What it Takes (15 page)

T
he smell of freshly baked cookies lingered in the air when Kelsey woke. It was one of her favorite smells, but this morning it made her stomach turn. She was too nervous to eat anything. She took her shower and tried to think about home and her family rather than the fact that she had to kiss Patrick later. She tried to keep her mind from wandering to the arms that had held her the night before as they’d danced. She tried not to remember how her heart had skipped a beat when they’d touched. She tried not to think about his lips.

His inviting lips.

“Damn it, Kelsey. Stop this,” she admonished.

She finished her shower, singing to herself any song that came to mind, anything to keep her mind off of Patrick. When she was finished, she got out, wrapped the towel around her, and brushed her teeth before leaving the bathroom to get dressed. After putting on a pair of comfortable jeans and an emerald green t-shirt, she returned to the bathroom and ran a comb through her wet hair. She picked up a bottle of her favorite rose-scented perfume, something she rarely wore, and sprayed her wrists and rubbed them against her neck before she realized what she was doing.

“What’re you doing?” she scolded again. “Stupid!” she hissed to her reflection, even as she reached for a damp cloth. Scrubbing her clean wrist, staring at the red spot that started to form, she suddenly froze. “This is crazy,” she muttered. Patrick wouldn’t notice a faint scent of perfume. And if he did, why would she care? She’d made her decision. She was strong enough to stand by it. “It’s not a real kiss anyway.”

She met her eyes in the mirror, took a deep breath, and nodded once. Tossing the cloth into the sink, she turned and walked out of the bathroom. She grabbed her bag, put the Ziploc full of cookies in it, and headed out the door.

As she walked through the lobby, she donned her sunglasses, only noticing Grayson and Patrick when she reached the front door. Grayson smiled and waved to her and she returned the favor. Patrick’s eyes were slightly narrowed as he glowered at her and gave her a small nod.

Regardless of how she’d treated him in the past, he’d never acted so coolly toward her. Her stomach clenched as a small wave of guilt rushed through her. She hadn’t meant to anger him, but it was probably better this way. His current reaction didn’t change her mind. She wouldn’t let herself be hurt again.

She lifted her chin and walked out to the waiting car.

As Patrick entered the tent for the morning meeting, Kelsey was pacing. He stepped into her path, hoping to force her to say something, anything, to him. She stopped abruptly, just before she bumped into him and he had to force himself not to reach out to steady her. Her eyes focused on the cup of coffee he held up to her. She opened her mouth as if she was about to say something, but no words came out.

She closed her mouth as she gently took the coffee and stepped around him. She sat down and placed the cup on the floor under her seat, without taking a sip. Patrick noticed and his jaw tightened as he took his seat. When she’d walked past him this morning without speaking, he’d almost followed after her, if for no other reason than to ask her why she’d left the bar early. Knowing that wouldn’t have worked in his favor, he’d calmly remained with Grayson at the breakfast bar as she’d slipped away, taking his patience, and appetite, with her.

He could sense her agitation in the way her legs bounced and constantly crossed and uncrossed as she sat on the edge of her seat, biting her bottom lip. His own frustration, born the night before, resurfaced with a vengeance as he tried to ignore her. He focused on the script in his lap, flipping through the pages but not really seeing the words on them. She crossed her legs again and he shook his head and dropped the script on the floor. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t ignore her and he was tired of trying.

Veronica and Grayson joined them and sat on either side of Kelsey, talking and joking loudly around her. She sat, leg bouncing, before she popped out of her seat and started to pace again.

“Nervous, Red?” Grayson teased.

Patrick glanced from Grayson’s humored expression to Kelsey’s tense one before he remembered what was on the schedule for the day. They had to kiss later. Was that the cause of her frenetic energy? Somehow he doubted that was the only reason for her distress. At least, he hoped it was more than that.

She shook her head. “I was just getting out of the middle of your conversation.”

Grayson laughed. “You’re always welcome to participate. But I guess that’s not your thing.” She stopped and glared at him and her intensity surprised Patrick. “What?” Grayson feigned innocence as he shrugged and met Kelsey’s scrutiny. When she relaxed, he continued to prod, “Did we smell cookies baking in your room last night?” Kelsey nodded then began to pace again. “So, you left the bar to bake?” Grayson asked and Veronica mumbled a warning at him. “You find cooking more fun than dancing?”

Kelsey exhaled slowly.

“Or maybe it was just our company you didn’t like.”

Kelsey regarded each of them in turn. When her eyes met his, Patrick saw the anger shift to pain just before she looked away. His jaw clenched and he itched to take her away from Grayson’s teasing, at least until she calmed down.

“No, I was rather bored when I got back to the hotel so I found something to do,” Kelsey said softly.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t burn the hotel down,” Grayson said with a chuckle. “Did you eat them all or did you save some for me?”

She slowly approached him. “Why should I give any to you?” She placed a hand on each arm of his chair and leaned closer to Grayson. With a deathly serious expression, Kelsey got nose to nose with him. “You’re being an ass.”

Grayson’s grin widened. “There’s my girl.”

Kelsey straightened and walked away. “I gave them away.”

Patrick saw the smile playing at the corners of her mouth and looked down to hide his frustration. Of course Grayson would be able to calm her down, to make her relax. That was a good thing, so why did it bother him so much?

Kelsey finally took her seat when Andy came in and started the meeting. He reviewed the schedule for the day then dismissed them all. Kelsey jumped up and headed straight for the wardrobe department. She walked quickly, but in a few long strides, Patrick caught up with her.

“Why’d you leave last night?” Patrick asked once he was by her side.

She slowed down but kept moving and looking straight ahead. “I wanted to.”

“Why? Did I upset you?”

She laughed once, bitterly.

“Well?” Patrick reached out, grabbed her hand, and stopped. Kelsey looked at him and tensed.

“Why do you care?” she snapped. “I mean really, why? First off, I never said I was upset. Second, why would you think it had anything to do with you? My life does not revolve around you.”

His jaw dropped, his eyes enlarged. She didn’t break eye contact as he closed his mouth and deeply filled his lungs. He hadn’t been expecting that.

“I was trying to apologize,” he stated slowly, trying to keep his irritation in check. “Is that okay with you?” She nodded and looked at her feet, bright color rising to her cheeks. “Now, was it something I said? Or is it just me?” She opened her mouth to argue, but he continued, “I know your opinion of my reputation, but I’m tired of these walls you’re constantly throwing up between us. I’m just trying to be a friend. Is that a problem?”

“No,” she whispered and shook her head.

“Really?” he asked gently, inching closer. He could smell the familiar strawberry, mint, and lavender he’d begun to associate with her, but he noticed something else too. Something floral and fresh. Roses? He’d never noticed that scent on her, but he liked it. “Then why does it feel like you’re rejecting me?” She inhaled sharply and stared at him. “It seems like we reach a point in every conversation when you just shut down. You stop being the warm, friendly person you are and push me away,” Patrick continued, trying to get everything out before Kelsey decided to speak or walk away.

Surprisingly, she did neither.

Her eyes lightened and her expression softened. He breathed a sigh of relief and was suddenly overcome by his oddly fascinating attraction to her. It wasn’t just her looks, it was her personality, the way she moved, the way she talked, and the way she smelled. Everything about her called to him on some level he hadn’t been aware of before her, and he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her until he was sure she felt it too.

Instead, he dropped her hand and walked to the wardrobe tent alone.

Kelsey was still trying to recover her equilibrium as she watched Patrick walk away. She couldn’t believe her actions had had that much impact on him. She was rejecting him? She hadn’t recognized it as that but knew now that was exactly what she’d been doing. Rejecting him was easier than having him reject her.

But why did that bother him so much? It’s not like he couldn’t have any woman he wanted. And she wasn’t rejecting his friendship, just the idea of more than a friendship. Wasn’t she?

She followed Patrick’s path slowly as she mulled over the events of the dance. He was the one who had gotten nosy, he had crossed a line she hadn’t wanted him to cross, and the more she remembered, the more irritated she got. She stepped into the wardrobe department and asked where he was. They pointed her toward the changing room and, without thinking, she went in that direction.

She yanked the curtain back to find him shirtless, zipping his pants. He looked up at her and the image almost made her forget why she was there. His chest was nicely tanned and well defined, muscular. His abs were a perfect six-pack. His arms looked strong, and she suddenly remembered how gently they’d held her as they’d danced. She exhaled slowly and shook her head to re-gather her thoughts.

Meeting his glare, she drew herself up. “What do you mean I rejected you? You kept pushing that conversation last night. Then you ignored me when we sat down and I’m the one rejecting you?”

Patrick stalked closer. “You left.”

She’d expected him to roar at her, but this soft, concerned tone took her by surprise.

“You put the wall back up.” He stopped two steps in front of her. “I wanted to talk to you more, to finish our conversation. I just needed to calm down. When I was done dancing, you were gone. Just tell me what it is that you want, Kelsey.” Kelsey’s heart skipped a beat and she wanted to look away but couldn’t. She moistened her lips with her tongue and watched his gaze drop to them as he continued, “One minute you’re relaxed and sharing. The next you’re shutting me out.” His eyes looked almost pleading as he took one more step in her direction. She could feel his warmth and wanted to press herself into it. “Last night, things were going well. Then you shut down. You never even gave me a chance to fix it.”

“There’s nothing for you to fix,” she said as a lump formed in her throat.

“Are you sure?”

Her bottom lip quivered and it took all of her strength to turn and leave. She knew he was right and her stomach was in knots.

When Kelsey arrived on set, Andy was bellowing orders. But when she stopped beside him, he smiled at her and waved everyone closer. “Okay, so this is the scene where David,” he pointed to Patrick, “and Julia,” signaling Kelsey, “are strolling through the park, reminiscing about their time together in college.” He walked the scene, explaining as he went where he wanted the cameramen to stand. A few yards away, he stopped. “This is where they’ll kiss. She’ll push him away then hurry off in that direction.” He pointed to his left, away from where Kelsey now stood. “Now, let’s rehearse this a few times before we film.”

Kelsey snickered and shook her head in amusement. Andy had an almost obsessive need to shoot scenes as few times as possible. She took her place next to Patrick and they began their walk-through. They ran through the scene, minus the kissing, per Kelsey’s request, three times flawlessly, even after Andy made a few minor changes. Yet Kelsey’s nerves wound tighter every time they got to the kiss and Patrick pulled her close, but not quite close enough. Her need to be closer surprised her.

When Andy announced it was time to shoot the scene, Kelsey had to take a minute to collect herself. She stepped away, deeply drawing in a lungful of the crisp fall air. The leaves on the trees around them had changed colors, and most had fallen. She closed her eyes to listen to the gentle breeze rustling through the remaining leaves. After a few moments, she was calm and opened her eyes and took her position beside Patrick, who looked quite relaxed and amused.