Page 13 of Vain
“Okay,” she whispers, her eyes dropping to my lips before they shoot back to my eyes, red blooming across her cheeks.
I feel my dick getting hard and try to think of something, anything to make it go down. But with her scent wrapped around me, I’m dangerously close to saying fuck it, throwing her down, and fucking her.
“What time do you need to be at the studio?”
She glances at the ornate clock on the wall. “In an hour and a half. Depending on traffic, we’ll need to leave in fifteen minutes.”
“That’s fine. I’ll grab my sidearm and credentials. Will I have an issue getting on set while I’m armed?”
“Not while you’re with me. They owe me and know it, so they’re playing nice.”
“Okay, good. We’ll take my rental. Nobody will pay it a lick of attention.”
“That’s fine by me. I’m going to head upstairs and touch up my makeup, if you want to talk to the MIB. Ugh, you got me calling them that now.”
“It fits. Where did you find them?” I chuckle, helping her to her feet.
“The studio hired them when everything started to go down. I’ve had Daniel and a couple of others who rotate through on me since then. But since the Post-it notes, Daniel’s brought more guys in.”.
“So the studio pays them?”
“They did, but I took over a few months ago. I needed them to answer to me, not the studio. Nobody seemed put out by that, and the studio was happy enough to save their money.”
“So you have the power to hire and fire them?”
She nods.
“Good. Something tells me I might need to remind them of that.”
Chapter Six
MATILDA
I’m not agoraphobic, but I’d be lying if I said my house wasn’t like my security blanket. I felt safe there. It was a place I could lick my wounds and heal emotionally more than anything else, and then one stupid Post-it note shattered that feeling of safety in one single moment.
Whoever is doing this has left nothing inside the house, but I’m not stupid enough to think they won’t break in to get to me eventually. That’s where Aiden comes in. This guy has proven he knows how to get around guards and cameras. With Aiden close by, it wouldn’t be so easy for anyone to get to me. And if they did, one scream and Aiden would be there, ready to rip the guy’s arms off and beat him to death with them.
That doesn’t mean I don’t feel an underlying sense of panic as I wave at Phil when we pull through the gates and head toward the studio.
The sun is shining, but the temperature is a good ten or fifteen degrees lower today than yesterday, which makes a nice change. We’ve had some bizarre unseasonable weather extremeslately, so it’s nice to have something calmer and more pleasant for a change.
“You’re quiet. You doing okay?”
I look at Aiden, catching a strand of hair as it blows across my face and tucking it behind my ear. “Just thinking about how nice it is today.”
“Better than yesterday, for sure.”
I turn to look out the passenger-side window, keeping my head tipped down, more out of habit than anything else. Though up here in the gated community, everyone pretty much keeps to themselves. “You mind if I put the music on?”
“Have at it.”
I reach over and turn on the local radio station, which is playing the latest pop-country song featuring two up-and-coming artists. I’m not a huge country fan, but I do like this one, so I find myself humming along.
“Do you sing?”
“Hmm?” I turn to look at him, my eyes landing on his forearms as they flex, his grip tightening on the wheel. I have no idea what it is about forearms that I find sexy, but man, there is just something about them?—
“Tilly?”
