Read Craig, Dede - Three Kisses of Lust (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Online
Authors: Dede Craig
Craig, Dede - Three Kisses of Lust (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (3 page)
“What? I’m sorry, I—”
“You damn right you’re sorry. I only do the kissing scenes on camera and nowhere else, got that?”
He remained on the couch. As much he heard what she was saying, it was hard to concentrate. Her robe had slipped slightly open at her chest. Her ample cleavage was exposed beneath a matching lacy black bra. With her hands on her rounded hips, the robe pulled and tightened around her small waist.
She was mouth-watering. He swallowed then licked his lips, willing himself to focus on what she was saying. She looked so hot, even her anger was a scorching torch to his erection.
“Got it.” His voice was a husky moan. His dick ached for her.
“Look, you’re new. Let me break it down. I’m particular about the intimacy scenes. Contractually, I don’t do frontal nudity or sex scenes. So before you get any ideas, I’ll do all the angled shots and my double will step in for the nudes. The kiss on-camera will be limited to what Tony wants for the shot, nothing more and nothing less. Just so its crystal clear, I will only kiss you on camera, got that?”
He nodded, though he wondered, if things went to plan, would she still be as particular? He knew all this. It was stipulated in various bullet points in her contract. It still surprised him though. Many actresses spoke of no-nudity clauses, but invariably it was a PR ruse. Gia was a surprise. A sexy one indeed.
She sighed, her shoulders slumped slightly before she moved her hands up, pulling her robe closer around her. She looked so sweet, so innocent.
Dammit. Looking at her now, he could feel the pangs of guilt. He had to come clean. He stood up and lifted his palms up toward her. “Gia, look, I’m sorry. I’m not Cole—”
“What did you say?” Her eyebrows shot up, and she frowned while she waited, head tilted down.
“I’m Liam Wright. I’m the—”
“As in
the
Liam Wright?” She crossed her arms over her chest and rubbed her arms.
“Yes, I’m sorry, I just got carried away, I—”
“Wait, let me get this straight. You just pretended to be Cole when you’re actually the studio head, ergo my boss? Why would you do that?”
“Well, you didn’t exactly give me a chance to talk. You assumed, and I just went with it.”
“I didn’t give you a chance to talk. Are you insane? There was plenty of time for you to tell me you weren’t Cole.” She turned her back to him then moved one hand to her waist and the other over her eyes. Her hair formed an onyx curtain over the side of her face.
He rose slowly then treaded cautiously toward her. He wasn’t sure what lay beyond the curtain, and the uncertainty twisted his stomach into knots. He gently raised his hand to her hair, pushing it away from her face. “I’m sorry.”
She shrugged away from his hand before turning and facing him. Her eyes burned into his, the green a shade darker. “Just get out. With all due respect, you are my boss, but get the fuck out of my trailer.”
“What? It was a joke gone too far. You can’t seriously be mad? It’s not like I actually kissed you. God forbid we breach your contract.”
“It’s not about almost kissing me. It’s the whole thing. It’s enough I have to deal with the media shit every day. All it takes is for one grip to syndicate a photo of me and my boss. I really don’t need any scandals right now. You had your fun with the actress of the day. Please leave.”
She gave him one final death glare before turning and heading into the tiny bathroom.
The door slammed shut.
The sound rang through his ears while he stared at the small white door. Okay, that went well. There was obviously no point staying. She was mad as hell. If her flaming eyes weren’t enough of a sign, her cheeks were blood red from anger. He’d seen the look before, and he knew reasoning with it was a losing battle. “Why are women so freaking emotional?” he muttered aloud and turned toward the exit door. He had never been one for emotional women, preferring to leave the minute they got too sensitive. Nothing he had read showed this side of her. Was Gia Carelli any different?
He sighed then closed the door behind him.
He had never wanted a woman more in his life.
Chapter 2
“The spare phone is in the bottom drawer in the study. Okay, thanks, babe, see you later.”
Gia handed Sam’s phone back to her.
“Thanks, Lana’s bringing me the spare. What on earth did we do before cell phones?” She shook her head and sighed.
“Gosh, I don’t know. I can’t imagine a life without instant gratification and communication. We’d probably all go mad.” Sam, her British makeup artist, dabbed the concealer beneath her eyes with her plump index finger.
Gia sat and watched her M.A.C. transformation from pretty to just-woke-up-fabulous. She always hated the wheelbarrow of makeup she had to wear for shoots, but with everything shot in high definition, there was no room for redness, dull skin, or shiny spots. She closed her eyes while Sam spritzed a setting lotion on her face to give her a dewy look. Gia shook her head at the final result. It took one hour to make her look natural, then another to give her bed hair.
The hairstylist was applying the final touches to it, adjusting any stray tendrils so it didn’t block any of the camera shots in the scene—the kissing scene. The thought sent shivers of irritation down her spine.
Liam Wright.
She rolled his name at the edge of her mind and snorted. He was such an idiot. He had made her feel like a complete fool. Pretending to be Cole. He was the studio boss, the head honcho, but that gave him no right. He was a f—
“Blot.” Sam pushed a facial tissue to her mouth.
Gia placed her lips on the soft white sheet, pressed down then released, and sighed.
“Perfect, get the robe off so I can spray you.”
“Thanks, Sam. I think you’re going to have to bring the powder. With this heat, my face will melt under the lights.” She stood up and loosened her salmon silk robe, which fell to her feet, then stretched her arms out.
Sam circled around her and sprayed a translucent liquid onto her legs, followed by her arms then chest.
Gia adjusted the bra of the black lacy set she had to wear for the scene. Ten years ago she would have cringed to be seen in something this skimpy, but time had lowered her inhibitions.
“Sweetie, you ready? We’re all set to roll film.”
Gia turned around toward Maggie’s voice behind her.
Maggie nodded her red mane and blew a soft wolf whistle. “You look amazing. I see the yoga is working for you. You look leaner. Push your boobs up a bit.”
Gia reached down for her robe before slipping it over her shoulders without tying it. “Maggie, if I push it up any further, they’re gonna be called cheeks. I’m ready. Let’s do this.”
* * * *
Gia walked onto the set, and she could see the real Cole waiting for her at the entrance door of the faux motel room. He was difficult to miss. He did indeed look like a younger Brad Pitt. She bristled at the thought. She should have known. Her eyes glanced toward the set.
The set design team had worked hard on every detail. Even the red neon Motel sign flickered in half-working authenticity. The pseudo one-star motel looked like a train of shoebox-sized rooms.
Tony, the silver-haired director, stood behind a monitor and waved when he spotted her walking onto the set.
“You look great, Gia. You ready, sweetheart?”
Gia gave Tony a double thumbs-up. “Always.”
The set was filled with crew, all standing ready for the scene. She opened her arms to her sides while a wardrobe assistant removed the robe off her shoulders, leaving her standing barefooted at the door of the faux motel in just her bra and panties.
She adjusted her bra one last time then glanced around the lot. Was the idiot still here? Oh yeah, bull’s-eye, she spotted him.
Liam was standing next to the producer, watching her with a look of deep intent. His black eyes, like bowls of simmering coal, sizzled over her body in impossibly slow motion.
Bastard
. She winced, as a flush of heat bristled across her skin. She rolled her shoulders backward then shrugged and turned toward a smiling Cole.
She extended her hand toward him. “Hi, Cole, I’m Gia, pleased to
finally
meet you.” She shook his hand, feeling the clamminess choked around her own. With his shaggy blond hair and piercing blue eyes, he was a young Brad circa
Thelma & Louise
. Yet, she had to admit, he was nowhere near attractive and sexy as Liam. She had always preferred the dark Spanish-looking types.
What the hell is wrong with me? Where the hell did that come from?
She flinched and refocused on Cole. Looking at him, she knew the chemistry between them would have to be purely manufactured. She would have preferred to have the kissing scene with Liam
. Fuck, why was she even thinking about him
?
Liam was a suit and an asshole. Sure, he was sexy as hell, the equivalent of a sexy god. Tall, midnight-tinged hair, and evidently a scorching hot body. But an idiot nonetheless. These studio heads were always on power trips, with starlets falling over themselves to snag them. A hot one would be even worse. He would know it and be happy to oblige them. She was unquestionably not going down that path. She had carved her own fame and fortune without compromising herself. Now was not the time to start. She looked up, becoming aware of Cole pumping her hand then lowering his head to kiss the top. She had forgotten he was there
. Focus, Gia
. She forced a tight-lipped smile.
His head rose, and his lips curled at the corners. “Pleased to meet you. You look gorgeous. I’m sorry we didn’t meet sooner.” He was still holding her hand, clasped tightly in his.
She extracted her now damp hand from under his, moving it to her side. “Me, too.” She smiled. “We’re going to start soon.”
She took a deep breath allowing it to reach her abdomen before exhaling on a chant, “
I am Chloe, I am Chloe, I am Chloe
.” Her usual ritual before all her scenes.
But she couldn’t focus. She was too aware of Liam’s steamy, inky eyes watching her. Instead, she turned to face Cole. His impossibly whitened teeth and wide-eyed, star-struck stare were enough to diffuse her tension.
Sam rushed over and applied a dab of lip gloss with a final dusting on the bridge of her nose.
Gia shook her hair then stilled her face while she waited for the assistant director’s cue.
“Silence on set. Begin fog, lights, roll film, speed, and action!”
Chapter 3
Gia completed the scene in four takes. By the third she was ready to throw up from Cole’s overzealous kissing technique. He was a typical newbie to the film world, putting too much passion into his kiss, which translated into his head blocking almost every shot. Only after Tony spoke to him privately did he actually get it right.
Kissing scenes were laborious and technical. Gia was always amazed how effortless it seemed on the screen, when it actually took an hour just to get the perfect ten-second kiss.
As soon as Tony yelled, “Cut,” she walked over to her trailer to get changed.
* * * *
Thankfully her last scene for the day was scheduled for early evening, which meant she had a few hours to kill before she had to be back on set. She decided she would stay in her trailer and catch up on e-mail.
She entered her trailer and spotted a single pink rose on the small white table in front of the couch. A creamy card was placed next to it.
She walked toward it and leaned forward before scooping both up. It was Liam’s business card, embossed in silver ink with the Wright Studio logo. She turned it around and almost choked.
