Page 8 (1/2)
Chapter One
Mark Delaney tossed his phone in his pocket, threw the car door open, and climbed out of his Maserati Damn it all to hell Not even the tow truck company would venture out in this mess native Coloradans called snow He was officially stranded Perhaps he’d been spoiled by the California sunshine, but his tolerance for the cold flakes falling on his Prada suit was gone
Blowing out a puff of stearayish white stuff soaked through his Gucci shoes upon i down the red paint, leaving a path of dirt and filth in its wake Dragging a hand through his hair, he glowered up at the dark sky
He was supposed to be at aColorado Toht he was supposed to walk the red carpet with Sylvia Day, his latest love interest, on his ar as that
His publicist always said being single was the fastest way to kill a career in Hollywood, and the second fastest was being married The Hollywood solution? Publicity relationship The up-and-coot to use him to further her career, and Mark had an excuse to avoid relationship drama But if he didn’t show up on time, then the whole deal would be off Apparently, Ms Day didn’t like to be stood up, even by a fake boyfriend
With this deadline hanging over his head like an anvil, he’d rushed to the airport, hoping against all odds he would beat the snowstorent told hihts were cancelled, he decided to hop into his Maserati and take matters into his own hands
A lot of good that had done him
What would his agent say when he didn’t show up to the premiere? Even worse, ould Glory Productions have to say about theiron him to make her famous …
Dragging a hand down his face, he looked around for any signs of life He would get so a private jet Down the road a bit, he could alhts still on Drudging through the snow, he shoved his hands into his pockets and o home for Christ announceest news their family had heard since Mark was noo
So he’d gone back hoainst Gary’s wishes, and noould have to deal with the repercussions of his actions Hell, he hadn’t even made it more than four miles from Eve’s house before he’d slid off the icy road and into the damn ditch If he didn’t know better, he’d swear Gary conjured up this storht Mark should’ve stayed in LA
He wouldn’t put it past him For his first red carpet filirls to throw lacy undergarht hihout the next day Shaking his head at the direction his thoughts had turned, he stepped up to the porch of the house then knocked on the door If he was lucky, the Robertsons still lived here and would take pity on hi with their daughter
The thought of Lacey sitting across the table, painstakingly teaching him about parabolas, made his heart race It had been years since he’d last seen her, but that didn’topen Mark blinked at the captivating creature in front of him Lacey
She wore nothing but a tight tank top and a pair of black yoga pants Gone were the t-shirt and jeans she hen they studied He cleared his throat and tore his gaze off of her barely-covered breasts She was obviously cold, but Mark forced himself to not focus on that small detail Or, uh, two small details “Um Hi”
Hi? Was that all he had? Pathetic
“Well, if it isn’t Mark Delaney Town star”
Sometimes he wasn’t so sure he was that Mark anymore He rubbed the back of his neck and looked at her from the protection of his lashes “Yeah, last time I checked”
As he studied her face, he wondered if she could see his secret written all over his face Did she know that her blue eyes haunted his dreams after all this time? Lacey had been his math tutor … and yet so much more It was just his luck that she would be the one he’d need to get through this ordeal
He hadn’t seen her since he graduated high school and headed to California She looked different, mature, womanly Sexy Her soft curves made his mouth water Somehohen he pictured her in his head, she’d remained seventeen and innocently sweet Now, instead of conjuring ihts of cold winter nights spent gloriously naked, rolling around in bed all night, as the snow fell outside
She cocked her head “What are you still doing here? Eve said you were going back to LA
tonight”