“How does that make you feel?”
“No. We’re not playing shrink today. Let’s just enjoy the show.” She settled back in her seat and took several deep breaths, trying to calm her jumping nerves.
Her mind leaped to the two offers for set design. She wasn’t about to put that money into the shoe fund just quite yet. She needed to see if the offers were genuine or just people being polite. Though the prospect of working for them was exciting.
The seats were filling up fast. A discreet glance at Jake’s watch told her the show would be starting in less then ten minutes. She was going to enjoy her evening with Jake and not think about anything else.
* * *
During the after-party, the ballroom was alive with music, flashing lights, the clink of china and glasses and a hundred people on the dance floor gyrating to the loud music. Waitstaff moved between tables, balancing trays and flutes of champagne and other drinks.
The beautiful people of the music industry were all having a great time, especially Merry. Jake sat at his table, hardly able to take his eyes off her. In her dragon dress, as she called it, she looked almost demure compared to the other women who in various states of revealing décolletage seemed overblown.
Merry’s long-sleeved gown covered her from neck to midthigh without revealing a piece of skin other than her long legs. And yet she was the sexiest woman at the party. Merry didn’t need to show skin to be sexy. Her self-confidence showed in the classy look of her dress and the matching shoes. The other women in the room, no matter how wealthy or famous, didn’t even begin to compare to her.
Daryl and Merry were on the crowded dance floor and Jake could barely contain the spurt of jealousy he felt. They looked good together, with their easy camaraderie and graceful moves. Merry was laughing and looked as though she was thoroughly enjoying herself.
Victor Taylor slid into the empty chair next to Jake. “You haven’t taken your eyes off her for hours.”
“She is my date,” Jake said.
“How many years have we known each other?” Vic took a sip of his champagne. “I’ve met some of the women you’ve dated. And trust me. She’s more than just a date.”
Merry twirled around, the hem of her dress flaring and showing more of her beautiful legs. She tilted her head back and closed her eyes, her body swaying with the music.
Jake thought about that for a moment. “When I first met her, I was so prepared to dislike her that finding out she’s not some psycho ex-celebrity trying to get back into the public eye has thrown me off my stride.”
“Maybe somebody has become a tad too jaded about their profession.”
Jake twisted to look at his friend. “What are you saying?”
Vic glanced thoughtfully at Merry and then back to Jake. “As long as I’ve known you, you’ve always stuck to really safe women. Women like you, committed to their career and, well...dull.”
“Are you saying I’m dull?”
“I’m saying you think you like dull. And Merry isn’t dull.”
“No, since I’ve known her, my life has been sort of like being on one of my dad’s roller coasters.”
“You told me once you didn’t like roller coasters.” Vic took an olive from the table’s vegetable centerpiece. “Have you changed your mind?”
The music had changed to a waltz and Daryl’s hands seemed to be all over Merry except where they should be.
“Maybe,” Jake finally answered.
“Then you need to get her away from Daryl. That man still uses women like hankies. Go dance with her, bro.” Vic shoved Jake out of his chair.
Jake stepped through the dancers until he reached Daryl. He tapped Daryl on the shoulder and when the man looked up, Jake smiled and said, “My turn.”
Merry smiled at him and walked into his arms, her body pressed against his as he led her into the first step of the waltz and whirled her around.
“Are you thinking about dating him again?” Jake asked with a tilt of his head at Daryl Wicks, who’d already found another partner.
“No,” Merry said. “He’s hard on the women he dates. And frankly, he just wants to date me so he can dump me.”
“That’s a little cynical,” Jake said.
“You’re probably right. Daryl hasn’t found the right woman yet, and I know I’m not her.”
She leaned her cheek against his shoulder, and he reveled in the sensation of her lean body against his. He could stay this way all night. The feel of her in his arms was so right, so...perfect. He wanted the dance to go on forever. He wanted to do more than just dance. He wanted more than a kiss, more than a moment of having her in his arms. He wanted to make love to her, to feel her beneath him in the throes of passion.
Jake was so startled at the trajectory of his thoughts, he almost stopped dancing.
“Let’s get out of here,” he said.
She let him lead her back to the table. She grabbed her purse, and with her hand tightly in his, he led her out of the ballroom, through the hotel foyer and out into the cool November night.
Chapter 10
Merry couldn’t believe she’d asked him in for a nightcap. She’d been even more surprised when he’d accepted. He’d dismissed the limo, saying he’d get a cab home, and now Jake sat in her living room, his tuxedo jacket neatly folded over the arm of the sofa and a glass of wine in his hand. She’d removed her shoes and neatly tucked them in a corner. She knelt in front of the fireplace and started a fire. She sat down on the fuzzy rug she kept there, and he joined her.
The fire flickered across his face. Something in his dark eyes sent her pulse racing and her heart pounding until she was breathless.
He wasn’t taking a cab home. He was spending the night. And the thought of what was about to happen made her knees weak and her palms hot.
“I like your house,” he said, looking around. “You have excellent taste in art.”
“It’s all mine,” she replied. “I started drawing when I was barely out of diapers and as I grew older, I took a drawing pad and pencils with me everywhere I went. I have boxes of drawings in the attic.” When she’d bought her house, she’d delved deeply into the arts and crafts period and at first created artworks to fit it. Then she’d fallen in love with Erté, and even though his art was classified as art deco, she loved the contrast between his lithographs and her furniture. Her own art began to reflect her love of his style.
His eyebrows went up. He tilted his head and half closed his eyes as he studied each canvas.
“I have more in the bedroom.”
“I want to see them...eventually.” He grinned at her.
She wanted to tease, to tantalize him. She ached to touch his skin, to run her fingers over the curve of each muscle.
“Thank you for this evening.” The warmth of his knee pressed against hers. Heat exploded through her, spiraling down her spine in a burst of passion that made her gasp. “I enjoyed myself very much.”
He set his wine down on a nearby table and then took her hand. “For a moment, I thought I was going to lose you to the media.” He brought her fingers to his mouth and kissed the tips.
“Not a chance.” Her skin tingled. She almost snatched her hand back at the flare of desire that touching him roused in her. “Have you finally decided I’m not going to hurt your father?”
“I’ve decided I want to kiss you.” He slid his arms around her and pulled her to him. He leaned against a chair flanking the fireplace and gathered her close to him. She closed her eyes, taking in the feel of his body next to hers, his fingers on her skin.
Goosebumps rose on her arms. Her breath caught in her throat. His lips were warm and soft against her; his breath fanned across her cheek. She breathed deeply of his scent, like a forest after a rain.
A fire started deep in her stomach, radiating outward. She gasped at the strength of her passion, of her desire to grab him and tear off his clothes.
His fingers trailed gently down her neck to the swell of her breasts beneath the soft fabric of h
er dress.
He parted her lips, his tongue sliding against hers, his breath sweet. Heat flooded her.
“You are so soft.” He nipped her ear, his tongue twirling around the lobe.
She shivered. Her breasts grew tight against her dress and heat curled its way across her skin. Her fingers started unbuttoning his shirt. She’d watched a TV show where the heroine seduced the hero by tearing his shirt off. Merry called it naked-chest seduction. The wild, uninhibited part of her wanted to tear Jake’s shirt off, but the practical part of her said he’d have nothing to wear home later. She almost giggled at the oddness of her thoughts.
“And you are—” she ran her hand over his warm chest “—smooth.” She flicked a nipple and it grew taut.
He kissed her again, so deeply she felt it all the way to her toes. She felt so alive, so in need.
He slid his hands down to the hem of her dress and slowly inched it up her legs exposing her black silk panties. She leaned away to allow him to remove it completely. He folded the dress carefully, as though preserving it for the distant future. He draped it over the arm of the chair.
“I like black lace,” he said, sliding his fingers under her bra and testing the hooks.
She’d file that away for later. She pushed the sides of his shirt away and rested her head against him. She could hear the wild beat of his heart, matching the crazy thump of her own.
She couldn’t remember how, but soon they were both naked and lying in front of the fire, curled up on the rug. His erection was rigid against her hip, his fingers swirling around her nipples and brushing against the undersides of her breasts, which had grown heavy and full. He slid down her body to kiss each nipple.
A flame of desire so intense grew from her core, and she cried out as his finger slid between the folds of her sex. Oh, God. Oh, God, she thought, panting with need and the passion of her growing orgasm.
“Protection?” she asked. She should have asked earlier.
“Taken care of.” Then, gently, he parted her knees and slid between them, the hardness of his erection nudging against her core, and began to enter. Waves of pleasure crested as her muscles contracted around him. Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. She threw her head back as he shuddered inside her. His body went rigid and hers seemed to shatter into a multitude of orgasms.
* * *
Jake couldn’t believe he was finally where he wanted to be—in Merry’s arms, touching the delicate perfection of her body. This exquisitely beautiful woman was finally his.
Having her on his arm at the awards show, surrounded by the most beautiful people in the world, had left him feeling as though he were walking on a cloud. The fact that she knew so many people and they remembered her with fondness had filled him with pride. She had chosen to be with him, and she was with him now. He had no doubt she could have had her pick of any number of men tonight. He had seen them watching her. One man had even murmured to Jake that he’d had a crush on Merry since he’d first seen her. Jake had been surprised. Somehow he had thought that his own crush on her had been unique, and to find out others had felt the same way surprised him.
Merry stirred in his arms. Her soft flesh hot against his brought him back to the present. He pressed a kiss on her brow. Heat rose inside him as he ran his hand down the side of her chest and up under the swell of her breast.
“Hmm,” she said. “That was amazing.”
Amazing wasn’t the word he would have used. Incredible. Miraculous. He felt himself growing hard again. He didn’t know what was going to happen tomorrow, but he knew right now what would happen next. As much as he enjoyed the comfortable, fluffy rug and the fire, he really wanted to be somewhere a little more conducive to making proper love to her.
She pushed away from him and stood, holding out her hands. “Come on. I love the fire and this rug as much as anything, but I know a place where we can be a lot more comfortable.”
“You were reading my mind.”
“Definitely.” A mischievous twinkle showed in her brown eyes.
He let her draw him to his feet and followed her into the bedroom.
* * *
Merry sat in a lawn chair, her legs tucked up under her, a cup of coffee cradled in her hands. She wore white capri pants and a blue silk top with little white Ferragamo sandals she’d found at one of the designer outlet stores in Cabazon last summer. Noelle sat across from her, her laptop open. She tapped away, the keys making little clicking sounds as Noelle typed.
Noelle was dressed in a forest-green silk pantsuit with a cream silk blouse. A briefcase lay on the concrete next to her. She looked very professional with her black hair pulled back from her face in a sleek bob. She wore diamond earrings and an elegant glass hummingbird pin from her jewelry line on one lapel. She had only stopped in on her way to the airport before a flight to San Francisco to get the gossip and a bit of breakfast. Fortunately, Jake had just left.
The late-morning sun slanted across the pool and the water sparkled. A hot, dusty breeze rustled the leaves overhead. A squirrel sat on a branch watching them, tilting its head back and forth as though trying to decide if they were dangerous or not.
Behind the lattice fence, obscured by the thick wisteria, Merry could hear her neighbor’s children laughing and talking as they played in their pool. Though it was the first week of November and the days were cooling off, it was still warm enough to swim if the pool was heated. The kids next door were enjoying their last moment of heat before the winter cold settled in across the Los Angeles basin.
“Two fires,” Noelle said with a frown. “Just when I thought we’d get through fire season without any.”
Merry said nothing as she sipped her coffee, thinking about Jake and wondering what was going to happen next with him.
“And here you are,” Noelle cried. “Look who made the Who Worked the Red Carpet list.” She turned the laptop toward Merry.
Merry saw herself posed against the backdrop of other celebrities. She looked a little uncomfortable with Jake’s arm around her. The camera was pointed at her, and only a bit of Jake’s chin could be seen to one side.
She leaned forward to read the caption. Meredith Alcott, long missing from the red carpet, put in a special appearance last night at the Music Awards. She wowed the crowd in a hot little Emilio Pucci number and reminded us of how much we’ve missed her. Her shoes were Louboutin and perfectly matched to her dress. We’re definitely hoping to see more of Merry Alcott.
“That’s nice,” Merry said, her voice flat, wondering if Maddie was looking at the same photo. Maddie hated being eclipsed.
“Nice. Only nice,” Noelle said. “Sweetie, nice is for puppies. You look fabulous. Do this right, you could have a career again.”
Merry didn’t think she wanted that. Last night had been marvelous and fun. But behind all the glamour, she could hear the backbiting, the competition, the anger, the snark and the sniping.
The constant need to look young, to be on the edge, was a lot of work, and she didn’t want that for herself anymore. She didn’t want to think about losing a role to some twenty-year-old who was cuter, with perkier breasts, a firmer butt and was willing to do what she needed to get where she wanted. Merry was done with that life. She’d had a good run and enjoyed the journey, but her life was so much more sane now. Maddie had always told her she was too nice. Merry always preferred nice over snarky.
“I like what I have. You know how I feel about crazy. Seven years with Maddie was crazy enough.”
“I’m just testing you,” Noelle said with a sigh. She sipped her coffee, then finished her croissant. “I don’t want you back in that life, either. But my spidey senses are telling me that something else happened last night.” She tilted her head, her expression amused.
Merry closed her eyes, the image of Jake kissing every part of her body sending a thrill of desire through her. “I slept with him last night.”
Noelle’s coffee cup dropped to the table to clatter on the glass. “You...wh
at?” She grabbed a pile of napkins to mop up the spilled coffee. Fortunately, the cup hadn’t broken.
“I had sex with Jake last night,” Merry repeated, feeling a hot blush creep up her cheeks. Every nerve in her body relived the memory of his hot kisses, his warm body against hers, his hands stroking her skin and... She covered her face with her hand.
“You had sex with him last night! Wow!” Noelle held up her hand. “Way to end the dry spell, big sis.”
“Really?” Merry said. “Is that all you can say?”
Noelle giggled. “How do you feel about it?”
Merry stared down into the dark brown depths of her cup. She wasn’t certain what she wanted to tell her sister. “My eyes still haven’t unrolled yet.”
“Wow!” her sister repeated. “What are you going to do?”
“We’re two grown people. We had sex. We didn’t sign a Middle Eastern peace treaty.”
Noelle giggled again. “Are you going to see each other again?”
“That’s a stupid question, Noelle. We work together.”
“You know what I mean.” Noelle refilled her cup from the carafe on the table and lounged back in her chair. She lifted her face to the late-morning sun and closed her eyes. “How did he feel about it?”
“I’m thinking the man had no complaints.” Merry lowered her head so her sister couldn’t see her face or the way her cheeks burned. The memory of Jake Walters in her bed still filled her with excitement. Wonderful didn’t even begin to describe what had happened. “I don’t how to play it. Should I be cool like nothing happened? Lovey-dovey? Nonchalant? I don’t know.”
“You seem to be having a little bit of a conundrum here,” Noelle said. Merry had given her sister a new word-a-day calendar once and one of the words had been conundrum, which had become Noelle’s favorite word.
“I don’t like having those,” Merry admitted. She took a bite of her croissant and chewed it thoroughly.
“What happened this morning?”
“He fed my cat and made me breakfast.”
“Oh, there’s a double entendre there, but I’m not going to touch it,” Noelle said with a half laugh.
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