No matter how much I drink that night, or how much I pour myself into my work the next day, I can't get him out of my mind. Get them out of my mind. For Emilia is every bit a part of the images that haunt me as he is. Waking or sleeping, I can't close my eyes without seeing the pair of them writhing together. Without their groans of pleasure ringing in my ears. Without the heat of humiliation flooding my skin yet again.It's wrong, how much this hurts. How much it stings like betrayal - but that's unfair, because it's not like I expected him to be celibate all this time, even if I've been more or less a nun. But it brings up feelings that are a little too familiar, feelings that crept in slowly during those last few weeks of our relationship. Very pathetic feelings, I'll be the first to admit. But I loved him so deeply, so intensely, and I always wondered why a huge celebrity like Dante Fontaine - a guy who could have any woman in the world - would choose me instead of some starlet or
"Ashlyn?" Jack says again in my ear."I'll have to call you back," I mumble as I pull the phone away from my ear. I'm not sure whether I'm more shocked or anxious or pissed, but my stomach is suddenly in knots.This isn't an accident. He didn't just get an urge for a muffin and stumble into the nearest bakery. He's looking right at me, and even though I can't see his eyes behind his dark shades, that gaze still makes me shiver. He came here looking for me. I know it.But he doesn't say a word. Doesn't even come over to me. Instead, he walks right up to the register, where Karen is waiting."Good morning," she says cheerfully. "What can I get you today?"She hasn't recognized him yet. Understandably, since he's gone above and beyond to cover himself up. If he hadn't, no doubt the paparazzi would be pressed against our window right now. Dante might not spend as much time on screen as his brother Luca - who's a bona fide movie star - or even his brother Raphael, but he's every bit as
It's so shocking to hear my name on Dante's lips after all this time that it takes a moment for his words to sink in. "What's a sham?""Their engagement. Their whole relationship. It isn't real and it never was. It's just for the cameras." He throws another quick glance over his shoulder. "Frankly, I shouldn't even be talking about it. I'd appreciate it if you kept this bit of information between us."I don't know why this news is so shocking, but it is. Luca was the first of the Fontaine brothers to get engaged, but it never occurred to me that the whole thing might be a lie."It's done wonders for the publicity of Cataclysm: Earth," he continues casually. "And it's helped both Luca and Emilia tremendously.""And you," I point out. It's his movie too, after all. He wrote the damn thing.But he takes my words a different way."Emilia and I, we - ""I don't need to know," I say quickly. "That's your business." I pull my pen away from the paper. "Now, about this cake - how large w
I keep my eyes carefully trained on the form in my hands. "The cake is the only thing I'm interested in speaking to you about.""God, you're even more beautiful than I remember." Dante's voice is low, rough. "But just as feisty."Something flutters in my stomach at those words, but anger quickly suppresses the sensation."What do you want?" I demand. "Why the hell are you here?""I should think that would be obvious," he says. "I'm here to see you. To convince myself that you weren't just a figment of my imagination."For the love of God, I wish he would take off those damn sunglasses and let me read his expression."Well, you've seen me," I say. "And I have a business to run, so if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to work."He glances around the shop. "You've got a charming little place here. You always did make amazing desserts. You seem to have done very well for yourself since the last time we spoke.""A lot has changed since we were together," I admit.His chin dips s
"We have to go," Jack says."Why?" I'm working on a batch of lemon tarts, but my cell is jammed beneath my ear. I've spent the last ten minutes going over every last detail of the Dante encounter with Jack, including the invitation to his house on Sunday."Because how often do we get invited to the home of one of the Fontaines? Or any celebrity, for that matter?"I don't bother pointing out that I've been to Dante's place before. Attending Dante's little get-together means continuing to engage him, and I refuse to do that."You work for Brockman now," I remind Jack. "I'm sure you'll have plenty of chances to hang out with celebrities.""Not at their homes. Or at their private parties. Come on, Ash, how bad could it be?""Very bad. Very, very bad. I don't think he believed me when I told him I had a boyfriend.""All the more reason you should show up with me and we should rub it in his face.""I'm not sure we could pull that off.""Are you kidding? People always think we're a c
I feel anything but strong as I stare up at Dante's house.The first time I came here, years ago, I had no idea what I was in for. Dante and I were working together on a project for film school, and though obviously I was well aware of who he was - you had to have been living under a rock to not know about the Fontaines - I was less than thrilled to have to cooperate with him on a project. He already had the career, the connections, the esteem - I'd have preferred to work with someone more like me, who had to rely on hard work and talent rather than family or money.He'd insisted on meeting here, at his home, rather than the much-more-convenient library or coffee shop near campus. It had annoyed me to no end, and the first time I stomped up the steps, I hardly gave his house - his mansion - a second glance.I noticed it later, of course, for I returned to his house many times, at all times of day - but it never seemed quite as big, quite as impressive, as it does tonight.Jack seem
Things are quiet for a while, and I stay tucked away in the shadows at the far side of the pool, sipping at my drink and watching the party unfold around me. I'm glad to be alone, but now that Jack isn't here to distract me, it's hard to keep my memories at bay.Dante and I spent quite a bit of time by this pool. We often studied out here - there was something about the sun on my skin and the ocean breeze in my hair that made me feel both calm and energized at once. And Dante always claimed that he did his best work outside. He used to sit in that lounge chair beneath the cabana and scribble away at his latest script. He always preferred to write his first drafts by hand - he said that the words flowed better through a pen than through a keyboard.I think that might have been when I realized I was in love with him - the first time I saw him bent over his notebook, his eyes bright as they followed his pen across the paper. It was like I was watching him pour his soul onto the page.I
Dante is here.Dante, who couldn't be bothered to show up at his own damn party. This is who sneaked up behind me when I thought I'd finally found a moment of privacy. Immediately, rage boils up in me."What the hell are you doing out here?" I say, ignoring the jolt of pain in my ankle as I shift my weight. "You scared the crap out of me!""I'm sorry," he says, and there's a hint of wicked amusement in his voice. "I didn't mean to startle you.""It's not polite to sneak up on people," I snap. Beneath the anger, I feel something else - a sudden panic that threatens to drown out everything else. I wasn't prepared to run into Dante out here. Without Jack. With my hair sopping wet and my dress sticking to my skin. My anger is all I have, so I cling to it."Why aren't you at your party?" I demand. "Why are you skulking around out here by yourself?" It's not until the words leave my mouth that I realize he might not be by himself. Oh, God - please don't let him be down here with Emilia.