Free Mr. Hollywood (Celebrity #1) by Lacey Weatherford Page A

he might be writing.
    “ Not
at all. But it tells me a lot about you. If you are seeking the thrill when you
act out, there may be other ways you can fulfill that need without resorting to
substances. ”
    “ Hmm.
I never considered that. ” I was impressed. He really
was good, and actually made sense. This was something I ’ d never thought of before.
    “ My
job is to help you identify things that might be a trigger for you and offer up
suggestions which could be a healthy replacement. For instance, if you ’ re using substances to relax
yourself after a hard day at work, I ’ d suggest you try meditation,
massage, or a soothing hot bath — anything designed as a way to
naturally reduce your stress levels. In your case, though, you may be seeking
adrenaline. You could fulfill those needs with extreme sports like skydiving,
rappelling, riding recreational vehicles, or anything like that which mimics
the high you get from substances. ”
    If only it were that easy, I ’ d be booking my next extreme sport
right now. “ I ’ d
love to do any of that stuff, but I can ’ t. I ’ m
often under contract to not do anything dangerous that could result in injury
or death. Producers don ’ t want me doing activities that
could hurt me and leave their picture hanging in the balance. ”
    He pondered this for a moment. “ Hmm. That does make things
considerably more difficult. Are you prepared to choose your health over your
job, if necessary? ”
    “ Not
a chance. ” I planned to keep acting
until no one would hire me anymore, or they carried my body out on a stretcher.
I might hate it sometimes, but it was in my blood now. Plus, it funded the rest
of my lifestyle and regardless of whether or not I successfully quit using, I
wanted the rest of my life.
    Damn it, he was jotting more stuff down.
    “ Is
there anything else you like to do that gives you that same kind of thrill? ”
    Immediately an image of Aubrey popped into my head,
her luxurious brown hair was spread out over a blanket, and the moans she was
making filled my ears. Closing my eyes, I savored those sounds — sounds I ’ d replayed in my head over and over
so many times since the last time I ’ d seen her.
    We ’ d only been together, in the
physical sense, for one day. She ’ d given me her virginity before I ’ d left for my first big modeling
shoot with Zombie Gothic Apparel after I ’ d won their online model search.
    I couldn ’ t help my smile. “ My ex-girlfriend. ” I knew that wasn ’ t what he meant when he asked me
what I liked to do. This was the truth, no matter how crass it might sound.
    “ Ex? ” His interest perked up. “ Let ’ s
talk about her. Are you able to stay in committed relationships for very long? ”
    “ She ’ s the only truly committed
relationship I ’ ve had, ” I replied honestly. I ’ d had other girlfriends, one I ’ d been fairly close to since
Aubrey, and while I loved her, I ’ d never been “ in love ” with her. It didn ’ t matter anyway, since it had ended
very badly.
    “ How
long were the two of you together? ”
    “ A
year. ”
    “ And
you were sexually active with her the whole time? ”
    I laughed. “ Not even close. We fooled around a
lot — heavy petting and whatnot. But as
far as actual sex, we had one amazing day together, right before we broke up.
She was worth the wait though. ”
    Holy hell, she ’ d been worth every frustrated blue
balls moment I ’ d spent with her. I ’ d never wanted anyone in my life as
badly as I wanted her. Just thinking about it was causing something to awaken
in my pants.
    There was no point trying to hide the truth anymore.
Seeing her again had forced me to admit my feelings for her. I ’ d never loved anyone the way I
loved Aubrey Hart. She was perfection as far as I was concerned. There wasn ’ t a woman on the planet that could
measure up to her — at least not that I ’ d ever met.
    “ Why
did you break up? ” Dr. Wilson asked,