Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 112850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
At Mace’s words, I gave an exaggerated playful wince while running my fingertip down his strong forearm when his hand landed on my thigh. I couldn’t stop touching him. “You need to pay closer attention to some of my roles so maybe you’ll be more impressed and I won’t have to work so hard to get to spend time with you. I get lonely waiting for you to finally get here.”
“Yeah right! How many people throw themselves all over you every day?” Mace asked, positioning his body to better see me. Based on the look of disbelief on his face, he meant the question in earnest. “I bet there’s no shortage of men and women always all over you.” Mace shook his head as if I were silly to feel lonely because of those options and settled back into the seat.
“Okay, well, I’ll admit it’s usually not a problem to find some company.” I chuckled at my simple words, clasping his hand with mine as I reached for the remote control.
“Huh,” Mace grunted. “Before you, it had been a pretty long time.” As if that were a measure of lacking for Mace. It wasn’t.
“My problem comes with the size of the asshole I’ve become. I can’t stand many of the practices of my industry.” While I said the words, I leaned in to place a soft kiss on Mace’s knuckles. “Maybe that’s why I crave our intimacy. You make me fight for even the smallest of smiles. I’m really tender on the inside.”
“You’ve mentioned your industry quite a bit, and I’ve thought about it a lot. I don’t see you bein’ a jerk, ever. You’re the most attentive, considerate guy I’ve ever known. How can you pretend to be the polar opposite of what I’ve seen?” he asked, turning to stare me in the eyes. The doubt was clear in Mace’s tone, but all I could focus on was the way his lips moved while giving me an earnest compliment. I was into it.
“That’s because you appeared out of nowhere like a dream. Those stunning eyes and hard fucking body just did it for me like never before. I decided pretty quickly that the universe gave me a chance, and I better man up,” I answered, my grin growing, proud of stating my truth.
“Omigod, that’s ridiculous!” Mace said, grabbing the remote control from my hand and pushing play. The movie was locked and loaded. A psychological thriller that I received an Oscar nod for my role in. Mace now knew that fact because it was included in the previews.
I didn’t budge as I stared straight at him. “Everything I said was the truth.”
“Okay.” Mace used a tone that said he still didn’t believe me. “You know I’m a sure thing. I don’t need all that convincing to get me into the bed.”
“I can tell when someone puts up a mask,” I said, listening to the beginning of my movie, uninterested in watching. That was Mace’s job. “You do it a lot. I do with everyone else.”
“What happens if Austin offers you a role? Do you leave your show?” he asked, still staring at the screen.
“It’s hard to say. In theory, I’ll be around here more often, but production’s at least a year out. The complication comes in the fact that I hired a staff full of extremely ambitious professionals. They certainly don’t like words like downtime or semi-retired.”
“Those are words you’ve used?” Mace asked, pausing the television in the opening credits. Finally, a topic of conversation Mace was interested in.
“Yeah, of course. If I weren’t so young, with no other marketable skills, I’d probably cut the cord. I liked modeling. I liked the travel,” I said.
Mace lifted the remote control and pushed play again without responding. He turned the volume up which caused me to laugh again and settle next to Mace.
I usually cringed seeing myself on the big screen, but not tonight. I was my own worst critic. Like right this minute, I cringed at the opening scene. If I had to suffer through this, it better work.
Chapter 18
Mace
Good morning sex was an incredible way to start a day. Who knew this sated feeling translated into an energetically happy morning that lasted all day long. A huff of a breath escaped as I realized I was no longer my own person. Images played like a slideshow inside my head, capturing the sweetest of moments. The second Slade had finished inside me, the way he tumbled down on top of me, his body instinctively curling around mine, the special way he cooed those three terrifying and wonderful words at the shell of my ear. I spent every minute away from him counting the time until I returned. It mattered to me.
This morning, I had left to gather more clothes and shut my house down for our three-day trip away. Of course, I had reservations about going, but I also had an underlying excitement. Our conditions were set. He and I would go as buddies. We had this.