A Bad Boy is Good to Find - By Jennifer Lewis Page 0,54
store for him. The delicious crush of her soft body under his had brought back way too many beautiful memories.
He offered her a hand, and she climbed heavily to her feet, one shoe still on.
“Let me help you with that.” He lifted the flap of blue fabric that had fallen, exposing a see-through strapless bra. His thumb brushed against her nipple, and a jolt of raw lust shot through him.
Yes, he was a beast.
“Get away from me!” she shrieked. Dust clung to her hair and skin. His too, no doubt.
Footsteps clattered in the hallway. “Someone’s coming.” He snatched a tissue from the box. “Let me fix you up.” She stood still while he dabbed at her smudged mascara and brushed dust out of her rapidly curling hair.
“What the hell’s going on in here?” Roger, the sound guy, a big redhead no older than Gia, came crashing into the room. Dino followed, camera on his shoulder.
“Bed fell down.” Con glanced down at the remains of the posts where they lay under brocade curtains crumpled into elegant whorls on the floor.
“Holy shit,” said Roger, with a grin. “Cool.”
“Get out of the shot, Rog,” murmured Dino.
“Oh, yeah, sorry.” Roger pushed out of the room. “Just wanted to make sure everyone was okay.”
“We’re fine.” Con grabbed Lizzie around the waist. “It just collapsed. Must have termites or something.”
He could feel Lizzie trembling in her damp dress. Her chest heaved indelicately as she struggled to control her breathing. She held up the torn section of her dress with clenched fingers and teetered in her one shoe. It was pretty damn funny. He gave her a squeeze around the shoulders and a kiss on the cheek. “It’s alright, babe, no real damage done. Next time we have a lover’s tiff we’ll take it outside.”
Her mouth fell open.
He planted another kiss on her cheek, enjoying this far too much. She’d dragged him here to get revenge on him and try to hurt him, so he didn’t feel bad about having some fun at her expense.
“We did not break it,” she rasped.
“Um, yeah, right.” He winked at her. “Don’t want to get sued. Who owns this place anyway?”
Another face appeared in the doorway, one he hadn’t seen before. An icy looking blonde in a white suit.
Lizzie let out a tiny shriek.
“Darling, what happened?” The blonde pushed past Dino and into the room.
“Maisie.” Lizzie’s voice was barely a whisper.
One arm still around Lizzie, Con held out his hand. “Hi, Maisie, I’m Conroy. Glad to meet you.”
So this was her, huh? The family resemblance was nonexistent. Maisie was tall, pale and thin, with poker straight hair and piercing light blue eyes.
She took a bold stride into the room and gripped his hand with force. “Conroy, it’s a pleasure. I can’t believe Lizzie’s kept you under wraps for so long.” Her eyes grazed his bare chest for a fraction of a second, then locked back on his. “I just got in and heard this terrible commotion. Lizzie, darling, are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” said Lizzie, hoisting her dress higher over her breast. “Except for my dress, which got torn when Conroy gallantly threw himself between me and the falling bedposts. Without him I don’t know what would have happened.”
Maisie glanced down at the bed. “We’re thoroughly insured, thank goodness. Dino, get some shots of the wreckage. Lizzie dear, is that a scratch on your cheek?” She reached out and Lizzie flinched.
Con felt a surge of protective instinct. “She’ll be okay. She just needs to catch her breath. Maybe we should all go outside and get something to eat. Just give us some privacy so Lizzie can change.”
“What a shame we didn’t capture the collapse on camera,” mused Maisie, a finger on her chin. “I’m here now so we’ll make sure we don’t miss any more key events, won’t we, Dino?”
Con did not miss Dino’s lowered brows. Gia had already scurried away. In fact, everyone had made themselves scarce since the appearance of the infamous Maisie.
Maisie touched his chest with a finger. Her nail scratched his skin, causing his right pec to flinch. What the hell was she up to?
“Dust. Powder post beetles, I expect. They can be such a scourge in an old place like this. We’ll get someone up to clean this mess up before bedtime.”
She leaned into Lizzie, who stiffened, and gave her a swift kiss on the cheek. “In with a bang! You’re full of surprises lately. I can’t wait to see what happens next.”