“I am now,” she purred, snuggling into him sighing with anticipation when she felt his erection straining against her backside.
“How are you feeling?” he asked her, his breath warm on the back of her neck.
“Amazing.” She turned onto her back so she could look up at him. “Good morning.”
“Good morning, wife,” he said, grinning at her. “I love you, Mrs. Winslow.”
Her smile wavered because she couldn’t ignore the unexpected clench of her gut. It was panic, setting in as swiftly as it had yesterday at their wedding ceremony. She’d been distracted by amazing sex for the past twelve hours, but suddenly she was right back in City Hall with a dozen uncomfortable questions circling in her head that she simply couldn’t answer.
“Mrs. Winslow,” she murmured, wishing that the title of “wife” felt as effortless as “lover.”
“That’s right,” he said, his eyes twinkling with happiness. “You love me?”
She did. She loved him very much, which made her doubts about their marriage infinitely more confusing.
“So much,” she whispered, her heart acknowledging the pure truth of her words, despite the way it had clutched a moment ago when he’d called her “Mrs. Winslow.”
He dropped his lips to hers, kissing her gently before leaning back. “I’m going to make you so happy.”
“Speaking of happiness,” she said, determined to be honest with him and start a healthy dialogue about their marriage, expectations and future. She took a deep breath. “Maybe we could go to the park today…and really talk. About getting married, and what we want, and where we’re going…my career, your career…everything.”
“Yeah,” he said, kissing her again. “Sounds good.”
Just like that, her stomach unclenched. “Really?”
“Absolutely. A marriage summit. To get things off on the right foot.”
She grinned at him—the first genuine smile she’d been able to offer him since leaving City Hall yesterday—and it felt divine.
“Exactly,” she said, laughing softly as her body relaxed.
“So noted. A marriage summit on the docket for later today…but for now, Mrs. Winslow? More sex,” said Preston, kissing her again.
“You’re insatiable,” she said, ignoring the uncomfortable new title as her body responded to him instantly. She twined her arms around his neck and slipped her tongue between his lips.
Preston rolled on top of her, the hardness of his erection pushing into her thigh as his hands skimmed down her arms and— Her phone buzzed loudly on the bedside table and she froze.
No one ever called her. The only people who had her number were Preston, her parents and sisters, who never called her, and Donny Durran.
Preston’s hands continued their leisurely exploration of hips and belly as his lips pressed tiny kisses to her neck. She wiggled away from him just enough to free her arm and reach for her phone.
“It’s Donny,” she said, looking at the screen over his shoulder.
“Call him back later,” suggested Preston, glancing up from the valley between her breasts.
“It could be important. It could be about a part.”
“It’s Sunday. The part will still be there tomorrow.” Preston sucked her nipple between his lips, and her back arched reflexively, but she pushed at his head.
“Stop, Pres. Stop. Seriously. I have to get this.”
He sighed, rolling onto his back, and she pulled the sheet over her breasts as she answered the phone.
“Hello? Donny?”
“Elise. You’re up. Are you sitting down?”
She sat up straight, glancing at Preston, who grinned at her, sliding his palm across her belly.
Stop! she mouthed. He moved his hand away, pouting.
“Uh, yes. I’m sitting down.”
“This is big, Elise. Way bigger than Our Town, honey. This is huge. Are you ready?”
Her breath caught. “I’m ready.”
“It’s Hollywood.”
“What?” she gasped.
“Yep. Turns out Jack Mosell was in the audience on Friday night and he loved you. I mean, he loved you. And he’s one of the best casting directors out in L.A. Well, he got back to L.A. yesterday and it turns out that Diana Agron has pulled out of playing Edna Pontellier in The Awakening.”
Her heart was racing so fast she could hardly speak. “By K-Kate Chopin?”
“Yeah. Period piece. Anyhow, they’ve already started production on the picture and now they’re at a standstill until they can find a fast replacement for Diana. So, Jack tells them about you. And get this, Elise…he called you ‘the American Kiera Knightly.’ Can you believe it?”
“The American Kiera Knightly,” she repeated dumbly.
“So Jack went on and on about you. Then they called me to see if your schedule’s free, and I said it was. And, well, they’re in such a jam, they asked if you could go out there and screen-test today, and as long as they liked what they saw, you’re in.”