Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 95609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
“Yep, they always underestimate you.” She drops her head to my shoulder. “Don’t underestimate yourself. Now, are those your mom’s meatballs? Also, what’s up with the bear?”
I glance over, and there’s a pink teddy bear sitting on the dresser. It’s a sweet-looking thing with a red ribbon around its throat. It looks soft and cuddly. “Must be set décor. Which means they probably want to shoot here at some point. Ugh. This is the only place where I can be alone.”
“Then I should fix that chandelier.” She’s on her feet again.
At least one of us is happy with her work.
Chapter Thirteen
It’s after midnight when I hear the snick of the hidden door moving and feel the rush of cool air that comes when it swings open. And annoyance that he thought I would be waiting up for him. I’m not. Mostly. I just can’t sleep.
I’m in the same pajamas I wore for my side scene with Hannah. She’d come back from her date with a dreamy look on her face and stories about how amazing Luca—sorry, she calls him Reg—is. She’s maybe more than half in love with him, and I can’t help but wonder if I’m making a mistake asking him to keep her.
“Hey.” I’m not surprised he’s here. I would be more shocked if he hadn’t shown up. “How did the date go?”
It’s the weirdest question. Almost like honey, how was work today? That’s how comfortable I feel with him walking into my bedroom. Most relationships feel awkward for months until you find a nice routine, but Luca and I fell into something soothing from the moment we met. Like something settled into place, and the world made more sense.
I say we. I mean me.
He’s obviously changed clothes. I doubt he wore track pants and a T-shirt to the fancy restaurant he took Hannah to. I’d heard about all the details, the camera catching my reactions to everything, including the daisy she’d shown off. They’d met with the chef and taken what sounded like a flirty, cute, cooking class before sitting down to the meal they prepared and talking about their futures as they looked out over the city skyline.
“It was fine,” he replies. “She was a good choice because she knows how to cook. I’m mostly useless in the kitchen.”
He’d been described as adorably inept. “She said she had to help you a lot, but she didn’t seem to mind.”
“It didn’t mean anything, Anika.” He closes the door behind him with a quiet click.
I stare up at him because he needs to hear some truth. “It meant something to Hannah.”
“It didn’t mean anything to me beyond I enjoyed talking to her. Not in a romantic fashion. Merely as humans stuck in the same place getting to know a little about each other.” He moves in and sits on the bed beside me. “You should have let me cut her, Schatz. I can do it gently. I wouldn’t hurt her willingly. She seems like a nice young lady, but she’s not the one I’m interested in.”
Now I feel like a jealous bitch. I give him what I hope is a sunny smile. “It’s nothing personal. I was just asking.”
He stares at me for a moment, a soulful look in his eyes. “Anika, I would let them all go if I could. If I could, I would be that man you met in the bar. I would be normal.”
“There’s no such thing.” I meant to tell him I’m tired and he needs to keep his distance. I have all the right instincts and intentions when he’s somewhere else. When he’s standing in front of me, my only instinct is to touch him, to talk to him. “I’m sorry. I’m being jealous.”
He picks up my hand and brings it to his lips, sending a spark through me. “You have nothing to be jealous of. I told you. I’m not going to touch any of them. Even though I got a hearty lecture from the producers. Did you know they expected me to…what’s the American word…hook up with most of the contestants? They asked me what I would be doing when we made it to the overnight dates. I didn’t know there were overnight dates.”
He sounds so sweetly prim, I almost laugh. And then I realize this man who keeps talking about intimacy like he’s a 19th century virgin is staring at my chest. It’s a good reminder that he’s a man.
A man who seems to only want me. The problem is can I trust him?
“That’s how these shows go, Luca.”
“Perhaps for regular people, but I have to have higher standards. So I explained to them that these intimacies will not happen.” He sighs and puts my hand down before moving to the bed across from mine. He sits and stares at me for a moment. “It’s for the best. I don’t think I could play the Casanova role. I know most men like me have reputations, but I, for one, did not earn it. I’ve only had a couple of girlfriends, and I’m not much for finding a woman for the night.”