I had never felt anything like it and all I could think was that I wanted more.
He continued to move slowly, allowing me to become accustomed to the feeling; he seemed delighted by the deep guttural utterances coming from my body. I sounded alien to my own ears. He slipped his hand up to my breast and groped it as I started getting more into it; I began to push back against him. That encouraged him to increase his speed and, once he did, he encircled my chest with his arm and he drew my body back towards him. As he quickened his pace, he twisted and pulled at my clit and pressed against it with his thumb. I was writhing and shaking. He slid a hand up my body and tilted my head slightly so that his mouth could reach mine. He let his tongue delve into my mouth as he thrust up deeply inside of me, grunted loudly, and came. I groaned and shuddered as another orgasm enveloped me.
“Fuck,” we moaned in unison.
As his grip on me loosened, I collapsed forward onto the bed. Tristan fell against me and after a few seconds, he moved off of me to one side. He still had his eyes closed as I snuggled up next to him and laid my head against his chest. First, I could feel his heart beat as his chest rose and fell rapidly. Then, I could feel the change in his breathing as it went from desperate and ragged gasps to the calm and even breathing of someone in a peaceful slumber. I closed my eyes and in seconds, I was asleep as well.
Chapter Ten
Tristan
I woke up with a screaming headache and a long strand of dark hair across my face. I moved the hair and then realized I had a strand in my mouth as well. Once I pulled it out, I realized that there shouldn’t be any long, dark hair in my face at all.
Shit! I fell asleep and let her spend the night.
Never mind that she was the best piece of ass I’d had in years—I didn’t want her getting all emotional and attached and thinking this was anything more than it was: an occasional, mind-blowing fuck. I didn’t have the patience for all that other shit that women wanted. The first thing they always tried to do was change me. Subtle little hints that they thought I drank too much or maybe snort too much coke. I’d gone through all of that shit first with my grandma, and then with that bitch of a manager we had back in the day. They thought rehab would fix me, but I never thought that I was broken. I tried it their way for a while, wanting to please everyone, but no matter what I did, someone always wanted more. I finally decided that the only person I needed to answer to was myself, and that I didn’t have a problem with alcohol or drugs; they were the ones with the problem.
I looked over at the dark haired beauty asleep next to me. She was a surprise all right. I would have thought this one would have been meek and shy, but once she got fired up she was wild-cat in the sack. I liked that, but I still didn’t want her thinking this was going to be a relationship or some stupid shit like that. They were all the same, and once she thought she had a right, she’d be on my back like the rest of them. I pulled my arm out from underneath her too fast, nearly rolling her off onto the floor.
She jerked her big eyes open and looked at me. It took her a few seconds to remember where she was, I think. She looked at me and then around the room, all disoriented, then suddenly she smiled.
That wasn’t a good sign. The next thing she’d want to do was talk and ask me, “Where is this going?” Fuck that. This was going nowhere, but I wasn’t in the mood to have that conversation. It was time for the little vixen to go home.
“Good morning,” she said in a sleepy voice. I felt my cock twitch at the sound of it, but I had to ignore the horny bastard and let my upper head stay in control of this one.
“Hey,” I said. “You should be getting home.” I didn’t see the point in dragging it out.
She looked at me like I had suddenly grown an extra head right in front of her, or like I’d punched her in the gut. I guess she’d never been kicked out first thing in the morning before. She didn’t look like the type of girl to have many one night stands. I knew it was different with me. Girls got into that groupie mode and, naughty or nice, they wanted to fuck me. I was trying to be nice. It would have been worse if I’d fucked her again and then kicked her out, right?
“You want me to go?” she asked, struggling to unwrap herself from the sheets and sit up.
“Yeah, sorry,” I said. I don’t think I sounded sorry, but whatever. “I have some rehearsing to do today. Big week, you know. I’m a finalist.” I tried the last part with a grin. I think it fell flat.
She narrowed her eyes at me and said, “Yeah, I know.”
To her credit, she was at least not one of those that clung and cried. She pulled her fine ass self-up out of bed and with her head held high, she stormed naked out into the living room. I hopped up and followed her for no other reason than my own amusement. I stood in the doorway watching as she got dressed. She was so hot that for a second, I wondered if she’d do a line with me if I asked. Then we could have some more of that mind-numbing sex. Then I remembered that I only had a little left; I didn’t really want to share.
She had on her jeans and once she finished putting on her shirt she bent down to pick up her purse. I was trying to think of something nice to say so she didn’t think I was a total dick. I finally decided that it didn’t really matter. I honestly didn’t care if she thought I was a dick or not. I watched her leave, slamming the door behind her without as much as a good-bye. Oh well, I thought as I went to find my jeans and fish the vial out of the pocket.
Chapter Eleven
Elly
We were off on Monday, which turned out to be a good thing. Once I’d gotten home from Tristan’s and showered, scrubbing every inch of my body twice, I didn’t really have the energy or the motivation to do anything but lay in my bed the rest of the day. The rest of the crew was gearing up to start heading out East and those of us staying behind would be free for a month and a half or so.
While I wallowed in my bed, Susie knocked a few times but I ignored her. I knew she meant well, but she was going to want to know how things went and I wasn’t in the mood to either lie or admit what a skank I had become. I couldn’t believe that I was actually having sex with a guy like that. If you put aside the fact that he was Tristan Rogers and once upon a time he was famous, there was really nothing else there. He was obviously self-centered, from the looks of his place he was both broke and a slob, I was sure he was an alcoholic, and I suspected that he was using a lot of drugs as well. What the hell was I thinking even going over there in the first place? I never should’ve gone to the bar the first night.
The sex was good...no, great. I hated to admit it, but there was no way I could deny it. It had been the best I’d ever had, both times. Had it been worth the shot to my self-esteem though? My face still stung every time I re-lived the humiliation of him telling me to leave. Not a good-bye, not a kiss, not a fucking, just a, “Thank you, have a nice day.” Who acts like that? I can’t even imagine treating someone that way, much less someone that you’d just had sex with and slept cuddled up next to all night long. God, I wished I’d just left last night.
Around three in the afternoon, my phone rang. It was Jake. Why was he calling me? I thought I was supposed to call him? He probably got my number from someone working on the show.
“Hello,” I said, trying to sound winded. That way if he wanted to do that coffee today and talk about my career, I could say I was right in the middle of my workout…or something. I didn’t think that I could go out in public and act like a normal person that day.
“Hi, Elly, it’s Jake Gilley.”
“Hi, how are you?”
“I’m doing well, but I wanted to apologize for not calling you this weekend. It’s crazy right before we go on the road. Anyways, I thought maybe we could get that coffee tomorrow before I leave for Oregon. My plane takes off around eleven…I think, so maybe we could meet around nine?”
I sat up in bed, trying to switch gears from thinking about my horrible morning to thinking about my shiny career. The one that I’d put on the line last night.
I cleared my throat and said, “Tomorrow morning would be perfect.”
“Great!” he said, sounding happy. “How about we meet at the Starbucks off of Grand, across from the library?”
“I will be there,” I told him. “Thank you, Jake.”
“Looking forward to it,” he said. I hung up wondering why men like Jake, as attractive as I found him, didn’t ever seem to be the ones who really excited me. Was I one of those women who thrived on the drama in her life? I looked over at the photograph on my nightstand and my eyes filled with tears. I reached over as I sat the phone down and turned his face to the wall. I knew it was ridiculous, but I didn’t want him to see me like that.
I let myself ruminate over it all most of that entire day. I hadn’t eaten and all I had to drink was half a bottle of water that had been on my nightstand. Finally, at about eight in the evening, I was starving and I couldn’t wait any longer. I found my phone and ordered a pizza. When I heard the doorbell I put on my robe and I went out to pay for it.
Susie was sitting in the living room, studying again. She looked up at me and must have seen on my face or in my eyes that I absolutely didn’t want to talk about it. God bless her, she got up and poured us some diet coke and then ate pizza with me and made small talk about our classes and things that were going on with her and her boyfriend. We talked about registering for fall semester and about volunteering to help with the harvest festival—normal things. She didn’t utter the creep’s name or make any mention of our date.
* * *
Tuesday morning, I was feeling like a new woman. I was up at dawn and in the shower, excited about my meeting with Jake. He seemed really interested in helping me move forward in my career, and in this town, a helping hand that’s already grounded in the business was golden. I dressed carefully, wearing a pair of light brown slacks and a sleeveless tan silk shirt. I wore a pair of lacy-looking, tan Tom’s on my feet and put on just a bit of make-up. I pulled my hair back into a long ponytail at the nape of my neck, and, although it was warm outside, I slipped on the jacket that went with the pants. It was short-sleeves too, so it shouldn’t make me sweat too much.
When I went out to the kitchen, Susie let out a whistle. “Where are you going all decked out?” she asked.
“I have a coffee meeting with Jake Gilley,” I told her.
“Shut up!”
I laughed. “Nope,” I told her with a grin. “He thinks he may be able to help me further my career.”
“Good for you. Just be careful.”
“Careful of what?”
“You know how this town is, nothing is ever free. Make sure you’re willing to pay whatever the price is that he’s tagged onto this help before you accept.”
“I don’t think he wants anything,” I told her.
She smiled and said, “Your naivety is cute. You want some breakfast?”
“No,” I said. Suddenly I was feeling sick to my stomach again.
* * *
Jake was waiting for me when I got to Starbucks. He had on a long sleeved silver shirt with the sleeves rolled up past his forearms and a dark gray pair of slacks. As usual, he was impeccably groomed and he looked good enough to eat. I noticed a few of the women around us glancing at him like they wanted to do just that, and glancing at me, wondering what my secret was.
“Hi, Elly,” he said, standing up.
“Hi,” I said, more shyly than I’d meant to. Suddenly, I was star-struck and I didn’t know what to say.
“What can I get for you to drink?”
“Um, just a regular coffee is fine,” I told him.
“Okay, have a seat and I’ll be right back.” I sat down and watched him go up to the counter. The barista was a young girl, probably not much over eighteen, but she was flirting with him shamelessly. He didn’t seem to notice, or mind. I was sure that he was used to it. Anyone who looks that good would have to be.
He came back with the coffee and sat down. I thanked him and then he said, “I have to tell you, Elly, since we talked the other day, I’ve done some research on you. Your professors all speak very highly of you and your GPA is better than mine ever was. You did an outstanding job with the first round of the show, your people skills are great, and you seem to me to have a lot of integrity.”
I was blown away by his praise. I could feel the color rising in my cheeks as I said, “Thank you, all of that means a lot coming from you.”
“You’re just so young, and it’s rare to find someone your age who is so focused these days.”
My mind flashed back to the torrid events of Sunday night and my mouth went dry as I tried to convince myself that no one would ever need to know about that. I’d definitely gotten Tristan out of my system.
“I’m really excited to be working on this show. It’s an amazing opportunity and I’m gaining a lot of experience. I’m really grateful to you for allowing me to do this.”
He smiled and said, “Again, you’re doing a great job. What I wanted to discuss with you is this; you know that after the finals are over and the winner is crowned that they commit to a year of touring before their album is released and then get their money and become a free agent, right?”
“Yes, of course.” I said.
“Well, I’m not sure how you would feel about traveling, but I think you’d make a great P.A. for the show on the road.”
I was stunned into absolute silence. I couldn’t have formed a word at that moment if my life depended on it. Jake saw the look on my face and chuckled. It brought me out of my trance and I finally said, “Wow, I’m sorry, I just don’t know what to say. That’s…I mean it’s an incredible offer. I still have a semester left to finish my degree. I think it’s only fair to tell you that…”
Still smiling he said, “Yes, I’m aware of that, Elly. I was thinking about it, actually, and as much as I’d like you to accept my offer, I wouldn’t want to impede your education. I do know that USC offers some of the classes online. I don’t know what you have left to do, but that may be an option if you’d be interested in going on the road with us.”
“I would, yes. Wow…I’m sorry. I’m just so blown away by the offer.”
He laughed and said, “Get used to it. Something about you makes me think that you’re going to go far in this town. That means a lot of good offers are yet to be had. Just keep that level head on your shoulders and don’t let this business ruin you, okay?”
“Absolutely,” I said. I could feel myself grinning so wide that my cheeks actually hurt.
Jake left to catch his flight and he didn’t ask me for a single thing in return for his kindness. In spite of all I had already been through at my age, I still liked to believe that people are basically good at heart.
* * *
The next eight weeks flew by. I finished my summer class and I got an A in spite of losing my focus and not studying much there for a while. I enrolled in the online course for the fall, just in case, and I didn’t see or hear from Tristan, which was a blessing. I was so over him, and my only regret about work starting back up would be that I’d have to lay eyes on him again. I wasn’t afraid I’d give in again; he had humiliated me enough that I could firmly say that I didn’t want anything to do with him.
I got a big paycheck from the first rounds, and I paid off some bills and bought some new, professional clothes; things were looking up.
We had a meeting scheduled for the day after the crew got back and the day before we re-started production in L.A. I got there early and hung out with Molly and Keith and got caught up on what had happened on the road.
“So Lena’s gone,” Molly told me.
“Lena, the stage manager, Lena?” I asked.
“Yep, the one who was married to Bob, the run crew manager.”
“She was married too? Jeez, you guys were only on the road for eight weeks. What happened?”
“She got fired for screwing one of the contestants,” Keith said.
“Oh my god, are you serious?” My chest suddenly felt t
ight and I was afraid I was going to have to explain why I suddenly had an anxiety attack.
“Well, that was the rumor anyways. No one actually saw them together, so who knows what the truth really is,” Molly said, shrugging.
“If they didn’t have a pretty good idea it was true, they couldn’t have fired her over it though, right?” I asked.
“Bob caught them making out in his RV in the set parking lot in Cincinnati. He wasn’t going to say anything at first, I guess, but then she started telling him that she wanted a divorce and she was in love with this other guy. She’s thirty-two and the guy is nineteen. The whole thing is crazy. Anyways, Clint and Jake met privately with the kid and he apparently confessed to the whole thing.”
“Wow,” I said, running through how many awful ways they could find out I’d slept with Tristan in my head.
“Aw, don’t look so depressed,” Molly told me. “I’m sure there will be plenty of scandal right here in L.A. Other than that, you didn’t miss a thing. The travel was grueling and we didn’t get to see any sights other than the inside of a warehouse or hotel conference room and Diva was in a bitchy mood the whole time, reaming out the entire crew.”
I forced a smile and said, “Glad I missed it then, but it’s good to be back to work.”
Clint and his assistant filed in and he called the meeting to order. Without mentioning names or job titles, like Molly and Keith had, he went over what they’d just told me. I saw poor Bob slump in his chair as if he was trying to make himself invisible. Clint emphasized the fact that one contestant had forfeited his chance at all the cash and fame and the employee had basically forfeited her career. Hollywood was a harsh place. If you were an actress or actor or even a model, one of the pretty people, you could get away with a lot; those of us behind the scenes, however, not so much. Once you were blackballed, you would play hell getting another production job in L.A.
Clint wrapped up the meeting and then we were in a scramble to get things ready for the final rounds. The first one that day was at ten, or as soon as the judges decided to shuffle in. The bad thing about being back in L.A. was that all three of them lived there; getting them out of a hotel room was much less trouble than prying them away from their mansions.
Dirty SEAL (A Navy SEAL Romance) (The Maxwell Family) Page 29