Celebrity 2 - Acting Out (3 page)

Cree studied Evan’s usually flat expression. The call had shaken Evan. Cree felt a little disappointment that after working together and getting to know each other, Evan still wouldn’t open up. There were so many things he kept hidden under that stony mask.

Evan’s expressions rarely faltered. Only a few times, when Cree had deliberately set out to rile him, had Evan’s facade slipped. He thought he’d seen other moments, when fatigue weakened his guard, but they’d been fleeting.

Cree was ready to crack. He’d thought Evan was hot, but thank God Evan had never fully relaxed. Cree’s resolve to keep him at arm’s length would have buckled.

But as he looked into Evan’s eyes now, he didn’t dare back away. In the span of ten minutes he’d seen more real emotion play through those deep brown eyes than he’d seen in two weeks. It was like a drug holding him intoxicated. A window into Evan’s soul he rarely showed. Cree wanted to absorb it all before Evan tucked it away into hiding again.

“Not nothing,” Cree countered, hoping he read Evan’s expression correctly.
“No, it is. It’s nothing,” Evan rushed flippantly. He took a step to the side.
Cree caught Evan’s upper arm, holding him still. Both their gazes went to Cree’s hand. He’d never touched Evan before, and Evan seemed just as surprised as Cree was.
“Ask me anything you want,” Cree encouraged.
Evan laughed in a short, quiet burst. “I don’t think so. I like my job.”
Cree had been looking for signals from Evan, almost fearfully. He’d been watching to see if Evan would be receptive and nervous about the answer either way. Evan was normal. He had a normal life, if a somewhat abnormal job. Cree felt some responsibility in protecting it.
Cree was judicious about the people he kept near him. He liked Evan probably more than he should. But Evan was good people. Cree didn’t want to corrupt him with the limelight that seemed to invade everything in Hollywood. So far it hadn’t, but if Evan were receptive to dating Cree, it would.
Still, Cree had to know. Was there a chance that Evan might feel something normal and whole for Cree?
Cree picked his words carefully, watching Evan closely for how they were received. “Did you want to expand your duties?”
A flutter of a smile touched Evan’s lips. “You mean I don’t already do it all?”
“You do,” Cree acknowledged grudgingly. “Are you asking to fill my social calendar?”
Evan’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I already schedule your social calendar. You have a party coming up tomorrow night.”
“You’ll be there with me,” Cree said.
“Okay.”
Cree sighed, exasperated. He wasn’t getting his point across as all. Yet getting his point across clearly meant going against his instinct to protect Evan’s Hollywood innocence. Did he care? Yeah, he did. Did he still want to kiss Evan anyway? Fuck, yes.
“Just ask me, Evan,” Cree insisted.
Evan’s gaze fell on Cree’s lips. It was the only permission he needed. Cree stepped up, pulling Evan’s arm toward himself as he did so. Their chests bumped, and though it wasn’t hard enough to do anything, Evan exhaled sharply at the contact.
“Good,” Cree murmured. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Yeah, you did.” Cree grinned.
He leaned in, savoring the look of surprise on Evan’s face when their lips touched. Evan gave a low moan, and pulled away almost immediately, leaving Cree confused.
“I—don’t want that,” Evan said not looking certain.
Cree let him go. His stomach flipped even though they’d barely touched before Evan had turned him down.
“I’m sorry.” Evan’s gaze darted away.
“Don’t apologize. I read your signals wrong.” Cree tried to shrug it off but he did taste the bile of disappointment at the back of his tongue.
“No, actually, you didn’t. It’s just not a good idea.”
So Evan did want him, he just didn’t want to want him. Not confusing at all. Cree backed up, then turned on his heel to pick up his tote and water bottle. “You’re right.”
“If the circumstances were different—”
“I get it.” Cree cut him off. “I have to hit the set. Work out whatever you need to. My offer to help, holds.”
“Thanks, Mr. Radek.”
Cree felt his mouth twist oddly at the sound of his last name. That bitterness he tasted only seemed sharper. “Forget it.”

Evan was still kicking himself for not kissing Cree as the day wore down. His thoughts kept returning to that moment. He could have at least gotten into it before calling it off. The feel of Cree’s mouth barely brushing over his before Evan freaked out wouldn’t leave him alone.

He’d fucked up. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t, only Evan really wanted to
do
. If he’d been thinking clearly, he would have. Then he’d have regretted it later, which at this moment, Evan was okay with. Any additional time on those lips would have been worth the self-recrimination later.

His phone rang. The number didn’t register a contact he knew, but he took the call anyway.
“Mr. Walker, I’m Pete Givens from Givens Private Investigators. Mr. Radek hired me to be of service to you. He says you need to find someone?”
Evan pinched the bridge of his nose. It was really hard to make yourself objectify someone who believed in random acts of kindness. “Does Mr. Radek have access to any information you find for me?”
“He would, except he specifically declined. He told me to call you, take care of whatever you needed, and bill him.”
“Wow.”
“Mr. Radek—he’s a good guy.”
“Yeah, he really is,” Evan agreed.
“So, who’re you lookin’ for and where was he last seen?”
“Uh, I’m looking for David Fowler. My father.”
“What can you tell me?”
“He left Huntington, Indiana twenty-eight years ago and landed in Hollywood.” Evan completed the portion of his father’s profile that he knew, including the recent information he’d gleaned earlier that day from the gripper. “That’s it. That’s all I’ve got.”
“It’ll be enough to get started. I’ll call you in a few days. If you find out anything more, call me so I can follow up on the lead.”
He thanked Pete and continued staring at his phone long after they’d hung up. It was a damn good thing Cree wasn’t in the trailer with him now, because Evan would have forgotten every reservation and tackled the man to the floor.
Except Evan wasn’t that lucky. Cree shut the trailer door behind him. “Hey, you ready to head home?”
“Yeah,” Evan said roughly.
“You look funny.”
Evan grinned. He held up his phone. “Thank you.”
“What for?”
“Pete Givens.”
Cree snorted. “Sure.” He motioned for Evan to grab his laptop and waited by the door with his hand on the light switch. “So, are you going to be up for line running tonight?”
“Sure,” he said mimicking Cree.
Cree tugged on a couple of strategic hair spikes, possibly straightening them. “Good, We’re jumping order to shoot the final scene tomorrow, while were still in the studio. I wouldn’t want to crowd your comfort zone.”
“Why would it?” Evan asked walking over.
“It’s the romantic resolution.”
“Ah,” Evan murmured. “So there’s, like, kissing and stuff in it.”
“I just need the lines. I can handle the kissing.”
Evan dropped his bag. He slid a hand behind Cree’s neck and tugged him closer. Evan lifted his chin, fitting their mouths neatly together. He felt the floor shake as Cree’s tote hit the floor, too.
Cree’s mouth was made for kissing, Evan decided. It smoothed across his own, and when Evan tested the barrier with the tip of his tongue, Cree opened readily, a soft sound humming at the back of his throat.
Evan curled his other arm around Cree’s waist. Their hips and chests bumped together as Cree held him close. Cree tasted like mint and clove, those dumb fake cigarettes he had to smoke for the role, but on Cree it was exotic and sexy as hell.
The kiss broke and Evan bent to retrieve their bags, holding Cree’s up for him.
Cree’s lips were puffy and moist, and tipped in a quizzical smile. “Thanks,” he said, taking the bag.
“Mind if I make dinner tonight?” Evan asked.
Cree held the trailer door open for him to pass. “You cook, too?”
“I do when I’m nervous.”
Cree chuckled. “After that kiss, I’m the one who should be nervous.”
Evan’s gaze fell on Cree’s lips, then traveled up to his bright blue eyes, now shaded with evening darkness. “You haven’t been nervous a day in your life.”

Cree hoisted himself up on the kitchen’s center island. He hooked his hands over the edge and watched Evan search his kitchen for different ingredients. Occasionally, he told him where to find things, but only when he actually knew where they were. Cree wasn’t a cooker outside of the microwave and specially catered frozen dinners.

“Wow, your kitchen kind of sucks,” Evan said after a few minutes. “You have next to no spices, and besides the colorful array of pasta, you don’t have any real food.”

“I’ll call for dinner. We’ll shop tomorrow.”
“No,” Evan said waving his words off. “I’m determined. You have Earl Grey tea. I can use that with these frozen chicken breasts. And I’ll figure something out with the pasta. How is it that you don’t own any form of garlic?”
“I kiss a lot on set. Garlic breath isn’t appreciated.”
Evan snorted. “Use a toothbrush and mouthwash. I guarantee you she isn’t being as considerate and I bet you’ve never noticed.”
“Selene Laramie is notorious for bad breath,” Cree countered.
“Does she know it’s bad or doesn’t she care?”
“None of the actors I know are brave enough to tell her. Even tried going through her agent, but her agent is too afraid of her fits.”
Evan wrinkled his nose. Cree liked the boyish look on him. Cree liked a lot about the way Evan looked. He slid off the countertop.
“Need any help?” Cree asked.
Evan smiled. “The whole point of me cooking is to impress you and work off some excess nerves. Having you work beside me defeats the purpose.”
Cree couldn’t help but smile back. “I’m already impressed with you, and there are a lot more creative ways to work off excess nerves.”
“Do you
know
you do that eyebrow thing?” Evan asked suddenly.
“What eyebrow thing?”
“The one that says you know you’re hot and you know that the person looking at you wants to pounce?”
Cree laughed. The bold-faced honesty wasn’t something he heard a lot of in Hollywood. Hurray for Midwestern men. He grabbed Evan’s shoulders and drew him against his body. Evan’s arms circled his waist.
“Is that a yes?” Evan pressed.
“I had no idea.”
Evan looked over his shoulder at the odd collection of dried foods and frozen chicken breasts on the countertop.
“Fuck cooking. I’ve got another appetite I need taken care of.”
“Mister—”
“Evan, if you finish that statement, I’ll have to fire you. Mr. Radek doesn’t fuck employees.”
“But
Cree
Radek wants me in his bed.” Evan finished for him.
“Yeah,” he murmured. “
I
want you in my bed.”
Cree let him go to take his hand. Evan followed easily as they climbed the steps to the upper level. Cree hadn’t let anyone up here since he’d broken up with that starlet last year. She’d been using him to get ahead. He should have known from the calculating glint in her eye. Evan didn’t have that glint.
Cree’s chest felt tight and his mouth seemed uncommonly dry. Evan did that to him. He made Cree strangely giddy and a bit terrified, if he was being honest with himself. Evan was real. A real man giving his love had nothing to do with getting ahead in Hollywood, especially when that man didn’t even like being on set.
An easy smile came to him as he looked at Evan’s back. Evan’s head tipped up, taking in the massive scope of the room before letting out a low whistle.
“This place is amazing,” Evan said.
“I’m more interested in the man.”
Evan turned, a sexy grin on his face. It did things to Cree’s pulse, and suddenly he wasn’t so scared of letting his guard down. Evan was just Evan. He wasn’t paparazzi. He wasn’t a grubby agent. He wasn’t an actor trying to fuck him into blackmail.
Cree pulled his black T-shirt over his head and dropped it on the floor. Taking hold of his leather and silver studded belt, he loosened the closure and flipped open the top snap as he walked to Evan. Evan’s gaze raked over Cree. Cree liked the way Evan looked at him. He liked it a lot, and he held still for a moment, feeling his gaze like a forbidden caress.
Evan unbuttoned his oxford shirt. It amused Cree to see his white undershirt. It was just another reminder of how different their worlds were. The differences made their connection that much more important. They crossed barriers to be together, and Cree felt distinctly like he was opening a package to the rest of his life. The possibility of a relationship with Evan actually seemed realistic, where before, Evan was way out of his league.
“Wait,” Cree said. “Let me.”
Cree fisted the undershirt and carefully lifted it off and over. Evan’s shy, boyish grin needed a kiss and Cree wasn’t inclined to deny him. He hooked his fingers in the front of Evan’s jeans and dragged him toward him.
“Bottom or top?” Cree asked.
“Your sweet talking needs work.”
“Top it is.”
This close, their noses lining each other, hiding his vulnerability was impossible. He hoped Evan didn’t notice too much, or if he did, that he didn’t comment. Cree’s reputation was built on his tough appearance and inapproachability. He needed it. It was his armor. Yet standing in front of Evan, their chests touching as they swayed together, Evan had found a chink Cree hadn’t known existed.
It wouldn’t take much for Evan to peel back the layers and see just how much Cree needed to be seen by a man like Evan, someone who wasn’t anything but what he appeared to be.
Evan kissed him first, taking his time to meld their lips together in slick heaven. The soft catch and release was addictive, and Cree closed his eyes to live in that moment. Evan stroked his arms, cupped his ribs and trailed over the ridges there. It tickled in a way that wasn’t the least bit funny.
Cree’s cock pressed insistently against his fly. The soothing caress of Evan’s hands on his sides and chest, the seductive softness of their mouths marrying, weakened Cree’s knees. He moaned into Evan’s mouth and began his own exploration, stroking Evan’s chest, sweeping the backs of his fingers on his lower abdomen. He couldn’t seem to stop touching him.
Evan speared Cree’s hair, grabbing hold of the spikes at the back. Then with a small nip, Evan punished Cree’s bottom lip until he gasped, parting his mouth for a new, deeper onslaught. Evan held him still. His scalp pinched, but the roughness excited him, reminded him all over again that Evan was different. Evan played for real, and Cree felt insanely grateful for it.
Evan suckled his tongue, then plunged back in as though he wanted to crawl inside Cree’s mouth. Evan ended the searing kiss. He stared into Cree’s eyes for a moment, drowning Cree in a sea of warm chocolate and stark desire.
“I’m not a guy who goes straight for the cock, typically,” Evan began huskily. “Do you mind if I make an exception?”
Cree shook his head dumbly.
Evan dropped to his knees. He looked up at Cree beneath his lashes while he finished loosening Cree’s pants and dragged them to mid-thigh.
“Even your cock is gorgeous,” Evan murmured appreciatively.
He passed reverential fingertips along his length before tracing the cock-rim. Then he smoothed the bead of pre-cum over the sensitive head. Cree swayed. Evan cupped Cree’s balls, seeming to test their weight.
“Hairless,” Evan stated.
Cree stroked the top of Evan’s head, wordlessly thankful for the evident admiration on Evan’s face. His stomach flipped and he found himself holding his breath to see what Evan did next. He didn’t have to wait long.
Evan pressed his lips to Cree’s engorged tip. He parted and Cree felt the wild flicker of wet tongue dancing over him. He shuddered, gripped Evan’s head in both hands, and prayed he wouldn’t embarrass himself by buckling at the knees.
When Evan moved to caress the back of Cree’s legs, tease the crease between the top of his thighs and his ass, then firmly cupped the globes, Cree realized that whatever happened, he was a goner. He only wanted Evan, his tender lover, the surprising find beneath the assistant’s formal veneer.
Had there ever been another man as perfect as Evan?
“Cree,” Evan called to him. “Look at me.”
The command was softly spoken, but its gentleness came from need Cree couldn’t deny because it mirrored his own. Cree opened his eyes, staring down into Evan’s, and Evan squeezed his ass and drew Cree into his mouth.
“What are you doing to me, Evan?” Cree’s question didn’t need an answer. He heard it in the muffled dreamy quality of a man distracted and intoxicated by what was happening.
Evan’s tongue cradled the underside of Cree’s cock as he sank on it. Pulling off, Evan’s cheeks hollowed. The pressure was exquisite and Cree could no more stop from groaning than he could make the world stop spinning. There was nothing but Evan’s eyes and Evan’s mouth holding Cree in place.
Evan worked over him, drawing the tenuous line of sanity and mindlessness taut, coiling it tighter and tighter until Cree’s balls tingled. His ass clenched as he held on, but once Evan began working the base of Cree’s dick while sucking on the head, Cree exploded into an orgasmic race that had no brakes.
Evan pumped and sucked relentlessly. His gaze clouded over, but continued to hold Cree’s. Cree tried to hold himself steady, but Evan’s mouth beckoned with hot acceptance. Gripping Evan’s head, Cree flexed into each pull, and suddenly the line frayed and Cree’s hips moved on their own, fucking Evan’s luscious mouth.
When the humming started, vibrated through his cock, whatever self-control Cree thought he still had, fractured. It was the sudden push of a finger in his ass that took Cree crashing into orgasm. He shouted, riding the wave as hot cum sprayed thickly down Evan’s throat. Evan took it, swallowing, hummed his approval until Cree’s final spasms left him spent.
Evan pulled off his cock. He smiled up at Cree as he took a thumb and casually rubbed the moisture from the corners of his lips.
“You’re a yeller,” Evan teased. “For a guy who doesn’t talk much, you sure make a lot of noise coming.”
Cree was still breathing like he’d run a race. He needed Evan inside him. He just hoped Evan wasn’t going to make him wait too long. He pulled off his pants to get the point across.
“Get in bed,” Cree commanded. Cree turned toward the bathroom to get the condoms and lube.
Evan hauled him backward against his jean-clad arousal. “Don’t make me wait too long, Cree.” As though to make his point stick, he slipped two fingers between Cree’s ass cheeks to tease his hole.