His chest hitched. “I don’t have to do anything,” he said. “But I want to. I want to take care of you.”
I shifted uneasily on the bench in the shower. “My ankle barely hurts anymore.”
He stood and looked up, moving the soap up my abs to my breasts. “You spilled coffee on yourself, did you not?”
I nodded, throat tight.
“And you were dirty not only from that, but from your come literally dripping down your thighs.” His voice was tight. So controlled, but on the precipice of something that might crack.
“And you fell several feet over a railing, twisting your ankle. Even if it doesn’t hurt much… you still had some pain. Did you not?”
“Yes.” I hadn’t meant to whisper, but it came out that way all the same.
“Then, for fuck’s sake, Chelsea, let me help you. Unless you don’t like my hands on you like this.” The soap brushed across my nipple, sudsy and slick and a breath hitched in my chest. A smile lingered on his mouth. “That’s what I thought. So just let me help you. Let me take care of you. With you… no amount of effort is too much.”
Josh was sexy and kind and attentive… and famous. Some woman would be lucky to have him as a partner. But that woman wasn’t me. It wasn’t the girl from Chino who had barely escaped with her high school diploma. It wasn’t that I was ashamed of my roots. Quite the contrary. I was proud of how far I’d come. I was proud that I was working hard and making something of my life out of nothing. But it didn’t change the fact that movie stars don’t pick girls like me to be with.
I inhaled a steady breath, and despite the tremble I felt in my chest, it came out smooth. “Josh,” I said pointedly, and his eyes snapped to mine. Attentive and angry, he watched me closely, but didn’t interrupt me mid-sentence. That’s right, I thought. It’s Josh now. Play time was over. It was time for real names. Mr. Murphy was the lust-filled game… Josh was my boss. That’s how it had to be now. “Whatever this was… it’s okay that it was just sex. And that it’s over. It was—”
“I swear to God, if you say was one more time I’m going to turn you over and spank that tight ass of yours until it’s pink,” Josh growled.
I narrowed my eyes at him. He might be famous. He might make a lot more money than me. But that didn’t mean he got to talk to me like that. Or spank me. Although the thought of him spanking me had my body clenching with need once more. Stupid, double-crossing body! Keep it together, nipples!
I stood up, the dull pain in my ankle spiking as I pushed past him and quickly rinsed the soap from my body. Then, reaching beyond the shower, I snapped a towel off the rack on the wall and covered my body, stepping out of the stream of water still pelting him in the back. “Well,” I said, my voice eerily quiet. “Us fucking happened in the past. Not to get all grammar nerd on you or anything, but if we don’t address it as was, how would you refer to it?”
He reached around and shut off the water before taking a step closer. “Present tense,” he said. “Because no way in hell are we done yet.”
He snaked his arm around my back, the soft cotton of the towel pressing against my wet skin. “You had fun, didn’t you?” I nodded as his lips found that tender spot below my ear. “Then why would you not want to continue doing this?”
“You’re my boss,” I whispered. “And I need this job while I get my real estate license.”
He pulled back, gazing into my eyes, and nodded. “I understand that. What if we draw up a contract that states fireable offenses—tardiness, messiness, cruelty to Cola—”
My mouth gaped open. “I would never hurt Cola—”
He pressed an index finger to my mouth, shushing me. How could he even think that I could be cruel or hurt Cola? Or any animal for that matter. “I know that,” he said, dragging his finger gently across my lips. “I also know that you would never be late without calling or for good reason. But if it makes you feel better about this—about us—I would draw up that contract. And I would also change it so that you report to my assistant, not me, when it came to your dog walking job here.”
“You’d do that for me?”
With a nod, he sighed, wrapping his arms tightly around me. “I would do anything for you, Chelsea. I’ve been falling in love with you for weeks.”
Love? Love?! We’d only known each other for two weeks! My head felt fuzzy, and I couldn’t hear over the deafening roar in my mind. “I… I don’t…”
“Don’t say anything just yet,” Josh said. “I’ve been thinking about you non-stop. And it’s okay if you don’t feel the same way yet. Just… say you’ll go to dinner with me. Tonight.”
“I want to,” I answered honestly. His smile beamed with my admission, and a pang of regret sliced through my core at what I was about to admit next. “But… I’m really nervous about your lifestyle. I don’t know how you live like you do.”
“How I live like I do?”
“In the spotlight.”
“Ah.” Comprehension relaxed his features and he nodded. “It might be hard to believe, but most of the time, my life is pretty mellow.”
Yeah right. Though I didn’t say the words out loud, apparently, I didn’t need to.
“Honestly,” he said. “Most days I live a pretty normal life. I have a handful of trusted restaurants and businesses where people know I’m there but usually ignore me. I walk Cola. I cook dinner. I’m not going to stand here and promise you that I won’t ever get bombarded or recognized. But, let’s be real for a second… I’m on a network tv show where in the last episode, I gave my brother a swirlie. I’m not George Clooney here.”
“But your life seems complicated,” I said. “I just don’t know that I’m cut out for that.”
Josh took my hands in his, giving them an encouraging squeeze. “Sure, my life is a little weird and sometimes complicated. But if you think you want someone and something simple… I think you’re kidding yourself. You are vivacious, driven, smart, playful… and you, Chelsea Griffin, are complicated.”
It was like he could see through me right to my core. See through all my bullshit and shields and walls and armor to the real me. He was right. One hundred percent right. I grew up in a simple household. There was nothing wrong with it… but I’d escaped that life. And what even is that word? Simple. It’s a stupid word. It means different things to all of us. In some ways, many ways, if what Josh said was true, he did live a simple life. Yeah, he was on a tv show, but he loved his brothers and his family and his dog. And I never saw him in the tabloids out partying or anything.
He paused, his throat moving with a thick swallow. “One date. That’s all I’m asking from you, Chelsea. If after that one date, you would rather just be Cola’s dog walker, I promise to accept that.”
I took a deep breath. “Okay.”
Once again, that breathtaking smile took over his face. “Okay?”
I nodded. “One date. Let’s see how this goes.” I didn’t entirely believe that Josh could have a normal date, let alone a normal relationship, but I was willing to try. I really did like him… and maybe even with time… I could love him.