Fame

by Susan X Meagher

  “Maybe we should stop talking about how hungry we are for each other and start showing it,” Haley said, giving Piper a wry smirk.

  Playfully, Piper held her lips together for a second, then started to use them, quickly stomping on Haley’s accelerator with her heated kisses. She had the uncanny ability to go from playfulness to full-out sexy in a matter of moments, an ability that Haley had never experienced with another lover.

  Consciously, Haley let herself be carried away by Piper’s determined kisses and caresses, feeling chills race down her body as the nibbles started at her ear and continued down her throat. With Piper’s glossy hair just an inch from her nose, Haley sniffed it, loving the subtle floral notes in the shampoo she used.

  “Are you sniffing me?” Piper asked, her voice low and sexy.

  “Uh-huh. You smell so good,” Haley murmured.

  Piper stood again and slid her hands up Haley’s back to gently hold her head as she kissed her with renewed enthusiasm, really letting herself go. This part, where someone you were really into started to reveal how much she wanted you, was the very best part for Haley. She could feel Piper’s need, could almost see the desire flickering in her clear eyes, and the sensation made her knees wobble.

  Piper had either seen or sensed that, for she maneuvered Haley to the bed, getting her horizontal with no earthly awareness of how she’d managed.

  Haley put her arms around Piper’s neck, and pulled her close, kissing those pink lips hungrily, revealing some of the drive she felt to consume her.

  In seconds, they were rolling around on the bed, hands slipping under fabric, tickling warm skin, as their lips met and merged. Nearly frantic, Haley slid her hand into Piper’s shorts, grasping and squeezing her ass, her breath catching when Piper let out a soft moan.

  Wrenching away, Haley sat up and started to undress her, her shaking hands fumbling with buttons. Piper was no help at all, since she was doing exactly the same thing. “You’re driving me crazy,” Piper murmured, her hand brushing Haley’s aside as she focused on removing Haley’s shorts. “Good crazy, but still crazy.”

  “Slow down,” Haley soothed. “We’ve got all night.”

  “I’m in a hurry,” Piper insisted. “I’ve had a full day of fantasy foreplay.”

  That had been exactly the case for Haley, too, and she pushed aside her tendency to let her partner set the pace. Right now, it was important to let Piper know how much she desired her. Grasping and holding Piper’s right hand above her head, Haley deliberately unzipped her shorts, their gazes locked together. “My turn,” she growled. “I need to see you. Now.”

  Piper looked a little surprised by this burst of assertiveness, but she gave in quickly, lying there compliantly while Haley divested her of her clothing. “So hot,” Piper murmured. “I love it when a woman knows what she wants.”

  “I know exactly what I want,” Haley said, grasping the hem of the shorts and pulling them off. “This,” she said, lying next to Piper and sliding her hand past the small amount of coverage her underwear gave her. “I’m going to start here,” she said, the sexy timbre of her own voice surprising her, “and you’re going to take everything else off.”

  Nodding vacantly, Piper lifted up just enough to remove her shirt and bra, shivering when Haley’s fingers first tickled between her legs.

  “In just a few minutes,” she said, letting her fingers dip down to slide through Piper’s wetness, “I’m going to put my mouth right where my fingers are. Every time I thought of you today, I thought of having my mouth on you.”

  Piper simply purred in response, clearly not able to talk when her sex was being delicately caressed.

  “I’m going to lick you and suckle you and pull you into my mouth,” Haley promised. “Again and again.”

  Nodding her head, Piper stared at Haley’s hand, clearly wondering when the fun part was going to start.

  “You’re so wet I can hardly keep my fingers on you,” Haley whispered. “You’re so turned on.”

  “I am,” she whispered, eyes slamming shut as her whole body shivered. “I have been all day.”

  “I’ll satisfy you,” Haley promised. “You’re going to lie right there until I’ve had you again and again and again.”

  Suddenly, with a lightning-quick move, Piper sat up slightly to grasp Haley firmly and squeeze. “I promise,” she whispered, “to never, ever complain, in any way, of how many sex partners you’ve had.”

  “Wha—?”

  “Experience is the best teacher,” she said, laughing a little as she lay down again. “And you know exactly what you’re doing.”

  ***

  Piper woke in the middle of the night, having to pee. She almost fell from bed, finding herself on the wrong side, expecting much more surface in front of her. Then she realized she was at Charlie’s—well, her apartment at Charlie’s—and that Haley was lying on the left, Piper’s usual side. Quietly, she got out of bed and used the bathroom, then went into the kitchen to grab a glass of water.

  Checking the clock, an expensive system where she could park her phone and charge it while listening to music, all thanks to Charlie’s spendthrift designer, she saw she only had a half hour until the alarm went off.

  While Haley hadn’t yet revealed any horrible habits that would scratch her from the race, the fact that she’d scheduled a seven o’clock flight wasn’t a plus in her ‘great attributes’ column. But she was really excited about seeing her family, and it made sense that she’d want to get going early in order to spend the maximum amount of time with them.

  Determined not to let herself fall asleep again, Piper snuck back into bed and faced Haley, who so far had shown she was a very quiet sleeper. That was definitely a great attribute. Piper might have hung in there longer if Nina hadn’t snored and talked in her sleep. It was hard to relax when your bed partner didn’t remember getting up and tossing all of your books out of their cases, while mumbling nonsense about special ops coming for her.

  It wasn’t quite dawn, but the sky was brightening, with some cool light entering to showcase Haley’s beautiful face. Piper was tempted to wake her early, just so they could have another fifteen minutes to touch each other. But she put her own needs aside to let Haley get as much sleep as she could. Keeping her up until one had been selfish enough. She smiled as she thought of their night—a perfect one no matter how you looked at it.

  Lots of time to talk, to play, to drink wine, and finally, to have top-quality sex. She knew part of the reason it had been so good was because of the talking and the playing, even though she usually preferred just the playing. But Haley was dogged about talking things through, and Piper had decided that would help them in the long run, even though it could be hard to do.

  It was way, way too early to even think about saying it, but if things continued like this, it wouldn’t be long until they’d stop having sex, and start making love. As she had the thought, Haley let out a sigh and moved her hand until it rested on Piper’s hip. She knew she should have just let it lie there, but she couldn’t help herself. They weren’t going to see each other for five days, and she had to have a little more time to snuggle. So she scooched forward and put her arm around Haley’s waist, smiling when she moved closer in response, clearly half-asleep, to nuzzle her face into Piper’s chest. It wouldn’t be long now. She could almost feel the words coming to her lips. I love you, she allowed herself to say, but only to herself. She might have had less experience than Haley, but one thing she’d learned was to put a cork in it until you were sure the other person felt the same way—and she was sure Haley was more careful about declaring her love than she was. Almost everyone was.

  ***

  After a mad scramble to get out of the house and push through the unusually heavy traffic, Piper put her car in park and let out a breath. It would only take one of the many police officers patrolling the area a moment to signal her to leave, so she used the time wisely. “I’ve never asked how you feel about public displays of affection,
” she said, carefully looking at Haley for a reaction.

  “Um, I’m not usually a big fan.” A funny expression flashed onto her face. “Having secret photos taken and then splashed all over the tabloids kind of takes the fun out of it.”

  “Oh, shit,” Piper said, wincing. “I didn’t think…”

  Haley put her hand on Piper’s cheek, cupping it gently. “Even though I don’t like to be too public, I’d really like to kiss you goodbye.”

  “That was really my question,” Piper said, rolling her eyes at the clumsy way she’d asked. “I just didn’t get to the point quickly enough.”

  Haley’s hand was still on her cheek, then it slid past Piper’s ear before settling on the back of her neck, which tingled from the touch. “I’ll miss you,” Haley murmured. “I’ve really been looking forward to going home, but now I’d love to cancel.” She scooted forward, with the faux-leather seat squeaking as she did. Then her lips captured Piper’s, delicately sending a very clear message. Haley was into her. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind. They stayed in that same position, their lips continuing to tenderly merge, with soft sighs coming from each of them.

  “Stay,” Piper whispered.

  “I want to,” Haley sighed, tucking an arm around Piper’s waist and pulling her close for a serious, meaningful kiss. As they broke apart, she touched Piper’s lips one last time. “Keep those warm for me. We’re going to pick up right where we left off when I get back.”

  “Sunday night?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Can I pick you up?”

  “You can,” she said, smiling. “You can pick me up, then carry me to that nice little apartment of yours. You’ll need all of your muscles,” she added, playfully gripping Piper’s biceps.

  “Can’t wait,” she said, sighing. “We’ve had a little bit of a rocky start, but that’s in the past. All systems are ‘go’ now.”

  “I’ve got to go now.” One more quick kiss, then she was out the door, with Piper watching helplessly as she hoisted her duffle bag onto her shoulder, then bent over to blow a kiss. “Don’t forget to keep those lips in shape,” she said, with a darling grin revealing those tiny dimples. “You’re going to need them on Sunday night.”

  “Bye,” Piper said, giving such a pathetic look to the police officer who approached that he turned and went back to the front of the line to roust the others. Or maybe he’d registered that Haley had walked away—a fact that made Piper’s belly ache with longing. They’d clearly just begun to get close, but if they continued at this rate, on Haley’s next trip to Wichita she’d be encouragingly holding Piper’s sweaty hand as they went to meet the family.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  THAT AFTERNOON, A LITTLE TIRED and a little cranky at having Haley gone, Piper sat in Charlie’s living room, watching her try on a bunch of outfits the studio had sent over for her approval.

  The publicity machine was going to start rolling while Charlie was on the plane to Hawaii, with everyone praying that scads of reporters would gather around, waiting for her plane to land. Toward that end, they wanted her to look like a million bucks—but not like she was trying too hard. Kind of a fine line to walk.

  As Piper watched her strip down to nothing, she mused that most sisters probably stopped this kind of thing when they were still in grade school. But her becoming Charlie’s guardian at such a young age had kept any barriers most sisters would put up from ever developing. She kept more things private, of course. Actually, she wasn’t sure Charlie had ever seen her naked, and she had no need to change that status. But it seemed perfectly normal to see Charlie’s objectively awesome body without a stitch of clothing, something millions of men and nearly as many women would pay good money to witness.

  “I think you’ve already lost weight,” Piper said, noting that her sister’s waist and breasts seemed smaller than usual. “And you’ve only been on your diet for three and a half days. That’s kind of crazy.”

  Charlie shrugged. “I stopped eating anything good the minute I got the role. Lamar told me they were going to start shooting when my character was on the verge of starvation, and I knew what that meant.”

  Piper got up and put some of the discarded clothing onto hangers, quietly musing. It took her a few minutes of mindless work to have her thoughts in order, but she finally spoke. “I’m worried,” she said, making Charlie look up sharply.

  “About what?”

  “About you. The real you. I worry that they’re going to change you, Charlie. I know they’ll change the way you look, the way you act, the people you hang out with…” She let out a heavy sigh. “But I’m worried it’ll go deeper. You’ve done such a good job of keeping yourself normal, but I’m afraid that’ll change.”

  “They can’t change me,” she said, a defiant expression on her face. “I’m sure I’ll have to let them ruin my hair, and maybe my body, and do whatever they want to my image, but I can hold onto who I am, Pip. I’m sure of that.”

  Piper watched her struggle into a plunging bra, urging her breasts into a garment that had to be two sizes too small. As she fastened a clingy tropical green and vibrant pink wrap dress, she stopped to look up at Piper. “But they are putting a lot of pressure on me,” she said quietly, her expression revealing uncharacteristic vulnerability. “It was hard to stand up for myself today, especially when it was ten against one.”

  “Ten? How’d it get to be ten? I thought you were just meeting with Tim this morning to talk about your character.”

  “That’s what I thought, too.” She finished tying the belt, then stood in front of the full-length mirror that her decorator had used as an accent piece, but was really a necessity for an actor. Looking at your whole body right before you stepped out of the front door was a very good habit. “I thought it was only going to be the two of us, but two of the producers, an assistant director, three production assistants and a couple of people from the studio’s wardrobe department showed up.”

  “What did they all want?”

  “It was like being shot at, Pip. One guy would come in and give me a bunch of orders, then the next would take over. By the time they were all done, Tim and I only had twenty minutes to talk. I barely know anything about my character, which is the important thing, but I’ve got rules about how I’m supposed to act in public, who I’m supposed to talk to, who I’m not supposed to talk to, etcetera, etcetera. Oh. I’m not allowed to cut my hair. Tim wants it as long as possible when we start.”

  Piper shrugged. “No big deal. You look good with a few more inches. It won’t be as bouncy, but—”

  “Oh, it’s never going to be bouncy. He wants me to have dreadlocks at some point, then my character hacks it all off with a knife.”

  “A what?” Piper jumped to her feet, ready to deck the person who went after her sister with a knife.

  “Well, after my character has been on the island for a few months, her hair gets so matted it turns into dreads. Then, when she gets lice, she chops it all off. No wigs,” she added. “He wants it to look real.”

  “You need a real manager.” Piper went to her sister, putting her arms around her waist as they both looked into the mirror. “You need a layer of protection, Charlie. Someone who’s only got your best interests at heart.”

  “I don’t want one. It would kill me to pay a stranger ten percent off the top just to argue about stuff. Do you have any idea how much money that would be?”

  “No, I don’t. You didn’t tell me how much you’re getting for the film.” She held up a hand. “And that’s fine. I don’t have any need to pry into your finances.”

  Charlie took her by the hand and led her into the kitchen. “Take a seat,” she said. “We’re having a drink.” She went to a cabinet by the refrigerator and lightly pressed the edge. As the door opened, Charlie surveyed the spirits, pulling out a bottle of vodka. “Name your poison.”

  “I guess I’ll have a beer.”

  “Lots of calories in a beer,” Charlie said, opening the refriger
ator to remove one and place it in front of Piper.

  “I’m aware.” Piper watched her pour two fingers of vodka into a rocks glass, then add a couple of ice cubes and swirl them around before removing the cubes and tossing them into the sink.

  There was a pure innocence to Charlie that often made it seem like she was still fifteen. But then she’d do something as simple as drink chilled vodka straight up, and she was transformed into an adult. Hopefully never a jaded adult. Piper would do anything in her power to prevent that.

  Charlie took the stool next to Piper and clinked their drinks together. At Delta’s sharp, demanding bark, she bent and picked him up to place him on the counter, where he licked their faces in a joyous frenzy.

  “If you wait until he’s quiet to pick him up, he’ll bark less,” Piper said, watching her sister’s brow furrow.

  “His bark’s cute. Why would I mind it?”

  Biting her tongue, Piper took a sip of her beer. “Any particular reason we’re sitting in the kitchen in the middle of the afternoon having a drink?”

  “Uh-huh. We’re going to talk about money. Your money.”

  “That’ll be a short talk. I’m doing all right, but…” She sat bolt upright. “You don’t need a loan, do you? ’Cause I couldn’t possibly pay for even a month—”

  Charlie put her hand over Piper’s, patting it gently. “I don’t need a loan, Pip. If I never worked again I’d be all right if I cut my expenses down to what normal people spend.” She leaned close, so close Piper felt herself drawn into her sister’s captivating gaze. “I do need someone to help me, at least for this movie, but I don’t want to give a stranger ten percent of my earnings.” She took a deep breath and said, “I want to give it to you.”

  “What? Jesus, Charlie, have you lost your mind? How could I possibly do everything you need when I’m in Califor—” She stopped on a dime when she saw the look on her sister’s face. “Oh, no. I’m not going to Hawaii with you. I could never get that kind of time off work. No way!”