Never Say Never (The Price of Fame Series) (14 page)

* * * *

Before he arrived, Sander thought the night would be awkward, especially with her mother there, but as he sat next to Chloe on the comfy black sofa in the living room, watching a late night game show, he felt more comfortable that he had ever been.

Looking around, he could see they didn’t have much in the way of material things. The old cabinets and chests around the room were topped with pictures of Chloe, her mother, and a man who Joyce had told him was her deceased husband. The overall affect was homey and welcoming. Chloe had fallen silent after dinner, and other than answering questions when directed at her, she hadn’t said a word. He figured she was nervous about what would happen when Joyce called it a night, but seeing her stiff shoulders and the polite mask she wore, Sander was beginning to think she had changed her mind.

He wanted her, burned with the need to be inside her lush warmth, but he wouldn’t push. Especially not since he had another favor to ask her, and this time he couldn’t dangle an interview as a bribe in front of her nose. Nope, now he just had to hope she enjoyed spending time with him enough to continue their charade for a bit longer.

He smiled to himself as the game show they were watching came to an end. He could think of a way to make it worth her while.

Joyce yawned behind her raised hand and Sander felt Chloe go even stiffer beside him, but she didn’t speak.

“I think it’s time for me to call it a night.” Joyce rose and held her hand out.

Sander stood, took her hand, and brushed a kiss on the back of her it. “Thanks for having me. Your cooking puts some of the chefs in those fancy restaurants to shame.”

Her cheeks tinged with color along her high cheekbones, making her look more like Chloe. She was a beautiful woman. Sander guessed whoever was lucky enough to marry her daughter would be a lucky bastard, since he had no doubt Chloe’s beauty wouldn’t fade over the years. His chest constricted again, and he had to force himself to keep the smile on his face.

“You’re welcome here any time, you know. Come back soon.”

“I might just do that.”

Chloe wished her mother a good night. When Joyce left, he turned back to see her perched on the edge of the sofa, her back as stiff and straight as an ironing board and her eyes wary.

“Can we talk?” he asked, using her line from the other night.

She chewed the inside of her mouth. “Is that what we’re calling it now?” Her lips curved and amusement glittered in her eyes.

He couldn’t find it in him to appreciate the innuendo, so slid down onto the sofa next to her, wondering why the thought of Chloe marrying someone else was making it so hard to breathe. They’d agreed this was temporary, and after tomorrow night she’d have fulfilled her part of the agreement. He remembered back to that awful day he’d discovered Sienna and Paul together, in his bed no less, but the anger, the sense of betrayal didn’t come.

Sienna had been an easy choice, he knew that. She only wanted him initially for his money and when she made it big as a model, kids wouldn’t have been part of the deal—something Sander couldn’t have given her even if he wanted to. But that changed. She decided she wanted a real relationship with love, marriage, and babies. Sander didn’t understand love, all he knew was he didn’t feel it for her.

And he was pretty sure he wasn’t in love with Chloe, but the idea of her meeting someone else…

His heart pumped double time and his hands clenched into fists. There was no sense of betrayal, but when he imagined her doing the same it flooded him, ate him whole and festered away until he saw red.

“Sander, I was kidding!”

He sucked in a breath and tried to get a hold of himself before speaking. “Sorry, I was thinking about tomorrow.”

Not exactly a lie, he was thinking about what happened after tomorrow. When she left him. No, she had to agree to his proposition.

“I know we agreed that after tomorrow we’d both go our separate ways…” Sander paused to study her face. The mask slipped and his shoulders sagged when he saw the hope in her expression. “My manager called today. Sienna and Paul have set a date for the wedding, a month from now, right before I go on tour with
Do You Have What It Takes?
”

He wondered whether the fact she looked hopeful should worry him, but shrugged it off. They both knew this was temporary and Chloe had her hands full with her mother. He didn’t think for a second she would abandon Joyce into a care home to run away and get married. She loved her mother far too much for that.

“I was wondering if you would continue to pretend to be my girlfriend until then.”

Her lips curved into a wide smile, flashing straight white teeth, and his heart throbbed. “It doesn’t hurt to
ask
instead of
bribe
, does it?”

Seeing her mood had shifted, he grabbed her waist and pulled her onto his lap. Chloe giggled, the sound ringing straight into his heart.

“I could find a way to bribe you,” he whispered and nibbled the skin over her collarbone.

Chloe shivered and dug her fingers into his hair, holding him, but he didn’t plan on going anywhere. He kissed up her neck to her ear, then nipped the lobe between his teeth. She shifted to straddle him. With the sweet scent of her perfume fucking with his head, and her desperate jerky motions wearing on his self-control, he knew he had to get them behind a closed door. Preferably a soundproof one, but he’d take what he could get.

“Let’s take this upstairs,” he suggested and rose off the sofa. Chloe’s legs remained wrapped firmly around his hips.

“Wait,” she pleaded.

Sander stilled, tried to rein in some semblance of control on his body, but his mind kept screaming he’d waited long enough. Gazing down into her eyes dark with lust, but open and vulnerable, he ignored his mind. Chloe clearly wasn’t ready, and he wasn’t going to take advantage. He thought a cold shower might be good about now…

“I…this. Us. We can’t do this all the time. Not for a month.”

Sander released his grip on her legs and she let them slide to the floor. He cupped her chin with his hand and used it to tilt her face up. “I don’t see why we can’t.”

Her skin heated as a dash of red scored her cheekbones. She tried to shake her head, but his grip stilled her. Willing her with his gaze not to do this, he settled his other hand on her hip and urged her closer. She came willingly, but the look of confusion didn’t leave her eyes.

“I like you, and I care about you.” She paused to search his face, but he didn’t know what she would see. A warm glow settled in his chest at her words. “If we keep doing this, I can’t promise I won’t start to feel…more. And I don’t want to lie to you. I don’t want to pretend I’m fine with us being what we are, when it might change.”

He didn’t release her, even though logically he knew he should. Desire coursed through his veins, and he still longed more than anything to take her upstairs and make love to her—not fuck her—until they were both spent and sated. But she was trying to be honest with him. Told him that what she felt might grow to more, and more wasn’t something he could give her back.

Unwillingly, he pulled his hand away and stepped back from the warm temptation of her body. His chest felt too tight again, like his lungs had expanded beyond capacity, but it was still too hard to breathe.

“I appreciate your honesty.”

Her face crumpled and her eyes shone. It almost broke his heart to see her hurt. Something he swore to her he would never do.

“I don’t want to lead you on, Chloe. A month would be all I can give you. Later, we’d have to work together at Studio Four, so it’s probably better if we didn’t give in to this…chemistry between us.”

The more he thought about it, the more this idea seemed right. She turned his world upside down just by being in it, and a woman as kind and as loving as her deserved to have it all in return. Sure, he could give her some things. He could please her sexually, make sure she never wanted for anything money could buy, but that hadn’t been enough for Sienna in the end, and hell would freeze over before he let Chloe settle for half of what she deserved.

She turned away from him to look out the window at the dark, dreary night. The clouds hid the moon and the stars and the streetlights outside highlighted the rain. The weather was as hopeless as this fucking predicament, and he curled his hand into a fist, aching to connect to something. Preferably his damn head.

“You’re right,” she said at last, and when she turned back to him her cool mask was firmly in place.

He didn’t hate it this time, he understood. She needed a way to face this out. He knew she wanted him just as much. A swell of pride at her strength made it a bit easier for him to breathe.

“Do you still want me at the party tomorrow?” she asked.

He nodded. “And the radio station if you still want to come.”

The mask never slipped. “I’ll think about it.”

He wanted to ask about the wedding. Wanted to go over and kiss her and promise everything would be all right. “I’ll let Freda know just in case, and I’ll tell security to let you in.”

“Thank you.”

“I should probably go.”

She didn’t confirm that would be a good idea, but if he stayed the temptation of her could overpower his good intentions. He turned and strode to the door, his damn chest tightening further.

Sander turned to face her. “I’d still like to take you shopping for something to wear. If you meet me after work, we can go into town.”

“I can wear the red dress.”

Frustration made his voice clipped. “You hate that dress.”

The amber in her eyes turned liquid and the stoic mask slipped into a scowl. “I don’t hate it, the dress is beautiful.”

He stepped closer. “I agree, but you’re not comfortable wearing it.”

“I can’t take anything else from you, you’ve already given me too much,” she whispered.

Her downcast eyes made his heart squeeze.
Fuck.
He stepped closer, knowing if he touched her again he wouldn’t be able to stop this time.

“Chloe, you wouldn’t need a new dress if I hadn’t asked you to do this for me. I told you, I’ll get you what you need. Tomorrow night is going to be awkward enough. I don’t want you to feel more uncomfortable wearing his dress.”

She tilted her head, her lips curved into a small smile. “Then thank you.”

Unable to resist, he dropped a kiss on her forehead. “You’re welcome. And the offer is still open for you to come to the studio.”

Something shadowed her eyes and he knew she wouldn’t come. Fighting the urge to push, he wondered why it was so damn important she came anyway. The press wouldn’t be there so there really wasn’t a point in Chloe going.

He walked back to the door and opened it. Turning back, he said, “Text me and let me know. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye.”

He closed the door behind him and made the way down the steps to his car. The tightness hadn’t left his chest, and he wondered how he was going to manage to get by a month without being with her properly. For the first time he really wanted someone, but he cared about her too much to let her settle for someone like him. Someone who could only give her a small part of everything she deserved.

Pulling out into the traffic, a hollow ache formed in his chest as all his fears from earlier came back. He couldn’t get the sight of Chloe in his bed out of his mind, but it wasn’t him with her this time, it was another man.

His hands fisted on the steering wheel and his vision turned red. It was none of his fucking business who she chose to be with, but that didn’t stop jealousy from festering in him. Sander figured the next month was going to be the hardest of his life.

Chapter 9

The lobby of the Radio Buzz building was drastically different from Studio Four’s. Every wall was painted a different shade of pastel and signed records and CDs were the only art there. As Chloe waited on the sofa for Sander to finish up, her tummy quivered with nerves. It had been another long, sleepless night, and she knew she didn’t look like a woman dating a celebrity. This morning she’d spent the best part of an hour ridding herself of the dark circles under her eyes.

She had never felt more like a fool in her life.

Yesterday she had been so sad knowing tonight would be her last day with him, then when he’d told her he wanted her at the wedding, she had been so happy. But the broken woman inside had reared her ugly head and taunted that being with him for any length of time would break her heart. So she opened her mouth and ruined the evening.

It was nothing short of a miracle he still wanted her to do this. After all, he had been clear from the start that he didn’t want a woman who would fall at his feet, and she was almost there. But she had been honest. It would have been worse if she’d lied to him and pretended she could handle what he was offering.

The elevator doors opened, and Sander stepped through with Annabelle close behind. She laughed at something he said and the smile on his face stopped Chloe’s heart for a second. Today he wore a pale blue shirt, the exact same color as his eyes, and he looked every bit the California surfer with the body of a muscled-up model. She realized with a pang of sadness it was a body she would never get to appreciate without clothes.

His gaze locked hers from across the room and she pulled herself together. Standing, she whipped out the smile she used for customers. He already knew too much about her, he didn’t need to know how much she regretted last night too.

Sander escorted Annabelle over. “Annabelle, this is the woman I was telling you about. Chloe, Annabelle.”

“Call me Anna, please.” She beamed. “I’ve been dying to meet the woman who snatched up Mr. Commitment-phoebe here.”

Anna elbowed Sander in the ribs, and Chloe’s stomach dipped. He hadn’t told her the truth.

“Pleased to meet you,” she managed to say.

Sander mouthed
later
and she knew now wasn’t the time to get into anything, though she was curious about what he had said.

“Are you coming shopping with us?” Chloe asked. She hoped to be able to subtly pick her brain.