Page 7 of Nothing to No One

One thing was clear. What little she knew about Roman Lowe was completely wrong. A better way to put it? Brooker’s information packets were completely wrong. According to those, he’d been a teen sensation, as famous for his partying and womanizing as he was for the movies he starred in. At some point, there was a fall from grace, and the studios stopped casting him.

More recent updates suggested Roman Lowe had gotten his act together and secured a TV role inUndercover… something.

Could people ever change? Depended on the issue. If the partying trashed his career, maybe he’d matured beyond allthat. Hopefully anyway. She had a low tolerance for shallow, immature people, didn’t everyone?

Lowe was proving himself neither and seemed sharp, even in spite of the alcohol.

Sitting there, gazing into him, her whole being sank into a hypnotic state. Men didn’t intoxicate her, hadn’t before this night. Lowe’s brown eyes drew her in, brought her nearer, tempted her curiosity.

The warmth of his fingers slid upward on her cheek, over her ear, through her hair, around to the back of her head and guided her forward, joining their mouths. Potent like the liquor, the slick need of his tongue begged her response; she was helpless to refuse.

In the last three years, only Kevin had kissed her. With him, it had never been like this. Kevin controlled her with physical affection, used attentiveness as a tool to manipulate her. Accepting Lowe’s kiss severed the last thread connecting her to that past. She didn’t belong to Kevin anymore, Lowe washed away that claim to replace it with another: his own.

Gratitude rushed through her veins, boiling the fuel of arousal. She could unzip her dress, slide her hands over the globes of his impressive shoulders into his hair—

Gasping away, she touched her lips. Whoa, she’d been so ready to give herself to this man she’d only just met.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “Shit, I shouldn’t have—”

“It’s okay.” Bambi grabbed his thigh before he could withdraw from their shared seat. “I… thank you.”

He frowned. “Thank me?”

“I came to LA to get away from what I was… And to show my ex he didn’t have the power to control me anymore. You just… he was the last man I kissed, the only man for a long time.” She smiled. “He doesn’t have any part of me now.”

Curling his fingers, they drifted across her cheek. “Do you want more liquor?”

She laughed. “Definitely.”

As he retrieved the bottle, she absorbed her salacious reaction to the guy. Buying herself some time to regroup, she enjoyed another drink then offered the bottle back.

“Do you have family, Fawn?”

“A whole bunch,” she said, fingering the heavy fabric of the jacket beneath her. “I have siblings. There are cousins all over. A couple of aunts and uncles in Wishbone. It’s not a huge place.”

He toyed with the hem of her dress that had somehow ended up on his thigh. Was he as interested in what was beneath her clothes as she was in what was under his tux?

Geez, what was wrong with her? Damn, they hadn’t drunk that much, yet she was all in already. Time to dial it back, except… she didn’t want to. Insane though it was, nothing ever felt so right.

Being wanton wasn’t her usual style, though alcohol did up her flirtatious confidence and lower inhibitions. Not like she was alone in that. Who hadn’t warped boundaries with liquor in their veins?

That couldn’t be it, not the only thing at work. In the past, before Lowe, she’d never felt such a strong need to be near another person. It must be the x-factor. That intangible quality stars needed to become famous and successful. If she was in the position of casting director, he could have the cow, the farm, and any other damn thing he wanted. Natural charisma would get him any part without an audition.

“How did they feel about you moving here?”

Right, home, they were talking about her home. “Most people from Wishbone stay in Wishbone… in my family anyway. They had their reservations.”

“I can understand that,” he said, making contact with her skin beneath the edge of her skirt. “It was a big move… did it feel good?”

His touch felt good. Did it suddenly get hotter? “Jury’s still out.”

His heat seemed to match hers. The sly knowing in his gaze was filled with just the right amount of confidence.

“I’m glad you took the leap… Otherwise, God knows who I’d be stuck in here with.”

Being locked in was a new experience. If someone asked how it would be, she’d assume traumatizing. So far, it was the exact opposite.

She reached across him for the bottle. Just as her fingers curled around the smooth glass, his did the same around her chin until she was staring into him. A shiver went through her when the strength of his finger compelled her chin higher. She wanted him to kiss her again… now.

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