Page 19 of Act Like You Don't Care
I looked up at Tam. "Why?"
The man shrugged. "I was a shit to you, you didn't give me shit back." He grinned suddenly, all the Hollywood charm pouring out of him like water in a flash flood. "And you're cute."
Heat rose up my neck and I looked away, back down at the folder, then flipped it closed and tossed it back to Dad. "I'll need a key to your place, and we'll have to go over your schedule and mine for the next week to see what needs to be adapted." My heart beat a little faster.It's just the job. You haven't done much security recently.That's what I told myself, anyway.
Tam leaned back in his chair, suddenly at ease. "I'll give you a code for the door--I don't use keys."
"I'll need your phone number too."
"Give me your phone," Tam said, holding out his hand. After a moment's hesitation, I passed it over.
Tam's golden head bent over it, his fingers tapping furiously. "I put my number and Will's in, in case you can't get me and it's an emergency." He gave the phone back and stood up, looking at the security chief and the producer. "We done here? I want to go home."
"Take Miles with you." Dad stood as well. "I'll have some clothes sent over."
"We're not going to stage a meeting?" Tam asked in an odd tone. Almost as if he was disappointed. Given his history, he was probably imagining something fit for the gossip columns, which I was absolutely not interested in. Aside from the risk factor involved, the simpler the explanation, the easier to believe.
I shrugged. "We met here while we were talking about your security, hit it off, Dad officially barred me from working on your case anymore."
Tam's eyebrows twitched together, not quite a frown, but he obviously didn't care for that storyline. I waited to see if the omega was going to argue, but he only shrugged. "Fine. I took a cab here today. You have a car?"
"I came with him," I told him, hooking a thumb in Dad's direction and wincing at the exasperation on Tam's face.
"You can take it," Dad said, handing over the keys. "I'll grab a cab, or get your mother to come pick me up."
Tam got to his feet and rounded the end of the table to sit beside me, evicting his assistant with nothing more than a look. He threw an arm around my shoulder, practically hanging off me. "We can drive you. Right, sweetheart?" He grinned, big and cheesy, then stood up, the good humor abruptly disappearing. "I'm tired. Let's go." He headed for the door and already had one foot on the step outside before the rest of us thought to move.
I caught up with him about five feet from the door. "If you'd rather someone else, we can arrange that. If there was no one on the list you thought you could spend that much time with."
Tam stopped and spun to face me. "I picked you, right? Assume I'm fine with it." His eyes flicked to one side, and then his entire posture changed. He swaggered the two steps between us and stopped, so close I could feel his body heat through my clothes. "The one thing we need to make sure of, though, is chemistry." Without breaking eye contact, Tam hooked a finger through my belt loop and pulled me into a kiss.
I jerked in surprise and then the heat and the smell of omega hit me. My body took over and I wrapped my arms around Tam's waist, felt Tam's fingers slide through my own short-cropped hair, and I kissed the omega back like I wanted to claim him right there in the parking lot.
It seemed to go on forever. What shocked me was that I wanted it to. I’d known he was attractive. I’d been pleasantly surprised to realize that I liked the glimpses of the Tam that hid beneath the actor.
This… firestorm… was completely unanticipated.
And then Tam was gone, slipped out of my grasp like a ghost to stand a hand's-breadth away. His chest rose and fell like he'd been running, and his cheeks were flushed. "Well, I think we've got that covered." He sounded amused, but underneath it, anxious as well.
"If your brothers were here," Dad said from behind us, "They'd be telling you to get a room." He walked up and glanced between the two of us, arms crossed over his chest. "Good idea."
I took a breath and did my best to shake off the feel of Tam’s mouth on mine. "Tam's idea."
Dad walked past us and nodded in approval to Tam. "Good idea." He kept going another fifteen feet or so, then called back over his shoulder, "Are you driving me home?"
Tam raised his eyebrows in my direction and I shrugged. "Guess we're driving."
"Good. I need food and a nap." Tam wrapped his arm around my waist and bent his head to rest against my shoulder. I thought at first it was part of the play-acting, until the unmistakable sound of a yawn met my ears. "You care if I sleep on the way?"
"No, you go ahead." I patted the omega's hand, feeling the fingers twitch against my palm, and then I led Tam out of the studio and toward the SUV.
I’d known going in that I enjoyed him as an actor.
I hadn’t realized that I was going to like him as a person.
This was going to be tricky.
Tam
