She and Finn didn’t have a future. The fact that he didn’t want children and had plans to return to South Salmon wasn’t news. She’d known from the first second she met him that he didn’t want to be in Fool’s Gold. As for the kid thing, she knew that, too.
But it was possible that sometime in the past week or so she’d allowed herself to forget that Finn wasn’t a permanent part of her life. It was possible that he had managed to creep past her defenses, and now she cared about him. Which meant she had to get her feelings under control or she would be at risk of having her already fragile heart shattered.
“Sorry,” he said with a sigh. “This isn’t your problem.”
“We’re friends. I’m happy to listen. Besides, I’m something of a professional in this area. Feel free to pick my brain.”
“I know what you think.” He kissed her lightly. “You’re not exactly reticent when it comes to sharing your opinion.”
“I’m going to take that as a compliment.”
“Good. That’s how I meant it.” He glanced at the clock on the wall. “It’s late. We should get some sleep.”
“You want to stay here?” she asked, before she could stop herself. What was she thinking? She just realized that she was at emotional risk with Finn, and now she was asking him to spend the night? It’s not that she was afraid they were going to have sex. They were both tired and stressed. The real danger came from not having sex. From sleeping together. Sharing. Connecting.
“I’d like that,” he said standing.
They walked into the bedroom and got undressed. She kept on her short-sleeved nightshirt, but took off her shoes and jeans. Finn dropped everything to the floor. They slid into her king-size bed and met in the middle. After she turned out the light, he lay on his back, she curled up next to him. He put his arm around her.
“Thank you,” he murmured in the darkness. “You’ve been a rock.”
“I’m happy to help.” Which was the truth. Helping was easy. It was protecting herself that was going to be hard.
SASHA SAT ON A BED in the emergency room, waiting for the doctor to release him. He had minor burns on his right side and on the underside of his arm. Nothing that wouldn’t heal in a few days.
They hurt like hell but had been worth it. On the ambulance ride over, Lani had told him that Geoff had already called a couple of reporters to tell them what had happened. His accident was going to give the show a lot of publicity, which was great for both of them.
The only downside in all the excitement was how pissed Finn was going to be at him. Like that was news, Sasha told himself. He’d survived it before, and he would survive it again. Finn was an old man who couldn’t remember what it was like to be young and have dreams. Sasha had his whole life ahead of him.
The curtain to his small alcove parted, and Lani stepped in.
“How are you doing?” she asked, her voice low.
He motioned her close. “Are the guys out there?”
She nodded. “Both cameras. They’re not supposed to film in the hospital without written permission, but you know Geoff. He’s telling them to get what they can.”
She settled on the side of the bed and grinned at him. “This is so cool. We’re going to get tons of airtime. I was thinking, when we get back, we should stage a big fight. They can edit that in to make it look like you wanted to do the Fire Poi to prove something to me.”
He tugged on her long, dark hair. “Have you been talking to Geoff?”
“Of course. Come on. We all want the same thing. Huge ratings. This is one way to get that. Geoff said he’s already had a call from Inside Edition. They’re talking exclusive interview. That would be beyond amazing.”
Inside Edition?
For years now, the thing he’d wanted most in life was to get the hell out of South Salmon. As a kid, the dream had been about only that. He hadn’t had another destination in mind—just a fervent need to be anywhere but there.
As he’d gotten older, he’d started to realize he needed a better goal. A place to reach toward, rather than away from. Which was how his idea of being a star had been born. Now he wanted to get on a TV series, or be in movies. He wanted to be someone, to be loved and cared for by millions. And if the price of that was a couple of burns, so be it.
“So we’ll stage the fight and then there will be these scenes?” he asked.
“Uh-huh.” She lowered her voice even more. “So I’m thinking I should probably cry and beg you to live.”
He chuckled. “Sure thing. Then some loud kissing?”
She nodded and stood. “Let me go tell the guys.”
Sasha watched her go. She was pretty enough, he thought. But there wasn’t any chemistry between them. There were a lot of other women he would rather kiss and then sleep with. But whatever it took for him to get to the next level…
Lani returned. She stood by his bed, drew in a few deep breaths, then started to cry.
“Sasha,” she said, her voice thick with emotion. “Sasha, you have to be okay. Please, please live. S-Sasha?” Her voice broke on his name.