Gravity (Hollywood Connections Book 1)

by Renee Porter

  “See, unlike most photographers I like to take pictures that are more natural.” She kept rifling through the pictures, a number of them being Maddie looking as beautiful as ever, talking to her invited party guests. “Oh, we’re coming up to some of my favorites.” As soon as she said it a knot tangled in the pit of my stomach. “You two really photograph nicely.” Rebecca stopped on a picture of me and Maddie from earlier. Our eyes were locked onto one another, Rebecca easily catching the intimate way our bodies were leaning into each other. My breath started to come in quicker gasps. Any magazine would be able to spin this picture into exactly what we were trying to hide. I steeled my back as I glanced toward Rebecca. A million excuses ran through my mind but her glare told me she knew.

  “What do you want, Rebecca?” My words filtered through a clenched jaw. She smirked as she turned the camera screen off and spoke clearly.

  “An interview.” I watched her shrug a shoulder and I wondered why she was acting so nonchalant.

  “That’s it? Maddie would do that even if you weren’t blackmailing her.”

  “Oh, I don’t want an interview with Maddie…” I waited for her to continue but she stopped short, expecting me to read the devilish glint in her eyes.

  “Then who…” I asked carefully.

  “Randle Gooding.” I barked a laugh and then quickly covered my mouth eyeing the party goers around me.

  “How do you expect her to get you an interview with that recluse? He has never accepted an interview request and you know it.” I looked at her with disdain. “And I doubt he would accept one from a no-named photographer.”

  Rebecca took the insult in stride. “Everyone has a price, B. Maddie has the ability to get in contact with him and I have the ability to derail her career. If she doesn’t want to be outed, then she’ll have to convince him.”

  I clucked my tongue. “Outing Maddie won’t ‘derail’ her career,” I defended. Rebecca looked at me as if I was the stupidest person alive.

  “Maybe if she was more established, sure. But how many main roles do you think she’d land if everyone knew that she wasn’t straight, huh? Name one lesbian actress that has won an Oscar for a lead role?” Rebecca dared me but I couldn’t give her an answer. “Exactly, none. This comes out,” she held up the camera to make her point, “and it’s all over. Everything she worked for is done.”

  I looked over to where Maddie was conversing with a string of Hollywood types. Her easy smile and throaty laugh made my stomach flutter with a need to protect her. My eyes travelled back over to Rebecca and I realized that she had said was right. Maddie wasn’t established enough and as quickly as her fame had come it could be extinguished in the same amount of time.

  I sighed heavily not knowing what the next move was but knowing that the game was in play. “How long does she have?”

  Rebecca pretended to ponder for a moment. “One week.”

  “Three.” I negotiated sternly.

  Rebecca warred with my own gaze. “Two. And not a day late. Or TMZ is going to get a great story.” She jiggled the camera in her hand and I nodded once.

  “Fine. Two weeks.” I watched as Rebecca took a card out of her pocket and handed it to me.

  “Just in case she made you throw out the other one I gave you.” She winked at me and just as if she was never there, disappeared into the party. I sighed heavily as I stared down at the card in my shaking hand. What the hell was I going to do?

  +

  I managed to extricate myself from the party without anyone knowing. My mother had been conversing with a handsome talent agent and Vanessa and Josh were in a world of their own. I had wanted to say goodbye to Maddie but I didn’t think I had the nerve to keep a straight face. My conversation with Rebecca warred within my mind. Her smug smile invaded my sight and I hated myself for ever thinking that the world could actually be kind to me for a change.

  I traveled up to my room with hopes that a night of contemplating our predicament would give me a few answers. But either way I knew I was screwed. I took the steps one at a time, thinking strongly about both sides. If I didn’t give Rebecca the interview then Maddie would be outed as a lesbian. If I did give the interview then I would be outed as Randle. Everything Maddie had worked for would be destroyed. Everything I had worked for would cease to exist. I huffed a frustrated sigh as I opened the door to my room. The moon shone down through my open window as the cool September breeze chilled the air.

  “Were you going to say goodnight?”

  My hand flew to my chest as I sucked in a gasp. “Maddie! Jesus, you scared me.” I swallowed as Maddie’s silhouette moved closer to me. The details of her face came into clearer view as she moved within a few feet of me, the worry in her gaze apparent in the soft white glow. “How did you beat me here?”

  “I saw you leaving and excused myself to go inside.” She gave me a sly smile as she nudged her chin toward the window. “Thought I’d take the shortcut.”

  I smacked her shoulder lightly. “You climbed over here? You could have gotten hurt!” Maddie grabbed my arms and pulled me into her. Her body became flush with mine and for a moment every worry in my mind disappeared.

  “I couldn’t have you leave without saying goodnight.”

  I pulled away slightly and looked up at her. The small smile on her lips contrasted her worried green eyes. “Sorry. I wanted to but…” I bit my lip not knowing what to say. I wanted to tell her what happened with Rebecca but the words wouldn’t come. We had just started this relationship. We weren’t even out yet and already I felt like her being with me was putting so much strain on her career.

  “But what?” She asked. I shook my head as I placed a small kiss on her lips.

  “Nothing,” I whispered. She stared at me for a long time trying to decipher my word into my true meaning.

  “Are you okay?” I forced a smile and was ready to lie and say ‘fine’ but my lips quivered as the dam broke. Watery eyes betrayed my mind as I grabbed her and tucked my head into her. “Hey, shhhh,” she whispered. “It’s okay sweetie. Whatever it is, it’s okay.” Her hands soothed my back in circles as my hiccupped breaths came in quick spurts. The weight of the night flowed through my every pore until finally I felt as though some of it had been relieved from my body. I pulled away, wiping my eyes as Maddie studied me carefully.

  “Why are you crying?” She helped me remove the tears, the pads of her thumbs wiping away any evidence of the hurt. I breathed out heavily and reached in my back pocket, pulling Rebecca’s card out and handing it over to Maddie.

  Maddie studied it carefully and looked back up to me. “This is the girl we met at the beach right?”

  I nodded to confirm her suspicion. “She was at the party tonight…” I chewed on my lip as Maddie’s eyes turned into slits.

  “Did she try anything with you?” I squeezed Maddie’s arm as I shook my head.

  “No, it’s nothing like that…I almost wish it was that easy.” I ran a hand through my hair as I stepped away from Maddie. I made my way over to the window and closed it, listening to the muffled laughter of Maddie’s ongoing party in the next yard. Closing the curtains, I turned to her, my arms wrapped around me. “She knows.”

  Maddie looked at me warily. “How?”

  “The PR company that Josh hired sent her as their photographer. She managed to snap a few shots of us looking more than friendly.” My frustration started to rise as I remembered the pictures. How could anyone be so cold as to use love as blackmail?

  “More than friendly? Shit.” Maddie stepped over to my bed and sat down heavily. “How bad?” She looked up at me and I shook my head.

  “Bad. It’s obvious. Even though we weren’t doing anything…you could tell we’re more than just friends.” I bit my lip waiting.

  “What does she want?” The surprise in my face was evident but then again it shouldn’t have been. Maddie was more in tune to the goings on of the Hollywood tabloids.

  “She wants an interview.” I said softly
. Maddie exhaled loudly and her shoulders seemed to relax with the news.

  “That’s it?” She smiled widely. “I’ll give her whatever she wants. In fact, I’ll call Josh right now to set something up…” Maddie pulled her phone from her pocket and I rushed over, sitting next to her and stilling her already dialing fingers. I grasped them and shook my head.

  “She wants an interview with Randle Gooding.”

  Her breath caught in her throat. “That’s ridiculous. Who the hell does she think she is?” Maddie stood up quickly as she started to pace the length of my room. “I mean…no one has ever gotten an interview with you. What makes her think I even have the authority to get one for her?”

  I shrugged my shoulder. “She figures the picture is enough to get you to do what she wants.”

  “Hmph. Fat chance, I mean it was going to come out anyways. I guess there’s no time like the present.” I watched Maddie as she chewed her lip, a trait that she must have picked up from me as I was usually the one to do that when I’m stressed.

  “Well, maybe we should consider it…the interview I mean.” I shyly looked up at Maddie already knowing what she was going to say.

  “Nope. Not even a chance.”

  “Maddie, think about it. Really. You can’t afford to be outed right now, especially before the movie has even started production. It doesn’t make any sense.”

  Maddie looked at me as if I had just spoken gibberish. “And it makes sense for you to out yourself when you’ve spent so long trying to stay anonymous? And then what happens when I come out after the shoot is over and all of a sudden Randle Gooding is actually ‘Madeline Fields’ girlfriend?” Maddie groaned as she sat back down on the bed and placed an arm over her eyes. A part of me recognized that I hadn’t even thought about the last thing Maddie said. That was definitely the truth. There would be a lot of talk if I came out as Randle and then Maddie’s girlfriend. But the main part of the story was that she just called me her girlfriend. I’m Maddie’s girlfriend. Holy. Shit.

  “Why do you have that goofy grin on your face?” I looked down at Maddie as I tilted my head, my teeth now chewing my bottom lip in contemplation.

  “You said I was your girlfriend.” She stared at me as her previous frustration calmed and her shyness reared.

  “Well, I said it in the heat of the moment. You know? I mean, if it’s too soon…which I don’t think it is…but if it is for you…we don’t have to label it or anything…I mean we’ve been dating for a little over a month only and…” I stopped Maddie with a finger to her lips. While I thought her rambling was endearing, I was afraid that she would pass out from the amount of blood and heat that was stagnant on her face.

  “Maddie, I want.” I smiled at her as I felt her smile from around my finger.

  “You do?”

  I nodded and she grabbed me, surrounding me with her warmth and comfort. I snuggled into her as I felt her chest and the beat of her heart rise and fall in synchronous rhythm.

  “What are we going to do?” I whispered, bringing ourselves back to our predicament.

  “How long did she give us?” Maddie’s voice was deep coming from the hollow of her chest and I sighed.

  “Two weeks from today.” Maddie squeezed me as she gently rolled me over and peered down. “We don’t have to figure anything out tonight. Instead, do you know what I want to do?”

  I swallowed thickly, staring up at dimming green eyes. I felt Maddie place a strand of my dark hair behind my ear as she leaned down and gave me a whispered kiss. When she pulled away she wiggled her eyebrows. “I want to watch a movie with my girlfriend and just lay here holding her until we fall asleep.”

  Can you swoon while you’re laying down? Because I swear I just did. “That sounds amazing.” Maddie smiled at my answer and gave me another chaste kiss on the cheek.

  Chapter 15

  If it’s one thing about Maddie it’s that she has always loved movies. I remember her being able to name every actor in every movie we ever watched, even the supporting characters and even some of the extras. “They’ve worked so hard to get that small part, why not give them the credit of knowing who they are?” she would say to me. I would just chuckle at her enthusiasm but deep down I had wanted to tell her how astonishing I thought she was.

  But now, I found a new favorite thing while watching movies with Maddie – snuggling. I never thought of myself as someone who liked snuggling. On the contrary, I felt as though the women I had been with before were smothering me with their tight hold. But with Maddie, it felt right, it felt natural. I wonder if she thinks I’m smothering her. My hand stilled on the top of her shirt where I was aimlessly rubbing the fabric. The sudden thought made me tense slightly and I readjusted myself to move further back. As soon as I did though, Maddie’s left hand pushed me in closer to her and remained on my lower back. The act made me smile as scooted in closer to her warm body, positioning my hand exactly where it was before. I really need to stop assuming things.

  We had only made it about a half hour in when that same hand started to rub my back. It was innocent, I’m sure, but the more her hand traced the threads of my top on my back, the more my body tingled with the start of arousal. I tried to stay focused on the movie, but the only thing I could focus on was how her fingers would trace the hem of my shirt, barely dip underneath to touch my bare back and then retreat to the safety of the cool fabric.

  My skin was on fire, my heart was racing and I suddenly became aware of Maddie’s heart beating faster as well. With my ear below her ribcage, I could tell that it just wasn’t the excitement of the movie that was making her breathe harder.

  I wanted to look up at her, to silently tell her that I wanted more. I wanted to kiss her lips and feel her tongue glide against my own but there was also a suspenseful tease to the way this was starting to play out. As she would dip underneath my shirt I would find the smooth, taught skin under her own. Rubbing my thumb dangerously close to the hem of her skirt, dipping underneath the waistband slightly, slowly and then back up. We kept our fingers dancing on each other’s skin for what seemed like hours until her hand traced under the hem of my shirt and up my side until she stopped at the swell of my breast. I felt a rush of arousal flood me as the electricity traveled from her fingers down to my lower back and settle low in my stomach and then further down. When the spark ignited at my center my own hand unknowingly grasped Maddie’s hip and I pulled her closer into me, arching my back, giving her permission to keep traveling.

  I heard a low moan reverberate from her throat which was my undoing. I looked up at Maddie finally, my hand still grasping her side, my thumb so close to where I wanted to touch her the most and as her dark green eyes met mine my resolve ended. I lifted my head slowly and she met me in the middle, our lips finding each other in a sweet release of want. Her tongue was warm and wet and slid so easily against my own that I thought I might come just from her kiss.

  Or maybe I would come from the way she was gliding her hands against my back, or how her hips thrusted upwards to meet my own with every beat of our bodies. Her breath was ragged as I took her pulse point between my lips, licking along the length of her neck up to her earlobe. She gasped and pulled into me hard when I took it between my teeth, lightly nipping at the bud. It wasn’t long until I felt my hands travel the length of her body and up her shirt finally stopping at the swell of her breast. My breath hitched as I palmed her fully, delicately tracing the outline of her laced bra and dipping my fingers underneath.

  “Oh god,” Maddie moaned as I finally found her nipple. Her hip thrusted upwards as I drew the cup of her bra down, her breast now uncovered to allow me to fully grasp it. I squealed suddenly as I felt strong arms take my hips and flip me on my back. In less than a second Maddie was on top of me, straddling me with her lean legs. I clenched as I felt the damp silk of her underwear press against the bottom of my stomach. Her hands removed my shirt and then my bra. My chest heaved at the sudden coolness of the room against my hot skin. She bi
t her bottom lip as those skilled fingers explored my stomach, tracing up the planes of my ribs and then tracing around the swell of my breast. She was teasing me and smiled as my back arched up, wanting her to touch my nipples but instead just circling around them.

  “Maddie,” I groaned. Our gazes locked as sudden rush of arousal flooded me. The look in her eyes told me more than any words she had ever said. With a deep, shuddering gasp, I felt her fingers take hold of me and that rush of arousal turned into a flowing waterfall. The feeling of hot breath and warm lips was replaced by her fingers and grasped her hips hard, needing to feel the friction of her against me. I had never been so turned on in my life, and my head was dizzy with the pleasure she was giving me.

  I watched her take my breast fully in her mouth and the moan that vibrated against my skin had me come undone. My hands travelled up the length of her thighs under her skirt. I spread her legs more, an action that pushed her deeper onto my stomach and I felt her grind into me harder. My hands continued their movements until I felt that silky underwear. Moving it to the side, I languidly took one long stroke up her wet center. Her mouth opened as hot breath bathed my wet nipple. Her eyes locked onto mine as I stroked her slowly again. I was sure that my eyes were as dark as hers as I felt her arousal surround my finger.

  She licked her lips as she took possession of my mouth. Her tongue dipping between my lips as my finger finally dipped deep within her. Her back arched as she tore herself away from me, her hips starting to pump to the rhythm that my hand had set. With every thrust downward my finger was enveloped more by her walls. She brought me closer in as I added another finger. She sat up straight as I watched her ride my hand underneath her skirt, her own hands lying flat on my stomach as her hips rocked back and forth slowly. I forced myself not to speed the rhythm up, especially when her walls tightened against my fingers. I curled them inside of her as a low guttural moan escaped her lips. Her eyes were hooded but still locked on mine. “B…” her lips parted against my name as she started to pick up the rhythm. My mouth dried as I watched Maddie take me in fully, grind hard against my palm and then do it again. She was so wet, so warm that I felt the stirrings of my own orgasm start. I swear that I would be able to fall just from watching her. She sucked in a shuddering breath as I felt her thighs clench against my sides and watched her back arch beautifully. Her muscles contracted tightly against my fingers as she shuddered a breath of my name out her lips and then fall down against me.