Page 15 of Shocking Sapphires
The warm look the man gave me from his hospital bed made my heart practically skip a beat. It seemed to jump into my throat when he said, “You’re pretty great for him, too, Molly. I’m glad you’re in our lives.”
13
Grant
The last thing I needed was for this woman to fall for me. She was taking excellent care of my son. We didn’t need romantic feelings for each other to begin muddying the waters, but I couldn’t seem to keep my damn blabbering mouth shut.
The starry-eyed gaze she gave me when I said I was glad she was in our lives made it obvious that she was starting to have feelings for me––the real me, not my slick persona that I shared on the silver screen.
It was tempting to see that through to find out where it would lead, but she was a complication that I didn’t need in my life. I had enough to learn to deal with right now without trying to make a long-distance relationship work with an enamored fan.
Deciding it was time to slide back into the comfortable role of playing the arrogant jerk, I began ranting about the medical professionals that had been caring for me, even though they’d been doing a superb job and miraculously hadn’t leaked the story of my accident to the press.
Twisting my face into a bitter scowl, I said, “These podunk Maine doctors probably don’t even practice modern medicine. I need to get a second opinion about my condition from a high-priced specialist out of Boston or New York. I can afford the best doctors, so I should have them. They might find a way to help me walk again.”
“First off, I can’t believe you actually used the word ‘podunk,’ without even cracking a smile, and you thinkwe’rethe hicks.” Molly shook her head and chuckled to herself.
I would never admit it out loud, but I enjoyed the fact that she didn’t take any shit from me.
“And?” I prompted her.
At her bewildered expression, I said, “You said first off. That implies there is something else to come.”
“Oh, right. Secondly, I’m kind of surprised what a diva you are.”
This time I wasn’t amused. I despised that word. Through gritted teeth, I said, “Divas are female.”
Molly flattened her lips and shook her head before saying, “Apparently, not always.”
“Yes, always,” I told her firmly. Unable to stop the mischievous grin from emerging, I added, “We male divas prefer to be called cocky jerks.”
She tipped her head back and let out a throaty laugh that made blood rush to my groin. I was immensely relieved to discover that my parts appeared to be in working order down there. That had been one of my first concerns after absorbing the news that I was paralyzed, but I’d been too befuddled to ask at the time. I’d been anxiously waiting for the male doctor to return so I could get the scoop from him. I had feared the worst because my cock had seemed to be completely lifeless lately, but Molly’s sexy laugh had brought it back to the land of the living.
Truly enjoying myself for the first time since the accident, I added, “I’ve played an arrogant bastard on screen so many times that it almost comes naturally to me.”
“Perhaps you’ve been typecast,” the adorable woman suggested.
“Perhaps,” I agreed, smiling at her.
We settled into a comfortable silence, until Molly asked me, “Why did you come to our little slice of heaven in Maine? It doesn’t seem high-profile enough for a big star like you.”
I heard the barely concealed judgment in her tone, but chose to ignore it. “I’m going to be in a movie that is being filmed here. I always like to scope out the location before filming starts. Nobody expects me to be there yet, so I can move around incognito for a while and get a feel for how the place truly is before Hollywood shows up to glamorize it.”
Molly looked perplexed for a moment, but then she brightened. “Oh, you’re in Alex’s movie!”
I nodded. “Alex Biggs is the author of the series of books the movie is based on. He is the one that insisted we film here. He had it written into his contract and wasn’t willing to move forward with the project without it. That guy’s a tough negotiator.”
Molly smiled. “He just loves this place beyond reason, like all of us locals do. Besides, the story is loosely based on true events that happened here when his wife was abducted, so he probably didn’t want the feeling of the story to get lost in translation if it was filmed in Hollywood.”
“All of that crazy stuff really happened? Here?!?” I looked out the window, truly stunned that this peaceful little burg could have so much high-stakes drama.
“Most of it,” Molly confirmed before asking, “Does Alex know you’re here? He’ll be so excited.”
“Wait… You know him?” I had assumed the talented author was a recluse who kept mostly to himself.
Molly grinned at me like I was the most clueless being she’d ever laid eyes on. “Of course, I do, silly. I’ve known him since we were kids. You really don’t get how small towns work, do you?”
“I guess not,” I answered, shaking my head.
