He quirked a brow, giving her a fond look. “You’re so cute. Have I told you that lately?”
“Well... not tonight. Except you just did. So I guess you did. Say it. Tonight.”
His lips twitched. He brushed her lips again. “Good night, Molly. I’ll call you tomorrow. I love you.”
“Love you too. Good night.”
He turned on the way back to his car, giving a little wave. Molly forced a smile as she fluttered her fingers and hoped he couldn’t see the sheen of tears in her eyes.
twenty-eight
On Sunday afternoon Levi tapped lightly on Mia’s door. He’d hardly seen her since the kiss. On Thursday the photos had hit the tabloid websites—Molly had shown him. He was never going to hear the end of it from his sisters.
He’d had plenty of time to think about that kiss though. Mia had definitely seen that photographer. Why else would she have responded so eagerly? He wasn’t sure how he’d gotten up the nerve to kiss her at all, but it was best if she thought he’d simply been playing a role too.
That wouldn’t stop him from reliving her passionate response though. He could still feel the softness of her lips on his. The warmth of her hand on his thigh.
The door swung open, and there was Mia—hopefully not reading his thoughts.
“Hi.” She smiled at him, looking beautiful in leggings and a pale green tunic that brought out the color of her eyes. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun, highlighting her cheekbones.
“Hey. So, all the guests have checked out. You have time to look for the necklace?”
Her eyes lit as she tossed the script she was holding onto the bed. “I always have time to look for the necklace.”
“I can come back if you’re working.”
“I needed a break anyway. Where should we start?”
He gestured toward her room. “In there, I was thinking, since that was likely the Livingstons’ bedroom.”
She opened the door wider with a sheepish smile. “Okay, but I may have already checked behind the wall hangings.”
She was so cute. A thought supported by every man in America, he reminded himself. And probably half of Europe.
She kicked a pair of balled-up socks to the side and picked up two soggy towels. “Where should we start?”
Levi glanced around the room. “How about the floor? It’s the original wood. We can just go plank by plank and see if anything’s loose.”
“Sounds like a plan. We should probably roll up the rug first.”
They got on their knees and began rolling the floral area rug. He liked the way she dug right in. His initial presumptions about her had sure been proven wrong.
“So...” She spared him a glance under those long eyelashes. “Did you see the pictures online?”
“Molly made sure of it.” He scrubbed the delicious image from his mind. “I guess we played that off just right, huh?”
Her lashes fluttered down. “Right, yes. That’s all they’re talking about now—or so I hear. I’ve learned the hard way to let Nolan filter the gossip for me.”
“I can’t imagine having my whole life on display. How do you deal with the lack of privacy?”
“It’s not my favorite thing, but what are you going to do? It goes with the job. I learned that early on from watching my mom. I think she kind of got off on the spotlight though.”
“Liked the attention?”
Mia gave a dry chuckle. “You could say that. I felt more like her showpiece than her daughter sometimes. Even when I was little she dressed me up like we were headed for a photo shoot. Every time we left the house, I was told to smile and stop fidgeting and act ladylike. She just... preened for the cameras, and I was her little mini-me.”
Levi stopped rolling the rug and looked at her. What kind of mother made her child feel like an accessory?
