AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sleep, I’m just cleaning you up,” Reece whispers.
Then, I feel the towel moving gently between my legs. It’s soothing on my tender skin. “There’s blood. I wonder if I should keep this towel as a memento of your deflowering,” he mumbles through a laugh and then goes back to the bathroom.
That has me sitting straight up, sheet wrapped around myself, I call after him. “You used a towel? Please don’t put it in with your laundry, I don’t want whoever does your laundry to have to clean it.”
He sticks his head out and rolls his eye at me. “I’m not a total asshole. I left it out and I’ll wash it myself.” I give him a proud smile and he rolls his eyes again before disappearing into the bathroom.
A few minutes later, he’s back, turning off the lights and getting into bed next to me. He pulls me so that my back is pressed against his chest and my ass is in his lap. I reach for his hands and wrap them around me, then rest mine on top of them.
“I took your virginity,” he says, his voice a mixture between disbelief and pride.
“You put a plug in my ass,” I mumble.
“You liked it,” he responds.
“I did.” I grin. “A lot.”
He kisses my cheek and says, “Let’s go to sleep. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.”
I yawn in response. My last thought as I drift off into a dreamless, deep sleep was that today is the best day of my life.
33
Reece
New York City in the fall is quite possibly the most perfect place in the world. I love Los Angeles; I can’t imagine ever living anywhere else. But here, I feel a freedom of movement that I don’t have at home. I don’t need a car; I get to run in Central Park. This time, it’s even more special because I’ve got Lucía with me. This is her first visit and we decided to stay an extra day, because she wants to go the 9/11 Memorial and the Statue of Liberty.
She and her team have been working sixteen-hour days for the last month. The screenplay’s first draft is done. We’re heading to New York with that under our belt. It feels great.
We took the red eye from LA and are headed straight to our first appearance this morning. We have three more after that. Only one is in-studio, the rest we’ll join via video feed. Now, in the back of the limousine, I look over at Lucía. I laugh when I see that she’s plastered herself to the window with her neck craned up so she can see the city as we drive by.
She doesn’t take her eyes off the view, but says, “I can’t believe I’m here. It’s like being in a different country.” Her voice is full of wonder and happiness.
She slept for almost the entire six-hour plane ride. She said, “When we land, I want to be wide awake. I’m afraid that if I’m tired, I’ll miss something.” She’d even packed her SLR camera in her carry on.
The last month has been just like this. Seeing everything I take for granted through Lucía’s colored lenses. Her optimism, courage and curiosity make everything seem bright. They make anything seem possible.
All the staff at the Malibu estate love her. She asks about their kids, remembers birthdays and makes them feel special.
She does the same f
or me. Because, no matter how brightly she smiles at everyone else, the smile she reserves for me alone is the brightest.
Our publicists advised us that the best way to keep our relationship out of the news was to lay low. We’ve been spending a lot of time in Malibu. Lucía’s swimming— basic chest stroke, but swimming. I’ve mastered the first three Asana and am feeling stronger than I have in a long time. I’m also sleeping really well.
That last part has to do with the fact that I spend most nights next to Lucía.
Our limo pulls into the garage below Rockefeller Center. We roll to a stop and my door is opened almost immediately. A man, with a tan too orange to be anything but sprayed on and teeth so white I have to force myself not to squint when he grins at us, leans down to greet us in a very warm, but professional manner. “Mr. Carras, Ms. Vega, welcome to Thirty Rock. I’m Rick O’Banyon. I’m one of the show’s producers and I’m here to escort you to your greenrooms.” When I get out of the car, I start to reach in to grab Lucía’s hand, but he steps around me and beats me to it.
“Ms. Vega, I’m such a huge fan of your book. We’ve all been dying to meet you. We’re honored that you’re giving our show your first live interview,” he says as he helps her out. He doesn’t let go of her hand immediately, but Lucía doesn’t seem to mind. She’s smiling warmly back at him. “Thank you Mr. O’Banyon, I’m so happy to be here. This is just amazing.”
And I see it happen, the way it always does when she smiles, he falls a little in love with her. He grins at her and says, “They’re going to die when they see you upstairs. You’re gorgeous. Oh, you’re going to be a hit.” As if he suddenly remembers I’m here, too, he faces me. “Oh, both of you are. The staff is buzzing.”
She blushes but squeezes his hand before she comes to stand next to me again. My arm instinctively goes around her shoulder. Rick’s eyes widen with realization, just for a second, before he schools them.
“Well, I’m sorry to keep us standing out here while I blather on. Let’s get inside.” He turns and leads us into the building. He’s practically hopping with excitement and I groan inwardly. It’s going to be a long day.
“You have separate greenrooms, but we can always put you in one together if you’d like,” he says casually, but I know he’s fishing. He’ll probably be on the phone to some entertainment reporter as soon as he leaves us. I don’t even give a fuck.
