Star Struck (Hollywood Heat)

by Laurelin Paige

  If Seth hadn’t been tense before, he certainly was now. Despite the unease in the air, Seth’s reaction to Brandon’s wandering eyes gave her tummy flutters.

  With gritted teeth, he said, “Brandon, isn’t your wife a fan of Heather’s? You know each other, I’m sure.”

  Heather turned toward Brandon, having been invited into the conversation.

  “We haven’t met officially.” Brandon took Heather’s hand. “Brandon Drake. My wife can’t wait for the premiere. She’s dying to meet you.” He continued to flirt with her while talking about his wife. How smarmy. Maybe that’s why Seth was acting all weird—because Brandon Drake was a perv.

  Whatever Seth’s beef with him, Brandon was also a producer of her movie. Her boss, in other words. So she had to play nice. “Aw, thanks.” She sweetened her tone to a ridiculous level that bordered on sappy. “Always nice to hear I have a fan.”

  “I’m a fan, too.” He winked at her, still holding her hand.

  Until Seth cleared his voice, at which point Brandon dropped it promptly. “So what are you doing here? Did you take over as P.D.?”

  Heather’s brow furrowed. “P.D.?” It wasn’t unusual for producers to not know their crews, but why would Brandon assume Seth was the Production Designer?

  Seth ignored her question. “No, Joe Piedman is. Of course.” Despite the air-conditioned studio, Seth had a fresh layer of sweat on his brow. “You know he lost his crew on short notice.” And he was talking weird. “And we’ve been friends for a quite a while.” In short bursts. “So he called me.” As if making his speech up as he went. “I had a hole in my schedule. So I offered to come on board.”

  “As lead carpenter?” Now it was Brandon who looked confused.

  “Yep.” Seth’s jaw twitched.

  Brandon’s brows rose. “Man, you must be really good friends.”

  “Something like that,” Seth said under his breath.

  “What was that?”

  “So your team got nominated for the Globes last year. That must have felt good.”

  Heather cringed at Seth’s attempt at acknowledgement. Everyone in the biz knew the Golden Globes were a crock of shit. The Foreign Press who gave the awards ran nothing but a giant popularity contest. Maybe the tech level wasn’t aware. Or was Seth trying to change the subject?

  “Yeah, it was awesome.” Brandon’s teeth were gritted but he kept his smile. “And I heard that you might be up for—”

  Seth cut him off. “I’d totally be up for getting some drinks sometime.” Though Heather didn’t think that’s where Brandon had been going with his statement. Yes. Totally a weird interaction.

  But before Brandon could react, his attention was caught by the movie’s director passing by. “Oh, hey, I gotta talk to Don. Catch up later?”

  “Sure thing.” The tension visibly rolled off Seth the minute Brandon walked away.

  “What the eff was that?”

  “What do you mean?” Seth asked, turning back to the buffet table as though there might be something he still wanted.

  “Do you not get along with him or something? Because the energy between you two was way whacko.”

  “Between me and Brandon?” Seth shuffled through bags of sandwiches. “We get along. I just was surprised to see him, that’s all.”

  “Uh huh.” Except that wasn’t all it was. Heather was sure. The conversation had just been…off. “Why would he think you’d be the Production Designer?”

  He shrugged. “I have no idea. Maybe he remembered I’d been interested in that area. Or something. He must have assumed I’d moved up. Since we haven’t seen each other in a while.”

  Now Seth was using that weird talk with her. She narrowed her eyes. “But how did he even know you if you were on crew?”

  “I was good at networking.”

  She wasn’t convinced, and she was pretty sure her face told him that.

  “Look,” he said. “The Art Director on the movie we worked on was a drinking buddy of mine. He introduced me to Brandon at a cast party. And the party got kind of wild, if you know what I mean. We haven’t seen each other since.”

  Well, didn’t that open a whole slew of questions? Like what had happened between Brandon and Seth? And was it something she would’ve wanted to be part of?

  But she’d done some crazy things at cast parties that she’d die about if brought out in the light of day, so she simply said, “Gotcha.” Still, even if the two guys had gotten mad drunk and made out, there was something else weird about their conversation. “It seemed like he was really surprised that you were working as a carpenter. Wasn’t that odd?”

  Seth took a step closer to Heather and leaned in. So close she could smell his carpentry man smell that she loved so much. “What’s odd,” he said in a rumbly voice that clothed her in goose bumps, “is that we’re still here talking when we could be somewhere else completely not talking.”

  Damn. She bit her lip as her lady parts were coated in a fresh pool of moisture. “Give me twenty. Don’t worry about knocking. Just come in.” She paused, wondering if it would be impolite to ask her next question, but decided, rude or not it had to be asked. “You’ll be discreet?”

  He grinned. “You mean not announce to the whole set that I’m about to meet you for wild monkey sex?”

  She rolled her eyes. “I meant when you come to my trailer could you, like, make sure no one sees you when you walk in?”

  “Yes, princess.” He performed a mock bow. “Wouldn’t want the royalty seen with the hired help.”

  “That’s not—”

  He cut her off. “I know. I’m giving you a hard time.” Had he emphasized the word hard or was her mind in the gutter? “I’ll be discreet.”

  “Thank you.” She had to take a deep breath before taking off for her trailer. Wild monkey sex. She was already wet with excitement.

  Seth pinched the bridge of his nose.

  That was close. Too close.

  He’d told Joe when he took the job on Girl Fight that he didn’t want anyone to know he was anything but a carpenter so Seth hadn’t expected to encounter anyone who knew differently. But Brandon Drake…the movie they’d worked on together had been one of the first that Seth had designed. Brandon would never have expected Seth to be building a set. He’d have to try and catch Brandon and tell him to keep it on the D.L.

  Actually, what he should do is come clean with Heather.

  He almost groaned at the thought of Heather. At the wonderful thought of showering with her. At the horrible thought of telling her the truth.

  He couldn’t do it.

  Not just because he was still intent on finding out if she could truly like him no matter what he did for a living, but because now he’d let it go too long. Now there was no way she could think of it as anything but a betrayal. And wasn’t that exactly what it was? A betrayal of her trust? A betrayal of her emotions?

  Shit, he was screwed.

  But even though it was tearing him up inside, he had to protect his lie. Either that, or lose Heather, and he wasn’t ready for that. He looked at his watch. He had almost twenty minutes before he was supposed to meet her. Hopefully he could catch Brandon before then.

  Tamping down thoughts of the lusty afternoon that lay just ahead, he headed for the director’s trailer, figuring that’s where he’d find Brandon. The door was shut when he got there, but even without pressing his ear against the door, he could hear Brandon’s voice inside.

  He’d have to wait.

  Seth leaned against the side of the trailer and checked his watch again. Fifteen minutes. Might as well get lunch in while he waited.

  He’d finished his sandwich, a bag of chips, and one whole bottle of water before the door opened. Thankfully, Brandon walked out by himself, putting on his sunglasses as he did. Seth glanced at his watch once more. T minus three minutes. He’d have to make this conversation quick.

  “Brandon,” he called out, brushing his chip-greased hands on his jeans. “I hoped I’d
find you again.”

  Brandon pushed his sunglasses back on his head and crinkled his brow. “You were looking for me?”

  “Yeah.” He hesitated. Why hadn’t he thought up a good lead-in while he was waiting for the guy? Now he was winging it. “Well, like I said, I’d love to catch up sometime. But I don’t think I have your number anymore.”

  Brandon cracked a grin. “Good thinking. I’m sure I don’t have yours either.” He pulled out his wallet and leafed through it until he found what he was looking for. “Here’s my card.”

  “Awesome. Thanks.” Seth didn’t even look at Brandon’s business card before stuffing it in the back pocket of his jeans. “Oh, one more thing.” He lowered his voice. “You know, I’m doing this gig as a favor to Joe, and just so there wouldn’t be any awkwardness with the crew, I’m keeping my resume hush-hush.”

  Brandon snapped his fingers. “That explains it! Man, I couldn’t understand why you weren’t the P.D. I was about to ask around.”

  “Please, don’t do that.” Definitely a good thing he talked to Brandon.

  “Oh, no. Not now that you said something. But you are still in the P.D. biz? Because you’re too good at it not to be. Your talents are wasted in this shit position.”

  Seemed Heather wasn’t the only one on the set with a narrow-minded view of the hard-working crew. But he knew that. It wasn’t his first time around the block. The moneybags were almost always pompous. Why was that?

  “Yes, I’m still a P.D.,” he said with gritted teeth. “But it’s been really nice to get my hands back on the set. Keeps me in touch with the job and the people who work for me.”

  Brandon’s face soured. “Whatever’s your thing, man. In my opinion, that’s a real nice favor you’re doing for Joe.” It was Brandon’s turn to lower his voice. “Hey, um, maybe you could do me a favor as well.”

  A favor for Brandon? He wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “Shoot.”

  “Heather Wainwright…”

  Fucking slimy asswipe. He fought the urge to punch the guy in the face. “Come on, Brandon, you’re married.”

  Brandon shrugged. “We have an understanding.”

  He should just let it go. Seth knew Heather wasn’t about to hook up with a type like Brandon. Yet he still felt compelled to let Brandon know as well. “Heather isn’t your girl. She’s not into anything that might bring bad press. And she’d never go for a married man, whatever your understanding is. She’s kind of a princess.”

  “That’s too bad. That chick has one heck of a smoking body.” He sighed and again Seth wanted to punch him for the dirty thoughts Brandon was surely having about Heather.

  Then, Brandon’s face lit up in understanding. “Wait, are you into her?”

  “Uh…” Seth hadn’t been prepared for Brandon to be insightful.

  “You are!” Brandon clapped him on the back. “That’s all you had to say, man. I’ll keep my hands off. But tell ya what, maybe you could give me a holler when you’re through with her.”

  “Yeah, that’s exactly what I’ll do.” The statement dripped of so much sarcasm he wouldn’t be surprised if Brandon noticed. But frankly, Seth didn’t give a fuck. He’d done what he came for and now—he looked at his watch—now he was late for Heather. “Sorry to cut this short, Brandon, but I have an appointment.”

  Seth didn’t wait for a proper goodbye, taking off as soon as he’d finished speaking. But he didn’t miss Brandon’s shout after him. “Great seeing you again, Seth. Good luck with that fine slice of pussy.”

  Seth cringed. Such a crass motherfucker.

  Not that Heather didn’t have a fine slice of pussy. She did. She also had so much more.

  Of course, as he walked into Heather’s trailer, the sounds of a shower already going in the other room, it wasn’t the so much more that was at the forefront of his mind.

  Twelve

  Heather’s stomach twisted. Seth was late. Seven minutes late. Maybe he got caught up on the set. Or lost track of time. Or wanted to give her a few extra minutes to finish her meal.

  Or maybe he wasn’t coming.

  Since she’d barely been able to get food down, anxious as she was for her shower with Seth, she’d thrown away her barely eaten salad ten whole minutes before she expected him to arrive. Then she’d brushed her teeth and removed her eye make-up. And washed under her arms. Yeah, she was taking a shower, but she’d been sweaty after a day under hot set lights and she preferred not to subject Seth to her less than ladylike smell.

  Then she waited. And waited. And waited.

  At five minutes past the time Seth was supposed to arrive, she considered curling up on the bed to mope. But she had to shower before her next scene, even if it was alone. She’d already stripped from her costume before she’d eaten. Now she untied her robe, letting it fall in a heap on the linoleum floor and leaned into the shower to turn on the water.

  The temperature had just begun to warm up when she heard the bathroom door open behind her.

  “Now that’s a beautiful sight. Would be even more beautiful if your backside was red from my hand, but beautiful nonetheless.”

  She bit back her smile, hiding the relief she felt. He’d come. Thank goodness she’d already removed her tampon. Taking it out now would have been awkward.

  “You’re late,” she said, shaking the water off her hand. She meant to scold him further, but when she turned to face him the sight of him took her breath away. He’d already stripped out of his clothing—presumably at lightning speed since she hadn’t been in the bathroom that long—and damn did he look fine. The hard planes of his pecs and trim waist were smattered with a fine mist of hair. His arms were pure muscle. His abs, which she’d always suspected would be well-defined, were absolutely killer. They looked professionally sculpted. As if the reason he’d been late was because he’d stopped in the make-up trailer and had shadows and ripples applied. Generally the men she knew that looked like that only looked that way because of lighting and cosmetics. Or Photoshop. Men didn’t look like that in real life. Yet there was Seth, naked in her bathroom, looking exactly like that in real life.

  A hefty shiver ran through her body. “I had no idea,” she whispered. She couldn’t stop staring at him, his arms spread across the doorframe in an open posture that showcased everything. Including his thick, hard shaft. She could barely believe that amazing organ was connected to an even more amazing body. His thighs and hips—all of him—strong and defined.

  “No idea about what?” Even with his brows furrowed he was hot as hell.

  “How built you were.” She was amazed she even had a voice. “You’re incredible.”

  His face broke into a wickedly sexy smile. “I’m glad you approve.” His eyes blackened with desire. “But what’s incredible is what I’m looking at.”

  Her body flushed red and not only because the room had heated from the running shower. “I can’t imagine how what you see compares to what I’m seeing.”

  “You know, instead of just looking we could be touching.”

  Her heart thumped in her chest. “Now that sounds incredible.”

  He crossed the small bathroom in one stride. His hands wrapped around her face, tilting her face toward him. Then he was kissing her, kissing her, kissing her. He kissed all down the sides of her face and neck and when he returned to her mouth he tasted of make-up and sweat and roast beef and plain old yummy male goodness. She could kiss him like that, be kissed like that for a very long time.

  Before she could get her thoughts together and remember she needed to get clean, Seth was pulling back the shower door for them to step in. He guided her backward until she was pressed up against the stall wall. Then he shut the door behind him and crushed her body with his.

  Just as she had reveled in this first time that she’d gotten to see him in his naked glory, she reveled in this first feel of their naked bodies touching, the warm pressure, the tingling sensation everywhere their skin touched.

  And their skin touched everyw
here.

  The trailer’s shower was a small space, which made it easy to maintain contact, but not so tight that they didn’t both fit with ample room to touch and massage and explore. Their hands wandered and caressed as their lips kissed and tasted, their tongues licking water droplets off each other’s skin.

  Again it was Seth that had enough sense to think about the necessities. He untangled himself from her, and reached for her body wash on the built-in shower shelf. He poured a dollop on his palm and then applied it generously to her skin, massaging and kneading her muscles as he moved his hands up and down her limbs.

  He spent extra time on her breasts, squeezing the mounds as he washed her. He teased her nipples, whispering past the points with his finger, never giving them quite what she desired.

  He made up for his teasing when he reached her ass. His strong hands rubbed into her fleshy skin and down past the curve of her buttocks with such deliberation. She found her throat choking back an unexpected sob. The release of tension from her knotted muscles, combined with the care he demonstrated towards her—it was overwhelming, yet welcome. Each second he spent worshipping her skin, her core grew needier, desperate for contact.

  When he’d soaped every inch of her body, she expected him to move there, to the place she most ached for his touch. But he surprised her, setting down the body wash and reaching for her shampoo.

  A thrill of anticipation ran down her spine. She absolutely loved having her hair washed and even though she had it done frequently, she never grew tired of it. And the idea of Seth washing it? Even better.

  On the other hand, he’d skipped washing her pussy and it throbbed from the lack of attention. She was conflicted between trusting him and addressing her need. Her need won out. “Aren’t you missing a spot?”

  Seth turned her back toward his front, but she could hear the smile in his voice. “I don’t see the point of washing down south. You’re just going to get dirty again.”

  “I am?” She looked over her shoulder, blinking her eyelashes in feigned innocence.