“Ms. Moore?”
Kat turned to find a big burly giant who wore one of those concrete expressions that screamed “security” even more so than his black jacket and the ear piece.
“Yes?” her mother asked the man.
Kat raised her hand. “And yes. Same name.”
“Your party is waiting for you, and I’d send you without an escort but it appears you’ve drawn a bit of attention.” A camera flashed and he glanced at a group of three women, studying them. “We don’t need any more excitement here tonight.”
“I guess I shouldn’t have told the world we were here to see Jason,” her mother admitted with a sigh. “I forget he’s a big star now.”
“Not a problem,” the man assured them. “I’ll just get you out of the crush here and I’m sure everything will be fine.” He motioned them forward and indicated a path, before falling into step behind them.
Kat replayed her mother’s words in her head. Jason was a star—no—big star, she’d said. Boy, oh boy, was her mother throwing bombs tonight.
“Sorry I got a little loud and out of control,” her mother said. “I didn’t mean to get us an escort.”
“Let’s talk later,” Kat told her, having some experience with this kind of thing after traveling with Marcus, whose fans were downright rabid. “There are cameras everywhere, and believe me, everything and anything could end up in the tabloids, especially given what happened earlier tonight.”
“We don’t know what happened,” her mother exclaimed. “That’s the point.”
“We know it ended up on the news.” And they knew that Jason was that big of a name now to draw that kind of attention, which drove home how much Stepping Up had changed his life. Yet he seemed like the same Jason she’d always known, virtually unchanged, and that was special, unique even.
She’d seen plenty of people changed by stardom. He’d helped her parents tonight without question, and not just because of her. He was just that kind of guy, and always had been. If anyone deserved fame, he did. Her stomach sunk at what that meant. To hold him back would be selfish and she loved him too much to do that. She had to get a grip.
Emotion tightened her chest, but she didn’t have time to analyze her feelings as they had arrived at an elevator corridor. From there, the three of them—Kat, her mother, and the stone-faced guard—traveled to the twenty-seventh floor.
When the doors opened, their security escort placed his hand on the button to keep them from shutting again. “Room 2711,” he instructed, evidently not joining them beyond this point.
“Thank you,” Kat said, and she and her mother exited the car.
The instant the elevator shut behind them, her mother asked, “Do you think this is some kind of security screening room we’re going to?”
“We’re about to find out,” Kat said, pointing in the direction they needed to go.
“I’m guessing the code isn’t a good sign,” her mother said as they passed several doors, and appeared to be heading to the far end of a long hallway.
“VIP floors are reserved for big money, government officials and celebrities,” Kat explained. “Extra security isn’t a sign of anything being wrong.” She lifted her chin to indicate the final door. “This is us.”
“Finally,” her mother said, rushing forward and knocking three times.
Kat caught up to her right as the door flew open to reveal Jason standing there, looking so sexy that Kat could have sworn her legs wobbled. His hair was rumpled, his jaw shadowed, his body long and lean, and yes, hard. Every bit of this man was hard and made her soft and yet hot for him. She couldn’t resist him. She was weak. She was selfish. So very selfish because she didn’t want to let him go.
“Where’s Hank, Jason?” her mother asked. “Is he okay?”
“He’s fine considering he’s hanging over the toilet with tequila fever,” he said, stepping back to let her mother pass. “Other than that, everything is fine.”
Kat knew Jason well enough to know that he wouldn’t make any declaration lightly and relief washed over her.
Her mother didn’t seem to agree, exclaiming, “Oh, God!” and hurried into the room.
Kat hesitated, also knowing herself. One touch from Jason and she’d forget why selfishly wanting him was wrong. Jason reached for her and tugged her inside the room, shutting the door behind them. His touch sizzled through Kat like an electric charge, the spicy male scent of him she knew and loved so much, tickling her nostrils. And when his eyes met hers, for the briefest, most intimate of moments, and he bent down to brush his lips over hers, she might as well have been chocolate melting in the hot sun.
“What happened?” Kat’s mom asked, drawing their attention to where she’d stopped at the edge of the room, her focus on Jason. “Why were you on the news? Why are you in this room?”
“He drank too much and almost got into a fight,” Jason explained without an instant’s hesitation. “Fortunately, the powers-that-be here want our show here next season. They eagerly comped us a room so we could hide until the media calms down and we can get out of here.”
“Why didn’t you call us?” Sheila demanded. “Why didn’t Hank call me?”
“He’s not capable of conversation right now,” Jason said. “And we’d just made it to the room when I heard you two were up front.”
Kat watched her mother curl her arms in front of her chest, the distress and tension rolling off of her as she asked, “Why was he here drinking, Jason? Why was he here at all?”
“He needs to explain that to you, Sheila,” he said, trailing his hand down Kat’s arm to rest his hand on the small of her back. “I doubt he’s capable of that right now, but know this. He’s not cheating, he’s not dying and he’s still very much in love with you. In fact, tonight was more about how much he wants to make you happy than anything else. Let him get the tequila out of his system though. He drank a lot for a man who doesn’t drink. Hell, he drank a lot for a man who does drink.”
Kat’s mother studied him a moment and then turned away, disappearing down the hall.
Jason immediately pulled Kat into the box-like kitchen immediately to Kat’s left, pressing her against the counter, his muscular thighs framing hers, the warmth of his body heating her skin. His gaze searched her expression. “What’s wrong?”
“You were on the news. I was worried sick.”
“That’s not what’s wrong.”
“I just… I…” She drew a breath and let it out, her hand settling on his chest. “Yesterday I was telling myself ‘I don’t want to want him again’ and already today it’s changed to ‘I don’t want to lose him again.’”
His fingers slid around her neck, his eyes darkened. “I don’t want to lose you again either.” He kissed her, a deep, sexy kiss, and she could taste the tequila and desire on his mouth.
Kat moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck, unable to fight the sweet, hot, warmth of his tongue against her, the feel of his hands running over her back, molding her closer.
“God, I missed you,” he murmured. “Your parents need time alone and so do we. Let’s get out of here.”
She swallowed hard, fighting through her need for Jason, to focus on her love for her parents. “What happened with my father?”
“He made a bad investment,” he said grimly. “Really bad. Enough so that he’s worried he can’t take your mother traveling like they’d planned.”
“Oh, no,” Kat said. “He’s so cautious. How did this happen?”
“Fraud by the investment firm,” he said, “but it’s handled, Kat. I’m getting my investment guy involved to make back the money they lost. In the meantime, I figure we can give them a trip for their wedding anniversary next month to start them off.”
Kat leaned back to study him more closely. “We?”
“We,” he repeated softly.
Kat studied him, her heart squeezing with the reference, with the “we” she wanted to be with him again. And while she might not have him forever,
she knew one thing for certain, with all of her heart. She was so done fighting Jason. If this was truly their last hurrah, she didn’t want to waste a moment of it.
“Let’s get out of here, Jason,” she said, and pressed her lips to his.
* * *
AN HOUR LATER, after they’d been discreetly ushered out of the hotel by security, Jason followed Kat up the stairs from his garage again, on the phone with Calvin Newport, his long-time agent.
“I wasn’t drunk,” Jason said grumpily. “I wasn’t fighting.”
“You have a moral clause,” Calvin said.
Jason scrubbed a hand through his hair and stomped up the last step to his living room. “I know I have a moral clause. And like I said, I wasn’t drinking and I wasn’t fighting.”
“They want to talk to us in the morning,” Calvin said. “A conference call.”
“This is ridiculous,” Jason said, rubbing the ball of tension at his neck. He was concerned. He might not want another season with Stepping Up, but he did want this Vegas show to go well for him and Kat. “What time?”
“Nine,” Calvin said. “I’ll get them on the line and then dial your office.”
“Fine,” he said, his gaze lifting to find Kat watching him, her expression etched with more than a little worry.
“Fine what?” Calvin pressed.
Kat turned and walked toward the kitchen and he heard the balcony door open and Jason quickly tried to end the conversation. “I’ll expect your call, Calvin.”
“Try to get some rest so you won’t be this foul.”
“Goodnight, Calvin,” he said, snapping his phone shut to follow Kat.
He found the door cracked open and Kat standing at the wooden railing with her back to him. He stepped outside but she didn’t turn.
He walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and held her close.
The stars were bright, the sky clear, the moon full and high in the night sky. It was warm, but there was a breeze off the mountains, lifting the silky blond strands of her hair off her slender shoulders. His gut, and his groin, tightened at the sight of her, and the soft feminine scent of her.
“Don’t turn this into an excuse to push me away, Kat.”
She turned in his arms to face him. “The studio’s all over you, Jason. Do you have any idea how much I regret letting you go to that casino tonight?”
“You didn’t let me do anything. You didn’t even ask me. I did it because I wanted to and I’d do it again if I knew the outcome.”
“The press is going to figure out our past, Jason, and then the studio will, too.”
“The studio knows about our past, Kat.”
“What?” Her eyes went wide. “How? When? Because of tonight? Jason, I’ll leave before I let this affect your career. I’ll—”
He kissed her, slanting his mouth over hers, his tongue stealing a quick, sweet taste of her. “Before you signed the contract. I had no intention of hiding our relationship past, present or future, for any reason but your request.”
“Oh,” she breathed out. “I’m pretty sure after tonight everyone is going to know anyway.”
He stroked her hair. “How do you feel about that?”
“I would have liked to have it come out once I was more established, but honestly, Jason, all I care about right now is you. I don’t want this to hurt you with the studio.”
“Ah, my little KandyKat,” he murmured. “How am I going to get you to understand that the only thing I care about is you. Hmm. I think I’ll start with you in my bed again.”
“I thought we were going to my place?”
“We were,” he said. “But your clothes are never going to stay on that long.” He bent down and picked her up, as he had done earlier.
Kat clung to his neck and laughed, a sexy, lilting sound that heated his limbs and stirred his emotions. If he heard that laugh every day of his life, it wouldn’t be enough.
11
KAT WOKE UP in Jason’s bed to him nuzzling her neck, and with the scent of him, the feel of him, all around her. “It’s time to get up, KandyKat.”
“Hmmm.” She sank deeper under the blankets. “Hit snooze, please.”
“You said that seven minutes ago.”
“Just once more,” she murmured, pressing her backside against his hips, and pulling his arm around her. Oh, how she missed waking up to this man.
He laughed, low and rough in her ear, nipping it gently. “You’ve said that twice now.”
She groaned and rolled to her back, blinking into the dim light of the lamp he’d turned on. “What time is it?” she asked, running her hand over the sexy stubble on his jaw.
“Four-thirty.”
Her eyes went wide and she sat up, the sheet falling down her naked body. She had to get to rehearsals.Jason’s eyes raked her breasts and he reached for her. She darted off the bed, dodging him. “We can’t do that right now. I have to shower.” She rushed away from him, grabbing her bag on the way to his massive white tiled master bathroom.
“I’ll guess this means you don’t want me to join you?”
Kat peeked around the door frame. “I’ll be late if you do that.” She closed the door and headed to the shower. When done, she dressed in clean leggings and a light blue T-shirt she’d had in her bag. By the time she was blow drying her hair, she had officially begun to worry about the day before her.
She and Jason agreed that secrets fed gossip. They would tell their story before the press did it for them. They used to be married and they were seeing each other again. It had seemed like a good plan when they’d talked about it, but now, with it about to be put into play, she had doubts. What if the studio felt Kat was a bad influence on Jason? What if they wanted her fired and he didn’t want to do it? What if…? There were so many what ifs.
Kat followed the blessed scent of coffee and found Jason leaning against the kitchen cabinet with a cup in his hand. His hair was damp and rumpled, his jaw clean shaven, his jeans low on his hips, and his Black Sabbath T-shirt pulled snug on his impressive chest.
“I’ll quit the show before I let what happened last night hurt your job, Jason,” she blurted. “I need you to know that.”
He frowned and set his cup on the counter before reaching for her. “Come here,” he murmured, wrapping her in his powerful arms, and stroking her hair. “If last night puts your job or mine on the line, then I have no desire to keep working for this studio.”
“You—”
His lips brushed hers. “Want you very badly, so unless you want me to strip you naked and set you on this counter, I suggest you go now.”
“Jason—”
He slanted his mouth over hers, his tongue stroking, hot with demand, and anything she might have said faded. Kat’s arms slid around his neck, the spicy taste of him warming her, calming her. When they were together like this she felt like they could face anything and survive. They could even survive being late to work, but when he tore his mouth from hers, and warned, “Last chance,” Kat took off for the door, laughing.
This was their last chance, she thought, sliding into her car. Right now, despite the media drama, it felt like their best chance, too.
* * *
NEAR NOON, KAT stood on the stage next to Ellie and watched a group of dancers perform. She’d spoken to her mother during a short break, just long enough to hear that her father was too sick to head home yet, and to tell them that Jason had taken care of the room for them for the day and even the rest of the night if they wanted. Both she and Kat had expected her father wouldn’t want to move too quickly. Drinking tequila like a fish when you didn’t regularly swim equaled drowning in pain.
She hadn’t mentioned the investment loss that had brought on the drinking binge. She wanted to give them time to talk that out on their own and she wasn’t sure her father would be up for that yet.
Kat’s gaze slid to the distant doors of the auditorium, willing Jason to walk through them. She hadn’t heard from him and no one had seen
him all day, which only made people more curious about what was going on. The buzz about the night before was loud and steady, but the connection between Kat and Jason had yet to be made. It wouldn’t take long. Kat had been around the tabloid mess more than a few times, most recently with Marcus, who was a total media magnet.
Another half hour passed, and another set of dancers were running through a routine when Kat’s skin tingled with the awareness she always felt when Jason was watching her. Her gaze lifted to find him sauntering down the center aisle with a loose-legged sexy swagger that had her conjuring up images of the night before: of him naked, of her naked and in his arms. No man but Jason had ever affected her so easily, so completely, though she’d tried to find one. She’d tried to forget Jason and always failed.
He held a thumb up to Kat, silently telling her everything was okay, and relief washed over her. Whatever had tied him up today, the results were good, and ultimately that was all that mattered.
“Bossman sure stirred up trouble last night,” Ellie commented quietly. “Any idea what happened?”
Kat wasn’t a fool. Ellie had seen her thumbs-up exchange with Jason, and she was digging to find out just how close Kat and Jason really were.
“My father had a retirement crisis and dragged Jason along for the ride,” Kat explained.
“What?” Ellie asked, shock hissing through her whisper. “Your father knows Jason?”
Kat glanced at her. “Well, he was at our wedding.”
“What?” she asked again, facing Kat now, and ignoring the dancers. “Whose wedding?”
“Jason and I were married a very long time ago,” Kat said. “It’s not a secret.”
“You said you were old friends. You didn’t say you were married.”
Kat shrugged. “Now I am.”
“I knew something was up with you two,” Ellie replied. “I knew it.”
Kat’s gaze veered over Ellie’s shoulder, her attention caught on the opposite side of the stage. There, Carrie and Tabitha were clearly arguing. Kat could see Carrie’s face pinched in anger before she turned away, exiting behind the curtain. Tabitha immediately followed her.