by Elena Aitken
Milena pulled herself up to a sitting position and crossed her legs in front of her. “But it was more than wrong. We’d been dating about two years when he decided he should move in with me. I didn’t want to leave my dad on his own, and because Dad just wanted me to be happy and I kept telling him that Michael made me happy, he let him move in with us. That’s when things got really bad. When my dad wasn’t around, Michael would tell me how ugly and fat I was and how nobody would ever love me.”
“Tell me you didn’t believe that bastard.” Anger rushed through Cal’s veins. How dare anyone tell Milena such things? He clenched his fists, but forced himself to stay put even though what he really wanted to do was hunt down this Michael asshole and show him what a coward he was for speaking to Milena in such a way.
When Milena nodded, it almost broke Cal’s heart. “I did,” she said. “I wish I could say that I was strong enough to not listen to him, but I wasn’t. I believed everything he said and then I started stuffing my feelings down with more food, which just made me feel worse about myself. It was a terrible time.”
“So what changed?”
“He got a job out of town.” A small smile crept over her face again. “He’d be gone for weeks at a time before coming home for a few days. Every time he came home, I realized I’d been happier when he was gone. Gradually that happiness helped me make better choices. I discovered Gwen’s blog and became obsessed with it and the changes she’d made through diet and exercise. Not long after that, I discovered yoga and stopped ordering pizza as much. Then one day, he came home from work and found all his things boxed up in the front yard. We had the locks changed and when he banged on the door, my dad told him I didn’t want to see him again and he was no longer welcome in our home. It was over. Just like that.”
“And he’s left you alone since then?”
She nodded. “I think he knew that if I ever got the courage to stand up for myself, it would all be over. He didn’t even try to call me. He just put his things in his truck and left. Last I heard, he’s up north working and that’s fine by me.”
“It’s more than fine.” Cal sat up and kissed her on the lips. “Because now you have me, sweetheart. And I’m one hell of an upgrade.”
She laughed, but he didn’t quit kissing her, because once he got a taste of her, she was almost impossible to let go.
Milena could kiss Cal forever. And talk to him. And lay in his arms.
Everything about being with Cal made her happy. Even talking about her past was easier with Cal than it had ever been.
He leaned back on his elbow and traced his finger down her arm. “You’re so beautiful. Every time I see you, I can’t help but want to be alone with you.” Cal laughed and shook his head. “I mean, I love just being with you, too. I don’t want you to think it’s all about sex for me.”
Not that it wasn’t about sex a little bit. Milena smiled and bit her bottom lip, eliciting a groan from him that made her stomach flip.
How was it possible that she could have such an effect on him? She’d never before made a man go crazy the way she did Cal. It was insane.
And she loved it.
“Milena…” He pressed his lips to her neck and trailed them down between her breasts. “You have no idea what it does to me when you do that.”
“Oh, I think I have some idea.” She giggled, feeling every bit like a teenager. Not that she’d ever felt like this when she was a teenager. Everything with Cal was brand-new. “And just so you know…” She attempted to bite back a moan as Cal’s lips found her left nipple. “The feeling is completely mutual.”
He pulled himself up so he hovered directly over her. “Sweetheart, that makes me very happy to hear.” He kissed her again and dropped down beside her. “But I don’t want to rush tonight. I want to enjoy every bit of this.”
“Today has been amazing,” Milena said, trying not to be too disappointed that his lips were no longer on her nipple. “I’ve never had a man plan such an elaborate date for me before.”
“Really?” Cal reached for their wine glasses at the foot of the tent and handed her one. “That’s disappointing because this date isn’t all that elaborate.”
He had no idea. Milena shook her head. “It is.” She sat up. “It may not be an expensive dinner or dancing or—”
“I can give you that.”
“No.” She laughed and held up a hand. “That’s the thing. A date like that would be nice, but it’s not as special as this. You put thought and effort into tonight and that’s what makes it so amazing. Cal, you researched yoga positions for me.”
“I did do that.” He smiled, clearly pleased with himself. “Not well, mind you. But I did yoga for you.”
She giggled again and reached up to grab his t-shirt and pulled him down to her. “You did. And you did it so well.”
“I did, didn’t I?” He kissed her softly.
“And you arranged this sweet tent, too.”
Cal sat up, the smile off his face. “I hope you don’t mind the accommodation too terribly.”
“The tent? It’s perfect.”
“I know it’s not the most romantic sleeping arrangement, but until my real estate agent finds me the perfect place…” He winked at her and continued. “I thought it was a great way to be alone together.”
“It is.”
“And if you think about it, it’s really kind of cozy.”
She patted the pile of blankets next to her. “It really is.”
“And I just want to—”
“Cal!” Milena sat up and looked him straight in the eyes. “Stop. I like it.” She shook her head. “No. I love it.”
“You do?”
She laughed. “I really do. I think the last time I was in a tent, I was twelve years old with Girl Scouts.” She looked around and her eyes landed on Cal again. “Only this is better because you’re way more fun than a bunch of girls who were either homesick or bedwetters.”
“I promise you, I’m neither of those things.” He took a sip of wine.
“Good. But you know what—you don’t really strike me as the camping type yourself.”
“Me?” He seemed surprised. “I love camping. But honestly, I haven’t had much of a chance to do any for the last few years in Australia. Between work and…”
Bridget. He was going to say Bridget.
Milena felt a pang of jealousy, which took her off guard. She wasn’t the jealous type. But she’d be lying if she said the whole incident with her at the party and then in that stupid magazine hadn’t upset her a little bit. Even with Beth’s reassurances that it was all gossip, something still didn’t sit right with her. But she wasn’t going to ruin her evening with Cal by bringing up her insecurities.
“You must have been busy with work and trying to get you career going and all that stuff. Never mind all those snakes and killer spiders over in Australia.” Milena tried her best to be lighthearted so Cal wouldn’t suspect anything was wrong. “I wouldn’t want to camp in that craziness. But this…I like this.”
Cal kissed her neck, and any negative thoughts melted away. “I like you. And I love being here with you like this.”
She pulled him back down to meet her lips. Kissing him would be a whole lot easier than explaining to him how she was feeling about the whole photo thing. Besides, she was determined not to be the jealous girlfriend type. Having a relationship with a celebrity was going to be different for sure. In more ways than one. She needed to be confident in what they had, even if she had to fake it at times.
“There’s something we haven’t talked about though,” Cal said and Milena’s heart took a stutter beat. She was hoping they could get away with not talking about the whole party and tabloid incident altogether. She was fine with it.
Mostly.
“I don’t think we need to bring it up, Cal.” She stroked his arm in an effort to distract him. “I’m good with it all. I talked to Beth and now I know that I just need to get used to all of it.”
“Get used to what?”
“You.” She waved her hand and sat up. “The tabloids. The rumors. It’s not true. And I’m good with it. I just…whatever. It’s all fine.”
“Wait.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to lay with him. “What were you going to say? You’re good with it all except what?”
She didn’t want to tell him. She didn’t want it to be a sore spot between them. He couldn’t change how the industry worked any more than she could. The last thing Milena wanted was for him to feel as if he was responsible for it. Not in any way.
“Milena.” He shook her gently. “Tell me. Please. No secrets between us.”
No secrets.
No, she didn’t want there to be anything between them. There couldn’t be if it was going to work out. She took a deep breath and put a smile on her face. “Okay. But it’s not really a big deal.” He nodded, listening. “I talked to Beth about how she handles things with Slade.” There was no need to explain, because everyone in town knew Slade Black, his wife Beth, and her daughter Jules. Even if they’d never met, they knew of them.
“I hope she was able to put your mind at ease about a few things,” Cal said. “And remember, Slade is a huge star. I could only dream of one day being as big as he is and even then…I don’t think we need to worry about that kind of stardom.”
She smiled and shook her head. “Don’t sell yourself short. The show is going to be amazing. Anyway, there was one thing about what she said that stuck with me.”
“What’s that?” He moved his hand easily over her thigh while she spoke.
“Beth talked about how it wasn’t only Slade who was in the spotlight, but her too. I don’t think I’d like that.”
“You don’t think you’d like to be in the tabloids?” He laughed. “Sweetheart, I don’t think anyone really wants to be in the tabloids. I mean, it can be good for business, but…mostly, I think I’d be happy to stay out of them.”
“I know.” She squeezed her eyes shut for a second. Maybe she was just being stupid. After all, it wasn’t as if it was a really big deal or anything. And it’s not as though she had actually been in the magazine article. “I’m not trying to be overly sensitive or anything, it’s just…” She took a deep breath. “I just don’t know yet if I can handle reading things about myself in print.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wanted to take them back. But she couldn’t, so she might as well tell him everything. “I know how stupid that sounds. It’s just that I didn’t always have the best image of myself and it’s honestly something I struggle with a little bit every day and I think being compared to actresses like Bridget who are just so damn perfect might not be the easiest thing to—”
“Stop.” He held a finger to her lips and put an end to her rambling. “You are amazing, sexy, and so beautiful in every way. But if it’s a thing for you, then it’s a thing for me. If you don’t want to see pictures of yourself or read about yourself, true or not, in a magazine, then I will do everything in my power to keep you out of the limelight. Deal?”
“You’d do that?”
“Of course.” He kissed her gently. “I can’t promise it will always work and there may come a point where I can’t keep the sharks at bay, but if it’s within my power to protect you, I will. That’s a promise, sweetheart.”
She knew it wasn’t a promise he’d be able to keep forever, but it didn’t matter. The fact that he was making it was all she needed to hear. Milena leaned into his arms and kissed him hard.
Cal slipped his hands down her body and into her sports bra. “Have I told you how sexy you looked up there on that board today?”
She could feel the heat build in her face. She turned away, but he gently turned her head back so she was looking at him. It was the first time she’d ever worn just a sports bra in public—not that standing on a paddleboard in the middle of the lake was public. It was worse. It was in front of Cal.
“You were so strong in your poses, so focused, so fucking sexy.” He kissed her again. “In fact, what I really wanted to do was grab you down from that board, lay you out and show you exactly what you were doing to me. Because let me tell you, you were making it damn hard to focus.”
Milena couldn’t help it. Despite herself, and everything that would’ve embarrassed her in the past, Cal made her feel different. He made her feel like a desirable, strong, confident, sexy woman. She liked it. A lot.
Before she could stop herself, she reached up and threaded her arms around his neck, and pulled him down tight against her. She kissed him with a passion that left no room for doubt about how she was feeling and exactly how he made her feel.
There were too many clothes between them. She wanted to feel him naked lying next to her.
Their hands were everywhere, yanking, pulling, tugging on clothes until finally there was nothing but skin.
“Sweetheart, I can’t explain it, but you do things to me.”
“Oh yeah?” She gave him a wicked little grin, feeling sassier than ever before. “Because, baby, I want to do all the things to you.”
Cal groaned and his head dropped back, giving her perfect access to his neck and taking him off guard long enough so she could slip out from under him to straddle his hips and look down on him. Cal’s eyes snapped open with surprise. There was nothing but desire reflected there.
“Damn. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something quite as sexy as the sight of you on top of me. Your breasts…” His hands fled up her body to fondle her. “Your hair, all wild.” He threaded his fingers through her strands and pulled her down so she was inches from his mouth.
She didn’t need any further invitation. Milena dropped kisses on his neck, moving slowly down his body to his hard chest, to the dip of his waist. She slid down, letting her hands travel the length of his body, until they wrapped around his hard length. Cal groaned again, followed by a sigh of pleasure.
“Sweetheart, you should be careful.”
“Why is that?” Milena let her hands work his shaft, squeezing and stroking while she looked him in the eyes.
“Because I can’t be held responsible for the things I’m going to do to you if you keep that up much longer.”
“Promises, promises.” Milena had never before been so bold with a man. But she never before felt so comfortable with one either. The short time she’d been with Cal, he’d brought out feelings in her she didn’t even know existed—orgasms like she had only ever read about, and desires she didn’t even know she could have.
Milena bent and touched her lips to the head of his cock. She waited till he moaned his encouragement and then she took him all the way in her mouth.
Everything was new for her. With Michael, sex had been something to get out of the way, to let him get done with, so she could go to bed and read a book. With Cal, everything was exciting and fun. She wanted to discover everything she could. She wanted to do everything and she couldn’t seem to get enough, which didn’t seem to be a problem for him. He’d woken up a whole new side of her, and she liked it.
A lot.
Cal didn’t let her play for long, though, before he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her back up so she was right over top of him. The look in his eyes matched her desire. She knew what he wanted, because she wanted it too. He lifted her by the hips just slightly before bringing her back down on top of him, sheathing him into her wet heat. Together, they rode out their passion, letting their climaxes build slowly until finally they each took their release.
Later, snuggled in his arms, Milena couldn’t remember a time when she had ever been so happy. And as she dozed off to sleep in their little tent under the stars, she was content with that thought. Because everything was perfect.
Chapter Nine
The next morning, Cal had only taken a few steps into the building the production had rented out for rehearsals when Byron Smith stopped him. “Don’t go in there, man.” His friend leaned up against the wall outside of the room where they’d been running thro
ugh scripts. “Trust me,” he said when Cal moved to go past him.
“What’s going on?”
“Listen.”
Cal did. The walls weren’t thick and he could hear the familiar raised voice of Bridget, but couldn’t quite make out what she was saying.
“Bridget,” Cal said. “Who else is in there with her? And what’s the big deal? What’s going on?” Cal grabbed a stool and dragged it over to where Byron stood.
“Shit has hit the fan, my man. I’ve been standing out here for about twenty minutes, and it’s only getting worse.”
Cal shook his head. “What’s getting worse?” Bridget was clearly pissed off about something, but that didn’t surprise Cal. Bridget had a reputation on the set of Beach Bodies for being a bit of a diva. If the coffee was too dark, or too light, she pitched a fit. No doubt it was something equally stupid.
“I don’t know all the details.” Byron leaned in. Not like they’d be overheard by anyone because whoever was already inside the room was obviously preoccupied. “But from the little I can make out, I think Bridget might be getting fired.”
Cal almost fell off his stool. She’s been brought in from Australia, for God’s sake—they hadn’t even begun filming yet, and they were going to let her go? It didn’t seem possible. But it did seem pretty awesome. He couldn’t help it. There was no way he could hide the smile that crept over his face. “Why do you think that?” He tried to keep his voice neutral. He didn’t want Byron thinking he might possibly be excited about Bridget being off the show, although it wouldn’t take much to figure it out. “Did somebody say something?”
“Yes.” Byron laughed. “I mean, I didn’t hear who said what. But I certainly heard Bridget’s reaction. It went something like, ‘what the hell do you mean I’m off the show?’”
He tried not to be excited, especially because he didn’t know whether it was true or not, but Cal couldn’t help but think about it. If Bridget was off the show, that could very well be the best thing that happened to him, since being cast himself. The thought of not seeing Bridget every day, let alone having to work with her and pretend to be in love with her—even if it was just acting—made him unreasonably happy. “Really?”