Crazy Dreams (6 page)

As the movie came to a close, I tried not to let my mind wander to things like what she wore to bed, if she wore anything at all. I blew out a breath in frustration. I didn’t want to be attracted to the blonde minx, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. It did help, a little, at least, that she seemed completely unaffected by our close proximity. She kept her head straight, eyes always on the television during the whole film.

The end credits rolled and she stood up almost immediately. “I’m beat. Goodnight.”

She was out of the living room before I even had a chance to reply.
Odd.

Ember

The next morning, I slept in, something I hadn’t done for a long time. To my surprise, Stone wasn’t up yet. I had him pegged for a morning person, but what did I know? I’d been so preoccupied last night, focusing all my attention on ignoring him completely. It was hard, too, with him sitting so close. Even with the bowl between us, I could smell his cologne, musky and sweet. He was driving me to distraction. I couldn’t even remember watching the movie. I was such a lost pup, I knew, but the reality was, our situation wasn’t a permanent one. Eventually, I would be going back to Maine, back to college, and back to the life of modeling I didn’t want.

It was easy to pretend I wouldn’t be leaving, but it was a lie. Which was why I said the things I said to him the night before. His simple and immediate agreement sort of pissed me off, but I didn’t let it show. It was what I wanted.
I think
. My stupid brain wouldn’t function properly around him.

I picked up a banana off the counter, peeled it, and then took a few bites, leaning my hip against the marble countertop. Working with him would only make my life more difficult, but no matter what justifications I gave myself, I couldn’t stay away from Stone completely. Something about him tugged at my soul, pulling me toward him in any way shape or form.

I told myself I could handle the attraction,
ignore it, even. Even I knew I was lying, but for the time being, it was all I could do. I tossed the banana peel in the trash and then went to my room to change.

I put on a pair of running shorts, a sports bra, and a racer-back tank top. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and put my
ear buds
in my ears. I attached the other end to my phone, starting up my favorite playlist and then tucking my phone into my workout strap. I wrapped the strap around my arm, securing the Velcro. I went back into the living room, ears full of music and ducked out of the apartment.

When I reached the sidewalk, I did a few stretches before starting. I turned right, away from the apartment and started my jog. Running was such a natural high. It was invigorating. The temperature was already steamy, which meant I sweat so much more than I ever did back in Maine. I didn’t mind while I ran. I loved how it felt, a soft breeze coursing through my hair, whipping my ponytail back and forth across my back.

The city was gorgeous. I took in as much as I could while I ran. I picked up the pace three blocks away from the apartment and sprinted for another six blocks. I stopped at a busy intersection, decided to turn around, and slowed down. For the final three blocks back to the apartment, I sped up again, running as fast as I could.

By the time I walked through Dallas’s apartment again, I was breathing hard but I felt great. I grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge and downed half of it without taking a breath. I made my way to my room, grabbing some clothes for the day. I went into the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day.

I kept the water cool; the spray felt so good against my body, washing away all the sweat I’d worked up on my run.

By the time I stepped out of the shower, I felt refreshed, vibrant. I wrapped a towel around my hair and then dried off my body. I pulled on my jean shorts, the new ones I bought on my shopping spree and paired them with a pale yellow top. The chiffon material was light and airy on such a hot day. I had no idea what I was going to be doing, but it was hot outside, so if I did anything outdoors, at least I wouldn’t die of heat exhaustion.

I grabbed my dirty clothes and towels, piled them in my arms and walked out into the hallway, nearly running into Stone.

He mumbled unintelligibly, slipping past me into the bathroom.
Definitely not a morning person
. I bit back a laugh as he slammed the door shut. I tossed my laundry into the basket in my room, unwrapping my hair and tossing that towel in the laundry, too.

I ran my fingers through my hair, detangling it. I always styled my hair like Rainey. Not on purpose; it just sort of happened. Especially now that she was gone. The length was similar to hers, too, which made it difficult for so many people, like Baker and Dallas, to look at me and not see her. I was tempted to dye my hair on a number of occasions, but I loved my hair. Blonde might be a cliché, but I didn’t care. I was smart; my
hair color
didn’t determine my brain capacity.

I could hear the shower in the bathroom turn on, so I grabbed a comb out of the top drawer of the dresser and ran it through my hair. I plugged in my hair dryer and then leaned forward to flip my hair. I blow dried my hair completely. When I shut it off, the shower was off. I tried not to think about Stone, naked in the bathroom.
Yeah, right
.

He was too damn good-looking for his own good. And mine. All I wanted was to lick his sexy body, from his tantalizing abs to his exquisite pecs, and then back again a few times. I definitely wanted to suck his dick again. He was bigger than most guys I’d been with, but not scary big. He was perfect. And I loved how he tasted. I licked my lips, remembering how delicious his semen was.

I wanted him too much. At some point, I was going to let my attraction for him slip again, even if I didn’t mean for it to happen. I sighed, hoping it wouldn’t be any time soon.

Forcing myself to ignore the quietness of the bathroom, I made my way to the kitchen. I wanted to make a healthy breakfast, so I started pulling items out of the fridge and cupboards. I set out enough for two, though I wasn’t sure if Stone even ate breakfast. I didn’t want to be rude.

“Something smells good,” he said from behind me, a few minutes later.

“At least you’re coherent now,” I commented.

“Huh? Oh. Yeah, sorry about that. I’m not much of an early riser. Did I hear you leave the house at six?” He sat on one of the barstools, not stepping into my little domain.

“Yeah. I went for a run.”

“Why?” He looked so confused.

I laughed a little. “Exercise is good for you that’s why.”

“I don’t work out unless I have to,” he mumbled.

My brow rose. “Liar.”

“Okay, my trainer says I have to three times a week,” he said.

I let out a full laugh that time. “You have a trainer? I’m a model and I don’t even have a trainer.”

“Yeah, what’s up with that?”

“What, me not having a trainer?” I asked, flipping two omelets in the pan. It did smell good and my stomach growled.

“No, I mean you being a model, period. Why would you go into that kind of profession?” He choked a little on the word
profession
, but I chose to ignore it.

“I didn’t really choose, I guess,” I explained, sliding each omelet on to a plate and then setting the fruit I’d sliced up next to each egg. I put a plate in front of him and I stood across from him with my plate, not wanting to sit.

“Thanks,” he said, digging in.

“It was more like I didn’t have a clue what I wanted, so my mother chose for me,” I continued, using my fork to push the fruit back and forth across my plate. “I never fought her or anything, so it became a routine. It wasn’t until Rainey died that I realized it wasn’t what I wanted.”

“Dallas never talks about her,” Stone commented, his voice low.

“About Rainey? I’m not surprised. I think he feels a lot of guilt, ‘cause he didn’t really pay too much attention to her before she died. He didn’t even know about her leukemia for the longest time. None of us did. She kept it well hidden. But he harbors that guilt of not being there for her.” I took a bite of my omelet. Even though I was hungry, it didn’t taste as good as it should. Talking about Rainey was difficult.

“Even when he explained who you were, in relation to him, it seemed like he had a hard time saying her name. I’m sorry that the two of you lost your sister.” He looked so sad, so helpless. I could relate.

“There’s nothing that can be done now. There wasn’t much they could do before. Part of the reason I’m here is to get away from all the sadness. Everything back home reminds me of her. So I thought getting away would help.”

“Has it?” he asked, his eyes deep and soulful.

“I’m not really sure. I mean, this city is gorgeous, so full of life, but it hasn’t really been long enough for me to decide how I feel. So I’m still on the fence,” I explained.

“I understand what you mean about getting away. That’s why I left Pennsylvania,” he admitted, scooping the last of his omelet into his mouth.

“Oh yeah? I thought you wanted to be a star.”

He shrugged. “I do and I don’t. It was a means to an end. Of course, I’d love to be a star, but I’m willing to sell one of my songs to a well-known artist, too. I’ll take whatever I can get. But most of all, I had to get away from my home town. People never left, never pursued their dreams. It’s kind of depressing.”

“Some people’s dreams are to stay in their small town,” I said, thinking of Rainey’s best friend, Gabby. Her whole life, she wanted to stay in Casper, and she got her wish. She even had her happy ending, with her baby and Wolfe’s daughter, too. Her dream was a family.

Stone snorted. “Not my style.”

Stone

Breakfast was amazing. The girl could cook. Even with peppers and random shit in the eggs, it tasted good. I wasn’t a big fruit eater, either, but everything was fresh and full of flavor. I tried not to pay attention as she slipped a succulent strawberry into her mouth. I focused on my own fruit, instead.

When I finished chewing, I looked at her again. “Don’t get me wrong – I like my small town. I just don’t want to live there for the rest of my life. I want something more.”

She nodded. “I’m right there with you.”

“But you’re a model. You’re already on your way to being famous,” I countered.

She sighed. “Being famous isn’t my goal, though. I just want to be happy. Satisfied with my life. I’m not saying a small town won’t provide that for me, I just want to see what else is out there. Discover new things.”

Her dreams were so similar to mine. I didn’t truly care about superstardom – I just wanted to feel like I was
doing
something. Something important, something worth doing. Even though my career hadn’t jumped or anything since I moved to Nashville, at least I was trying something, aiming for a goal higher than most of the people I knew.

“So what do you want to discover today?” I asked, thinking about all the touristy things I could take her to.

“I was actually kind of hoping we could work on your song this morning and then later go out and do something,” she suggested.

“That sounds perfect.”

I went and grabbed my guitar out of my room. I returned to find her doing up the dishes, so I sat on a bar stool and strummed a few chords. She hummed along as I started to sing. She didn’t have all the lyrics down perfectly, yet, but she knew the tune. Her voice, once she started singing along, meshed well with mine.

She finished the dishes in no time and moved around the island to stand in front of me. Together, we sang along, the music of my guitar wafting through the apartment. Acoustically, it was beautiful. But watching Ember get lost in the lyrics was all-encompassing. She mesmerized me as she sang, never once focusing on any one thing other than the music. When she sang, she put her whole heart into it.

I was so entranced
;
I forgot to actually play my guitar, all my attention drawn to her.

“Everything okay?” she asked.

I had no idea how long ago I’d stopped playing. I let out a nervous laugh. “Yeah. Sorry. You have an amazing voice.”

“Is that flattery?”

“It’s the truth.” There was no other way to put it. “You put a lot of soul into your voice when you sing.”

“Well thanks. I never really thought I had that good of a voice. Are you sure you want me to sing with you?”

She was so insecure, so unsure of herself. If only she could hear what I heard when she sang. I felt privileged to be able to listen to her sweet voice. I laughed. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

She gave me a half-smile, tilting her head to the side. “I think you’re just trying to get in my pants.”

“No!” I said too quickly. “I mean, you’re gorgeous, of course, but I just want to sing with you. I respect your decision to maintain your distance. I’m not going to try to take advantage of you because we’re in such close proximity.” I was back-tracking, but didn’t care. I didn’t want her to feel awkward.