Dash rested a hand on her knee. His touch instantly caused her pulse to jump.
“Don’t say I don’t know what a woman wants.”
As they ate, she asked, “Do you come here often?”
“I try to find places I can go and not be recognized. A small, local park in the middle of the day is usually a safe bet because no one would expect me to ever be in a place like this.”
“I guess you can’t go shopping or to a movie that isn’t a premiere.”
He swallowed a bite. “Nope. I order a lot off Amazon and I watch a ton of Netflix. Netflix goes in spurts. During down time, I love to binge watch TV series or movies. When I’m working, I don’t have time for anything else.”
“Is that my first warning? When we start filming, you won’t have time for me?”
His hand came to the back of her neck and massaged it. “Something tells me that I’ll find a way to make time for you.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead and went back to his burger.
“I just joined Netflix,” she admitted. “School and then my job kept me swamped with work. I haven’t seen many movies in the past several years. Or TV. I did sign up for Netflix the other night to see what you’d done in the past.”
“My first dozen movies were bit to small parts that paid the bills. It was work and I was glad to get it. Added to my resume. The last three years, I moved from secondary characters to starring roles. All action films. Two made really good money.”
“Well, No Regrets has a lot of action. You’ll be at home with that. Do you do your own stunts?”
He nodded and wiped his mouth with a paper napkin. “As many as I can.” He put his hand back on her knee. The casual gesture was a small one but she liked the fact that he felt the need to touch her.
“I always spend a ton of time with the stunt coordinator. I know exactly what I’m doing and where I’m supposed to be and when. I don’t take extraordinary chances, Sydney.” He paused. “Do you want me to give up stunts?”
She was moved that he would even offer something like that. They’d slept together once. This was their first date. It wasn’t as if she had any major say in his life.
“No. I trust you. If you say you’re prepared for the stunt, then you need to do it.”
“I promise I’ll be extra careful. I have a good reason now to want to stay in one piece.” He nuzzled her neck, jolting her insides.
Sydney had never felt sexual urges like she did now. In the past, she’d thought she might be asexual since sex seemed ho-hum to her. She hadn’t understood what all the fuss was about. Until now. Every brush of Dash’s lips or fingers against her drove her wild.
“Ready to celebrate some more?” he asked.
“I want to make love with you,” she blurted out.
The corners of his mouth turned up. “Okay. Wasn’t next on my agenda but I’ve always been flexible.”
“We could go to the Malibu house,” Sydney suggested. “If traffic’s good, we could make it in an hour from here.”
Dash stood and lifted her by her waist over the bench seat then let her body glide slowly down his. Sydney felt her cheeks heat. He kissed her, long and slow, though the bill of his cap got in the way. She lifted it off his head and gave in to the kiss.
He broke it and claimed the cap again, pulling it low. She realized he didn’t want to be recognized. She glanced over and saw that two of the young women near the swings seemed very interested in them. With everyone having a camera phone these days, privacy was a thing of the past.
“Time to go. Show’s over for the public. I’m ready for a private screening.”
They gathered up their trash and headed back to the car. As they drove north, Sydney realized that she didn’t know where Dash lived. If his parents were still alive. If he had brothers or sisters. She didn’t know his favorite food or favorite color or what size shoe he wore.
None of that mattered.
They reached Malibu in ninety minutes, which wasn’t bad for that time of day. She fished the key from her purse and let them in. A flutter of nerves swept through her. She wasn’t sure why. They’d already had