Author: Bella Andre

Yet again he was surprised by how nice it was not to have to explain his life to her. It was why so many people in the entertainment industry ended up together. No one else could really understand what it was like unless they’d lived through it themselves. Yes, she’d said she didn’t like being in the spotlight, but the fact that she’d helped Tatiana deal with them for so many years meant Valentina would also be adept at avoiding them. She’d know exactly where to look for them, how to outwit them, and when there was no choice, how to gracefully give in to them for an hour or two.

“What can I get you to drink?” He gestured to the fully stocked bar.

“Sparkling water would be lovely, thank you.”

He poured two glasses and joined her where she was standing at the rail staring out at the dark water. Just then Billy got them underway and the sudden movement jolted them enough that she fell back into his chest. Finally getting to hold her, it struck him yet again how surprisingly soft and curvy she was against him.

“Steadier now?”

She didn’t answer for a long moment. Finally, she nodded. “I think so.”

“And are you warm enough?”

“I am now.”

He wanted to bury his face in her hair to breathe her in, wanted to lower his mouth to the sweet curve of her neck, wanted to taste her soft skin. Instead, he reminded himself that one hand on the small of her back, the other holding hers to keep it warm, would have to be enough for now. Until she asked for more.

In silence, he held her as the boat sped across the Bay toward the infamous prison.

* * *

A National Park official stood on the island’s pier as they docked. “Welcome to Alcatraz.” The gray-haired man, who introduced himself as Sam Maines, had a deep, commanding voice that gave extra gravity to the historic maximum-security prison. He was a man who looked as comfortable on the rocks as the prison guards from a half-century ago must have.

As he helped Valentina disembark from the yacht, Smith made a mental note to get Sam’s contact information for the next time he needed a strong, steady, gray-haired man in a film. Not to mention the fact that the man’s eyes hadn’t so much as flickered when he’d seen who Smith was.

The night, he thought as the wind blew across them and Valentina instinctively leaned in closer to him for warmth, was just getting better and better. He loved the fact that she didn’t make even the slightest move to pull her hand from his as they followed the guide up past the Officer’s Club toward the south entrance.

“Alcatraz was cold,” Sam told them. “Harsh. Unforgiving. And it was also home to the families of the guards who kept it running.”

Smith had always been interested in history, especially one as colorful as this one. But tonight he was far more interested in the way Valentina ate up the stories Sam told them about the way Al Capone made several attempts to con the Warden into giving him the special privileges he’d had at other prisons...but was denied at Alcatraz.

Smith didn’t know if she realized it, but whenever she heard something really interesting, she gave his hand a squeeze.

After thirty minutes or so, Sam led them into the cellhouse building. When they came to the main block of cells, known as Broadway, all three of them stood in silence as they took in the forbidding bars, the cement cells.

“I’ll leave you two to explore for a few minutes.”

As soon as they were alone and walking together down the middle of the cells, Valentina said, “Can you hear them?”

Yes, he could hear the same echoes in the silence that she obviously did. “It’s like the men were here yesterday instead of fifty years ago.”

She read the plaque on the wall where they’d stopped. “Three men plotted their escape right here.” She let go of his hand as she moved into the cell, to get a closer look at the hole in the cement. “Just think, they spent months whittling away at the cement. Everyone told them it was impossible.” Smith moved in behind her as she turned to ask him, “Do you think they made it after all?”

“That water is pretty cold. What do you think happened?”

“I’m sure they belonged in prison, and that the crimes they’d committed were wrong, but I still can’t but hope they made it out of the water alive.” She gave him a crooked smile. “And that they made the most of the years they’d stolen back for themselves.”

Smith knew most people would be surprised to find out that Valentina was a secret romantic. But he’d known it about her almost from the start. That first day on set when he and Tatiana had stopped filming and the two of them had immediately dropped out of character, Valentina’s eyes had stayed soft and clouded over with emotion long after the cameras had stopped rolling.

Without warning, the prison cell doors slid shut behind them. Valentina automatically jumped into his arms as she let out a surprised—and slightly panicky—laugh.

“Did you know Sam was going to do that?”

“No.” But he had just decided to give Sam the tip of a lifetime for coming up with this brilliant plan. Smith looked down at Valentina. “Puts a whole different spin on things when the doors close, doesn’t it?”

Her eyes were bright, and so damn beautiful, as she stared up at him. “Yes,” she breathed. “Different.”

He’d never break a promise to her in a million years, but that didn’t mean he could stop himself from lowering his face to hers. Her cheek was so soft against his. He barely stifled a groan as she reached up to wind her arms around his neck.

“How long do you think he’ll keep us locked up?”

Her whisper against his ear had him harder than he’d ever been in his life. He slid his hands slowly down her back until they rested just above the curve of her hips.

“Not long enough,” he answered with perfect honesty.

She shifted against him so that she could stare up at him and he held his breath as he took in the clear desire on her face.

Lord, he wanted to kiss her. She was fire in his arms, heating up the cold cell with the press of her curves against him. Her lips opened and he was sure that she was just about to ask him for a second kiss, when the heavy sound of footsteps broke the heady silence.

Before Valentina could pull out of his arms, he lowered his mouth as close as he could to hers without touching it and whispered, “Not even close to long enough.”

Chapter Eleven

A short while later when they stepped out under the full moon, Valentina’s her breath caught as she took in the incredibly romantic, and unexpected, scene. Water crashed on the rocks just below a table set for two, with four portable heaters ringing the white tablecloth.

A vase in the center of the table held a single pink rose.

The meaning of the flower he’d picked was loud and clear as he extended his hand to her: desire and passion.

“Hungry?”

She nodded, knowing there was more than enough moonlight for him to see that she was hungry for far more than food, if he looked closely. He held out her chair and when he sat down opposite her, the table was small enough that their knees bumped underneath, making her smile through the nerves that attraction had brought front and center. He poured a glass of cabernet from Marcus’s winery and handed it to her.

He lifted the covers off their plates and her stomach grumbled in appreciation at the lobster and crab before her. She had no idea how he’d managed to get such delicious food delivered to the island. Their tour guide had left them alone again and there was no chef or waiter around as far as she could see.

“I agree with your stomach,” he teased, and picked up his fork to dig in.

Valentina took her first bite and a small moan of pleasure slipped out. “So good.”

She didn’t see that Smith had stopped with his first bite halfway to his mouth, his eyes dark, hungry, as he watched her.

But she couldn’t miss how hoarse his voice was suddenly, as he said, “I’m glad you like it.”

When was the last time she’d eaten a really good meal? She honestly couldn’t remember, with the long hours she’d been putting in since filming began.

She took another bite and her eyes closed on their own. “I forgot how much I like good food.” She tried to tamp down on the greed racing through her veins as she turned her focus back to him. “This is amazing. Your boat. The private tour. Dinner.” She reached for his hand without thinking. “Thank you.”

He slid his fingers into hers. “I’m glad you invited me to come with you.”

She couldn’t keep the smile off her face, not when he’d gone to all this trouble for her and it had been such a wonderful night already.

“Well,” she teased, “I could see how much you wanted to see Alcatraz again. Do you have some story ideas kicking around in your head about it?”

“Maybe. You?”

She was surprised by his question. Surprised enough to say, “I can’t stop wondering about the women on the island.”

“Makes sense that the only women on the island were married.”

She nodded. “It does, but who says they were all happily married?” At his raised eyebrow, she explained, “What if one of them was in love...but not with her husband?”

His eyes lit. “Are you asking, what if one of them fell in love with one of the prisoners?”

“Yes,” she said as the excitement over her brand-new idea took even deeper hold. “And what if he’d fallen in love with her, too, even though both of them knew there was no way they could ever be together?”

Smith didn’t say anything for a long moment and she wished she’d never said a word.

“I love the idea, Valentina.” His thumb slid across the sensitive skin on her palm as he said, “Tatiana told me about the script you’ve been writing.”

“I’m going to kill her.” It was one thing to tell George when they’d known him practically forever. It was another to spill her secret project to a man she’d been trying so hard to keep as an acquaintance. Even if he was getting closer every day.

“You know how little sisters are,” he agreed, though it was clear that he loved Tatiana spilling Valentina’s secrets to him. “I’d like to see it.”

“My screenplay?”

“Yes. Tatiana told me what it was about and I have a feeling I’m going to like it. A lot.”

She shook her head, pulling her hand from his. “No.”

“You love to say no to me, don’t you?” he teased, but there was an undertone of frustration beneath it. “Do you think I’m doing a good job with Gravity?”

“Of course I do. You’ve got us more on track than any of the other movies Tatiana has worked on.”

“Then why won’t you let me see your script?”

“Because I don’t want you to think that’s why I’m here with you tonight.”

Smith’s free hand was warm as he brushed it across her cheek. “I would never think that, Valentina. Never.”

God, it was so tempting to lean in closer to him.

No.

She. Would. Not. Ask. Him. To. Kiss. Her. Again.

Trying to turn her focus from anything but his shockingly seductive mouth, and how much she wanted to feel it pressed against hers, she asked, “What else has my darling little sister told you?”

“Are you sure you want to know?”

Her heartbeat kicked up. Even in her weakest moments, she hadn’t told her sister about her feelings for Smith, about the way he turned her inside out.

“Always so worried,” he murmured. “You know Tatiana loves you too much to ever hurt you in any way.”

Of course Valentina knew that. But she’d been hurt by family before, by a loving mother who had all but disappeared after their father’s death when her daughters needed her the most, and then had come back as another woman entirely.