Free Three Marie Ferrarella Romances Box Set One by Marie Ferrarella Page B

of raw desire wash over her as he held her close against his body. He was still wearing the costume she had first met him in, enhancing the picture of an irresistible rogue.
    “Not by choice,” she murmured. She had meant the words to be a flippant retort, but instead they gave testimony to the ambivalent feelings that were beginning to pull at her.
    Nick merely smiled, as if sensing what she was struggling to hide. “Old John throw you out?” he asked, nodding toward the director’s trailer.
    Why was he still holding her? And why couldn’t she think clearly? Right now she was more conscious of the imprint of each one of his fingers upon her body than she was of anything else.  
    “Actually, no,” she said between dry lips. “He did spare me a few words. Thinks rather highly of you. Are you going to hold onto me all day?”
    “The thought had crossed my mind,” he said, and grinned. He purposely slid his hands in a languid motion down to her waist, brushing briefly against her hips before he freed her.
    The man could retire from acting and become rich just teaching his technique with women, she thought, trying hard to recover.
    “C’mon, I’ll buy you lunch,” he offered.
    “Last of the big-time spenders,” she bantered back, knowing that no one paid for meals on the set during location shooting.
    Nick laughed and put his arm about her shoulders as they walked to the makeshift commissary.
    The next day was practically the same. Shane came on the set and observed the hectic pace of the everyday work done to create a film. She interviewed several people. The crew became used to having her prowl about, asking all sorts of questions. It occurred to her that she was asking more questions than were necessary for her article. It was slowly beginning to dawn on her that she was trying to learn everything there was to know about Nick’s life. Then too, she found herself angling to be with him as much as possible. But his time was heavily taxed, divided as it was, between takes, rehearsals, and conferences. When he did have a spare moment, Nick usually spent it on the set rather than in his trailer, making himself visible and mingling with the crew. Shane began to see why everyone practically doted on him. He sounded too good to be true, and despite her best efforts, she realized she was falling in love with him.
    And then, on Wednesday, a very strange thing happened. After lunch, Nick disappeared. She had seen him rehearsing a scene just before noon. Several people had demanded his attention when the scene ended, so Shane had gone to get a light lunch. When she returned with her tray, hoping to eat with Nick, he was nowhere in sight. She didn’t think much of it until she actually went to look for him an hour later. Questioning several people who might have seen him brought her nothing but casual shrugs. No one questioned his absence:
    But Shane did.
    “Where did you go yesterday?” Shane asked, cornering Nick in his trailer the next morning. The makeup man was putting the finishing strokes on Nick’s face, highlighting his best features. Shane sat back, leaning against a table as she watched. She saw Nick looking at her out of the corner of his eye, trying to keep his head immobile until the makeup man was through.
    “I had some business to take care of,” he told her vaguely.
    “Oh?” Her interest was piqued by his evasive tone. “And that was?” she prodded.
    “A secret,” he answered in a firm tone of voice.
    The makeup man chose that moment to flip off the protective cloth from Nick’s neck and make his retreat. Shane was left in the suddenly silent room chewing on her pencil and eyeing Nick curiously. Up to now, he had been forthright, open. Was this “secret” the angle she was searching for? Or was Nick just being playful? Somehow, judging from his expression, she didn’t think he was teasing her. He had been involved in something yesterday that he didn’t want to talk about. Shane was going