happens around me, so I hobble out the doors into the fresh air. This way, I should see Keenly coming and can jump right back into the action. I’ve never felt more inadequate.
Sunlight glistens off the surface of the pool, mimicking the same sparkling of the ocean itself. Forget the chairs. I sit down in a spot near the pool where it looks like the water flows right into the Pacific. Stretching out my aching legs, I close my eyes and take in the invigorating breeze. This place is heaven.
“Is this you working again?”
I snap my head up and see Devon leaning against the railing of the nearest balcony. His car wasn’t out front. Where’d he come from?
“I’m waiting,” I call back. Reaching into my purse, I pull out my phone, needing something to make me appear busy. I’m not going to play the role of the idle dummy again today. I disregard Devon, since he’ll disappear in a second anyway, and instead, turn on my phone to find a missed text from Maddie:
Is he there? Tell me he is!
I smile and send her back a little thumbs-up icon.
From the corner of my eye, I see Devon walk down a set of steps, coming toward me. What does he want now?
He stops next to me and sits down just as casually as I had minutes ago. “You trying to ignore me today?”
He’s wearing raggedy jeans again—maybe the same ones from yesterday—a black v-neck undershirt and flip-flops. This jerk can even make flip-flops look sexy. I have to remind myself not to stare at him.
“Not ignoring you. Just here to work.” My phone buzzes, and I look down to see Maddie’s sent me a response:
Get me more info on his hot brother.
She’s included a photo of Devon and Kaidan standing together on the red carpet. I angle my phone so he can’t see the screen.
“So…Olivia.” Hearing him say my name catches my attention. He does remember . “How’d you end up in party planning?”
He looks down at me and shifts in his spot. His leg is almost grazing mine, and I find myself staring at the torn knee of his jeans. Something as stupidly ordinary as a few inches of tan skin leaves me entranced, and the heat from his closeness rises up like a growing wildfire, spreading up my legs, settling in the core of my body. I focus on keeping my breath steady, and my phone goes off again:
Seriously girl. Ask what’s in those genes.
Another buzz:
Better yet, ask what’s in those jeans ;-)
I feel my cheeks flush as I slam my finger against the button to shut off my phone and jam it back into my purse. “Sorry. I…um…went to school. For hospitality. I haven’t found a career yet. As you can probably tell. But… yeah. So I’m just here for now.”
I adjust myself to add a couple inches between us. He’s acting vaguely interested in my stammering, so I need to get it together—and fast. I move my feet to position them on one side of me and wince from the brief pain that leaves me wondering how runway models can handle stilettos but I can’t last a day in three-inch pumps.
“You okay?” Devon asks.
Not really. You’re being too friendly, and I can’t figure out your motives.
“Yeah, it’s just my feet. They’re sore from yesterday.” I laugh at myself. “But I don’t know why I’m telling you that. So you tell me. What do you do when you aren’t busy being rich and famous?”
He gives me one of his irresistible grins and answers while reaching over and grabbing ahold of my feet. Before I can stop him, he swivels my legs back around, placing them on his lap. I might have a heart attack.
“My time is spent helping pretty women get jobs and dodging any further questions about my personal life.”
He unstraps my sandals, removing each one slowly. He called me pretty. He’s touching me. My legs are the luckiest legs in all of L.A., and I can’t stop thinking about how we’re one thin layer of denim and a quiet room away from being two longtime lovers recovering after an intense horizontal workout.
The cold water from the pool
Sunlight glistens off the surface of the pool, mimicking the same sparkling of the ocean itself. Forget the chairs. I sit down in a spot near the pool where it looks like the water flows right into the Pacific. Stretching out my aching legs, I close my eyes and take in the invigorating breeze. This place is heaven.
“Is this you working again?”
I snap my head up and see Devon leaning against the railing of the nearest balcony. His car wasn’t out front. Where’d he come from?
“I’m waiting,” I call back. Reaching into my purse, I pull out my phone, needing something to make me appear busy. I’m not going to play the role of the idle dummy again today. I disregard Devon, since he’ll disappear in a second anyway, and instead, turn on my phone to find a missed text from Maddie:
Is he there? Tell me he is!
I smile and send her back a little thumbs-up icon.
From the corner of my eye, I see Devon walk down a set of steps, coming toward me. What does he want now?
He stops next to me and sits down just as casually as I had minutes ago. “You trying to ignore me today?”
He’s wearing raggedy jeans again—maybe the same ones from yesterday—a black v-neck undershirt and flip-flops. This jerk can even make flip-flops look sexy. I have to remind myself not to stare at him.
“Not ignoring you. Just here to work.” My phone buzzes, and I look down to see Maddie’s sent me a response:
Get me more info on his hot brother.
She’s included a photo of Devon and Kaidan standing together on the red carpet. I angle my phone so he can’t see the screen.
“So…Olivia.” Hearing him say my name catches my attention. He does remember . “How’d you end up in party planning?”
He looks down at me and shifts in his spot. His leg is almost grazing mine, and I find myself staring at the torn knee of his jeans. Something as stupidly ordinary as a few inches of tan skin leaves me entranced, and the heat from his closeness rises up like a growing wildfire, spreading up my legs, settling in the core of my body. I focus on keeping my breath steady, and my phone goes off again:
Seriously girl. Ask what’s in those genes.
Another buzz:
Better yet, ask what’s in those jeans ;-)
I feel my cheeks flush as I slam my finger against the button to shut off my phone and jam it back into my purse. “Sorry. I…um…went to school. For hospitality. I haven’t found a career yet. As you can probably tell. But… yeah. So I’m just here for now.”
I adjust myself to add a couple inches between us. He’s acting vaguely interested in my stammering, so I need to get it together—and fast. I move my feet to position them on one side of me and wince from the brief pain that leaves me wondering how runway models can handle stilettos but I can’t last a day in three-inch pumps.
“You okay?” Devon asks.
Not really. You’re being too friendly, and I can’t figure out your motives.
“Yeah, it’s just my feet. They’re sore from yesterday.” I laugh at myself. “But I don’t know why I’m telling you that. So you tell me. What do you do when you aren’t busy being rich and famous?”
He gives me one of his irresistible grins and answers while reaching over and grabbing ahold of my feet. Before I can stop him, he swivels my legs back around, placing them on his lap. I might have a heart attack.
“My time is spent helping pretty women get jobs and dodging any further questions about my personal life.”
He unstraps my sandals, removing each one slowly. He called me pretty. He’s touching me. My legs are the luckiest legs in all of L.A., and I can’t stop thinking about how we’re one thin layer of denim and a quiet room away from being two longtime lovers recovering after an intense horizontal workout.
The cold water from the pool
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