Dane was gone when she rose the next morning, and a cryptic note seemed to promise a call when he returned from San Francisco.
~ * ~
"Maybe he really is a wicked, arrogant pirate," Roxie joked as she and Jessica shared lunch in a cafe near Roxie’s office.
"I can’t believe he hasn’t called. It’s been two weeks, Roxie. Surely he’s home by now."
"Jess, he’s a big, big star. He probably can’t even go to the bathroom alone, much less worry about you, worrying about him. I wouldn’t concern myself if I were you. I think you’re falling for the lug."
"I’m not. He’s just a nice guy, really. I just feel bad about what’s happening to him." Jessica toyed with her salad.
"Yeah, but there are two sides to every divorce, Jess. You, of all people, know that," Roxanne reminded her. "Doing anything fun over the Fourth? Wanna check out the fireworks down at the beach?"
"Is it the Fourth already?" Jessica answered vaguely.
Roxie only shook her head. Her attempt to change the subject failing, Roxie took her leave with a promise to check back later.
Jessica’s feeling of malaise continued into the evening, however. She was running out of hope that there was anything to her friendship with Dane. He had been drunk, she reminded herself. The ringing phone jolted her out of her daydream, and she was delighted to hear Peter’s cockney over the line.
"Jess, there’s a wrap party for Bellerive Friday night, you’ll be there, eh?"
"Where, Peter?"
"Studio B. We’re havin’ it right on the set, before they trash it."
"Is…is Dane back? He’ll be there?" she asked cautiously.
"Of course…yeah, back about a week now. He’ll be there, with bells on I’m sure."
~ * ~
"Roxie, please come with me," she begged into the phone. "I just have to go, and I can’t go by myself. Please?"
"What are friends for?" Roxie sighed dramatically. "Besides, maybe I’ll meet some hunk myself, what do you think?" Then, her tone became serious. "Friday did you say? We’ve only got three days! And you’ve got to look absolutely sensational."
That Friday afternoon found them dressing for the party at Roxie’s townhouse. Roxie’s sewing machine was still smoking as she held up a short, royal blue strapless taffeta party dress for Jessie’s approval.
"You brought the shoes?" she asked, watching Jessica open a box containing dainty, royal blue satin pumps. "Perfect. Now, this--" Roxie went to her dressing table and located a blue satin choker with a single teardrop pearl pendant.
Jessica sighed. "What would I do without you?" Looking in the mirror, Jessica turned her head from side to side, her long, loose curls brushing her shoulders perfectly.
Roxie frowned. "You look too good. Here, help me with my earrings." Roxie had dressed in a white suit-dress, with a short cropped jacket adorned with white bows; matching bows were sewn above the skirt’s back slit.
"Very classy," Jessica admired. "We’re sure to find you a hunk with that."
Unlike Jessica’s light brown hair, Roxie’s was rich chestnut, complimenting her striking blue eyes and fair complexion. The suit enhanced her already ample figure, and Jessica was openly envious of Roxie’s shape.
They joked and laughed all the way to the party, Roxie attempting to alleviate some of Jessica’s anxiety. They had to park some distance from the building, Jessica ruefully noting the gold Porsche parked against the wall where she used to leave her car.
Studio B was alive with three hundred or more people, several hosted bars and tons of hors d’oeuvres. A live band blared from one corner, each band member dressed as a pirate. It was easy to lose themselves in the crowd, mingling as they made their way to a bar where Jessica discovered a small pocket of people she knew from the film. Jessica introduced Roxanne to everyone she met, including Zachary Slade, the hot young actor playing the supporting male lead in the movie. Jessica noticed Roxie was quite taken with Slade’s sharp looks and wit, and she inconspicuously blended away to let them talk.
Perusing the crowd, she made conversation with anyone who looked interested, casually "working" the room. She started as someone grabbed her arm and she turned to Peter’s smiling face. The long hair was carefully drawn into a neat queue, and he wore a T-shirt bearing bright, horizontal "first mate" stripes.
"Hello, Jessica! Glad you could make it!"
"Great party," she offered, looking cautiously around for Peter’s employer.
"Would you care to dance?"
Jessica considered his offer and smiled warmly. "Sure."
Peter, it turned out, was an excellent dancer, and she laughed and giggled on the dance floor as he taught her the latest steps. It felt good to let go; it had been ages since she’d danced, and she needed some relief from the tension of the past weeks.
Breathless as the song ended, Jessica started to leave the dance floor as the band turned to a slow number; Peter held out his hand. She took it and he led her again onto the portable oak floor.
Their dance was soon interrupted by the Devil Captain himself.
"May I?"
Peter dutifully handed Jessica over, much to her discomfort.
She avoided his eyes at first, hotly peering over his shoulder as Dane took her into his arms. The heat began again as their bodies came together like warm clay. She felt her own pulse quicken and she wondered if he could feel the heat, too; if he noticed her chest heaving against his. His hand seemed to burn her skin as he slid his fingers across her back. And in spite of her anger, Jessica felt herself sliding into an euphoric wonder at the feel of his body moving against hers; a feeling she had fantasized about for weeks.
"Enjoying the party?" he asked, his lips close, much too close, to her ear. A current ran down her spine, causing an almost imperceptible shiver. He felt her flinch and he turned to lean his face closer and study her eyes.
Despite the fever of his closeness, despite the overpowering attraction she felt, she looked at him coldly. The tiny angel on her shoulder begged her to stop, but instead she spoke.
"Enjoying it? Not really. But I’m sure you are."
He looked puzzled at her jab. They continued dancing in silence. As the song ended, she murmured a quick "thank you," then darted away, fighting her way through throngs of people still lingering on the dance floor. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Dane attempting to follow.
Jessica hurried on until she found a door to the outside. Without looking back, she sensed Dane was still following her and quickened her pace. He overtook her just as she reached her car, demanding that she stop. She turned toward him, breathlessly leaning against the car door.
"Why didn’t you stop?" he asked, a frown creasing his tanned face.
"Why didn’t you call?" she said, her chest rising. He looked away. As she tried to catch her breath, she hated herself for having voiced her question. Things seemed different now, with Dane standing before her; his life was none of her business. "I’m sorry. I guess I was just concerned."
"I wanted to call you, Jessie, but…I couldn’t. I didn’t want to involve you with all the shit that’s going on. I’ve…" He looked away, reluctant but obviously determined to be honest with her. "I’ve been drunk on and off for four days. Mostly on."
He went on to tell her that things had not been easy in San Francisco, that it would get nasty in court and he wasn’t taking it very well.
"I’ve really thought about calling you. But I hate phones, and I was in no condition to see you." He boldly took her face between his hands. "I need to talk to you, Jessica…would you…could we…get together later?"
Dane’s eyes were penetrating, his touch searing. Without a thought she nodded her head as if in a trance.
"Do you remember how to get to my house?"
Again she nodded. From her face he moved his fingers to her hair, absently arranging it around her bare shoulders.
"Good."
Jessica nearly fainted when his fingers left her hair and he beg
an walking back toward the studio. He stopped and waited for her, and they rejoined the party together.
Jessica immediately sought out her friend and whispered her plans. Roxie happily advised her that she was leaving with Zachary and wouldn’t need a ride home anyway. With Jessica’s mouth still gaping, Roxie winked and followed Zachary out onto the dance floor.
~ * ~
It was near one in the morning when Jessica parked the Miata on the circle drive behind Dane’s Porsche. It looked strangely out of place, but she ignored the feeling and walked decisively up the steps to the massive entry.
Expecting Peter, she was surprised when Dane met her at the door and showed her past the living room to a large, comfortable den. A projection screen television was centrally located across from the sectional where she sat down, and bookcases lined the walls filled not only with books, but awards, gold statuettes and trophies as well.
The room was normally lit by hanging billiard-style lights, but these were now off and soft table lamps cast a dim glow. She waited while he paced the floor, a drink in his hand, obviously at a loss for words.
"My kids call it fizzy water," he said with a chuckle, holding up his glass.
He sat down on the coffee table in front of her. In his white, oversized cotton shirt and tight black trousers, he was once again the dread pirate Simon.
"I can’t really talk about it," he began, a frustrated sigh escaping his lungs. "I get too upset. Basically, we go to court for a preliminary hearing next month."
"Of course," she murmured.
"I owe you a drink or…several, actually," he offered, smiling sheepishly, remembering the night he’d spent on her couch. "What are you drinking?"
"Nothing, thank you. I had enough at the party." She adjusted her dress nervously. "Dane, I’m really sorry about running away tonight. I was mad at you, I guess. I feel awful about what’s happening to you, and I had been thinking that maybe I could…help somehow." This was awkward, but she felt she had to explain her behavior.
"You’re sweet."
"Don’t pass it around. Teddy says being ‘sweet’ could ruin my career."
"You can be sweet and still be…erotic." The green eyes were coaxing, challenging; then they looked away. He paused, appearing to gather his thoughts. "Look, Jessica…if you and I are going to have…a relationship, there’s something you should know. I’m not, at least anymore, I’ve discovered, a good risk. I’m not a particularly reliable…dependable…person. I can’t seem to make or keep promises anymore." Briefly he checked her reaction before continuing. "I’m my own person, Jessie. I’ve hurt too many people, including myself, so all bets are off on what I’ll do next. Major disclaimer, take it or leave it." His hands gestured an ultimatum; his eyes were back with hers, delving, seeking her compliance. "You understand what I’m saying, right? I could really, really piss you off."
Jessica’s own eyes were wide with open amazement. No man had ever spoken this frankly to her before. No presumptions, no surprises. And no commitments. But he was offering her something. Something she wanted.
She nodded in silent understanding. She didn’t care about getting hurt, or unkept promises, and even if she had, right now she would have gladly have forsaken all for even one kiss.
Dane sighed. Uncomfortable on the coffee table, he moved to sit next to Jessica on the sectional. He ran his fingers through his hair, something, she noticed, he did unconsciously when he was feeling stressed. "This divorce is killing me. I keep asking myself, is what I’ve done so wrong?" He leaned forward, looking down at the floor. He was such a picture of despair that Jessica could not help but delicately place her hand on his shoulder in a sympathetic gesture.
Dane turned slightly and stared at her for a long moment. A sublime moment, thought Jessica. There was an overwhelming, heated madness spreading throughout her, born of her simple contact with his body. Dane exuded a maleness like no man she’d encountered, filling her at once with both desire and trepidation. Jessica sat captured by his gaze, the emerald eyes stripping away layer after layer of her carefully built defenses…seeking her vulnerabilities, her sensitivities.
Slowly he turned and took both of her hands in his, pulling them around his neck, then slid his hands down her arms and around her in one smooth movement. She barely had time to moisten her lips before his were on her, exploring her cheek, her ear, her neck, her mouth…but slow. Slow, and hot, and sensual. Any shyness she had anticipated on her own part evaporated and she returned each kiss with fervor. Abruptly, he stopped and again stared into her face.
"You really want this, right?"
Her response was silent but clear, and he stood, lifting her off the couch and carrying her to his bedroom.
Jessica’s heart pounded as they undressed, the room lit only by the garden lights glowing outside his glass bedroom wall. She repeatedly told herself not to think, just to act; thinking about this would just confuse her, and all she wanted now was to have Dane Pierce belong to her.
She stole appraising glances at his physique while he tore the comforter and blankets from the bed. He was neither muscle man nor athlete, but he gave new meaning to her understanding of "sexy." She blushed unwillingly at her own embarrassment; it had been a long time since she had been this intimate. She crept hesitantly onto the bed, awaiting his initiating touch.
He did not speak to her, and although his experience and discipline were obviously greater than hers, there was nothing routine about his actions. He kissed her again and again, a sense of urgency and searching building as their passion grew. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, expertly exploring places he already knew would bring her pleasure. So complete was his control over her, she was only remotely aware of the intensity of his own arousal.
Jessica, her mind a turmoil of dreamlike pictures and wine-induced dizziness, now abandoned all conscious thought and allowed herself to melt into him, until she could no longer sense that they were more than one. Soon, the urgency became a demand, and together they merged into a dimension of feeling without time or space, filled with electric sensuality, clinging to each other in a desperate, passionate fever.
~ * ~
"This isn’t the first time you’ve been unfaithful to your wife." She said it as a statement of fact, pulling his shirt around her later as they relaxed in his bed.
"Have I been? Now that she’s been unfaithful to me, what are my responsibilities to her? We’re divorcing, for Christ’s sake."
"It isn’t, right?"
"No, not in a technical sense…"
"What’s that supposed to mean?"
"Are you upset, Jess?" he said quietly, caressing her hair from her face. "I meant, there have been a couple of others, you know, studio girls, whores really, nobody I knew or cared about. So, technically, I didn’t count it as cheating. It was actually better for my marriage to have sex with girls I didn’t know, clean girls without drugs or nasty bugs." He smiled at her shocked expression, then leaned over to kiss her. "What’s the matter?" he whispered. "You must realize…we spent six months making Sioux Nation, most of it in Wyoming, in the winter to boot. I didn’t see Rita for months. She refused to come."
She was thinking of her own brief marriage, five years ago. If Wesley had even slept with a robot, she would have killed him. "Did Rita know about these…these girls?" she asked, unable to use the word he’d chosen.
"I don’t know." He eyed her thoughtfully.
"I find that hard to believe," she murmured. "I can’t help but wonder, Dane, if this is really a…a casting couch," she said quietly, pulling his hands away from her. The startled look on his face made her wish she had kept her mouth shut.
"No, Jessica, this is my bed." His voice was low and disappointed. "Is your experience so lacking that you can’t tell the difference between screwing and making love?"
Her face burned at his suggestion. "I’m sorry, Dane. I just…I just don’t usually do things like this and…" she rushed the words out, her naiveté obvious to his ear
s.
"It’s okay." He smiled softly and gently pulled open the shirt she’d wrapped around her, dragging his fingertips lightly down her chest and stomach. Her passion spent, she now felt modest under his gaze. "It was a…reasonable question, I guess." He sighed and shook his head slowly, considering her. "You are luscious, my dear, and so vulnerable. You enticed me that first morning at the studio. You are standing in the doorway of a whole new life, and you have so much to learn. I hope you are not as generous with others as you have been with me." He now stroked her hair. "And there will be others. As much as I’d like to, there is no way I could protect you from those who would sample your favors--in the manner of which you have accused me."
A pain went through Jessica’s heart as she absorbed his words. She could not tell him that there would be no others, not now. Her "favors" were, quite possibly, entirely his.
She lay her head on his shoulder, molding her petite form to his long, lean one. She smiled to herself; one thing was for sure, Dane’s sexual prowess was no disappointment. There were many sexy stars, made so by make up, seductive clothing and provocative roles. But this man’s passion and skill were for real, and no one could ever take tonight away from her.
She fell asleep on his shoulder, and the next morning, it was her turn to leave a note. She couldn’t see waking him, and she knew Peter would be around to shake him up for whatever appointments he might have. Her note would be brief: "Dane, thanks for a great time…" She giggled. No, how about, "Dane, sorry I couldn’t stay…" No. Finally she jotted, "See you in the movies" and signed her name with a small heart.
Three
"Happy New Year"
"I can’t believe it will be Christmas in three weeks!" Roxie exclaimed as she and Jessica carried groceries into Jessica’s kitchen. "By the way, since the film’s been finished for awhile now, are you getting more money?"
"No. It was a one-time pay." Jessica winced at Roxie’s reference to Bellerive, reminding her of the night spent with Dane and the fact that she hadn’t heard from him since. Roxie had been dating Zachary Slade steadily since the party, nearly five months, so she mused that something good had come of it all.
Starcrossed Hearts Page 4
