Bombshell (Hollywood A-List #1)(57)

He was who he was. Utterly and authentically.

His smile lasted less than a second, and in that slice of time, I pivoted.

“What are you looking at?” he asked, smile gone. The effect of it lingered in the form of a skipped heartbeat.

I’m looking at you.

Really.

Just you.

I swallowed the words because I didn’t even know what they meant, crouching in front of Nicole so I could look away from him.

“You get to spend the day with your dad. Do you know how many girls want to spend a day with your dad?”

“You need to come too.” She folded her arms in a righteous huff. “Or I’m not going.”

“You’re going to let Daddy go by himself?”

She nodded decisively.

Brad glanced at his phone. “The car’s ready.”

Nicole tightened the tension of her arms and mouth, pointing her chin up just enough to display proud intransigence.

I started to explain, “This is a you-and-Daddy day.”

“Miss Cara has to come,” Nicole interrupted. “Or I’m not going. I don’t want to sleep in the princess hotel or ride the spaceships or anything,” she whined, nearly in tears. “Please please please come.”

“I can’t.”

I looked up to her father, hoping for a little backup. What I got was a guy with his arms crossed and half a shrug on his shoulders.

“It would be a hell of a lot easier if you came, I gotta say.”

“Do you want to do this or not?”

“What if she has to pee?”

“There are family bathrooms.”

“She’s going to be bored without you.”

“She’s never bored.”

“What does she eat? Do I have to feed her?”

I wanted to kill him, but then I’d have to touch him. And if I touched him, all the violence would flow right out of me.

“Can we talk?” I growled.

He just smiled at me and followed me onto the back patio.

“What are you doing?” I demanded.

“Nothing?”

Had I felt a shadow of admiration and desire cross my heart thirty seconds before? Had I melted at his genuineness and sincerity? God. There must have been drugs in my breakfast. I put my hands on my hips. Sometimes, an authentic person can be an authentic ass.

“You’re changing your mind.”

“If you know what I’m doing, why are you asking?”

“You. Are. Infuriating.”

“You know what’s funny?” He pointed as if formulating the idea. “I see you with her, and you never lose your temper. She’s a real thorn, but you’re a saint no matter how bitchy she gets. But with me? You’re blowing a gasket here. Why is that?”

“She has an excuse.”

“So do I.”

“What’s that?”

“You’re not going to tell me all about what’s wrong with me?”

“Go to hell.” I spun to go in the house, but he stepped in front of me.

“I want you there because I want you. Okay? I like you. I like being around you. I want you to come because it’s more fun with you. And I want a shot at getting on top of you. That’s it.”

There it was again. Full-frontal honesty. No smile this time. No delight. Just the brutal reality of who he was. He took a step in my direction—just a half step too close. I put my hand on his chest and pushed just a little against the hard muscle.

“We were waiting until I wasn’t on the payroll. Remember?”

“I hate waiting.”

“You—”

He kissed me and I swore the kissing thing was going to have to stop.

Tomorrow.

Because on the morning of Disney Day I was weak and unprepared. I was shocked at feelings I didn’t have time to process. And we’d kissed already, and no one was around—so I let him. And not only did I let him, I tasted his tongue and said whatever. Whatever whatever. I didn’t have to worry about where we stood or what our roles were because he was with me and it felt good. So good.

“What are you doing?”

Nicole’s voice came from the house, two feet away, where we’d stupidly left a girl who didn’t like to be alone. She was on the other side of the screen, smiling so wide her face looked as if it was going to break into an explosion of dimples.

Worse than a thousand paparazzi seeing us together.





CHAPTER 40


BRAD


I didn’t know what Cara’s problem was. Like a kid never saw two people kiss before. But she froze worse than the first time I kissed her. She went totally f*cking silent on me. Not a sound. Not a word.

I was the one who had to tell Nicole to get her jacket on. I was the one who had to tie the bow on her princess dress. It was like Cara had stage fright or something. I tapped her and asked her if she was all right and she said she was fine but man, I didn’t believe her. Something was up.

She’d kissed me back. Couldn’t be that. She was totally into it. I promise you I know when a woman wants to be kissed and when she doesn’t, and Cara wanted to be kissed. One hundred percent into it. Until Nicole asked what we were doing and I said “kissing” because it was pretty obvious what we were doing. What was I supposed to say?