leave a girl and not say goodbye or call."
Xander sighed and hung his head. "I know I handled this whole thing wrong and I'm sorry , but if you let me, I want to make it up to you."
H ands on her hips, Shalaine noticed the smug smile on his lips. "How do you plan to do that, Mr. Christian?"
He sat down in one of the chairs facing her desk and shifted around to make himself comfortable. "I'm here for my interview and to win you over."
M essing around with a vanity plagued celebrity might not be the smartest thing in the world for her. It hadn't been that long since she'd gotten out of a serious relationship. "I don't think I need an interview or for you to weasel your way into my good graces."
"On the contrary, we'd be a fantastic duo. You are, after all, better at making me look good than my own publicist."
"So this is just another career choice for you." The realization that he came only with thoughts to his career took the wind out of her sails. Of course, why else would he want to keep the door between them open and friendly?
Xander stood and joined her on her side of the room, eliminating what she had deemed a safe distance from his sexy aura. When he walked toward her, crowding out all the air she breathed with his spicy cologne, she knew she was done for.
He touched her chin, the way a lover would. "This isn't a career choice for me. It's a personal one. As I see it, I'm four months behind on wining and dining you. I'd like to make up for that by taking you out to lunch right now."
Shalaine chewed the inside of her cheek while she contemplated if she was making a big mistake by saying yes.
"Come on, Shalaine, it's just lunch. We spent more time together in Alaska and shared more than just a meal." Xander glanced over her office, looking at all the movie posters of some of his best feature films. Shalaine had another moment of bashfulness about her fan-girl tendencies, but when he didn't seem to mind, she pushed forward.
"Okay, lunch and we'll see where we go from there."
"That's all I can ask for."
Epilogue
A year and eight months later…
Shalaine narrowed her eyes at the rattling spruce that had muffled curses coming from it. Somewhere behind its ten feet of glory , Xander was placing ornaments on available branches. He'd been battling the sharp bristles all afternoon and refused to let her help with anything. He just thought he knew everything, down to the placement of where the tree should be and how much faux snow spray to put on each branch. She told him it would be more serene by the fireplace, but he wanted everyone on the freaking block to witness his all-white Christmas tree through the window.
She sipped eggnog and hit send on her movie article. Tia should be happy with the article she wrote on Kaden Lennox's last flick. A bit on the cheesy plot side, but her boss loved Shalaine's flare for words. In fact, Tia now allowed her to work clear on the other side of the country. Just to keep her around, a nice promotion came with that package as well. Shalaine wasn't a fan of the earthquakes or the scorching California heat, but she was happy to be living with Xander. The first months were hectic. They’d had to tackle the Hollywood media every time they went out. Now thankfully the focus was on the younger celebrity crowd. Still, she wasn't a fan of the limelight and red-carpet premieres.
She clicked ove r to Facebook and her wall was bombarded with new paparazzi shots of her and Xander walking out of the market. The tagline under the photo was inquiring when there would be a flash of a ring on her finger and mentioned the possibility of a hidden baby bump. She ran a hand over her stomach. Maybe she was raking in the pounds, but there was no ring yet. Though that might be the cause of Xander being so anal-retentive about the Christmas decorations. He was setting up the house as if they had a professional photo shoot, which meant a party with all of their friends invited and that meant a
Xander sighed and hung his head. "I know I handled this whole thing wrong and I'm sorry , but if you let me, I want to make it up to you."
H ands on her hips, Shalaine noticed the smug smile on his lips. "How do you plan to do that, Mr. Christian?"
He sat down in one of the chairs facing her desk and shifted around to make himself comfortable. "I'm here for my interview and to win you over."
M essing around with a vanity plagued celebrity might not be the smartest thing in the world for her. It hadn't been that long since she'd gotten out of a serious relationship. "I don't think I need an interview or for you to weasel your way into my good graces."
"On the contrary, we'd be a fantastic duo. You are, after all, better at making me look good than my own publicist."
"So this is just another career choice for you." The realization that he came only with thoughts to his career took the wind out of her sails. Of course, why else would he want to keep the door between them open and friendly?
Xander stood and joined her on her side of the room, eliminating what she had deemed a safe distance from his sexy aura. When he walked toward her, crowding out all the air she breathed with his spicy cologne, she knew she was done for.
He touched her chin, the way a lover would. "This isn't a career choice for me. It's a personal one. As I see it, I'm four months behind on wining and dining you. I'd like to make up for that by taking you out to lunch right now."
Shalaine chewed the inside of her cheek while she contemplated if she was making a big mistake by saying yes.
"Come on, Shalaine, it's just lunch. We spent more time together in Alaska and shared more than just a meal." Xander glanced over her office, looking at all the movie posters of some of his best feature films. Shalaine had another moment of bashfulness about her fan-girl tendencies, but when he didn't seem to mind, she pushed forward.
"Okay, lunch and we'll see where we go from there."
"That's all I can ask for."
Epilogue
A year and eight months later…
Shalaine narrowed her eyes at the rattling spruce that had muffled curses coming from it. Somewhere behind its ten feet of glory , Xander was placing ornaments on available branches. He'd been battling the sharp bristles all afternoon and refused to let her help with anything. He just thought he knew everything, down to the placement of where the tree should be and how much faux snow spray to put on each branch. She told him it would be more serene by the fireplace, but he wanted everyone on the freaking block to witness his all-white Christmas tree through the window.
She sipped eggnog and hit send on her movie article. Tia should be happy with the article she wrote on Kaden Lennox's last flick. A bit on the cheesy plot side, but her boss loved Shalaine's flare for words. In fact, Tia now allowed her to work clear on the other side of the country. Just to keep her around, a nice promotion came with that package as well. Shalaine wasn't a fan of the earthquakes or the scorching California heat, but she was happy to be living with Xander. The first months were hectic. They’d had to tackle the Hollywood media every time they went out. Now thankfully the focus was on the younger celebrity crowd. Still, she wasn't a fan of the limelight and red-carpet premieres.
She clicked ove r to Facebook and her wall was bombarded with new paparazzi shots of her and Xander walking out of the market. The tagline under the photo was inquiring when there would be a flash of a ring on her finger and mentioned the possibility of a hidden baby bump. She ran a hand over her stomach. Maybe she was raking in the pounds, but there was no ring yet. Though that might be the cause of Xander being so anal-retentive about the Christmas decorations. He was setting up the house as if they had a professional photo shoot, which meant a party with all of their friends invited and that meant a
Similar Books
