“Is that your diary?” I asked, dumping my bag on the floor and placing the key on the desk.
One side of her mouth curled up into a half-smile. “No. It’s just something I write in when I get ideas for my stories.” Closing it, she placed it on the nightstand. “Speaking of which…”
“What?” I asked.
“My stories.”
Kicking off my trainers, I made my way over to her. She straightened her legs, and I grabbed her ankles, pulling her down the bed. Her thighs parted, welcoming me back. I happily settled on top of her, loving the sight of her smiling face. Behind the hipster glasses, her eyes sparkled, and she let out a giggle that warmed my jaded soul.
“You’re the cutest dork I’ve ever met, love.”
“And you’re distracting me from having a conversation with you.”
“I know, but I can’t think with my upstairs brain right now.”
She busted out laughing. I couldn’t help it; I started laughing, too. We had found each other in this crazy world. For so long, we had lived in the same city, never crossing paths. It took me being a prick and a transatlantic flight to find out that there was truly a woman of my dreams.
I couldn’t believe my luck that Elaine H. Ford had picked a photographer for her covers. If it weren’t for her, I’d never have known just exactly what I had been missing in my life.
Xanthe
A light woodsy scent filled my head. A hairy chest scratched my cheek. I was overly warm and comfortable.
I’m in some seriously deep shit.
Every time I thought I was close to confessing to Ollie that Elaine was me, I would get sidetracked.
Ollie liked Xanthe. That was who I was!
What does it matter if I used a different name? I was still me, the person he liked, the woman he wanted to spend his free time with. What would change if he knew I was the author of the Paranormal Hunters series?
The damn convention was tomorrow.
Ollie sighed pleasantly and wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight. “Good morning.” His deep voice was gravelly upon waking.
I loved that it was the first thing I’d heard.
“Morning,” I replied, my own voice husky with sleep.
He dropped a kiss on top of my head. “Do you have a lot of shit to do today?”
Groaning at what was ahead of me, I replied, “As a matter of fact…”
He sighed and kissed my head again. “I like waking up with you in my arms.”
I smiled against his chest. I liked it, too.
“Can we have dinner tonight? Something a little early?” he asked.
“What’s early?”
“I was thinking around five.”
“Sure. I should be finished around three or so.”
Mandy had gotten the pens and bookmarks along with the mini posters of the cover that Ollie would be signing. Just thinking about it made me break out in a cold sweat.
“Are you all right?” Ollie asked.
“I believe so.”
“It’s the time difference. Throws everything off.” He rubbed my back.
“So, I need to tell you something,” I said, feeling incredibly nervous.
His phone rang.
Closing my eyes, I exhaled. Damn it!
“Hold that thought.” He jumped up, fishing his phone out of his pants on the floor.
“Okay,” I grumped.
Answering the phone, he walked away to have a more private conversation. “Hi, Mandy. Okay. I don’t have the info on me right this second. I’ll go fetch it.”
Preparing myself to tell him that I was the author of the Paranormal Hunters series, I zoned out. I was so engrossed with my own thoughts that I hadn’t realized when he hung up.
“What flight are you taking on Friday?” Oliver asked.
My gaze went to his. “What’s that?”
“Your flight. I was wondering if we were flying out on the same one.”
“Oh. I’m driving out that morning.”
“Driving? Why?”
“My mother and grandma are buried outside of Boston. I wanted to visit them before heading back.”
His gaze softened. “Would you want me to come with you? I’ll have Mandy cancel my flight.”
My chest warmed at the thought. “I’d like that.”
His smile wiped all thoughts from my mind, and I watched as he pulled on his clothes.
What a fine male specimen he is…
Walking up to me, he took my face in his hands. “I have to run. Mandy needs some info from me that I have up in my room. Call me when you’re heading back?”
“Will do,” I replied. Then, I was given a very thorough kiss.
Pleasantly dazed, I watched his arse as he left my room.
Wait. What the fuck just happened?
Mandy’s boobs were bouncing all over the place in her excitement. “Your dress was finished yesterday and should be waiting in your room when you get back. It looks fabulous. The hunter green is the exact shade I imagined as Lindsey Sparks’s eyes. Readers will think so, too.”
On Tuesday, Mandy had forced me to pick out a reveal outfit. She’d wanted me dressed up like a celebrity, and I had gone along with it. I’d found a killer vintage dress from the 1940s. Stunning, it cinched in at my waist with a satin ribbon sash, and it made my boobs look nearly as impressive as Mandy’s. It made me feel like a sexy pinup girl. I’d even gotten black fishnet stockings and black patent leather pumps to go with it.
Bro Dawg Jaime would kill for that dress.
Tomorrow, the real torture would begin at ten in the morning. My hair would be styled and my makeup done. The convention would start at three o’clock and last for a few hours.
Several other authors would be spotlighted with me, all of them bringing the male models on their covers to excite and entice the readers. People went nuts for the cover models, and Ollie would be fangirled over big time. Mandy had posted the new cover on social media, and that shit had blown up overnight. Women were already offering to bear his children.
I wonder if he’s seen any of it.
Mandy had tagged him, so he must have.
“How did he take the news that you’re Elaine?” she asked.
My gaze went from her breasts to her eyes. I opened my mouth, and nothing came out.
“You haven’t told him?” she shrieked.
“As it so happens, I was going to tell him last night, but we started making out instead, and I didn’t think about it after that. And then I was going to tell him this morning, but your arse called him, and he had to run out to find out some information for you or something.”
“This is ridiculous. He likes you!”
“I like him, too. We’re having dinner tonight. I’ll tell him then.”
“This is so not like you, Xanthe.”
“A lot of this entire situation is so not like me,” I snapped.
Here I was, braving meeting the masses, which was something I had avoided for years. It hadn’t always been like this. There was a time when I’d wanted nothing more than to meet all my readers and hear their thoughts about Paranormal Hunters. I had dreamed of the moment when I would be able to reach thousands or maybe even millions of people. That had all changed the moment a lunatic broke into my house and gave me the beatdown of a lifetime.