Stuck On You (14 page)

He opened his mouth to say . . . something, maybe an apology, or maybe it was going to be a song of adoration. It was hard to tell. He couldn’t get anything in gear. She interrupted whatever it was going to be.

“Amazing.”

KT turned his head to press a kiss against her neck. She was right. She was amazing. They were amazing. He was in so much trouble.

When he was sure he could make it to the bathroom, he got rid of the condom and grabbed a bottle of water from the minibar. Laura was stretched out on her stomach with her arms under her pillow. Her beautiful brown hair, appropriately tangled, covered her back and he thought he could hear little humming snores coming from her mouth.

Shaking his head, he pulled the comforter over her, drank half the bottle of water, and stretched out beside her with his arms crossed behind his head. He felt good. And a little scared. She wasn’t the kind of woman a man would forget easily. But there wasn’t much hope for a relationship. He rolled his own eyes at that. Relationship. Clean living had broken his brain. She hadn’t even asked for one and here he was examining his damn feelings. She said one night, but already he could feel the anxiety and sadness that would hit when morning rolled around. Ending it now wouldn’t stop that from happening, though. He’d just have more memories for someday.

Maybe he could go and doodle her name and draw hearts around it too.

He snorted and then reached up to click off the light. He froze when she stirred on the bed. “Want me to leave?” Her voice was drowsy and he could swear he felt arousal stir again.

“Don’t be an idiot.” He shifted her over and wrapped an arm around her back.

She squirmed closer. “I don’t mind. It’s not that far.” She said one thing but maybe her body wasn’t on the same page. Her arm draped across his chest and she rubbed slow circles over his abdomen.

“Keep that up and we’ll go again sooner than I expected.”

Her quiet laugh sent a puff of warm air across his chest. “I’m ready when you are, buddy.”

“Mmm, buddy? That’s not exactly what I’m going for here.” He tangled his fingers with hers.

“Lover? God? Stud? How about one of those? Or maybe I could call you by your real name.” Her chin was a sharp point as she turned her head to try to see his face in the near complete darkness. He was glad he’d switched the light off. “What is your real name?”

Somehow, he’d found the one person in America who didn’t read tabloids or watch entertainment news or cyberstalk. His name was no secret, but only one person in the world used it now. And she was special. No matter how many times he’d told his grandmother the world called him KT, she continued to call him . . .

“Kevin. Kevin Theodore Masters.” He said it like it was a horrible, dark secret, but he was in bed with the only girl who didn’t already know it.

When she didn’t say anything, he wished he’d left the light on. He couldn’t guess anything about what was happening behind her bright eyes at this point.

“KT suits you. It sounds hip and happening, fun and life-of-the-party in a way that Kevin doesn’t.”

“And let’s not even talk about Theodore, okay?” He sighed. “Only my grandmother calls me Kevin now.”

She must have heard the disgruntlement in his voice. “Can’t get her to change?”

He laughed. “No. And since she’s the only person who ever really gave a damn about me, she gets away with a lot.”

“Is she in California? Do you get to spend a lot of time with her?” Laura’s voice was lower, softer than her normal brisk, take-no-prisoners bossy tone. He had a feeling that there weren’t many people who heard this Laura. Here, in the dark, she was soft. Vulnerable. He rolled his eyes at his own deep thinking.

“Yes, I moved her into my guest house about five years ago, so when I’m home, she cooks and I eat and everyone’s happy.”

And he’d have been happy to leave the sharing right there.

“What about parents? Or siblings?”

Here was the downside to finding the one person who apparently lived in a no-gossip zone. “I don’t talk to my parents much. They divorced when I was eleven, just as the show took off. And then they battled. Over me, over money, over cars and houses and boats and my agent and my manager and who had the worst drug or alcohol or sex problems loudly, often, and as publicly as they could.”

Laura scooted closer. “God, that’s awful.”

“It was, but Gram came from Mississippi, moved in, and took over. Thank God. There’s no telling where I’d be now. Dead in a ditch from an overdose probably.”

Laura squeezed him tightly. “Thank God for Gram, then.”

He rubbed a hand down her smooth back. “Yeah, she’s determined to make me a better man. I missed drugs and crazy spending and sex tapes, stuff like that, but I’ve always enjoyed a few stiff drinks too much. About three months ago, I enjoyed them too much, had a mini-party going on, and disturbed Gram’s peace. She ran the girls off, poured out the booze, and very gently, almost kindly, told me that she was sorry to see me that way. Then she left. And I felt like scum on the bottom of her shoe.” He sighed. “So I stopped drinking. And haven’t had a pretty girl in my arms until tonight. And I’ve felt really, really good, like maybe I’m figuring everything out. Except this job. Only you could manage that.”

She kissed his chest, the spot right over his heart. “Sweet talker.”

He shifted a little, more comfortable now that he’d crossed that particular bridge. “So, you see, the next time, I’m totally going to rock your world. I can totally blame my impatience on three months.”

She did the strangled snort laugh that made him grin.

“Good grief. What an amateur. Three months. That’s like . . . nothing for
normal
people, Kevin.”

“Hey, Kevin is not our thing. Go back to stud. Or God. That one was nice.”

She didn’t answer but he could feel her smile against his chest. “Maybe I should work with Theodore instead. I could call you Teddy. You could be my Teddy Bear.” When he made gagging noises, she giggled.

KT said, “I spilled my beans. Your turn.”

Her hair tickled his chest as she shook her head. “You can’t handle my beans.”

“Um, stud? God? I can totally handle your beans.”

She sighed. “Fine. Try fourteen years, a dry spell of fourteen years, Kevin.”

KT felt the trickle of unease settle in his stomach. Maybe she was right. Maybe her beans could go unexamined. But he was no coward. “What happened?”

“I got pregnant. And my high school boyfriend, the one who loved me so much that he might die if we didn’t have sex, hit the road. And I’ve been raising a child on my own ever since. I left college, came home to Memphis, and worked and went to school when I could and finally had a career. Then my mother got sick and died. And then I got laid off. I just didn’t have a lot of time to date, you know?” She started to tense up, pull away, but KT refused to let her go. He wrapped his other arm around her.

“I can’t even imagine how hard that would be, Laura. I’m sorry.”

She didn’t relax but she finally said, “It has been, but I’ve done a good job. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished.”

KT rubbed a hand over the tense muscles of her back and tried to figure out the perfect thing to say. He couldn’t imagine what it would be. They were quiet and eventually Laura relaxed against him.

She squeezed him again. “But now that I’ve met you, I know I have to make a change. Things are good here at the hotel even if the job isn’t what you might call a solid career. I need to make some time now.”

He had no idea how things could ever work between them but he was glad she was making room for the possibility. But a daughter. That would take some real consideration. He didn’t date women with children. It wasn’t that he didn’t like children. There were just so many choices out there so why take a chance on a kid since he didn’t have to? There were too many chances to screw up.

“I have no idea where I’ll meet a nice guy, one who’s not a crazy Elvis fan anyway, but I need to put some effort into it. Pretty soon Holly will be ready to date and she’ll graduate and then . . . I’ll wish I’d made time for something else, something for me.”

And the sad feeling hit him again. She wasn’t making plans for them. She was thinking about moving on with her dating life after he left. He hated the idea of some other guy here. This was his place.

But it wasn’t. And she was right. She did need to make time. And there was no way they could make anything work between them. He wasn’t meant to be a father. He needed to be in Hollywood. Gram was there.

And then he realized he’d met her daughter. The pretty girl with the pink streak was Holly. He also understood Willodean’s keen interest in his reaction. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen the resemblance in her pensive face or the brilliant smile. He’d seen both on Laura’s face. Maybe he hadn’t wanted to see it.

To bury the stupid sadness, he said, “I met Holly. This afternoon. Willodean introduced me.”

Laura didn’t answer at first. Finally, she said, “She’s been dying to meet you.”

He stretched to turn on the lamp. He needed to see her face. “Why didn’t you introduce us?”

She shifted against him. “I’m not sure. I guess . . . I don’t want her to be disappointed.”

He tried to ignore the hurt that welled up from the general vicinity of his heart. “You think I don’t live up to the hype?”

Laura snorted. “Um, seriously? I don’t even know the hype and I’d say you exceed it. Exceedingly. But she’s a girl and she’s had such a hard time and I wish I could give her everything and I guess I wanted to be sure of you. My first impression wasn’t great.”

He nodded. “I told her I’d sign an autograph. The end. I hope that’s not too disappointing.” He could hear the whine in his voice.

Laura kissed his chest again. “I’m sorry. I know you probably deal with little girls and autographs all the time, but she’s the only one I have. For fourteen years, it’s been up to me to keep her safe. Maybe I’ve sheltered her too much. I know I’ve made some big sacrifices and maybe I need to loosen up a little. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

He switched off the lamp again. “No problem. I get it. Celebrities can be such attention whores. Right?”

“I apologized for that too. Some of them can, but not you. Okay?” Her hand started rubbing circles again before he twined his fingers through hers.

“Yeah, okay.”

She slid a leg between his and pressed closer. “Friends?”

As much as he hated it, that was the only way to go. “Yes. Friends.”

Chapter Seven

T
HE ROOM SERVICE
knock interrupted Laura’s deep thoughts the next morning. She’d awoken with a smile on her face and more energy than she’d had in years. She watched KT’s chest rise and fall evenly for a bit and then lectured herself on the line between stalker-lite—staring at someone while he slept—and full-on crazy soon-to-be-ex-whatever-she-was, which would be crossed if KT caught her. It was a fine distinction and the only way to stay on the proper side was to get out of bed.

She’d escaped to the most golden of all bathrooms for a shower before dressing in her clothes from the night before. Then she’d tiptoed out into the dark room and opened KT’s laptop. He’d laughed about the spreadsheet and the receipts, but she was determined to show him. When he didn’t wake after the laptop’s startup, her shuffling papers, or the rattle of the paperclips spilling across the clean surface of the desk, Laura had decided breakfast was the only answer. Really, when all else failed, coffee was the answer for everything.

She’d ordered and gone back to the blessed spreadsheet. Now that she’d entered all the receipts, she’d sorted them and made a beautiful graph to show how he’d spent the money. Not that KT would appreciate it, but a well-made pie chart was a thing of beauty and joy forever.

When room service knocked, she lurched upright and knocked over the empty water bottle next to the laptop. KT stirred and she walked over to lean down and ask, “Can you get the door?”

He rubbed his eyes and thought for a minute. “Have you lost your mind? Why don’t you get it?”

She fidgeted with the bottom of her sweater. “Well, I could hide in the bathroom and maybe face a little less . . .”

He huffed and called out, “Just a minute.” He stood and yanked on his jeans before heading for the door. He paused there and, when she didn’t move, stared from her to the bathroom door. When she darted inside, she thought she heard him mutter something about crazy women but she couldn’t make out the words.

“Good morning, Mr. Masters. I have your breakfast.”

She could hear the rattle of glasses and silverware. “Thanks, Manny. You can leave it here.”

There was silence and a few shuffling noises before she heard the door open again. “You have a very good day, Mr. Masters.”

“You too, Manny.” When the door shut, he rapped twice on the door. “Come out. I need in.”

On the day she’d shown up to work, KT Masters was a half-naked morning person, a guy who greeted the morning with boundless energy and a chipper smile. Today, not so much. She opened the curtains to let the bright spring sunshine in and moved the table closer to the window. She was taking the last plate cover off when she heard the flush of the toilet and running water in the sink.

She anxiously clenched her fists and looked around the room for another job. She should never have stayed the night in his bed. Sex with KT Masters was exactly what she wanted, but sleeping in his arms had been so much more. If she’d just put on her clothes and marched right back around the pool to her own bed, she’d have never heard his story about how awful his parents were or known how much he loved his grandmother. She would never have told him about Holly or the mistake she’d made at eighteen. And she certainly never would have told him about her nun-like existence since. She was lucky he didn’t bundle her up and send her off. Still, when she faced the heartache KT’s leaving would bring, she’d also have the memory of how waking up next to him had felt, like she was exactly where she needed to be. Even if he was a little grumpy first thing in the morning.

Just as the door opened, she spread the comforter out over the hastily made bed. He smelled like minty toothpaste and warm sheets as he wrapped his arms around her and leaned his head on her shoulder. “Now. Good morning.” He placed a quick kiss on her neck. “This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind to start the day.”