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Chapter 6: The Devil Always Has An Excuse
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The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 7: Sugar Sweet Sin
It's so shocking to hear my name on Dante's lips after all this time that it takes a moment for his words to sink in. "What's a sham?""Their engagement. Their whole relationship. It isn't real and it never was. It's just for the cameras." He throws another quick glance over his shoulder. "Frankly, I shouldn't even be talking about it. I'd appreciate it if you kept this bit of information between us."I don't know why this news is so shocking, but it is. Luca was the first of the Fontaine brothers to get engaged, but it never occurred to me that the whole thing might be a lie."It's done wonders for the publicity of Cataclysm: Earth," he continues casually. "And it's helped both Luca and Emilia tremendously.""And you," I point out. It's his movie too, after all. He wrote the damn thing.But he takes my words a different way."Emilia and I, we - ""I don't need to know," I say quickly. "That's your business." I pull my pen away from the paper. "Now, about this cake - how large w
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 8: In Which I Make Up A Boyfriend
I keep my eyes carefully trained on the form in my hands. "The cake is the only thing I'm interested in speaking to you about.""God, you're even more beautiful than I remember." Dante's voice is low, rough. "But just as feisty."Something flutters in my stomach at those words, but anger quickly suppresses the sensation."What do you want?" I demand. "Why the hell are you here?""I should think that would be obvious," he says. "I'm here to see you. To convince myself that you weren't just a figment of my imagination."For the love of God, I wish he would take off those damn sunglasses and let me read his expression."Well, you've seen me," I say. "And I have a business to run, so if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to work."He glances around the shop. "You've got a charming little place here. You always did make amazing desserts. You seem to have done very well for yourself since the last time we spoke.""A lot has changed since we were together," I admit.His chin dips s
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 9: Mama Pat Is Always Right
"We have to go," Jack says."Why?" I'm working on a batch of lemon tarts, but my cell is jammed beneath my ear. I've spent the last ten minutes going over every last detail of the Dante encounter with Jack, including the invitation to his house on Sunday."Because how often do we get invited to the home of one of the Fontaines? Or any celebrity, for that matter?"I don't bother pointing out that I've been to Dante's place before. Attending Dante's little get-together means continuing to engage him, and I refuse to do that."You work for Brockman now," I remind Jack. "I'm sure you'll have plenty of chances to hang out with celebrities.""Not at their homes. Or at their private parties. Come on, Ash, how bad could it be?""Very bad. Very, very bad. I don't think he believed me when I told him I had a boyfriend.""All the more reason you should show up with me and we should rub it in his face.""I'm not sure we could pull that off.""Are you kidding? People always think we're a c
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 10: The Devil's Party
I feel anything but strong as I stare up at Dante's house.The first time I came here, years ago, I had no idea what I was in for. Dante and I were working together on a project for film school, and though obviously I was well aware of who he was - you had to have been living under a rock to not know about the Fontaines - I was less than thrilled to have to cooperate with him on a project. He already had the career, the connections, the esteem - I'd have preferred to work with someone more like me, who had to rely on hard work and talent rather than family or money.He'd insisted on meeting here, at his home, rather than the much-more-convenient library or coffee shop near campus. It had annoyed me to no end, and the first time I stomped up the steps, I hardly gave his house - his mansion - a second glance.I noticed it later, of course, for I returned to his house many times, at all times of day - but it never seemed quite as big, quite as impressive, as it does tonight.Jack seem
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 11: Things I Can't Forget
Things are quiet for a while, and I stay tucked away in the shadows at the far side of the pool, sipping at my drink and watching the party unfold around me. I'm glad to be alone, but now that Jack isn't here to distract me, it's hard to keep my memories at bay.Dante and I spent quite a bit of time by this pool. We often studied out here - there was something about the sun on my skin and the ocean breeze in my hair that made me feel both calm and energized at once. And Dante always claimed that he did his best work outside. He used to sit in that lounge chair beneath the cabana and scribble away at his latest script. He always preferred to write his first drafts by hand - he said that the words flowed better through a pen than through a keyboard.I think that might have been when I realized I was in love with him - the first time I saw him bent over his notebook, his eyes bright as they followed his pen across the paper. It was like I was watching him pour his soul onto the page.I
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 12: Encounter on the Beach
Dante is here.Dante, who couldn't be bothered to show up at his own damn party. This is who sneaked up behind me when I thought I'd finally found a moment of privacy. Immediately, rage boils up in me."What the hell are you doing out here?" I say, ignoring the jolt of pain in my ankle as I shift my weight. "You scared the crap out of me!""I'm sorry," he says, and there's a hint of wicked amusement in his voice. "I didn't mean to startle you.""It's not polite to sneak up on people," I snap. Beneath the anger, I feel something else - a sudden panic that threatens to drown out everything else. I wasn't prepared to run into Dante out here. Without Jack. With my hair sopping wet and my dress sticking to my skin. My anger is all I have, so I cling to it."Why aren't you at your party?" I demand. "Why are you skulking around out here by yourself?" It's not until the words leave my mouth that I realize he might not be by himself. Oh, God - please don't let him be down here with Emilia.
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 13: Facing the Demons
"What are you doing?" I ask Dante as he sits down beside me."I'm not ready to go back to the party either," he says."It's your party," I remind him again."And most of the people in there are used to my parties by now. They know not to expect to see much of me."I stare out at the dark surface of the sea as I consider this, tightening my arms around myself. And then I feel a weight coming down on my shoulders - his suit jacket."Don't argue," he says when I start to do just that. "You need it more than I do."He's right, and I'm too cold and wet and miserable to argue. I pull the jacket closer, covering myself. I dig my toes into the sand and wait for him to speak. He's the one who insisted on staying with me - let him come up with something to say. I'm too busy trying to figure out how to extricate myself from this interaction gracefully."It's been a long time since we sat out here together," he muses finally.The comment is casual enough on the surface, but I know better.
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Sweet Taste of Sin Chapter 14: In Which I Almost Make A Very Bad Decision
Even now, after all this time, my memory of that intimate moment on this beach still affects me. I can still feel the frightening buzz of that connection Dante and I made."Why did you invite me here tonight?" I ask him, pulling his coat tighter around me.He shifts next to me. Though I'm not looking at him, I'm oh-so-aware of every move he makes."Have I changed so much that you can't guess?" he asks, his voice low. "I invited you here for the same reason I showed up at your bakery. Because I wanted to see you."And to meet my boyfriend, I think. I may not have a lot of ex-boyfriends - and certainly none who shared the same intimacies Dante and I did - but I recognize the game we're playing here. Dante was never exactly what I would describe as possessive - he didn't freak out if I talked to another guy or anything like that - but he'd never needed to be. Even when we were together, we never defined what we were to each other - and for most of our relationship, I never thought we
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