Hollywood Roommates

11

“This room is incredible.” I leave the muffins on his desk and practically skip over to the shelves. He has all sorts of different genres, from non-fiction to sci-fi and fantasy. There’s also an entire shelf dedicated to books about the justice system.

He eyes the muffins I left in front of him. “What are these for?”

“To take with you on set today. Give them to the crew or your assistant or something.” I shrug. “If you’re this grumpy with them too they could probably use a nice gesture from you.”

He stares at me with his mouth open for so long I fully expect another scolding, but then he reluctantly says, “That’s not a bad idea. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” I grin and decide to escape before he turns into a jerk again.

Allie 1, Shane 0.

Chapter Eight

MATT

Well, that sucked.

Three hours of my life down the drain, and for what? For them to tell me they thought I should be more like my brother. f**k that.

I’m not sure why I even bother anymore. My agent sends me scripts and gets me auditions, but no one wants me. They all want Luke, the big action star who graces the covers of magazines every month. I’m just the younger, crappier version of him.

When I get home, I grab a beer from the fridge and head to the den to lose myself in some video games before work. I find Allie sitting there still in her pajamas, her nose in a book with a half-naked guy on the cover. Her red hair is tied back in a lazy ponytail and the cutest reading glasses are perched on her little nose. Her pretty feet are curled up at her side, dotted with pink nail polish.

She glances up at me with a smile. “How did your audition go?”

For a second I’m too distracted by her casual sexiness, the kind she probably doesn’t even realize she has. She’s all lush curves and soft lips and warm eyes and I have the strongest urge to snuggle against her while we watch TV together. And maybe slide my hand into those pajama pants to touch her bare skin.

Problem is, I can’t do either of those things. Thanks a lot, Shane.

I sigh and sit beside her, stretching my long legs out on the coffee table. “It didn’t go well.”

She sits up with a frown. “What happened?”

I shrug. “I wasn’t what they were looking for, I guess.”

“How is that possible?” She gestures at me. “I mean, look at you.”

I raise an eyebrow at her. “What does that mean exactly?”

A slight pink flush touches her cheeks. “Oh, you know you’re gorgeous. You could be an underwear model with that face and that body.”

I grin at her compliment. Sure, I’m good-looking and plenty of women have told me so before, but it’s different hearing her say it. Maybe because she’s so genuine, or because she’s not trying to get in my pants. “I have done a bit of modeling on the side. It pays the bills. But I really want to act.” I take a sip of my beer. “Back to reading through scripts and hoping for a decent one.”

“What was the part today?”

“A low budget action sci-fi movie. Like what my brother got started in. But they just wanted a copy of Luke.”

“I’m sorry. I’m sure you’ll find something that’s a perfect fit soon.”

“I wish I had your optimism.”

Allie rests her hand on my arm, her touch soft. “It’ll all work out. I’m sure of it. You just have to keep putting yourself out there and someone will see how special you are.”

I chuckle. “That sounds like relationship advice.”

“Oh, I’m definitely not giving you that. I’m no expert on relationships, obviously. That’s how I ended up here, after all.”

I take the hand that was on my arm and slowly run my thumb over her soft skin. “How are you doing with that?”

She sighs. “I’m fine. More mad at myself than anything.”

“How could you possibly be mad at yourself?”

She glances away, as if embarrassed. “I should have noticed something was wrong. Should have seen the signs he was cheating on me. Looking back, there were definitely some hints, but I ignored them all. I told myself he was busy with work. Now I realize how stupid I was.”

“Hey.” I wrap an arm around her shoulders. “You are not stupid and none of this is your fault. Your ex was clearly the stupid one to cheat on you in the first place.”

“Thanks. That’s nice of you to say.”

“I mean it. You’re beautiful, kind, smart, and make amazing muffins. I’ve only known you a day and I can already tell a man would be a fool to give you up.”

She gives me a shy smile. “Well, your flirting is definitely good for my ego.”

I stare at her lips with the strongest urge to kiss her. From the way she gazes back at me I think she wants that too. There’s an electricity in the air between us, and with her in my arms the draw to her mouth is so overwhelming it takes everything in my power to resist.

“Then my job here is done.” I wink at her, then pull away. “All right, I need to get ready for work. I’ll let you get back to your book.”

I actually have plenty of time, but I need to get away from her or I’ll be tempted to tear up Shane’s roommate contract, push her down on this couch, and go down on her until she stops thinking about her ex. That’s what she needs—someone to make her forget that asshole and give her some confidence again. Someone to make her feel good.

That’s my specialty.

I pause at the door. “You should come to the bar where I work tonight. Bring Brooke if you want. It’ll be fun.”

She bites her lip. “I’m not sure I’m ready.”