Chapter Five
Andreas
In hindsight, I probably shouldn’t have hung up.
I was just so…freaked out.
Because a naked guy was lying on my bed. Stroking his very perky, very impressive, very bare cock.
Not how I expected my day to end.
The guy probably wasn’t a threat. I was dressed, almost a foot taller, and had way more muscles.
But he was…naked.
I probably should’ve called security. Instead, I’d grabbed my phone from my back pocket and had hit the button for the one person I knew could help me.
Naked guy continued to stroke himself. “Come and join me. I’d like to fuck you until you can’t walk straight. You like that, right?” He pointed to a pair of handcuffs. “The headboard even has slats. Like they knew you’d need them.”
So he could attach me, wearing the handcuffs, to the bed.
Yeah. No. Just a hard no.
“Look…” I flailed. Do I really want to know his name? Surreptitiously, I swiped my camera on. The phone wasn’t pointed toward him, but our voices would be clear.
“Chaz.”
“Right. Chaz. Pretty name.” I cocked my head and offered a smile. “I think you have the wrong idea—”
“Oh no, big boy, I don’t.” He winked.
Big boy? Seriously?
He continued to stroke himself—getting harder and harder, and I so didn’t want to look but, hell, I was a guy who liked cock.
Not this one in particular, but I was definitely…
intrigued. “Yes, you do. I don’t do random hookups.
Hell, after my last boyfriend, I don’t do men at all.
Or women. No dating. No sex. No nothing.
So, if you could just put your clothes—”
The loudest banging ever came from the door.
Then said door flew open.
Guess he forgot, for a moment, that he had a key.
My savior had arrived.
“What the fuck?” Chaz cupped his package protectively.
Freddie stopped dead in his tracks.
He met my gaze.
“I swear, I didn’t invite him. He was just…here. And I’m really tired and want a shower. Do you think you can…?” I flailed my hand.
“Are you all right? Did he touch you?” Freddie kept his eyes on Chaz, but directed his question to me. At least I assumed I was the one who was expected to answer.
“I walked in here, saw him, and called you. We’ve been discussing how I’m never having sex or having a boyfriend or a girlfriend ever again.
Chaz seems to be laboring under the misapprehension that I somehow liked being filmed and having my bits all over the internet.
Spoiler alert—I didn’t.” I directed that jab at Chaz, but also meant to send the message to Freddie. See? No one I went to see last night.
I might’ve gone for a walk down to the Quay, but no way was I telling the fierce bodyguard that.
He snagged Chaz’s clothes and threw them at him. “You have fifteen seconds to get the fuck out of here.”
“Dude, I’m just—”
“Ten.”
“I’m naked.”
“What you are, is trespassing. Really, I should be calling the police. And you can bet hotel security is going to hear about this. How did you even get in here? You give him a key?”
A moment passed before I realized the question was directed at me. “I have my key. You have the second. I don’t have a clue how he got in here.”
“Time’s up, buddy.” Freddie stalked over to the guy.
Who had enough self-preservation to get up. “At least let me—”
“Nope. Out.”
Chaz’s gaze darted to me.
“Honestly, he’s right. You’re so far over the line—whatever the line is. If this teaches you to never to do shit like this again, then it’ll have been worth it. You know, I think I’m going to call hotel security—”
“I’m out of here.” He scooped up his shoes. Held his clothes protectively against him, and headed to the door.
The problem was immediately apparent.
I moved to open the door.
Freddie pushed me out of reach of the guy and opened the door himself.
Chaz met my gaze. “If you ever change—”
My bodyguard bodychecked the guy right out the door.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Pack your things.”
I blinked. “I’m sorry…?”
“Either I’m staying here with you, or you’re coming home with me. Take your pick. Truthfully, I don’t care either way.”
Well, he did care. Or he would’ve offered the choice before commanding me to follow him.
I wanted to fuss. I wanted to insist I could stand on my own two feet. I totally could’ve turfed Chaz.
So why didn’t you? Why’d you call Freddie first?
Because…uh… Right. Because he would’ve been mad if it later came out I was alone in a hotel room with a naked guy and I wasn’t here voluntarily.
Hell, even if I’d been okay with it—which I so totally wasn’t—he would’ve been pissed.
I sighed. “Okay, give me a few minutes. I actually unpacked yesterday and ironed everything.”
“I’ll help. You start with the bathroom and I’ll start—”
“Nope. You can go downstairs or…whatever…”
He blinked. “Okay, clearly you don’t remember that you have three suitcases and two arms.”
“I’ll make two trips.”
“Andreas, you’re being ridiculous. What, are you worried I’ll find your sex toys?”
Heat flared in my cheeks. Undoubtedly I was redder than I’d been this afternoon while shooting in that hot sun. I still needed a shower. Badly.
“Okay.” He surveyed the room. “I’m going to go down to speak with security.
You’re going to pack all your personal stuff and have a shower.
We’ll get your stuff down to your car. I have two parking spots at my townhouse, including one in my garage, so your car will actually be safer at my place.
Huh…” He frowned. “That should’ve occurred to me when we were first working out logistics.
Oh well, whatever.” He stalked to the door.
“Don’t open it for fucking anybody. Call me if there’s a problem. ” Then he was gone.
For a heartbeat, I breathed.
After that breath, I scurried to put my sex toys at the bottom of one of the suitcases, then raced to fill the others. Last on my list, once just about everything was ready to go, was my shower.
As much as I wanted to dally and carefully wipe away all the gross sweat from the day, I was under the distinct impression Freddie wasn’t going to wait patiently.
Once all my bits were clean and I felt vaguely refreshed, I shut off the shower, dried myself off, and put on my shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. I tried to style my hair, but finally gave up. It would air dry. I’d do my best magic in the morning.
A knock sounded at the door. “Andreas?”
“Yep?”
“Do you need me to step out of the room while you…?”
I opened the door. “All ready to go.”
Freddie held up one hand. He opened the suite door and ushered in a petite woman in a suit. She wore her hair in a ponytail so I was able to clearly spot her earpiece.
“Mr. Elliott.” She nodded. “On behalf of the entire staff, I want to apologize. What happened was completely unacceptable. I’ve instituted a full security review—”
“Really, it’s okay.”
“No, Andreas, it’s not okay. It’s as far from okay as we can get.” Freddie glowered.
I jutted my chin up.
He didn’t back down.
The woman cleared her throat. “The initial review of camera footage shows the perpetrator using a swipe card. We’ve downloaded the reader information and found it belongs to an employee who has left for the day. They have been recalled, and they will be questioned—”
“I don’t want anyone to get into trouble—”
“Do you want another guest to find someone in their room? A woman guest, perhaps.” Freddie held my gaze.
“No.” Easy one.
“Then let them do their investigation.”
“I really would have preferred if we could have questioned the, uh, other party.” The woman pursed her lips.
Freddie’s nose twitched.
“Look, Chaz was just…he misread the situation.” Right. See? I can shovel BS too.
“You know his name?” Freddie looked ready to kill me, with his furrowed brow. “You said you didn’t know him.”
“I didn’t.” I pivoted to the woman, who had yet to identify herself. “He told me his name. Now, I don’t know if that’s really it.”
“That, along with the video footage, will be very helpful. Although we like to keep investigations internal, he was trespassing and, as your security guard pointed out, he might do this to other people. The police might want to take a statement—”
“Nope.” I shook my head. “Look, I’m sorry the guy did all that…
But you know he did it because of me. Because of who I am.
And the last thing I need is my name being leaked to the press because some guy broke into my room and was naked.
” I gazed pleadingly at Freddie. “Let’s go, okay?
I just need to put this day behind me.” Because nothing would be worse than reliving this over and over again.
The nice woman nodded. “May I assist you with your bags?”
“Nope.” I tossed my shaving kit into the last open suitcase, zipped it up, laid it on the floor, and directed myself toward the door. “Nice meeting you. I hope you sort out your…issues.” I met Freddie’s gaze. “Take me home?”
Slowly, he nodded. “Yeah, I can do that.”
He snagged the other two suitcases.
The hotel security chief held the door.
We exited.
And I tried not to panic at the thought of being alone in a confined space with Freddie for the next six weeks.
Then the cast and some of the crew were headed north. We had a couple of days’ shooting in the Yukon, which was standing in for Alaska.
I can do this. I can do this. I can—
Fuck it.
I’m screwed.