Handling His Talent ARC Read online

  “Your reputation precedes you. My company provided the security detail for If Only You Knew. My team hears and sees everything.”

  Her face visibly paled.

  “What was it that happened back then?” I tapped a fingertip against my lower lip. “You sniffed cocaine off the director’s dick before blowing him. Is that what you mean about going over lines? And does your fiancé know that little tidbit?”

  Rage shook her emancipated frame. “I will have you fired. I know people. Powerful people.”

  I actually felt sorry for Jemma. This industry would eat her up and spit her out. “Do your worst.”

  She stormed out, flicking her hair behind her as she went. To the world, butter wouldn’t melt in Jemma’s mouth. She spouted clichés about women supporting women and girl power. The truth was, she would kill if she thought it would further her career.

  Brock came out of the bathroom. Much to my disappointment, or maybe relief, he was fully dressed in a pair of jeans and a Nirvana t-shirt.

  “What did Jemma want?”

  “To run through tomorrow’s lines with you.”

  He visibly shuddered. “She’s on the hunt for a husband, and I’m the lucky one in her crosshairs.”

  “Isn’t she engaged?”

  “It’s for publicity only.”

  I shouldn’t be surprised. I had yet to come across a genuine Hollywood relationship.

  “Let’s get back to the hotel,” I said, turning toward the door.

  Before I had a chance to step outside, Brock caught my hand and brushed the pad of his thumb along the back. “Are we going to continue what we started here in my room or yours?”

  My heartbeat doubled, then tripled. Saying yes and giving in to the lust raging deep inside would be easy, but something I would live to regret. “What happened between us was a lapse in judgment.”

  His lips pressed together in a slight grimace. “That kiss was a lot of things, but it wasn’t a lapse in judgment. It was the first genuine kiss I’ve had in a long time.” He moved closer, and with every step he took, I stepped back. “I want more. I want you, Alex. Since the day we met, I’ve been fighting my attraction. We’d be explosive together.”

  And I would be the one who would end up shattered. I pressed my hands against Brock’s chest, keeping him at arm’s length. My heart wanted to believe every word he said, but my mind screamed to get the hell out of Dodge. “You expect me to believe you want me?”

  His brow furrowed, and he tilted his head to one side. “Why is that so hard?”

  I moved back slightly, my hands remaining on his chest. “Be serious. I’m not your type. I’m not all feminine and delicate. I don’t giggle and simper when you walk past. I have a job to do. One that requires we don’t get involved emotionally or physically. Besides, you don’t like me all that much.”

  He placed his hands on top of mine and tried to move closer, but I held him back.

  “You think you know me, Alex? You think you know what I want? You don’t know a damn thing. True, when we first met, I didn’t like you, and I wanted to sabotage your job. I thought about fucking you then dumping you. But the more I’ve gotten to know you, the more I realized I could never be that cold-hearted. That kiss…” he blew out a drawn-out breath. “That kiss left my dick rock hard. When I get back to the hotel tonight, I’m going to take a long hot shower and jerk off thinking about your lips on mine. Thinking about you screaming my name. Thinking about you begging and pleading for more. Don’t even pretend you don’t want the same.”

  “I don’t.”

  Liar, liar, pants on fire.

  With my head held high, I dropped my hands from his chest, and when I left, I was nothing but a trembling, turned on mass of emotions.

  I had resisted him for one more night, but it was getting harder to do. If I wasn’t careful, I was going to let him in and lose everything.

  Chapter 5 - Brock

  I’d told the truth when I said I would go back to my room, take a shower, and jerk off. All during the car ride back to the hotel, I’d had a semi, and I sat on my hands to keep them off Alex.

  Neither of us had said a word, but the air between us hung heavy with attraction and sexual tension. If she wanted me, she would have to make the next move. I’d laid it on the line. All she had to do was cross it.

  I stood beneath the scalding, punishing water jets wishing her naked, soaped up body was in front of me. If she were here, I would stroke my fingertips up and down her body, paying particular attention to her nipples and pussy.

  Man, what I wouldn’t give to take the weight of her tits in my palms. To lick and suck her clit. To feel her come on my cock.

  When Alex had walked into my R.V. earlier and caught me naked, I hadn’t missed the way her eyes widened, or how her jaw had dropped.

  I hadn’t planned on kissing her. It just happened. Something took hold. I needed her lips against mine, and when she hadn’t protested or wrenched away, I took the kiss deeper. I would have deserved it if she’d kneed me in the balls, but she’d more than welcomed my kiss and my touch. Her body molded to mine; her tits pressed against my chest.

  My dick twitched, urging me to give my body the relief it craved.

  Usually, at the end of the day and if time allowed, we’d grab a bite to eat in the hotel restaurant to go over the schedule for the following day. Yet, when we’d gotten back tonight, she gave a hundred excuses and said she had a headache. Bullshit. She was afraid of what would happen between us. Fearful of finally removing that stick from her ass.

  Wanting a woman so bad was irrational and unlike me. It was almost like I’d been waiting for Alex, but I hadn’t known I was until our kiss unlocked the knowledge.

  I curled my hand around my thick shaft and slid my palm up and down. On a groan, I massaged my balls and tugged hard while the hand on my shaft continued to pump harder, faster.

  I pictured Alex sitting on one of the shower benches with her legs spread wide, her glistening pussy slick with arousal, waiting for me to slide home.

  While I jerked off in front of her, she would scissor her fingers over her clit and massage the hard bud until she exploded. I would then fall to my knees and lick her again, and again, and again. After that, I would fuck her until neither of us could stand. I would slam into her until she begged me to stop.

  My balls tightened, and tingles at the base of my spine turned into an inferno.

  I gritted my teeth and tensed my muscles against the pleasure. To heighten the sensations, I grabbed my balls and imagined my cock cushioned between the pillows of her breasts or sliding deep inside her.

  Cum spurted from my cock and dripped down my hand. I pumped, not letting up until there was nothing left.

  When spent, I leaned my head against the shower wall. The next time I came, it would be inside Alex.

  ***

  The rest of the week drained everyone. We shot for over sixteen hours a day every day. Anton demanded more from me than any other director ever had. Ford acted like a spoiled fucker and thew tantrum after tantrum. I was close to knocking him out. If his shitty behavior didn’t improve, I would.

  There were no more kisses or stolen moments with Alex. She’d remained standoffish and professional. But I didn’t miss the way her eyes followed me around when she thought my attention was elsewhere.

  Most nights, when we got back to the hotel, I was too exhausted to do anything other than fall into bed. Even if she had said yes to coming up to my room, I would’ve passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

  We’d been given a day off, and for once, the sun shone—a rare occurrence in Ireland. I didn’t want to stay at the hotel, and I didn’t want to see the sights. What I wanted to do was spend time getting to know Alex—preferably naked.

  After the Isabella fiasco, I’d sworn off women for a while, but I hadn’t factored on meeting the one woman who didn’t want me.

  I knocked on Alex’s door, and when she answered, I was more than happy to see a loos
e, washed-out T-shirt skimming the top of her thighs. For the first time since we’d met, her hair hung over her shoulders. Seeing her unkempt made a nice change. Sleep left her eyes heavy and her face swollen, and she’d never looked sexier.

  I leaned an elbow against the door jamb. “Want to hang out?”

  She yawned and stretched her hands above her head. My eyes locked in on the outline of her dusky nipples beneath the T-shirt. Or we could spend the day in bed with me sucking your nipples until you come.

  “I guess I should join you,” she said with a quick shrug. “If I don’t, God only knows what you’ll get up to.”

  “Yeah, I might go on an all-day bender that could turn into a week. If you’re here to babysit me, then you should babysit me all the time, don’t you think?”

  The corners of her lips quirked into a small smile. Alex was a beautiful, sensual woman who didn’t realize how incredibly sexy she was.

  She hunched her shoulders a little and crossed her arms, sadly shielding her nipples from my view. “What do you have in mind?”

  “A friend of mine is overseas and said I could stay at his cottage for the weekend in Wicklow. Meadows surround the house, and the cottage garden is like something from a Monet painting. Plenty of privacy.” If the day went as planned, we would need all the privacy we could get.

  She blinked at me. “I thought you would say something like you wanted us to go bar hopping and get wasted.”

  “I organized for a picnic basket and champagne with strawberries.”

  “Are you trying to seduce me?” One of Alex’s perfect eyebrows arched up.

  I stepped into the room and walked her backward until the back of her legs hit the edge of the mattress. The citrusy scent of her skin and her hair were both heady aphrodisiacs.

  “If I was, would it work?”

  Her back bowed slightly, pushing her body my way. The tip of her hard nipples brushed against my t-shirt through hers. I clenched my fists by my side, willing myself to stay in control.

  “We can’t sleep together, Brock.”

  “Who said anything about sleeping?” I smiled at her, backing away. “It’s just a picnic, Alex. You can relax enough for that, can’t you?”

  Alex’s face hardened when she recognized the challenge in my voice. Her lips pulled up into an angry pout. “I can. I’ll meet you downstairs in twenty-minutes.” With that, she turned on her heel and slammed the door in my face.

  I smiled. This day off was about to get interesting.

  Chapter 6 - Alex

  Thanks to everyone fleeing Dublin for the day to make the most of the sunshine, we’d gotten stuck in traffic for over an hour. But once we got out of the city, the drive through the twisting one-lane roads in the convertible Brock had rented was divine.

  On a sunny day, Ireland was glorious and romantic, with thousands of wildflowers decorating the grassy banks along the road. The wind caused by the car made the flowers shake, lifting up a sweet fragrance to envelop us like a dream.

  More than once, we met meandering flocks of bleating sheep that slowed our progress, but instead of getting mad, Brock would smile his movie star smile and chat with the sheepherders. In the friendliest manner, he would ask them about their lives and dreams.

  The handsome man was charming enough to put a spring in even the oldest sheepherder’s step. And with each interaction, I found myself fonder of him.

  Brock really could be a good guy. Maybe the movie star business just made him nuts. It was hard to tell. But as we continued down what passed as a road, I found myself smiling and laughing so much my cheeks hurt. We even spent a little bit of time singing together at the top of our lungs.

  When we pulled onto a no-name, pebbled road, it was like we’d driven into a fantasy forest. All we needed were some leprechauns and fairies to greet us. Bluebells and daisies lined the way, and above us, intertwined trees created a sun-dappled canopy. After about fifteen minutes, we came upon a large stone cottage complete with a thatched roof.

  Brock cut the engine, and we both looked at one another in wide-eyed wonder.

  “Are we still in the twenty-first century?” I asked in awe. “Did we jump back in time?” I stepped out and turned around in circles, inhaling the scent of nature. Birds chirped, a warm breeze rustled through the trees, and wind chimes sounded in the distance. “I could happily live in a place like this for the rest of my life.”

  Brock stepped out of the car and stood by my side. “I should make my friend an offer he can’t refuse. I need a bolt hole.”

  I stared at him like he’d lost his mind. “And leave Hollywood?” I couldn’t stop the laugh that fell from my lips. “Bad boy Brock Adams settling down in the Irish countryside. You’d last a week before boredom set in.”

  “You have a low opinion of me, don’t you?”

  He smiled, but I heard the wounded tone in his voice, and that hurt my heart. I hadn’t meant to sound like a bitch.

  I dropped my arms and stepped forward slightly. “I’m sorry. I don’t have a low opinion of you, Brock. I shouldn’t believe everything I read. These past few weeks, I’ve seen a different side to you, and I like it.”

  I wanted to add I like you but saying those words would mean opening my heart up and admitting to not only him but to myself that I was falling in love.

  The grin that flashed onto his face brought a blush to my cheeks. In an instant, the sorrow was gone and replace with Brock’s devilishly charming personality.

  “There’s a lot more you don’t know. Let’s go inside.”

  He grabbed the wicker picnic basket from the backseat and started humming as he headed towards the bright blue door.

  I followed him toward the house, and after he keyed a number into the lock pad, we went inside.

  Hazy light streamed through large windows, and a massive stone fireplace dominated the sitting room. A modern kitchen with folding doors led to a garden that took my breath away.

  Manicured roses of varying colors lined a stone-step path that led to a sweeping circular lawn. To one side sat a white wooden bench. The other was home to a large, majestic oak tree—something that was so old, it probably predated Ireland as a nation. All in all, the place was perfection embodied. It was literally something they would make as a movie set, not real life.

  “If you buy this place, I might have to relocate and move in.” I grinned. “Maybe instead of babysitting movie stars, I can start babysitting places.”

  “Mi casa es tu casa.”

  Once we’d situated ourselves, we went out to the garden where we found a secluded sunspot. Brock opened the picnic basket. Inside was a red and white checkered blanket along with the promised champagne and strawberries.

  With a dramatic flourish, he laid the blanket on the grass, and after smoothing out the wrinkles, he patted a spot beside him. I gladly accepted his invitation then accepted a glass of champagne.

  With a wide smile curving his sinful lips, the movie star clinked his glass against mine. “Cheers to us continuing what we started in my R.V.”

  I raised my eyebrows at him and resisted the urge to scoot away. “We won’t be continuing anything. That kiss was highly unprofessional. Nothing more is going to happen between us.”

  As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I knew they were a lie. He did too, but he was kind enough not to call me out.

  Brock just smiled and sipped his champagne. He looked out past the lawn into the surrounding forest then lay back on the blanket, looking like he had all the time in the world.

  We were alone.

  The sun was warm on my skin, but I couldn’t relax. I could feel his muscular body so close to mine. His breathing was loud in my ears so that each exhale made my pussy wetter.

  It was just a matter of time.

  Watching Brock’s handsome profile, I kept thinking there was nothing I wanted more than him. By agreeing to spend the day together in a remote cottage, I’d already decided what would happen.

  I would give myself t
o Brock Adams, and that scared me to death.

  Chapter 7 - Brock

  Alex could tell herself whatever she wanted, but by the end of the day, maybe even sooner, we would end up naked and sweaty.

  She lifted her head to the cloudless sky and closed her eyes with her lips slightly parted. The sigh that puffed from her mouth left my dick throbbing.

  “This is blissful,” she murmured. “It’s like we’re not in the real world.”

  “Everyone needs an escape from reality now and again.” I sipped my champagne and watched her closely, loving how the worry lines melted from her face.

  “Is there anyone special in your life?” I asked. I suspected there wasn’t, but before I made any kind of move, I wanted to make sure I was her one and only. Not that her having a boyfriend would have stopped me, but it was better to know if I had any competition for her heart and body.

  Alex opened her eyes. “Why do you want to know?”

  “Why do you think I want to know?”

  “If I were in a relationship, I wouldn’t have allowed you to kiss me the other day.”

  “Do you want a relationship?”

  She rocked backward and burst out laughing as if I said the most hysterical thing she’d ever heard. “With you?”

  I nodded.

  “Thank God I wasn’t drinking my champagne. If I had, I would’ve spat it all over the place.” She held her sides as if her stomach hurt from laughing.

  Her reaction stung more than it should have. “Why’s that so funny?”

  “Brock, come on. I don’t for one second believe you want anything from me other than a one-night stand. I’m the itch you want to scratch. You’re not the long-term relationship type. Even when you were with Isabella, you were more off than on.”

  I shrugged. “Sure, I’ve played the field. But perhaps it’s time to settle down and have a family. I could live somewhere off the grid.” I nodded towards the cottage. “Somewhere like this.”