Love in the Afternoon

by Alison Packard

  “I lucked out,” she said picking up her mug. “I fell in love with Atwater Village the moment I saw it. And it’s not that far from the studio either.”

  “How long have you lived there?”

  “About four years. I was able to buy my house after I did a couple of horror movies.” She leaned back and sipped her beer.

  “That must have been an interesting experience,”

  “Very.” Kayla smiled. “I’ve never screamed so much in my life.”

  Sean laughed, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Did your character die in some over the top gruesome way?”

  “I survived the first movie. But I wasn’t so lucky in the sequel. My head was hacked off with a meat cleaver.” Sean’s eyes widened and she couldn’t help but smile at the look of disgust on his face. “Not a fan of slasher flicks, I take it?”

  “When I was twelve.” He shot back with a boyish grin. “My tastes have evolved since then. What’s your favorite movie?”

  Kayla set her mug down. “There are too many great movies out there to pick just one.” She wrinkled her nose in distaste. “Speaking of which, the movie I saw last night was just awful. Lance and I walked out about half way through it. Even he couldn’t take it.”

  “Lance?” He paused. “From the photo shoot?”

  Kayla nodded. “He did my hair before the luncheon yesterday. We’ve been friends for years and have a standing date to catch a movie once a month.”

  “He’s quite…colorful,” Sean said with a smile.

  Kayla let out a laugh. “That’s putting it mildly.” Glancing at the script sticking out of her purse, she was reminded of why she was there. “Did you look at your script at all?”

  “I read through it this morning. I’ll go get it. I left it in the house.” He rose from his chair. “Be right back.”

  Kayla watched him walk to the house and then reached for her script. Opening it to the first page of dialogue she stared at the page blankly thinking that, although the nervous fluttering that had plagued her all morning was gone, in its place was something far more unsettling. The more time she spent with Sean the more she liked him. And the more her physical attraction to him grew. She had vowed never to get involved with an actor again and at the time she’d meant it. But that was before she’d met Sean, before she’d looked into those bottomless green eyes of his and felt things she’d hadn’t felt in a good long while.

  Unlike Lance, she didn’t assume that Sean was interested in her romantically. But if he was, there was one thing she knew for sure. Resisting him would be futile.

  * * *

  In his bedroom, Sean grabbed his script from the bedside table. From the window he was able to see Kayla studying her script. Until she’d mentioned it he’d totally spaced on why she was at his house. The moment he’d opened the front door and seen her standing there, the only thing he could think of was how damn beautiful she was. Well that, and how much he wanted to kiss her full, sensuous lips.

  As much as he’d wanted to do a more thorough internet search on her, he’d resisted the urge. Gathering information on her that way bordered on stalking—at least in his mind—and then there was the fact that he didn’t want to get to know her in such an impersonal manner. Most of the stuff on the internet was bogus anyway. He’d found that out the hard way when his former publicist, Jerry, planted false information about his personal life. To read that he was involved with a stripper had shocked the shit out of him. A lot of actors gravitated to strippers and porn stars but he wasn’t one of them. And while Jerry had retracted the information, it was still out there for anyone to read. And to believe.

  Sean knew that if it could happen to him, it could happen to Kayla. So he preferred to get his information the old fashioned way. By talking to her. And besides, spending time with her was a lot more enjoyable than reading about her on the internet.

  Tearing his gaze from her, he left his room with only one thought on his mind. And it wasn’t running lines.

  Chapter Ten

  Shay: Would you mind putting on a shirt?

  Jared: I just got back from a run. I’m hot.

  Shay: Yes. Yes, you are.

  Jared: What did you say?

  Shay: I said you must have run far.

  Kayla set her fork down, unable to contain her blissful sigh. “That was delicious.”

  Sean’s amused gaze met hers. “There’s more in the kitchen,” he offered, and then lifted his mug to his lips.

  “Oh no,” she said putting a hand on her stomach, “I’m stuffed.” She glanced at her empty plate, hardly able to believe she’d eaten two helpings. “Did you make the pasta salad yourself?”

  He nodded. “After I moved out on my own there was no cook to prepare my meals for me so it was either fend for myself or starve.”

  “You had a cook?” she asked, and then remembered who his father was. Of course they had a cook and probably more staff as well. “My mom would have killed for a cook,” she said with a smile. “And, trust me, there were a few meals when my dad probably would have shelled out the money for one if he could have afforded it.”

  Sean’s eyes softened. “Sally was a nice lady and very good at her job. My dad hired her after my mom died. I ate more meals with her than I did with my father.”

  “Was your father gone a lot?” Kayla asked, surprised he’d brought up his parents.

  Sean nodded. “He was gone for long stretches at a time. Either working on a movie, or doing theater in New York.”

  “That must have been tough.”

  “I got used to it.” Sean shrugged.

  “Is it hard having such a famous father?” Kayla asked. She was treading on shaky ground. Sean was known for not discussing his father with anyone.

  “I’ve never known anything different. I’m sure a lot of people would love being the kid of a famous actor, but it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” His tone was matter of fact, but her instincts told her his nonchalance was a front.

  “What happened to your mom?”

  He paused and for a moment she wondered if this time she’d overstepped. “She died when I was thirteen,” he said quietly.

  “What do you remember about her?”

  “She had blonde hair. And green eyes like mine.” His lips curved in a sad, almost vulnerable smile. “And she always smelled good. Like sugar cookies,” he said with such a wistful expression on his face that it tugged at her heart. It made her want to wrap her arms around him and comfort him.

  Kayla blinked several times as moisture filled her eyes. “You were so young,” she said softly. “It seems so unfair.”

  Sean shifted his gaze from hers when a bird flitted past them and landed on the patio. “You’re very lucky to have both your parents.”

  “Death is difficult to deal with. It’s the one thing that happens to all of us, and yet it’s the hardest thing to talk about.”

  Turning to look at her, Sean held her gaze without replying. A crackle of something almost electric passed between them, but then it was gone, and she wondered if she’d imagined it. “I normally don’t talk about my mother with anyone,” he said, leaning back in his chair.

  “Not even your father?”

  Sean’s mouth twisted into a grimace. “Especially not my father.”

  “May I ask why?”

  “We don’t get along.” Sean’s tone was terse. “Among other things, he’s not happy with my career choice.”

  “He disapproves of you being an actor?”

  “No, he’s fine with that. He just doesn’t like that I’m on a soap. He doesn’t consider it legitimate acting.”

  “Are you serious?” she exclaimed. “It’s hard work.” Kayla reached for her script next to her plate and lifted it. “This is our dialogue for tomorrow. This is almost as much as I had in Halloween Hell.” She grinned. “But to be fair, I probably would have had more if I hadn’t been decapitated halfway through the movie.” Dropping the script back to the table, Kayla shook her head. “
I don’t understand why people look down on daytime. There are so many talented actors on the soaps.”

  “You’re proof of that,” Sean said and the sudden intensity in his eyes seemed to suck the air out of her lungs.

  “Thank you.” Her face was burning under his scrutiny. “So are you.”

  He shrugged a shoulder. “I was getting lazy. It happens when you do one character for so long. I’ve had to step up my game since we’ve been working together.”

  Flustered, she picked up her beer and took a slow sip as she tried to control the erratic beating of her heart.

  “Have you ever thought of leaving the show?” she asked, wishing she could press the cold mug to her face to cool her warm skin. She’d never reacted to any man the way she was to him. Her gaze rested on the tanned skin where his shirt was unbuttoned at the collar and she took another sip of the ice cold beer. Just moments ago she wanted to comfort him, now she wanted to press her lips to his neck and nibble her way up—or down. Either destination was fine with her.

  Seemingly unaware of the effect he was having on her, he answered her question. “From time to time. My father is always badgering me to quit and do some…” he lifted his hands and mimicked quotes with his fingers, “…real acting.”

  “It could be worse.” She smiled. “You could be doing porn.”

  Sean’s jaw dropped, and then he threw back his head and roared with laughter. It was contagious, and she couldn’t help but laugh along with him.

  * * *

  “Thank God this last scene is short,” Kayla said looking up from her script after they’d done a cold reading of the lines. “It’s in Jared’s living room.” She looked up at him. “Can we go to yours and do a little blocking?”

  Sean drained the last of his beer from his mug. “Sounds like a plan.” They rose from their chairs and Sean let her precede him into the house. They’d been running lines for almost three hours. He was pretty sure they could have done it in less time but going over the lines and talking about Jared and Shay’s motivation had lengthened the process. He didn’t mind though, he’d enjoyed every minute of it.

  Stopping behind the sofa, he watched her as she rounded it, enjoying the gentle sway of her hips. The snug white pants she wore showed off her remarkable curves. She came to a halt on the other side of the coffee table.

  “I think Shay is starting to notice Jared in a different way.” She looked down at her script. A thick swatch of her dark hair fell over her shoulder. She brushed it back and cast him an amused look. “The only reason they’re having you take your shirt off in this scene is because America voted you the sexiest soap star in People magazine.”

  He shifted uncomfortably. “I think my former publicist rigged that poll.”

  “I doubt it.” She tilted her head and studied him with her dark eyes. “I know for a fact that my mom and a few of my aunts voted for you. They think you’re hot.”

  “Whoa.” He put his hand up. “Too much information.”

  She laughed. “You can be a serious actor and a hunk, you know.”

  “You think I’m a hunk?” he asked and then couldn’t help but smile when her cheeks turned a becoming shade of pink. Her tendency to blush was cute.

  “Uh…well…” She looked down at her script. “That’s what they called you in the magazine.” She was flustered and it was damn appealing.

  “Good save.” He unfurled his script. “Okay, so Jared comes in from his run…”

  “Without his shirt.”

  “Right.” He cocked his head. “Do you need me to take off my shirt now? You know, just to make the run-through more realistic?”

  Her eyes widened. “Uh…” She bit her lower lip. “No need. I can imagine you with it off.”

  “Really?” He grinned.

  “I have an excellent imagination.”

  “What a coincidence.” He held her gaze. “So do I.”

  She held up the script, her cheeks still stained with pink. “Let’s take it from the top. You can come in from the kitchen.”

  He headed for the kitchen. Once he was out of her sight he couldn’t resist the idea of messing with her. Putting the script on the counter, he quickly unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off.

  “I’ll be on the sofa,” she called out. “The scene starts with Shay reading a book.”

  He put his shirt on the counter on top of his script. He wouldn’t need it, there wasn’t much dialogue. “Let’s do the scene all the way through. No breaks.”

  “Works for me,” she replied as he moved toward the living room. “Are you ready?”

  “As I’ll ever be,” he said, grinning to himself.

  “Action,” she said.

  When he walked into the room she had her head down, looking at the script. “What are you reading?”

  “A book about how the baby develops over the course of the pregnancy. It’s really pretty amazing.” She looked up, turned her head and except for the slightest widening of her eyes, she stayed in character. “Where have you been?”

  “At the park.” He saw her gaze lower to his chest and then jerk back up. He wiped his brow. They would spray him with water before the scene so he would look sweaty. “How’s the morning sickness?”

  “Better.” She got up from the sofa and moved toward him. “Now I’m just getting it in the morning instead of all day.” She halted in front of him and again her eyes lowered to his chest. “Would you mind putting on a shirt?”

  “I just got back from a run. I’m hot.”

  “Yes.” Her voice was low. “Yes, you are.” She lifted her gaze to his and they were filled with something that looked a lot like…arousal. She moved to go around him; he reached out and grabbed her arm. She stopped beside him. Her skin felt warm; the soft scent of her perfume surrounded him. His heart started to pound.

  “What did you say?”

  “I said you must have run far.” According to the script, she was supposed to pull her arm from his grasp. But she didn’t, instead she made an imperceptive shift toward him. Her eyes burned into his as they paused for the required beats and then she said in a husky voice, “I’ll go make breakfast and you can go shower.”

  “You don’t have to do that…” he paused, “…you know, make me breakfast every day.”

  “I want to.” There were no more lines, nothing left but for her to walk away from him and for him to stare after her. It was in the script, only she wasn’t following it. Several charged seconds passed. In those seconds all Sean was aware of was the curve of her cheek and the voluptuousness of her lips. It filled him with heat and desire, and drove all reason from his mind. Lowering his head, he heard the hitch of her breath just before his mouth covered hers. After that, nothing else registered, except for the fact that Kayla’s lips tasted just as sweet as he had imagined. And they were soft…so soft as they parted and she returned his kiss with an urgency that surprised him.

  Their lips tangled until he felt her hand against his chest. With a low groan, he pulled back. Her eyelids fluttered open and when their eyes met he felt an involuntary tightening low in his gut.

  “That wasn’t in the script,” Kayla said in a husky voice that didn’t do a damn thing to stop the blood running hotly through his veins. Her dark eyes gleamed with sudden amusement. “You thought you could get me to break character by taking off your shirt, didn’t you? I can’t believe you did that.”

  Supremely aware of her fingers resting on his bare skin, Sean grinned. “And like the pro you are, you didn’t miss a beat.”

  “It takes more than a naked chest to rattle me,” she shot back. “Don’t forget, I was able to do love scenes with Marcus and not puke.”

  “You should get a reward for that.

  “I did,” she said softly. “I get to work with you.”

  The admiration in her voice took him by surprise. Before he could speak, she stepped back forcing him to let go of her arm. “I should probably go.” She looped a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “It’s get
ting late.”

  “Right,” he said, even though he wanted her to stay. And the funny thing about that was he couldn’t remember the last time he wanted to spend more than an hour with any woman. “Let me get my shirt on and I’ll walk you to your car.”

  After she’d gathered her things and he’d put his shirt on, they walked together toward her car. All he could think about the kiss. He didn’t know what the hell was happening to him, but he did know he felt totally alive in her presence.

  “This was a great idea,” she said as they stopped at the curb next to her Mustang. Her gaze lifted to his. “I like what the writers are doing with Shay.” She reached into her purse and pulled out her keys. “I think she’s going to follow Jared when he goes on that stakeout.”

  “That’s what it sounds like.”

  “I hope so.” Kayla grinned. “She’s been moping around for a while now. I’m glad she’s getting some of her spunk back.”

  “Jared is going to regret ordering her to leave the police work to him,” he said, letting his gaze wander over her beautiful face. Was she feeling the same thing he was? Should he mention the kiss? Maybe it had meant nothing to her. “He means well, but Jared doesn’t know how women think.”

  “You’re right,” she said, her brows arched in amusement. “We don’t like being told what to do.” As she turned to unlock the passenger side door, her script slipped out of her hand and fell to the curb. Instinctively, they both bent to pick it up. Sean heard a sickening crack as their foreheads butted together. “Oww,” Kayla cried out, recoiling quickly. As pain shot through his head, he reached for her, but wasn’t quick enough. She fell to the ground and he heard another crack when the back of her head hit the concrete.

  Chapter Eleven

  Shay: I signed up for Lamaze classes.

  Jared: Great. When do we start?