Mr. Hollywood (Celebrity #1) (18 page)

“
Actually,
I kinda was. I was supposed to be keeping you out of trouble though, not
getting us both into it.
”

“
Technically,
you were not on the clock for your work. I
’
m the one paying your wages
tonight.
”

“
Perfect.
So now I
’
m a prostitute. I can add getting
paid for sex to my resume. That ought to go over well.
”
She frowned and I could tell it
really bothered her.

“
Your
pay has nothing to do with the sex that happened tonight. You know that as well
as I do. If anyone is the jerk, it
’
s me. Paying you makes me your
boss. I just fucked my employee. You can sue me for sexual harassment.
”

Relaxing, she smiled.
“
You
have my permission to harass me any time.
”

“
You
liked that, did you?
”
I smiled, and tweaked her
chin, before pressing a light kiss to her lips.

“
You
have no idea how much.
”

“
Oh,
I think I do. I may have to see a hearing specialist tomorrow and send out
letters of apology to my neighbors.
”

She snickered.
“
I wasn
’
t the only loud one. Between your
shouts and that banging headboard, I
’
m pretty sure you might need a
drywall repairman in the morning.
”

“
Hell
no. If there
’
s damage to the wall I
’
m leaving that sucker like a badge
of pride. If people ask if I
’
m sleeping with you I will refer
them to the wall so they know there is no sleeping going on in that bed. That
bed is made for some seriously hard fucking.
”

Giggling louder, she hugged me, pressing her
deliciously naked body against me.
“
I
’
m
happy you still have your amazing sense of humor.
”
She
gasped, backing away and glancing down to where my hard member stood erect and
proud between us.
“
Oh! My! Gosh!
”
she enunciated each word.
“
You cannot seriously be hard again
already!
”

“
What?
”
I asked innocently.
“
You rubbed that hot body of yours
back up against me. Things are gonna happen. I
’
m
hardwired to respond.
”

“
Get
in the shower,
”
she ordered.
“
We need to get you cooled down.
”

“
I
don
’
t think a cold shower is going to
help.
”
I shrugged helplessly.
“
What can I say? You do it for me.
Hardcore.
”

“
So
I
’
m learning, but we
’
ve spent way too much time having
sex. You should
’
ve been back to the facility by
now.
”

“
We
left the after party earlier than planned. It
’
s
probably still going on.
”

“
I
still need to speak with you about all this, though.
”

“
All
right, all right. I get the message. Play time is over
—
for now.
”

Grabbing her hand, I dragged her under the water with
me, feeling more content than I had since
—
well, since I
’
d left her behind.

“Z McCartney
Leaves After Party Early with Mystery Date in Tow!”

~
Insider
Extra
~

Chapter Fourteen

Z

“
Would
you like some coffee?
”
I asked as I led Aubrey into
the kitchen, both of us wrapped snugly in a couple of my bathrobes. I loved
seeing her in my clothes.

“
No,
thank you. If I drink any coffee now, I
’
ll never get to sleep later, and I
feel like I
’
m going to need a lot of sleep
after tonight.
”
She slipped into one of the
barstools around the island.

“
True,
I guess I will skip coffee, too. How about juice or water?
”

“
My
throat would greatly appreciate a glass of water.
”

“
One
water coming up,
”
I said, reaching into the
fridge for a bottle of Evian. I opened it for her and placed it on the counter.
“
Are you sure you don
’
t want anything else? Any food? I
’
m not sure what I have but I can
scrounge up some crackers or something, I bet.
”

She shook her head.
“
I
’
m okay. Thank you.
”

I wasn
’
t sure why, especially after all we
’
d done tonight, but she suddenly
seemed more tense
—
more formal with me somehow, as if
she didn
’
t know who I was anymore.

I didn
’
t like it.

Watching, I waited for her to take several swallows.
After a few moments she set her drink back on the countertop and began fiddling
with the tie on her robe.

“
You
want to tell me why you
’
re so nervous again? You have
nothing to be worried about with me. I
’
m not going to run off or ditch
you, if that
’
s what you
’
re afraid of.
”

Glancing up, I noticed tears were in her eyes.
“
I
’
m
sorry. I don
’
t mean to seem all edgy, but I
kinda am.
”

“
Talk
to me. Tell me what
’
s on your mind.
”
My heart rate was increasing just
from the way she was acting, but I tried to appear calm and cool. Maybe she was
going to pay me back, and dump me like I did her. Heaven knew I deserved it.
But no, that wasn
’
t Aubrey
’
s style. At least not the Aubrey I
’
d known, but a lot could change in
ten years. Hell, I was barely recognizable.

Clearing her throat, she blew out a heavy breath, as
if trying to gather some courage.
“
I need to tell you something
—
something I kept from you.
”

Dear God, she was married. I could feel it in my
bones. There was no other reason I could think of that would make her so
worried.
“
All right,
”
I said, my voice still sounding
steady and sure, but only because I was acting.
“
Let
’
s hear it.
”

Biting her lip, more tears filled her eyes, dripping
down her cheeks. My first instinct was to comfort her, but I knew she needed to
say whatever awful thing she had to tell me first. I felt like my whole life
was hanging in the balance.

Her eyes never left mine and I saw the intense sorrow
in them.
“
When I came to LA to see you all
those years ago, it was to tell you that I was pregnant with your baby.
”

Everything around me started spinning and I gripped
the counter tighter, attempting to steady myself. I hadn
’
t even considered this possibility.
“
What?
”
It
was all I could manage to croak out, barely able to process her words.

“
I
’
m so sorry! I had intended to come
back and tell you later, but I was just so angry. Then everything with your
career took off in a big way and the next thing I knew you were dating some
movie star and I didn
’
t know what to do.
”

“
Are
you saying .
 
.
 
. that I have a child?
”
I asked, still trying to wrap my
head around what I was hearing.

“
Yes.
”
Her voice was so chalk full of
emotion she could barely speak, and I had to strain to make her words out.
“
You have a beautiful nine year old
son. His name is Dustin.
”

Dustin.

I had a son.

A son.

A son.

I couldn
’
t believe what I was hearing. Joy
burst through me
—
followed quickly by fear and then
anger.
“
Good lord, Aubrey. How could you
keep something like this from me for all these years?
”
The hurt of her secret was almost
more than I could bear. It almost trumped the one I
’
d been hiding.

All this time, I had a real family sitting here in the
same town, right under my nose. All this time, I
’
d
suffered with the mistake I
’
d made in leaving her behind, only
to find out she
’
d been keeping an even bigger
secret from me. I couldn
’
t take it. The hurt was so deep I
didn
’
t know how to process it.

“
I
’
m so sorry,
”
she hiccupped out.
“
I .
 
.
 
. I wanted to tell you, but I didn
’
t know how.
”

I couldn
’
t do this. Not right now.

Turning to the refrigerator, I opened it,
automatically reaching for a cold beer
—
a beer that wasn
’
t there anymore because Penelope
had poured them all down the sink. Frustrated, I slammed the door hard.

“
You
can
’
t drink anymore, remember?
”
she reminded me in a timid voice.

“
I
can do whatever the fuck I want!
”
I snapped back at her, the
shock of her words hitting me.
“
And no one can stop me! Especially
not you! Why the fuck didn
’
t you tell me this days ago?
”

She was trembling and cowering away as she hunched
down into her stool.
“
I didn
’
t tell you because I was shocked to
find you there at first. And then later I was worried about what it might do to
your recovery
—
with good reason, it appears.
”

“
What
the fuck did you expect?
”
I ran a hand through my damp
hair.

“
I
’
m sorry. I wanted to tell you
before all this happened, but
—”

“
But
I was determined to have you first,
”
I finished for her. It was my
own damn fault tonight. She
’
d told me repeatedly that she
needed to talk to me about something important. I
’
d
just assumed she wanted to talk about her feelings or the past. I wasn
’
t ready to talk about my past.

I ran a hand over my face.
“
I
’
m
sorry, too; for yelling at you just now.
”
I really was. I didn
’
t want to lash out and hurt her
even more. She
’
d obviously been through enough at
my hands already.
“
Shit! I can
’
t even fathom what this means.
”
She didn
’
t speak, silent tears continuing to
fall down her face and suddenly I felt like the biggest jerk on the planet.
Moving around the counter, I gathered her in my arms.
“
Aubrey, I
’
m so sorry. If I
’
d had any idea of what happened, I
would
’
ve come running back, begging for
your forgiveness.
”

Apparently those words didn
’
t comfort her because she fisted
her hands in my robe, like she was clinging onto me for dear life, and sobbed
even harder. Unspeaking, I simply held her, letting her cry her eyes out as a
few tears of my own managed to escape as well. How
’
d the two of us manage to fuck
things up so royally?

All of my insecurities washed through me, along with
all the heartache and guilt. My inability to go to her and confess my sins had
resulted in me completely losing the life I wanted. And while I wasn
’
t the only one at fault here, I was
the one who
’
d set this rollercoaster in motion.

What kind of prick was I? The damn, fucking asshole
kind, apparently.

It was several long minutes before Aubrey
’
s sobs subsided. Pulling away, she
wiped at her eyes.
“
Sorry. I didn
’
t mean to lose it like that.
”

“
Baby,
you have nothing to be sorry over. This is my fault. It
’
s
entirely
my fault. If I hadn
’
t pushed you to sleep with me, or
if I
’
d have stayed in Montana, all of
this would
’
ve worked out fine. I wish I
’
d never come here.
”

“
Please
don
’
t talk like that. I wanted to have
sex with you. It was my choice. You let me say when. That day was one of the
best of my life. I
’
ve relived it so many times during
these lonely years.
”
She glanced up at me.
“
You were all I ever wanted. I
’
ve dated a few other people, but I
could never get over you. I
’
ve never even slept with anyone
else.
”

Those words shocked me almost as much as her previous
revelation.
“
You haven
’
t had sex in ten years?
”
I stared at her incredulously.

Giving a weak smile, she shook her head.
“
Not until tonight
—
which was pretty damn amazing by
the way.
”

“
Shit.
”
I
’
d
fucked her hard tonight, and now I realized she was still practically at virgin
status.
“
I
’
m
so sorry, Aubrey,
”
I apologized again.
“
I would
’
ve taken it easier on you had I
known.
”