Last Summer(10)

“Girls’ weekend.”

“Yet here you are. Alone.”

“Davie’s upstairs.”

“And Davie is . . . ?”

“My best friend from college. She went up to our room when I told her I was going to introduce myself to you.”

“So I was a target from the beginning.” He sounded disappointed.

Ella swirled the stirrer. She tapped the straw on the lip of the glass and set it aside. He was going to lose interest real fast if she didn’t come up with something more interesting than the game that had his attention. She needed his trust or else he wouldn’t open up to her. Honesty wasn’t always the best policy, but honesty gained trust. And this was one instance where honesty would pay off to her advantage. It would land her an interview and, with that, a cover feature.

“I’ll be up-front,” she started.

“Haven’t you been already?”

“True, but . . .” She took a deep breath. “You’re seriously good looking, and I’d be dead if I wasn’t attracted to you. I’m really attracted to you, and I’d like to spend time with you. I’d love the chance to get to know you.” Her cheeks warmed from her boldness. She’d never been so direct about her feelings when she’d met a man. It was too revealing. It made her feel vulnerable, exposed. But she wanted this man to know exactly how she felt, that her fascination with him was more than professional. She dared to touch him and traced her finger down the lapel of his sport jacket. The hard muscle underneath flexed and Ella had to force her hand away. She could touch him all night. “But in all seriousness, I also want to interview you.”

A discerning laugh escaped him. He shook his head. “Here I thought we were having a good conversation.”

“We are. But I bet you’d love to sit down and have another conversation with me, on the record and off.”

“You’d bet, huh?” He stroked a finger over his mouth. “We are in Vegas.”

“Yes, we are.”

He lifted his glass and took a deep drink without taking his eyes off her. He slowly set it down and wiped the corners of his mouth with his thumb and forefinger. “All right.”

She blinked. “All right? You’ll do it?”

“On two conditions.” He showed her two fingers. “We don’t talk about my father and you let me buy you another drink.”

“Deal.” She beamed, already plotting how she’d get him to tell her everything.

Damien bought her another bourbon on ice and told her what had brought him to Vegas. He was the keynote speaker at a network security conference. Ella gushed about Kà, the Cirque du Soleil show at MGM Grand she and Davie saw that evening. They talked about their favorite restaurants in San Francisco—Ella insisted Fog Harbor Fish House had the best clam chowder, hands down—and where else they’d traveled. Damien owned a flat in London. One cocktail led to another, which led to an elevator ride to his suite after Ella sent a good night text to her friend.

Ella: Don’t wait up for me.

Davie: Girl, I want deets in the AM. Have fun.

Her and Damien’s conversation in the bar was charged, stoked by a look here and a touch there. He kept a possessive hand on her lower back in the elevator, and the instant he closed the door to his suite, his lips landed on hers. He kissed her, a lingering kiss that quickly became more demanding.

It wasn’t the first time Ella had charmed a potential interview subject into sharing secrets in between the sheets, but she wondered if Damien would be the last. There was something about him she was drawn to that she couldn’t quite pinpoint. Maybe it was because she felt like he was a kindred soul. She wasn’t positive and she didn’t have proof. The feeling was more instinctual. But when you’d been abandoned more than once like Ella had, a certain element of loneliness set in. Because she sensed that, Ella didn’t just want the scoop on his relationship with his parents or what happened with his ex-wife. She wanted him.

They fucked hard that night and in ways Ella hadn’t allowed another man. He pushed her limits, leaving her drunk on arousal. When daylight broke, she sat up in bed, sore and savoring every ache. The thought of leaving him made her a little sad. But she owed Davie breakfast and Ella was never one to overstay her welcome the morning after. She expected they’d exchange phone numbers and the promise of an interview, but Damien grasped her wrist before she climbed out of bed.

“Stay.”

Ella hesitated. She looked at him, sleep rumpled and sexy. He could break her heart if she wasn’t careful.

“I have a rule,” he said in a gravelly voice. “Never fall in love again.”

“You fell in love with me after one night?” She winked when his face paled. Then he laughed.

“No, but I wouldn’t mind having you as a friend.”

“Oh, so you’re friend-zoning me.”

“God, no,” he barked with laughter, giving her hand a sharp tug. She collapsed on his chest. “Remember my quote?” Ella nodded. He cradled her face and softly kissed her lips. “I think friendship is a good place for us to start.”

Ella couldn’t have agreed more. Because she was already falling for him.





CHAPTER 5

Ella received the promotion to Senior Features Writer, but she earned it with a profile on Charlize Theron, not a feature on Damien Russell. She never interviewed him. Instead, she fell in love with him and realized his private life didn’t belong on the glossy pages of magazines or splashed across media websites. Besides, she’d be his biggest news if there was a new profile on him.