Serial Novel: Falling in Public, Ch. 10
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Ch.1|Ch. 2|Ch. 3|Ch. 4|Ch. 5|Ch. 6|Ch. 7|Ch. 8|Ch. 9
Falling in Public
Chapter 10
Holly's cell phone rang while she was sitting in the back of the car Eddie had so thoughtfully called for her. Tired, fighting back tears and more than a little irritable, she tried to make her voice sound normal as she answered.
"You are a genius! The press is going to love it, and your book is going to sell out before it even hits the shelves. How did you do it? How did you manage to sleep with Eddie Pierce?"
Closing her eyes, Holly rubbed her forehead. Sandra Newton, her agent was always far too cheerful in the morning, and apparently she had a more optimistic view of this photo than Eddie's did.
"Good morning to you too," Holly said finally, opening her eyes again as the car stopped outside her hotel. "Honestly, I haven't even seen the picture yet, and I certainly didn't set out to seduce Eddie into bed. The whole thing just sort of happened, really." She handed a few bills to the driver and went into the hotel, glad to see there weren't too many people milling around just yet. "Last night at the club, I was waiting in line and--"
"Save it for your interview," Sandra cut in briskly. Holly imagined her looking at her watch, in a hurry to get somewhere, even if just for coffee. "Maybe you could dress it up a bit, make it romantic. You're a writer, you can do that. Don't forget it's at two, so you need to be at the studio at one. Don't be late. Do you have the address?"
Holly yawned and nodded her head as she stepped onto the elevator. "Got it. Studio at one, interview at two. I'll be there. Anything else?"
"Just one thing - I don't think you should see him again. This is a great angle, but a relationship could get messy, especially with such a public figure. So blow him off if he calls again, okay? Trust me on this."
Holly nearly laughed as she got off the elevator and went down the hall to her floor. "That's not going to be an issue, Sandra." She reached her door and put her fingers in her back pocket for the card key.
Damn.
"I've got to go, Sandra. I seem to have lost my room key last night, so I need to call someone..."
"No problem. Good luck getting in, and I'll call you after the interview."
Holly disconnected the call and shoved her phone in her pocket. Giving her door one last wistful look and thinking about the shower and bed that lay just out of reach, she started for the elevator. A maid came out of a room and tossed an armful of linens in her cart, and Holly stopped, remembering to smile.
"I don't suppose you could let me in my room," she said, holding up a hand as the woman started shaking her head. "Please? I just locked my key in the room, and I really don't want to go all the way back downstairs for a replacement. Can't you help me out just this once?" The woman shook her head again, and Holly sighed, holding up both hands.
"Fine," she said, turning to go as the maid went back into the guest room. A tabloid paper lay sideways on the top of the maid's cart, and she glanced at the front page on the way by, then stopped, picked it up and looked again.
And froze.
"Oh. My. God," she murmured, holding the photo closer in hopes that it was just a trick of the light. It wasn't. She thought back to the moment it was taken, when she'd been riding Eddie slow, grinding down deep on him as he guided her hips. They'd been in perfect sync at that moment, and her face burned as she analyzed her own facial expression. With all the skin showing in the photo, her face exposed the most.
"Hey, that's you!"
Holly looked up to find the maid looking back and forth between the paper and her face. Nodding, she agreed, though she'd prefer to crawl under all those towels and disappear. How could this happen? Someone had to have either gotten on to Eddie's estate, or already been there - neither of which seemed plausible.
"Come on," the maid said, a sympathetic smile at her lips. "I'll let you in your room. I'd imagine you'll get enough attention over that today."
"Thanks," Holly replied, following the woman back down the hall. She pointed out the door, and was so happy when it opened she almost cried. She tipped the maid, and then headed for the shower, her phone trilling from her pocket. Taking it out, she looked at the screen.
"I don't think so," she murmured, tossing the phone on the bed as she headed for the shower.
Enjoy this installment? Try Desert Heat, available now at:
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Ch.1|Ch. 2|Ch. 3|Ch. 4|Ch. 5|Ch. 6|Ch. 7|Ch. 8|Ch. 9
Falling in Public
Chapter 10
Holly's cell phone rang while she was sitting in the back of the car Eddie had so thoughtfully called for her. Tired, fighting back tears and more than a little irritable, she tried to make her voice sound normal as she answered.
"You are a genius! The press is going to love it, and your book is going to sell out before it even hits the shelves. How did you do it? How did you manage to sleep with Eddie Pierce?"
Closing her eyes, Holly rubbed her forehead. Sandra Newton, her agent was always far too cheerful in the morning, and apparently she had a more optimistic view of this photo than Eddie's did.
"Good morning to you too," Holly said finally, opening her eyes again as the car stopped outside her hotel. "Honestly, I haven't even seen the picture yet, and I certainly didn't set out to seduce Eddie into bed. The whole thing just sort of happened, really." She handed a few bills to the driver and went into the hotel, glad to see there weren't too many people milling around just yet. "Last night at the club, I was waiting in line and--"
"Save it for your interview," Sandra cut in briskly. Holly imagined her looking at her watch, in a hurry to get somewhere, even if just for coffee. "Maybe you could dress it up a bit, make it romantic. You're a writer, you can do that. Don't forget it's at two, so you need to be at the studio at one. Don't be late. Do you have the address?"
Holly yawned and nodded her head as she stepped onto the elevator. "Got it. Studio at one, interview at two. I'll be there. Anything else?"
"Just one thing - I don't think you should see him again. This is a great angle, but a relationship could get messy, especially with such a public figure. So blow him off if he calls again, okay? Trust me on this."
Holly nearly laughed as she got off the elevator and went down the hall to her floor. "That's not going to be an issue, Sandra." She reached her door and put her fingers in her back pocket for the card key.
Damn.
"I've got to go, Sandra. I seem to have lost my room key last night, so I need to call someone..."
"No problem. Good luck getting in, and I'll call you after the interview."
Holly disconnected the call and shoved her phone in her pocket. Giving her door one last wistful look and thinking about the shower and bed that lay just out of reach, she started for the elevator. A maid came out of a room and tossed an armful of linens in her cart, and Holly stopped, remembering to smile.
"I don't suppose you could let me in my room," she said, holding up a hand as the woman started shaking her head. "Please? I just locked my key in the room, and I really don't want to go all the way back downstairs for a replacement. Can't you help me out just this once?" The woman shook her head again, and Holly sighed, holding up both hands.
"Fine," she said, turning to go as the maid went back into the guest room. A tabloid paper lay sideways on the top of the maid's cart, and she glanced at the front page on the way by, then stopped, picked it up and looked again.
And froze.
"Oh. My. God," she murmured, holding the photo closer in hopes that it was just a trick of the light. It wasn't. She thought back to the moment it was taken, when she'd been riding Eddie slow, grinding down deep on him as he guided her hips. They'd been in perfect sync at that moment, and her face burned as she analyzed her own facial expression. With all the skin showing in the photo, her face exposed the most.
"Hey, that's you!"
Holly looked up to find the maid looking back and forth between the paper and her face. Nodding, she agreed, though she'd prefer to crawl under all those towels and disappear. How could this happen? Someone had to have either gotten on to Eddie's estate, or already been there - neither of which seemed plausible.
"Come on," the maid said, a sympathetic smile at her lips. "I'll let you in your room. I'd imagine you'll get enough attention over that today."
"Thanks," Holly replied, following the woman back down the hall. She pointed out the door, and was so happy when it opened she almost cried. She tipped the maid, and then headed for the shower, her phone trilling from her pocket. Taking it out, she looked at the screen.
"I don't think so," she murmured, tossing the phone on the bed as she headed for the shower.
Enjoy this installment? Try Desert Heat, available now at:
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | Diesel | All Romance
**Please
note - comments take a few moments to appear. Refresh the page to view
new comments. If this is your first time posting, your comment will be
moderated
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