Tempting Kate Page 14

  Derek laughed. “You, little lady, must not know my baby brother.”

  * * *

  OF ALL THE PLACES they had to have Derek’s bachelor party, it had to be across the street from where the bachelorette party was being held that evening? Kate sighed, seeing the men pile into Après-Ski just after ten. So much for forgetting about Scott that evening and focusing on securing new clients. Grabbing her phone, she texted Scott.

  Great location—but wasn’t Cameron’s birthday party supposed to be there tonight?

  She saved my ass, came his reply.

  Kate rolled her eyes and tucked the phone away, but it chimed again immediately.

  Why have you been avoiding me all evening?

  So he’d noticed. She sighed. “Because I’m falling in love with you and I realized too late how stupid that is” didn’t seem to be the best answer, so she simply texted, I was busy.

  You look sexy. What color underwear are you wearing?

  Glancing out the window, she peered upward to the rooftop terrace and saw him wave, leaning over the railing. Even from that distance, she could see he was dressed for the occasion in a collared white shirt, open at the neck, and pair of charcoal dress pants replacing his standard uniform of T-shirt and jeans. The temptation to text him to come and find out was overwhelming, but she had to put a stop to their fling. It was getting out of hand, and she really wasn’t interested in another heartache. One a year was her limit.

  Though, admittedly, it was probably too late.

  She held up the phone and then overemphasized dropping it into her purse, but it started ringing almost immediately.

  She shook her head, hoping he could see from across the street, but he motioned for her to pick up.

  Damn. There was no avoiding him. She moved away from the group. “What?” she hissed.

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  “’Bye, Scott.”

  “Can I guess?”

  “No,” she said, but she felt a small tug in the corner of her mouth and she didn’t hang up.

  “Let me see...you’re not a pink kind of woman and red is far too cliché. White is too boring and black too predictable...”

  “You’re running out of colors,” she said, though she was entertained by his accuracy so far.

  “That skirt looks too light for it to be anything dark, and I can’t see a panty line anywhere—and believe me sweetheart, I’m looking—so I say peach.”

  She grinned. “Final answer?”

  “Final answer,” he said confidently.

  “Wrong. They are mint green...to match the bra.”

  “Oh, I bet that color looks amazing against your golden skin.”

  It was what had attracted her to the set in the first place, and she couldn’t even lie to herself and say she hadn’t worn them that evening in the hopes that Scott would be seeing them up close, preferably as he removed them. Which was not a good idea. Why did she have trouble remembering that when he was in front of her, looking so freaking hot and exactly like everything she should stay away from? “Don’t you have party guests to entertain?”

  “This is more fun. Try to guess mine.”

  She laughed. “No.”

  “Then let’s have phone sex.”

  “Hanging up now,” she said and this time she did, because just the sound of his voice and the mention of any kind of sex with him already had her mint-green panties feeling damp.

  * * *

  “PHONE SEX IS for teenagers,” Derek said behind him as he heard dead air on the line.

  Tucking the cell away, he sent one last look at Kate, sending the message that the conversation was far from over, and reluctantly turned to face his brother. “Hey, man. Enjoying your last night of freedom?”

  “Is that the bachelorette party over there?” Derek asked, leaning to glance toward the wine bar, where Kate had disappeared.

  “Yes,” he said, disappointed that on the last night she’d be in Big Bear, he was wasting time staring at her from across the street instead of the many other things he’d rather be doing with her.

  “There’s Liz. Man, she looks gorgeous,” Derek said, leaning against the railing.

  Scott shook the ice around in his glass, then swallowed a gulp of whiskey. “So you two are really getting married, huh?”

  Derek shot him a look.

  “Right. Yeah, of course you are...but I mean, two years... Isn’t that soon?” He’d decided not to say anything to his brother about his affair with Liz, but feeling him out to see if he had any doubts was okay, right?

  “Two years is a decade in Hollywood years. Look, man, if we’ve survived this long, with both of our careers dragging us to different countries, work demanding our focus and attention...we can go the long haul.”

  “Like a decade?” Scott teased.

  “At least seven years,” Derek said, clinking his glass and taking a swig. “Seriously, though, bro, I love her. She’s the best thing to happen to me. Liz makes every other woman I dated before seem nothing but fun, casual, no substance, no depth...like your dates.”

  He’d like to think that was still true, but the woman who’d reappeared in the window across the street and kept stealing his attention had him thinking otherwise. She could see him talking to Derek, and no doubt she was shitting herself, worrying that he might be telling him.

  “But it’s different with Liz,” Derek was saying. “She challenges me, calls me out on my bullshit...”

  “And that’s good?” he asked, feeling slightly sick as the familiar sentiments washed over him.

  “Yeah, man, it is. All I’m saying is that every day, no matter what shit hits the fan on set, or what four-car pileup happens on my drive home, I know she’s there waiting for me at the end of the day, and it makes everything else bearable. No matter where I go, she’s always home for me, man, and that shit’s real,” he said, chugging the rest of his drink.

  Scott took the empty glass. “You’re cut off,” he said, feeling nauseous. He’d never wanted what his brother had just described, never been looking for it...but the nagging thought that it might have found him anyway made him ill.

  His brother opened his jacket and retrieved some folded papers. “Here, read this.”

  “What is it? The will to your bachelor life?” Keeping the tone joking was his only defense mechanism to the turmoil happening in his mind and in his heart.

  “My vows.”

  Oh, no. He shook his head, draining the contents of his glass. “Surprise me at the wedding.” This conversation was already getting too emotional and making him think too much.

  “No. I need to know if they’re good enough. Read them. Be honest.”

  “Don’t you have a best man somewhere?” The dude was really slacking on those duties.

  His brother forced the pages into his hand.

  “Fine.” Scott cleared his throat and set the glass aside as he unfolded the pages and started to read.

  Ten minutes later, his mouth was dry and his eyes weren’t.

  Now he was cut off.

  He swallowed hard, blinking back the tears before they could destroy his reputation as the unemotional brother.

  Derek was truly head over heels for his bride-to-be. Scott had seen his brother in love before, but not like this. The adoration and respect he felt for Liz had been evident to everyone that day and were loud and clear in the vows.

  He handed the pages back.

  “Well? Good or terrible.”

  “Good. Real good.” Which somehow had his own heart feeling like garbage.

  “Great, thanks, man,” Derek said, walking away to rejoin the group.

  Leaning over the rail, Scott stared across the street at Kate. He couldn’t wait any longer. Reaching for his phone, h
e texted, Your room? Twenty minutes?

  He waited impatiently for the reply, then breathed a sigh of relief as he read, I’d thought you’d never ask.

  * * *

  BACK IN HER hotel room ten minutes later, Kate got undressed and climbed into the shower. She was abuzz from Scott’s text. She knew she wasn’t doing herself any favors agreeing to be with him tonight, but at that moment she didn’t care. She wanted him.

  The last few days, being around him, just knowing he was somewhere nearby in the resort as she went about finishing the last-minute details of the wedding, had given her a warm butterfly feeling in her stomach. Her attraction for him was growing and she could no longer fight the other feelings she was developing for him.

  She didn’t want to.

  He was strong and caring and determined to do the right thing by his brother, but she’d felt his turmoil that week, felt his fight dying just a little, felt his resolve weakening, and she knew his change of heart had to do with her. The thought that he might be feeling something more in their connection gave her hope.

  Lathering her body with soap, she tingled with anticipation of his touch. Maybe she should have waited for him before showering.

  As soon as the thought entered her mind, she heard something in the room. She paused. Someone had definitely entered. She heard the clicking of the door as it shut. She smiled. “Just because you own the place doesn’t mean you can walk into any room you like,” she called out, rinsing the soap from her chest and stomach. Now that he was here, he could join her.

  “I take it you were expecting someone else.”

  The sound of Cooper’s voice, his silhouette behind the shower curtain, made her blood run cold. Switching off the taps, she said, “What are you doing in my room?” She reached beyond the curtain for her towel but didn’t feel it on the hook.

  He pulled the curtain back, and she immediately covered her body. “Cooper, what the fuck? Give me the towel.”

  He handed it to her, his gaze taking in the length of her before she covered herself. She felt sick under his sleazy gaze. God, how had she ever slept with him weeks before?

  Wow, it really was over. There was no lingering desire for him or unresolved feelings, just a bad taste in her mouth and an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. “How did you know where I was?”

  “I stopped by your office and Janet told me.”

  She needed to have a chat with Janet about not giving out her location again. Even if Cooper was a cop. “How did you get in my suite?” she asked, climbing out of the shower and leaving the bathroom, not liking the confined space.

  “The woman at the desk gave me a key. I told her you were my fiancée.”

  “Were.” Jeez, no one was winning employee of the month that day. She’d expected more common sense from Cameron, as well. She reached for her underwear and slid them on over her still-wet body beneath the towel. She felt so vulnerable, exposed and slightly terrified at the moment, but she wouldn’t let him see that he was making her nervous.

  “We should still be together, Kate,” he said, walking toward her.

  She backed away, reaching for a sweater. “We’re done, Cooper. Get out.” She yanked the oversize sweater over her head and tossed her towel away, picking up her jeans.

  Walking toward her, he ripped the jeans from her hand and tossed them away. “No, I won’t. Not until you admit that we are not over.”

  The smell of alcohol lingered on the air between them. He was drunk. She swallowed hard under his intense, angry stare. Things had escalated quickly. He was almost unrecognizable as the man she’d once been planning a life with. She’d never seen this side of him before. She didn’t want to see it now.

  He looked truly crazed as he continued to move closer, his eyes glassy and his gait slightly off balance. Glancing toward the door, she wondered if she could make a run for it.

  Cooper was in civilian clothes and thankfully she didn’t see his gun on him, but he was still fast... He wouldn’t hurt her, would he?

  The fact that she thought he could made her want to vomit. She’d been ready to marry this guy. Chase had been right. The eight months she’d been with him hadn’t been long enough to know the real him, obviously. “Cooper, what we had was great, but you know it wasn’t right—that’s why you didn’t go through with the wedding,” she said carefully, trying another tactic. Making him angrier didn’t seem like a good idea. Everyone was still out partying, and she knew the rooms next door were empty. No one would hear her if she screamed. She checked the clock. Still ten minutes before Scott was scheduled to arrive. God, she hoped he was early...and not delayed.

  “I panicked,” Cooper said, his expression softening a little as he reached out to touch her arm.

  She stiffened.

  “But I realize now I want you back. I need you back, Kate.” His words slurred slightly as he moved closer and tried to kiss her.

  She turned her head so that his lips made contact with her cheek.

  His expression turned hard again as he gripped her face in one hand. “You were expecting someone else when I came in. Who?” His cold tone made her shiver and she tried to move away, but he held her in place. One hand squeezing her face, the other gripped her arm so tight she could feel his fingers digging into her muscles.

  She hesitated. If she told him the truth, would he let her go? Would he realize she’d moved on? She didn’t think so. So far his actions weren’t those of a rational man. What was he hoping to achieve, showing up here unexpected and drunk?

  “No one.”

  “Liar,” he spat. “You really are screwing that resort owner—the guy who owns the place.”

  She forced her arm free and removed his hand from her face. Stepping back, she reached for the phone.

  He lunged forward and stopped her, yanking the cord from the wall.

  Shit. She should have gone for the door. Her heart pounded in her chest and her palms sweat. “Cooper, please leave. We can talk about things when I get back to the city.”

  “I don’t want to talk anymore,” he said, grabbing her again and flinging her onto the bed.

  She struggled to get back up, but he pushed her back down. “You’re such a slut, Kate. Having sex with me one week, then this guy the next week,” he said, dropping onto the bed on top of her. His rough hands held her shoulders down and his legs pinned hers. “Do you really think I’m letting you go?” he murmured against her ear, kissing her neck roughly.

  Tears of fear gathered in her eyes as she started to wiggle beneath him, desperate to get out from under him.

  She couldn’t breathe under his full weight, and she couldn’t move. “Cooper, please...” She heard desperation in her tone, and he laughed.

  She stilled, trying a different approach. “Okay, Cooper, you know what, you’re right. We’re not over.” The lie sickened her, as did the forced sweet sound of her voice. “Just let me up...and we can do this the right way,” she said, hoping she sounded convincing.

  He pulled back to look at her, and for a moment she thought she might have gotten to him, but a second later his palm connected with a loud slap to her face. “You’re really something. Do you think I’m that stupid, Kate? No, you’re not getting up until I’m done with you,” he said, pressing his forearm against her chest, making it even harder to breathe, as he reached down to unbutton his jeans with the other hand.

  Panic rose in her constricted chest.

  She had to get him off her. She looked around for a weapon, anything she could hit him with, but found nothing.

  “Tell me you want me to fuck you, Kate,” he demanded.

  Like hell she would. She struggled under him, pushing her hips up to try to heave him off her, but nothing worked. He was too big, too strong and too angry.

  Then taking a deep breath, she thought back to the
self-defense class Chase had insisted she take. What had they taught her? Stay calm, keep a clear head and look for opportunities.

  When Cooper’s unsteady hand struggled with his zipper and he removed his arm from her chest, she saw one. Leaning forward, she came up hard, head butting him. The impact rattled her brain, but luckily it sent him spinning, as well. Long enough for her to free her arms and push hard against him.

  When he fell back slightly, she rolled out from under him quickly and got back to her feet.

  “That’s it. I just came here to show you what a mistake you’re making by forcing me to continue to grovel...” Cooper said, walking toward her.

  That’s what he thought? Anger replaced fear in her chest, and she actually stormed toward him, catching him slightly off guard with her failure to retreat. Then, seeing the opening in his pants, she went for it. Reaching inside, she grabbed his balls with her right hand, squeezing hard.

  He bent slightly, his eyes wide. “Damn, Kate. I can’t breathe,” he said, his eyes wide, a look of pain on his face.

  “Good. Now listen to me. If you ever come near me again, I’ll cut these off. Understand?” she asked, twisting slightly.

  He groaned and nodded. “Just let go.”

  Not until he was out of her room. Still gripping him, she pushed him toward the door.

  He stumbled backward until they reached it.

  Opening it, she finally released him as she pushed him outside into the hall.

  Right past Scott.

  “What’s happening here?” he asked, coming to stand between her and Cooper, his expression indicating he knew exactly what was going on.

  “Cooper was just leaving while he still has his balls intact,” she said, her voice strong and clear and angry, no trace evident of her previous fear or the adrenaline-induced shakiness she felt.

  “Kate...” Cooper started, but Scott grabbed him by the shoulders and stopped him from getting any closer.

  “The lady told you to leave.”

  “I just want to—”

  “Get the hell out of here!” Scott’s voice raised, and Cooper straightened, looking like he was still in pain.