CELEB CRUSH

by Christie, Nicole

  He looks around my room as if searching for a place to start. I ignore him and walk over to my dresser to get a change of clothes. Maybe I should just lock him in the bathroom now. But how would I get him in there? I would have to drug him, I guess.

  “So, what’s next?” he asks. “What are we doing now?”

  “I’m taking a shower. Then we’re finding you a place to stay.”

  Luke puts on his best smoldering look, the one that makes girls across the internet swoon and wet themselves. “What, I’m not staying in here with you?”

  “I was actually about to suggest a nice motel, but I bet Ellen would let you stay in the mother-in-law house in the back,” I say, pointing out my window. “No one’s lived there since her mom died in her sleep in that house. We could air it out, give you some new sheets—it will be good as new. There’s a bathroom and a kitchen.”

  Luke gets up to look out the window at the little house sitting in corner of the backyard. While he’s preoccupied, I absently run my gaze over his broad shoulders and lean muscled torso, clad in his favorite blue T&C shirt. The one he never managed to get my blood out of. Yes, that’s my blood—that little rusty-looking stain right between his shoulder blades. I secretly love when he wears that shirt. It reminds me of that day he carried me over his shoulder, half-unconscious, all the way down the mountain. It was almost romantic. Well, no, it wasn’t really. Not after I threw up all down his back from the head injury.

  Luke turns back to me, pulling me out of my reverie. “It’s perfect,” he announces. “You think she’ll let me stay there?”

  It’s adorable how unsure he is about himself sometimes. “Of course,” I reply instantly. “You’re ‘Sam Langelier’. Who’s gonna tell you no?”

  “Don’t call me that. You tell me no all the time. Even though you get paid to kiss my ass.” He tilts his head to the side, considering. “How does that work again?”

  “Wrong. I get paid to save you from yourself.” I grab my clothes, giving him an enigmatic smile before I open my bedroom door. “I’m going to get ready. Try not to get in any trouble while I’m gone.”

  “Hold up a sec.” Another smirk lights up his face. “I think I should be the one to break the news to Nate about our new relationship status.”

  “What? No!” I whip around. “We don’t have to tell anyone about this, right? Right, Luke?”

  In response, he takes out his phone and starts swiping and tapping at the screen. “Get over here, Andi. I wanna send him our very first couple selfie. That’s a thing, right?”

  “Don’t you dare, Greyson!” I launch myself at him.

  He easily avoids my lunge, laughing. “Kidding! I’m just kidding, Tiger. Go take your shower, I’ll behave myself. I swear.”

  “Dick,” I mutter while Luke continues to chuckle. I start to stomp away.

  “Oh, and Andi?”

  “What?” I growl.

  Luke slingshots the black thong I thought I was still holding along with my other clothes at me. I catch it with my face. Motherfu—ugh! I yank it off and glare at him.

  He grins at me. “Wear something pretty.”

  Yeah, I’m definitely going to drug his ass.

  Chapter 7

  I don’t have any low self-esteem issues. In fact, when I was little people used to tell me how beautiful I was—and I just ate it up. I would tell all my friends that they had to do what I said because I was prettier than them, and I would be rich and famous one day so they better be nice to me. My mom finally had to sit me down and lecture me about my attitude. She said something about how pretty is as pretty does, and how if you’re rotten inside it will eventually show through on the outside no matter how good looking you are. I asked if that’s what happened to Aunt Rosa, and all the other ugly people walking around. Then she told me I need to get my ego under control or someone’s gonna come along one day and slap the pretty off my face.

  She knew what she was talking about. My mom was Miss Idaho back in her day. I inherited her wide mouth, thick wavy dark hair, and wide eyes so dark that they look like two solid circles of obsidian. Demon eyes, my mom used to say proudly. She was a little dark. The fair skin, dimples, and forehead frown, I got from my dad. I wish I got his height and metabolism, but whatever. I’m medium height, and my body’s definitely not perfect. Not like Megan and her thigh gap. I’ll wear a bikini, but I don’t want to stand next to someone like her while I’m doing it.

  I guess I could start making an effort with my appearance. It wouldn’t kill me to start wearing makeup again. I wiggle into my jeans and pull on my black t-shirt, vowing to go shopping soon.

  I heave a small sigh of relief when I find Ellen and Luke on the deck, chatting like old friends. Ellen is sitting on a wrought iron chair, smoking, while Luke is leaning against the railing, his forearms resting on the wood as he watches the ocean. The slight breeze ruffles his blonde hair and the bright morning sun illuminates his face, proving that his tanned skin is just as flawless in real life as it appears to be on film and print.

  Luke looks over his shoulder when I open the sliding glass door. The gold in his eyes dominates, making his eyes sparkle brilliantly. He looks as relaxed as I’ve ever seen him. The ocean seems to have that effect on him. He once told me that the beach was the one place where he can take deep breaths, and not feel like he’s being choked by a leash.

  Luke flashes me that megawatt smile of his, and I suddenly start to feel bad about trying to get rid of him. I’m still gonna lock him in the bathroom, though.

  “Hi, honey,” he greets me with a devilish quirk to his brow. “What’s the plan for today?”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see Ellen openly watching us. I smile back at Luke and hope it looks natural. “Actually, I was hoping you could entertain yourself this morning. I’m headed over to my aunt and uncle’s right now to talk about the wedding.”

  He turns his whole body to face me. “I could go with you,” he says smoothly. “I’d love to meet the rest of your family.”

  I make a sour face at him. “You’d be bored out of your mind, Luke. And to be honest, we won’t get anything accomplished if you’re there. I don’t know if I mentioned it before, but my cousin has a huge crush on you.”

  “Yeah?” Luke doesn’t seem particularly impressed with the information. He absently rubs his forearm as he glances around, probably keeping an eye out for crazy stalker fans.

  “Big time,” I confirm. “It’s probably better if I give everyone some advance warning before I spring you on them.”

  He responds with a small shrug. I wonder if he’s upset, but then a sly smile alights his face as he does a chin nod in my direction. “So, what about you, huh? Did you have a crush on me, too?”

  I make a scoffing noise. “No!” I practically scream.

  “Oh, come on, admit it. You had a picture of me under your pillow, and you used to kiss it every night. Am I right?”

  Ellen giggles like a giddy schoolgirl at Luke’s teasing. That’s another thing about the famous. They all must think they’re the wittiest people on earth because everyone laughs at their jokes and hangs on their every word. One day, I’m going to dare Luke to recite the names of incurable diseases to his fans—and I’ll bet they’ll be completely enthralled.

  “Maybe I did have a little crush on you,” I say with a nonchalant shrug. “But then I hit puberty and discovered real men.”

  “Ohhh.” Luke groans, pretending to take a hit.

  I smirk back at him, until I see Ellen looking at me, her head tilted in slight puzzlement. Is that not something a girlfriend would say to her boyfriend when he’s acting like a conceited ass? I should probably work on being nicer to him, just in case.

  “So, Ellen.” Luke lightly slaps the railing with the palm of his hand. “Looks like it’s you and me today. Feel like showing me around town?”

  Ellen smiles regretfully at him, shaking her head. “I’d actually love to take you to my bar, but I’m afraid your handsome mug would start
a riot.”

  “Nah, I got that covered,” he says self-assuredly. “I brought a disguise—and not just my Yankees cap,” he tells me quickly before I can open my mouth.

  “What is it?” I ask with a laugh. “A wig, or a fake moustache?”

  “Actually, I scored a prosthetic nose and chin from the set of one of my movies.” Luke looks at Ellen as he explains, gesturing to his face. “It’s awesome. I look like a totally different person when I put them on.”

  I frown at him. “I’ve never seen you wear them.”

  His eyes sparkle mischievously. “That’s ‘cause I can’t kiss you with them on, y’know? It’d be like you’re cheating on me with some other dude. That’s how different I look.”

  “Yeah, you’re probably just worried that I’ll think it’s an improvement, and I’d make you keep them on,” I retort. I pretend to be preoccupied with fixing my bun, but I’m secretly weirded out by the idea of us kissing.

  “Oh, Lucas!” Ellen suddenly exclaims. “Have you had breakfast yet? My friend, Maria has a little café right out on the bay. She makes the best chocolate cream pie you could ever imagine.”

  “Ellen,” Luke begins seriously. “I think this is the start of a beautiful relationship.”

  “Yeah, right,” she snorts, but her entire face is smiling. Then she looks over at me with narrowed eyes. “You sure you want to leave this one alone with me, Andi? I might just steal him away from you.”

  “You keep talking pie to me, and I’ll go willingly.” He winks at her.

  I pointedly look away from the two lovebirds. “Well, you two have fun flirting all day. I’m going to go…” Hang myself.

  Luke pulls his phone out of his pocket, and looks down at it with a frown. People are constantly blowing up his phone, so he usually keeps it on vibrate. I wonder who called or texted him just now? He looks pretty annoyed.

  With a sigh, he glances up at Ellen. “Hey, give me a few minutes to take care of some stuff, and change, okay? Then we can go get that pie.”

  “Well, heck, I’m gonna go get changed, too!” Ellen jumps up, spry as a spring chicken. “Gotta wear something pretty if I’m gonna have a date with a famous movie star!”

  I laugh, but she’s serious! She runs back to the house, without so much as a backward glance at me. Luke gives me a smug look.

  “Oh, shut up,” I mutter. Changing the subject, I study his face. “So, what’s up? Is everything okay?”

  I gesture to his phone. He runs a hand over his unshaven jaw, staring off into the distance. “Nah, it’s nothing really. I forgot about that schmooze dinner with Kelly and Mark Silverstein. So, remind me I have to fly out there, okay? Ivan’s gonna text you the details later.”

  “That’s the director guy, right?” I ask, taking out my own phone so I can schedule myself a reminder. “Are you gonna do the movie?”

  Luke comes over to where I’m standing, and picks up Ellen’s lighter, idly flicking it on. “Thinking about it,” he admits. Then he shrugs. “I don’t know. Kelly doesn’t think it’s a good idea—but I’ve never done the horror genre before, y’know? The premise is good, and I like Mark’s style…”

  “Can I read the script?”

  “Yeah, definitely. Let me know what you think of it.” Luke glances at his phone again, then squints back up at me. “Text me when you’re done at your aunt’s. We’ll meet up after.”

  “Maybe. Don’t sleep with my grandma.”

  “Aw, don’t be jealous.” He grins down at me. “You know you’re the only one for me, honey.”

  “Ugh,” I say distinctly. “I gotta go. See you later, I guess.”

  I move to my left to step around him, but for some reason he moves to his right so we’re in each other’s way. I go the other way, but then so does Luke. We end up doing an awkward dance, almost colliding. Finally I stop and motion for him to go. He laughs at me before going in the house.

  I stay outside a moment longer, taking deep breaths. Having Luke here is going to wind up a disaster, I’m sure of it. He wouldn’t really sleep with Ellen…would he? Nah. She totally would go for it, though. She’s old, not dead—as she always tells me. My cousin and my first boyfriend—and then my grandma and my fake boyfriend. I would never be able to show my face in this town again.

  That might not be such a bad thing.

  I fall asleep during breakfast, but it’s not my fault. People keep talking about boring shit like flowers and centerpieces. I don’t have anything helpful to contribute, so I stay quiet and eat banana nut pancakes—which, by the way, are very delicious. It sounds like they have most of it figured out, anyway. The wedding will be held at Word of Faith, the church my aunt’s been going to for years. Bran’s side of the family will take care of the food, and he has a friend who can probably help in getting a banquet room at a hotel for the reception. People from the church have volunteered to help with the decorations and entertainment. I’m in charge of running various miscellaneous errands for Megan. Yeah, that sounds like a good time.

  Megan smiles at me hesitantly. “Uh, you can pick your own dress to wear. I don’t really have a color scheme, or a preference, so…whatever you want.”

  “Well, you’ll still go with her when she goes to get one,” Aunt Susan says firmly. “This is your wedding, honey. Don’t be afraid to tell people what you want. Andi, do you think you can take her to Barb’s tomorrow morning? Barb wanted to know if she’ll have to make any alterations to the dress. Have you gained any weight yet, Megan?”

  Megan tucks a piece of her shining blonde hair behind one ear. “Yeah, but it’s all in my boobs,” she says with a grimace. ‘Cause her ass couldn't get fat, or something.

  Bran sneaks an appreciative ogle at her chest. I watch him out of the corner of my eye, wondering why he looks so puny and colorless today. There’s pancake batter on his cheek. Why has no one mentioned it to him? I’m not going to.

  The conversation abruptly shifts to Megan’s pregnancy, and her sensitive boobs. I have no interest in hearing this. Uncle Charlie is at work and Talon is at his friend’s house so I turn to my phone. I download a message from Nate. It’s a picture of his pale white ass mooning the camera. I snicker. When I glance up, I catch Bran quickly looking away. I wonder if he’s wondering whose ass that is. Anyone who’s seen Luke’s movies would know it’s not his.

  Speaking of Luke.

  “Oh, hey,” I say casually, interrupting the debate on bottle versus breast. When I have everyone’s attention at the table, I continue. “Luke showed up this morning. I don’t know if he’ll be able to stay until the wedding, but he said he’d like to meet you guys.”

  Three pairs of eyes stare at me blankly. “Who is Luke?” Aunt Susan asks.

  “Oh. Um, Lucas. Lucas Greyson.”

  Megan’s hazel eyes grow huge and round. “Oh, my god. LG is here in Sea Wind?!” she quavers, sounding shell-shocked. She looks around wildly, like he’s hiding in the kitchen somewhere. “Where is he?”

  “He’s with Ellen right now,” I mumble, taken aback by her ferocious expression. “She’s showing him around.”

  “Well, invite him to dinner!” Aunt Susan is almost as excited as Megan. “Oh, gosh, the house is a mess, though! And what will we serve? Andi, does he like lobster bisque? Bran could make it, couldn’t you, Bran?”

  “Sure,” Bran agrees with a shrug. He looks at Megan and laughs, shaking his head at her freak out. “I can’t believe I’m gonna cook for the one guy you would cheat on me with.”

  The sudden silence is deafening. I’m the last person to realize Bran’s slip-up. Everyone stares anxiously at me as his words slowly sink in. I feel my façade begin to crack around the edges, melting away by the heat of a familiar anger. My hand involuntarily clenches into a fist. On the other side of me, Aunt Susan subtly removes the butter knife out of my reach.

  Bran turns first to Megan, who is bright red with mortification. He looks over at me, his blue-gray eyes pained and embarrassed. “Andi, I’m so sorry—” he be
gins.

  “Yeah. No. Thank you." I awkwardly get to my feet. “I’m going to vacuum the living room now.”

  “Oh, Andi,” my aunt says timidly. She takes a quick sip of her water for fortification. “What time does Lucas Greyson eat dinner at? We usually eat around six, but if that’s too early for him we can have it whenever he wants.”

  “No, six is fine,” I say, taking my dishes to the dishwasher. I accidentally smack the back of Bran’s head with my plate. Actually, it wasn’t an accident. I know it sounds childish, but…well, I am child-like.

  I’m very careful not to smash the vacuum into the walls the way I do in my apartment. I move all the furniture, swiftly sucking up any crumbs and dust bunnies I find. Megan helps her mother back to her room, and then comes back out to clean the windows. Bran wisely decides to limp upstairs to do the laundry. Megan and I make small talk while I do the heavy chores. The conversation definitely does not flow. I feel like I'm light years away from the girl who spent five years sharing a room with her, and talking about boys all night. Must be all those near-death experiences that make me feel twice my age some days. Megan can’t seem to help herself from peppering me with questions about my life with Luke. She's also trying very hard not to sound jealous. Possibly, she’s regretting every life choice that led to a reality where I’m dating her celebrity crush, and she’s got…Bran.

  Actually, Megan’s exactly the type Luke describes as the perfect girlfriend whenever he’s asked in interviews: sweet, naturally beautiful, and wholesome. I wonder if she'll actually try to steal him away from me. Not that Luke is really my boyfriend—but the bitch doesn’t know that.

  I get her excitement, I really do. Luke is gorgeous and very famous. I've seen people cry and faint just at the sight of him. Girls are willing to do anything to get close to him—and I mean anything. Unfortunately for them, Luke has this strict policy about never getting involved with anyone outside the business. Nate has no such rule, and will happily screw each and every legal (ish) fangirl that gets sent his way. It’s shocking how many girls are willing to have sex with anyone connected to Lucas Greyson, and feel like they touched a part of him in the act. And when I say they’ll do “anyone,” I’m including myself. It’s never not awkward when a fourteen year old girl is batting her eyelashes at me, and offering sexual favors in exchange for meeting Luke. I feel so old when I’m lecturing them on respectability and self-worth.