Given New Worlds Read online

  Sean turned back and stood for a moment, then stalked towards her and placed his hands against the wall on either side of Abby’s head. “I want you, Abby. You know that.”

  “Same,” she whispered, her voice quavering in the heat of the moment.

  “But I want you at the right time. The right place.” He leaned his head down and kissed her lips, her jawline, under her ear, then nibbled at her earlobe. “This is not the time, nor the place.”

  Now it was Abby’s time to groan. She felt like a sparkler that had only burned halfway before being put out.

  Sean gave her one last kiss on the forehead, then stepped back. “I need to go pack.”

  “I thought you were already packed. Don’t leave,” Abby begged with sad, puppy dog eyes. “You can wear my clothes.”

  With a laugh and a wave, Sean walked out the hallway towards the living room. Abby followed him, continuing the puppy dog stare. “Stop looking at me like that,” he said.

  “But I’m so sad. Can’t you stay five more minutes? Or five hours? We can sleep on the plane.”

  “I need to take a shower.”

  “You can shower here.”

  “A cold shower.”

  “Fine. But don’t expect me to give you my pillow during the flight.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it, Sweets.”

  Abby blew him a kiss as he walked out the door. She thought about how different a trip to one of Mom’s premieres was going to be with Sean by her side. He was right, her birthday would be very different this time. This year she had joy, peace, and love. God had answered her prayers.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  THE flight to L.A. was long and stuffy, but Sean did manage to make it fun. He told her stories about growing up on a farm, and then living with an Aunt after his parents died. He didn’t make it sad, only thoughtful.

  Abby talked about her strange childhood experiences. The multitude of nannies, boarding school, security guards, and high walls. She had few family members and even fewer friends. She told him about the blue, plastic rosary that she would carry around in her pocket, praying childish prayers, and talking to God as if he were her best friend.

  “It’s too bad that didn’t rub off on your parents,” Sean said. He was holding Abby’s hand in his lap, his head only inches away from hers.

  “I pray for them. Someday they’ll believe.”

  “Faith and hope,” Sean said. “That’s good.”

  “It’s all I had for so long.”

  “And now?”

  “Now I have you.”

  “Faith, hope, and Sean?” he laughed. “That’s not biblical.”

  Abby laughed and pushed him away just before the pilot announced their descent.

  “Fantasy world over, real life up ahead,” Abby groaned.

  “I don’t know. I think the real adventure is the future,” he said with a wink.

  Abby felt her shoulders relax, then pulled herself up to give him a kiss before fastening her seatbelt. He let go of her hand and leaned over her, pressing her against the seat. She knew that he still hadn’t managed to cool down from last night. Either had she. They would be staying in connecting rooms. Her mind began to wander.

  “Excuse me, please raise your seat back to the upright position.” The flight attendant smiled sweetly as Sean broke the kiss and moved back to his seat. He gave the flight attendant his smoldering wink and she giggled before moving on to the next disobedient passenger.

  “You’re killing me, Abby.”

  “I know,” she said, sliding the armrest back into position between their bodies. She needed it there. Without it, she would surely jump across the seat and kiss him until the plane pulled to a halt.

  They didn’t even have a chance to check into their suites before Mom came striding into the lobby with her entourage close behind. Fortunately, the hotel was filled with a multitude of celebrities as well as an army of security that would keep the paparazzi at bay. Abby and Sean had traveled incognito and had managed to evade any recognition - as far as they knew. They’d become the ultimate celebrity couple, and celebrity seekers seemed to pick them out like a homing beacon.

  Mom convinced Abby to join her in the Gardenia suite while Sean met Dad for drinks at some sort of smoking lounge. In other words, the guys needed to get away from pampering and girl talk. While Abby was getting her toenails painted to match her dress, Mom was given a light facial and a massage, probably the third one she’d had that week.

  “You know he picked out the necklace himself,” Mom said in a vibrato as Geneva, the masseuse, beat on her back.

  “He told me that you helped him.”

  “He sent me the pictures, I approved. It was all him, honey.”

  “Wow.”

  “Wow is right. That set was quite a bit of money.” Mom sucked in a breath when Geneva put hot rocks along her spine. “You won the jackpot with this guy, Abigail. Now you need to do everything in your power to keep him happy.”

  “Keep him happy? That’s not very feminist of you, Mom.”

  “It’s worked for your father. Never has he cheated on me. Never has he done anything to make my life miserable. That’s because I make him happy.”

  Abby thought about it. They were definitely a happy couple. She couldn’t think of a time when they’d ever had a knock-down, drag-out fight. There’d been a few squabbles here and there, but nothing major.

  “Are you on birth control?”

  “Mom!” Abby almost kicked the pedicurist as she cringed over the comment.

  “I’m just telling you honey. The best way to keep a man happy is…”

  “Mom. I don’t want to have this discussion with you. Besides, we’re not having sex.”

  Abby heard rocks fall to the ground as Mom tilted up on the massage table. “You haven’t had sex yet?”

  “He wants to wait for the right time and place.”

  “Oh no. Oh dear.” Mom gathered the towel around her and waved Geneva and the pedicurist away, then leaned towards Abby with a whisper. “He’s gay, isn’t he? I knew he was too good to be true. His impeccable style, his perfect manners. You can be honest with me. I won’t judge him.”

  “He’s not gay.”

  “Really, you can tell me.”

  “If having his hands all over my boobs and butt last night is gay, then I guess it’s possible.”

  “Oh, thank goodness.” Abby watched her Mom fall back on the massage table in a relieved feint.

  “You’re getting very dramatic, Mom. Everything okay?”

  Abby eyed her toes and noticed that only four were painted. Hopefully Mom would get over her swoon quickly so that she could get all this mother-daughter bonding over with and see Sean again.

  “Yes. Just emotional. You know how it is with these big nights. I’m so nervous. Plus… well, it’s your birthday tomorrow and all.”

  “Maybe you should take a pill.”

  “Nope. Not until fifteen minutes before we pull up to the curb. Then I’ll take it.”

  Abby rolled her eyes. Mom was against GMO’s, artificial flavors, and mood-altering chemicals. Except during movie premiers and awards nights. Then she allowed herself one Xanax of the smallest dose fifteen minutes prior to show time. She kept an entire bottle in her purse at all times, but never took them. It was a running joke.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  AFTER a whirlwind of beauty treatments, agent discussions, and security details, Abby and Sean finally got sent to their rooms at two in the morning.

  “I can’t feel my feet,” Abby said, trudging down the endless hallway to her hotel room.

  Sean was holding her shoes and walking like a zombie himself. “It’s five in the morning at home. I hope I turned off my coffeemaker.”

  They got to room 6452 and Abby leaned against the door. “You want to come in for a nightcap?” she asked with a glint in her eye and a flutter in her heart.

  “You know I do,” Sean said.

  “Well then, come on.” Abby lif
ted the keycard out of her purse, but Sean pulled it out of her hand before she could slide it against the lock.

  “Let me check things out first,” he said with a wink. “You stay here.”

  Abby let him go inside. It was nice being looked after, not by someone that your father had hired for your protection, but by someone that loved you and felt powerful enough to do it himself. After a minute, Abby got antsy and pushed the door open.

  “Hurry up, I’m tired…” she stopped in her tracks when she saw what Sean had in his hand.

  “That’s a gun,” she whispered.

  He lifted his jacket and slid the gun into a holster that ran along his ribcage. Abby stepped inside the room and closed the door behind her, hoping that the cameras in the hallway didn’t catch Sean holding a weapon in his hand, possibly getting them both arrested for possession of a firearm.

  “Have you been wearing that the whole time?”

  “Yes.”

  “And you didn’t tell me?”

  “No.”

  “Why?”

  “To keep you safe,” he said with a shrug, as if it was something he did every day. Abby thought about his military career, his absences every few weeks when he had to do his reserves thing. Of course he had a gun. She’d just never thought about it before.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were wearing one.”

  “Because then you would have known.”

  “Well, of course I would have known. That doesn’t make any sense.”

  “Give me a hug,” Sean said and lifted his arms up as if welcoming her into his personal space.

  “No way, not until you take that thing off.”

  “See? Now that you know, you’re uncomfortable. Would you have leaned up against me comfortably during your father’s security detail discussion if you had known? Would you have cuddled into my side during the meeting with your mom’s agent? Or would you have jumped in fright every time I got near you?”

  Abby thought about it. He was right. If she had known that Sean was wearing a weapon, there was no way she would have gone within ten feet of him.

  “Well, you don’t need it now. So, take it off.”

  He removed his jacket and then unlatched the straps that held the gun to his side. “Why don’t I go ahead and lock this in the safe in my room. You might be more comfortable that way.”

  “I think that’s a good idea.”

  “And I’m going to take a shower.”

  “But then you’re coming back, right?”

  Sean walked to the side door that led to his room and unlatched the lock. “Connecting rooms. Does your father know about this?”

  Abby rolled her eyes and thought about her conversation with her mother during girl bonding time. “Mom is disappointed in our lack of sex life.”

  “Your mom wants us to have sex?” he asked. Abby could almost see him turn green with horror.

  “She asked if you were gay.”

  Sean laughed and shook his head. “If she could see what was in my mind, she would know for a fact that I’m not gay.”

  Abby felt the heat turn up. “And what, exactly, Mr. Court, is in your mind.”

  “Well, seeing as how it is tomorrow, which means that is officially your birthday, I have many thoughts in my mind about how we could celebrate…” He didn’t finish his answer, only raised his eyebrow and smirked with a covert glance from her head to her toes.

  With a step forward, then another step, then another, Abby approached him, ignoring the gun that swung from the straps of the holster in his hand. “Do you want to know what’s in my mind? I haven’t told you my birthday wish yet,” she said. Placing her hand on his chest, she moved it slowly down until it rested over his belt. Then she slid the tips of her fingers slowly behind the leather and pulled him towards her. He didn’t move, didn’t talk, didn’t smile. Only smoldered as Abby felt his eyes burn into her own and down her body.

  In an instant, he moved in and captured her. His arms pulling her against him, detaining her hand as it lay positioned between them. “My hand is still in your pants,” she giggled nervously.

  “I’m fully aware of that.” His voice was rough, deep. “What are you going to do about it, birthday girl?”

  Abby felt his hand reach down and position itself on her bottom. As he leaned forward, the heavy weight of the gun swung into her back making her jump, pull away, and catch a scream in her throat.

  Sean laughed and lifted the gun holster over his shoulder, then strode to the door. “I’m going to put this thing in the safe and take a shower.” He stepped out into the hallway before turning back with hooded eyes and a grin. “I’ll be back,” he said. The Terminator accent tickled a smile out of her forced frown.

  Abby danced around the room for several minutes before peeling off her exhausted wardrobe and hopping into the shower to get the edginess off her body. It felt good to wash the day away under the hot stream of water. She wondered if Sean was on the other side of the wall doing the same. It made her insides turn to jelly and her temperature rise even higher than the scalding water coming out of the shower head.

  After drying off, Abby slipped into her pajama pants and Wedgewood College sweatshirt. It wasn’t sexy, but she figured that she wouldn’t be wearing clothes much longer anyway. She could feel excitement run through her body and began bouncing with anticipation.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  AFTER twenty minutes of waiting, Abby couldn’t take it any longer. She tugged on the door to the connecting room, expecting it to be locked from the other side, but it nudged open easily and Abby tiptoed into the sitting area. Was it a surprise? Was she going to find him waiting on the bed with roses and candlelight?

  Abby could barely contain her excitement as she quietly walked towards the bedroom of the suite and opened the door. When she tipped her eyes around the doorframe, Abby saw her romantic notions were in vain. Sean was crashed out on the bed face first, still wearing his clothes. He hadn’t even removed his shoes. Abby could hear him breathing, so she knew he wasn’t dead. Just tired.

  It was understandable. After spending almost every waking minute at the hospital, then traveling across the United States, only to be subjected to meetings, and her parents, Sean deserved a few hours of sleep.

  She sat on the end of the bed and slowly wiggled his shoes off, placing them neatly on the floor next to the gun holster. She noticed that the gun was no longer in it and the safe in the closet was securely closed, so that was a relief, at least. Too bad he didn’t get the shower he was aiming for.

  Abby turned to go back her room, but before she could leave, she needed one more goodnight kiss. She stepped over the holster and towards the head of the bed. It squeaked slightly, and Abby placed her hands on the mattress. She froze, making sure his breathing was still quiet and smooth, then leaned in and placed a kiss on his forehead. Before she could push herself off the bed, Sean’s hand shot out and wrapped around her wrist.

  He tugged, and Abby felt her body move of its own volition onto the cool sheets and into Sean’s warm arms. He tucked her close and pulled the duvet around her, as if placing her in his own protective cocoon. She cuddled into his frame and felt a sense of relaxation and peace come over her. This is the way it should be. This is the way it could be. Abby was happy. Happier than she’d ever been.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  “GOOD morning, Sunshine!”

  The smell of coffee and bath soap greeted Abby as she opened her eyes to the insanely bright morning. “Isn’t L.A. supposed to be smoggy?” She pulled the pillow over her head. “Five more minutes… Five more hours.”

  “Nope. You have about five seconds before I pull these covers off and toss you in a cold shower.”

  “You’re the devil,” Abby said.

  Sean lifted the pillow. “No. That was you last night.”

  Abby thought back to her attempted seduction. She wondered what she would be feeling like if he’d fallen for it. Well, for one thing, they probably would
n’t be as well rested as they were right now. But she would also be riding on a cloud of post-coital bliss. Or, according to her mother, a funny walk for at least two days.

  She lifted the pillow and saw that the bedside clock was screaming out 10:18am.

  “I can’t believe you let me sleep so late,” Abby groaned, flinging the pillow at Sean, who was staring into the mirror at his gorgeous reflection while adjusting his tie.

  “I tried to get you up four times. You sleep like the dead.”

  “That’s what I’m told.”

  He turned around and leaned back against the dresser. “I guess now you can tell your mom that we slept together.”

  Abby laughed. It was enough to get her blood flowing and force herself out of the fluffy duvet that was still trying to keep her captive in its enticing poof. “I don’t think snoring in each other’s faces would be enough to give her grandbabies.”

  “I don’t snore.”

  “What makes you think you don’t snore?”

  “I’ve been trained not to snore.”

  Abby glanced down at the floor where the gun holster had lain the night before. It was gone now, but she wondered if he was going to be wearing it all day, and then to the premiere.

  “Don’t worry. It’ll stay in the safe.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.” Sean sat down next to her on the bed and lifted his hand to her cheek. “I don’t want you all jumpy during the events today.”

  Abby leaned into his hand and tucked her hand around his waist. “You make me happy,” she said.

  “Same.”

  “Happy birthday,” he said.

  Abby smiled. Maybe it would be a happy birthday. The very first one.

  He lifted her chin and peered into her eyes. “I’m not going to kiss you,” he said.

  “Why not?”

  “Because, if I do, we’ll never make it to the show tonight.”

  “Is that such a bad thing?”

  “For your mom? Disaster.”

  “Good point.”

  Sean helped Abby to a standing position and guided her to the connecting door. “Now go. Get beautiful. We’ll eat breakfast, go to a couple more meetings, then you can go get even more beautiful. But in a fakey, Hollywood kind of way.”