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Chapter 29: Jealousy
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The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 30: Luca Finds Out
If I thought I could forget about what happened last week during our practice session, I was wrong. The memory of it is burned into my skin, into every inch of my body. My reaction to him now is instant and strong - and almost overwhelming in its intensity.One of his hands spreads against my back, holding me tight against him. The other tangles in my hair, gripping the strands so tightly it hurts. But I don't care. I like the pain.The force of his kiss pushes me back. He backs me up against the railing of the terrace, but I'm not worried about falling over, not as long as he's holding me like this. In fact, I can hardly think of anything but the taste of him, the heat of him, the hard urgency of his mouth against mine. I want to drown in this feeling.And then, just when I begin to fear I might actually lose myself completely in the sensations rushing through me, he pulls back, his mouth releasing mine.I can only stare at him, dazed, as he pulls me away from the edge of the terr
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 31: Revelations
The next few minutes happen as if in slow motion.One second Luca is standing next to his older brother, his fist raised. The next his arm is soaring through the air, and before I can even move, his fist is colliding with Dante's face. Dante isn't prepared for the strike, and the blow knocks him over backward.It takes a second for the people around them to notice. But one by one, they all turn. The happy party smiles shift into expressions of shock and surprise. A couple of people cry out.All this before I find the ability to move. Ashlyn is frozen, too.We both snap into action at the same time, nearly tripping over each other - and over the poor waiter picking up the broken glass - in our effort to get to the door. We squeeze past each other to get inside, and we push through the crowd almost as one.By the time we reach the men, Rafe is already there, pulling Luca off of their brother.Luca looks nothing like himself. His golden hair falls in disheveled strands across his fa
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 32: Passion Takes Over
Like on the terrace only a short time ago, once I'm over the initial shock, my body responds immediately. As Luca's lips move against mine, heat surges through me, drowning out nearly everything else.I don't know what I'm doing, but I don't stop to think. My hands reach up and grab his shoulders. My mouth opens beneath his. My tongue reaches out and meets his. His hands slide up my back, holding me close. The heat of him burns through the slinky material of my dress.This is crazy, a little voice in my mind says. But it's too weak to do anything. I am too weak to do anything but succumb to the intense need coursing through my body. In this moment, all that exists is him.His fingers dig into my back, trying to draw me even nearer. But the stick shift is in the way, a hard, plastic protrusion sticking up between us. With a frustrated groan, Luca releases me and pulls back."Climb over," he says in a rough voice.I hesitate - now that we've stopped, if only for a second, I'm starti
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 33: Scandal
Of all the ways I thought such an eventful evening might end...well, let's just say that dealing with the police was definitely not part of the plan. And neither was having the paparazzi snap pictures of the entire ordeal.But of all the things that happened last night, the whole "almost having sex with Luca" thing is what's been freaking me out the most. Which also means it's the thing I'm trying hardest not to think about.Fortunately, no charges of public indecency or whatever are being pressed against us. But the media sure got plenty of pictures of Luca and me with the police. And plenty more of me half-naked on top of Luca.It's now 8 AM the following morning, and I'm running on approximately forty-five minutes of sleep and two - going on three - cups of coffee. I've spent most of the night sitting up in bed, trying to make sense of everything that's happened. Oh, and also frantically refreshing all of the big celebrity news websites on my laptop, watching the story unfold in
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 34: A New Arrangement
My breath catches in my chest. For a moment, there's something in Luca's eyes - a spark - that makes me think he means to kiss me. I stiffen, but he stops a couple of feet away from me."Yes, we do need to talk," I hear myself say.He hesitates for a moment - a very, very long moment. His eyes bore into mine, and behind the exhaustion I see something that for a brief, terrifying instant brings butterflies to my stomach. My lips tingle slightly as I remember the way his mouth tasted last night. Even though I know better, part of me still wants to taste it again.But he doesn't move. And whatever it is that I see in his eyes disappears again."I trust you've seen the internet," he says.I nod. "And I thought Cataclysm: Aftermath would be the first time the world saw me half-naked." It's supposed to be a joke, but I don't quite pull it off."We have a problem," he says, rubbing the side of his neck. "A big problem. This sort of publicity was not in our plan. I've been up all night t
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 35: "I Can't Do This Anymore"
Luca is right. The story only gets bigger over the next few days as more and more news outlets start covering it. As I think we both suspected and feared would happen, most of the sites choose to focus on the most dramatic and negative aspects of the story: the "arrest," the half-naked photos of me, and - of course - Luca's attack on Dante.Amusingly, I suspect that a public rift between two members of the Fontaine family will only mean good things for any of their projects - the public loves some juicy family drama - but I also know that that is the absolute last thing anyone in that family wants. Part of what makes them such a powerful force in this industry is that they stand together - and everyone knows it.Well, knew it.I don't know a lot of things about the real Luca, but I do know he'll do anything to bury this story about him and his brother. No doubt he and his family have already attempted to throw their usual weapons of damage control - money and influence - at the prob
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 36: My Date With Luca
Luca is openly staring at me."You look..." His voice trails off, but his expression shows his appreciation."Just doing my job." I shrug and look up into his eyes.That's a mistake. The look I see in his eyes reminds me of how dangerous this is, how easy it would be to fall completely under his spell again. I can't let that happen."I...I should finish getting ready," I say. "And you should put on some clothes.""Maybe." His grin turns positively cocky. "Or maybe going out like this will cause exactly the stir we're hoping for.""Only if you're hoping to get arrested for public nudity."I finally find the strength to pull away from him, and he lets me go. But that cocky, appreciative smile is still on his face.I'm relieved to see that he is, in fact, wearing a towel around his waist. But the most beautiful parts of him are still visible - his chest and abs are on full display, as is the perfect ridged "V" pointing down toward his groin.God help me. I refuse to let myself fa
The Fontaines of Hollywood series: The Lies Between the Lines Chapter 37: Close Call
Luca sits back in his chair, a strange mixture of emotions on his face. "Of course. Go ahead.""Thanks." I hit the button to answer and leap up from my seat. "Javy? Can you hold on one minute?"Quickly, I glance around for a quiet corner of the patio. Finding none, I head back into the restaurant. Maybe I'll find some privacy in the bathroom."Why didn't you call me?" I hiss into the phone as I make a beeline for the restrooms. "Did everything go through? Are you okay?""Maybe. Not really." I can hear the anxiety in his voice."Hold on one more second," I say. I push against the door to the women's room, but it's locked. Occupied. Shit.I glance around. Another woman is already coming down the hallway, so I won't have any privacy if I stay here. And I don't want anyone who recognizes me to try and eavesdrop on this conversation. That might be a disaster for both me and Javy."Just another minute," I tell him. "I'm in a restaurant. I'm going to head outside."I stride quickly ba
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