B00AAOCX2E EBOK (39 page)

My legs moved on autopilot as I left the elevator and made my way to the studio. I stopped outside the studio door and stared at it indecisively. Now that I was here, I was even more at a loss for what I would say.

Before I could over-think it, I opened the door and stepped inside.

Ian sat forward in his chair. By the way his hand was positioned over the switch, I assumed he was just about to go back on the air. He looked over when I entered, before returning his attention to the console. Then he did a double take, jumping up from his chair and spinning around. “Ivy!”

“Ian.”

I still had no idea what to say as we stared at each other across the short distance. At least he had the decency to look contrite. The seconds ticked by and, still, neither of us broke the silence. Finally, he stepped closer. “Ivy,” he said again.

The moment he was within striking distance, my hand flew out and I cuffed him upside the head. “Dumbass.”

He flinched and then peered at me through one eye. “Guess I deserved that.”

“Damn right, you did.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “What the hell were you thinking?”

He held out his hands. “You wouldn’t talk to me. I was desperate.”

“And this was your solution? Announce our private affairs on the air?”

“It got your attention, didn’t it?”

I shook my head. The impulsive display was so Ian. And now, seeing how clueless he was about what he’d done, I found amusement actually warring with all the other emotions swirling around in my chest. An exasperated smile twitched at the corners of my mouth.

“How could you be sure I'd even hear you tonight?” I asked, struggling to keep a straight face.

“Word moves fast. I figured someone would let you know.”

My eyes trailed over his shoulder where I found Amery openly staring, her chin resting on her fist. The dopey smile on her face said she enjoying this whole thing way too much and wasn’t the least bit ashamed at her failure to give us privacy. “Oh, someone did.”

“So I was right.”

“I guess you were.”

I switched my gaze back to him. His eyes were insecure and a little fearful, and part of me wanted to take that look away. But there was still too much to say. Instead, I cleared my throat. “So, I heard what you said,” I told him, shifting gears.

“Yeah?” he said slowly.

“Were you telling the truth?”

“Yes.” His brows flickered cautiously. “About what?”

“You
really
didn’t sleep with Mallory?”

He rolled his eyes. “No. I went out with Matt and had quite a few drinks. She came to me when I was passed out. Besides, I didn’t even know it was her. I thought it was you.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Yeah, I heard that. You can’t tell the difference between us?”

“The room was dark and I really drunk,” he finally answered. “Too drunk to get it up.”

“So, that’s how you blow off steam? By getting drunk?”

“I just wanted to stop thinking. The alcohol helped.”

“Yeah, but that was really stupid.”

He nodded. “Yeah, well I’ve never felt this way before. I’m emotionally-retarded, according to Amery.”

I almost laughed. Yeah, Amery would tell him that.

“Give me time; I’ll learn,” he promised.

I lifted an eyebrow. “What makes you think I’m going to give you another chance?”

His mouth quirked, and he suddenly looked amazingly self-assured, which I found incredibly irritating and annoyingly sexy at the same time. “Why else would you be here?” He took a step forward.

“I came to smack the hell out of you.” I lifted my chin and took a step backward, keeping the same measure of distance between us. Or trying, at least. I hit the door mid-step, and had to resist the instinct to reach up and rub my head.

“Which you’ve already done,” he said. “You’re still here.”

I scowled at being so transparent. “Oh, shut up.”

“See, there you go again.” He stepped in even closer until our bodies almost touched. He rested his forearm on the door over my head. “You know, if we’re ever going to make this work, you’re going to have to stop telling me to shut up.”

He was so close, I could feel the heat of his body, feel his breath – spearmint-gum fresh – on my cheek. His face grew gravely serious as he gazed down into my eyes. “I really am sorry,” he said. His face was so open, so vulnerable in that moment that goose bumps broke out over my skin.

I nodded slowly. “You said that.”

“I said it on the air. Now, I’m saying it to you. I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.”

I nodded. “I’m sorry I wouldn’t give you a chance to explain.”

“I’m sorry I’ve never told you how much I love you.”

My heart skipped a beat. “You tried. I think I told you to shut up.”

A ghost of grin floated over his mouth.

“I love you, too,” I said.

I couldn’t be sure who reached out first, but the next thing I knew, we were kissing. And what a kiss it was, I thought as my arms went around his neck. I’d almost forgotten how well-matched we were in that arena. All the nerves in my body tingled.

He broke the kiss to wrap me in his arms. My eyes remained closed and I clung to him as his hands stroked my back. The most perfect sense of rightness washed over me. Everything we’d been through suddenly seemed so unimportant, so… stupid. But getting back here, where I belonged, brought me so much delight that tears prickled at my eyes.

When I was sure I’d knocked the tears back, I opened my eyes to find Amery waving her arms from the booth.

“Huh?” I frowned and shook my head. “What? I can’t—”

I broke off and followed Amery’s wild gesticulations with my eyes… right to the lit On-Air sign above Ian’s head.

My jaw dropped.

Live!
Every word!

Everything we just said was live. No wonder Amery had to wave to get my attention; her verbal communication with the studio was cut off, relegated to the headphones the second that On-Air light came on.

I jerked back from Ian. “I can’t believe you!”

“What?” he asked, eyes glazed.

“We’re on the air!”

“What?” he asked again, the haze clearing from his eyes. Slowly, as if he were drugged, his head rotated to look at the illuminated sign.

“We’re on the air,” I said again, “and everyone has heard everything we just said!”

“Oh, fuck me.” He turned and scrambled over his chair to flip the switch into the off position. The light went out.

"Did you do that on purpose?”

“No! I must have… I was about to turn on the microphone when you came in, and I must have accidentally nudged the switch.”

“Oh, my God, I think I’m going to vomit.” I clutched at my stomach and doubled over.

Ian rubbed my back, trying to comfort me. “I’m sorry. It was an honest mistake.” He was practically pleading.

I breathed in and out several times, tying to regain my center. “I know,” I finally said, though I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to ever leave my apartment again. I stood tall. “I know.”

“The microphone isn’t that sensitive. I think we were quiet enough at the end there…”

While that remained to be seen, there was nothing I could do about it now. “Fine. I’m over it. Really.” Another deep breath to quell my rising nausea and the words rang mostly true to my own ears. I forced a faint smile, hoping he was right and I was just overreacting. It would hardly be the first time.

“You sure?” he asked. He stroked his palms up and down my arms, looking into my eyes. I could tell he was more worried about me than our lack of privacy.

I closed my eyes when he placed his mouth on my forehead.

“Yes,” I said.

He wrapped me in his arms and held me for a few more seconds before letting me go. Then, he glanced reluctantly at the console. “I really should finish the show. Or at least change the music.”

A look at the clock revealed he still had a half-hour to go before his timeslot ended. “Yeah, go ahead.”

“Are you going to wait?”

“No, I think I’m going to go home.”

“Oh.” His face clouded with disappointment.

I lifted up on my toes and placed a kiss on his jaw. “But come over when you’re done.”

The disappointment in his eyes faded in an instant. He smiled and gave me a soft, lingering kiss. “I’ll be there.”

***

“Say it again.”

“I love you.”

“Again.”

“I love you.”

“Again,
again
!” I demanded in a childish voice as I gazed up at Ian, where he was leaning over and peppering my face with kisses.

The slice of morning light coming through the curtains illuminated his face, showing his mounting exasperation, but he did as requested. “I love you,” kiss on the neck, “I love you,” kiss on the chin, “I love you,” kiss on the nose. “Happy?”

I chuckled, feeling ridiculously cutesy and ridiculously happy. Who would have guessed we would ever be this way together? I was going to savor every moment of it. “Yes, I am.”

Ian’s eyes moved over my face, his disgruntled expression fading. “Me, too,” he whispered.

We gazed into each other’s eyes for a long time. The air in my lungs expanded and the feeling of completeness caused my skin to tingle. At the same time, we reached for each other, our lips pressing together as we poured everything we felt into each other.

My phone rang.

Ian’s brow rose. “You gonna get that?” he asked against my mouth.

“Nah. If it’s important they’ll call back.” I reclaimed his mouth and deepened the kiss.

Things had just started heating up when the phone rang again. We both pulled back and sighed. “Guess it’s important,” Ian said, rolling off of me so I could retrieve my cell phone.

I wrapped the sheet around my breasts as I leaned over to get my phone from my purse. When I found it, I looked at the caller I.D. “It’s Amery,” I said, answering it. “Hel-lo?”

“If you two can manage to tear yourselves out of bed for a few hours, come meet us for brunch at Luna’s.”

“Good morning to you, too,” I said with a laugh, glancing backward as Ian sat up and rested one leg on either side of me. I leaned back against him and sighed as his teeth nipped at the back of my neck.

“Yeah, I bet it is,” Amery said. I could hear the knowing smile in her voice. “Anyway, eleven o’clock. Be there or—”

“Be square?” I asked, biting down on my lip as Ian’s hand slid beneath the sheet to cup one of my breasts.

“I was going to say, or be the topic of conversation. But that works, too.”

I shuddered a breath. “Oh, I imagine we already are. Let me talk to Ian, and I’ll get back to you.”

I disconnected the call, leaning against Ian’s chest as his hand trailed down my stomach and even lower. A soft sigh exited my mouth and my eyes closed as his hand leisurely began stroking between my legs.

“What did she want?” he asked, his lips fluttering against my ear.

“Food. Um, I mean, they’re all getting together for lunch and we’re… oh….”

“Are you hungry?” Ian asked casually, as if oblivious to the heights he was bringing me to with his hand. “I’m hungry.”

I moaned. “What else is new?”

“You’re not hungry?”

“Starving, actually. I’m just...”

He grinned against my temple. “Having a hard time concentrating?” He slid two fingers inside me.

“Oh, God!” I gasped, feeling like I’d been stuck by a live wire.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Just a little,” I rasped, finding it difficult to form coherent speech. “Someone’s distracting me.”

“I can stop, if you want?”

I shook my head. “No!”

“No?” he asked, burying his nose in my neck so quickly that I tensed and erupted into ticklish giggles.

Before I could issue a protest, he withdrew his fingers and repositioned us so I was once again lying beneath him. Gazing up into his mossy eyes, my laughter tapered off. That hungry look was back on his face, the one from the first night we’d been together. Blood surged from my fingertips to my toes, and I writhed beneath him, eagerly awaiting him to touch me again.

Putting his weight on one arm, he reached out for another condom – the last in the box. I put more on my mental shopping list. He sat back on his knees to roll it on. Before I could even beg him to hurry up, he was positioning himself between my legs and sliding home. We both groaned. We both sighed. He dropped his forehead to mine. “How much time do we have?” he gritted out between clenched teeth.

“Half an hour, or so,” I told him. “And all the time in the world.”

He smirked, rearing back and pushing into me again. “I like the way you think.”

***

“Ever get the feeling that people were just talking about you?” Ian whispered as we stood just inside the entrance of Luna’s. It was his attempt at lightening the mood, but I didn’t find it the slightest bit funny. People were
staring
at us and not even trying to hide it. Ian trapped my hand in his; he must have sensed my flight instincts kicking in.

As I saw it, I had two options. I could leave the restaurant now, go into hiding like a big coward, and wait until bigger news was making the rounds on campus, or I could stand up tall, cross the room to join my friends.

Looking over into Ian’s face, I smiled. “Come on.”

“Well, look who it is,” Casey said with a big grin as we reached the booth they occupied. “Ironwood’s very own reality stars.”

“Is that what we’re calling it?” I asked as I slid into the booth. Ian slid in next to me and dropped his arm over my shoulder, pulling me in close.

Casey shrugged. “Just kind of popped into my head.”

“It’s not a bad comparison,” Amery said. “You are the closest thing we have to local celebrities.”

I sighed. “Give it to me straight. How bad is it?”

Amery’s head tilted to the side as she considered my question. “Well, that’s a matter of opinion. I mean, it’s all anybody has been talking about all morning...”

“How many people could have really been listening last night?” Ian asked, his voice skeptical. “My show has what, eight listeners? Tops?”

“I don’t know about that, but even those who didn’t hear the show last night have heard all about it by now. I even had people approach me about it before class this morning.”