Restless On A Road Trip: A Lesbian Romance

by Nicolette Dane

  “Terrific,” said Jennifer. “One more thing. You’re not a, uh, starstruck kinda person are you?”

  “No ma’am,” I said.

  “Good,” she said. “We’ve got a couple notable celebrities on the cast and we like to allow them the space to live like normal people when we come to small towns like this. So if you can help us keep any autograph seekers out, we’d truly appreciate it.”

  “I’m your girl,” I said. “I hate giving autographs just as much as the next person.” Jennifer laughed.

  “Fine,” she said as her laugh subsided. “Thanks a lot, Audra.” Jennifer secured the folders in her arms and wandered off from me, heading over to a table in the lobby to set up her room key distribution.

  My gaze drifted for a moment until it settled on the latest guest to walk through the hotel door. She was slim and elegant, her light reddish auburn hair waving in slight curls, bouncing like she was straight out of a shampoo commercial. This girl wore a simple sundress, easy and breezy, cut to her mid-thigh and showing off her long pale stems. She had big black sunglasses over her eyes and a wide grin on her face and as soon as she entered the lobby, all the people around looked her way and ceased talking for just a split second. This young woman, with alabaster skin and just the slightest hint of freckles on her nose, pulled the attention of everyone around.

  I watched as Jennifer ran up to her and had a quick conversation with her, handed over her key and room number, exchanged more words with her, and then pointed her up toward me. I felt frozen as I watched both Jennifer as this girl look in my direction. The girl thanked Jennifer with a smile, clutched her key, and then gracefully walked through the lobby in my direction.

  I took a deep breath. I mean, like I’d said to Jennifer, I wasn’t a starstruck person. But this woman, she was just amazing. There was something glowing about her. Something touched. She had an aura. I felt twinkling.

  “Hi,” she said, daintily removing her sunglasses from her eyes and holding them in her lithe hand. “My name is Kelsie.”

  “I’m Audra,” I said, feeling like I couldn’t move my feet. I must have looked absolutely frightened and intimidated there behind the desk.

  “Nice to meet you,” said Kelsie. “Jennifer tells me you can help me out.”

  “Me?” I said, feeling starstruck. Feeling like I said I wouldn’t feel. “Um, sure! Yeah, I can help.” I really didn’t care that Kelsie was an actress. That hardly crossed my mind as I spoke to her. What really got me was how pretty she was, how regal. I mean, upon meeting her there in that all too familiar hotel lobby, I was totally smitten by this girl. She may have been the most beautiful woman I’d ever met in person and I instantly felt my heart throb.

  “Amazing,” affirmed Kelsie with a smile. “I’ve heard a lot about the beaches around here and I’m looking to find something kind of private. You know, a place where I can go lay out without being noticed or bothered or anything like that.”

  “Yeah,” I said, slowly nodding. “I understand.”

  “I mean, I’m willing to go to public places,” she continued. “But just, maybe, off the beaten path or something, a beach where if I wear a big floppy hat and sunglasses I probably won’t be recognized.”

  “I know of a few places,” I said.

  “Maybe we can go together,” said Kelsie, eyes brightening. “Are you a beach girl?”

  “Well,” I said, feeling shy. “Yeah, I mean, I sorta am. I really do love the Lake.”

  “Great!” said Kelsie. “I’m always down with making new friends.”

  “I’m here a lot during the day, though,” I lamented, feeling all the highs and lows that come along with being invited to hang out with a girl like Kelsie, only to realize that it would be difficult to do so. “I mean, I’m the main person at this desk.”

  “I’m sure you have some time off,” smiled Kelsie. “We’re going to be filming a lot as well so maybe we can coordinate our schedules or something. Cool?”

  “Yeah,” I said absently. “Yeah, cool.” I hung there, starring at her dumbly, silent and unsure what to say next.

  “It was nice meeting you, Audra,” she said with a curl on her lip. Kelsie slipped her sunglasses back on her face. “I hope we have a nice six weeks together.”

  “Yeah,” I said again. “Totally. Thanks for staying at the Hotel Champlain.” Kelsie laughed demurely. She could tell I was on a different planet.

  “Hey Audra,” she said, leaning in and lowering her voice to a whisper. “Look, I’m not all that intimidating. I know it can be weird having a Hollywood celebrity around. Have you seen any of my movies?”

  “Well, um, no,” I admitted sheepishly. “No, I don’t really like most big budget Hollywood movies.” This gave Kelsie a tickle, causing her to laugh.

  “Oh God,” she said. “I get it. I love movies but some of them are just… yuck!”

  “I’m sorry,” I said, slumping my shoulders. “I’m not trying to be offensive. I just don’t watch a lot of movies. And though I’ve heard your name before, I don’t really know who you are… if that makes any sense.”

  “Perfect sense,” smiled Kelsie. “Audra, that’s perfect.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah,” she affirmed. “Keep that attitude. I’ll catch you later.” Kelsie pursed her lips and turned from me, walking around the desk and looking down to the key in her hand. I couldn’t believe I had acted like such an idiot in front of her. Not only was I probably drooling over her, I also told her that I wasn’t even a fan. Two strikes there. If Jake had seen me act that way, he’d definitely have some things to say. ‘You should have just told her you liked her movies,’ or ‘gush over her and pretend you’re a super fan.’ But I couldn’t. I was crippled by the wonderful air about her.

  We didn’t get pretty girls like her around Champlain too often. And as a young and unattached woman myself, I felt a revived sense of excitement building inside of me over the chance of getting to know Kelsie. She represented possibility to me and that feeling was incredibly potent. It gave me a renewed hope.

  Click Here For More!

  www.nicolettedane.com

  Nicolette Dane Is Looking For ARC Readers!

  This mailing list is for readers who want to be involved in Nicolette Dane's advance reader copy (ARC) group. Subscribers to this group will be given new Nicolette Dane books for FREE before they hit the virtual shelves so that they can be read pre-release. Once the books are released, readers will be asked to give an unbiased review within 5 days of the initial publication. Please only join this group if you can commit to leaving reviews of the books you receive. If this sounds like something you would be interested in, please sign up below!

  Click The Following Link

  Or Point Your Web Browser To:

  http://bit.ly/nicoarc