Star Struck (13 page)

Heather found the sweats and T-shirt she’d worn to the set that morning on hangers in her closet. A costume assistant must have hung them for her because she’d left them on a pile in the closet floor. It was amazing how nice people were to her. She certainly didn’t deserve it.

Pulling her clothes off the hangers, she turned back toward Lexie. It had seemed like a lifetime ago that she’d been concerned about being pregnant, and Lexie still had no idea it was a false alarm. “No, actually, we didn’t have sex at the hotel like I thought. So woo hoo! I’m not pregnant.”

“Woo hoo!” Lexie raised her fist triumphantly.

Heather dropped her towel and, not bothering with panties, stepped into her sweats. “But he’s working on the set. Weird, right?” She brushed past Lexie to the bathroom to find her discarded bra, saying as she did, “And we had sex today. With a condom, don’t worry.”

“Then why were you crying? Was he mean? Did he hurt you?”

Heather stood in the doorway, threading her arms through her bra straps then hooked the latch in the back. “He didn’t hurt me. He…uh…he spanked me. But it was, you know…”

“Just part of the fun, I get it. Go on.”

Heather had to work to keep her jaw from dropping. She’d expected Lexie to be shocked at the spanking bit, not excitedly clinging on to every word. “Um, well, after that we had sex.” She waited to continue until after she pulled the T-shirt over her head. “And then I kind of got bitchy and told him to leave.”

“Hmm.” Lexie tapped her chin with her finger, staring at Heather with that expression that said she knew there was more to the story.

Heather hated that expression. She also hated what Lexie was going to say next without even knowing what it was. It would probably be something wise. Or something analytical.

Sure enough, after a few seconds Lexie asked, “Why do you think you did that?”

Heather groaned. This was the other reason she hadn’t wanted to talk about it. Because there would be all this emotional dissection, digging to the heart of the matter crap. She spent enough time trying to understand the characters she played. Did she really have to figure out herself too?

She stepped past Lexie again and threw herself on the bed.

Lexie followed, stretching out beside her. “Talk to me. You’ll feel better.”

Twisting so she was facing Lexie, Heather propped her head up on her hand. “It was just weird. I don’t know. The spanking and he was kind of bossy and stuff.”

“So he’s dominant. Did you not like it?”

“Actually, I really did.” She stifled a giggle, her cheeks flushing with the admission.

“Heather!” Lexie’s eyes widened with surprise. “Have you never gotten kinky before?”

The answer to that question was a definite no. The kinkiest she’d ever gotten was using a vibrator—with and without a boyfriend. Other than that, she was vanilla all the way. It wasn’t because Heather had necessarily been opposed to kink. She’d just never had the opportunity. Despite how she’d been with Seth, she made most men work to get with her. Even after they worked, they usually didn’t get the reward.

And the men that she did finally invite into her bed didn’t handle her as Seth had. “Most guys I’m with treat me like I’m…” She searched for the word, cringing when she realized what it was. “Like I’m a princess. Delicately. Like I’m precious, or whatever.”

“You’ve never played it rough?” When Heather shook her head, Lexie sat up and slammed her hand down on the bed. “Heather! You’re thirty-three years old!”

“Twenty-nine.”

“I know your real age, you bitch. Don’t forget I fill out all your medical forms. I can’t believe you’re thirty-three years old and you’ve never had rough sex!”

“I haven’t. Well, I hadn’t.” Was that really unusual? She thought back over her exploits, searching for any clue that any of them had wanted to go into the kink territory. The truth was that even if they had, she would never know. She was always the one calling the shots. “I guess I’ve always been particular. And kind of bossy. And maybe not very experimental.”

“Then, honey, you’ve been missing out.” Almost a full ten years younger than Heather, Lexie seemed to know what she was talking about. “Or maybe you haven’t, if it wasn’t your thing.”

“That’s just it.” Heather sat up and wrapped her knees to her chest. “I think it was my thing. I think it
is
my thing. But I don’t want it to be my thing. And I don’t want Seth to be my guy.” Damn, she sounded whiney. She’d just always thought she’d end up with a rich businessman or producer type. A guy like Patrick at Montblanc.

But maybe that wasn’t really who she wanted to be with since Patrick, handsome as he was, didn’t turn her on in the least. Still, she wasn’t ready to say that Seth was the guy for her.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. It reminds you too much of where you came from.” Lexie sat back on her knees. “But why? Did you know a trailer park carpenter that rubbed you the wrong way? Did you walk in on your parents spanking each other and now you’re forever traumatized?”

“God, no! I never saw my parents do…anything.” She shivered with the grossness of the idea. “And spanking…it just seems so…trashy.”

“What did you say?”

“Spanking seems trashy.”

“Are you kidding me?” Lexie fixed her with a pissed-off glare. “Heather, I try to put up with your ridiculousness, not just because you’re my employer, but you’re my friend. But this…” She pointed abstractly to the air, as if the words Heather had said still hung there waiting to be exemplified. “This blatant show of ignorance on your part? That’s what I call white-trash. Spanking, playing rough, kinky sex—none of it is bad. Or wrong. Or trashy. It’s fun and sexy, even natural, if the participants are consensual. You’d be surprised the people who partake in it. People from all walks of life. Not just sweaty carpenters and people on a fixed-income. Believe me when I say this association you have with it is one hundred percent wrong.”

Heather leaned back, startled by Lexie’s outburst. “Whoa. I had no idea you’d take it so personal.”

“I’m sorry if it hurts your feelers,” Lexie said, not sounding the least bit sorry. “But I can’t sit by and listen to you bullshit about something you seem to have very little insight on.”

“Okay, okay.” Heather put her hands up as if to surrender. “I don’t know what I’m talking about. Obviously.”

“Thank you for admitting it.” Lexie’s shoulders relaxed. “I can point you to some good websites if you’re willing to educate yourself.”

“Fine.” Who knew Lexie was an expert in kink? It sort of made Heather uncomfortable, so she changed the subject. “And I don’t have anything against carpenters. I just always planned on being with a guy who was…better than that. A guy who could take care of me. That I’d be proud to be seen with.” Did she really just say that? She really did. She braced herself for another admonishment from Lexie.

But Lexie’s expression held more bewilderment than irritation. As if she’d just grasped something she’d never thought could possibly be true. “For someone from the wrong side of the tracks,” she said, “you’re a real snob.”

“I am. I hate that about myself.”

Lexie sat forward so her head was leaning on Heather’s knees. “Well, I love you no matter what. You know that, right?” Heather nodded. “But it sounds like you might be happier if you try to put the whole status thing behind you and try to enjoy being with a guy who gives you what you like.”

“I hear what you’re saying, and I want to. I do.” She choked back a fresh sob. “But I’ve already fucked it up with Seth. Big time.” Stupid tear slipped down her cheek anyway.

Lexie wiped at Heather’s tear. “Really? You can’t know that.”

That was certainly true. Seth hadn’t given her any indication that he was easy to scare off. In fact, she’d been nothing but a bitch to him since she met him and he kept on returning.

But there was still the issue of how he made her feel—all good and fucked up at the same time. “Even if he did give me another shot, I don’t know if I’d handle it any differently.”

“But you could try.” Lexie and her unswerving faith. Why couldn’t Heather believe in herself the way her friend did? She wasn’t naïve enough to not realize it might have something to do with her being Lexie’s employer. Still, Heather bet that even if she stopped paying her assistant, Lexie would continue to be on her side.

And friendship or not, paid assistant or not, maybe Lexie’s words could still be true. Heather thought about not seeing Seth again, thought about leaving things as they were. She’d be fine like she always had been.

But then she thought about not keeping the status quo, thought about dumping her preconceived notions and her silly plans—plans that really only involved her being as far from where she grew up as possible. A plan she’d already more than achieved.

And did having Seth in her life change that fact? No. It did not. The only thing Seth threatened to do to her life was make it more exciting. More fulfilling. Both of which would be welcome characteristics.

She bit her bottom lip and nodded. “Yes. I could try,” she said. She would try to work things out with Seth. He might be more forgiving than she realized.

But it was a good thing the shoot had just begun. Because apologizing to Seth? She might need a few days to get up her courage.

Chapter Nine

Seth read the text message one more time before putting his phone back in his pocket. “
Come to my trailer. H
.” Well, at least she’d finally used his number. But after avoiding him for nearly ten days now, it seemed a like a whole lot of too little too late.

Of course, he wasn’t exactly innocent himself. He hadn’t been honest with her about who he was. He couldn’t pretend he didn’t feel just a little bit guilty. He had planned on telling her—almost did when he walked into her trailer. Then she’d been so worked up accusing him of stalking her and thinking she was pregnant and then they’d…well, he just didn’t get the chance.

“Something important?” Natalia asked, her silky smooth voice drawing him from his thoughts.

“Nah. It can wait.” For a moment, he’d forgotten what he’d been doing before he received Heather’s text—namely, flirting with Natalia. He wasn’t into her, but she seemed to be into him. It occupied his time on set, kept him from thinking about the actress he really wanted to be flirting with. So what was the harm?

“Then they’ll just put the fake glass in here?”

“What? Yeah.” But now his head was wrapped three ways around Heather and her message and he was stuck in the middle of showing Nat how he planned to attach the trick window that the stunt-double would crash through the next day. As if Nat cared about the process. She simply wanted to be near him—he wasn’t a dummy. He just wasn’t interested in sweet and nice and dyed blonde hair and fake, though attractive, breasts. He wanted the sassy authenticity that was all Heather.

Dammit.

Not that he was going to run off to Heather’s trailer just because she summoned him. In fact, it was probably a good thing that Nat was there at the moment because otherwise he might very well be tempted to do just that. And he was too pissed about his last interaction with Heather and the empty days that had followed to go running to her so quickly.

Except it sure did pique his curiosity. What was Heather up to? Whatever it was that she wanted, thoughts of her trailer had him stiff in the pants with memories of his last visit. She’d been so wet for him, giving over to his commands with little hesitation, relenting to her own desires. She was so incredibly beautiful when she let herself go.

But he was beginning to doubt he’d ever see that again. That one time had proven too much for her. Good thing he still enjoyed building sets. He’d taken the job to be close to her, but except for that first day, the plan had backfired. It was a small cast and crew, but that woman knew how to stay out of sight when she wanted. When she wasn’t filming, she made herself scarce, and he hadn’t ventured to the actors’ trailers. He wasn’t going out of his way to find her again. Yeah, he could play stubborn too.

Seth lifted his drill—the same drill he’d lent to Heather for the plays—and screwed the last section of the false window frame into its place on the back of the set, angling himself so Nat wouldn’t notice his semi. Wouldn’t that just bite if she assumed it was for her?

“How do they put a new piece of glass in? If the first take doesn’t work, I mean.” She had moved closer behind him, pressing up against him in a way that would drive him mad if it were another woman. The day’s shoot was over—didn’t Nat have something else she could be doing?

“It just slides into the grooves. Like the glass on a picture frame.”

“Oh wow. That’s handy.” Nat giggled.

A giggling girl. How did he get himself into this situation?

A throat cleared behind them and Nat jumped away. Seth took his time putting his drill into his tool belt, examining the secureness of his work. He needed those extra few seconds to wipe the gratitude for his reclaimed personal space off his face before he could look to see the source of the interruption.

But by then, Nat had already announced who it was. “Heather.”

At the mention of her name, Seth turned toward the actress he’d been longing to see. He drank her in like a tall whisky—her eyes blazing with fury, arms crossed over her chest causing her boobs to perk nicely over the edge of her blue tank top. Her legs—it seemed almost unnatural for anyone to rock white skinny jeans like she did. Almost.