Hollywood Stardust Supporting Roles - Wilson and Giselle Read online

  The man had a homing device to find the elusive location every male, and dare she say woman, went searching for, but never honed in on. In Wilson’s case, he seemed to zone right in on it and the second he made contact, she bucked her hips as her need grew, taking over everything.

  “That’s right.” With his free hand he pushed her down. “Come on, baby.”

  Beneath him, she writhed, her body heading toward the crescendo. “Wilson.” The way he tended to her electrified every one of her nerve endings, the sizzle of pleasure rose and she gasped.

  “You’re there.” He lowered his mouth to her once more, coaxing her a little more.

  The combination of his hands and mouth and him, didn’t push her over the edge, she basically dived off the cliff. Her body flooded with euphoric pulses. Not one inch of her was spared as the ecstasy washed over her and waves slowly turned to ripples, leaving her weak and panting. What the hell did this guy do to her? He was magnificent.

  Somehow she found the strength to reach out to him. Even though she was still rebounding from that incredible orgasm, she needed him inside her.

  The bed bouncing with his movement and the familiar crunch of a condom wrapper opening let her know her wish would happen soon.

  “There’s no bigger turn on than making you come.” As he entered her, he took her into his arms and kissed her. “God, you’re so wet.”

  Their tastes combined into a delicious elixir, and she had no choice but to hold him tight, relishing in how he took things slow and rocked inside her. Needing him even deeper, she wrapped her legs around him.

  “Oh, yeah, like that.” Still, he didn’t slam his body into her. Instead, he kept his thrusts even and fluid allowing her arousal reclaim her until she was moving with him, meeting him stroke for stroke.

  His breath quickened, and he sped up. “Giselle.” Once more he found her lips. “I’m close.”

  Lord, she wanted him to use her body for his own pleasure, wanted to feel him come, knowing she brought that out in him. With his impending release, his muscles tensed and his rhythm faltered.

  Her undoing came when he began to shake and drive into her. “Wilson!” Another orgasm crashed over her, quick, hard throbs that matched his.

  “Ah!” He ground his hips to hers as his climax continued. “Damn.”

  Then, as their bodies seemed to meld together, he simply held her.

  Yes, he held her and kissed her and remained inside her and neither of them seemed all too quick to be separated. In fact, she didn’t want to be separated. She wanted to stay right here in his arms. This was the moment all her girlfriends spoke of, the moment they knew they wanted that person for more than some fun and a romp around the bed, and she understood. In this moment, there was comfort and safety and kisses from familiar lips.

  The next moment would be the anxiety and tears and uncertainty, but maybe not for her.

  Wait, wasn’t that what every girl thought?

  She couldn’t allow this moment to last, but didn’t know how to stop it.

  Chapter Five

  THE DRIP OF THE WATERFALL, the scent of citrus in the air, the hardening mask on her face. Wrapped in a fluffy white robe, Giselle sat with her toes in the warm water while several technicians attended to her every need. Life at Zen At Last Spa was calm indeed. No wonder her mother chose to live in the specialty residence there. It was total fun.

  “Love, I can’t tell you how happy I am to have you stop by. You’ve been so busy lately.” Mariam Abromowitz patted her daughter’s shoulder and then leaned back as some large woman painted some magic elixir on her eyes.

  “Every once in a while it’s nice to escape to the spa.” Giselle did not think about Wilson. Nope, she was clearing her mind of all thoughts of her man. Wait, not her man, about the man she was seeing. She glanced behind her. There were a lot of men in the room, all of whom she could see with her own two eyes. In fact, she was a veritable slut on men she saw.

  “So, tell me about your work. When does the bar open?” Her mother let out a satisfying sigh as a man started a massage.

  Still not thinking about Wilson, Giselle took a sip of her iced green tea. “Well, we’re getting ready for the grand opening, starting with a soft opening. That was my idea.” While she wasn’t thinking about Wilson, she also wasn’t thinking about the bar. It was Wilson’s bar, and he and the bar would be fine. Not that she was thinking about it. Nor was she thinking about the way she simply didn’t show up to work this morning without calling, or texting, or wondering how many times he’d called or texted.

  “Is the we, you and the owner?” Her mother’s voice hardened as if she just caught her daughter coming in six days past curfew.

  “Yes.” Giselle swallowed and decided to try something out. “I have sort of been seeing him.” She held her breath for the verdict.

  Her mother cleared her throat. “What does that mean? You see people all the time.”

  “You know, we go out and do stuff.” Hopefully, her mother would fill in on the stuff without her having to elaborate.

  “So you have sex with him?” Her mother turned and opened one eye.

  Everyone in the room seemed to stop and stare at her.

  Help her. “Yes. We have sex. He’s very good at it.” She made sure to look at everyone.

  “Are you having fun?” her mother asked. “Keeping it light, not getting too attached?”

  “Do you ever think that’s hard when you sort of like spending time with that person? Maybe even care about that person?” Once more, her mind went to her cell phone in her purse at her mother’s studio apartment way far away from the treatment room they were in now. What if Wilson didn’t call? Her chest tightened.

  The masseuse at her back dug in and kneaded her shoulders. “You are very tense.”

  Now her mother sat up. “How many times do I have to tell you to keep things light and fun, and then you don’t get hurt? I don’t think my heart will ever heal from your father’s death, and while I got you out of it, I’m always terrified something will happen.”

  Giselle sighed. “Didn’t you ever want something with someone else?”

  “Oh.” Her mother fanned herself to keep the tears at bay. “I don’t think anyone can ever fill that spot. Honey, it’s just not worth it. Trust me and learn from my mistakes. Keep it fun, and be life of the party, and all will be good.”

  “I think you and I need to come out with a line of lampshades and sell them as hats. They’ll be the new party hat and save people a ton on lamps that get broken.” Giselle broke out into a grin, purposely making a silly face.

  Her mother let out a laugh. “You know, you’re a visionary, my daughter.”

  The red fading from her mother’s face meant the tears were abated. Giselle pressed her back to the chair and wiggled her toes, staring into the water. Just like a bad movie or romance novel, all she saw was Wilson’s face. The last few weeks were the most incredible she’d ever spent with anyone and that included the summer she and Ivy went to summer camp in junior high and she met that really cute guy after hours. Now she’d gone and left him, and he wasn’t like some guys she dated who wouldn’t notice. Wilson personified responsibility. “I sort of didn’t tell him I was taking a day off. Maybe I should call him.” She swore her heart sped, a horrible sensation she didn’t need to keep experiencing every time she thought of him. Damn, she wasn’t supposed to be thinking of him. What if she was the one who ended up at a spa trying not to cry over a memory.

  “I’m sure he’s figured it out by now.” Her mother waived her hand as if this whole thing were nothing but bother. “I can’t tell you how many times I haven’t shown up for something, and the people get the picture soon enough.”

  “What if I thought I could just walk away, but I can’t?” She just needed to think. The way he held her and kissed her and treated her like a princess scared her. The way she couldn’t stop thinking about him terrified her. The way she wanted to be with him almost made her pass out.
/>   “That’s the time to walk away. You don’t want to end up like me.” Her mother motioned for the technicians to continue. “Now lay back and finish your treatments.”

  With the knot in her stomach ever growing, she forced her back into the chair and squeezed her eyes shut. Wilson was still there no matter how hard she tried to make him go away.

  * * * *

  FOR MAYBE THE FIFTH TIME that day, Wilson paced around the main room of the bar and glanced at his watch. Somewhere in the course of dropping her off at her apartment last night and right now he managed to misplace his girlfriend.

  Girlfriend.

  Wait a minute. Did he really just think that word?

  He rewound his thoughts.

  Yes, he just thought that word. What else could she be? They spent every day together, they spent the better parts of the nights together, they did everything together, even worked together, and he didn’t want it to end.

  In fact, since he was being completely honest with himself, he admitted he only wanted more.

  At the moment, what he wanted more than anything was for her to arrive. Their newly hired staff was on their way for training, and he had a meeting with another alcohol vendor. She should have been here over an hour ago.

  Thus far, he had texted her three times and called twice. At what point did he turn from a concerned boyfriend to insane person? Also, at what point did he tell her they were in a formal relationship?

  He broke into a sweat and decided to make his texts even with his phone calls and dialed her number once more.

  Where before the phone rang a few times indicating she simply didn’t answer, this time the call went right to voice mail meaning she was on the phone. Maybe she was calling him and he hung up. After several minutes with no missed calls or voice mails, he ground his teeth together.

  He was either upset or worried. Upset if she didn’t just quickly call and tell him where she was when she was supposed to be here, and worried if for some reason she couldn’t call.

  A knock came at the front door right as he was about to make yet another call. “There she is.” Though she usually let herself in the back, she had her quirks. He rushed to the door, practically colliding with the damn thing before opening it.

  “Hello boss, we’re here for our training.” One of the men he vaguely recognized saluted him.

  He scanned the group of six individuals. They all showed except the one person who mattered. These were her little chickens. She built the coop, how could she not be here? Something must have happened. His chest seized. Why didn’t they just stay together at night? Palm Springs was amazing. They woke up together, made love and had breakfast. That’s how life should be.

  “Can we come in or is this part of the training?” The man waved his hand in front of Wilson’s face.

  “Yeah, come in.” He stepped back from the door. In the hours they were apart, something dreadful must have taken place. That’s how it always happened. “I’ll be right back.”

  Without waiting for them to come in, he dashed into the kitchen. His only luck thus far was nearly banging into his brother.

  “Whoa!” Logan stepped back. “What’s your deal?”

  He glared into his brother’s eyes.

  Logan straightened up. “Talk.”

  “Have you heard from Ivy today?” He made an unsuccessful attempt to keep his tone even.

  “We texted this morning, and then I called, then she called and texted.” Logan narrowed his eyes, grabbed his phone off the counter and looked at the device. “Now that I think about it, we haven’t spoken much today.”

  At finding his opportunity, Wilson cleared his throat. “When you call her next can you ask her if she’s seen Giselle, and if she may know her whereabouts?” Yes, he tried to sound formal.

  Logan peered at him over his phone. “Something the matter in Wilson’s world?”

  Not wanting to deal with his baby brother’s teasing, he closed the distance between them and glanced down at Logan. “Unless you answer my question, something is going go awry in Logan’s land.”

  They stared each other down.

  “Let me ask the one person who will know.” Logan typed away on his phone. “I told her you were concerned because Giselle is not here yet. Is that accurate?”

  “Yes.” Wilson shoved his hands in his pockets.

  At the almost instantaneous chime, he ground his teeth together. How come Logan got to have the compliant girlfriend and he had the rebel?

  “She said she saw her this morning and then said don’t worry.” Logan turned the phone to him.

  Indeed, that’s what Ivy said. “Why should I not worry? Is she on her way here?” Wilson motioned toward the phone.

  Once more Logan typed into the phone, once more Ivy responded like a good little girl and once more Logan showed him the screen.

  She sometimes disappears to clear her head. Seriously, tell Wilson not to worry, she’ll turn up when she’s ready.

  He read the text and yelled at the phone. “What is she clearing her head over?”

  “Do you want me to ask that?” Logan got ready to type.

  The message was loud and clear, she was either done or got a better offer. He shook his head and went to join his new crew. “I have work to do, mine and Giselle’s, I’m always the one who has to take over.”

  “Oh, shut it. When she gets back you’ll get a piece,” Logan called after him.

  He flipped his brother off and returned to the front, deciding he wasn’t upset or worried, he was pissed.

  “Excuse me.” One of the women on his newfound team raised her hand the second he entered the room.

  “Yes.” He pointed at her.

  “Do you think we are going to get to see Logan? Will he be part of our training?” She smiled.

  Logan. Always Logan. The only person who didn’t ask for Logan was Giselle. “If your job here lasts, I’m sure you will see him at some point.”

  She looked down.

  Not meaning to snap, he sighed. “Anyone else have any questions?”

  His six minions shook their heads.

  In his pocket, his phone vibrated, and he hated the way his stomach jumped at the thought it may be Giselle with a clear mind. Again, he turned away from his employees and retrieved his phone. At it not being his so-called girlfriend, he hit the button and barked into the phone. “What?” Well, he was the only one who called her his girlfriend, but still.

  “Hey.” Ike, the alcohol vendor, practically screamed into the phone.

  Wilson held the device back. “What’s up?”

  “Are we still on?”

  Seriously, the man’s voice was way too cheery. Wilson looked over his shoulder at the trainees waiting for him. “I don’t know. I’m sort of swamped and a key person isn’t here.”

  “I can get you some good deals, but it’s toward the end of my month and I need to wrap this up.” Ike continued to basically scream into the phone.

  “Let me call you back.” He pressed his hand to his temple and hung up.

  “Are we going to start the training now?” Another woman spoke up.

  “Why not?” If nothing else, he couldn’t stand there all day waiting for something that might or might not happen, as always he had to trudge on. “Let’s get to work.”

  The rest of the day seemed to pass in tense limbo. Between sort of training his staff and then corralling them out the door, the multitude of phone calls from anyone and everyone except Giselle, and trying to deal with the other odds and ends of opening his business, he was a frazzled disaster by the time he sat down with a bottle of whiskey and paperwork well past prime time.

  At hearing the door in the back open, he simply took another gulp of his drink. All day long he had jumped at every sound that could be Giselle and he was done. It was probably Logan anyway. He poured some more of the amber liquid and then did the loser thing where he took a swig right out of the bottle.

  “I thought you didn’t drink.” Giselle’s v
oice filled the room.

  Relief didn’t wash over him, only a fresh batch of anger. “I’m not drinking, I’m sampling, it’s one of the perks of owning a bar.”

  “Oh, did you have your meeting with that vendor?” She tiptoed into the room. “He had some end-of-month specials.”

  “I had a video conference. I’m sure I would have gotten a better deal if I was actually able to see him, but I was too busy training the staff.” He started to write a check and then realized he had no idea what he was paying. All he knew was he had to keep his cool.

  “I’m sure you did magnificent. They had to know all about Wilson’s and who better to show them?” She slid in the booth next to him.

  “Maybe the woman who hired them?” Finally, he turned to her. Damn if the woman wasn’t gorgeous. “Is this how you quit your other jobs? Will I now end up as one of your stories to your next boss?”

  “I never wanted to quit,” she whispered.

  “What do you want?” After what she put him through, there had to be a reason.

  “I brought you a sandwich.” She lifted her purse and pulled a bag out of it. “I thought we could share, then have some nuts, and maybe something else.”

  Seriously? She wasn’t going to offer an explanation? Not even an apology. All she was going to do was make light of the fact she ditched him and then show up like everything was copacetic? He had no words.

  “Can I have a sip so I can catch up?” With a smile, she reached for the bottle.

  He caught her hand. “I don’t know where those lips have been all day.” So much for keeping his cool.

  “Well, I don’t need to tell you where these lips could have been if you didn’t just accuse me of that.” With a laugh, she pulled her hand back and got out of the booth. Before she turned around she bowed.

  Every muscle in his body tensed. “Where are you going?”

  Her back facing him, she waved.

  He watched her go through the swinging door into the kitchen and flinched when the door slammed, indicating she’d left.