Only for You (17 page)

“I can’t believe you brought so much stuff. Are you going to work on a project while you’re here?” she asked, nodding at his sketch pads.

“Nothing specific. Just messing around.”

She nodded and scratched hard under the wig before she reached for a grocery bag. “No more wearing this damn thing for hours on end. Heaven,” she mused to herself. The idea made her smile hugely. “I can let my hair down and live a little while I’m behind closed doors.”

Seth glanced at her and did a double take.

“What?” she asked, noticing his narrow-eyed gaze. A strange expression settled on his face, one she couldn’t quite read. He turned back to his task, his face averted from her.

“Nothing. Just . . . your smile.”

Gia opened her mouth, but nothing came out. It was hard to put a name to what she’d heard in his deep, gruff voice just then.

Whatever it was, it had struck her temporarily mute.

*   *   *

Seth deactivated an elaborate alarm system before they entered the snug, pretty house. They paused at the threshold of the vaulted living room. Gia removed her glasses, pleasure warming her. She set down her bag and walked into the large space with the vaulted timber ceilings and fieldstone floor-to-ceiling fireplace. The décor, bright, tree-dappled sunlight and a warm color scheme of golds and dark reds made the room extremely welcoming and comfortable.

“I love it,” she said, spinning around to look at Seth. He’d set down the bags and items he’d been carrying, too, and was watching her.

“We should talk about the sleeping arrangements,” he said.

Her mouth snapped shut. She’d been both dreading and excited for this moment. Now it had come.

“Okay,” she said, taking a step closer toward him.

He just quirked up an eyebrow. “Do you want to sleep with me while we’re here, or not?”

Leave it to Seth to get right to the point.

Not that he had much of a choice, she reasoned. He had to know where to put the suitcases. Her desperate gaze landed on the carton of water he’d carried in and set on an entryway table. “Do you think I could have one of those waters?” she asked.

“Sure.” He stepped over to the table and extricated one of the bottles from the plastic. He cracked open the lid and handed it to her. She drank, glancing furtively at his face while she did.

“No strings attached? We both walk away afterward?”

“It would be for the best. But God knows that while we’re here, I’ll want you,” he said, his simple, primal honesty sending a thrill through her. His gaze sunk over her face. “Again and again.”

She spilled some of the water on her chin, set off balance by his quiet, restrained intensity. “It’s like I told you in that parking lot. Now that it started, I can’t imagine stopping until this thing has played out.”

“What if I’m not fully convinced, like you are, that it’s ‘for the best’ to keep it to mere getaway sex?” she asked frankly, wiping her chin.

“You mean because you feel I’m unreasonable about thinking we wouldn’t work in the real world?”

She laughed. “In the
un
real world, right? Hollywood? Yeah. That’s what I mean.”

“I told you we don’t have to agree on everything to enjoy each other. It’s up to you whether or not you want to explore this . . . heat between us. If you think it would be a bad idea, then we’ll sleep in separate bedrooms. I’d understand completely.” He paused, considering. “I wouldn’t like it though.”

Some of the heat he’d referred to seemed to rush through her now. Her cheeks burned. Her sex tingled.

Don’t agree. You know what might happen.

But what if that dreaded thing had already occurred, and she was just blinding herself to that fact? Her work wasn’t available here in these woods to distract her. It was just Seth and her.

She agreed with Seth though. She wasn’t a coward. If she left this “heat” between them unexplored, she’d regret it. A lot.

“It all seems a little mercenary, the way you talk about it.” She met his stare unflinchingly. “But maybe you’re right to be straightforward. What’s more honest than wanting someone? And I think we both know that applies to us, in spades,” she added wryly under her breath. She inhaled for courage. “So I guess that’s it. It would be stupid for us to sleep in separate rooms. Stupid and dishonest.”

He nodded once, unsmiling. He looked quite formidable.

“Since we’re being honest, I want you to know that I’ll use protection when we’re together,” he said. “But I’m healthy. I just had a physical a few weeks ago, and I haven’t been with anyone else since then.”

She gave him a grateful smile, appreciating him bringing up the topic. His straightforward candor. “Yeah. I’m healthy too. My physical was more like months ago, but I haven’t been with anyone since then, either,” she admitted, hating the rush of color in her cheeks at the admission. She cleared her throat. “Plus, I’m on the pill.” He remained unmoving. Unsmiling. “Don’t look so serious, Seth,” she chided lightly, even though deep down, she was a little intimidated by her agreement to his proposal . . . by the laying out of the rules and boundaries. She started to peel the wig off, wincing. “It doesn’t match a sexy, no-strings-attached situation, you know.”

“That’s what you keep calling it, not me,” he said, picking up four large bags at once.

“What do
you
call it?” she demanded, freezing in her task.

He cast an amused, resigned glance her way as he straightened. “Trouble worth risking.”

She stood there, speechless, watching him saunter away.

He put away the supplies and re-familiarized himself with the property. Afterward, he made several calls, including one to Charles to update him on their arrival. While he did so, he closely studied the entrance to the property and the surrounding woods. He’d been certain no one had followed them from St. Louis. He was alone in these woods.

Alone with Gia.

When he’d spoken to John Corcoran, the owner of the residence, while they were stopped on the road earlier, John had encouraged them to choose any suite they liked, including the master. Seth had put their things in a large guest suite, however, not wanting to infringe too greatly on John and Jennifer’s hospitality and privacy. The suite was nearly as large as the master, and equally as comfortable. Plus, it possessed one feature he found extremely appealing . . .

Gia was showering when he finished his call. The thought of joining her in the shower tempted him—a lot. But she would be clean and sweet by now, while he still felt grubby and stiff from the long drive. Instead, he grabbed some clothes and showered in the bathroom of a second, smaller guest room.

Gia was standing in the well-appointed, modern kitchen when he entered it a while later. She pulled her hand back hastily from a teakettle when she saw him, as if she’d been caught red-handed at something. He came to a standstill several feet into the kitchen when he took in her appearance. She stared at him with huge eyes, her self-consciousness obvious.

Endearing.

Yet, she was Hollywood’s sweetheart, a woman who could expertly transform into someone else at a second’s notice. He’d come to learn that actors were an odd lot. Many of the best gave too much of themselves to roles, sacrificed themselves to the flames of a brilliant performance. They won accolades, but lost a bit of themselves with each role.

But as he examined Gia standing there, looking nervous and excited at the same time, Seth suspected there was something different about her. When she wasn’t acting, Gia possessed one of the most candid, pure spirits he’d ever witnessed. It’d been what had drawn him to her from the start, even though he hadn’t fully understood it at the time. Was that why she could absorb a role so utterly? He wasn’t saying she was a blank slate, far from it. If anything, her strength was the one clear, steady note of her character. Maybe
that’s
why she could transform at a moment’s notice, and then bounce back so quickly to being the hardworking, practical girl with a plan?

Thinking about her career aspirations to become the biggest and the best struck a bad chord, creating friction in him. Maybe he was kidding himself by imagining her as an exception.

It was so damn hard to say with Gia, because she was so
exceptional.

There was one thing that was certain, and that was that he wanted her like hell.

She wore a white belted robe and her hair was down, falling around her back and shoulders in loose waves. Her feet were pinkish-hued from the hot shower, the vision of their nakedness surprisingly sexy. It looked like she’d taken a blow-dryer to get most of the wetness out of her hair, but some strands were still damp. Her full breasts looked soft and inviting beneath the terry-cloth robe. Seeing her lush, natural feminine beauty exposed after it had been under wraps for so long sent a jolt of lust through him. His cock twitched. He took a step toward her, his nostrils flaring slightly when he caught the fresh, citrusy scent from her washed hair.

“Uh . . . tea,” she said awkwardly. “I found some tea bags in the supplies you brought. I just put on the kettle. Do you want some?”

“No. Not tea,” he said. Her eyes sprang wide when he placed his hands on her waist and lifted her. She made a startled sound as he plopped her down on the granite countertop across from the stove. He immediately reached for the belt of her robe and unknotted it. He had a sharp urge to see her exposed. Undone. When he glanced up at her, he couldn’t help but smile when he saw her stunned expression.

“No time like the present,” he told her before he deliberately parted her robe, still holding her stare. He glanced down. His smile evaporated in a second. She was naked. “You are
such
a good girl, Gia,” he murmured, arousal pounding through him when he saw her smooth, glistening skin and svelte curves. It was like opening the most erotic, beautiful gift in the world. She might have been startled by his actions just now, but she’d known what was going to happen after they both showered.

“No time like the present,” she whispered. He glanced swiftly into her clear, shining green eyes, seeing the reflection of his own need there. Parting her legs with his hands, he stepped between them. He nuzzled her neck.

“Your hair is so beautiful,” he said distractedly, surrounded by her scent. He delved his fingers into the thick, soft waves, gathering it at her nape with one hand. He tugged gently. Her head fell back, bringing her ripe, pink lips within striking distance. His cock stiffened with amazing haste.

Jesus. Gia’s mouth. For the past two years, every dream and fantasy lover’s mouth always took the shape of it.

“I can’t believe some jerk actually encouraged you to cut this,” he added thickly, squeezing her hair in his fist, his stare glued to the target of her mouth. His cock throbbed when he saw her small smile.

“He’s not really a jerk. He was just acting like one at the time,” she said throatily.

“He was probably struck stupid because he was in the presence of an amazing, gorgeous woman,” he muttered before he seized her mouth forcefully. She whimpered when he penetrated her depths, suddenly voracious for the sensation and taste of her . . . abruptly starved to experience full possession when it had been denied to him for excruciating hours.

For years.

Her fingers delved into his hair and clutched at one of his shoulders. Gia’s mouth was not a thing a man could take in half measure. Kissing her was a pleasure akin to much more flagrant sexual acts.

Kissing Gia was as serious as it gets.

Realizing he was getting drunk on her, he leaned back, his gaze latched on to her parted lips. He let go of her hair and grabbed the collar of her robe. Slowly, he eased it off her shoulders and arms, hearing his heartbeat in his ears, feeling it throb in his cock. He dropped the robe in a pool of cloth around her ass.

Anticipation building in him, cutting at him from the inside, he opened his hands along her firm thighs and skimmed them over her supple hips. He molded his palms around her taut curves.

“I forgot how well you fit me,” he said, spellbound. His hands glided up to her narrow waist and delicate rib cage.

“I forgot how well you touch me,” she whispered. He glanced up into her face, snarling slightly when he saw her dazed eyes shiny with arousal. Jesus. She was real and she was
right here
and she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Lust lanced through him, too powerful to contain. He cupped her breasts from below. The globes were round, but extremely firm and thrusting. Her nipples were large and pink, the vision of them like a distilled sexual stimulant.

“You use a body double for your sex scenes.”

“Yes, for the full-on nudity,” she admitted shakily. He shaped her breasts to his palm, his sexual focus intense . . . rabid. She cried out softly when he lightly pinched both nipples at once, loving watching the delicate crests tighten and feeling the sensation of them hardening beneath his fingertips. He’d never seen nipples this large that were so sensitive.

“I knew it,” he said starkly. “I knew that wasn’t you I saw up on that screen.”

She made a soughing sound when he circled her nipples teasingly with his fingertips. “I didn’t realize you’d ever seen me in a movie.”

He glanced up and met her stare. He’d seen her all right. Only because he hadn’t been able to stay away, despite his self-lectures to do precisely that. His restraint had worked at times.

Other times, he had succumbed.

“Not all of them,” he said honestly. “A few. It wasn’t easy, seeing you so close when you were so far away. It was weird, but it gave me some measure of peace that you didn’t share everything with the whole world . . . some measure of
satisfaction
,” he growled softly, molding her breasts to his hands for emphasis, making the nipples protrude between his fingers. He barely noticed her lips falling open in amazement at his fierce declaration before he leaned down and inserted a crest into his mouth. He closed his eyes and drew on her.

A ripple of pleasure went through him when her fingernails scraped against his scalp. God, she was sweet. His tongue laved and pressed, hungry for the sensation of her beading flesh. She clutched his hair and moaned when he drew on her, suckling her greedily, then pausing to soothe her with his tongue. His hand lowered and caressed a smooth thigh. He reached, his fingertips seeking glory. He groaned, deep and primal, when he dipped his fingers between her labia and found her sweet and warm, her arousal wetting his fingertips.

A storm seemed to settle on his brain, an uncompromising need to mate, hard and fast. It wasn’t logical. It was the direct opposite of making sense. It was a primal directive. He slid his fingers lower between her thighs, palming her entire outer sex possessively. She said his name and clutched at his hair, hurting him a little. The evidence of her returned desperation only fueled his rampaging lust. He moved his hand in a tight, small circle, stimulating her clit. When she started to gyrate her hips in a subtle, erotic movement, pressing against him frantically, he saw red.

The next thing he knew, he was extricating a condom from his wallet and panting while Gia ripped at his button fly. She scooted forward on the cabinet, the tiny twitching of her hips and the slight sway of her breasts killing him.

She reached between his opened fly and found the outline of his erection straining against his boxer briefs.

“Christ,” he grated out when she flicked her fingernails against the stretched fabric, erotically scraping his aching cock. Shivers rippled through him, tightening every muscle in his body. He grabbed her wrists, pushing her hands down to her thighs. He shot her a fiery glance when she started to reach for him the second he let go. Her hands moved anxiously on her thighs, but she stayed put. Their stares held as he jerked down his jeans and underwear and extricated his cock. He winced as he rolled on the condom, his gaze straying like a bee to honey to the vision of Gia’s pussy. She was spread for him, but not as wide as he wanted her.

He looked up at her as he took his sheathed cock in one hand and cupped her hip with the other.

“I’m going to have you again and again in the next few weeks,” he told her as he guided his cock to her pussy, pushing her closer to the edge of the counter with his hand. “Sometimes it’s going to be slow,” he grated out when he felt the tip press against her clasping warmth, “and sometimes it’s going to be fast, but right now, it’s going to be
furious
. I’ve waited for too long to get back inside you, Gia.”

She cried out when he flexed his hips and her softness parted for him. The counter’s height was perfect for the maneuver. His cock entered her at a horizontal angle from his body, and she was
so
damn wet and warm and tight. He clenched his teeth. She was so sweet, and she was squeezing him mercilessly.

He grabbed both her hips and sank into her. Their stares held as he bumped his pelvis against her outer sex and ground his hips lightly against hers. Her beautiful face tightened. She looked anguished. Wild. He stroked her cheek soothingly.

“There, you can take that, can’t you?” he muttered thickly, pulling lightly on her long hair. Her head fell back, and he bit gently at her pink mouth and fragrant neck. It was delicious, staying still while the ache in him mounted. A siren was starting to wail in his brain, a distant claxon approaching. “You
have
to take it, sweet girl,” he said between ravishing her mouth. “Because I’m about to lose it. You feel so fucking good.”

“Yes,” she hissed. Her fingers flexed into his ass, begging him, taunting him. “Give it to me hard.”

He drew his cock out of her and rocketed back inside, using his hold on her to keep her still for his possession. It was madness. It was fantastic. He groaned gutturally at the brutality of the pleasure. He held her tighter, grimacing, powering his hips. She shook every time he crashed their flesh together, but he brought her closer, holding her tight, absorbing the blow.

It took him a moment to realize that wailing alarm of excitement wasn’t just coming from inside his head. The hissing teapot on the stove had escalated to a shrill whistle, the sound of it blending with Gia’s high-pitched keening as they crashed together. He straightened slightly, never ceasing his ruthless plunging into her body. She stared at him, and it all came rushing back to him, that wild, helpless expression she got on her face when he took her.

“You always liked it hard, didn’t you?” he rasped, holding her hips and driving into her.

Her breasts trembled with each forceful thrust. He spread her pale thighs wider and pushed her closer to the edge. He caught sight of her slick, swollen clitoris. A madness struck him at the flagrantly erotic vision, and he was charging at full steam. The teapot was screaming, that claxon now upon him, blaring, insistent.