Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 41935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
She inhales sharply, just looking at me. I stroke my thumb over her cheek, putting my other hand on her hip.
“Dalton.” She breathes my name, and it lights a fire inside me.
“Do you want me to kiss you as much as I want to kiss you?”
Her single nod is all the encouragement I need. I bend slightly and slant my lips over hers, sliding my hand around to the small of her back. She moans softly, her lips warm against mine.
There’s a pounding sledgehammer in place of my heart, my entire body relieved she wants me back and simultaneously so turned on I don’t know how I’ll stand it. She opens to me, our tongues meeting for the first time.
I deepen the kiss and she puts her arms around my neck, pressing her body against mine.
Fuck. I can’t take as much as I want. Not tonight. But damn, do I want to. My erection is molded against her stomach, and she seems anything but shy about it. Her fingers rake through my hairline at my neck and she tugs.
I move my hand down, cupping her ass and making her gasp into my mouth. She breathes against my lips for a couple of seconds and then I capture her lips with mine again, not ready for our first kiss to be over.
She matches my passion, both of us breathless when she pulls away. I kiss the line of her jaw and she sighs, her breath warm on my throat.
“I can’t stop thinking about you, Alice.”
“I...think about you, too.”
“I didn’t kiss her the other night. She kissed me. I shouldn’t have let her, though. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. If you can’t kiss anyone else, neither can I.”
She hums with amusement. “Why can’t I kiss anyone else?”
“Because I said so. Unless you don’t mind me knocking their teeth out.”
She laughs lightly. “Dalton.”
“God, I love the sound of you saying my name.”
She puts a palm on my chest, leaning back slightly. Regret is etched into her face and reflected in her eyes. “I can’t lose my job. If I could--”
“So we’ll keep it a secret, then.”
“If she finds out--”
“She won’t.” I take her hand and put her palm over my heart. “I’m having some strong feelings for you, and if you want to see if there’s something there for you, too, I’ll stay. But if not--if you don’t want to give me a shot--then I’m leaving the show. I’ll let the producers come up with some bullshit reason for it, but I don’t want to be here just to pretend I’m having feelings for someone else.”
“No,” she whispers. “Don’t go.”
I lean my forehead against hers, relief washing through me. “I’m here for as long as you want me to be.”
Our hands brush, and I lace our fingers together. She smiles, her expression turning shy.
“Get some sleep.” I kiss her forehead. “Sunrise yoga starts early.”
“Mmm...I think I prefer sleeping in and having a hot guy deliver me breakfast.”
I give her a soft, slow kiss. “I prefer getting to look at your ass in yoga pants.”
She laughs lightly. “My ass? When there’s a choice between mine and Farrah’s?”
“Hell yes, your ass. It’s hot.”
“You’re sweet.”
I shake my head. “I’m not, though. I’m hard as hell, and it’s because of you. You’re the one who does this to me, Alice.”
I put her hand over my erection. She inhales sharply and moves her hand, making me groan.
It takes all my willpower to step back. I hold her gaze and say, “See you at sunrise?”
She nods. I open the door and look at her over my shoulder. “I want you to know I’m serious. I’m not just trying to get you in bed.”
The corners of her lips curl up slightly. “Okay, Dalton.”
I shake my head, forcing myself to turn the handle, open the door and step into the hallway. The sound of her saying my name is going to be the death of me.
“Good night,” I whisper.
“Night.”
I close the door, adjusting myself on the walk down the hallway. Our secret won’t last an hour if someone sees me walking out of this hallway with a raging boner.
thirteen
Alice
“Isn’t it beautiful?” I turn my phone and move it so my parents can see the ocean.
I want to show them the house, too, but photos and videos are strictly prohibited by the contracts everyone had to sign. They’ve only been to the beach once, though, so my mom is wowed by the view here.
“I’d. Rather. See. You.” My dad’s computerized voice says, responding to the words he pecks out with his hand.
I put the camera back on my face. “Okay, me again!”
“I can’t believe you get to wake up there every day, honey,” my mom says, wonder in her tone. “It’s like a painting.”
After sunrise yoga, Dalton locked his gaze onto mine and gave me a secret wink. It filled me with happiness, and it made me realize something.