“What exactly does that mean?” Sam asked.
She shrugged. “You’d have to ask the P.A. What’s going on here?”
“I called Darla myself,” Josh said. “After the hospital checked her out, a dentist fitted Tabitha for some sort of temporary tooth held in with a mouthpiece, and she’s now in her room resting.” He glanced at Meagan. “Sam likes answers. I try to have them.”
“Thank you,” Meagan said, but she felt that announcement like a blow. She couldn’t get answers, but Sam could?
“Why don’t we head down to the property?” Sam suggested. “Then everyone can get some rest back at the hotel.”
“Yes,” agreed Meagan, her gaze touching his. “That sounds like a good idea.”
Sam motioned her forward, falling into step beside her, while Josh and Kiki followed them. Sam glanced behind them, apparently making sure they had some distance away from the others, before softly saying, “You’ll have to tell me who you ticked off to get saddled with Kiki.”
It helped to hear she wasn’t being overly sensitive about Kiki, and that Sam read Kiki the same way she did. “I didn’t make anyone mad, except for you, that I know of. I’m pretty good at that.” If there was a God of dance, she’d have said that was who she’d angered. In that case though, she would have thought her knee would have been the ultimate sacrifice, but apparently not.
“I think it’s the other way around,” he commented. “I’m good at making you mad.”
“You are a master of that craft.”
He laughed and darn it, she felt the sultry male baritone of it in every nerve ending of her body. There was so much about the man that appealed to her, and so many reasons not to act on what she felt for him. Yet he’d been there for her tonight in so many ways.
They cleared the trees, bringing a large shadowy property into view and Meagan paused, drinking in the cool, clean ocean air as it washed over her, calming her, if only slightly. “I already love it here. I love the ocean.”
“I sure hope there are lights,” Kiki said, stopping next to Meagan.
“There are,” Sam answered, motioning Meagan onward, and she had the distinct impression that no matter how attractive Kiki might be, Sam wasn’t impressed. The idea pleased her a little more than it should have. Another reaction she wasn’t going to try to analyze at present.
Sam ran down the basics of the property as they walked. “The house is 5,000 square feet with a 2,000-square-foot mother-in-law house in the back of the main property.”
“That does sound perfect,” Meagan replied.
Motion detectors flickered to life, illuminating an impressive contemporary stucco house, with a balcony that wrapped around most of the second floor.
“The water is so close,” Kiki exclaimed, rushing forward and calling over her shoulder. “It’s amazing.”
Sam sighed as Kiki expanded the distance between her and them. “I better catch up with her before she gets hurt and calls it the curse.” He headed after her.
Josh fell into step with Meagan. “Kiki seems to like this place so far. Surely that’s all you need to know.” He grinned to let her know he was teasing her.
Meagan snorted. “That’s about as true as me dropping my cell phone. I used horrible judgment by not going back to my room for my phone. It’s just that if I’d gone back, I knew I’d get cornered by someone wanting to talk, and it would be even later by the time we made it out here. Still, I should have known better. Thank you for being loyal to your boss and covering for me.”
“I spent the entire drive listening to Kiki talk trash about you.” They started up the porch stairs, where Sam waited, having already let Kiki inside the house. “She gloated on the drive over here about how she’d saved the studio millions, insisting you’d be a failure. The worst is that she had to have known I might tell you. It’s like she wanted you on edge by announcing her intent. I hate saying this because it feeds into her strategy, but Meagan, she’s a cobra. Watch for the next strike, because it’s coming.”
Meagan crossed her arms in front of her chest, tension curling in her stomach. She had confirmation of what she’d hoped wasn’t true. Not only was Kiki a true enemy, she wasn’t even trying to hide her agenda.
They joined Sam at the door.
Josh glanced at Sam. “Don’t worry, boss. I’ll go in first, and strategically engage the enemy.”
“Good luck with that one,” Sam said dryly, stepping aside to let Josh enter, and then moving again to block the entrance. The porch light played on his chiseled features and full, sensual mouth—the mouth she shouldn’t be looking at, but couldn’t seem to resist.
“Everything okay?” he asked, towering above her, and she was struck again by the way he used his broad shoulders to shield her, this time from Kiki’s potentially, most likely, prying eyes. Protective. That was the word that came to mind, rather than dominant and bossy.
“Everything is just peachy,” she assured him. “In fact, tonight is just one big bucket of peachy.”
Kiki peeked around Sam. “Are you coming in or what?” She disappeared.
“See,” Meagan said. “Peachy.”
He didn’t move, his eyes narrowing a barely perceivable amount. “What’s wrong?”
She lowered her voice. “You were right about watching my back with Kiki. Josh said that she bragged about saving the studio millions by getting rid of people like me. It sounds like she doesn’t want the show to succeed. But—”
“Now isn’t the time to talk about this, but I have your back, Meagan, and I mean that. You do what feels right and you make this as good a show as you can make it. Don’t let her get to you.”
Her chest tightened at the unexpectedly supportive, and yes, protective words. Right then, she realized that Sam had snuck through her defenses, into her life, and for the first time in a very long time, if only for tonight, it was a relief to not feel alone. She nodded. “I know. You’re right.”
“I don’t think you do.” There was nothing accusing in his tone, no taunt, none of their normal word play.
“I do. I know.” Her lips lifted ever so slightly. “But it helps to be reminded. Thank you.”
He studied her and then gave a small incline of his head, flattening himself against the door to let her pass.
As Meagan moved by Sam, her shoulder brushed his chest. She froze with the impact, her gaze momentarily meeting his, heat glimmering in the depths of his stare. And she didn’t look away, or hide from him, or herself. She wanted Sam. She was so very tired of denying herself this man.
But their window to be alone was now gone. Meagan had no doubt that Kiki would notice if they disappeared after this and didn’t show up back at the hotel, which was all but a film set, with cameras and people everywhere.
Kiki might not be able to steal her show, but she’d definitely stolen her one night with Sam. While it was probably for Meagan’s own good, it didn’t feel that way right now. Meagan believed she would regret this lost chance for a very long time.
9
SAM TRAILED MEAGAN INTO the house, more than a little concerned about Kiki. He saw her actions, her using Josh to taunt Meagan, as confirmation that she felt invincible. Sabrina was right, Kiki was dangerous.
In the kitchen, Sam’s gaze drifted over Meagan’s skirt and the way it hugged her cute, tight backside. He liked that backside, but more so, he liked Meagan. This woman was under his skin and going nowhere but deeper fast. When he’d watched her fight through her worries over Kiki, when he’d seen the determination to succeed reignite in her eyes, he’d been blown away. Meagan was sexy, feisty, and passionate about what she believed in. And that made him passionate about her. He wasn’t going to let anyone, especially Kiki, tear her down.
“The setup is perfect,” Meagan said, descending a few steps to a sunken living room, and turning to face him. She pointed toward the open kitchen, where Kiki leaned on the island counter, and Josh stood stoically next to her.
“The way the kitchen overlook
s the main area is terrific for panned shots,” Kiki agreed, actually sounding as if she really cared about the show.
“I love it,” Meagan said, holding out her arms, as if embracing the room. “I can only pray the upstairs is as terrific as the downstairs.”
That’s when Sam did a silent “Oh, crap.” The buttons of Meagan’s blouse were uneven, obviously hurriedly secured. If that blouse didn’t scream an announcement about what he and Meagan had been doing in his truck when Josh and Kiki arrived, he didn’t think anything would.
Cautious to appear casual, Sam sauntered toward Meagan. He stood so that his big body blocked the others’ view of the problem he knew would panic Meagan if she discovered it.
“It’s a unique setup,” he explained, two fingers pointing to the left of the living room, by the kitchen. “These stairs lead to a section of the top floor.” He then indicated the opposite side of the room, where he intended to herd Meagan and quickly. “Stairs on that side lead to a completely separate second level. Since sleeping arrangements are so important, why don’t we have a look up there now?”
Meagan’s eyes went wide, and she brushed her windblown hair from her face. “I searched everywhere for split quarters when the show was starting, and I couldn’t find anything. I had to convert a downstairs den to a bedroom in the other house.”
“So I was told by the studio,” he said. “But I can’t take credit. Josh did the legwork.” He gestured toward the stairs. The ones nowhere near Kiki. “Shall we head up?”
Meagan frowned, studying him a moment. “Okay.” She began climbing the stairs, but the instant they were behind the wall encasing the steps, she turned to him and whispered, “Now it’s my turn to ask. What’s wrong?”
Sam was shocked that she’d read his discomfort. He was special ops, trained to be unreadable. And he was cautious enough to know better than to risk her freaking out about her blouse if he told her. “Just concerned about the property,” he assured her. “If the bedroom situation won’t work, even if I approve the security profile, the house is worthless, don’t you think?”
Her brows furrowed, and she looked as if she might question him again. Instead though, she gave a little nod. “Yes. You’re right, of course.” She headed up the stairs.
For a second Sam just stared after her, wondering what this woman was doing to him, and why he was powerless to stop it. Not that he wanted to, but he wasn’t on sure footing which was unsettling. Fortunately, before leaving the main room he’d discreetly motioned to Josh to keep Kiki occupied, before he’d headed upstairs after Meagan.
* * *
MEAGAN WALKED THROUGH the spacious upstairs bedrooms, her mind on Sam, who’d officially done exactly what men like Sam—strong, dominant types—did to those around them. He had taken control. But even as the thought occurred, as she knew that she was somehow villainizing him, she admitted he didn’t deserve that from her. And that made Meagan want to scream, and not at Sam, but at herself. He wasn’t trying to be controlling, and in fact, he’d surprised her with how sensitive he was to her own need for control of the show. If he had control, it was because she’d given it to him. She was powerfully affected by everything the man did—or didn’t do, for that matter.
There was a part of her that reveled in being so blown away by Sam, and another that was reeling from him knocking her off guard. She wanted to keep her distance, but again, the logic, while smart, didn’t appeal in the slightest.
Meagan passed a bathroom and entered the large master suite, which could accommodate three contestants, but would only need to host two. And what a master it was. Huge double windows led onto what appeared to be a balcony. She needed to get Kiki up here and assign her furniture-shopping duty. With cameras rolling, that wasn’t an unimportant task.
“Meagan?” Sam’s voice and the sound of big feet climbing the stairs echoed nearby.
“In the master,” she called, and headed into the bathroom. Wow. If she were selfish, she’d find a way to make this her suite and her bathroom. There was a separate shower in a sort of rock enclave that was envy worthy, and a deep sunken tub equally so, as well as a double vanity and a huge closet. The girls would have to draw straws for the room. It would be the only fair way to manage them choosing.
Footsteps closed in on her, and her stomach fluttered with the awareness of Sam being nearby. Her stomach had actually fluttered. When in the world had that last happened with a man?
She didn’t turn, afraid she’d give away what she was feeling, but she knew the instant Sam entered the bathroom.
Meagan gasped at the daring, impossibly damning action of him shutting the door, and right then she was sure she had been wrong. Sam was bad news; Sam was still the chaos she thought he was.
She reeled at the sight of her hot soldier, all big and tall. “What are you doing? What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking your shirt is buttoned crooked, and you need to fix it now, before Kiki notices it.”
Her jaw dropped, and then her mouth formed a silent “Oh,” before she quickly started to right the buttons. “Oh, God. Oh, God. Did they see? Did Kiki see?”
“No,” he said. “Why do you think I all but shoved you toward the stairs and then sent them to inspect other parts of the house? But they will be here any minute.”
She checked her blouse in the mirror. “Thank you, Sam. Thank you so very much.” This time the appreciation came freely and without an ounce of hesitation. Time and Kiki were all that mattered. Task completed, she patted down the wild mess of her dark hair and turned to him, holding out her hands to her sides. “Please tell me I have covered all evidence of our earlier...that nothing else is where it shouldn’t be.”
“You’re perfect,” he said softly, his eyes hot, his voice warm. He yanked open the bathroom door, eliminating any chance they would be caught in a compromising position. Or so she thought. Before she knew his intentions, Sam pulled her into the enclave of the shower, melding her body to his.
“I hate that we were interrupted,” he confessed, an instant before his mouth closed down over hers. The assault on her senses was instant—a tangled ball of fear of being caught, and intense, nerve-prickling awareness. His tongue touched hers, suckling and licking, until she moaned and melted into his kiss, his body—correction—his hard masculine body.
Meagan grappled for willpower, her hands going to his shoulders, as she tried to convince herself to push away from him. He just tasted too good, and felt so wonderful.
“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she whispered, forcing her mouth from his.
His voice lowered, became husky. “And aren’t you glad we are?”
“Yes,” she whispered, her hands sliding around his neck, her breasts melding to his chest, her lips meeting his again. Meagan felt herself drift away, unable to stop it from happening. This man stole her reason, her presence of mind. There was no show, no Kiki, just her and Sam. Until there were footsteps and voices and a dart of adrenaline shot through her bloodstream.
She tried to pull away. Sam held her, and pressed his lips to her ear. “I can’t wait to finally have you to myself.” His teeth scraped her lobe before he set her away from him. She didn’t know how he planned to have her to himself, but if her trembling with need was any indication, she hoped he had a way.
“Hello! Hello!”
It was Kiki, and Meagan shook herself, quickly checking the mirror, about to rush from the bathroom, when Sam yelled, “In here, Kiki.”
Meagan turned to him and mouthed, “Are you crazy?”
He arched a brow, as if he had no idea why she would ask such a thing.
Kiki appeared in the doorway, a frown on her pretty face. “What’s going on?”
Sam indicated the sink. “Ants. If you two want this place, I’ll need to get an exterminator written into the agreement prior to move-in.”
“Oh good grief,” Kiki exclaimed. “There’s a ton of them.”
And sure enough, there were a ton of them. Meagan barely bit
back a smile. Sam was a phenomenal kisser, and really brilliant to boot.
“You have to see the mother-in-law house,” Kiki said. “It has three rooms, so I can stay with you and not have to drive out every day.”
Okay, so there went her lusty, Sam-created high. “Let’s go check,” Meagan said.
She moved forward, toward Sam, and his eyes twinkled with mischief and the promise of more kisses, more touches, more fire. Promises she really wanted him to keep. Besides. She owed him a thank-you for telling her about her buttons.
Meagan exited the bathroom with him on her heels, their shared secrets somehow uniting them beyond the passion they shared. And for the first time in a long time, she admitted to herself that having someone at her back wasn’t such a bad thing, not when that someone was Sam, at least so it seemed.
The realization puzzled her. Oh sure, she’d been standing alone for a long while—beating a path through the entertainment industry with a family that didn’t approve and hardly spoke to her. And sure, she’d tried a few times to escape into a man’s arms, into a relationship with a Beta-type guy, when deep down she knew alphas appealed far more. But she also knew that alphas were demanding and controlling, and she’d seen enough of that in her small town to last a lifetime—they’d sent her running for the hills. Sam was alpha—one hundred percent all-hot alpha male. So why wasn’t she running from him?
10
ONLY FIFTEEN MINUTES after the bathroom kiss, they’d looked at the mother-in-law house and were on to the additional house a mile away that was also part of the lease. Meagan was in the backseat of Josh’s SUV, all too aware of her leg intimately pressed to Sam’s. Kiki was in the front. Kiki, who Meagan couldn’t escape, any more than she could the memories of being in Sam’s truck, and what they’d done together. It all threatened to suffocate her right here and now.
“I can’t get over how perfect the mother-in-law house was,” Kiki said, glancing around the seats at Meagan. “We’ll be roommates.”
“Perfect.” Except for the fact that there had been only two bedrooms, one of which Kiki had excitedly claimed. “We haven’t seen the second property yet.”