The Hot Corner Read online

I woke to an incessant knocking at my door. My arms were still locked around Brad’s jacket, and I shook my head as I pushed it away. I straightened my robe and patted at my hair, knowing it was a lost cause. Going to sleep with it still damp meant it was a wild curling mess. I went to the door and opened it a crack.

  “It’s about time! Do you know I’ve been calling you for hours? Wait, is he still here?” Pam was in my hallway, trying to peer past me, her words firing at me like bullets from a gun. “He said he was catching a plane, but I thought maybe that was a euphemism. Shit, I’ll go.”

  I laughed as I pulled the door all the way open. She wasn’t the glamorous movie star I’d assumed her to be. No, Pam was a little bit crazy and a lot of fun.

  “He’s not here,” I said. “Come inside before some tabloid reports that you were having an argument with your lesbian lover in her hotel room hallway.”

  She laughed loudly as she walked past and sat gracefully in the uncomfortable orange chair. “That would be a first! I never thought about spreading that rumor. It would probably help my career. Lesbians are hot right now.” She looked me over and let out a whistle. “And if they got a load of you, they’d no doubt believe it. You look freshly fucked.”

  Oh, God, did I? I tried unsuccessfully to tame my hair again and sighed as I sat on the bed across from her. “I just woke up.”

  “From a night of being freshly fucked,” she said, and I laughed. “You know, Brad sounded awfully chipper this morning. I knew it had to have gone well, but even I didn’t think it’d go this well. So? I need details!”

  I ignored the last part and focused on the first. “You talked to Brad?”

  She wagged a finger at me. “Uh-uh. You get details when I get details. Spill.”

  What was weird was that I actually wanted to talk to her about it. Pam was a kindred spirit, despite her past relationship with Brad. Or maybe because of it, I wasn’t sure. But it was also awkward as hell.

  “Are you sure you want to know? I mean, isn’t it weird?”

  She shook her head, crossing her million-dollar legs and smiling at me. “Honey, I’ve already told you, Brad and I are just friends. Friends who occasionally screw, but friends all the same. And I get the feeling we’ve scratched our last itch together, if you know what I mean.”

  “He said you hadn’t been together in a long time.” I needed to know if that was true.

  “Yeah, it’s been a while. Right before the playoffs last season, actually.” She scrunched up her nose. “September maybe? I remember thinking we’d have some play time after the season was over, but he started talking about the biography he was considering having written, and that was that.”

  So he’d been telling the truth about Pam. That was good.

  “Anyway, I’d started dating my costar in Forbidden, and then spring training hit and time just got away from us. I hadn’t realized it had been that long.”

  I blinked. “You were with Maxwell Hillwood?” He was one of the hottest actors in the world right now. How had the tabloids missed that?

  “Yes, it was very hush-hush as he’s going through a divorce, but we hooked up during the shoot.” She had a faraway look in her eyes. “We still talk, but seeing each other is out of the question since he didn’t officially file until after the shoot started. The press would eat me alive and paint me as a homewrecker.” Her eyes widened. “I’m not, by the way! He filed before we did a thing. He was upset and we started talking and one thing led to another.”

  “You don’t have to tell me that, but I believe you. It seems like you really like him.”

  “I do. I shouldn’t, since I’m probably just a rebound, but I do.”

  As if Pamela Baxter could ever be anyone’s rebound? “I sincerely doubt that. He’s worth waiting for, right?”

  A slow smile stole over her face. “Yes, he is. And was Brad?”

  I laughed and shook my head. “Trust you to turn that around on me.” My distraction techniques clearly needed work. “In a word, yes.”

  She squealed and launched herself at me before gripping me in a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you! And for him! I’m telling you, he sounded like a giddy fool when I talked to him. I honestly thought maybe he was high for a minute. Clearly he was high, but not on anything illegal.” She pulled back and wiggled her eyebrows at me. “Or was he? Did you two break any public indecency laws?”

  My laugh came out like a donkey’s bray and she collapsed on the bed next to me before shrieking and standing quickly. “Wait! I can’t sit here after you two defiled it with your potentially illegal sexual acts.” She laughed with me as she pulled the orange chair closer and rested her elbows on the arms. “Go on.”

  When I caught my breath, I grinned at her. “You’re kind of nuts, you know that?”

  “Obviously. I’m an actress. Sanity just gets in the way.” She waved a hand. “Stop deflecting. I want details.”

  “Fair enough, but first—how did you get him over here?”

  A devious smile lit her face and she chuckled. “I didn’t have to do much, let me tell you. He was sulking when we met at the restaurant. My idea, by the way. I didn’t want him to have to take me home before running to you.”

  “Smart,” I said.

  “Of course. Anyway, he was scowling at everybody and pouting over his beer while I was laying it on thick, talking about how much I liked you and what fun we had at lunch and shopping.” She grinned. “I may have told him that you bought this see-through, skimpy lingerie that made your pale skin look delectable and that you had a beautiful body.”

  She was diabolical and I was very glad she was on my side. “I didn’t buy lingerie or even try any on.”

  Pam shrugged. “Artistic license. And I didn’t lie about the body, which was the important thing. Then I told him all about the spa and how I saw you naked.”

  I raised an eyebrow.

  “Mostly naked,” she said, “but again, semantics. And I told him your masseur had his hands and eyes all over you and that I was pretty sure he got a hard-on from all your moaning and thrashing around on the table.”

  “You didn’t!”

  She looked very proud of herself. “I did. And I swear to God he turned red. He kept muttering to himself and gripping the table so hard his hands were turning white.” I had to admit, that image made me kind of happy, despite my mortification at her inaccurate, pornographic description of my massage.

  “The pièce de résistance was when I told him you said you finally felt relaxed for the first time in weeks, and that I encouraged you to get your rocks off with Lance because then you’d feel even better. His eyes bulged out of his head when I said you agreed that might do the trick.” She laughed, delighted with herself. “He yelled at me, threw back his chair and stormed out of the restaurant before our food even arrived. One of the tabs has a report about our ‘lovers’ tiff’ up already.”

  “Lovers’ tiff, my ass,” I muttered, and she laughed even harder. “Doesn’t it bug you when they get all that stuff wrong?”

  Pam shook her head. “No. I’d rather they get it wrong than right.” She smiled sadly and I had a feeling she was thinking of Maxwell. “Besides, it can be fun. I’ve been engaged six times and secretly married twice, had three babies, slept with a politician, been to rehab . . . my favorite was when I left Hollywood and joined a religious cult. My fake life is way better than a movie script. What they should do is have those tabloid writers—if you can call them such a thing—write for Hollywood. I guarantee they’d come up with some good plotlines.”

  “Well, tiff or not, it sounds like you drove him crazy,” I said. “I guess I need to thank you for that.” Even though I wasn’t sure connecting with him again was a good thing, I couldn’t regret it. Not after the way he’d made me feel last night. And again this morning.

  “You’re very welcome, my dear. And, all kidding aside, you don’t have to give me all the dirty details.” She winked. “Though I’d be happy to listen if you want me to.”

/>   “I just bet you would.” And because she’d helped me, and because I needed a sounding board, I launched into a description of the night, without getting specific on the sex itself. That was between the two of us and, well, she’d been with him before and knew about the mechanics just as well or better than I did.

  Pam laughed over him searching my room for Lance, awwed over him stealing my fries, and sighed over our ultimately giving in and getting down and dirty.

  “He wants to take me out when he gets back. Like, on a date.”

  Pam smiled. “Well, it’s the least he can do after you let him fuck your brains out all night.” I glared at her and she giggled. “What, it’s true! Plus, I think it’ll be good for you both.”

  “I’m afraid,” I said, plucking at my comforter.

  “Afraid of what? It’s just dinner, not a wedding.”

  My heart leapt and I cursed myself for being ridiculous. “Because I can’t afford to fall for him again, and going out, remembering how we used to be, sleeping with him, for God’s sake, it’s all going to make it hard to resist him.”

  “Doesn’t sound like you did much resisting,” she said. I sighed, and she held up a hand. “What would be so bad if you did fall for him?”

  “Um, hello, have you heard anything I’ve said? He crushed me back then, and it took me longer than I care to admit to put myself back together. I was supposed to come here, show him that I landed on both feet and that I’m doing wonderful without him, and instead I end up in bed with him within a week.”

  Pam listened to my rant with a smile on her face. When I wound down, she leaned forward. “I don’t know what happened with you two back in the day, since you’re both unbelievably closed-mouthed when it comes to the end of your relationship. But I do know you weren’t the only one hurt by it.”

  I opened my mouth to argue, but she raised an eyebrow and continued on. “Since he saw you on TV, he’s been even more distant and closed off. My fun friend was quiet and morose and distracted. I haven’t heard him sound happy, the way I heard him sound this morning, in a long time. Maybe ever. I’m telling you, he sounded like he’d won the World Series, been elected President of the United States, and won the lottery all in one go. You did that. You have just as much power to hurt him as he does you. You’d do well to remember that.”

  I didn’t know if that was supposed to make me feel better or not. I felt like there was even more weight on my shoulders now.

  “Have you talked to him about your past?” she asked.

  I shook my head and she sighed.

  “You do know you’re both going to have to do that eventually, right? Not just for the book, but to move on, together or alone.”

  “I know. I’m just not ready yet. Neither is he.”

  “Of course not. He wants to bask in the glow of hot sex.”

  I managed a small smile.

  She reached forward and took my hand. “You could be very good for each other. I think you will be, which is why I helped you last night and I’ll happily help you again if he steps out of line and does something stupid. But if you hurt him, honey, I’ll take you down. I don’t want to, but I’ll do it if I have to. I want my friend to be happy, and I think you’re the key to that.” She grinned. “I’m giving up the best fuck buddy I’ve ever had, so that shows you how committed I am. The sacrifices I’m willing to make for both of you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Thanks so much for your humanitarian efforts.”

  “No thanks necessary. A tasteful gift maybe . . .” She shook her head. “No, screw tasteful. Maybe you could get me a new vibrator since I have to get my rocks off alone now.”

  And just like that, she had me laughing again. “You’re incorrigible.”

  “Incorrigible, incredible, tomato, tomahto.” She sat back, smiling. “Now, do you want to know what he said?”

  “Yes!”

  “He thanked me for being a meddlesome bitch, his words, and said I was an evil genius but I wasn’t wrong about your body. And he was sure he’d made you writhe and moan much better than the horny masseur had.”

  My mouth dropped open. “What?”

  “All right, I may have paraphrased.”

  I smacked her arm and she giggled helplessly.

  “He did thank me, though, for giving him the push he needed to go and get you. He said you’d argued and made up in the most satisfying of ways, and he didn’t think he could handle a week away from you. I’m supposed to look out for you, by the way.”

  “Brad’s clearly lost his mind if he thinks putting you in charge of my well-being is a good idea,” I said.

  “Hey, I got you laid and laid well. Stick with me, kiddo. You never know what could happen.”

  “I could end up in jail, or worse.”

  “But just think what a lovely addition that would be to your story! Anyway, he also told me you’d probably need some fuel after the night of hot monkey sex, so why don’t we go out? Or we could stay here and talk about that hot monkey sex some more.”

  I was on my feet before she finished the sentence, and she laughed again. I was at the bathroom door when she called my name, and I turned.

  “One thing I’ve learned from recent events is that it sucks being away from someone you care about. Maybe even love. And I’ve only been doing it for a few weeks, while you two have been at it for years. You have a chance to fix that, and I truly hope you’ll take it.”

  I had a lot to think about over the next week, or month, or however long I’d be around him again.

  Pam smiled. “Now, go make yourself look hot. My lesbian lover headline is coming soon and I can’t have you looking anything but your best.”

  Chapter 15

  Spending the day with Pamela Baxter was exhausting. The woman was a whirlwind of energy. I was already operating at half my usual speed after my long night and early morning, but I didn’t think I could keep up with her if I’d had a solid night’s sleep either. She’d taken me from shop to shop, two different restaurants, a movie studio, a meeting with her agent, not to mention the billion or so people who approached her for autographs, pictures, or just to tell her they loved her. Everywhere we went people snapped photos of her and me. She might not be too far off on her lesbian headlines. That was why she’d grabbed my hand outside the restaurant, I was sure of it.

  I let myself back into my room and let out a sigh of relief as I kicked off my shoes. My feet were screaming, and I wanted nothing more than a hot bath and my bed. I didn’t have to call and give Bec an update of my day because she’d called while I’d been out, and Pam had been all too willing to fill in any details I’d skimped on. I was pretty sure the two of them were well on their way to becoming BFFs by the time we’d ended our conference call in the car.

  I filled the tub with water and, just as I was about to sink into the steamy bath, my cell rang. A glance at the caller ID showed it was Brad. He’d called, like he said he would. My stomach flipped as I answered.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey, Red.” My treacherous heart started beating faster as I lowered myself into the tub.

  “Shouldn’t you be in bed right now?” I asked. It was nearly midnight in Atlanta.

  He laughed. “Who says I’m not?”

  My mind flashed to images of the two of us tangled in my sheets and I shook my head to clear it. “I meant sleeping. You have a game tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, but my body is still on west-coast time. I never really adjust, but it’s okay because for a night game, it feels like late afternoon to me. Did you have a good day?” he asked with a chuckle.

  I groaned and rested my head back against the tile wall. “Did you have to sic Pam on me? She’s absolutely exhausting.”

  “Hey, I had to distract her from asking me a billion questions, so I sent her your way. It’s all about self-preservation.”

  “Very nice! Some gentleman you are.”

  “I’m no gentleman, but I didn’t hear you complaining about that fact last night.”
/>   No, I most certainly hadn’t been. “Pig.”

  “Only when it comes to you,” he murmured.

  “What?”

  “You know, like a hog. I want you all to myself. Speaking of, I talked to Green.”

  I had to laugh at the way he said Lance’s last name, almost like it was a curse word. “Did you talk to him or did you threaten him?”

  “Maybe a little of both,” he admitted, and I laughed. That was a facet of Brad that apparently hadn’t changed. He’d always been territorial where I was concerned.

  “Like when you scared the shit out of Paulie Pasquale?”

  I swore he growled on the other end of the line. “I don’t care what you say, he was into you. He stared at your ass every time you walked past, and he practically shoved me out of the way to be near you any chance he got.”

  I rolled my eyes. “He might have had a little crush on me—”

  “Little, my ass. I tolerated it for as long as I could before I told him to back the hell off. At least I didn’t hit him.”

  No, he hadn’t. He’d just spoken in a low, menacing voice with a look on his face that let Paulie and everyone else in the classroom know I was off limits. Maybe it should have upset me, but it had actually turned me on. I couldn’t get him alone and naked fast enough. Then again, I more than understood the need to be territorial.

  “So there was one guy who showed interest in me, unlike the hundreds of girls who were after you. I put up with that shit all the time.”

  “There was way more than one guy, Dani. You just didn’t notice.”

  No, I hadn’t. Foolishly, I’d been all about Bradley Reynolds.

  “And you know I never gave any of those girls the time of day,” he said. “I had the girl I wanted.”

  Until Omaha, that was. We were getting dangerously close to a discussion I wasn’t ready to have. “So what did Lance say? Why did he send that text?”

  “Oh, he was talking about some actress he’d hooked up with. He thought I’d been with her, but I’d never even met the woman.” He laughed. “At least that’s what he claims. I think he was just trying to piss me off and make me think it was you.”