Page 25 of Miss Behaved
My stomach drops. It shouldn’t surprise me. This isn’t the first time Mary has brought this up. Spicier romance is pulling big numbers right now, and it’s a market they want me to tap into. The trouble is, I writefalling in love, notmaking love.
Not that I don’t enjoy sex as much as the next person, but that’s private. Just like the love scenes in my books.
“So when they say ‘consider’—”
“It’s still one hundred percent up to you. They’re buying it either way.” Grace relaxes. “They love the concept for the series as is, and while they agree it could land decent numbers even with your sweetie-pie image, they want you to think about it. There’s potential for a spicier angle here, and your readers are ready. They feel the heat, and now they want you to bring them into that kitchen.”
“I’ll think about it,” I tell her.
My friend Luce would be happy; she’s always said my books could use a little more fire. Although, to meet the heat level Luce would expect might require a bucket of gasoline and some matches.
“That’s all I ask, babe.” Grace stands and straightens her skirt. “I’m going to continue making my rounds, but I had to share the good news.”
She leans in and plants a kiss an inch away from either cheek before waving and disappearing into the crowd.
My phone buzzes again, and I make the mistake of pulling it from my purse before thinking.
Steven: Dinner when you get back?
Talk about skin-crawling.
When is he going to take the hint? The sex I need to be having right now is between the pages of my books, not in Steven’s well-broken-in sheets.
I switch my phone off and bury it. I’m not sure if it’s the Arizona heat, Grace’s news, or Steven’s persistence, but the walls of this room are closing in.
Spotting an exit on the side of the room, I bail and make a beeline for the door before a group headed my way reaches the table.
Outside, it’s hotter than in the hotel, but I’m grateful for the silence, and I feel like I can finally breathe. I make my way around a terrace and find myself at a pool that’s closed for the evening. The water lets off a teal glow against the dark evening.
This far out from any city, it’s a level of darkness I haven’t seen before. A slick black sky is sprinkled with more stars than I’ve ever noticed, brightening what would otherwise be a pitch-black night.
I make my way to the pool steps and tug the bottom of my dress to my knees so I can dip my feet in. The cool bite of the water feels good in the evening heat. Kicking my foot out, I watch the ripples trail across the water.
One splash. One wave. Everything changes.
That’s when movement across the pool catches my eye, and I realize there’s someone laid out on a chair at the opposite end. Liquid blue eyes are fixed on me across the glow of the pool.
“You’re following me again,” Carson says, kicking his legs over the side of the chair.
“This is a public space,” I point out. “Besides, I’ve had enough of the party.”
“Same.”
He stands and slowly makes his way around the pool. Each step he closes between us both puts me together and pulls me apart—a constant tug of wanting him closer and needing him to give me space. And as much as I hate it, when he drops down a few feet away with rolled-up pants and joins me in dipping his feet in the water, I don’t want him to go.
“Everything okay?” he asks, chin dipped low as he looks down at the water.
I shrug one shoulder but don’t answer.
There was a time I could tell Carson everything. What I had for dinner, how I did on a test, what my parents were bugging me about, how I had a crush on Cody the quarterback. So why do I feel like I’ve grown out of that?
Carson nods his head and fixes his gaze on me. “Well, I’m here if you need to chat.”
“Thanks,” I say, swirling a foot in circles. The ripples reach out in all directions, but my focus is on the ones that wander over to him because my hands can’t. “It’s just work stuff. You know how it goes.”
“That I do,” he says. “Publisher or agent?”
“Both.” I chuckle. “They want moreheat in the kitchen, as they put it.”
