by Mia Ford
Valentina’s not like that, and even when her name goes up in lights, she’s not going to change. I know that for sure. Gia’s rubbing up against me and I feel that if she does it any more than her silicon breasts are going to cause a fire. I can’t stand it, and I growl, “I need to go and pee!”
She smiles and then continues to dance to her beat. Even her moves look fake. Fuck it; I’m going to see Valentina. I’m going to say what I should have said the moment; I got to her room. This time I’ll do it properly. I won’t take no for an answer, no matter how long she decides to lock herself in the bathroom for.
***
I feel like a caveman ready to kick Kevin out of her room if he’s in there and ready to fight for Valentina. She can’t say no to me. I won’t let her. As I step out of the taxi and head towards the hotel door. I hear my name being called out.
“Eric!”
I take another step and then I hear my name being called again. I stop dead in my tracks because I’m sure that the voice that’s calling it is Valentina.
“What the fuck?”
I say as I see a hand waving in the bushes near the hotel side window.
“Shh, come here,” Valentina says as she’s hiding behind a bush just by the front door.
“But what are you doing out here? It’s freezing.”
She’s shaking in my arms, and she has a hat on and some boots, but it’s not enough. Not to be stuck out here.
“I had a feeling that Kevin was up to something, so when he said that he was coming, I decided to hide out here.”
“Okay?”
I had the same feeling, but she could have hidden in the bar or something, not outside in the cold.
“Why out here? I don’t get it.”
“Well, if we go to your room then I’ll explain it to you.”
I nod my head and then take her hand, even with her gloves on I can tell that they’re as hard as ice.
“I don’t understand why…”
“Shh, fewer questions. Let’s get up to your room and then we’ll talk. Right now, I just want to get warm.”
Really?
What would she have done if I hadn’t come along?
She would have been at one with the bush, yet she wants to tell me what to do. I suppose I’ll let her, because maybe then I’ll get back into her good books. If she has one, I want to feature in it. As we walk through the hotel, I can tell that she’s shaking and so I turn to pick her up.
She waves a finger at me and says, “No you don’t. I can walk by myself. I don’t need you to carry me.”
I sigh at the thought of her being so cold, but then I have to remember the reason that I came back. I came to claim her, whether she likes it or not.
“Suit yourself.”
“I do actually. I’m only in need of your help because I’m desperate.”
I start to walk the opposite way, sure I deserve some slap on the cheek, but she’s going too far.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“To get Kevin!”
“Shit, no Eric don’t. I’m sorry. Look it’s been an eventful day. First I thought that I was going to the party and you weren’t going, then I find out that you’re going..”
I shut her up with a kiss; I don’t try anything sexy. I just want to kiss her pale blue lips which need warming up and then I hold her in my arms and growl, “Do you ever shut up?”
She shakes her head, as she looks at me. Those blue eyes that got me from the start are staring at me with the same innocence that they did from the start. As much as I want to take her right now. I won’t. I’ll talk to her and appeal to her good nature. She has one; I know that I can get to it. I just need to give her time.
Chapter Twenty
Valentina
Oh my God, as if tonight couldn’t get any worse. First Eric comes to my room expecting me to forgive him at the drop of a hat and then Kevin was on his way. I knew that he wasn’t coming to talk. Or even keep me company, I just had a bad feeling about being in the room when he came over.
Maybe staying behind the bush wasn’t the best idea, but I just didn’t want him to Kevin to know that I was around. I had visions of him trying to get me drunk at the bar. He’s cute. The type of guy that could have been my best friend back home. The type that I would confide in, but this is a different type of reality. The people here on set. Talk about each other. I’ve seen a couple of the girls flirting with one guy and then go up to the guy and do the same thing. They’re either bitching or just making up stuff just to get the other one in trouble. This is why I go to the party’s and smile too much and say a lot less. I don’t want to be caught up in the web of lies that they love to bathe in. I may want to be an actress, but I don’t want to surround myself with all the crap that comes with it too. Then again, maybe I’m kidding myself and they both go hand-in-hand.
“Okay, so are you sure that you don’t have frostbite or something?” Eric asks as he gets to the front of his door.
I shake my head, “No. I’m just cold.”
He nods frantically, “Right let’s get you warmed up.”
I want to agree with him, the way that he would have done it before. Getting me all dirty between the sheets. But there’s something different about his tone. Then again we’re now different people. No longer are in my bar and ready to fuck.
We’re starting in the same movie, and both of us have something to lose if it doesn't work out. I think that slowly, but surely I’m starting to realize that now. He’s so damn gentle that it makes me feel bad for throwing him out earlier.
“Hey, just get in the bed, and I’ll get some covers and get you warm.”
I nod my head like a little child, being looked after their dad as he starts to peel off my gloves and says, “You are crazy. Standing out there. You could have gone to the bar or something?”
“Yes, but I had a feeling that if he saw me, then he’ll drag me to my room.”
He laughs, “He couldn’t do that. Unless you drank a bit too much.”
I shake my head as he cups me in his arms, he’s stroking my back, and the covers are between us, but I know that he’s keeping me warm.
“Do you feel better?”
“Yes,” I whisper as I close my eyes.
“I’m sorry about the way things ended up between us and I should have apologized better and explained to things to you.’
I choke, “Why? You’re acting as if we were an item or something? It was just one night.”
He kisses my head and sighs, “Keep telling yourself that Valentina.”
I want to say something, but I’m lost for words, as he holds me tightly in his arms.
“But why tonight. Why now?”
“Why did I come and talk to you tonight and not before?”
“Uh-huh.”
“I don’t know; it just felt like the right opportunity to do it. It’s not that I haven’t thought of a doing it before, but Florence was on my back about not drinking or doing anything and even after she left….I still didn't want to let her down. She’s more my agent. She’s been there for me when everyone turned their back on me and when Kevin said about the party. I thought one night. One time just so that we could talk. You know.”
I smile, “Like we’re doing now.”
“Exactly! But if you don’t want to talk then we don’t have to. Maybe you’re right about Kevin. He seems kind of creepy to me.”
“Because he wears glasses?”
He chuckles, “No, because he kept insisting on coming to your room and maybe your gut instincts were right. You did need to stay away from him.”
Maybe?
It’s something that I’ll never find out, and I’m not even curious to know what he did, because I’m right where I want to be, in Eric’s arms. But not sexually, just sensually and it makes me feel warm, not only his body heat, but I have that feeling deep down inside that he’s here for a reason and it’s not to just apologize. It’s to do something more than that, but he has to gain
my trust, and that’ll only come one step at a time.
Chapter Twenty One
Eric
I feel like a prick who’s life has been turned completely upside down, and it’s not from getting high or even being drunk and out of it most of the time. It’s from one woman. I never thought that I would even feel this way about anyone. I used to see actors marry their co-stars, dancers and sometimes I would attend, but they’ll talk about love and then six months, or if they were lucky six Valentina is entirely different to any woman that I like to hang around with whenever I get in the mood for some female company. There’s an innocence about her, that makes you think that you can take advantage of her. The moment anyone tries to do that she puts her foot down. She’s kind of a Sara Parker and Cinderella in one tight, sexy body.
“It looks as if you two are really getting along..” Florence smiles at me.
She flew in last night for our final day on the set. She claims it’s to make sure that everything gets tied up, but I think that it’s just a reason Florence says as she comes back for the final day of shooting.
“Well, we knew each other before we came on the set.”
I confess to her, our time here’s done, and the movie shooting is coming to an end. There’s no point keeping it a secret anymore, and I’m sure that she already knows that Valentina and I have been spending time together. No sex. Not that it hasn’t been on my mind on all the fucking time. I know that if I try anything then she’ll have nothing to do with me. A risk that I’m not willing to take.
“Really? I would never have been able to tell. You guys in the same room. I could cut the atmosphere with a knife.”
I laugh as she raises her eyebrow. That’s one thing about Florence she’s no one’s fool. I knew that her statement was because she knew the truth and with that one line, she confirmed it.
“Maybe she’s exactly what you need,” she smiles as she holds on to my hand.
“Florence. I thought that I needed to be alone. You’re always telling me that I think with my dick and not my head.”
We’re taking a break and catching up over breakfast while Valentina’s shooting the final scenes.
“Yes, but it wasn’t only your dick that was playing with your mind. I think it was more your over inflated ego.”
“Ouch,” I put my hand to my heart as if I’ve been wounded with her words.
She laughs, “Don’t try and act as if you’re so sensitive I know that you know I’m right. No, Valentina could be exactly what you need. Just don’t fuck it up.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Eric, I’ve known you long enough, and I saw the way that you were looking at her last night over dinner. It’s clear that there's something special between you two and it’s not just sex.”
Wow!
“So, you were watching us? And there I was thinking that you were too busy flirting with the director.”
She giggles, “A girl can do both.”
I nod and say, “Yes a girl can do both, but you are far from a girl. You’re a lot older than that and you should know better.”
I kiss her on the forehead as I head out to catch up with Valentina.
“Yes, but I’m not dead yet. So, there’s nothing wrong with living and having a little fun. But not too much fun.”
I nod as I head out and start making my way towards Valentina. Her final scene’s are being shot in the cabin, and I have something to tell her. It starts with that I don’t want this to be the end. I want us to keep seeing each other as a couple. She’s been the ray of the sunshine that I’ve needed in my life, and I don't want to let her go. I haven’t been drunk or even felt like it for the last few days, and it’s all down to her.
***
“Where’s Valentina?”
I ask Gia, as I pass her as she starts leaving the cabin. I notice that she’s the only one coming out of there. Which I find a bit weird, usually when they’re shooting scenes there’s people coming in and out of the cabin. And a least a stand-by crew outside.
“How the hell am I supposed to know? I’m not her keeper!”
Then she struts off as if she’s pissed with me. I know she is, but she needs to get over it. It’s not as if she was fucking interested in me. She has a reputation for trying to get with the leading men, and it seems as if this time she failed, and now she’s pissed. She’ll get a job on another movie-set and I’m sure the leading man will be ever so willing and then I will be a man of the past. One that she’ll probably not even remember turning her down.
I shrug my shoulders and walk off hoping to see someone else.
Damn!
I thought that they'd be here for at least three hours, but it looks as if they ended early. What the fuck is going on?
“Ben, what’s up? How comes the shoot ended early?”
He sighs as he rubs his balding head. He’s a bit eccentric, but there’s no doubt that he’s one of the top directors’s in the business.
“Yeah, we had to stop shooting. It seems that the weather’s not cold enough to shoot it right. Something was wrong, so we need to try again another time. Maybe tomorrow.”
“Oh.”
“And my scene?”
He pats me on the shoulder’s, “Tomorrow.”
Then he starts to mumble something and then walks off. That’s the problem with filming outdoors at times, the weather needs to be right, but for some crazy reason, I thought that this was all going to be happening indoors. But that still doesn’t help answer my question about Valentina? Where is she?
I take out my phone, and there’s no message from her. Maybe she wanted some quiet time? She does that once in a while; I know that she feels that way whenever she thinks about her parents. She becomes all insecure and shit. I feel like the white knight that wants to take the pain away from her. The problem is she doesn’t allow me to do it. At times, I think that she’s too independent for her good. Always wanting to do things by herself and never really letting me in.
I start walking to the hotel, it’s not far, and as much as the winds blowing, the sun’s out, and it doesn’t feel as cold as it did when we first came here. I must admit that I’ve missed being at home in my bed. The idea that it’s not going to be taken away from me makes me want to be there even more. Rosetta was happy when I told her the news about being able to pay her, but she seemed even happier knowing that I was back at work. Back on the big screen.
As I step outside Valentina’s door, I think I hear a scream. I’m just about to knock when I hear it again.
Fuck!
“Valentina!”
She doesn’t say anything, but I start to panic. I start trying to knock down the door. Fuck they’re tough, and my head’s racing out of control. On in a while I used to play an action hero figure. I used to know what to do in these type of circumstances. Kick and then the door would automatically open and I’d rush in and fight whoever was in there. It seemed so fucking easy, but that’s the problem with being a movie star hero and real life. They’re not the fucking same and kicking down a door isn’t as easy as it’s been when shooting, besides I don’t even know if I’m doing this fucking right.
So with my heart racing like crazy I decide to do the best thing. Get some fucking help. I didn’t have to look far before I see one of the maid’s and tell her, “You need to open that fucking door now!”
“That’s why I came here. I thought I heard something.”
She starts panicking as she’s trying to get the key. I start to kick the door some more with my foot. It fucking hurt, but I can’t hear anything, and it scares me so fucking much right now.
“Valentina!”
I shout out as the maid blurts out, “I got it!”
She slots the key and just like that I don’t see anything, I start rummaging around the room until we get to the bathroom. Fuck, she’s in there, but the question is who is in there with her? Because I know that she’s not alone and it scares the shit out of me.
“Valent
ina!”
I start banging on the door. There’s nothing. She’s not saying a word and whoever’s in there is keeping her quiet. I need to fucking get in there. Right now!
I turn to the maid, “Get back. She’s in there, and I start to thump the door one more time. It doesn’t take much effort for it to open and see that Kevin has knocked Valentina out somehow and he’s holding her. I rush to him and greet him with my fist. Fucking dog! I feel like a fool as I see that Valentina’s on the ground. She said that she had a bad feeling about him. I should have fucking listened to her. As Kevin falls flat to the ground and that doesn’t stop me kicking and punching him.
“Stop it!”
“Stop it please!”
The maid yells behind me. She’s screaming in between telling me to stop. Meanwhile Valentina’s not he other side just lying still. I should be worried about her, but I’m so fucking angry right now. I see that Valentina’s fully dressed, but I don’t know how long he’s been in here with her. I don’t know if he’s drugged or done something to her. The maid’s screams have caught other’s attention, because she’s not screaming but someone’s holding me back. They’re stopping me from doing anymore damage to him and I hate them.
But most of all I hate myself for not listening to her, when she told me that she thought that Kevin was creepy. It’s guilt that makes me want to kill him right now. It’s guilt that makes me walk out of her room and take a breather, before I do anymore damage to Kevin. Because, right now the site of him is making me feel sick.
Chapter Twenty Two
Valentina
The last couple of days have been crazy, between being interviewed by the police, what felt like the same thing from Florence and then Ben, the director too. The guys have been great and even Rebecca just the run-in said that one time Kevin tried to drug her. Even though he was protesting his innocence by saying that I led him on.