by Jillian Dodd
I open one eye. "What time is it?"
"Seven."
"Why are you up so early? And so happy about it?"
He pats his firm stomach and flexes a bicep. "You don't think I look like this naturally, do you? I work hard for it."
"At seven in the morning?"
"Yes, ma'am. Wanna go work out with me? Show me some of those moves you used on that guy last night?"
"I don't have any workout clothes. And I'm not really awake."
"I ordered some clothes for you to wear. They're being sent up when the store downstairs opens up at nine."
"Really? That was sweet of you."
"If I'm right about things, we're going to be starring in a lot of future movies together. I need to protect your reputation."
"Protect it? It was your idea that I spend the night."
"Yeah, but if you leave in last night's dress, it looks like a one-night stand. If you leave in something else, it looks planned. Subtle difference, but still."
"Yeah, I suppose you're right."
"And maybe I'm trying to be nice to you."
"Why?"
He pulls a newspaper out from behind his back and tosses it on the bed. "Page six."
I flip the paper open.
Knox Daniel and Keatyn Douglas: Hollywood's new couple?
Rumors are flying this morning after resident playboy, Knox Daniels, and the daughter of Abby Johnston, Keatyn Douglas, shared a night out. Onlookers at the club say the couple kept to themselves in a large VIP section, snuggling and kissing when they weren't glued to each other on the dance floor. "She pouted and called him baby when a group of girls tried to crash their party," a waiter said. Knox, who is a regular at the club, usually keeps the section filled with gorgeous women. "He only had eyes for her," a clubgoer tells us. Friends of the couple say the two met when Keatyn visited her mom's long-time beau, Tommy Stevens, on the Trinity: Retribution set before the holiday. Although, if these photos are any indication of the volatility of their relationship, we'd say this pair is in for a bumpy ride.
The accompanying photos are of Knox and me, looking perfect upon arrival at the club. He's holding my chin and giving me an adorable kiss. There are two grainy photos of us in the club, one of us in the VIP section and the other on the dance floor. But then there's a photo of me from when I rushed out of the club in tears.
"I look horrid!" I screech.
"You don't look horrid. I mean, it's not the most flattering angle, and you do have mascara running down your face, but you look pretty in all the other ones."
"Oh, and look at the caption under the photo of you hugging me and helping me into the car. Knox knows how to make up." I roll my eyes until I see a smaller photo of Damian and Peyton below this article. Peyton's face is partially obscured by Damian's arm as he leans in to kiss her. There's a little story about the normal girl from Napa Valley who caught the rocker's attention. I decide that one bad picture of me is worth burying the story of their date.
"So, all in all, it was a good night. We planted our relationship seed."
"Are we having a relationship? I thought you were into one-night stands."
"Normally, I am. But I can see the value of this. For us. Long term."
"Knox, when things go down with the stalker, I'm not sure if I'll survive it."
"Even better. I can be in mourning. Imagine the sympathy sex I'd get."
My eyes get huge. "Knox!"
He pats my shoulder and smiles. "I'm just joking. You can untwist your panties now."
"You're horrible."
He laughs. "Now that you're awake, do you wanna go for a run?"
"A run? But you said the reporters will still be--"
"Exactly." He points to a little pile of running clothes. "Before you go off on me, these are my sister's. She visits a lot and keeps stuff here so she never has to check a bag."
"Does your bodyguard run with you?"
"Does he look like he can run? No, I go by myself. Part of why I run. Gotta be fast enough to get away from the hordes of women who chase me."
"I'm calling Cooper and having him meet us."
"Cooper looks like he's in pretty good shape. Sucks at poker, but could probably kick my ass." He sizes me up. "Although, from the sound of it, you probably could too. Do you think he'd teach me to fight?"
"Maybe." I grab my phone off the nightstand and see some texts from Aiden.
Hottie God: Good morning, beautiful. I miss sleeping with you.
Hottie God: And waking up with you.
Hottie God: I just miss you.
Me: I miss you more.
I'm smiling as I call Cooper. "Hey, Knox and I are going running in the park. I'd like you to join us. Just come over to his place and we'll meet you in the lobby."
"Does Knox go for a jog in the park every morning?"
"Um, I don't know. Let me ask. Knox, do you go for a run in the park every morning?"
"No. I usually run on the treadmill. Especially in the winter."
"Did you hear that?" I say to Cooper.
"You're in the paper this morning. We don't want to do anything routine. Make sense?"
"Yes, it does."
"But it is a beautiful morning. I'm assuming there are photographers who will see this run?"
"That's the plan."
"I'll be right over," he says before hanging up.
The three of us go on a run, are successfully photographed together, and then head to the studio to finish the video.
The second I arrive, Aiden grabs my hand, pulls me into my dressing room, and kisses me furiously.
I'm instantly hot.
I push him against the door, lock it, and unzip his pants, wanting nothing more than for him to take me.
"Do we have time?" he says breathlessly, as he strips my panties off then picks me up and moves us to the couch.
"We should always have enough time for this," I say as he kisses my neck.
I arch my hips, push his jeans down with my feet, and guide him into me.
He slams his mouth down on mine, kissing me like we've been apart for months, not just one night.
Desperate.
Aching.
Needing.
Each other.
His tongue delves deeply into my mouth.
I match his intensity, grabbing his ass and pushing him to go faster.
"Oh, god," he says, moving even more quickly as his body complies with my hands' request.
A burst of fervent energy.
Then, suddenly motionless.
His face buried in my hair.
His lips finding my neck, then my cheek, then my ear. "I maybe kinda missed you," he says adorably.
"I may spend the night with Knox more often."
"I don't think so, Boots," he chuckles.
I give him a kiss. "I better get cleaned up and get my bikini on."
"That's the only bad thing about a quickie. It's over way too quick," he says, letting me up and smacking my butt as I walk away.
"Cut!" Riley yells for the fourth time. "Damian, you look constipated and Keatyn, you're supposed to be looking at Damian. It looks stupid."
"That's because we're about to fall off the boards!"
"It's not just that," Ariela says. "It looks fake because they're not wet enough."
"We spritzed them down," Peyton says.
"Yeah, but you can't really see the water. If they're in the sun and wet, they should sort of shimmer," Ariela counters. "Wait! I know!" she says, running off set. She comes back with the water spritzer and a bottle of body oil. "Let's try mixing them."
"Water and oil don't mix," Aiden says, stating the obvious.
"I know, that's the point!" Ariela replies. She rubs both Damian and me down with oil, then spritzes us with water again. This time, the water beads and slides down our bodies.
"See!" she says to Riley.
Riley grabs her and kisses her. "You're a genius."
"Is there any way we could put a second sprin
g under the surfboards, so they're a little more stable?" I ask Riley. "If we weren't constantly worried about falling off, it'd be easier to look like we're having fun."
"We don't really have enough time to do that."
"Come here and help me," I tell him, "while I figure this out."
He stands next to me as I get back on the board, putting my hand on his shoulder for balance.
After trying a few different foot positions, I find one that feels comfortable and even lets me move the board.
"That's it! Damian, put your feet like this, right over the spring. I think that's why we were struggling. We were doing what's natural on a surfboard, but it doesn't work for this because of the middle support."
Damian quickly gets the hang of it and Riley checks out how we look on camera.
"You look much better," he says. "You're smiling."
"I think we should do some shots of us just sitting and floating together. We do that all the time."
"Yeah, let's do that. We could probably lie down on our boards and pretend to paddle, too," Damian agrees.
"Let's try it," Riley says. "And remember to look like you're having fun."
We get some successful shots of us lying on our boards and paddling with our arms, then floating on the boards, holding hands.
"Do you think you could do a handstand. Act like you're showing off?" Damian asks me.
"It's usually the guy who shows off," I tease, laughing.
"I love the laughing," Riley says. "Do more of that."
I glance at Damian. He gives me a nod, encouraging me to try doing a handstand. I can do one in the water, but I'm not sure if it will work here.
I pop up on the board, place my hands directly over the spring, and flip my feet up into the air.
"Ah!" I yell as my body leans dangerously toward Damian, finally hitting the tipping point and falling onto him.
He laughs, catches me, and pulls me over onto his board, somehow, without knocking us both off.
"That was adorable!" Ariela shrieks, jumping up and down and clapping.
"Can you both stand up on that board?" Riley asks.
"You go first," Damian says.
I stand up. Once I'm set, I feel Damian standing up behind me. But then he grabs my waist and we both go flying off the board into the fake waves and, thankfully, onto the stunt mats Aiden thought to put below.
"One more time with both of you up on your own boards, smiling this time, and we should have enough for this part."
The remainder of the day is spent shooting more of the date scenes. We order in food and sit back, watching as Riley works his video magic.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30TH
Sexy and skanky.
1pm
Riley is still putting the finishing touches on the video when I get a call from Kym. She's in town dressing other stars for their New Year's Eve appearances and wants us to meet her.
"Are you sure you don't need anything else?" I ask Riley, who mutters something unintelligible to me and nods his head.
I wrap my arms around Aiden's neck. He and Damian are sitting on either side of Riley's workspace, which consists of multiple computer monitors, each playing different footage.
"Do you want to come with us?"
"Naw, you girls have fun. I've got a couple new suits at the loft. I'm sure one of them will work."
"I think Kym wants to dress you. So we kinda match. But she knows your size. If I think you'll like it, I'll bring it home."
He kisses my arm then turns around and kisses me goodbye.
Cooper escorts Peyton, Ariela, and me to Kym's new digs. Her lab, as she calls it. She thinks of herself as a mad scientist of fashion. Mixing and matching things together and giving each of her clients a different look. When we arrive, she greets Cooper with great enthusiasm, running her hands across his broad shoulders and telling him how fantastic he'd look after she was done with him.
She greets the girls with air kisses, leads us into a showroom space, and directs us to a buffet of snacks and drinks.
"Are the guys not coming?" she asks, pulling me aside.
"No, they're still working on the video, so we're just supposed to bring everything back to the studio with us. And I sent you my friend Riley's measurements and photos."
"I got them and should have everything pretty well set. Let me go grab your rack of clothes and you can start trying on while I get sexy's measurements," she says with a sly grin.
"Just what all are you planning to measure, Miss Cougar?"
"How old is he, anyway? Tell me he's at least twenty-five."
"Uh, not quite. He acts way mature, though, if that's any consolation."
"At least he's legal." She sighs, glancing in his direction then giving me the eye. "He's been guarding your body."
I smirk. "Yes, he has. And teaching me self defense. I will admit, he's quite powerful. And it's kinda fun when he throws you on the floor. Even if it hurts a little."
"Oh, my god. I want to be manhandled."
"You know, I always thought you and James might get together."
She rolls her eyes. "We've gotten together."
"Really?! And?"
"And nothing. We're friends. We get lonely sometimes. We have a little fun. I want something more serious. I'm still waiting for a guy to whisk me off to a Russian ballet."
"Aren't we all."
"Oh, give me a break. At the wedding, Peyton was telling us all the things that Aiden's done to woo you."
My face breaks out in a wide smile. I can't help it. Aiden makes me smile. "He's pretty dreamy. Really, he's kind of my dream guy in many ways."
"What ways is he not?"
"He's not B."
She sighs. "He didn't dance with you at your birthday party, Keatyn."
"No, but he came to it. He even dressed up. I've realized a lot, Kym. I know I complained about him sometimes. But, looking back, I probably wasn't the easiest person to love."
"Bullshit. You are very lovable."
"I wasn't then. Don't I seem different to you than I did last summer?"
She gets tears in her eyes. "I'm lucky your mom took a chance on me all those years ago and I've gotten to be part of your life. I'm proud to say I've helped dress you for nearly every important occasion in your life."
"You have. I'll never forget the dress from Mom and Tommy's first date. It's still in my closet. I'm hoping to have a little girl who can wear it someday."
"You have a great style. You never look like you try too hard but you always look put together. It's a look young girls will want to emulate once this movie comes out. You need to remember that when you choose your outfits."
"Nothing too skanky?"
"There's a big difference between sexy and skanky."
"Does that mean you picked me out something sexy?"
"Sparkly and sexy. That's what the perfect New Year's Eve dress should always be. Remember when I told you to have an intervention if you ever saw me cooking for a man?"
"Yeah."
"That Cooper makes me want to put on an apron and bake a cake."
"You're bad!"
She giggles. "I know!"
She rolls racks of clothing into the showroom, shows the girls their selections, and sends them behind the curtain to start trying on.
"Okay, Keatyn," she says. "Let's look at yours. Notice, you don't have as many options."
"Why's that?"
"Well, I know you better, for one. I know all these will look great on you, but I want to talk you through them."
I nod at her, so she holds up the first dress.
"This sparkly, silver sequined dress. What do you think of it?"
"It's really pretty. I love the plunging neckline. The sequins are mixed with spangles, which makes it a little different. The cut is pretty, but it's a little--um, predictable, maybe?"
"Exactly. Very good. Okay," she says, holding out the second option. "What about this?"
I examine the dress. "This one has great lines
for me. I look good in a tank style dress and I love how it's covered in black sequins that are more matte than shiny. And the bottom, how it flares out and is covered in shiny black feather, it's so cute! I really like it."
I run my hand across the soft feathers, remembering when Aiden stole my feather earrings after our tutoring with food date.
"You seem like you want to add a but."
"I'm a little worried how the feathers will hold up to a night of dancing."
"You going to be grinding on Aiden?"
"Absolutely."
"Tell me what you think of the dress itself. What message would it send?"
"This dress has a little edge. The combination of the tank style and the matte sequins pair unexpectedly with the feathers on the bottom. You know I like mixing things that seem like they shouldn't go together. And with a great pair of shoes, I think it'd be a good option."
"Tell me what you think of this last dress," she says, pulling it out.
"Oh, wow. I love this one. It's a little more mature than the others. No, that's not it. It's like rocker chic. It has an edge that I love, but still has an elegance about it."
"Tell me about how you're dressed in the video."
"My wardrobe consisted of a bikini, a bikini and shorts, and a cute little mini-dress."
"So, it's sexy?"
"They did choose the skimpiest bikini I had, so, yeah. But it's how any girl looks on the beach."
"Except you have a ridiculously good body and you're gorgeous. My point is, in the video you will look like a model, not an actress. If that was all you wanted to be, I'd put you in the silver dress. If you were a model wanting to be an actress, I'd put you in the feathered dress. But you are Hollywood royalty and this televised New Year's Eve party is your coming out. Not as Abby Johnston's daughter, but as Keatyn Douglas, future movie star. This dress will scream it to everyone who's watching."
I get tears in my eyes looking at the dress. It's like I'm standing in a doorway, looking out at my hopes and dreams. All of them there, waiting for me. Acting. A career that I'll love. Movie premieres. Award shows. Red carpets. Magazine covers. My scripts becoming box office hits. It's everything I've ever dared to dream.
"Can I try it on now?" I ask.
She gives me the dress, but not before giving me a hug.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31ST