Page 41 of One Kind Hand

But we could do that, his dick said. We’re Austin Rayhill.

Austin grumbled and focused on the TV—where two characters were making out, of course. He grabbed the remote and changed the channel. Only to land on another pair of kissing people. Another click brought two folks doing a sensual tango. The stage had literal flames around its perimeter and Austin felt that burn deep in his veins as he imagined dancing with Charlie like that.

He flicked the channel again and finally found a documentary about honey bees, hoping there’d be nothing about mating that would send him over the fucking edge.

A knock jerked Berto from his slumber and the Chihuahua leaped off the couch, arrowing for the suite’s door. Austin followed his pup and opened it to find a hotel employee holding a green, brown, and blue tie-dyed bag as if it were breakable.

“The bag, sir.” The guy couldn’t have been any older than twenty and he bowed a bit when presenting Charlie’s bag.

While Berto investigated the employee’s shoes in great detail, Austin took the bag, liking the earthy colors of it. Very Vermont. Very Charlie. “Thanks.” He set it down then patted his pants, quickly realizing he was wearing sweats and had no money on him. “Hang on.” He jogged into the living room and retrieved his wallet. Extracting some bills on his way back to the door, he pressed the tip into the employee’s hand.

The kid glanced down, his eyes widening at the amount he found there. “Thank you, Mr. Rayhill.”

“Keep up the good work.”

With a nod, the employee crouched to give Berto a quick pat then he walked away and Austin appreciated his professionalism. Sometimes people he encountered in the hotel business couldn’t keep from asking for autographs or photos. Austin didn’t usually mind, but he was trying to push the movie star status aside tonight. Otherwise he’d end up thinking about being trapped earlier today on the set. He didn’t want to think about that and spiral into his past.

Not when he had a beautiful woman to explore instead.

He was about to close the door after shifting Berto out of the way, but the food they’d ordered showed up and he accepted that cart, generously tipping the server as well. Berto descended on the server’s shoes, finding them interesting enough to lick.

“I probably smell like food,” the server said with a chuckle as she also gave the pup a quick pat. “He’s so cute.”

“I believe he prefers the term handsome,” Austin said, watching his dog slobber on this poor woman’s shoes.

“Of course.” She gave Austin a quick smile. “Enjoy your meal, Mr. Rayhill.” She also departed without a lot of fuss and Austin made a mental note to commend Cody on his hotel choice.

He transferred the food to the coffee table, choosing the more casual atmosphere over the formal dining room. Berto’s nose went to sniffing the perimeter of the table.

“Let’s get you your own food, dude. This is for the people.”

After leaving Berto to his kibble, Austin’s gaze landed on Charlie’s bag. He picked it up and deposited it in front of the bathroom door. As promised, he didn’t linger, although a harness and cable would have made it easier to drag himself away from the opportunity to peek.

Austin flopped back onto the couch, wincing when his head brushed against the cushion behind him. He fingered the slice at the crown of his head, the area a little raised and sore. He took a few more moments to inspect the scratches and bruising on his right arm, still amazed that he’d emerged from the set collapsing around him with only a few surface wounds. Hell, they hardly qualified as wounds. Today’s events could have ended tragically in a number of ways.

He rubbed at the goosebumps on his arm and squeezed his eyes closed, not wanting to let his past creep to the present.

The bathroom door eased open, but Austin did his best to keep his gaze trained on the TV screen in front of him. Honey bees flitted from flower to flower in a brightly-colored field and he convinced himself it was the most interesting thing he’d ever seen. No reason to look away. No reason to turn his head. Toward that hallway. The bathroom. The slender, bare arm groping around for a tie-dyed bag.

He snapped his head back toward the TV before Charlie caught him looking and he exposed his weakness when it came to her.

Honey bees. He was all about honey bees.

Five minutes later, Charlie appeared in a pair of gray yoga pants that hugged her waist and thighs and a pale blue T-shirt—with a skull made out of white flowers on it—that showed off her toned arms. Her eyes were more blue than gray next to that shirt and Austin knew he’d stared up at her too long when she waved a hand in front of his face.

“Double vision?” Her lips quirked up in the corners.

He shook his head. “Nope. Still only one of you.” His gaze traveled down her legs. “Do you do yoga?”

“Several times a week. My friends, Aliza and Tessa, own a yoga and dance studio together. It’s a great place to work on mind and body.”

“I can see that.” He forced his gaze up to meet hers then patted the couch beside him. “Sit and let’s dive in.” He gestured to the food on the coffee table. “Do you want a beer, wine?”

Charlie sat on the edge of the cushion. “No. I’m the responsible adult charged with watching you. That should be done totally sober. You shouldn’t drink any alcohol either.”

“Okay, boss.” He handed her a serving container and opened his own. “This burger looks amazing.”

“Good. That means you’re still not nauseous.”