Hollywood Roommates

27

He sets me down reluctantly. “If you ever do want more, any one of us would be happy to give it to you. Obviously I want you to pick me, but I’ll understand if you don’t.”

I swallow and nod. He gives me one last, smoldering look, before walking into his library. Leaving me all hot and bothered...and more confused than ever.

There’s only one thing left to do, I guess: kiss Luke.

Chapter Twenty-One

LUKE

I throw open the door and toss my keys in the tray with a little more force than required. They bounce off and hit the floor, and I groan before picking them up. Today is seriously not my day, and tonight isn’t getting any better. My best bet is to grab a beer, watch some football before bed, and try to forget today ever happened.

I head for my bedroom first, but stop in the doorway when I see someone is already in there.

Allie.

She sits on the edge of my bed and looks up at me nervously when I step inside. She jumps to her feet. “Luke. Um. I’ve been waiting for you.”

“I see that.” I close the door behind us and raise an eyebrow. “What are you doing in my room?”

“Your door was open and I thought…” She bites her lip. “It seems silly now. I shouldn’t have come in here.”

“It’s fine. As you said, the door was open.” I remove my jacket and hang it up. “Honestly, walking in and seeing you on my bed is the best part of my day so far.”

“What happened?” she asks, as she sits back on the bed.

“I had dinner with my agent. He’s worried about my upcoming movie and says it better be a hit, or we’re in trouble.”

“What? You’re a huge movie star! Sexiest man of the year and all that.”

“I was. But after the Lana thing my career has been suffering.”

“That’s ridiculous! She’s the one who looks bad, not you.”

I sit beside Allie with a heavy sigh. “When Lana left me I did some stupid s**t. Got wasted a lot. Trashed a hotel room. Slept with anything that moved. It wasn’t pretty. The bad publicity is catching up to me now, I guess.”

She rests a hand on my knee. “Your reaction to Lana’s betrayal is totally understandable. And you’re not doing any of that stuff anymore.”

“True, but the press love to spin whatever they can to make me seem like a total wreck.” I dig out the trashy tabloid my agent gave me at dinner and hand it to her. “Look at this shit.”

Allie stares at the cover, which has a really unflattering picture of me in a baseball cap and sunglasses, my beard extra ragged that day, as I walk down the street with my head down. The headline reads, Luke Hart’s Drug Addiction – How He’s Coping After Lana’s Moved On To A New Man.

“But that’s not even true!” Allie says. “You’re not on drugs. This is a complete lie.”

“Welcome to life in Hollywood.”

She tosses the tabloid aside. “No one reads this trash anyway. Everyone knows it’s all totally fake.”

“Someone reads it or they wouldn’t keep selling it.”

She sighs. “I wish I could do something to help.”

I take her hand and bring it to my lips, kissing her palm. “You being here and listening to me is already helping.”

“Good.” She moves that hand to my jaw, running it across the rough stubble there, as she studies my face. I close my eyes and savor her touch. It’s been ages since anyone caressed me like this. Yes, I f****d a lot of women after Lana, but those were quick and dirty encounters. This touch is intimate, almost loving.

I lean into it and then feel her other hand slide into my hair. God, it’s good. Her soft touch. Her warm fingers stroking my face and head. Then her lips brush against mine and I can’t keep in a soft groan.

She freezes at the sound and I open my eyes. She looks concerned, like she’s not sure she should be doing this.

“Don’t stop,” I say.

Her fingers slide down to the back of my neck and she pulls my mouth to hers. At first we kiss slowly, brushing and nipping at each other’s lips. Asking for permission to go further. We’ve both been hurt before and we both need to ease into this together. But there’s no one I want to do this with more than Allie.

I start to take the kiss deeper, but instead she breaks off and gazes up at me. “Is this okay?” she asks.

“More than okay.” I run my thumb along her sexy lips. “Allie, you’re the only woman I’ve felt anything for since Lana.”

Her eyes widen and I take that moment to draw her mouth back to mine. This time we’re not tentative or hesitant or slow. This time I kiss her with all the passion I’m feeling and don’t hold anything back. She melts in my arms and I wrap myself around her, holding her tight as I kiss her. Damn, I missed this. Just holding someone. Kissing them. Loving them.

Her soft lips trail down my jaw, along my stubble, to my neck. I groan and tilt my head back as she covers my skin with light kisses. At the same time, her fingers move to the front of my shirt and begin slowly undoing the buttons. Each bit of skin she reveals is covered with her mouth, and I get hard with the thought of her continuing even lower.

I’m not sure either of us is ready for that, though god knows I want it. I take her hands, stilling her movements as she opens the final button on my shirt, and drag her back up to my mouth. As I kiss her deeply, her hands splay across my chest, cool against my hot skin. I picture them wrapped around my d**k and get even harder.