Thirst

by Mia Ford

  I smile, “Like we’re doing now.”

  “Exactly! But if you don’t want to talk then we don’t have to. Maybe you’re right about Kevin. He seems kind of creepy to me.”

  “Because he wears glasses?”

  He chuckles, “No, because he kept insisting on coming to your room and maybe your gut instincts were right. You did need to stay away from him.”

  Maybe?

  It’s something that I’ll never find out, and I’m not even curious to know what he did, because I’m right where I want to be, in Eric’s arms. But not sexually, just sensually and it makes me feel warm, not only his body heat, but I have that feeling deep down inside that he’s here for a reason and it’s not to just apologize. It’s to do something more than that, but he has to gain my trust, and that’ll only come one step at a time.

  Chapter Twenty One

  Eric

  I feel like a prick who’s life has been turned completely upside down, and it’s not from getting high or even being drunk and out of it most of the time. It’s from one woman. I never thought that I would even feel this way about anyone. I used to see actors marry their co-stars, dancers and sometimes I would attend, but they’ll talk about love and then six months, or if they were lucky six Valentina is entirely different to any woman that I like to hang around with whenever I get in the mood for some female company. There’s an innocence about her, that makes you think that you can take advantage of her. The moment anyone tries to do that she puts her foot down. She’s kind of a Sara Parker and Cinderella in one tight, sexy body.

  “It looks as if you two are really getting along..” Florence smiles at me.

  She flew in last night for our final day on the set. She claims it’s to make sure that everything gets tied up, but I think that it’s just a reason Florence says as she comes back for the final day of shooting.

  “Well, we knew each other before we came on the set.”

  I confess to her, our time here’s done, and the movie shooting is coming to an end. There’s no point keeping it a secret anymore, and I’m sure that she already knows that Valentina and I have been spending time together. No sex. Not that it hasn’t been on my mind on all the fucking time. I know that if I try anything then she’ll have nothing to do with me. A risk that I’m not willing to take.

  “Really? I would never have been able to tell. You guys in the same room. I could cut the atmosphere with a knife.”

  I laugh as she raises her eyebrow. That’s one thing about Florence she’s no one’s fool. I knew that her statement was because she knew the truth and with that one line, she confirmed it.

  “Maybe she’s exactly what you need,” she smiles as she holds on to my hand.

  “Florence. I thought that I needed to be alone. You’re always telling me that I think with my dick and not my head.”

  We’re taking a break and catching up over breakfast while Valentina’s shooting the final scenes.

  “Yes, but it wasn’t only your dick that was playing with your mind. I think it was more your over inflated ego.”

  “Ouch,” I put my hand to my heart as if I’ve been wounded with her words.

  She laughs, “Don’t try and act as if you’re so sensitive I know that you know I’m right. No, Valentina could be exactly what you need. Just don’t fuck it up.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “Eric, I’ve known you long enough, and I saw the way that you were looking at her last night over dinner. It’s clear that there's something special between you two and it’s not just sex.”

  Wow!

  “So, you were watching us? And there I was thinking that you were too busy flirting with the director.”

  She giggles, “A girl can do both.”

  I nod and say, “Yes a girl can do both, but you are far from a girl. You’re a lot older than that and you should know better.”

  I kiss her on the forehead as I head out to catch up with Valentina.

  “Yes, but I’m not dead yet. So, there’s nothing wrong with living and having a little fun. But not too much fun.”

  I nod as I head out and start making my way towards Valentina. Her final scene’s are being shot in the cabin, and I have something to tell her. It starts with that I don’t want this to be the end. I want us to keep seeing each other as a couple. She’s been the ray of the sunshine that I’ve needed in my life, and I don't want to let her go. I haven’t been drunk or even felt like it for the last few days, and it’s all down to her.

  ***

  “Where’s Valentina?”

  I ask Gia, as I pass her as she starts leaving the cabin. I notice that she’s the only one coming out of there. Which I find a bit weird, usually when they’re shooting scenes there’s people coming in and out of the cabin. And a least a stand-by crew outside.

  “How the hell am I supposed to know? I’m not her keeper!”

  Then she struts off as if she’s pissed with me. I know she is, but she needs to get over it. It’s not as if she was fucking interested in me. She has a reputation for trying to get with the leading men, and it seems as if this time she failed, and now she’s pissed. She’ll get a job on another movie-set and I’m sure the leading man will be ever so willing and then I will be a man of the past. One that she’ll probably not even remember turning her down.

  I shrug my shoulders and walk off hoping to see someone else.

  Damn!

  I thought that they'd be here for at least three hours, but it looks as if they ended early. What the fuck is going on?

  “Ben, what’s up? How comes the shoot ended early?”

  He sighs as he rubs his balding head. He’s a bit eccentric, but there’s no doubt that he’s one of the top directors’s in the business.

  “Yeah, we had to stop shooting. It seems that the weather’s not cold enough to shoot it right. Something was wrong, so we need to try again another time. Maybe tomorrow.”

  “Oh.”

  “And my scene?”

  He pats me on the shoulder’s, “Tomorrow.”

  Then he starts to mumble something and then walks off. That’s the problem with filming outdoors at times, the weather needs to be right, but for some crazy reason, I thought that this was all going to be happening indoors. But that still doesn’t help answer my question about Valentina? Where is she?

  I take out my phone, and there’s no message from her. Maybe she wanted some quiet time? She does that once in a while; I know that she feels that way whenever she thinks about her parents. She becomes all insecure and shit. I feel like the white knight that wants to take the pain away from her. The problem is she doesn’t allow me to do it. At times, I think that she’s too independent for her good. Always wanting to do things by herself and never really letting me in.

  I start walking to the hotel, it’s not far, and as much as the winds blowing, the sun’s out, and it doesn’t feel as cold as it did when we first came here. I must admit that I’ve missed being at home in my bed. The idea that it’s not going to be taken away from me makes me want to be there even more. Rosetta was happy when I told her the news about being able to pay her, but she seemed even happier knowing that I was back at work. Back on the big screen.

  As I step outside Valentina’s door, I think I hear a scream. I’m just about to knock when I hear it again.

  Fuck!

  “Valentina!”

  She doesn’t say anything, but I start to panic. I start trying to knock down the door. Fuck they’re tough, and my head’s racing out of control. On in a while I used to play an action hero figure. I used to know what to do in these type of circumstances. Kick and then the door would automatically open and I’d rush in and fight whoever was in there. It seemed so fucking easy, but that’s the problem with being a movie star hero and real life. They’re not the fucking same and kicking down a door isn’t as easy as it’s been when shooting, besides I don’t even know if I’m doing this fucking right.

  So with my heart racing like crazy I decide to d
o the best thing. Get some fucking help. I didn’t have to look far before I see one of the maid’s and tell her, “You need to open that fucking door now!”

  “That’s why I came here. I thought I heard something.”

  She starts panicking as she’s trying to get the key. I start to kick the door some more with my foot. It fucking hurt, but I can’t hear anything, and it scares me so fucking much right now.

  “Valentina!”

  I shout out as the maid blurts out, “I got it!”

  She slots the key and just like that I don’t see anything, I start rummaging around the room until we get to the bathroom. Fuck, she’s in there, but the question is who is in there with her? Because I know that she’s not alone and it scares the shit out of me.

  “Valentina!”

  I start banging on the door. There’s nothing. She’s not saying a word and whoever’s in there is keeping her quiet. I need to fucking get in there. Right now!

  I turn to the maid, “Get back. She’s in there, and I start to thump the door one more time. It doesn’t take much effort for it to open and see that Kevin has knocked Valentina out somehow and he’s holding her. I rush to him and greet him with my fist. Fucking dog! I feel like a fool as I see that Valentina’s on the ground. She said that she had a bad feeling about him. I should have fucking listened to her. As Kevin falls flat to the ground and that doesn’t stop me kicking and punching him.

  “Stop it!”

  “Stop it please!”

  The maid yells behind me. She’s screaming in between telling me to stop. Meanwhile Valentina’s not he other side just lying still. I should be worried about her, but I’m so fucking angry right now. I see that Valentina’s fully dressed, but I don’t know how long he’s been in here with her. I don’t know if he’s drugged or done something to her. The maid’s screams have caught other’s attention, because she’s not screaming but someone’s holding me back. They’re stopping me from doing anymore damage to him and I hate them.

  But most of all I hate myself for not listening to her, when she told me that she thought that Kevin was creepy. It’s guilt that makes me want to kill him right now. It’s guilt that makes me walk out of her room and take a breather, before I do anymore damage to Kevin. Because, right now the site of him is making me feel sick.

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Valentina

  The last couple of days have been crazy, between being interviewed by the police, what felt like the same thing from Florence and then Ben, the director too. The guys have been great and even Rebecca just the run-in said that one time Kevin tried to drug her. Even though he was protesting his innocence by saying that I led him on.

  “Seriously Eric I'm all right.”

  He’s been my private nurse ever since I thought that I was being too harsh on Kevin and took up his offer on reading my final lines. My last shoot alone was horrible. The director said that it was the weather, but it was evident I was completely off my form. I couldn’t get Eric off my mind.

  “The doctor says that you will be okay, but you still look a little hazy to me.”

  “Thanks,” I smile at him. He’s got a serious look on his face. The same one that he had when he was beating the living daylight out of Kevin.

  “Where’s Kevin now?”

  “What do you care? He’s lucky that he’s not in a fucking body bag,” Eric sighs, I can tell that he’s trying to hold back how angry he is right now. I told him about Kevin, and he said that I was oversensitive. He’s apologized so many times for not listening, but he doesn’t seem to realize that it’s not his fault.

  “I was the one that said that Kevin could come back to my room and help me. I didn’t have to do it. I thought that he was a creep from the beginning, and I even told you that, but still, I shouldn’t have let down my guard.”

  “You should have called me!”

  He kisses me on the head, and for a split second I think that he’s right but then I stop myself from thinking that and say, “You know I shouldn’t have called you. At least we’re on set for another couple of days. The weather’s perfect apparently and everything’s worked out in the end. Can we just drop it please?”

  I fold my arms when he avoids looking at me, and I can see that his vein is starting to pop which means that he’s angry, probably reliving the time that he came to rescue me in his head.

  “I should have just stuck with my gut instinct which was that Kevin’s a creep. That’s it. I don’t want to be running to you all the time. For the first time in my life Eric I’ve been independent, and I just don’t want that to stop. I need to feel like a woman. Not a child running around waiting for her parents to take care of her. Or hook up with a star on one night and then think that he’s going to run into the bar that she works in and declare his undying love for her.”

  He gazes over my body in my non-sexy night robe courtesy of the hospital and I can tell that he has lust on his mind.

  “You did that?”

  I nod my head thinking that he was paying attention to that part. I wondered if he heard anything else, but then he confirms it when he says, “Well, you’re every bit of a woman to me and more.”

  “You say the sweetest things, but I know what you have in mind.”

  He shakes his head, “You have no idea what I have in my mind. I have so many dirty thoughts that I need to fucking stop myself at the best of times. God like a week ago, when we were doing that sex scene. How many times did Ben tell us to cut?”

  “God! that was so hard,” I giggle remembering the director telling us to cut about five times. “It was like being back in your house that night.”

  He shakes his head, “No even better than that. Because now I’ve got to know you. It doesn’t feel like a one-night stand it feels as if it’s the start of something new…”

  I bite my lip as I listen to him.

  “That’s if you want it to be. I just presumed that this is what you wanted, or that’s what I thought at least. I mean that after we’ve finished shooting I don’t want to see you again, just so that we can have sex.”

  “Thanks Eric.”

  “No, I meant that I would like to take you on a date. Or whatever it is people do when they’re dating. Then again if we’re dating then I do need to take you on a date. But then again, I was thinking something more on the lines of boyfriend and girlfriend.”

  God, the man can talk!

  “Yes!”

  He takes in a deep breath and then comes back to sit on the bed, this time not at the edge, but a lot closer.

  “Florence says that you’re good for me.”

  “Does she? And what do you think Eric?”

  “I think,” he strokes the side of my face. “That you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me and I want it to work.”

  “Before I used to dream about us getting married.”

  “Like a lot of young girls. I know you had my photos on your wall. You used to sign your name as Valentina Turner, and you used to kiss my photos at night.”

  “Now, I’m kissing the real thing. It feels like a dream come true.”

  He pulls back as he was just about to kiss me.

  “Thing?”

  “Oh, come here and kiss me already. You know you want to.”

  He growls as he gets closer, “Oh, I want to do a lot more than that. Once you’re out of this hospital bed. I have every intention of showing you.”

  Before I can say another word, he presses his lips to mine, and it’s so strong that I wonder if he’s going to wait for me to leave the hospital or if he intends to take me right now as he crushes his face to mine. His tongue explores my mouth greedily as I hold on to his head and encourage him to come in deeper. He moves his fingers along my shoulder and then to the nape of my neck.

  The pain that I felt in my head as I was lying on the bed from the knock that Kevin gave me becomes a fading memory as I think about Eric and I. Our lives not only as a couple but as stars.

  Epilogue

>   Valentina

  We’re supposed to be on our way to the movie premiere. It’s already been labeled the blockbuster of the year, and so far both Eric and I have had calls about new movies to star in. A couple of them together which Eric’s keen on the other romantic comedy. It’s kind of similar to the premier that we’re going to, but I’m just starting out so I’m cool to stay in the same type of role if that’s the way to go about things. I’m still not sure and I feel like a little kid always asking Eric about the best thing to do at times.

  After going to court and testifying against Kevin, I thought that no one would want me on their books. But it’s been the complete opposite. It’s as if I’m the girl that spoke up against the dirty camera man and helped other women speak up against him, which is why he’s safely locked behind bars.

  As Eric’s tongue slowly slithers inside my mouth like it’s been longing to do ever since that first night when I was back at his house. I knew that the moment we did the last scene of the movie. There’ll be no holding back, and I was right, we’ve been inseparable ever since then. He grabs my hand and unbuckles my seatbelt as we’re both sat at the back of the limo.

  “Eric, don’t you ever get tired?”

  He slips his hand in between my dress and growls, “You know you want to!”

  In a quick flash, he rips my lace panties as if it’s a piece of paper.

  Why does he always make me so wet?

  We’re breathing so heavily in and out of each other’s mouths. My hands are running underneath his shirt, and I tug it off him and throw it on the floor.

  It’s crazy because we’re acting as if we’re long-lost lovers even though I’m nearly always at his place. Rosetta constantly asks if I’m going to be moving in permanently. I think that she likes having me around, and she’s been giving me cooking lessons, but I believe that Eric needs it more than I do.