Star-Struck, Book 1 (5 page)

“Well then I’d say you missed your shot. Because I’ve got her now, and I don’t plan on being dumb enough to let her go.”
Cocky much?
Eh, who was she kidding, he did have her. Hook line and sinker.

Trent glared at them, and then stormed off in a huff.

“That was pleasant.” Sunny said sarcastically. Then she made a show of smelling herself.

“What are you doing?” Gabe looked down at her like she’d lost her mind.

“Just checking to make sure I don’t smell like pee. Because that was definitely a pissing match.” She gave him a cheeky little smile.

He burst into a deep rumbling laugh. “Sorry. He kinda pissed me off.” Pause. “You really
liked
that douche?!”

“Guilty. Though I don’t know why. He just acted like such a brat! He’s never given me the time of day. And now that I’m getting attention from someone else, now he wants to get all possessive. Fuck that noise!” Sunny cringed. “Sorry. I have a bit of a potty-mouth sometimes.”

“Don’t apologize. It’s cute. You’re a little spit-fire when you want to be.” He wrapped her up in his arms again. She enjoyed his hard warmth.

“I think my fifteen minutes was up a while ago. Better get back.”

“Alright. I guess I can share you with the masses. But I don’t have to like it.” He sighed and released her reluctantly.

Talk about sharing with the masses. If this thing, this attraction went anywhere, Sunny knew she had to share him with the
world
. Which she wasn’t really sure she could do.

~~~

Gabe watched as Sunny made her way back to the stage. He nearly went over to the stage himself to punch Trent in the face after the scowl he gave Sunny.
Little prick!
Gabe didn’t particularly like her being around Trent, but he would never purposely try to ruin something that obviously meant a lot to her. She loved performing.

Before they started the next song, Trent effectively put the kibosh on the rest of the evening.

“Ladies and gentlemen. Before we start our last set, I just wanted to let everyone know that we have a special guest in the house. The very talented actor…Gabriel Wolf!” A calculating smile spread across Trent’s face as he pointed in Gabe’s direction.

The crowd went nuts and Gabe was bum-rushed by adoring if not slightly overzealous fans, leaving the once packed dance floor empty in front of Sunny. The manager and bouncers tried to make their way through the crowd to help him. But it was near impossible.

Finally muscling their way in, they grabbed Gabe, surrounding him while trying to make their way to the exit. The manager must have called the cops, because he saw flashing red and blue lights enter the parking lot. Before being pushed through the doorway, Gabe looked back at the stage. Sunny was in Trent’s face having a heated discussion, anger radiated off of her. And then she turned and threw the mike down on the floor and stormed off. Even in the chaos he could hear the loud thump of the mike hitting the floor reverberating through the speakers. The sound ending the night with disappointing finality.

~~~

“What the hell was that Trent?!” Sunny glared.

“That dude is just using you, Sunny. I’m just doing you a favor before he hurts you. You can’t really believe that someone like him would date you? He dates supermodels and hot actresses.” Trent looked down his noses at Sunny self-righteously. 

Sunny stepped back as if she’d been slapped, his words hitting to close to her doubts about Gabe’s interest in her. “You’re a fucking asshole, Trent!” Sunny yelled into Trent’s face. “You knew I had feelings for you and you didn’t give me the time of day. Now that I have someone interested in me that’s ten times better than you’ll ever be in every way, NOW you want to act like you care?! You can go to hell. Find someone else to sing with. I’m done!” Sunny threw the mike down and stormed off the stage. Tears threatened to pour down her face as she made her way through the back exit. She managed to hold them back till she got to her car. “Asshole, asshole, ASSHOLE!” She slammed her hand against the steering wheel, punctuating the word each time she sobbed it.

Pushing aside her dejected mood, Sunny needed to know if Gabe was okay. Reaching back, she grabbed her purse that was hidden on the floor behind the passenger seat. She searched through her purse for her phone. Finally finding it at the bottom, she wiped her face with the backs of her hands so that she could see the screen as she called up his number.

“Hello, Sweet Girl.” Gabe said picking up after the first ring.

“I’m so sorry Gabe. Are you okay?” Sunny said trying to control the teary tremble in her voice, but failing miserably.

“I’m fine Sunny. Don’t worry about me and don’t apologize for that fucker. If I had the chance I would’ve karate chopped him in the throat for you!” He growled indignantly, like a little kid.

Sunny burst into a fit of giggles, tears forgotten. He was trying to cheer her up. And it worked. “Thanks I needed that laugh.”

“No problem. I love your laugh. And anything I can do to hear it again, I’ll gladly do it. But I was dead serious. I see that dude again and he’s losing an Adam’s apple.”

Sunny’s head fell back on the headrest, the laughter shaking her whole body. Now tears of a different kind streamed down her face.

“Stop! Stop! It hurts!” Sunny grabbed her aching stomach.

“What? You didn’t know I’m a ninja by night…roundhouse kicking fools and ripping out their throats?”

“Ha! You didn’t describe a ninja. You just described Patrick Swayze in
Roadhouse
! Which is a favorite of mine. I own it.”

“Hmm. Do I sense a movie-buff in my midst?”

“Yes, Mr. Movie Star, you do. Care to play me in a friendly game of
Scene It
sometime? I have a current record of 7-in-0, by the way”, Sunny challenged smugly.

“Oh ho! Bring it baby! Name the place, name the date and time. And I’ll be there, spankin’ that ass!” She shivered at the thought. She was no
Anastasia Steele
, but being bent over his lap at his mercy did have some appeal.

“I’ll let you know. Just be prepared. Maybe do a little studying, you’ll need it.” She loved the playful banter they were having back and forth. It almost felt like they’d known each other for years.

“How about you get home and get prepared for tomorrow, because I plan on wearing you out.” Her stomach dropped and apparently released bats as opposed to butterflies, as violent as her stomach was fluttering.
Did that mean he plans on trying to have sex with me? Am I ready for that? Am I ready for him to see me naked? Is it too soon? Dear God, I can’t have another sleepless night!

Her silence stretched out a little too long. Gabe hesitantly responded to her silence. “Sunny? I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. I just meant I have a long day planned for you. There’s no pressure to move it to the next level.”

“Promise?” Sunny asked shakily.

“Aw, baby. I promise.” Sunny could hear the desperation in his voice for her to believe him.

“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow at one?”

“Yeah. One o’clock. Goodnight, Sweet Girl.”

“Goodnight, Gabriel.”

Sunny pressed the end button on her phone and headed home for another restless night.

Chapter 5

Traffic was light this time of day as Gabe coasted down the freeway, on his way to pick up Sunny for their date. Deciding what to do on their date had been a slight bump in the road. He knew that she would be impressed by something super fancy, but at the same time overwhelming for someone as down-to-earth and practical as Sunny. He needed to find something to do that matched her personality. Fun, exciting, and understated sexy. He was pretty sure his final decision would make the perfect first date.

For the first half of the date, he had decided to wear a pair of nice dark-washed jeans, a plain white fitted t-shirt and his white
Nikes
. And of course, for a little anonymity, a black baseball cap. For the night portion of the date, he brought a long sleeve blue button-down dress shirt and a pair of black dress shoes to go with the jeans he was already wearing. He was sure that anything Sunny wore would work for both day and night.

Pulling up in front of her building, he realized that he was nervous. Really nervous. Like a ‘high school kid on his first date’-nervous. He knew that this date was make it or break it. Sunny was like trying to coax a wild animal to eat out of your hand. One wrong move and she’d run. No woman had ever acted like this around him. Most times he had to beat them o
ff with a stick. Not that he was conceited or anything. It was just a fact of life that he’d had to get used to. Even before he became famous, girls threw themselves at him all the time because of his looks. But once fame came into play looks was just the start. Now it was his money or what he could do for their careers that had them flocking in droves. Being around Sunny was just…easy.

Grabbing his phone, he called up Sunny’s number. “Hey, Sweet Girl. I’m outside”, he said after she picked up.

“Okay. Walking out now.” Her voice trembled softly. Gabe knew he had a tough job of making her feel at ease today.

He got out of his old refurbished classic pickup truck in the original green and made his way to the passenger side, so he’d be there to open the truck door for her.

Sunny appeared in the doorway of her building. Gabe took in the sight of her as she stepped outside into the sunlight. His breath caught, his heart pounded, and his palms started to sweat. She was stunning, as usual. Her hair was swept up with her curls in sexy disarray piled atop her head, with a few wispy tendrils that lay gently against her neck, forehead, and temples. She wore a long sheer sundress that nearly touched the ground with a nude lining that stopped at her knees. It had an abstract tropical design on it in neutral as well as vibrant colors intermingled together, that made her skin tone glow. And of course it was cut deep showing a good portion of her breasts, which would torture him throughout the date. She held the dress up slightly on one side to make sure that she didn’t step on the hem. Revealing sexy ankle bands in colorful stones, that on closer inspection he realized were part of her deceptively plain flat sandals. And her makeup was minimal. Just enough to highlight her almond shaped eyes and sparkly lip-gloss to emphasize her pouty lips. He thought she definitely knew how to pull off comfortable, elegant, and sexy as hell; all at the same time. She took his breath away.

As she reached him he breathed in a fresh light flowery scent that matched her perfectly.
Sunshine and breezes.
Her face lit up as she scanned the truck. “This is yours?”

“Yep. A 1951
Chevy 3100
.” He rubbed the hood lovingly.

“It’s beautiful! I love old cars and trucks. I’ve always wanted an old truck.”

“Do you want to know what is really beautiful?” He paused for emphasis. “You.”

She looked down at the ground bashfully. Her cheeks turned a pretty pink. “Thank you, Gabriel. You look really handsome. What you do for a t-shirt should be illegal.”

Now it was his turn to blush.
I’m a thirty-seven year old man, and this woman has me blushing like a schoolboy.
”Thank you, Madison.” She smiled at the use of her given name. And with a flourish and a bow, he opened the passenger door. “Your chariot awaits, milady.”

~~~

Sunny giggled like a schoolgirl as she slid into the truck. When she had stepped out of her apartment and saw him leaning against that old truck, looking as if he was one of the bad boys that had literally stepped off the pages of one of the hundreds of romance novels she’d buried herself in, she had nearly gone cross-eyed at the sight. The plain white tee could barely contain the muscles that rippled across his shoulders, arms and chest. Even now as she watched him shift and steer through traffic, the muscles in his arms flexed gracefully. His forearms were thick and corded, with huge veins snaking under his skin and a light dusting of black hair. She wondered if it was unusual to want to lick someone’s forearms
. I mean…seriously!!! There is no way on this God’s green earth that this man could really find me attractive! This shit just doesn’t happen in real life. No. Absolutely. NOT!

Pulling her mind out of bewilderment, she realized that he’d flustered her so much the past couple of days that she hadn’t asked him one thing about himself or his new movie. Sure she had read about him in magazines, but who knew what information was real or not. It was time to learn straight from the source.

“So most of our conversations have been about me and I think it’s time we changed that. If that’s alright with you? I’m sure being in the lime-light you don’t want everyone to know your business. But-”

“It’s fine Sunny. Ask me whatever you want. I trust you.” Gabe gave her a warm reassuring smile.

“Well, what is the new movie that you’ve been filming here?”

“That’s an easy one. It’s called Redemption. It’s about a man, a banker that has been cheating on his wife and just generally ignoring his family. Then a group of bank robbers decide to hold him and his family hostage, forcing him to help them rob his bank. In the meantime, he is also forced to realize just how much he loves his family. And tries to redeem himself, by doing everything in his power to protect his family. That about sums it up. Drama, action and a little bit of romance.” Gabe glanced at her to gauge her reaction.

“Nice, it looks like I better clear my calendar for the release, because it sounds like something I’d definitely go see. The description has the earmarks of an
Oscar
and
Golden Globe
nominated film. If the script is well written.” Sunny said matter-of-factly.

“Wow! You really are a movie-buff.” Gabe looked at her with a seriously impressed smirk.

“I just love movies. Always have. And for some reason most movie information, even if I’ve only heard it once, somehow gets stuck in my head. Now ask me about politics, and I’ve got nothin’.”

“No worries. I’d rather talk to you about movies than politics. Besides, movies are a safer subject for first dates, anyway.”

“That’s true. So we’ll be sure to also steer clear of religion, Pro-Life/Pro-Choice, and exes. I think that about covers all the first date ‘no fly zone’ discussions.” The more they talked the more Sunny started to relax, like last night when he had successfully cheered her up after the Trent fiasco.

“Yep. I think you got them all. So speaking of movie release dates, I’d love to take you to the premiere of my new movie Clutch, that’s coming out in two weeks.”

Well, there went her relaxed feeling. “You mean the public, L.A., red carpet and paparazzi kind of movie premiere?” Sunny closed her eyes, and started to inhale and exhale slowly, trying to control the panic attack she felt coming on.

“Yes, Sunny. A premiere with all the bells and whistles. You also forgot designer dresses, stylists and makeup artists. You know, stuff that ladies seem to like.”

She gave him the stink-eye, unlike he’d ever gotten before. “Do I look like a woman that enjoys all that stuff?”

“Well no. You’re charmingly undemanding. But don’t you like the idea of being pampered every now and again?”

“Of course. But I don’t have money for all of that, Gabe.”

“Did I say that you needed to spend any money? It would be on me, as a ‘thank you’ for keeping me company, during what would be a normally dull night.”

“I just don’t know if I’d feel comfortable being put under a microscope because I’m on the arm of the ‘The World’s Sexiest Man’.”
And I’m found lacking.
But she kept that thought to herself.

“Well, you don’t have to give me an answer right now. Just think about it.”

“Okay.”

“And Sunny?”

“Yes?”

“I would be honored and the ‘The World’s
Luckiest
Man’ if you accompanied me to the premiere.” Sincerity was written all over his face when he glanced at her.
Swoon!

“Thanks, Gabe. And thank you for being so sweet and patient with me. I may not understand it, but I appreciate it.” Sunny stared down at her hands that were wringing in her lap self-consciously.

Gabe reached over and grabbed her left hand, caressing it gently trying to calm her nerves. Unfortunately, it had a different effect than he intended, she was sure. Not until this moment, did she realize that her hands were quite obviously one of her erogenous zones. His fingertips danced lightly along the back of her hand, her palm and between her fingers. Her body instantly burst into flames, skin flushed and goosebumps raised. Her mouth reflexively opened, her eyes closed and a soft gasp passed her lips. It felt like she had two hearts, one beating through her chest and the other pounding a violent pulse in her clit, making her entire core clench and her thighs squeeze shut. She was literally having tiny orgasms that were sending electric shocks to the pleasure section of her brain. It was the most erotic moment of her life, which was taking place in broad daylight on the freeway.

~~~

Holy FUCK!
Sunny’s reaction from his simple caress had him nearly coming in his pants. It took every ounce of his concentration not to ruin his jeans before their date even began. Or crash the truck. Hearing her little gasps of pleasure was sending him over the edge. She was so responsive. He couldn’t imagine what she’d be like if he actually did something sexual.

“Shit Sunny! You’re fucking killin’ me here.” His jaw was clenching and unclenching as he pulled his hand away. Putting both hands on the steering wheel, trying hard to maintain control, his knuckles turned white from the effort.

Gabe looked over at Sunny and her head was back with her hands covering her face like she was embarrassed. He reached over to pull her hands down from her face, but stopped midway, thinking that touching her again would be a bad idea. He’d be pulling off to the side of the road, laying her across this bench seat, spreading her thick thighs and thrusting into her in ten seconds flat.   

“Sunny, please don’t be embarrassed by your honest response to my touch. It was beautiful. And the most raw and arousing thing I’ve ever experienced.”

Sunny slowly removed her hands from her face. “Really?”

“Fuck yeah! Can’t you tell?” Gabe glanced down at his apparent erection that even his jeans couldn’t hide.

She took a sharply indrawn breath when she followed his gaze down to his lap. “Oh.” She softly whispered. “I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable.”

“Sunny, if you don’t stop apologizing I’m seriously going to put you over my knee. I like the things you say, the things you do. I just
like
you. So when you apologize for being you, it pisses me off. So please stop.”

“Okay. I won’t do it again.” Her back straightened and her chin came up imperceptibly.
Good girl.
Gabe wanted. No needed her to understand how amazing she was. Otherwise he was terrified what the media would do to her. He just hoped that he would have enough time to build something strong with her before the world started to interfere. And he knew they would.

To ease the tension that had built between them, Gabe tried to lighten the mood. “Hey why don’t you turn on the radio? Pick whatever station you want. And I promise I’ll sing whatever song you want me to.”

A huge smile spread across her face. “Deal.”

~~~

Sunny reached over turning on the old original 1951 car radio. She turned to a station that played the eighties, nineties and today.
Take On Me
by A-ha was playing. She turned to look at Gabe with one raised sassy eyebrow.

“Aw, this song is too high for me!”

“You said any song I wanted.” He gave her a sad puppy dog look. “Alright fine. I’ll sing with you.”

“Okay.” Big grin.

By this time the song was at the chorus. Perfect. With the windows down, wind whipping their hair they sang at the top of their lungs.

They laughed at how horrible they sounded. Sunny knew not many could pull those high notes off. But it was one of the best classics to sing badly with nothing but pure joy.

By the time the song was over they were relaxed once more, enjoying each other’s company. Heading south from the 405 to the 5, singing any and every song that came on the radio whether they knew it or not, making up words if they didn’t. Sunny realized they must be headed to San Diego. Or Tijuana. But she didn’t think a show involving a stripper and a donkey would make for a good first date. She couldn’t possibly guess what he had planned, but she knew it would be great considering how attentive and thoughtful he was towards her.