Chasing Stars (12 page)

My hands are under my head and I am staring at the ceiling, contemplating what drove Portia back to me and what she related about
The Little Prince
. I hear the bed squeak and, before I realize what is happening, I sense Portia’s warm body sprawling next to mine. Without a word, she cuddles my side and snuggles my chest.

Every muscle on my body clenches. After a minute, I realize I am holding my breath, and I exhale. I focus on Portia and notice her steady breathing. She’s asleep.

Against my sane judgment, I wrap my arms around her body. For the first time in my life, I am where I am supposed to be.

My face presses against steel muscles, my legs intertwine with lean, strong legs, and a long hand has a firm grip on my waist.

Like countless mornings before, I don’t remember where I am. Or who I am with. My eyes remain closed and I search my hazy memory, looking for a clue from the previous night. I wait for the wave of guilt, terror, and fear. There is a comfortable familiarity of the clean male scent mixed with the smell of oil paint. Shock runs through me. It is the heady scent of Will.

Oh, crap!

My heart comes to a complete halt, only to restart with a quickened rhythm. Seriously. For a full second, I could have been declared dead. I scan my memory—ouch, my head hurts—but I cannot remember how I got here. Damn the mixture of pills and cocktails.

I open my eyes and peer up. Deep, dark, and penetrating green eyes meet my gaze. I wait for Will to say something, but he is silent. Have I died? I have never felt so complete in my life. I swallow nervously, wishing he would say something.

A dim light filters from the far window, but I am unable to determine the time. My eyes seek his face, but I can’t distinguish his expression.

I bite my lower lip. “Good morning,” I offer, unsure.

He remains quiet. Damn you, I mentally cringe. I attempt to get up, but his arm snaked around me, doesn’t budge. Is he mad? I don’t know. My nerves are stretched so thin, they are about to snap.

Finally, he slowly raises a hand, brushes the hair falling on my face, and tucks it behind my ear.

“What are your plans for today?” His voice is husky and so damn sexy.

I have a hard time following him. Is he not making sense, or am I not thinking straight?

“What? I, uh. What time is it?” My heart is thudding.

“I want to show you something. Can you come away with me?” His hand is back on my hip. I swoon.

I tried to remember what we did last night. My memory only returns flashes of me puking. On him. Ewww, seriously?

“Now?” It’s still night, I think.

“Yeah. In fact, we need to go right this moment.” He hesitates before letting go of me.

“Where?” I ask.

“If you want to know, you’re going to have to come.” He gets up, strolls to the armoire, and fishes out a button-down shirt.

I notice we slept on the floor, instead of his bed. Why?

I get up and grimace, my head is pounding. “Please, slap me in the face if I ever drink again.”

“I will get some coffee going.” He pulls a pair of black jeans over his boxers, and slides into a pair of black Converses.

“You can get dressed in the bathroom.” He gesture to my jeans, undergarments, and a plain shirt neatly folded on the edge of his bed. “I washed them for you. I’m afraid your blouse is beyond repair. You’re going to have to wear my shirt.” He walks to the kitchen.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

I am flushed and confused. I look down noticing for the first time I am wearing his underwear and shirt. No wonder his glorious scent is still with me.

I gather my clean clothes and shuffle to the bathroom. I dress in a hurry, tucking the white shirt inside my jeans. I glance in the mirror and it doesn’t look half-bad. I splash cold water on my face and finger comb my untamed hair, wondering what I would give for an aspirin.

Add mind reading to all things Will. On the kitchen counter are a glass of OJ and a bottle of aspirin. I pop the pills into my dry mouth and gulp the juice down, realizing how thirsty I am.

He holds two travel mugs of coffee. “Ready?”

“I guess,” I mumble, unsure of myself.

We leave through the back exit. He hands me a coffee and locks the door.

“My Jeep is parked a few blocks from here. Do you mind walking a bit?” He looks down at me and reaches for my hand.

God, who is this guy? Never mind. I like him. He is a keeper.

“No, I don’t.” We walk down the silent road, our fingers intertwined. Though it is still night, a deep violet-blue color that precedes dawn tints the sky. I don’t have money, a purse, or a cell phone. I don’t care. Do I feel free and happy? Yeah. For an unfathomable reason, I am willing to follow Will to wherever he takes me.

We get to the garage where Will keeps his Jeep. We climb in the car and Will drives out of the city. Hues of a midnight blue tell me the sun will rise soon. I smile inwardly, realizing I am up before sunrise. Questioning my sanity, I can already picture the headlines.
“Extra, extra, actress gone mad.”

Peering out of the window, I read a sign welcoming us to Connecticut. I tie my hair in a knot at the nape of my neck and Will looks amused at me.

“Can you tell me where we are going now?” My fingers curl around the mug and I taste the coffee. A thrill runs through my body. Blissfully, I notice that the awful hangover is gone.

“Nah, sorry,” his voice is playful, but his eyes are unreadable.

“Not even a hint?” I tease back.

“God, you are curious.” He smiles, and his eyes sparkle.

Warmth envelops my body. I resist the urge to reach for his hand resting between us. Did I mention his mind reading abilities? Oh well. He reaches for my hand, bringing it to his lap. His thumb strokes lightly on my knuckles.

I look at our intertwined fingers. There is so much tenderness to the gesture. I ignore the part of my head screaming,
“He is married!”
In fact, I choke the sound down. If I can have him for a day, hell, I’ll take it.

I flirt my way through life. I flirt to charm some, to piss off others, and mostly to protect myself from being hurt. Today, when I glance at his smile, I don’t want to flirt, I want the real me to come out. Do I think it is going to last? Nope. I know better. But I have this moment. When the day is over, I will have the memory.

Lost in thought, I barely notice him getting off at a highway exit.

“Where are we?” I ask.

“Stratford,” he replies.

Is that supposed to mean anything to me? “Oh.”

He drives in and out of deserted streets of a suburban town. Finally, he pulls over at a deserted beach.

He gets out and sprints to open the passenger door. With a delicious grin on his face, he holds his hand out to me. His eyes are fixed on mine and the hidden promises on his stare unravel me.

Hand in hand, we ramble alongside the water for a few minutes. Will stops, facing the water. As if on cue, the sun breaks forth from behind the water. My world is still and my gaze locks on the magnificent act of nature unfolding before me. I sense Will’s eyes staring at my face as he watches me watch the dawning.

“Wow. This is beautiful, Will,” I murmur.

“Yeah. It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” His words pierce through my heart.

All self-preservation tossed aside, I turn, and my eyes seek his.

This is so wrong. I can flirt with him to my heart’s desire, but fall for a guy, am I insane?

Will looks at me and, for a moment, I feel as though there is only the two of us in the world. A small part of me tells me this is so wrong. To hell with it, I can’t deny the chemistry, intensely humming between us. My lips are prickling with a desperate desire to kiss him. For once, I want him to want me. Screw the wrongness of it all.

Will’s hands cradle my face and his eyes bear deep into my soul. I feel exposed, like never before. He lowers his head and whispers, “You are so incredibly beautiful.” His lips touch mine and his tongue runs along my lips. He sucks and nibbles on my lower lip. Trembling, I part my mouth, inviting him in. I feel his tongue invading my mouth. It is sweet, but demanding. His hand slides to my lower back and he pulls me closer to him.

I don’t think anything could ever erase this moment from my memory. It feels right. It feels sacred. Mental unit here I come. I am probably insane. No, I
am
insane. For sure.

Will pulls away and whispers against my lips, “Sunrise is a reminder that every day is a new beginning.” He kisses me again, and I don’t think I can take it. My knees buckle and I grasp his shoulders. His grip tightens around me. I wonder if he realizes the effect that he has on my body.

After we kiss for a long time, we sit on the sand.

“Will?” I am huddled on his side.

“Yeah?” He kisses my head.

“Did, um, did anything happen last night?” I inquire nervously, hoping he doesn’t take offense about me forgetting whatever happened.

“You puked, a lot.” He pauses. “On me mostly.” His voice is relaxed and he sounds young and carefree. “I got you naked.” I don’t see his face, but I hear the smile in his voice. “I bathed and dressed you. I laid you on my bed, but sometime during the night, you just couldn’t resist my awesomeness and jumped on the floor with me. But no, nothing happened.”

His arms are holding me tight against him. I feel more confused than ever. Why is he acting this way? I am sure he had his chance to have sex with me last night. Why didn’t he? I want to ask him what that is all about. But, I don’t. I just can’t ruin the moment. I just relish his company, musing that no one has ever baffled me this way before.

“We need to go. We don’t want to be late,” he tells me as he glances at his watch. “More than we already are.”

“Where to?” I look up, puzzled.

“To the place I want to show you.” He stands and helps me up.

“Oh. This is not it?” I follow him.

“No. I just thought it would be nice to stop by to see the sunrise. I used to run here every morning.” He opens the door, and before I get in, his lips cover mine. The kiss is brief, but intense.

“God, you taste so good.” His lips arch on the side for a smile, and I melt like a freaking teenager.

He turns the engine, and we head to our destination, wherever that is. I’m intrigued. Can this get any better? After driving for a few minutes, he pulls over on a parking lot filled with cars in front of a white church. I frown. I’ve seen it all, when it comes to dating, but a church?

Will rushes around the car and swings open the passenger door. He grabs my hand, dragging me toward the building. I follow him, struggling to keep up with his longs legs.

He pushes open the heavy red door and ushers me in. The interior smells of flowers and lemongrass. Our steps tap on the polished floor as we bypass the back seats filled with parishioners and move through the building. All eyes are riveted on us. I am stunned, and tense. He must sense it because he squeezes my hands as he guides me to the third row. We each slide into a seat and I bite my lower lip.

I realize the pastor is gesturing to us. “Oh, isn’t that Will?” A grin spreads across the preacher’s face.

I am beyond confused. I am an actress for crying out loud. I have thousands, maybe millions, of people staring my way without fazing me. Why the hell do I feel an urge to have the polished floor open and swallow me out of my misery?

“Since you brought such a lovely visitor, we will forgive your tardiness, son,” the preacher’s voice pulls me out of my conflicted thoughts.

“Just in time to sing the special you prepared for us.” the preacher’s eyes are on me. Is it Will’s father? No, preachers call everyone sons and daughters. Don’t they? What the hell do I know about religion?

Will shoots me an encouraging look and sprints to the pulpit. I laugh inside. What would the paparazzi do for this shot?

Will straps a guitar around his neck, and says, “Thank you, Dan.” His lips curl into a dazzling smile.

“Good morning, everyone, sorry for being late.” He glances at Dan. “I was watching one of God’s most amazing creations.” He winks at me. “The sunrise.” His deep voice resonates. He gets an “Amen” from a lady wearing a hat and sitting in the second row.