To See You (21 page)

Tomorrow he’d be back in California, miles and miles away.

Closing my eyes, I leaned my head back into the neck pillow and willed myself to relax. That was tomorrow. But tonight wasn’t over yet . . .

After we had the champagne, I lay cuddled on the couch with Layton, bundled in my fluffy robe. It was after one o’clock in the morning, and unease pummeled through my veins like the subway underneath the city.

What should I do? Should I ask him to get dressed? Kiss him good-bye? As my mind spun, I yawned.

Layton reached across my small couch to push my hair away from my eye. “Tired?”

I nodded. “A little.”

His hand went back to rest on my knee and then slid down to my feet, which were curled on his lap. “Want me to leave? I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable.”

A rush of air pushed out from my lungs, a pent-up breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. With it gone, the tension seeped from my body, leaving me feeling boneless.

“I hate to say this,” he said, “but maybe I could push my trip a night and we could have those drinks at the top of my hotel. We never got to do that. The view is unrivaled . . . except maybe only by you.”

“Want to stay?”

“Yeah.” Layton brought his knuckles back to my cheek and caressed my skin. “I would.”

He grabbed my hand, and we stood together and walked back to the bedroom. I straightened the comforter from our earlier activities and pulled it back. He pulled off his khakis and I watched from under heavy lids.

As if we’d done it a million times before, we crawled into bed and he pulled me onto his chest. His heart beat a constant rhythm much like his personality. Strong and steady. I curled in closer and closed my eyes.

His lips brushed the top of my head. “You didn’t answer about me staying one more day.”

“I’m afraid that tomorrow I’ll wake up and this was all a dream. You’re not real. Not here.”

“I’m here and I want to stay longer. Does that work?”

I nodded, my hair grazing his chin.

“Good,” he murmured.

It’s the day after that I’m not sure how it will work.

We fell asleep wrapped in each other’s arms
.

I would have to worry about tomorrow after today.

I
woke up with a start, not sure where I was. My dreams had taken me far away from home, landing me in the bedroom of my fantasies.
Although I never knew it was purple
.

Then I saw her—awake, propped up on an elbow and staring at me, a smile on her face and her hair tousled over her forehead.

“Morning,” I grumbled.

“Morning.”

“You good?” I asked, reaching out to swipe her bangs out of her eyes.

She nodded. “Want breakfast?”

“Maybe some coffee. Do you have to work today?” I asked her as she slipped out of bed, still snug in her robe. I wanted to tear it off and dive deep inside her.

“I should do a little, but not all day.”

As I wondered if she’d want to hang out during the day or only at night, she said, “I could show you around parts of the city or we could go for a run?”

“A run sounds awesome.”

I said that. A run. Me.

“Great, I’ll make some coffee. Then we could run in Central Park since you need to go change.”

It felt so normal, Charli suggesting a run and my accepting as if we did it all the time. But tomorrow we wouldn’t be doing it.

Couldn’t be.

That was tomorrow, I told myself.

We ran through the park and stopped for lunch before I went back to my hotel and Charli went to work. When she left, my soul felt barren. Seriously, as soon as she was gone from my side, I felt empty.

I was like Puss in Boots, tough, all macho and good-looking, but a softie at heart.

If the day went quickly, the evening felt as if someone had punched a button to fast-forward. We were having drinks at the bar on the top floor of my hotel, surrounded with floor-to-ceiling windows that showcased the skyline twinkling in the background.

There wasn’t enough time for Charli’s laughter or for me to appreciate the inquisitive look she wore when we discussed something important. At one point, she asked about which movies I’d worked on recently.

This time I didn’t run my hand down the window seam like I had that night I’d waited for her here alone. Instead, I traced her kneecap, a small patch of bare skin that peeked out between her almost knee-length skirt and her knee-high boots. It was so soft, like a peach on a hot summer’s day.

No, that was her pussy. And I fucking loved peaches.

Her knee was like silk sheets, fresh from the wash. I liked those a lot too.

Shaking my head, I mentally reminded myself I was a man. A horny one, but a man, and I should act like one.

Still, my finger stroked her slight kneecap and ran inside the top of her boot, tracing the top of her firm calf. I was as hard as a rock, my dick pushing against the zipper of my jeans, and I willed myself to get my mind off her pussy and concentrate on her question.

“After I finished on the action flick, I took a week off and got my head straight. That’s when my fitness really took off. I was walking and walking; poor Harriette was exhausted. I fired my dog walker and walked some more. Then I picked up the gig with Ryan. Of course, it was a sexy comedy. It’s coming out soon, by the way. He felt sorry for me, I think. When he was done with me, I was a new man. Now I’m working on that vampire movie.”

She clapped her hands and bent over her thighs. “Oh my God, you’re not?”

“I am.”

As I sipped my Scotch, she brought her wineglass to her pink-glossed lips. I studied her, noticing the tiny trail of blush that decorated her cheek, and how her lashes met the pale pink shadow lining her eyes. She was so delicately beautiful, I had to close my eyes against her for a second. The woman took my breath away.

Her giggle brought me out of my stupor. “That is literally
the
movie. I actually read all the books. They’re like free tortilla chips and salsa. Once you start, you can’t stop.”

“I’ve heard them compared to crack cocaine. Anyway, I’m learning all about the shimmering vamp and actually, the guys here are working on getting me a piece of music for a specific scene.”

“Wait!”

She brought her small hand down on my jean-clad knee. A fire burst through the denim, heat soaking my entire body. That’s what this woman did to me after one night.

“Are you going to this premiere?”

I laughed, the deep sound echoing around us. “I’m sure.”

“Oh, I’m going,” she said. “I can’t miss that.”

Grabbing her hand, I pulled the back of it to my lips and placed a kiss on her smooth skin. What I said was, “Of course,” but what I meant was
thank fuck, you want to see me again
.

And that’s pretty much how the rest of the evening went, up until we ended up tangled in my sheets in my room downstairs.

Softly illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the gauzy window shades, Charli set her head on my chest and brought her leg over the sheet, laying it gently on top of mine.

“So, now what?” Of course, she was the one brave enough to ask.

“This was magical. I know it sounds foolish, but I mean it.”

She nodded against my chest. “It was,” she whispered.

“I’d like to see you again. I can come here; you can come to me. Would that be okay?”

“Are you going to be a whole different person next time I see you?”

I ran my hand through my hair and tucked my palm behind my head. “No. But honestly, do you think I’m a different person?”

She shook her head this time. “You’re you.”

“And I’m your guy.”

Her hand lingered on my nipple, tracing circles. “My guy,” she muttered and began moving her hand south. “Hey, I don’t know your birthday. When is it? How old are you? I know you’re older than me . . . ugh, I guess it’s a little late to be asking.”

“Turning the big three-five on September twenty-eighth,” I said, her hair tickling my lips as I spoke.

“No way!” She snuggled deeper into my side. “Mine’s the twenty-sixth. I’ll be thirty—blah. Thirty, it’s kind of crazy hearing it.”

“Prettiest, sexiest almost-thirty-year-old I know,” I said with a laugh but then sucked in a breath.

My body was at attention almost immediately from her touch. I wasn’t sure it could happen again so soon, but apparently with Charli, my body knew no limits. Her hand wrapped around my girth, not fitting all the way but squeezing and pumping until I couldn’t take it anymore.

I shoved her ambitious fingers away and crawled on top of her, then made my way down to her peach. Yep, I’d confirmed earlier it was as ripe and luscious as a peach, and I wanted to feast on it again.

Her back arched and she shoved her hips into my face before demurely pulling them away. I grabbed a hold of her hip bone and kept her still with my face planted right where I wanted it.

“Don’t be shy.”

She twisted in my grip, but I held steady until her whole body shuddered under my lips. As she lay there gasping, I climbed up her body, reaching for a condom and not wasting any time. Especially since she said, “Hurry, Lay.”

I slid inside her and forced myself to slow down, taking my time pulling in and out of her, long and slow, appreciating the sighs coming from her.

Bending over, I whispered, “I’m your guy,” in her ear before I picked up speed.

She came again, this time holding tightly to my back, her small breasts smashed into my chest, burning an imprint into me.