Page 43 of Playing for Possession
I’d read the script so many times it had turned into a compulsive behavior. Anything to stop myself from screwing this up. I adjusted my football socks and lifted my hair to fan the back of my neck with my hand. My jersey clung to my sweaty body and sand itched under my long socks.Come back cheese-wire bikini. All is forgiven.
Kieran flashed a glance at his watch. “No questions.”
Elena speared me with her penetrating gaze. “You understand the script? You are friends who meet on the beach. You walk. You drink. You say the line. The vibe is sunny, relaxed beach day. All good?”
Fine. I understood the script. It wasn’t Shakespeare. There wasn’t much subtext in the world of Fizzz. I tried on a smile to reassure her that I knew what I was doing, but my lips betrayed me and trembled.
Kieran studied my face and frowned. “Do you need more time?”
No. That would be worse. We just had to get it done. I took a breath. “I’m ready.”
Elena stretched her syrupy smile. “Positions, please.”
Kieran watched her bounce away over the sand and lowered his voice to a murmur. “This is going to be over soon. Focus on me and forget about the cameras. I’ve got you.”
No problem. All I ever did lately was focus on him. “Thank you.”
He gave me a reassuring nod, and marched across the sand to take his position. My heart thudded against my rib cage. This was fine. I just had to act calm and look like this wasn’t excruciating to me on every level. The worst part was trying to act natural with Kieran on camera. The tension between us had ratcheted to unbearable levels after our encounter last night.
I took a breath and straightened my hair. Dad and Ollie were naturals on stage. There had to be some of that stardust somewhere in my DNA.
“Action,” Elena yelled.
Kieran strode toward me with his head held high, his shoulders back, and a can of Fizzz in his hand. He walked with his usual confidence and self-assuredness, which was impressive because it wasn’t easy to swagger with sex appeal on a surface with so much give. I was moving toward him over the sand, but I had no idea how because my legs felt like they belonged to someone else.
Kieran’s eyes locked with mine and he gave me the hint of a nod. Everything was too sharp and too bright. The waves screamed in my ear. Heat seared over me. Sweat gathered above my top lip. I had to fight not to turn to check where the cameras were.
We were supposed to be friends, greeting on the beach. Awkwardness held me frozen. A reckless impulse seized me and I leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. His stubble grazed my lips, and his manly scent enveloped me. My breath moved sharply inmy lungs at the contact. Kieran turned his face and swooped in to kiss my other cheek at the same moment as I was pulling away. My glasses bumped his nose. His eyebrows flew up in surprise and he took a step back.
“Cut!” Elena’s yell jarred me.
Kieran frowned and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m sorry. I thought we were going for two kisses? When in Spain...”
My cheeks burned with embarrassment. “No. It’s me. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have even kissed you at all. That was weird.”
He reached for my hand. “It wasn’t. It’s fine. Don’t worry.”
My fingers sparked with warmth where he gripped my fingers.
Elena marched toward us. “Can we try that again?”
I tore my hand from Kieran’s grip, and kept my gaze on Elena’s expression of barely concealed irritation.
Elena flapped the clipboard in my direction. “You are friends, yes? You meet on the beach. You greet each other, and then you drink the Fizzz. What is the problem here? This looks... awkward.”
The problem was that I couldn’t act natural around Kieran. Seeing him in that towel last night had rewired my brain. I’d spent last night fantasizing that I’d had the nerve to knock on his door. At least I had one item I could tick off Lana’s list: multiple orgasms. That’s if the ones you gave yourself counted.
Get it together.I could do this. I had to take a sip of Fizzz without holding my nose, say my nonsensical line, and walk along a beach. How hard could it be? The sooner I got it done, the sooner it could be over.
I rolled my shoulders back. “I’m sorry. I’m ready now. Let’s go again.”
Six takes, and Elena still wasn’t satisfied. That was six sips of Fizzz that my esophagus would never recover from. At least we’d agreed on a less awkward greeting. No cheek kisses. It worked better between us with no touching at all. Even a brush of fingers when Kieran passed me the can made me tremble.
Kieran’s face was stonier than ever. “We’re doing our best. We’re not actors.”
Elena clicked her fingers in the air, and a man shot out of nowhere to fiddle with my hair. “We need moreenergyfrom you.” She clapped her hands too close to my face. “More relaxed. More pep. MoreFizzz.”
Kieran frowned. “You want us to have more energy or be more relaxed? We can’t be both.”
