The Unidentified Redhead (1) (25 page)

“Who is going to dump niblets in your knickers?” he deadpanned.

“Whose boobies are you going to hold while you sleep?”

“Who is going to listen to you snore?” He chuckled.

“Hey, I don't snore!” I yelled, turning to him and giving him a light slap on the face.

“Fine Grace, you don't snore,” he said sarcastically, shaking his head. We were both quiet for a minute.

“Seriously though, will anyone be listening to you snore? I mean, in New York? Do you think you will…I dunno…be snoring for anyone else?” he asked, turning the banter into something serious. He looked nervous, but was covering well.

“Well, will you be holding anyone else's boobies while I'm gone?” I asked quietly, my mind immediately thinking of this Marcia.

“I asked you first,” he said.

“Well, I would like to make it clear that while I officially do not snore, the answer is no. I don't plan on snoring with anyone else while I'm gone,” I said, nervous now myself. This was the first time we had discussed, really discussed where this was going.

He was quiet and I could see his jaw relaxing. He'd been quite tense.

“And?” I asked.

“And what?” he asked back.

“What about you? And holding boobies? Will you be…holding…anyone else's boobies?” I could barely breathe. This was a twenty-four-year-old guy who could have practically anyone he wanted. Could I really be asking him if he was planning on monkhood while I was gone?

Yes, you are asking him, and he owes you an answer.

I waited.

“Grace, I think I can honestly say, with no second thoughts, that there isn't another pair of boobies on the planet that I'd rather have in my hands than yours. Sleeping or otherwise,” he stated, with a glance at my chest.

I got it.

“Oh, baby, you say the sweetest things,” I cried in a sickly sweet voice, launching myself across the seat at him, smacking his cheek with a wet kiss.

“Blech, don't call me baby, you have enough nicknames for me already,” he teased, crisis averted.

“Oh, suck it, Sweet Nuts,” I taunted

“Now, if Jessica Simpson happens to fall on me and I have to steady her by holding on somewhere…” his voice trailed off.

I gave him a wet willy.

We laughed, turned up the stereo, and drove on up the coast. I hoped we could keep the promises we just made.

***

We pulled into Santa Barbara just after noon, and as the tiny streets wound through the trees, I finally realized where we were staying. The Four Seasons Biltmore was a famous resort and I had stayed here once when Holly and I first moved to California. It was Spanish in its architecture, with a classic Californian open feel.

We pulled around to the front, the valet got our luggage, and when Jack checked us in, I was pleased to note that we were staying in one of the cottages right on the ocean. I raised my eyebrow when I thought about the extra privacy this would afford us, and he winked at me.

“I wanted you to be able to scream as loud you wanted to, Crazy,” he whispered, green eyes smoldering. I could feel my body warming just listening to him tease me.

“Will someone be making me scream?” I asked in my own whisper, pressing my lips to his neck, while the desk clerk coughed discreetly.

“Count on that, love,” he answered, his hand sneaking down to my bum and giving it a squeeze. I giggled in anticipation as the clerk handed over our keys. We began to make our way in the direction of the cottages, kissing deeply, when I heard a woman's voice say,

“Well well, what have we here?”

I turned to see a pretty blonde, standing with a tall, brown-haired guy who obviously worked out a lot. They were both smiling at the two of us pawing each other in the lobby. Jack's hand gave my bum one more squeeze, and then broke away. He smiled back at them, shaking the guy's hand and giving the girl a hug. A hug, I noticed, like one you would give your little sister.

“Lane, Rebecca, this is Grace,” he said, pulling me back against him as I shook their hands. They seemed to be eying me up and down in an amused way, but it was not unpleasant. I got the sense immediately that they were approving. Which was a nice change of pace.

“Gracie, you would know them better as Isaac and Penelope.” He smirked, introducing me to the other two main characters in the film. Lane I already knew I liked, he was grinning big. Rebecca was appraising me a little more carefully, woman to woman. She played the love interest in the film, and I was curious to see the chemistry they had off set.

“It's really nice to meet you. Are you staying here as well?” I asked, noticing that Lane was eying my chest appreciatively and giving Jack a high five. Rebecca laughed kindly at the two of them, and answered, “Yes. We have the photo shoot tomorrow, so a few of us decided to come up a day early.” She smiled at me, a bit more warmly this time, and I got a gut feeling I was going to really like her.

“I must say, Grace. I don't know why Hamilton was keeping you such a secret. You're hot!” Lane burst out as Jack rolled his eyes at him.

“Thanks, Lane. I do have a pretty sweet rack.” I laughed as Jack blushed and shook his head at me, eyes closed. I could tell he was pleased I was getting along with his cast mates so quickly.

“So, what are your plans for the afternoon? We were just going to get some lunch, you should join us,” Rebecca offered.

“Well, actually, we were going to get settled in our room and then maybe just order in,” Jack said, pulling on my hand and squeezing it.

“We would love to come!” I interjected, smiling at both of them. I saw Jack's expression out of the corner of my eye. It was now my turn to stall. Just for fun.

We all agreed to meet in the oceanfront restaurant in fifteen minutes. We said our goodbyes and headed for our cottage. As we walked down the cobblestone pathway, he looked at me incredulously.

“What happened to not being able to wait for the shagging? I thought we were going to spend some time inside today,” he asked, shifting my overnight bag to his other shoulder so he could tuck me into his side as we walked.

“Well, I want to spend some time with your friends while I can. Besides, after how much you teased me this morning about my, what did you call it, randiness? Now, I'm going to make you beg for it,” I stated matter-of-factly as we walked up to the front door.

He looked at me carefully for a moment and then opened the door with the key. He let me walk in before him, and when I entered, I was struck by how lovely and romantic this cottage was. Fireplace, private patio, ocean view, and I could see a scrumptious king sized bed beckoning from the bedroom. All of this I noticed in the seven seconds it took him to close the door, spin me around, lift me off my feet and press me back up against the door.

His eyes burned into mine as he ravaged my neck with his tongue. The suddenness of his attack left me breathless. He bent his head to my ear and bit at my earlobe.

“You want me to beg for it, Grace?” he whispered.

“Uh huh,” I managed to get out, beginning to lose focus. He forced my legs to open and wrap around his waist and I could feel him, grinding hard against me. A soft moan escaped me.

“I'm begging you, Grace. I'm begging you to let me kiss your sweet tits.” His tongue dragged from the top of my cleavage to the base of my neck. “I'm begging you to let me nibble on you.” He ground hard against my core, eliciting a louder groan from me. “I'm begging you to let me taste you.” He held me up against the door with the strength of his body alone, one hand snaking beneath my shorts and finding me instantly, pressing down hard. I chanted his name. “And I'm begging you to let me sink in, feel you wrap around my cock as you come over and over again,” he finished, bringing me to the fastest orgasm I have ever experienced. I screamed his name, still pressed up against the door. The combination of his hand and the words he just spoke in that damnable accent was too much, and I came again, softer but more deeply than the first.

I loved me some Hamiltonian Dirty Talk…

He backed away, eyes almost black, licking at his fingers. “Now, we'll see who's begging later.” He smirked, watching my dazed expression harden into something much more determined. “Let's go keep that lunch date you insisted on, love,” he said, putting his sunglasses on and grinning at me cockily.

“Gah,” I managed, eyes crossed and legs doing the shimmy shake. This was going to be the longest day of my life.

***

We ate lunch with Rebecca and Lane and I listened to stories about filming. It was interesting to see Jack with his friends. We had spent so much time wrapped in our own little ball of bliss that it was nice to interact with others.

Jack told them, with pride, about my show in New York, and though his voice was tinged with a sadness only I would notice, he was unquestionably my biggest fan. When Lane brazenly asked how we were going to work a cross-country romance, Jack simply smiled, kissed my hand, and answered, “We'll figure it out as we go.”

Rebecca obviously adored Jack, and vice versa. I felt good about leaving him with such a good friend. Lane had starred in a fairly major movie earlier in the summer, and there were already a group of women at a nearby table that had recognized him. It didn't take long before Rebecca and Jack were recognized as well, and they finally approached the table after much giggling. Once there, Lane showered them with hugs. He really was a natural at this. Jack was a little more reserved, as always. He really wasn't comfortable with his new fame but was taking it all in stride.

They discussed the photo shoot that was scheduled for tomorrow. It sounded like it would be good, but I wasn't sure if Jack was expecting me to tag along. I felt that Rebecca and Lane would probably be fine with it, but I didn't want to get in the way.

Jack kept his hand on my leg, on my arm, or twisted in my own hand the entire time. It was as if he hadn't heard a word Holly had said about keeping a low profile, and I loved and hated him for it. I was the one that would be crucified by the fans if there were more pictures of me. He really had no idea what an impact he had.

As the women giggled away and out the front door, I excused myself to visit the ladies room. Lane was heading out to the lobby to take a call, and so he walked me towards the front.

“So glad I got to meet you, you're a cool chick.” He smirked, taking my hand and kissing it in a very debonair way.

“Yeah yeah, I bet you say that to all of Jack's girls,” I teased.

“Nope, you are seriously cool.” He winked, and left me to blush on the way to the bathroom.

Moments later as I headed back to the table, I saw that Jack and Rebecca were deep in conversation. Stepping deliberately behind a potted palm, I listened in. I had no shame…

“Twenty six? Twenty-seven? Is she older than twenty seven?”

He shrugged, his eyes twinkling.

“How old is she Jack?”

“I don't actually know. She hasn't told me, and I haven't asked. I have an idea though. I think around thirty, thirty-one maybe. I pinpointed it through all the Corey references, they were a dead giveaway…” he trailed off. It was as if he was talking to himself.

“Wow, she doesn't look like she's in her thirties,” I heard Rebecca exclaim. She was my new favorite person.

He laughed loudly. “You bet your sweet ass she doesn't.” He chuckled.

“Dude, you should see your face, you're like all glowy and shit! You're such a girl!” she yelled, and he laughed.

“I have always been a girl, you know this.”

They joked for another minute, and then he recounted the story of us. Where we met, how we met, everything. As I listened, I watched him, and the way his face changed when he recounted something I said, or something we had done. I shouldn't have listened in, but I was glad I did. It gave me an interesting perspective into him, and how he was feeling about me. I was falling more and more by the second.

“And now, she got cast in this show, which is brilliant for her. But it's in New York, and she is leaving in a few days. Ah, the timing just sucks,” he sighed, sitting back in his chair. His jaw was clenching as I could see him gnashing his teeth.

“Well, look, she won't be there forever right? And honey, with all the press you are about to do, you will be in New York all the time. Stop being such a pussy, Hamilton,” she cried, as he smiled at her. They seemed to be great friends.

“I know, you're right. It's just, I can't tell what she wants to do about all this. I mean, I dunno, she just gets me, and I think, no I know she fancies me too. But she's getting ready to do this huge thing, it's so important to her and for her career.”

“And you're not? Jesus, this movie is going to make you a household name! Maybe this isn't the best time for you to have a girlfriend,” she stated, giving voice to the concerns I had been having all along. He was quiet at that.

Backing away from the palm, I reentered the restaurant, making enough noise with my flip flops to alert them to my presence and not that I'd been eavesdropping. Jack immediately grasped my hand and I brought his fingers to my lips, kissing them gently. I simply adored him.

By the time Lane had rejoined us and we finished with lunch, it was well past two-thirty, and Jack begged off on their offer for an afternoon sail off the coast, saying he had made other plans for us. I raised an eyebrow as I was unaware that he had planned anything.

As we left the restaurant, Rebecca pulled me into a hug. Surprised, but pleased, I hugged her back. “I'm so glad to have met you, Grace. You have no idea.” She smiled.

“You too. I'll see you later?” I asked.

“Definitely,” she answered.

Lane wrapped me into a bear hug, and as I laughed, his hands began to travel down to my bottom.

“Hey man, get your hands off my girl.” Jack laughed, pulling me away gallantly.

“Jack, seriously, can't help it. That's one fine woman,” Lane teased, smacking me on my butt. I jumped in surprise and Jack laughed.

“Next time you do that, I spank back,” I warned, pinching Lane's cheeks…the ones on his face. We said our goodbyes and made our way through the lobby towards the spa.

“What're we doing now?” I asked, curious.