“Yeah. I felt I was fucking Chuck Sullivan. The control. The roughness. Calling me your little whore… God, that dark need was intense.”
He blinked, raising a brow. “You like Chuck Sullivan?”
“As much as I wanna say no, I do like him.”
“The guy is a killer.”
“Made into a killer when he was a kid,” she corrected. “He was abused. Didn’t know any better.”
He nodded, chuckling. “So you were pretending to be Cammie the whole time? The begging in the end? The Maggie I know wouldn’t do that.”
“No. That was all me in there. Like I said, I like things with you I thought I hated.”
He sighed in relief. “Good. For a second there I thought I was being played, another trick of yours trying to get me into character.”
She wrapped her arms around him. “This was nothing but Mike and Maggie making love to each other in a different way, exploring a new side in them they didn’t know they’d both enjoy.”
“You and your words.” He smiled, his eyes traveling over her. “You need new clothes.”
She pushed him off her and pulled her jeans up. “And to get my ass out of here.” Her feet dragged to the bathroom.
He stepped into the bedroom and went through a duffle bag in the closet. “I packed a spare outfit for you.”
The sound of her giggle and running water echoed from the bathroom. “Looks like you were expecting something like this would happen. Thanks.”
Holding a pair of pale blue jeans and a black shirt, he entered the bathroom. She was fully naked now, her hair tied back, holding a showerhead, water splashing her skin, and he wanted her again. “Do you need help?”
She turned off the water quickly and got out of the shower. “God, no.” Her hands were quick with a towel and then motioned for the clothes. “I really need to get out of here. I can’t have Nadine shoot the whole thing.”
“Here.” He stretched his arm, handing her the outfit.
“I pushed your scenes for a couple of hours. I need you to memorize those looks on the clip like the back of your hand.” She jumped into the new jeans, and he mourned the loss of the view. “And feel free to use what we just did. You can even pretend she’s me. I won’t object. I mean it’s exactly how I pictured Sullivan making love.”
“That is disturbing on so many levels.” He frowned as she switched to director mode in a split-second, recalling that stunt she’d pulled in front of everyone. “You don’t seem upset about…that clip… I mean everybody is gonna talk now.”
“After the Tribeca, everybody’s been talking already.” She shrugged. “We’re going official after we wrap anyway. It’s not a big deal.”
He smiled, relieved. “So…you’re still shooting those scenes?”
She finished buttoning her shirt and gave him a reassuring smile. “I’ll let Nadine do those.”
“Thanks.”
“But if you think for one second that I’ll let anyone shoot anything inDark Hopes, you’re dreaming. And that one has a full frontal.”
“And you’re cool with that? The whole world seeing your future husband’s cock?”
Her expression stiffened.
“Don’t give me that shitty look. You know it’s gonna happen.”
Her lips twitched as she swallowed. “I know at some point you’re gonna ask, but who says I’m gonna say yes?”
He stepped away from her, the look in her eyes a stab of heartbreak. “So what? We’re still in tryouts? All these months and you’re still not sure?”
She rolled her eyes, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around his neck. “No. I just wanted for once to stop your heart like you always do to me.”
His heart did just that. “What are you saying?”
