I get out of the shower and get dressed, then sit at the foot of the bed, flipping through channels as I impatiently wait for Haley to arrive. I can’t handle the dark thoughts that swirl in my mind. I try to shut them out, but images of Haley dying in a car crash on the way to the hotel flash through my brain.
Then I think about what it would feel like to be in a crash. I see it all play out in slow motion, everything from knowing you’re going to die a moment before it happens. How long after impact would I suffer before I actually die? I feel the windshield break into a million tiny pieces and tear open the skin on my face. The airbag pushes the glass into my flesh even more. The car would flip and roll, and I’d be jostled into unconsciousness.
“What the fuck is wrong with me?” I mutter to myself and stand up, opening the top drawer of the dresser. I pull out a pill bottle and break a Tramadol in half. I take it with water, wanting to be coherent when Haley arrives. Coherent but calm.
She calls me when she gets into the hotel lobby. I stand, take a look at myself, then leave the room. My bodyguard, Frank, tags along to keep fans from taking unwanted pictures or getting too close. As much as I love my fans, I just want a nice night out with Haley.
I hardly recognize her when I leave the elevator and step into the lobby. She’s standing with her back to me, hair curled and pinned up to her head. The dress I bought her is midnight blue and tight in all the right places, giving her a perfect hourglass figure. She put on a black sweater that doesn’t quite go with the dress, and it pains me to remember the hint of scars I saw on her shoulder.
“Haley,” I say, and she turns around, smiling. The dress is low cut, and her breasts are pushed up. I can’t help but stare for a second—or a few seconds—before moving my gaze to her face. “You look beautiful.” I extend my hand for hers.
“Thanks,” she says as she links our fingers. “It’s thanks to you, though. This dress is beautiful on its own.”
I step in close and kiss her. It’s just as intoxicating as before, and I want to take her upstairs and into my hotel room, slowly removing her clothes and kissing every inch of her until she begs me to fuck her.
“You look nice too,” she says, arms wrapping around me. I move closer, my hips brushing against hers. I’m getting turned on from being so close, and she can feel my cock harden. Her eyes narrow, and she kisses me again.
Frank clears his throat. Right. I’m in the middle of the hotel lobby. People are watching, probably snapping pictures. I reluctantly step back and take Haley’s hand. “Are you hungry?” I ask her.
“I’m starving,” she says. “I haven’t eaten since lunch.”
I smile and realize it’s the first time I’ve had a date tell me she wants to eat. “I did eat after lunch, but I’m still hungry,” I tell her. “I’m always hungry.”
I hold her hand as we walk out of the hotel, and Frank opens the door to a black sedan for us. I get in first, sliding over. Haley gets in next to me and looks around.
“This is so weird,” she says.
“Being in a car?”
“Being treated like I’m important.”
I smile. “I think you’re important.”
“Well, you’re one of the few. But thanks.”
I nudge her arm. “You’re important to your horses.”
Her lips curve into a smile. “I like to think so.”
I run my fingers up and down her arm. Haley relaxes and moves closer to me, reaching over and cupping my face. She wets her lips and kisses me. Holy fuck, the woman is driving me wild without meaning to.
Her hand runs down my chest, sweeping across my lap. She feels my hardened cock and bites her lip, turning away. I take her hand in mine, rubbing slow circles on her wrist the rest of the way to the restaurant.
We get seated right away, receiving collective stares from most of the restaurant. A hush falls over some of the patrons, and I watch Haley tense uncomfortably as eyes fall on her. She knows she’s being judged.
We show our IDs and I order us wine. Thankfully the waiter is professional and doesn’t gush over me. He’ll be getting a big tip at the end of the night. The lighting is low, and we’re in the back, like I requested.
“Have you been here before?” I ask.
“Once,” she says, taking a drink of wine. “My dad took me out when I graduated high school.”
“So it was a while ago,” I joke.
She raises an eyebrow and smiles. “Not that long ago.”
“Your dad,” I start then realize it’s a rude thing to ask. I spent the night in a barn with her. We were past awkward and had moved to being able to ask personal questions, right?
“He and my mom split when I was really young,” she explains. “He lives on the east coast and has kids. It’s weird to think I have half siblings I’ve never met.” She shrugs. “I don’t think they know about me, actually.”
Having an estranged father was something I could relate to. “That’s kind of shitty.”
She takes another sip of wine. “I guess so. I get along all right with my dad, and he came and stayed with me for a few weeks after…after the accident. But he lives on the other side of the country and his kids are all under eight years old. I don’t need him, they do. I get it.”
“You’re a forgiving person.”
She shrugs. “I guess so, when it comes to that. The issue was with my parents, not me, but yeah, it still hurts to know he could so easily move on. But I’d rather forgive and move on as well than harbor hatred. It’s not worth it.” She looks up and smiles, and I feel like a plonker for once again bringing up a topic that causes her pain. I reach across the table and take her hand. Her eyes widen and she looks down. “People are taking pictures of us.”
“Relax,” I say. “You look amazing and have nothing to worry about.”
She smiles. “How do you do it so calmly?”
“You get used to it, really. I mean, I’m still aware of everything I say and do in public—for the most part, at least—and I think twice before I leave the house. You know, make sure I don’t have stains on my clothes and all that. It bothered me at first, but now I don’t care as much.”
“Right,” she says, tightening her grip on my hand. “It’s just you and me.”
“Just the two of us.”
Chapter 16
“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” I say, staring down the doctor.
“I’m sorry, but no. You have pneumonia.”
“It’s the middle of July,” I say, like that will change the diagnosis. “People don’t get pneumonia in the summer.”
He takes the stethoscope out of his ears. “They do, more often than you’d think. And you said you spent several hours in a cold river?”
I nod. It was more than just hours, and the river wasn’t cold, it was fucking freezing. Yet we had to get the scene perfect. My chest hurts when I inhale, and I have a nasty cough. I don’t feel that bad though. I can still go out with Haley tonight. “Two days in a row,” I add.
The doctor nods and writes a prescription. “You need to rest. You’re showing signs of fatigue too,” he says, and that doesn’t surprise me. Two weeks has passed since I took Haley to dinner in Billings, and I’ve spent every minute possible with her since then. Exhausted? Yes. Staying up late, talking and fooling around, and driving back and forth from her farmhouse to the hotel wore me out. But it was worth it. “And stay out of the river.” He shakes his head, and I know he’s thinking we’re bloody insane if not completely stupid for going into cold water in the mountains just for a movie. But hey, wading through the rapids makes for a damn good rescue scene.
“How long?”
“The weekend for sure, and taking it easy next week would be wise. Bedrest is best, but get up and walk around and take deep breaths as often as you can. You want to expand your lungs to keep them from getting even more filled with fluid.”