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His responding smile damn near takes my breath away. “I’d love that. Yeah.”
“Well, come on in, then.”
I push open the door, holding it wide behind me as Harrison steps in, and it takes less than a second for all eyes to be on us.
Truthfully, though, I’m shocked I didn’t at least find Heidi with a glass against the wall for better eavesdropping.
“Look who’s here,” I say excitedly, but the response from the room is considerably less enthusiastic.
Harrison doesn’t let it bother him—at least, not that I can see.
Ben Huddleson is the first to climb off the couch and stick out his hand. It’s not his normal behavior, and seeing as he has no idea who Harrison is, I have to believe he thinks he’s someone important in the business.
Harrison’s smile is slightly brittle as he takes Ben’s hand in his own, but he doesn’t falter.
“Ben Huddleson. I’m the fiancé.” My chest tightens as Ben reaches out to me and puts an unwelcome hand on my stomach, a physical implication of the rest of his role. Harrison’s face is a mask devoid of emotion, but I can only imagine what’s simmering below the surface. This is so freaking uncomfortable I can hardly stand myself. What am I supposed to do here to make this bearable?
I chew on my lip and shift from foot to foot, but when nothing else seems even remotely viable, I pull a Leighton Bossdale and check out as a matter of convenience. Leighton Bossdale, by the way, was a girl in my first acting class who used to faint all the time. Call me a coward, I don’t care. But it’s the only damn way I can slither myself out of this awkward situation before everyone in the damn room chokes on it.
Eyes shut, I’m hugely conscious of the way I go down, making sure to bend my knees enough to cushion the fall.
The room erupts into chaos around me, but Harrison is the first person to take any real action, checking my pulse with care and putting an ear to my mouth to check for breathing.
His smell envelops me in its comfort.
“She’s all right. Probably just got light-headed.” He moves his hands to the sides of my face and elevates my chin as he talks to me. “Rocky, wake up, baby.” He taps my face off with his hand gently, and I do some of my best acting as I come back to consciousness.
“Rock? There you are. You’re okay,” he assures me calmly. “Does anything hurt?”
I shake my head gingerly in his hands, studying the varying shades of green in his eyes with unchecked scrutiny. If there’s ever a time I can get away with being creepy in my stare, it’s now. I don’t waste the opportunity.
Good Lord, he’s handsome. My baby daddy is truly a certified fox.
“Everybody clear the couch,” Harrison orders. With one arm behind my knees and the other around my back, he scoops me up from the floor like I weigh nothing.
“Must have paid a visit or two to Tommy John’s while you were in New York, huh?” I ask, still staring deep into his eyes, and he laughs.
“You remember that?”
I nod. Truth is, I remember everything from that night with embarrassing detail.
Pretty sure you mean you remember everything about him…
Everyone scatters from the couch as he approaches it and lays me down, tucking a throw pillow behind my head with gentle precision. “You didn’t hit your head, did you?”
I shake it.
No, no. Hitting my head was not a part of my choreography. God, Raquel. Pretty sure you’re going to have to take the truth of this to your grave.
“I feel fine,” I confirm. “Just got a little dizzy.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire!
“All right, just take it easy.” He smirks, and I have to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing as he continues, “Maybe your fiancé can get you a glass of water and a snack. Something to bring up your blood sugar a little.”
Ben snaps out of his self-involved stupor and nods. “Oh. Yeah, yeah, I can…I can do that.”
The thought of Ben Huddleson finding his way around a kitchen to do something for a woman almost makes me snort.
And not like a cute little squeak—a full-on garbly, throaty, phlegm-filled snort.
Harrison raises an eyebrow, and I have to wonder how fooled he really is. Or if he’s hot to my game.
Ben finally returns with a glass of water and a protein bar. “I’m not really sure what works to bring up blood sugar. Will this protein bar work?”
I suck my lips into my mouth in an effort to hide my amusement. God, I’m a little embarrassed for him.
Harrison takes the protein bar, and in a weird plot twist, coddles Ben much more than I would have. “This is great. But if you can find maybe a candy bar or even a glass of orange juice if there isn’t any candy, that’d be great.”
