Irresistible (2 page)

“Hey, Babe.”

Chloe looked up to see Ben standing in the kitchen, making coffee, dressed in seriously low-slung sweat pants.

And no shirt.

“Hey,” she said, her voice groggy. She pushed a wild piece of hair out of her face. “Why weren’t you in bed?”

Ben gave her a playful smile and rolled his eyes. “You were hogging the entire bed. And you were snoring really loudly.”

Chloe felt a tidal wave of relief wash over her and she ducked her head in embarrassment.

“Did you drink last night?”

Shit. Ben always seemed to know when she drank too much because she snored more than usual.

“I had some wine. I went to Jae-Jae and Alec’s for dinner.”

“I didn’t know you were planning to go there.”

“I wasn’t. But when you said you wouldn’t be home, I decided I felt like company so I sort of invited myself over.”

Ben nodded to himself as he poured two steaming cups of coffee. He carried them to the small kitchen table and motioned for Chloe to sit. Chloe took a seat and noticed that Ben had dark circles under his eyes.

“So, when did you get in last night?” she asked as casually as she could.

Ben gave a little shrug. “I think it was around two-thirty.”

“Two-thirty?”

Chloe could only remember Ben working late a handful of times, and even then it was usually only until ten or eleven.

“I told you, Chlo. We’ve got this new campaign angle that we’re working on and everyone is being asked to put in longer hours. I got the group to work out a lot of the details last night.”

“So, everyone was there until two in the morning?” she asked with disbelief, not being able to hide a small bite of sarcasm.

Ben picked up on it and his body immediately stiffened. “No, not everyone. Some people have families.”

“So, who was working?”

“What does it matter?” he asked, aggravated.

“It doesn’t. I’m just curious who else was there until two o’clock in the morning.”

“Eve and Rick stayed for a bit. And Russ, Lis and I stayed the latest.”

Chloe nodded, vaguely remembering the names Ben mentioned.

Except, Lis.

Chloe remembered Lis because she was incredibly attractive and she always hung on every word Ben said.

She sighed to herself, realizing she had no reason to be upset. After all, Chloe had made out with Finn Harrison the day before.

Guilt crept over Chloe and she took a long sip of her coffee, hoping the warm liquid would wash away her feelings of shame.

“So,” Ben began, his voice with a hardened edge, “How was
your
day yesterday?”

Chloe knew exactly what he was asking.

“It was fine,” she said carefully. “Finn Harrison was there, obviously. He seemed nice enough, but was a little aloof.” She carefully watched Ben’s face.

“Did you kiss him yesterday?” he asked bluntly.

Chloe choked on her coffee. “Jesus, Ben!” she exclaimed, trying to cover her nerves. “They wouldn’t make me kiss him on the first day! We just ran lines.”

Ben looked mollified. “Ok. Well it’s going to be another late night for me,” he said, standing to clear his coffee mug.

“Again? Don’t you think you should take a night to catch up on your sleep?”

“Can’t. I need to get this shit done. But I think I’m only going to go in for a few hours tomorrow, so how about we go out to dinner?”

Chloe couldn’t help but think how strange it was that Ben was working another late night. “Sure. Dinner sounds great.”

Ben disappeared into the bedroom and a few seconds later Chloe heard the shower start. Chloe didn’t have to be at the theatre until nine, so she curled up on the couch with a blanket. She noticed Ben’s work shirt crumpled on the floor. Without thinking, she picked it up and smelled it.

“Get a grip,” she whispered to herself, dropping the shirt to the floor. “Just because you’re a terrible fiancé, doesn’t mean Ben is too.”

She flipped on the TV and watched morning television until Ben kissed her goodbye. Once Ben left the apartment, she forced herself to get up and get ready for what was sure to be an awkward day.

***

For the first time, Chloe was dreading go to rehearsal. As she walked toward the Booth theatre, her stomach churned and she wondered what she could expect from Finn today. Part of her never wanted to lay eyes on him again, while another part of her was desperate to see him again. A small part of her wanted to prove that there was nothing between them. But what upset her more was that a bigger part of her wanted to prove that there
was
something between the two of them.

Chloe had tried to dress carefully that morning, not wanting to look like she put too much effort into her outfit, but also not wanting to look like a slob. She had finally settled on a low-key red mullet skirt, crisp white shirt and flat sandals. It was unseasonably warm out and Chloe couldn’t help but opt for open-toed shoes.

She walked into the theatre and she felt his eyes on her immediately.

She scanned the room, seeing Andre and Luc and then looking further to the right where she saw the familiar brown head of hair.

Finn grinned at her and Chloe felt her insides melt.

He was seriously bad news.

She walked slowly down the aisle, her eyes fixed on Andre and Luc but Finn intercepted her.

“Good morning, Chloe.”

“Hi Finn,” she said professionally, striding past him and putting her bag down. She could imagine Jenny and Ni reading her the riot act for blowing him off like that.

But Finn Harrison was undeterred.

“I was wondering if we could go over our lines.” This time his voice was dark and seductive and Chloe felt goose bumps rise along her arms. Finn’s voice was pure sex. Hearing that familiar, sexy voice in her ear made her want to turn around and rip his pants off before taking his cock into her mouth.

Chloe gasped at our own thoughts.

“Is everything okay?” Finn asked concerned.

“Fine! Fine!” she said, her voice too high. “Of course we can do lines. Let me just find my script.” Flustered, she dug through her bag, pushing her hair out of her face as she tried to find it.

“And would this be it?” Finn asked, a smirk on his face as he held up her script.

Chloe snatched it from his hand. “Where was it?”

“You had put it down right next to your bag.”

“Oh. Well, thank you.”

“Anytime.”

Finn began walking to a quiet part of the theatre and Chloe had no choice but to follow him. She hurried after him, not wanting to look back at the others for fear of their expressions.

Finn sat in a quiet row and pulled out his script.

“I really want to go over the one scene after we kiss.”

Chloe gave him a pointed look.

“This has nothing to do with yesterday!” he said quickly. “I honestly just want to run lines.”

Chloe sighed and sat down with her script.

“But you do look gorgeous today,” he said slyly.

Chloe narrowed her eyes and began reading from her script. She had most of her lines memorized, but she felt naked without it. They read lines without issue, but Chloe couldn’t help but be acutely aware of Finn.

She was aware of the way his hair was hanging over his right eye, and the way his gray t-shirt crinkled at the hem. She was aware of how Finn smelled, like spices with a hint of orange. She noticed the way his fingers moved across the script and how his nails were trim and clean.

She needed to get a grip.

Edward called the cast together and Chloe popped up, mumbling a quick thanks to Finn before heading back to the other cast members. She still couldn’t quite believe that she had just read lines with Finn Harrison. The novelty still hadn’t worn off.

Jenny and Ni were smirking at her and Jenny mouthed the words “I’m jealous.” Chloe couldn’t help but giggle and she waved them off as she sank into a seat next to Ryan.

“What’s up with you and Finn Harrison?” Ryan asked.

“Nothing!” Chloe said defensively.

Ryan nodded slowly. “He seems really into you.” His eyes slid to Chloe’s engagement ring and she felt her cheeks flame.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. I’m engaged remember?”

Ryan gave a small shrug. “As long as you remember.”

Chloe bit her lip, feeling the sting of Ryan’s innocent remark. She didn’t believe that Ryan had said it to be mean, but she felt horrible. She tried to focus on what Edward was saying about scene work and running the show but her mind kept drifting to Ben. She decided she would surprise him on her lunch break.

Feeling somewhat better about making the decision to see Ben, she was able to get through most of the morning, and she was completely professional. She still felt Finn’s eyes on her, but she also noticed that he had a very intense personality and she figured that maybe she was reading into things too much. She was sure that celebrities were used to getting what they wanted, and that they probably ran around movie sets and theatres, kissing whoever they wanted.

“Want to do lunch?” Ni asked after Edward dismissed them.

“Can’t. I’m going to swing by my fiancé’s office.”

“Ok. Okay,” Ni looked disappointed. “I was hoping to get the scoop on Finn.”

“I’ve known him for the same amount of time that you have,” Chloe said, annoyance creeping into her voice.

“Oh, I know!” Ni said quickly. “I just meant that it seems you two are getting to know each other.”

“It’s just work. We have a few extra scenes together.”

Ni nodded. “Right.” She smiled brightly at Chloe. “Have fun at your lunch!” All traces of wanting to gossip about Finn seemed gone.

“Thanks!” Chloe called as she hurried out of the theatre.

She decided to splurge on a cab, hoping it would save her a few extra minutes. As it pulled outside of Ben’s downtown office, she hurried out and rushed into the building. She was somewhat breathless as she walked out onto Ben’s floor.

The receptionist, Ally, smiled once she saw her.

“Chloe! How nice to see you!”

“Hi, Ally. I was just going to head back and surprise Ben.”

“Oh. Didn’t Ben tell you?”

Chloe frowned. “Tell me what?”

“He and Lis had a working lunch today. Pretty big deal. It’s at the mayor’s house.”

Chloe recovered quickly. “Oh, right. I completely forgot,” she fibbed, smacking her head. She didn’t want to seem like the idiot fiancée who had no idea of the whereabouts of her other half.

“I’m sorry you came all this way. I’ll tell Ben that you were here.”

“No!” Chloe said hastily. “I mean, it’s just that, I was going to surprise him, so I’ll save the surprise for another day. I don’t want him to be expecting me.”

“That’s so sweet,” Ally exclaimed, clasping her hands together. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me!”

“Thanks, Ally.”

Chloe slowly made her way out of the office, wondering why Ben hadn’t told her about the lunch. She wondered if it was connected to the big project Ben had been working on. But the part she disliked the most, was that it was just Ben and Lis at the lunch. Is that why Ben hadn’t told her? Chloe was not a jealous person; Ben was jealous enough for the both of them. But she couldn’t help but feel put-off by the whole situation. Then again, Chloe kissed other people for a living, of which Ben frequently reminded her.

Chloe made her way out onto the street and glanced at her phone. She still had a little over an hour before she was due back at the theatre. Sighing, she hailed a cab and went back uptown to the theatre district. She would just get a salad from one of the delis.

Chloe got out on Eighth Avenue and made her way towards one of her favorite delis.

“Chloe!”

Chloe spun around, but didn’t see anyone. Thinking she had imagined it, she started to walk away, but then she heard her name again. Louder this time.

“Chloe!”

“What the hell?” she muttered. She peered around and then she noticed a figure sitting at a back table at a restaurant, his brown head down and dark glasses.

Of course, it was Finn.

Chloe hurried over and sat down.

“What do you want?”

Finn pulled his shades down just enough to show Chloe his baby blue eyes.

Damn, he was fine.

“I thought we could have lunch.”

Chloe figured she might as well. She was going to eat anyway. “Okay.”

“Okay? Really?” Finn’s face lit up in such a way that Chloe had a hard time believing that he was this excited to be eating with her. Finn Harrison had his pick of almost any woman, and here he wanted to eat with some lowly actress.

“Okay, Finn. Why do you seem so excited to be eating with me?”

“Because I am,” he said simply.

Chloe rolled her eyes and grabbed a menu.