on me. I have contracts to honor. I suppose you don't. I can't stay one day longer! If this scene falls through, there is no movie. I have spent too much time on this for the result to never see the light of day! So have everyone here! Even you!”
She shifted her glare to me, as if she had only now seen that I was there.
“And I see that you're still bringing outside people in here! This same one, too? That you dragged in on a closed set this morning? Was there something she missed? Was there a part of the script this little clerk didn't fuck up enough?!”
Archer was still cool and composed, but he obviously didn't like it when Lisa attacked me.
“Lisa, you're out of line,” he said with a degree of dark authority I would never have expected from a guy in his twenties. “If you want to attack someone, attack me. Ashley never did anything other than what I asked her to.”
“Really?” Lisa spluttered in her fury. “Why do you hang around with a local girl, anyway? Is she your little bedwarmer while on location? Twenty bucks stuck in her g-string for each time she does what you ask her to?”
Suddenly, something clicked into place in my mind: She was deathly jealous. She was in love with him, too. And he had rejected her. That was the incident he'd mentioned. I was in a love triangle with Lisa Scalia and Archer Stratton! And I was winning. Well, for now, anyway.
Now I saw Archer's face cloud over. He'd had enough from her. Whatever was to follow, I was real happy I would not be on the receiving end.
But he never got to say anything. Because what happened next is the kind of thing that you only see in real life, never in movies, because it just seems too improbable. No one would believe it in a movie.
Alfredo the ocelot came bounding into the group, trailed by his loose leash. Everyone drew back as fast as they could, but because my back was turned, I was the last to see him coming. Then, when I saw the leopard-like wild animal coming straight for me, I jerked back with my whole body in an uncontrolled attempt at getting out of his way. It was pretty much a reflexive movement. But it brought me very close to Lisa, and when I quickly turned my face down and away, going into a crouch to protect my face from the approaching animal, she must have moved in the opposite direction, because the side of my forehead hit her right on the jaw and knocked her out like a light.
She collapsed almost to the floor before Magnus, the huge bodyguard, quickly stepped in with his mountain of muscle and caught her under her arms like a rag doll, then easily laid her down in a controlled motion.
I drew in my breath in a scared yelp, and both my hands flew to my mouth.
Alfredo was now standing peacefully at Archer's feet, again looking innocently at something far away.
Suddenly everyone was staring at me. I was as surprised as anyone. Knocking out a world famous celebrity was not the way I had imagined this day would end. Or any day.
But there we were, me with my jaw hinged open in shock and a dull ache in my right temple, Lisa in her sweatshirt and yoga pants unconscious on the concrete floor, everyone else staring and pulling slowly away from us, and Archer peering at me with a bemused look on his face. He was not angry, just mildly surprised. And not exactly displeased, I noticed.
Behind my eyes I felt the acid sensation of tears starting to build, very fast, and my breath was going ragged. I really hadn't meant to do it. But it must have looked to everyone like I had just decked Lisa Scalia, America's Sweetheart, the two-time Academy Award nominee who got 15 million dollars per movie.
Yes, I was in serious trouble.
To be continued...
Catch A Falling Superstar: A New Adult Erotic Romance Page 10