“Thank you,” I told him.
“So,” I began, “do you always have a bodyguard?”
He shook his head. “Only when I travel, but I wanted to make sure you were safe tonight.”
“I see.”
“I’ve never been on a real date before,” Chase confessed. I raised an eyebrow, a little surprised by his honesty.
“Never?”
“Nope. I’ve been in show business since I was ten. I have engagements and publicity dates, but I usually skip past the dates and go straight for the bedroom.”
“Publicity dates? Like the other day? You and the blonde girl?”
“Chloe? Yeah we start shooting a movie together soon.” There was so much I didn’t know about him. Where did he grow up? Where was he shooting this movie? What was his favorite color?
“What about you?” he asked.
“I’m sorry?”
“When’s the last time you were on a first date?”
I didn’t want to answer the question. If I told him, he may start to ask questions. I kept it vague. He’d find out eventually, but I didn’t want that to be today.
“Oh, it’s been a while.”
“Define awhile.”
“Five years…give or take.”
“Five years?”
“I dated the same guy all through high school,” I explained.
His eyes flare up in jealousy, but he quickly calmed down.
“I see, and where is this lucky guy now?”
“Dead.” My voice was flat only because I hated talking about him. Right then, it wasn’t as hard as it normally was, possibly because Chase never met Bash and he wouldn’t pick sides. I didn’t intend to tell Chase the truth, but it just popped out. Who is this man and why am I spilling my secrets to him?
He mumbled something along the lines of an apology and we sat in an awkward silence for a few moments.
“Shit,” he said “Dating etiquette also said we weren’t supposed to bring up exes on a first date,”
I laughed at his comment, impressed that he had done a bit of research on dating.
“Did you read a book or something?” I asked.
“No a self-help app on my phone. It’s for singles over the age of fifty who are back in the dating scene, see?” He held his phone up and sure enough dozens of little first date dos and don’ts flashed on the application.
“Impressive.”
“Damn straight. I like to do things right.” He beamed proudly flashing his pearly whites at me.
I boldly grabbed his phone from his hand and started to read off some of the tips.
“Never….tell a dark secret. Keep personal demons inside….never sleep with someone on the first date.”
I handed the phone back to him and blew out a breath of air.
“Well it looks like we have started off on the wrong foot,” I told him.
A younger girl with red hair came in the room to take our order. Chase ordered us a few appetizers while we read over the menu. While we waited, I kept looking up at him from over my menu to see what he was doing. When he caught me looking, he winked. It was enough to make the bottom of my stomach flip around. This feeling, whatever it was, hadn’t been around in a long time.
“Are you concerned with the waitress talking to the tabloids?” I asked him. I wasn’t sure how this celebrity thing went.
“No, the staff have a confidentiality agreement. She won’t say anything.” The server came back with a bottle of wine and poured it into both of our cups.
“I can’t drink,” I reminded him.
He reached across the small table and grabbed my glass.
“No problem, I’ll drink yours.” He raised his hand to have the server bring me some water. He was trying so hard, and it was charming. At the same time, I wasn’t sure I could keep up and put the same effort into this relationship. Once the server was gone, I leaned forward to speak to him.
“I just want you to know, there isn’t any pressure. We don’t have to do this. If you aren’t having a good time, we can go our separate ways.”
He sighed loudly and slammed his menu down in front of him. “Listen, I’m trying so hard to do the right thing here. I tried to call you after that night. You ignored my calls. Ginger practically all but told me you had a boyfriend. I don’t date, Quinn. That isn’t me, but I am willing to try this. From the moment you stood there in that short black dress and those dirty old high-tops, I knew you were special. I never pushed you away. You’re the one who won’t let me try.”
I was speechless. His confession had my heart racing. I swallowed through the hard lump in my throat and lifted my eyes to look at him. His warm brown eyes were sincere, and he had a slow and sexy smile on his face. He was offering me things I didn’t think I wanted, but in the back of my mind, I was afraid of ‘us’.
“You don’t know me. You don’t know anything about me,” I whispered shaking my head.
“I know that something keeps drawing me back to you. I don’t know what it is, but I’m willing to find out. Aren’t you?”
I shouldn’t have even been entertaining the idea. Run, that should’ve been the first thing on my mind. This attraction to Chase was undeniable and no matter how scared or unavailable my heart was, I wanted to feel the same way I had with him that night. That night was the first time I’d actually felt anything in so long. My heart didn’t feel numb around him.
“Let’s just see how things go,” I told him. I wasn’t ready to commit, but I wasn’t ready to let him go yet either. He seemed to accept my answer because he gave me another small wink before the server brought us our food and then quickly scurried from the room.
“We can do this, Quinn. We can keep our relationship on the down low. It’ll be just you, me, and our baby.” He placed his hand on my lower stomach. This was the first time he had acknowledged my pregnancy since I got there, and his reassurance soothed my nerves. With him by my side, I didn’t feel so alone in this.
We spent the next hour or so talking about everything except our relationship and impending baby. He was twenty-three and had dreamt of being an actor since he was eight. We had a lot in common too. We both loved music and art shows. Our parents were divorced, we were both an only child, and we had grown up in small towns.
“My parent’s never had a chance,” he explained. “My mom lived in LA with me ten months out of the year to further my acting career. It wasn’t a good foundation for a marriage, so I wasn’t too surprised when they set me down at age ten and told me they were splitting up. By the time my father got around to telling my mom he wanted a divorce, he had a completely new family. Never gave my mom a lick of child support. That bastard.”
“It wasn’t your fault. You know that right? I’m sure your parents would have gotten a divorce whether or not you wanted to become an actor.”
“You sound like a psychiatrist,” he said with a laugh.
If he only knew.
“Nah, just insightful.”
“I know firsthand how hard it is to be a single mom. That’s why you need to let me help. After my parents divorced, I never really saw my dad. My mami and I are close though. She’s a wonderful woman.” He smiled with a wistful look in his eye when he talked about his mom.
“Mami?”
“Oh, just a nickname I use for her sometimes. My mom’s originally from Columbia.”
“Really?” I studied his face harder. I’d known from the moment I’d laid eyes on him that he looked Hispanic. “And your dad is Caucasian?”
“Yup. He lives in New York now doing only God knows what. I swear, the only time he calls is when he wants something.”
“That’s awful.” I bit my lip and reached out to grab his hand.
“What about you? Are you close with your parents?” he asked. He finished off the last of his wine and reached out to push a piece of my hair behind my ears. My heartbeat pounded against my ribcage when he touched me. I reached out to grab his hand before he moved it back, a bold move o
n my part.
“No, but I’m okay with it.” I stared at him when I spoke and entwined our fingers together. His hand was bigger than mine, but his skin was soft and warm. Squeezing my hand, he leaned in to me close enough that I could feel his warm breath against my face. My body tingled in anticipation. Just do it!
“I need to kiss you,” he confessed. Should I stop him or should I kiss him? I didn’t know. My mind was confused, but my body recognized exactly what it wanted so I licked my lips and waited for his to meet mine. It was pure torture, and he had to of known this as well because he took his sweet time.
By the time his lips met mine, I was absolutely starving for his touch. I relished the way he caressed my mouth with his tongue. This was different from our kisses before. Before they were rough and eager; this time they’d been slow and sweet. I parted my lips slightly to invite him to deepen the kiss. Somehow his hands found their way up to my face.
My body ached for more than just his kisses, even though they were the most passionate and beautiful kisses I’d ever experienced. Our tongues swirled together in a fiery excitement, and I moaned as he gently nibbled on my bottom lip with his teeth. He pulled me out of my chair so that I straddled him with one of my legs on each side of the lap. My arms were around his neck; his hands on my hips. I could feel him growing hard beneath me, so I wiggled my hips just slightly. It was enough to make him moan against my lips.
“You better be careful or I’ll take you right here in this chair,” he mumbled against me.
“What if the waitress walks in?”
“Fuck, you’re killing me, Quinn.” He ran his hands up my shirt to cup my breasts then moved them back down slowly to my hips again. I pressed my body against his. Closer. I needed to be closer to him. Shit, it was happening. No matter how hard I fought it, I was falling hard for Chase Crowley.
“Have I proved to you how much I want you, Quinn?”
I nodded, my head against his chest.
“Good because I plan on seeing you again.”
Chapter Eight
Chase
“Seriously, dear. I have a headache. Could you tone it down a bit?” I snapped. Chloe rolled her eyes at me and went back to her phone call. I placed my baseball cap over my face and leaned back against the limo seat.
After my date with Quinn last night and parting with that mind-blowing kiss, I’d gone out to meet with Tucker at a local club. I’d needed to clear my mind of my sexual frustration. In hindsight, that had been a terrible idea. Now I was hung over and had a long day of work ahead of me.
“You think we’re there yet?” Chloe asked, looking out the window with wide eyes. Her phone now sat in her lap.
“I dunno.”
“I’ve never been to Calistoga before. Is it pretty?”
“This is wine country, dear. Everything is gorgeous.”
“I can’t wait to start filming!”
“Me either. Did you read the book?”
“Of course! Didn’t you?”
The film was based off a best-selling novel that I’d been meaning to read.
“Not yet.”
“Are you nervous?”
“About what?” I cocked an eyebrow at her.
“Our sex scene.”
I laughed. “I do them all the time on Timelines.”
“Oh that’s right…” she gave me a devilish smile. I forgot this was her first gig.
When the limo stopped, we both climbed out and walked over to the stylists. There weren’t many people on set today, just a few of the crew and the director. This was our only day in Calistoga; the rest of the shooting would take place in New York. I glanced at my phone to check the time. It was still early, but if we didn’t finish quickly it would be too late before I arrived back home. I wanted to stop by and see Quinn after she got off work. Rhea walked up to me the second I stepped onto the set.
“Chase, we need to talk,” she told me in her scratchy smoker’s voice. I put on a pair of dark glasses to block out the bright California sunlight. She normally started conversations like this when she had a publicity stunt.
“Go ahead.”
“With the movie in production, we feel it would be beneficial if you and Chloe began a romance,”
Typically, I would let these rumors slide. I would have helped her promote them. Anything to get my name in the headlines, but with everything that had happened in the past few days, I wasn’t sure being in the spotlight would help my situation with Quinn.
“Chloe? Really? I find her rather annoying,” I said scrunching up my face.
Rhea put her hands on her wide hips and scowled up at me. “You didn’t seem to mind so much a few days ago.”
“Well that was before I got to know her. She acts like a spoiled child,”
“That is because she practically is a child. Let’s compromise, a few scheduled dates around town and a few flirty shots of the two of you on set? A relationship like this is usually sealed in contract with her publicist as well, but it won’t be anything you can’t handle.”
“Fine, just get me the paper, and I’ll sign them,” I said. I wasn’t in the mood to argue with her today. I just wanted to get this shoot over with.
“Find me an aspirin,” I told Rhea. I placed my hands on the side of my head. Today would drag on slowly.
I was right. The rest of the day seemed to take forever, but we finished many of the scenes before the sun began to set. By the time it was all over, I was ready to strangle Chloe. It was strange how days earlier I’d only thought about how hot she was.
“Can we stop and get some food?” Chloe asked as we were getting into the limo that evening. I just wanted to get home, but at the mention of food, I realized how hungry I was. The jet would have food though.
“We can eat in the air.”
“But I’m hungry now!” she complained and crossed her arms in front of her body.
“Fine. Anything to shut you up.”
“You don’t have to be so rude about it, boyfriend.”
“I’m not your boyfriend, Chloe.”
“That’s funny!” she laughed. I didn’t get the joke so I ignored her.
Chloe was still in the position where she could go in anywhere without anyone recognizing her. She gave the driver instructions to stop at the next food joint. Pulling out my phone, I text Quinn while we drove.
Me: On my way home
Quinn: Did you have a good time?
Me: Chloe was annoying, but we got many of the scenes out of the way. Can I come over?
It was a few minutes before she responded
Quinn: It’s getting pretty late. Can we try again tomorrow?
My hopes died when I read her message, but I was tired of always being the one to pursue her.
Me: That’s fine. See you later.
I slid my phone in my pocket and turned to look at Chloe who was now watching me with an interested expression on her face. She moved across the seat and rubbed her hands across my chest.
“You’re tense babe. Let me help you take off some of that stress,” she purred into my ear.
Her touch was soft, and I struggled to keep my hands in my lap. It would be all too easy to take her right there in the limo.
No. You promised Quinn that you were different. Be different, don’t be the asshole who makes her cry.
“Not. Now. Chloe.” My mind and body fought back against each other. Chloe didn’t want me. She wanted fame, and I wanted Quinn.
“You upset about something?” She scooted back and stuck out her bottom lip.
“Yeah, you women are confusing.”
“You…women? Thanks, Chase. I’m glad to hear you are generalizing me with the female population.”
She scooted a bit closer again and flipped her hair behind her ears in a flirty manner that caused me to raise an eyebrow at her.
“Can you get me some food while I stay in here?” I asked her.
“Why can’t you come in with me?”
“Because people h
ound me for autographs, you, my dear, are still undetectable under the radar.” I gave her a charming smile, one that worked well with persuading people to do things my way. To my dismay, she didn’t seem to bat an eye at me.
“I can’t wait until this movie comes out. This is going to change my life,” she squealed, clapping her hands together in excitement.
“Enjoy the quiet. Fame isn’t always a good thing.”
“Are you kidding me? I was born for this. The fans, the autographs, the magazine covers…”
Wow, she’s really fame hungry.
“Yeah some parts are nice.”
“I forgot. You’ve been in the spotlight since you were a kid right?”
“I don’t wanna talk about my past with you.”
“Does your moodiness have anything to do with the waitress from the other night?”
I played dumb. “Who?”
“I’m not stupid, Chase. I saw the way you were both looking at each other. Even when we left, I noticed her staring at you. There was something going on.” She pointed at me with one finger, which made me feel like a scolded child.
I didn’t know Chloe well, and she seemed like an amusing girl, but my personal life wasn’t any of her business. “Just leave it be, Chloe.”
“She’s a common waitress, a nobody. What could you possibly see in her?”
I had to defend Quinn. “Her cousin is Ginger Teague, and Quinn happens to have a stunning personality.” Unlike you.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I don’t know exactly, she’s just…why am I discussing this with you? This is none of your business.”
“You do know that our agents want us to spark romance rumors, right? My career is riding on this movie. I’ll do anything to make it in this business. There’s no way in hell that I’m gonna to let you ruin this for me.”
“Not to worry, dear. I’m well aware of our situation. Quinn won’t be a problem.”
I chuckled at her little fit and promptly ignored her. She was going to make it big all right. Her looks alone guaranteed that.
The limo slowed to a stop by the side of the road near a small taco truck. Excellent. Nothing like local food to end a hard day’s work. Chloe gave me a doe-eyed look. “Don’t be a party pooper, come on out and get some food with me.”
The Last Thing Page 9