Page 19 of The Stars Over Hollywood

Hayden shook her head. “I wasn’t ready to say it then. And even though I can talk about it now, there’s other things I’d rather being doing.”

Hayden’s hand slipped behind her neck, pulling her in to a heart-stopping kiss. There was no shyness, no uncertainty. Just desire. And Tracy could barely remember what it felt like to have someone want her like this.

Tracy sighed into the kiss, her hand sliding underneath Hayden’s top this time, feeling the muscles beneath Hayden’s skin jump as her hand glided up along her ribs.

Tracy could feel Hayden shudder against her when her thumb grazed over the thin fabric of Hayden’s bra, and it struck Tracy in that moment that Hayden had never done this before. Not with a woman anyway.

Tracy’s hand moved to Hayden’s lower back, kissing her for a few more seconds before pulling away, knowing that they needed to take this slow.

“What just happened?” Hayden asked, her eyes fluttering open as she met Tracy’s eyes.

Tracy wet her lips, deciding it was better to be honest with her than to make up some excuse. “It hit me that, you know, this is all new to you. That you’ve probably never slept with a woman. I just didn’t want to rush into anything or…”

Hayden gave her a half-smile. “That’s really sweet, and I…” She exhaled. “I really wanted to say that I was fine. That I know what I want. And while I definitely do. Maybe, you’re right. Maybe, we shouldn’t rush into anything.”

“Yeah.” Tracy brushed a piece of hair away from Hayden’s eyes.

“I should probably call Lara. Give her the good news.”

“Your news.” Tracy laughed softly. “Would that have happened without that phone call?”

“I’d like to think that I would have found the courage,” Hayden said, but then she shook her head. “Although I doubt that it would have happened tonight.” She leaned in to kiss Tracy again, taking her time. “I should go.”

Tracy reached for her hand, interlacing their fingers while she kissed her once more.

“I’ll show myself out.” Hayden’s hand slipped away, and Tracy watched her go, still not quite believing everything that had happened today.

12

Hayden now understood why Lara raved about surfing, and it was only her third lesson. She’d fallen off the board more times than she could count, but Tracy was so encouraging, and Hayden felt more determined than she had in years when it came to learning something new.

She caught one wave for probably all of two seconds, but it felt like so much more than that. She came up from beneath the water, Tracy paddling over on her own board.

Neither of them wore a wetsuit today, the temperatures outside a little warmer, although the water was still chilly, but Hayden liked challenging herself to handle the cold.

Hayden treaded water, the afternoon sun warm against her skin, and between the successful audition and the way Tracy was looking at her right now, with that gorgeous smile, Hayden thought she had to be dreaming, that this was all a little too good to be true.

After her second lesson, she’d gone home, but Tracy had invited her out to dinner that same night, saying that it wouldn’t be long before they couldn’t, that after this new show she’d be too famous. Hayden wasn’t so sure, but she was more than happy to go out with Tracy, although she was afraid to ask if it was a date.

And then Tracy drove her home. Hayden had wanted to invite her in, but they’d agreed to take things slow, and she was kind of embarrassed that she shared a house with another actress a few years younger than her.

Tracy had kissed her goodnight, but the kiss wasn’t quick or fleeting, neither of them willing to be the one to end it, and Hayden could finally see what all the fuss was about, how the softness of Tracy’s lips against her own could make every single cell in her body hum with desire.

Hayden might be inexperienced, but she knew how much she wanted Tracy, and if the way they kissed was anything to go by, she knew she shouldn’t be nervous about when they did decide to sleep together. She probably would still be, but there was a part of her that felt so at ease with Tracy that she was confident that this chemistry would carry over.

“You did it,” Tracy said with a grin, bringing Hayden back to the present moment.

Hayden rested her hand on Tracy’s leg once she was close enough, and Tracy leaned down, brushing her lips across Hayden’s, somehow balancing herself on the board.

“You were right about the adrenaline,” Hayden said as she eased away, floating towards her board and taking a few attempts to get back up on it. “But I feel like I should be better at that considering how often I fall.”

“You’re doing really well,” Tracy said with a smile. “I mean it. Surfing is fucking hard. For your third lesson, you’re kicking ass. Seriously.”

“I’m afraid I’m not going to have time for this when I start filming.” Hayden wasn’t sure if Tracy had heard her, but it was something that had kept her up last night. She was worried that as much as she wanted to learn how to surf, and much more importantly, get to know Tracy, to potentially start something with her, the timing wasn’t great.

“We’ll find the time.” Tracy held her gaze. “Come on. Let’s catch a few more before we call it a day.”

13

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