Contracted For Love: Famous Love Series by Tracey Pedersen Page A

he slipped his other hand down to rest on her hip.
    What the hell is he doing?
    She nearly jumped out of her skin when he leaned down to kiss her neck. As quickly as he’d done it, he moved away and stood behind her, as though nothing had happened. She glanced up at him and smiled, and Jack smiled stiffly back.
    What a dick. Why did he do that, if he still hates me?
    She turned around and enjoyed the rest of the show; before she was ready, it was finished. The crowd drifted away and she heard them discussing where they should go now. Various suggestions floated through the air and people moved in the direction of the volcano eruption at the Mirage and discussed moving on to Fremont Street. It all sounded fabulous to her, and she pinched herself that she was lucky to have plenty of time to explore.
    We don’t have to do everything tonight.
    Jack took her hand again and they headed toward an outside escalator. She looked at Jack with a question in her eyes as they joined the throng of people going the same way. Behind her, she heard a woman whisper, “I think that’s Jack Fawkner.”
    “What?” Jack looked at her. “We have to take this escalator and then walk across the bridge and down the other side. It’s the only way to get across the road on the Strip.”
    “Oh. That’s weird.”
    “It is. It’s also the reason you have to walk so far when you’re here—even crossing the road is an effort.” He smiled and looked for all the world like a man without a single care. She watched him as he smiled at people passing by. One or two appeared to recognise him, but his stride didn’t falter and he kept pulling her along with him.
    “Where are we going?”
    “We’re going to eat. Are you hungry?”
    “I’m starving. Can we go to a buffet?”
    He rolled his eyes and sighed. He seemed to sigh a lot when she was around. “You want to go to a buffet?”
    “I do. I’ve heard they’re amazing. Buffets are my favourite thing in the world—we don’t have too many of them in Australia.”
    “That’s because they are a breeding ground for bacteria.”
    “Oh, poo. You’re no fun. Where are we going, then?”
    “I thought you might like somewhere a little more classy than a buffet with five hundred other people sticking their fingers in your food.”
    “Well, that shows what you know about me, doesn’t it?”
    Jack suddenly stopped walking and turned to her as she bumped into his chest. His face was pained and he looked like he was about to explain himself to a child. “If we go to a buffet, there’ll be tonnes of people around. Word will eventually get out that I’m there, and we suddenly won’t be able to enjoy our meal in peace.”
    “Is that so bad?”
    “It can be. We don’t even have any security with us.”
    She considered that for a second. “Okay. Just this once, I’ll let you be right. Next time, though, we do the buffet. You’ll just have to wear a hat, or something, so no one recognises you.”
    He smothered the laugh that wanted to escape him. She was so damn innocent. A hat wouldn’t help him blend in—nothing but a full disguise would do the trick. She had a lot to learn about life in the spotlight.
    “Deal. Now come on, let’s eat before the couple of people whispering around us turn into two hundred.” He pulled her toward a tiny, exclusive restaurant tucked away in the Planet Hollywood casino.
     
    ***
     
    On the drive home, she was mercifully silent—possibly worn out from all the walking. She’d insisted they walk from one end of the Strip to the other, so she could look at all the buildings. Charlotte had laughed as a fine spray of mist had landed on them as they’d passed one of the bars where people spilled out of the doors and loud music pumped onto the street.
    He’d played a giant slot machine at her urging, and by the time he received his prize, a small throng of people had gathered behind them, wanting photos and autographs. He’d turned on his movie star smile and