Torn (16 page)

“Chelsea. Give me your mouth.”

She released him, dropped forward onto his chest, and grazed his nipples with her own while she lowered her mouth to his. “Look at me, Chelsea.” Tyler raised up, surging into her, even as his lips slanted over hers.

“
T-Tyler!”
she panted against his mouth. He lifted his hips even higher, almost unseating her, and Chelsea clutched onto his shoulders, her body rippling with the first wave of her orgasm, her eyes locked with his.
“God! Ty-ler!”

Her scream of release broke his control, and his hands gripped her hips hard enough to bruise as he slammed into her.
“Chelsea…
Jesus, God!” His climatic shout blended with her singing wail, echoed across the night sky.

Chelsea’s body quivered even as she collapsed on top of him, her face tucked into the crook of his neck, her breathing heavy against his ear. Tyler felt her lashes brush his skin like butterfly wings as she closed her eyes, then opened them. He shifted so that he could look at her, smoothed her dark hair away from her face. He tenderly pressed his lips to her temple and Chelsea raised her eyes to meet his gaze.

Chapter Ten

T
he sun had been up for three hours by the time Tyler pulled into the hotel parking lot. He’d witnessed its rise earlier with Chelsea, his body wrapped around hers, sheathed in her tight, moist heat. They hadn’t spent the night talking, but making love, enjoying each other’s company in silence, and listening to the night sounds around them.

During the drive back to her house, he’d expected her to ask questions about their future –– if there was one –– together, but found himself strangely disappointed when she didn’t. She just yawned, rested her head on his shoulder, and promptly fell asleep.

He saw her to her door –– the dogs racing from the dog-door to greet them –– and drew her into his arms. Chelsea leaned into his embrace, into his touch as he cupped her face with both hands. She smoothed a deep gold lock of his hair back from his forehead, ran her fingers through his hair. Tyler lowered his head to kiss her, but she stepped back. “Not here,” she murmured. His eyes caught the brass plaque next to the door.
Morgan 1530
, and he sighed an apology.

The door slid open on his floor with a soft
wssssp
, and he stepped out, walked to the laundry shoot and dropped in the pile of bedding. Tyler reached into his jacket pocket for his room key, stopped in his tracks when his cell phone chirped in his other pocket.

“Yeah?”

“
Ty, where have you and Chelsea
been?”

“What do you mean? I’m sure Chels ––“

“Ty, I didn’t just fall off a sugar beet truck.”

A sugar beet truck? His brows lowered as he started walking towards his room again. The filming must be taking longer than expected for Julie Bishop to use such an expression.

“Jules, I thought we didn’t need to be back on the set until tomorrow, and since when do you know anything about sugar beets?”

“
Don’t change the subject. You don’t. But your
wife
called. Many. Many.
Many
times. Didn’t you pick up your messages?”

Yawning, Tyler cricked his neck first to one side, than the other, stretching it out. “No. I just got in. Is she all right?” he asked with a frown.

There was a long silence. “You only just now got in?”

Tyler plead The Fifth. A long sigh expelled over the line.

“
Whatever. I’m only your best bud.”

Tyler simply waited, mute, and Julie sighed again.
“Fine.
Your wife, that hoochy heifer, is fine. She got some weird postcard in the mail yesterday, and woke my shit up to bitch about it because she couldn’t find you. And how is it that you’re only just
now
just getting in?”

“When did Jen call?” he asked, ignoring his friend’s question.

“
Around four this morning.”

It was Tyler’s turn to sigh as he ran a hand down his face. “Have you heard from her since?”

“
No, thank God. If she had, I would have reached through the phone and strangled her. I just wanted to forewarn you that she’s on some weird trip, so look out.”

He groaned. “Great.”

“
Were you with Chelsea last night? I noticed the two of you leaving the bar together.”

“I took her home.”

“
Oh, no, Ty! I know that tone. Ty… You didn’t. Tell me you didn’t.”

“I love her, Jules.”

“
Shit.
Shit
! Ty! You’re married, and more to the point,
she
is. Last I checked, her last name is Morgan, not Benson.”

Tyler stopped walking and leaned on the wall a few doors down from his own. “I know that. She knows that. It doesn’t change the fact that I love her. Or that she loves me.”

“
Ty… I don’t like the sound of that. What did you –– No. Don’t answer that… Like you would… But Ty, did you tell her you’re in love with her?”

“Yeah, Jules. I did.”

“
No, no, no!”
There was a pause.
“What did she say?”

He closed his eyes, tipped his head back against the wall, smiled. “That she’s in love with me too.”

“
Oh, no! This is so
wrong!
Really? She said that? Wait.”

His smile widened as he pictured his friend shaking her head in exasperation. Julie was nothing if not loyal, and she always wanted him happy. This must be killing her to have to deal with such conflicting viewpoints.

“
Damnit, Tyler! As usual, your timing is
impeccable.
Couldn’t you have met her –– I don’t know ––
thirteen freaking years ago?”

Smirking, Tyler pushed himself away from the wall and walked over to his room. He slipped the key in the lock. “You forget. I did.”

“
That’s not what I meant and you know it!”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he closed his eyes. “I know. I just… I need to let this play out as it will. I’m in it, Jules. How ever far it goes. She’s got me.”

“
What are you going to do?”

He paused, his hand on the doorknob. “I don’t know. I just… don’t know.”

“
Crap.”

“Yeah… I’ll talk to you later.”

“
You certainly will. I love you, Ty.”

Chapter Eleven

C
helsea arrived on the set the next morning feeling refreshed and buoyant. She hadn’t heard from Tyler after their spectacular night together, but she wasn’t concerned. Tyler was a busy man and, since she started designing the website for the movie in addition to her work on the film and parenting, she was busy too. After today, however she would have more time free, because it was her last day of filming.

Julie Bishop was shooting Tina’s last scenes in the film, Tina’s murder. Tina was to be lynched by a semi-local group of self-righteous racists from the neighboring town. Unlike the love scene, Chelsea looked forward to this challenge, and was confident that she could pull it off.

“Good morning!”

The suddenness of the director’s voice in her ear made Chelsea jump, and she turned around. “Julie! Good morning!”

The taller, darker woman looked Chelsea over with a critical, gold eye and arched brow. “You look well-rested,” she commented with a faint, amused smirk.

“This evening.” Curious, Chelsea followed the other woman’s gaze. “There’s Tyler!” Eyes bright, she started to walk over to him, but Julie’s hand on her arm stopped her.

“Actually, Chelsea, there’s a couple of items I want to go over with you regarding your last scene.
They
can’t wait. Ty
can
.”

“But I ––“ She threw one last glance over her shoulder to see Tyler step down from his pickup and stand facing her direction. She could feel his eyes on her and she started to lift her arm to wave, but Julie’s grip tightened and she used that grip to hurry Chelsea in the opposite direction.

Was someone in the Tyler’s truck? Squinting, Chelsea tried to focus on the passenger side, but Julie was walking faster now, dragging her along with her. With a sigh, she gave up. It seemed Tyler would have to wait.

~ * ~

His heart found her before his eyes did. As Tyler stepped down from the pickup, he saw Julie with her. When he turned in Chelsea’s direction, even though she was far away, he knew she was smiling.

She stood there, staring, as his long-time buddy tugged at Chelsea’s arm, trying to force her to follow. For a second, he panicked. Did she see Jen sitting in the cab of the pickup? No. Julie was leading her away.

His shoulders sagged with relief. He wanted to tell Chelsea about his wife showing up himself
before
Chelsea saw Jennifer. Yet he wasn’t stupid. He knew that Julie wasn’t dragging Chelsea along with her for his benefit. She genuinely liked Chelsea and didn’t want to see her get hurt. And since hers was the ear he went streaking to less than an hour after discovering Jennifer in his room –– in his
bed
–– Julie knew his wife was in town.

“Who’s that with
Herr
Direktor
?” Jennifer’s voice, rich with sarcasm, broke through his musings. Tyler looked over to see her standing beside him.

“How nice.” A slight toss of Jennifer’s chin-length, expensively sun-kissed, blonde hair, dismissed Chelsea from her plane of existence.

Hands tucked in the pockets of his jeans, Tyler started walking to his trailer, not even looking to see if his wife followed. He had work to do. He had to get into costume, into character, and then –– though he didn’t have to; Paul wasn’t in the scene –– head over to the set and watch Chelsea act out her last scene.

He could hear Jennifer stepping gingerly through the pasture behind him, even as she hurried to keep up. Heard her eloquent curses as the hem of her turquoise silk, Prada skirt snagged on some sagebrush, and swallowed his laughter. “Ty! Wait up!”

Tyler stopped, sighed impatiently. “Jen, I’ve got work to do. Can’t you frolic in the fields later?”

“Ha! You are so not amusing!” Jennifer’s green eyes flashed fire. “I do
not
frolic. My skirt is caught. I paid nine hundred dollars –– plus tax –– for this Prada Original. I won’t let it get torn to shreds by some mangy shrub!”

He winced. “It’s sagebrush, Jen. You’re visiting a movie set in Montana, not the Red Carpet. Why are you wearing a dress that costs twice the average mortgage payment around here anyway?”

“It’s a
skirt
, Ty, not a dress. And I’m a movie star. People
expect
me to look better than them. It goes with the job.” She eyed him up and down, making him aware of his scuffed, brown leather biker boots, and worn Wranglers. Her green gaze traveled up and she snorted, obviously not impressed. “
One
of us should look the part.”

Tyler rolled his eyes.

“Don’t give me that shit, Ty. Not everyone wants to blend in and look like a local. You keep this up, the next thing you know, you’ll be chewing a wad of Copenhagen.”

“Oh, please. Since when do you know a brand name of chewing tobacco? One of your studs chew? Give me a break.”

“Who do you think you are anyway? You gonna buy a ranch out here? Be neighbors with your pal Dennis?”

“Whatever, Jennifer.” Tyler turned around and walked the remaining yards to his trailer. He pulled a set of keys from his pocket to unlock the door, then stepped inside.

Jennifer freed the whisper of fabric and joined him. “You are such a sanctimonious prick, you know that?” she asked, the rhetorical question almost lost in the slamming door behind her.

Tyler groaned. “Not now, Jen. I’ve got work to do.” He walked down the short hall that led to the bedroom and went inside, closing the door.

Her eyes narrowed; her mouth set in a sullen line. “You may have a killer body, can make a woman come until her eyes are forever crossed, but living with you is no picnic. No wonder Meredith dumped your ass. All you were good for was incredible sex and her name in the paper. You made her a star.” She snorted. “Lucky for you
I
already was one.”