Hollywood Harlot

Chapter 10

The next morning, Bella felt the sunlight streaming through the window, warming her face, before she opened her eyes. She was also very aware that Jake was laying next to her. She turned toward him and gently fluttered her eyes open.

He was laying on his side, his head resting on his hand, smiling at her. She was struck again by his beauty.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” he said lazily.

“Good morning. And exactly how long have you been staring at me like that?” she giggled nervously.

“Not that long,” he answered. “I couldn’t help myself. You are beautiful when you sleep.”

Bella blushed, though she knew it was too late to be shy with him. She’d let him see everything about her.

She stretched and smiled.

“I wasn’t about to leave you here on your own this morning, not after yesterday,” Jake said quietly, reaching over to kiss the top of her head.

“A girl could get used to waking up this this,” Bella said, glancing out the window at the wintry wonderland.

“It is beautiful up here,” Jake said, standing up, completely n***d. Bella blushed again and decided not to tell him she hadn’t been talking about the scenery.

He went into the bathroom and called out to her, “Let’s head over to the lodge for breakfast, and then I’d like to take you into town.”

Bella slipped out from the sheets and darted to the doorway.

“Sounds good, whatever you say! I’m just going to run down to my room to change.”

“What?” Jake shouted back, but she had already run down the hall and closed her door tight, leaning back up against it.

Bella took a deep breath. What a difference 24 hours had made. Yesterday, she’d gotten lost in a blizzard and nearly died. Today, she woke up next to an insanely gorgeous man who wanted to spend the day with her. Bella smiled, thinking about the night before. It had been perfect, the night they’d spent together, and he was more than she ever could have dreamed of. But none of it was real. It was all just a business arrangement. And she couldn’t let herself forget that or she’d be heartbroken again.

She quickly got dressed in the same clothes as the morning before and made a mental note to grab a new outfit in town. Her practical side just couldn’t allow herself to grab another outfit from the resort gift shop for $500. She poked her head out into the hallway and heard Jake whistling in the shower down the hall, so she grabbed her phone and dialed Sara.

“Tell me everything,” Sara answered the phone excitedly.

Bella laughed. “It’s nice. His sister’s welcome dinner was last night and it was beautiful. I really like her.”

“Okay, okay, but what about him?”

Bella smiled and paused.

“Ooooh, girl, I can hear you smiling through the phone! You slept with him!”

Bella blushed, “It’s not like that.”

Sara chuckled. “I’m glad you’re finally letting loose and having a little fun. You deserve it. You’re young and you’re good looking and you’ve been working hard. Like I said before, live it up a little while you can!”

Bella nodded, “I’m trying.”

Sara responded, “I want you to have fun, honey, you know I do. Just don’t forget what you signed up for. It’s one week. That’s it. Just remember that to keep yourself from getting hurt.”

Bella swallowed hard. She thought of Jake showering in the other room and pictured his tanned, toned chest and abs…and his adorable crooked smile. She had to keep reminding herself this was all just a dream, and a dream with an expiration date.

She nodded. “I know, Sara. I’ll be okay, I promise.”

Suddenly, Jake knocked on her door and when she opened it, he greeted her with a giant smile and a tumbler full of hot chocolate.

“Ready?” he asked, leading her toward the door.

Bella inhaled, allowing the delicious aroma to flood her senses.

Jake smiled over at her as they started the walk toward the lodge. “I remember you saying yesterday that you don’t like coffee.”

Bella’s smile matched his. “That’s sweet of you to remember.”

He shrugged and put an arm casually around her waist as they walked. She scooted a little closer to him. Between the amazing night they’d just had, the hot chocolate, and the gorgeous man holding her close, Bella couldn’t think of a day that had started out so nicely in a very long time.

When they arrived in the main dining room, Bella gasped. Vaulted ceilings reached high, the entire room was flanked by whole logs and the floor was shiny hardwood. Large, cozy looking tables and chairs of matching wood lay perfectly placed throughout the main seating area, and a large, open kitchen made of stone splayed across the entire back wall. As with every room in the gorgeous mountain retreat, a fireplace along one wall was another central feature, the chimney stretching all the way to the ceiling.

“So beautiful,” Bella said breathlessly.

Jake smiled. “My parents used all of the timber they got from clearing the land inside the lodge, so most of what you see actually came from right here. They are also extremely eco-conscious, so they bought acreage a little further north that had been clearcut and then abandoned years ago and replanted a forest there. It will always stay as a reserve now. So it’s pretty cool the woodwork you see around this place is quite literally original.”

“Wow,” was all Bella could say as Jake led her to the back wall. The open massive kitchen stretched in front of them. And the entire counter was covered in delicious looking dishes.

Bella’s stomach grumbled and Jake laughed. “Anything you want is yours, this restaurant serves breakfast buffet style seven days a week.”

She moaned in delight as she piled her plate high with a waffle and strawberries, fresh fruit, and a cinnamon raisin muffin. She placed an order with the custom egg chef for an omelette and turned to Jake when he approached her, his own plate overflowing with pancakes, bacon, sausage, and hash browns.

“Let’s sit,” he said, placing a hand on the small of her back to guide her toward a table. “They’ll bring your order when it’s ready.”

Jake chose a table for four and pulled a chair out for Bella again. She was getting used to having a helping hand. Impulsively, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek. He smiled and sat down next to her, scooting his chair close enough to place a hand on her thigh. As it always did when he touched her, heat immediately began to radiate through her body.

“Does it bother you if I eat bacon in front of you?” he asked as he unfolded a napkin and placed it on his lap.

She smiled, picking up a fork. “Not at all, but it’s sweet of you to ask. You can eat whatever you want, I’m just not going to.”

He chuckled softly as Carolyn suddenly approached their table and stood behind the chair across from Bella.

“Jake, Bella, I trust you had a nice night?”

Jake winked at Bella and she blushed immediately, unable to look the matriarch in the eye. “We did, Mom, thanks for asking.”

“And you’ll be partaking in the wedding party ski runs today?”

Jake raised an eyebrow at Bella and she nodded slightly at him, then finally summoned the courage to look up at Carolyn.

“Sure thing, we’ll be there later this afternoon,” Jake said. “I’m going to take Bella into town this morning and show her around.”

Carolyn nodded. “Would you stop by Sweet Shoppe and grab a quarter pound of maple fudge for your father?”

Jake smiled. “I would have even if you hadn’t asked, Mom. Anything else?”

Carolyn glanced down at the two of them sitting so closely together at the table, her eyes dropping to Jake’s hand on Bella’s leg. “Just have fun, you two. That’s all I want,” she said as she walked away.

Jake leaned toward Bella and kissed her neck, then whispered in her ear, “I can think of a thing or two we could do for fun.”

Bella smiled coyly. “Oh you can, can you?”

Someone coming through the kitchen caught her eye and Bella saw it was Alex.

“I’ll be right back, and then I’ll be ready to go,” she said to Jake, standing up and placing her napkin on the table.

Jake followed her gaze, “Oh, no, you don’t. I don’t know what’s going on with the two of you, but I don’t think I like it very much.”

Bella sat back down at the table very slowly. “Oh. No. No, Jake. You don’t get to say that. Nothing is going on, but I do want to apologize for how rudely you pulled me away last night. He was just trying to help. And you don’t own me.”

Jake shrugged. “But I do, remember? For the week.”

Bella’s eyes widened and she stood back up, stomping away from the table without looking back.

Over by the kitchen, Alex was flipping bacon on a griddle. He glanced up when he saw her coming and smiled.

“Morning, Bella! You okay this morning?”

Fueled by her anger at Jake’s declaration, Bella rolled her eyes. “I’m fine now, thanks. I just wanted to apologize for last night. It was so kind of you to help me out and I didn’t like running off so suddenly like that.”

Alex shrugged. “Then why did you?”

She blinked, trying to come up with a good response.

He flipped the bacon and smiled at her again. “It’s okay, Bella. You don’t have to explain yourself to me. Just make sure you’re happy with what you’re doing, okay?”

She glanced behind her, where she and Jake had sat for breakfast, but the table was empty. She sighed and turned back to Alex.

He seemed to sense her confusion. “Can I make you something special for breakfast?”

Bella licked her lips. “That sounds so tempting. But I already filled up on all of your delicious creations, and don’t have room for another single bite.”

“Another time then,” he said, his eyes sparkling.

She smiled. “Sounds good,” she said, and started to walk away.

The dining room was emptying out and there was still no sign of Jake anywhere. She had taken three steps when Alex called out after her.

“Tonight?” he asked.

She turned back toward him. Standing there in his chef hat, behind the griddle, she couldn’t help but notice how adorable he looked, but also a little sad. It struck her that everyone has their own story, their heartbreak of one kind or another, that they carry around with them wherever they go. She wondered what his mountain to climb had been, or still was.

He just stood there smiling at her, waiting patiently for her response. She tilted her head slightly.

“That sounds great,” she said.

He winked. “See you tonight, then.”

She smiled back at him and turned from him for the second time that morning to walk out.