“Will you look at them all later? Hunting for details?”
She nodded, meeting my eyes. “I will. Including that one of you.”
The temperature inside me rose. “What will you search for in that one?” I asked, and when she looked at me like that, her gaze intense and knowing, the breath fled from my lungs, and I felt . . . disarmed. She was so direct. And yeah, she’d been like that when I knew her before, but it was magnified now, amplified by age and worldliness, as if all her inherent confidence had been strengthened and sculpted over time.
“Maybe I’ll remember how it feels to have you in front of me.”
My head felt dizzy. My blood rushed hot. “How does it feel?”
“Like a favorite memory is real once more. And real is very, very good.”
14
Annalise
I didn’t want another ghost. I wanted the solidness of Michael. The warm skin. The beating heart. He was flesh and blood, and here with me. That fueled me, made me want to answer this persistent hum in my bones asking for nourishment, asking for all I’d been deprived of.
Contact. Connection. A thread binding me to another human being.
But asking for all of that was too much, too soon.
Instead, I gestured to the edge of the pool area as I hiked my bag on my shoulder. “Walk with me?”
“Where are we headed? Are you hungry?”
“Starving.” I patted my stomach as we walked. “You know I always have a good appetite.”
A smile spread slowly on his face, and he nodded. “Your French metabolism,” he said.
“So they say.” I was trim, but I didn’t deprive myself. My secret was simple—I put one foot in front of the other and burned it off.
“Still walk everywhere?”
I nodded and then held up a finger as we reached the doorway leading into the hotel. “Wait. That’s not true. I took an Uber today,” I said, like it was a confession.
He arched an eyebrow. “Naughty girl.”
“I know. But in my defense, I was several miles away. I went to breakfast with Becky.”
“Yeah? How was that?”
I scrunched my brow. “A little odd, to tell you the truth. I’ll tell you about it at lunch. If you want to get lunch? I have about an hour.”
He nodded. “Sure. I know some great spots here at Caesars.”
I set my hand on his arm, wrapping it around his bicep. Oh, that was nice. He was so toned, so strong. “I actually thought we’d be done by now. That I’d have you arrive at the end of the shoot and then . . .”
“And then what?”
I shrugged happily. “And then . . .” I let my voice trail off once more, leaving possibilities lingering in the air. The truth was I’d been hoping for more of last night. For a repeat performance, and then some. I wanted to touch him, to smash into him, to feel him grind against me, and to wrap my legs around him. Call me greedy, call me needy—I’d own up to all of that. But when the director had told me a little while ago that the shoot would last well into the afternoon, and maybe the evening, I wasn’t so sure I’d get the time I wanted with Michael. I’d have to settle for lunch. I gestured right at the next corner, indicating the hallway that led to the business suites in the hotel.
“Where are we headed, Annalise?”
“I left my purse in our suite—the one we all use for the day. It’s kind of cool. Like a dressing room, because the models get ready there.”
“So it’s full of bikinis?”
“Yes. It is.”
“Will you model some for me?”
“Would you like me to?” I volleyed back, as the sparks zipped between us. The flirting—this heady, decadent flirting—was fantastic. I wanted to inhale it, let it fill my body like oxygen after too long without air.
“I believe that was established twice—a few minutes ago, as well as on the terrace last night.”
“Last night was interesting,” I said softly as we reached the door.
He tilted his head. “Yeah? What made it interesting for you?”
“Seeing you, of course.”
“Was that all?” he asked.
I knew he was fishing. But I wanted him to catch me at the end of his line. I needed him to reel me in.
I leaned in close, my head bending to his neck, my breath traveling across his skin. He smelled so damn good, clean and masculine, his aftershave hinting at the scent of the forest. “Touching you.”
His hands shot out, gripping my upper arms. Tightly. “You like touching me?” he asked, his voice low and gravelly.
Like? I fucking loved it. I wanted my hands all over him. Wanted to explore him.
“So much.”
He exhaled hard. “One hour, you say?”
My lips pressed against his neck, then I whispered softly, “Sixty whole minutes. Minus ten now, from the time we spent on the pool deck.” I said it like an invitation.
“Let’s get out of the hallway, then.”
I nodded, reached for my key, and opened the door.
15
Michael
Bright lights assaulted me. Fluorescents shone starkly from the ceiling, revealing one wall lined with makeup counters, four mirrors with exposed light bulbs framing each. I reached for the switch to dim the light to a normal illumination so I could be alone with Annalise without my retinas frying, when the wispy blonde model from the shoot waved a hand.
Ah fuck. That was a buzzkill. So much for the privacy of this room. My shoulders sagged. It was like being in college again, roommates crawling out of every nook and cranny, right when I’d been hoping to have my hands all over Annalise. My fingers itched to touch her.
“Hi, Annalise,” the blonde said, stretching her arms over her head, pushing them into a gray sweatshirt. She poked her head through the hole.
Annalise cleared her throat. “Hey, Candy. What are you up to?”
“Just going to do some yoga during our break.”
“Great plan. Good use of time. I just need to grab my purse.” Annalise gestured to a beige couch littered with purses, bags, and jackets. “Then you can do your downward dog to your heart’s content.”
Candy waved a hand. “I’m meeting my yoga guru in his room. He travels with me.”
“Oh,” Annalise said, seeming to rein in a smirk that tugged at the corner of her lips. “That’s smart. To have him travel with you.”
“Thanks! I better go. I only have a few minutes to clear my mind of dangerous toxins,” she said, then seemed to float to the door.
She left, and the door clicked shut with a satisfying thunk.
“A traveling yoga guru?” I asked dryly.
“Don’t you have one? I mean, really. How else could you travel?”
I held up my hands. “Can’t imagine how I’ve managed without one,” I said, then glanced around the room.
“It’s a good thing she had to leave to see him, though, don’t you think?” she said.
“It’s a great thing. Think anyone else will pop in?”
“It’s possible.” Annalise gave an indifferent shrug. “But that’s what chain locks are for.”