She was getting way, way ahead of herself. He was a world famous celebrity who was comfortable in his own skin, able to flirt as easy as he breathed. She was just a distraction he played with on the side while he lived his fake life with Melissa Irish. It would be unwise to forget who he was and who she was. As long as she remembered, she’d still be able to enjoy her time with him.
Chapter 8
There was no sign of Winter or his motorcycle by the time Flynn arrived at the library early the next day. Since her sister had to be half way across town at a specific time, Flynn had ridden the bus, taking the time to mentally prepare for the meeting with Winter, not that she had any idea what he wanted or why he wanted to meet at the library. And not just any library, but a tiny little library in the middle of a sleepy, little suburb. It had taken her nearly two hours to get there.
Because she was meeting with a client, Diane had given her the day off, which was going to bite when it came time to deposit her paycheck. Flynn knew it was irresponsible but she justified it because her sister was filming a commercial and even though she had no idea when Fallon was going to get paid, she would get paid. Hopefully.
Browsing through the shelves, trying to keep an eye on the front door, she found the book she had started back home but had forgotten to pack when they moved. With a little squeal of excitement, she grabbed it and headed over to a table to read while she waited, figuring she might as well do something enjoyable until Winter arrived.
Before she had even read the first page, the book was plucked from her hands and Winter was sitting next to her. Blinking a few times at the sight of him in blue jeans and a t-shirt and a fake beard, she wasn’t sure what to say. Her lips parted but she knew she wouldn’t be able to speak because he looked ridiculous. “I hope you don’t think that disguise will fool anyone.”
“Nobody is paying me the least bit of attention,” he said with utter conviction as he studied the book with a scowl. The cover was the typical romance cover of a nearly naked man hovering over an equally nearly naked woman. “What is it about?”
Biting back her grin, she answered, “The hero is this sexy as sin, alpha wolf and he discovers his destined mate is a klutzy human. He’s none-too-happy about that because A.) she’s human, which is a grave sin and B.) she’s uncoordinated. An uncoordinated wolf is a dead wolf.”
“And you actually read this crap?”
“Proudly,” she said, stealing the book back and holding onto it.
He snorted, “You’re so worried about humans that you never stopped to consider the possibility that your wolves probably have fleas or rabies.”
“Way to ruin it for me,” she groaned, unable to wipe the stupid grin from her face. Crossing her arms on top of the table, she leaned towards him, “So, why are we out here in the middle of nowhere?”
He leaned closer as well and she was smacked with the windswept scent of Winter and mint. It was enough to knock her off her feet, if she had been standing, and it took way too much effort to keep from inhaling deeply simply to breathe him in. “I thought we could go see a movie.”
“Like a date?” she asked dubiously.
“Yep.” Again, he looked so pleased with himself. “I figured you’re the type of girl that needs to be wined and dined a bit before giving up third base.”
“You’re not going for the home run?” she asked, wishing she hadn’t asked that question because she was so not ready for accepting runners into home base.
“Not on the first date,” he told her, his eyes twinkling with amusement, his dimples flashing. Was he just toying with her or was he being sincere? Giving her a once over with his striking blue eyes, he tilted his head to the side in consideration, “I plan on saving my first home run for a special occasion.”
“I… see,” she said slowly, because she didn’t see, not at all. Winter Mitchell was gorgeous and even if he wasn’t a world famous actor, he could have any girl he wanted. Why would he put forth the effort to… court her unless he was just playing a game because he was bored? Well, why couldn’t she enjoy it because he made her feel excited and nervous and good? “You do know that you don't waste any time, don’t you?”
“Not when I know what I want.” He gave her a wolfish leer that melted her brain. “And I want you.”
“Oh, wow.” Was she dreaming? God, she hoped she wasn't dreaming because Winter Mitchell was a million times hotter than any character he had ever played on T.V. or in the movies. Clearing her head so she could think a little bit, she asked, “Um, so, what movie do we want to see?”
“I was thinking about the latest action flick.” The words were said solemnly but his lips twitched with suppressed laughter. “I hear the star of the film is a real prick but he’s a decent actor and the chicks seem to dig him so I figured we could check it out.”
She looked at him in confusion for a moment before she realized he was talking about the film he made that had been out for a few weeks. He was talking about himself. God, he was such a doofus! An adorable, sexy as all hell, doofus. “Sounds good. Can we get popcorn?”
“Absolutely,” he said, pulling her to her feet and throwing an arm around her shoulders. The entire side of her body was pressed against his and he was unbelievably warm and she really liked being in the crook of his arm. “So, where’d you park?”
“I took the bus.”
He tsked, shaking his head in mock disappointment, “Did your rust bucket finally die?”
“No, you jerk.” She lightly smacked his hard stomach then let her hand rest on the solid flesh, her cheeks hurting from the wide smile pulling at her face. “My sister needed it more than I did today.”
“Your sister’s career is more important than your fake boyfriend?” he asked in a wounded voice. “Ouch, that hurts.”
“My fake boyfriend didn’t bother to ask how I was getting to a library in the middle of nowhere,” she returned. “Besides, I’m the queen of the bus lines.”
“Well this works out perfectly.” He grinned wickedly as they stepped outside and she saw the motorcycle gleaming in the sun, two helmets waiting for them. Despite the exhilaration she felt on the last ride she took with him, she still froze. He tightened his hold on her, lowering his head until his lips were against her ear, “Don’t chicken out on me now, Flynn.”
“I’m not,” she protested, even though she was. His breath moved over the sensitive skin of her neck and she shivered, loving the way her belly tightened and her nipples pebbled. The thought of getting on the back of his bike wasn’t so bad as long as she got to wrap her arms around him and hold on tight. “Really, I’m not.”
He smiled and even with the absurd beard he was insanely gorgeous. “There’s my brave girl.”
Taking a deep breath, she let him lead her over to the beast and grabbed the helmet. Before she did anything else, he grabbed it from her and held it like he was going to put it on and so she waited. Instead of putting it on immediately, he bent his head and pressed a soft kiss against her mouth. The light touch was sweet and over before it even began and she felt it in her toes. Her lips parted in surprise and she could only stare as he smiled down at her and straightened up, pushing the helmet onto her head as if he hadn’t just kissed her.
Once again, he rocked it from side to side before rapping against it with his knuckles. Holding her hand, he steadied her as she swung her leg over the bike and sat down. Then with one last smile, he put his helmet on and got on the bike. “Don’t worry, love, we’re not going far.”
“Yeah, but we still have to head home afterwards,” she muttered, wrapping her arms around his waist and automatically sliding her hands beneath his shirt to touch his skin before she had a horrifying thought. “Unless you plan on dropping me off here and having me ride the bus home? I mean, it wouldn’t be a big….”
“As if I would abandon you in the middle of suburbia,” he interrupted, his voice echoing in the helmet. A shudder wracked his body as he continued, “No, my dear, you’re stuck with me and t
he beast.”
She sighed in relief, startling when he laughed, “Did you honestly think I’d ask you out and then not take you back home?”
“The thought did cross my mind,” she replied without thinking. “I mean, you asked me to meet you out here instead of finding a theater close to home and I didn’t even know about the movie until about five minutes ago.”
“I suppose that would give one cause for worry,” he conceded. “But I have discovered I like having your hands on my stomach as we’re cruising down the highway. How do you feel about a weekend in Napa?”
“I feel okay about that?” she answered, hating how it came out as a question but his random question had caught her off guard.
He chuckled, “I was thinking about taking you up for a pre-holiday getaway.”
“That’s in like three months,” she managed to choke out, trying to keep her excitement at bay since he was acting like he wanted more than just a quick fling. Of course, she was the party planner for his son’s birthday, which was less than six months away. Maybe he liked long-term flings, since it was easier to keep one person quiet than to keep a horde of women quiet. So, if that were the case, she had almost five and a half months with him.
She was strangely okay with that.
“Will that be enough time to make arrangements with your boss?” he asked, concerned for entirely the wrong reason but it was endearing that he cared, no matter why.
“I’m sure it will be fine.” She had no idea if it would be fine since the holidays seemed to be the busiest time for party planners… event coordinators, especially in Hollywood. As long as she gave Diane enough notice it should be okay because she really, really wanted to go to Napa with Winter. Hell, she wanted to go anywhere with him.
“I think that should be the weekend we have sex for the first time.” He said it calmly but it didn’t lessen her reaction as her grip tightened as she tried to remember how to breathe. One of his hands moved over hers, offering comfort, but it only freaked her out more. “Breathe, Flynn.”
“Get both of your hands on the bike, Winter!” she cried out, the shock forcing her brain to remember how to suck the wind back into her lungs. Luckily, he put both hands on the bike so she didn’t have a heart attack. Once her heart rate slowed enough so it no longer felt like her heart was going to burst, she asked, “Do you really think it will take three months to get me into your bed?”
“Well, no,” he admitted, almost reluctantly. “But I want our first time to be special.”
How could she help but fall a little bit in love with him? This time when she squeezed, it was because she was hugging him. “I think Napa in three months sounds wonderful.”
It would give her plenty of time to anticipate the moment so she hopefully wouldn’t freak out when it happened, when she finally lost her virginity.
“Um,” he muttered, shifting slightly as if uncomfortable. “It also gives you time to get on some birth control because I don’t want to use condoms with you.”
Arching an eyebrow, she looked up at the back of his helmet and opened and closed her mouth a few times before she managed to say, “And I hope you provide me a clean bill of health because you have far more experience than me and if you plan on going without a condom, you better be damned sure you’re clean.”
“We can play doctor and I’ll let you give me a complete exam,” he teased. At her low growl, he laughed, “I’ll have a copy of my records copied for you.”
“When was your last test?”
“Just before I started shooting and several months after I fucked my last partner.”
She spent the rest of the ride quietly contemplating their conversation. It was weird to be discussing sex in such a clinical fashion while flying over the road on the back of a motorcycle but it seemed oddly fitting. With her fight or flight section of her brain occupied with the ride, her logical brain was able to discuss sex without freaking out.
She was going to have to make a doctor’s appointment.
And try not to freak.
A few minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of a large cinema, one that had fourteen screens, of which three were playing his movie. Before he turned off the engine, she asked, “Is it weird seeing yourself in movies?”
“It would be weirder if they were pornos,” he said instead of answering, putting the kickstand down and cutting the engine. Climbing off the bike, he pulled his helmet off and smiled at her, “I like being between your thighs.”
She snorted, starting to pull her helmet off before her hands got tangled with his and she ended up letting him take her helmet off her. “Is this need to do everything for me a sign of things to come?”
“I don’t do everything for you,” he protested before his lips curved into a panty-melting smile. Draping an arm around her shoulders and once again pulling her against his hard body, he continued, “I just help with the motorcycle stuff since I know how touchy you are about riding it.”
“Uh huh,” she murmured, her lips curving up into her perpetual Winter smile.
“And if, on occasion, I want to take care of my girl I hope she lets me,” he continued, giving her a sideways hug, pulling her even more flush against him. “And if you don’t, I might have to take drastic measures.”
“And what would those be?” she asked, resting her hand against his sternum, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm.
He looked down at her and grinned, “I might have to take you over my knee and spank you.”
“You wouldn’t,” she breathed, watching his eyes dilate at the thought of doing exactly that. “Good thing I didn’t sign an NDA regarding our relationship. The tabloids would have a field day if they learned you’re into spanking.”
His expression froze and his body tightened, “Don’t….”
“Oh, God!” she cried out in instant regret. Coming to a stop, she looked up at him and cupped his cheek, “I would never, NEVER, speak of you to the paparazzi, I don’t care if they offer me all of the money in the world. I’d never do it.”
He studied her for a moment, a long, long moment, before he took a breath and slowly let it out. She saw the moment he believed her and she smiled, “Besides, I wouldn’t want the world to know I’ve been spanked.”
He chuckled as they started walking once more. “Have you ever been spanked, Flynn?”
“Never, not even as a child,” she answered with a smug smile. Tilting her head back, she looked up at him, “I was a perfect angel.”
“Ugh,” he groaned, planting a kiss on the top of her head. “I’ve always avoided goody-two-shoes.”
“And I’ve always avoided insanely gorgeous men who have a penchant for spanking,” she countered.
“You think I’m gorgeous?”
“Insanely gorgeous.”
“Hmm,” he said, as if he were considering something. A wicked smile curved his lips as he let his arm drop from her shoulders and he cupped her bottom, giving it a little squeeze. “I think I might like to redden a virgin ass.”
A little whimper slipped past her lips, making him chuckle. The feel of his broad hand on her ass felt way too good and she hated to admit she was looking forward to feeling the heat of it when he spanked her. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to lose complete control of her orderly life and end up a hot mess like her oldest sister had been before she straightened out her life.
Is this what it was like for Murphy, this exhilaration and this breathless anticipation? God, it was irresistible!
“Afterwards, I think I’m going to claim this ass for my very own,” he vowed, his breath whispering across her skin. “Have you ever had someone in your ass, Flynn? No, of course not; you’re a good girl. I’m going to change all of that, Flynn. I’m going to make you mine.”
She swallowed thickly, her breaths shallow and her heart rate too fast as she listened to his words, his promises. She was never going to survive Winter.
“Two tickets to Kinsmen of Arcadia,” his low voice
murmured, making her realize they were already at the ticket counter. The cashier did a double take when he saw Winter but when Winter kept a bland smile on his face, nothing happened. Taking the tickets, Winter next bought a box of popcorn and a single drink, handing her the popcorn before leading her through the corridor to the theatre where the movie was going to be playing. Pausing outside of the doors, he looked down at her with a hint of hesitancy in his expression. “I hope you don’t mind sharing and I hope you don’t mind sitting in the back.”
“No,” she squeaked, her thoughts still replaying his words. Clearing her throat, she spoke in a more normal voice as she added, “That’s fine. Both are fine.”
“Good, because I really want to make out with you.”
Tilting her head to the side, she twinkled her eyes up at him, “If you’re my fake boyfriend, are the kisses going to be fake as well?”
“Oh, no,” he said in mock gravity. Wrapping his arm around her waist with the hand that wasn’t holding his pop, he pressed his pelvis against her and bent his head until his lips hovered just over hers. His minty breath swirled in her mouth and it was almost as intoxicating as being kissed. The fake whiskers tickled her nose and she wondered what it would be like to kiss him, really, truly kiss him. “The kisses are going to be very, very real.”
Instead of kissing her, though, he entwined his fingers with hers and pulled her into the darkened theater with a broad grin on his face. “You want to know what I like best about this theater?”
“What’s that?” she asked, following as he started sliding into the very last row. Because it was the middle of the day and the movie had been out for a few weeks, the theater was practically empty. There were just four other people and they were all up front, oblivious to the two newcomers.
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