One Hot Secret by Sarah J. Brooks

Chapter 2

Jack/Kyle

I’m relieved there’s no one in the locker room. I whip out my phone and text my driver and bodyguard, Ethan, to let him know that I won’t be needing him today. Next, I call my agent, Sebastian. We’re supposed to meet this evening, but it’s not urgent, and we can postpone it.

“Hey, I can’t meet you today,” I tell him while imagining his face screwed up with concern. Sebastian is a perpetual worrier, and I’ve tried to tell him that he’ll have a heart attack if he continues stressing over non-issues.

“Why, what’s going on? I thought you were leaving the station in the evening?” he says.

I grin. “I am, but I have a date with this sexy firefighter chic. Can you imagine how hot that combination is?”

I remember how she had taken charge when we were fighting the fire at the chicken shop, and I instantly grow hard. Tonight is going to be great for both of us. From the moment that Grace walked into the fire chief’s office, it had been instant attraction for both of us.

Sure, I’ve lusted after women before. That’s nothing new. I’m a virile male, and I enjoy women like the next man. But I’ve learned to be wary, and besides, I’m growing older. I’m no longer interested in one-night stands or getting together with fake shallow women whose only interest in me is my fame and wallet.

If I sound jaded, it’s because I am. I’m caught up in no man’s land. I’m not interested in a relationship, but at the same time, I find myself attracted to Grace, and I absolutely cannot stay away. Not even if there was a fire between us.

It helps that she doesn’t know who I am, nor is she likely to.

Sebastian’s groan brings me back to the present. “You promised this wouldn’t happen.”

“Did I?” I do remember I said that for the next two years I wouldn’t get tangled up with any woman.

The last time I’d been in a relationship, if you can call it that, had been a disaster. Emily had been recording our private conversations and taking loads of pictures of us. When the relationship reached its natural end, she had sold the story to the tabloids. For weeks, my face was plastered on the front pages. I was used to having my picture in the tabloids, but only when it had something to do with the movie I was working on. Or badly taken pictures by sneaky paparazzi.

These had been clear pictures of me without my guard up. Pictures where I’d looked at the camerawoman with trust because she had been my girlfriend. It had hurt. Terribly. In fact, on the day of the accident that scarred and changed my face, I had left Emily’s place after giving her a piece of my mind. I’d achieved nothing, and apart from a slightly guilty look, she hadn’t even apologized. Not that it would have made a difference.

I understand Sebastian’s concerns, but this is different. For one, I’m going to be unrecognizable until my next movie is released. The accident completely altered my appearance – a broken nose, cheekbones, and jaw changed the structure of my face – and even Grace would not recognize me.

“It’s different now,” I say to Sebastian. “I’ve been a celebrity for decades. This is the first time I get to date a woman as a normal man. I’m planning on enjoying myself.”

“Ethan is with you, right?”

He never lets up. Sebastian is more than my agent. He’s been with me for years, and he’s become like an older brother.

“You know as well as I do that I can’t take Ethan with me on a date. First of all, it’s a mood killer to have a third wheel, secondly and most importantly, he’ll blow my cover. We don’t want that, do we?”

Sebastian let out an exaggerated sigh. “Just be careful, okay?”

“Sure, I’ll talk to you tomorrow morning. Wish me luck.”

“You don’t need luck, not when it comes to women,” Sebastian says, and I laugh.

I change into regular clothes, and several minutes later, return to the day room where I find Grace waiting for me. My heart somersaults in my chest when I see her. She stands up and smiles. She has an hourglass figure that makes me want to smooth my hands over her hips and then pry them apart for my eyes to feast on what’s between.

“Ready?” she says and looks at me with those sultry sea-green eyes.

“Yep.”

We walk out together and head to the parking lot at the back. I tense a little as I scan the cars present. I’m relieved to see that Ethan followed my instructions and left.

“Where’s your car?” Grace says.

“I don’t have one.” I hadn’t thought about that one, but I improvise on the go. “It’s at the repair shop, and I’m not sure when I’ll get it back.”

“We’ll use mine then,” she says and unlocks her car.

I slip into the passenger seat. She enters as well, and the car is soon filled with her feminine scent that does crazy things to my mind. I feel like a perv because all I can think about is stripping Grace naked and claiming every part of her with my tongue, hands, and dick.

“Any place in particular you want to go to?” she says.

The last time I went to a public bar was almost ten years ago, and that was back in Texas. Being successful at what I do is great, and it comes with an unbelievable lifestyle. However, lack of privacy is the price we have to pay for our fame. I’ve come to terms with it, but that means that I have absolutely no clue of nice bars in LA, even if it’s my city. When I want to have a drink, I do it at home or at a friend’s house. Even then, it’s rare. Especially when we’re shooting. I go to bed early and wake up early. That’s not what people think when they think of movie stars. The reality is vastly different from the public perception.

I must say, though, that not every actor lives as I do. Many of them live like rock stars, partying all night and then showing up to work the following morning red-eyed with a massive hangover. Acting is my first love. It’s always been, and when I’m working, nothing comes between me and giving the best in my work.

“It’s just a bar,” Grace teases. “We’re not buying a house.”

I laugh. “You choose.”

“Okay. Let’s go to the Alms. Have you heard of it? It’s a cocktail bar.”

“Nope, but it sounds good.”

She smiles at me, and my heart skips a beat like a fucking novice. Still, I’m loving this crazy reaction I’m having to Miss Grace. It makes me feel like a kid again, which is great seeing as I’d become pretty jaded in the last few years.

Grace is an expert driver. I remember how exhilarating it had been to watch her drive the rig. I’d been as horny as fuck, but thank God I’d been sitting in the back where no one could see me. Even now, watching her navigate her car through traffic, I can’t help but fantasize how it would feel like to have her straddling me and riding me like that rig. Fuck. I have to get some action tonight, or else my dick will explode.

She finds parking at the back of the bar, and we make our way to the front. I follow her in while checking out her ass. Like the rest of her, it’s perfect, encased in dark pants that cling to her curves.

The interior of the cocktail bar is lively, and the clientele are professionals who’ve come to let loose and relax after a hard day at work.

“Where do you want to sit?” Grace asks. “You look like a guy who likes to sit at the bar.”

“Wrong. Let’s get a table.” She isn’t wrong. I like sitting at the bar when I’m with the guys or with a woman with whom I don’t have much to talk about with. But Grace intrigues me. I want to get into her psyche and know what makes her tick. There is more to her than she lets on, and I’ve noticed that she talks very little about her personal life. As a person used to hiding their identity, I can spot a kindred spirit, and Grace is one. I have no clue why she is so private, seeing that she has had a regular childhood and job. Maybe it’s just my imagination. It wouldn’t be the first time it has led me astray.

I pull out a chair for her, and after she sits down, I sit down on the one opposite. Excitement courses through me as I look around. It feels so fucking good to be out in public with no one coming to ask me for an autograph or a picture. It is more than exciting. It’s exhilarating.

A soft laugh breaks out of Grace. “You look like a boy who has just received a new toy. I know the Alms is good; I just didn’t know it was that good.”

I laugh. “I haven’t been a bar in ages. I love the energy here.”

“I’m glad you like it,” she says, an amused look on her face.

The server comes to take our order. I ask for a beer as does Grace.

“You look like a wine person.”

She chuckles. “I hate the taste of wine, but I drink it when I’m forced by the occasion to do so.”

“What kind of occasion would that be where you had to drink a different beverage from what you like?”

The laughter leaves her face. “I once dated this guy, and when I accompanied him to his work events, he insisted that I drink wine. Apparently, it’s unladylike to drink beer.”

“That’s bull,” I say hotly. “He was an idiot and full of himself.”

Grace smiles. “I thought so too. That’s why I got rid of him.”

“Smart woman.”

The server brings our beers and pours them into glasses. When she leaves, Grace takes a long sip, and when she sets her glass back on the table, she has a foam mustache.

I chuckle and reach out to brush it off with a finger. “As lovely as you look with a mustache, I’m thinking you might not want it there.” Pure, raw need races through me as I touch her. It has been too long if a simple touch with a finger has the power to get me so hot.

“Thanks,” she says. “Go on, taste yours.”

We’ve ordered a microbrew specially made for the bar, as the server told us. I reach for my glass and take a long sip. It has a nice malty taste, and it flows down my throat smoothly.

“I like it.”

Grace giggles and then reaches out to wipe my foam mustache just as I did hers. As she’s about to withdraw her hand, I capture it, turn it around and kiss it. When I look up to meet her gaze, her eyes are smoldering with passion. I feel like I’ve stumbled upon an early Christmas present, and I can’t wait to get home and rip it open.