Macy had tried lying on her side, her back, even on her stomach, but no matter the position she couldn’t fall asleep. Normally, once her head hit the pillow, she was off to dreamland, especially after a long day and a hot bath. But not tonight. Not with Finn sleeping just down the hall from her. Plus she kept remembering the reason he was there.
Since the phone calls had started a few days ago, she had kept her mind on work so she wouldn’t have to think about the pervert who had threatened her. So far it had worked. Now her mind was on Finn, and that was managing to distract her as well.
She’d heard him running on the treadmill earlier then the hum of the shower. She’d imagined those powerful legs, muscles popping as he ran. Then while he showered she’d had visions of him naked as he lathered soap up and down his very masculine body. The vision wouldn’t go away. No wonder she couldn’t sleep.
Sitting up in bed she glanced at the clock on the bedside table. Ten after one. Ugh! She had to get up at four. That is if she wanted to work out before going to the studio. Which she did.
Maybe if she read for a little bit she’d be able to relax. She reached for her Kindle and turned it on. She read one page then a few more in the romance novel she’d been enjoying the past week. But suddenly she came to a scene she did not want to explore at the moment. Her heart was beating fast, her skin tingling. The characters were about to have sex. And if she kept reading she would never be able to drift off to sleep. She would start thinking about Finn again. She would remember seeing his perfectly sculpted body in her hotel room six months earlier. His perfectly sculpted naked body.
She had wondered over the past months what kind of lover he was. Definitely not the slam-bam-thank-you-ma’am type. His ego was way too big for that. He’d want to make sure he satisfied his lover thoroughly and then some. That was definitely a plus. Had he satisfied her that night? And why was she thinking about that now? So what if she didn’t remember how it had been between them? She could have had zero orgasms or a dozen. It was something she’d never know. It really shouldn’t matter anyway, because she was never going to have sex with him again.
And there was that tingling way down low in her belly and between her thighs. Or was that her stomach simply growling with hunger?
Wondering if there was anything in the fridge to nibble on, she lowered her feet to the cool marble floor, stood and then tiptoed to the kitchen.
She smiled when she found a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey in the freezer. In the dark she managed to locate a spoon. She was about to head back to her room when the kitchen light flicked on, scaring her half to death. But that wasn’t the only shock. There stood Finn, pointing a gun at her. While that should have been the most terrifying thing, the fact that he was stark ass naked was more intimidating than anything.
Macy’s mouth hung open as she stared at his appendage protruding between his legs.
“Jeezus!” he growled. “What are you doing?”
Was he crazy or what? She raised her gaze to his face and tried to find her voice but it wouldn’t come. She must still be in shock. She lifted the ice cream container with one hand and then the spoon with the other, as if that would explain everything.
“I could have shot you.” He set the gun on the countertop, dragged his hands through his hair then wiped the sleep from his eyes.
He wasn’t wearing the patch. He had a glass eye and there was scar tissue around the socket and at his temple. She decided he actually looked hotter without the patch. She wondered if he realized that.
Probably not as he didn’t even seem to know he was standing in her kitchen naked. She nodded toward his crotch, made a little throaty sound then quickly glanced away.
“What?” Then, “Oh, shit. Sorry. I sleep in the nude. I’ll be right back.” He retrieved the gun and disappeared.
Macy looked skyward and blew out a long breath. Oh. My. God. He looked every bit as good as she remembered. But what about her? She was wearing her Chicago Bears jersey. Not very flattering, but at least she was covered. She had scrubbed her face free of makeup and her hair must be a frightful sight. So why did she care? He wasn’t here to seduce her. He was here to protect her.
She climbed atop a bar stool, took the lid off the ice cream and dug in. This was what she needed. She swallowed a bite and savored the coldness as it soothed her dry throat. Maybe the cold would get her mind off those warming sensations in her belly and thighs. In fact, maybe she should place the container between her thighs for just a moment. That might cool her down. She brought the ice cream to rest on her lap then wedged it between her open legs and closed them to hold it in place. But rather than get her mind off sex and a naked Finn the cold only managed to intensify her plight. She was on edge now, hornier than ever.
“What are you doing?”
Macy yanked the ice cream container from between her legs and sat it on the counter, knocking the lid to the floor in the process. “Nothing! Do you always have to sneak up on me?”
He wrinkled his brow as he stared down at her lap where the ice cream had been a moment ago. She pressed her thighs tightly together but that made the sensations worse. Oh how she wanted to run away and hide right now, but she couldn’t do that. Refused to do that. Besides, she was an actress. She could fake her way through anything. Change the subject. “I like you better without the eye patch.” He was wearing gray sweat pants. He hadn’t bothered with a shirt, but he had put the patch back on.
Ignoring her, he bent over, grabbed the lid to the ice cream container then sat down beside her. The fabric from his sweat pants rubbed against her bare leg. She saw him eyeing the container.
“If you want some, get your own spoon. I don’t share utensils with strangers.”
“Baby, after all the things we shared that night I think we’re way past that.” He winked at her.
Her body shivered from his words. Why did he have to talk to her like that? And why did her body have to betray her when she was trying to pretend the last ten minutes had had no effect on her whatsoever?
He took the spoon from her hand and dunked it into the carton. He brought it to her lips and for some unknown reason she opened her mouth. Never had a man spoon fed her before. It was ludicrous and yet it was the sexiest thing she had ever experienced. Her eyes never left his as she let the cold cream melt in her mouth before chewing a chunk of chocolate and swallowing.
She watched as he dunked again and then brought the spoon to his own mouth. She licked her lips. What was she doing? A married woman would never behave this way. And yet she wasn’t married. But he thought she was. Which meant she should probably act accordingly.
Did he think she was a slut? Of course he did. She’d slept with him, a complete stranger, and she was supposedly married when she had done so. Finn probably thought if he pressed hard enough, tormented her with sexual innuendos, that she would spread her legs for him again.
Would she? Hell, no! Not going to happen.
Liar.
Not trusting herself to be around him any longer she pushed the carton toward him. “I have to go to bed.”
He placed a hand on her arm. “Before you go I just want to know why you put the ice cream between your thighs? Is that a turn-on for women?”
Irritated with him for bringing it up, she pulled her arm away and hopped off the stool. The question did not deserve an answer. Let him try to figure it out. “Goodnight, Finn.”
“Baby, after seeing you do that I’m not sure it’s going to be a good night. I certainly am not going to be able to go back to sleep.”
Good. That makes two of us. She scampered down the hall then shut and locked her door.
Macy had set her alarm for four a.m. After brushing her teeth and smoothing her hair into a ponytail she threw on her workout clothes—a hot pink sports bra, black shorts and sneakers. She grabbed her iPod and headed for the exercise room.
She adjusted the settings on the treadmill and hopped on. Hearing Finn use the machine the night before had her toying with the idea of coming in here to watch as he worked out. But that wouldn’t have been smart. They only would have ended up in bed together. Because she was so darn hungry for a man she could practically taste him.
She had no idea why her body was on such high alert when she was around Finn. She met and spoke with plenty of men every single day and none made her feel as sexy as he did. And no other man was able to infuriate her like he could either. He was all wrong for her. She needed to remember that.
Last night when he had lowered her zipper she’d wanted to step out of the dress and turn to him wearing only her bra and panties. Just to see his face, his reaction.
After all, they’d already had sex. It would have been so easy to just let it happen again. He’d said he didn’t kiss and tell. She believed him. Otherwise, he would have told Caroline’s husband Ryder about that night, and he would have told his wife. If Caroline knew she would have questioned her for sure by now. Then again, maybe not.
And even though Macy knew Finn was all wrong for her and she for him, she could tell he wouldn’t have turned down the offer. He was a man whore for sure. Thought he could have any woman he wanted. Which is why in the end she’d told him that night had been a mistake and that they were not going to have sex again.
But after the ice cream episode she wasn’t so sure. She wanted him. Needed him, was more like it. Yet she’d hurried off to bed alone. Because that was the smart thing to do, Macy.
She had been running on the treadmill for about ten minutes now and was just starting to work up a good sweat when Finn trudged into the room. He was wearing the gray sweats from the night before. They sat low on his hips. His chest was bare. A trail of dark hair disappeared into the waistband of the sweatpants. He scrubbed a hand over his head where his short hair stuck out at odd angles.
“What are you doing?” he asked and then yawned. “It’s four a.m.”
She pulled a bud from her ear but kept running. “I have to be at the studio by six so I wanted to work out beforehand.”
“Jeezus, woman, don’t you ever sleep?”
“I slept.”
“For two hours maybe.”
“I’ll be fine. After today the show will be on hiatus for a few weeks.” She stopped talking a moment to catch her breath. “I plan to get caught up on my sleep then.”
He nodded and yawned again. “Do you want me to start the coffee?”
She smiled sweetly. “I would be ever so grateful if you would do that.”
His mood seemed to lift as he raised his brows. “Yeah?”
Wait a minute. What was that look? “Well, not that grateful.”
“Yeah, I didn’t think so.”
“What have you got for me?” Finn barked into his cell. He’d left Macy in her dressing room so he could make a few phone calls. She was surrounded by Kat and a few other females so she was fine. One was doing Macy’s nails, another was styling her hair. Kat was going over the schedule. All of them were talking at once and so fast he had gotten a headache. It had seemed like a good time to slip out.
“Man, you have got to be the rudest fucker I have ever met.” Luke Remington didn’t take shit from anybody.
Finn let out a long breath and pinched his forehead. “Sorry. I haven’t had much sleep lately.” And he didn’t expect it to get much better. How was he supposed to relax while in such close proximity to Macy? He still couldn’t get that picture of her in the Bears jersey out of his mind. It had hit her mid-thigh and showed off her bare legs nicely. She’d looked like a college girl last night. All fresh and innocent without her makeup. He was still wondering if she’d worn any panties beneath that jersey.
And the look on her face when he’d caught her with the ice cream container between her thighs. What the hell had that been about? With as many women as he’d fucked, he’d never had one do anything remotely as sexy as that.
“I didn’t find anything that stood out,” Luke said, interrupting his thoughts. “I was just about to send you what I have so far. Give me another minute.”
“Okay, thanks.”
“Oh, and, Finn? I couldn’t find much of anything on Antonio Cavoletti, other than a few mentions in the tabloids about he and Macy Winthrop being married. There are no photos, no interviews, nothing. And no one by that name in the FBI or CIA. Are you sure he works for the government?”
“No, I’m not sure. Keep looking.”
“Will do.”
“Talk to you soon.” Finn disconnected the call and headed down the hall to Macy’s dressing room. When he opened the door he was surprised to find Macy alone inside. Good. Peace and quiet. Plus he had some questions for her.
She was in the corner at the small desk rifling through some papers. Her back was to him. She hadn’t yet changed out of the sweats she’d worn to work that morning. Although Kat had brought a hot pink dress and a pair of matching pumps for her to wear today. Macy’s hair and makeup had already been done.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m just looking through some fan mail.”
He came to stand behind her, glanced over her shoulder at the printed emails. “Get a lot of those, do you?”
“Hundreds each week. Stephanie prints out her favorites and brings them to me.”
Stephanie was the cute little blonde he had met earlier. “Can I ask you a few questions?”
“Sure.” She moved the stack of papers aside and turned her chair around.
“What exactly does your husband do?”
She blinked at him as if she didn’t quite understand the question.
“Antonio Cavoletti. Is that his real name?”
She nodded. “Yes. Why?”
“Who does he work for?”
She licked at her lips. “Jeremy already told you.”
“No. Jeremy said he worked for the government, but he didn’t say which branch.”
Crossing her arms in front of her, she tilted her chin up. “Why does it matter?”
“It matters, okay? I had someone do a little checking.”
Before he could explain, she bolted from the chair and exploded. “Why would you do something like that without asking me first?”
“Because you haven’t been exactly honest with me. Like right now, you can’t even answer a simple question.”
“You don’t need to know anything about Anthony. He’s away on business. Secret government business.”
“Uh, huh. Anthony?”
She blinked at him. “What?”
“You called him Anthony. I thought his name was Antonio.”
“It is.” She averted her eyes. “You got me upset. It was just a slip of the tongue.” She met his gaze again, all smiles now. “Antonio likes to keep a low profile. Certainly you can understand that.”
“Yep. I sure can.” But he wasn’t buying it for a minute. What did this guy do and where the fuck was he? Then suddenly he got it.
“If you don’t mind I need to change.”
“I do mind,” he said, dropping onto the sofa. “I don’t like being played, Macy.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I mean this husband crap. Tell me the truth.”
She didn’t respond.
“Here’s what I think. I think he found out you cheated on him. With me. And maybe there were others.” He lifted a shoulder. “He walked out on you. You’re separated and trying to keep your impending divorce under wraps. That’s why he’s not around here.”
“Stop it! That’s absurd.”
“Is it? If I figured it out in less than twenty-four hours, how long do you think it will take for others to figure it out? Talk about bad ratings. If Dr. Macy can’t keep a relationship going, then who the fuck can? You’ll lose all your supporters. And before you deny it, I want you to know I did some snooping in your bedroom this morning while you were in the shower.”
Her mouth dropped open and her eyes went wide. “You did what?”
“There was only a handful of men’s clothing in the second closet. All brand new. It looked as though they’d never been worn before.”
“Finn, please stop.”
“Not until you admit it. Tell me the truth. Your husband left you, didn’t he?”
“Fine. Have it your way.”
He tapped his foot on the floor waiting for her to confess. “Well?” he prompted.
After a noisy sigh, she finally spoke. “Okay, if you must know I felt guilty after what happened between us. I came clean with my husband. And he left me. Are you happy? I bought some men’s clothes so the cleaning crew and cook didn’t get suspicious.”
He wasn’t sure if he was happy or not. He was certainly . . . conflicted. Yep, that was the word he was looking for. Conflicted.
Yet he owed her the truth. He should tell her they didn’t have sex that night. But what would it matter now? Her husband had left her because she told him she had cheated on him. Would it really make that much difference if he said she had passed out before anything had happened? Probably not. The intent was there. If she hadn’t passed out they surely would have fucked their brains out once she had sobered up some.
“Well, say something,” she sniped.
“I guess there isn’t much to say.” He felt like a coward for not being truthful with her.
A knock on the door interrupted them. “Ten minutes, Ms. Winthrop.”
“Please go now. I need to change, and unlike you, I’m not comfortable parading around naked in front of strangers.”
Finn got to his feet and strode past her. He should turn around and tell her the truth about that night. What kind of asshole was he to keep something like that from her all this time? It was selfish and wrong. All because she had pissed him off when they’d met. But because this was hardly the time or place, and because he was obviously a pussy, he walked out of the dressing room without saying another word.
Macy hadn’t seen Finn since their conversation earlier in her dressing room. She felt like crap for lying to him. She’d wanted to tell him the truth. That there was no husband. She hadn’t cheated. She wasn’t a slut. But in the end she had let him believe her husband had left her because of what had happened with Finn.
The guy had such a huge ego. It would be just like him to gloat over it too. The fact that she wasn’t married, never had been, and that she didn’t even have a boyfriend. Jeremy had reminded her that morning not to trust Finn with a secret like that. She supposed he was right. She needed to keep quiet. All those people out there who looked up to her, respected her, trusted her, would turn their backs on her in a minute if they found out she’d been lying about her wonderful husband and their perfect relationship. How could she blame them?
She’d finished taping several commercial spots for the show and headed to her dressing room. On the way she passed Kat.
“Hey, Macy. David Greenberg is looking for you.”
Macy smiled politely. “Okay, thanks.” She knew what David wanted. Her signed contract. Well, he was just going to have to wait. The man was so persistent he was sometimes downright rude.
Sitting at the desk, she started reading the pile of emails she hadn’t gone through yet.
Dear Dr. Macy,
My husband and I adore the show. We have taken all your relationship tips seriously, and wow, what a difference it has made in our marriage. Thank you for getting us back on track.
Nancy
Macy smiled. There were a dozen or more like that one. Twenty minutes or so had passed before she reached the bottom of the pile. And then she froze. The last one wasn’t an email but a typewritten note.
Macy, he can’t protect you from me.
Staring at the note, she read it again and then finally released the breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. How did that note get in here?
Had Stephanie brought it in with the others? Or had someone been in her dressing room and slipped it to the bottom of the pile while she was gone?
Phone calls were one thing. This was much too personal. Too close to her space. This meant that he was here somewhere. Oh, God. She had to get out of here. She’d tried for days now to tell herself that it wasn’t real, that it was all some kind of sick joke. But she didn’t believe that anymore.
She got up and rummaged through several drawers until she found what she was looking for. Quickly she lifted the dress she was wearing over her head and donned her favorite winter attire. Jeans, a hoodie, sneakers and a ball cap. Rarely did anyone recognize her when she dressed like this.
She needed some alone time. Time to think about her situation; her fake husband, the creep who had written that note and Finn.
She called and arranged for a car to pick her up. A few minutes later, she grabbed the note, stuffed it into her tote bag and left the dressing room. But she had no sooner turned the corner in the hall when she came face-to-face with Finn.
He narrowed his eyes. “Going somewhere?”
“Lunch.”
He ran his gaze up and down the front of her. “Good, I’m starving.”
“Alone.”
His face hardened. “No way, baby. You hired me to do a job and that’s what I’m going to do. You are not getting out of my sight.”
She sighed. So much for trying to escape for a little while. “Fine.” She started walking again, Finn at her side. The hallways in this part of the building were much too narrow to walk side-by-side with someone. Well, at least with this someone. He was broad shouldered and she either had to hug the wall or brush elbows with him. Suddenly she was claustrophobic, the air drying up around her. She stopped and shoved him hard but he didn’t budge. She shoved at him again. Harder this time. “Can you give me some damn breathing room?”
Finn raised both hands in front of him. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing. It’s just that you’re always here. I can’t breathe sometimes.” She clawed at her neck, tried to suck in a breath. What was wrong with her? Was she having a panic attack?
“Macy. Talk to me.”
“I need fresh air.” She hurried down the hall and out of the studio, racing toward the bank of elevators. Finn was right behind her.
She didn’t want to get into that confined space but there were too many flights to use the stairs. She stepped inside the elevator car and pressed herself against the wall. Hanging her head she breathed in through her nose and blew out through her mouth. The thought of that man who had written that note squeezing the life out of her made her want to vomit.
“You okay?”
She nodded but didn’t speak. Their car stopped on three different floors to pick up passengers but Finn did not let anyone inside. “The lady’s not feeling well. You can get the next one.”
She couldn’t even tell him how much she appreciated that, plus the fact that he was keeping his distance from her meant a lot. Soon they were on the street level and the doors opened.
He walked beside her until they were outside. She lifted her face to the sky and dragged in a couple breaths. For January it was a heat wave. A comfortable fifty-four degrees with plenty of sunshine. It was refreshing to say the least.
“Better?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Take your time. Just breathe and relax.”
He stood quietly and waited until her body began to return to normal.
“Is that your car?” He nodded at the black town car parked in front of the building.
Nodding, she headed toward it and allowed Finn to help her inside. “The Navy Pier, Eddie,” she said to the driver. Eddie was her favorite. He was probably in his seventies and sometimes had a joke or two. She would always laugh even though his jokes weren’t very funny. She suspected it was because he messed up the punchline most oftentimes.
Finn didn’t question her about going to the Pier, just raised his brows.
“It calms me. I like going there incognito and eating a hotdog. Riding the Ferris wheel. Just walking sometimes and staring at all the people. You know, being normal.”
“Okay. I can get down with that.”
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
“Was I being nice? Sorry, I didn’t mean to be.” And then he grinned.
She couldn’t help but smile at him. “Can I ask you something?”
He shrugged.
“Are you a decent person or a prick?”
He laughed and sat back in his seat. “Well, I’ve been called a prick a few times. No one has ever said I was decent. But I’d like to think I’m one of the good guys. Just don’t tell anyone. I have this tough guy image I’m kind of proud of.”
“You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Damn straight, baby.”
And this time when he called her baby she didn’t even seem to mind. What was happening? Was Finn growing on her?