Page 2 of Lovestruck at Sundown
Ring.
Ring.
PART 1
September 20, 2010
The sound ofmy vibrating phone on William’s hotel room nightstand woke me up. He groaned at the incessant sound of it, but his deep and even breaths indicated he was very much still asleep, unlike me. I squinted at my phone and took the call.
“Liam?” I cleared my throat. The concern about him calling me this late dissipated when I remembered he didn’t know I was in South Africa.
“Hey, Red! You’re on speaker with Belén,” he said in his usual cheerfulness. “Please tell me you’re not sleeping. It’s bloody eight in the evening.”
Shit.
He was going to find out about this either way.
“Hi, Belén,” I whispered. She was the tennis player Liam was involved with. He had invited me to her final match at the US Open where she lost and threw an ugly tantrum on the court. “I was asleep, you dumbass. It’s three a.m. over here.” William ran an arm around my waist, and I looked over my shoulder to see if I’d awakened him. I had. His blue eyes were half hidden behind shuttered lids.
“Baby, is everything okay?” Hisgrave, husky voice made me shiver. He’d been working too much and needed to rest, and I was disturbing him.
“Yes. It’s Liam,” I cooed, running my fingers through his messy golden locks. I couldn’t believe I was in South Africa. In his bed. And now I was going to make it feel even more real by telling Liam about it. “I’ll take the call outside on the balcony. Go back to bed, baby. You haven’t slept in two days.”
“Mmm,” he moaned and shifted on his stomach, hugging his pillow. I smiled as I threw the bathrobe around my shoulders and slid the glass door open to step outside on the balcony.
“Sorry about that,” I said casually, like they didn’t just listen to my exchange with William. “So, what’s up, guys?”
“Was that a bluefin tuna talking in the background?” Liam asked with a laugh. I couldn’t withhold a chuckle. When I was upset about William being with someone else at Lily and Joel’s engagement party, Liam told me there were many fish in the sea, but he understood my predicament since William was one hell of a bluefin tuna. Liam knew how to make me laugh when I needed it the most. “Wherethe hellare you, and why hasn’t Tobias called to fill me in with the deets?”
“Oh, shut up, Liam.” I laughed. “Belén, I’m sure you’ve been introduced to Liam’s busybody tendencies. But wait till you see Tobias and Liam together. It’s like being on one of those live gossip talk shows.”
She laughed and agreed.
“You either tell me yourself, or I’ll call Tobias right now and get his version of the facts,” Liam warned. And I believed him. I knew he would call Tobias either way. “I’d rather give my version if I were you. You know how Tobias tends to—embellish things.”
“I came after the bluefin tuna,” I whispered, afraid I would wake up William again. “I’m in South Africa.”
“Noooooo!” Liam shouted and cracked into full-blownlaughter. “My, my, my. This is—wow. Marvelous! I’m still calling Tobias, though. I’m sure you’re expecting that anyway.”
I was.
“Do whatever you have to do,” I said, leaning against the glass railing. It was chilly out, and the sound of the waves crashing against the dark rocks in the distance was so soothing. “Just … try to be discreet. Please. Very few people know I’m here.”
I heard William’s footsteps behind me and felt his warm hands, first on my shoulders, then sliding down to my waist, and finally with his thumbs hooking around the bathrobe’s belt. He kissed my neck once and said, “Tell Liam to fuck off and come back to bed.”
I gaped at him and at the audacity of his comment. He smirked at me, that very same infuriating little smirk that had made me go insane a thousand times before, and then he squeezed my hips, pulling me back against him. His growing erection against my lower back weakened my knees.
“Why don’t you guys call me sometime during the week? I’m seven hours ahead and usually alone most of the day since William’s re-filming a few scenes over here,” I explained. William tugged one of the bathrobe’s flaps to the side, revealing my breast, and squeezed it. I needed to end this call immediately. “But I would love to get to know you better, Belén.”
“Sounds good, Billie,” she said, sounding somewhat shy. “We’ll talk some other time.”
“It was nice hearing from you guys,” I said, trying my best to sound normal. William circled my nipple with his thumb, and I pressed my lips as hard as I could to keep a moan from escaping my lips. “We’ll—talk soon.”
“Bye, Red!”
I ended the call and tossed my phone on the sunbed next to us.
“What did he want?” William’s voice was gentle but still groggy from having just woken up. It was impossible to concentrate on replying when he touched me like that.
