Page 66 of Taming a Heartbreaker

Matthew breathed a sigh of relief as he ended the call. Ryan could be a pain in the ass at times, especially when it came to the images of his clients. But then he could definitely understand the man’s concerns. His separation and subsequent divorce from Carmen had left him in a bad way for a while. But that was then and this was now. He could handle things. He could handle her. Pride and the need for self-preservation would keep him from falling under her spell ever again. He felt good knowing that although he’d given her some sexual release, she would still go to bed tonight needing even more. There was no doubt in his mind she would be aching for his touch.

He smiled. This sort of revenge was pretty damn sweet.

The next morning Carmen was easing out of bed when her cell phone rang. She reached over and picked it up. The sunlight pouring through the window was promising a beautiful day.

“Hello?”

“Girl, I am so happy for you. When I saw that article and picture, I almost cried.”

Carmen recognized the voice of her good friend Rachel Wellesley. Rachel was a makeup artist she’d met on the set of her first movie. The close friendship she and Rachel had developed still existed to this day.

She knew what Rachel was referring to and decided to stop the conversation before her friend went any further. Carmen was well aware that Rachel probably said a special prayer each night before she went to bed that Carmen and Matthew would reunite. Rachel liked taking credit for playing matchmaker and initially getting them together.

“Chill, Rachel, and hold back the tears. No matter what you’ve heard, seen or read, Matthew and I aren’t getting back together.”

There was silence on the other end of the line.

“But what about the kiss that’s plastered all over the front page of the Wagging Tongue this morning?” Rachel asked, sounding disappointed. “And don’t you dare try to convince me it’s a photo that’s been doctored.”

Carmen didn’t say anything as she remembered the kiss and the effect it had on her. “No, it’s not a photo that’s been doctored, although a part of me wishes that it were. It started when I ran into Ardella Rowe at the polo match yesterday and she mentioned something about Matthew and me being enemies. I firmly denied it and went further, painting a picture of the two of us as friends, regardless of what the tabloids were saying. Well, before I could get the words out of my mouth, Matthew walked into the tent and all eyes were on us. To save face, I greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. Of course he decided to take advantage of the situation by turning a casual kiss into something more.”

“From the photo, it looked pretty damn hot, if you ask me.”

It was. But it was nothing compared to the one they’d shared last night on the balcony. She felt heat rise to her face as she imagined what he’d thought of the fact that she’d climaxed from his kiss.

“You should talk to him, Carmen, and tell him the truth. You know what I think about you not telling him about losing the baby.”

Carmen pulled in a deep breath. Rachel was one of the few people who knew about what had happened that night. When she’d found out about her pregnancy, she’d been so excited she had wanted to share it with someone. Rachel had actually been the one who’d come up with the idea of making a surprise video telling Matthew of her pregnancy.

While curling up in his arms on the sofa in the villa, she had planned to suggest that they watch a few video pitches for possible projects that directors had sent her. Instead, unbeknownst to him, she would play the video of her first ultrasound, even though the baby was just a tiny speck in a sea of black.

But things hadn’t worked out that way.

“Yes, I know how you feel and you know how I feel, as well. Matthew should have been there with me.” He’d always had legitimate excuses why he was late arriving someplace or not able to show up at all because of some last-minute emergency on the set. But for once he should have placed her above everything else, and he hadn’t.

Knowing that Rachel would try to make her see Matthew’s side of things, reminding her that he had no idea what was going on, she quickly said, “Look, Rachel, let me call you back later. I’m just getting up.”

“Sure. And where’s Matthew?”

“I have no idea. We spent the night under the same roof but in different bedrooms, of course. Knowing him, he’s probably gone by now. He has this new project here in New York, so I’m sure he’s left already to go into the city.”

“The two of you will be living there together all summer?” Rachel asked.

Carmen could hear the excitement in Rachel’s voice. She knew it would be a waste of time telling her not to get her hopes up because it wasn’t that kind of party. The guest room Matthew was using was on the other side of the house, and considering his schedule, their paths would probably only cross once or twice while they were there.

“Yes, for the most part, but this house is so big I doubt I’ll even see him.”

After ending her conversation with Rachel, Carmen got up and went into the bathroom. She planned to go swimming in the pool and then head down to the beach after breakfast.

Even though things had started off pretty rocky between her and Matthew yesterday, thanks to him she’d slept like a baby last night. An orgasm brought on by Matthew Birmingham never failed her. Whenever she’d had a tension-filled day on the set, he would make love to her to calm her frazzled nerves.

But upon waking her greedy body wanted more. It was as if she’d suddenly developed an addiction to Matthew’s touch, a touch she had managed to do without for more than a year but was craving like crazy now.

An intense yearning and longing was rolling around in the pit of her stomach and although she was trying to ignore it, doing such a thing wasn’t working. Now that her body recognized the familiarity of his touch, it seemed to have a mind of its own.

She frowned while stripping off her nightgown. She wondered if Matt had deliberately set her up for this—she wouldn’t be surprised to discover that he had. He of all people knew how her body could react to him. So, okay, she would admit that he had bested her this round, but she was determined not to lower her guard with him again.

Chapter Eight

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