Deadly Obsession (2 page)

The door opened. Her heart rate spiked. Nic entered the room followed by a pretty redhead she didn’t recognize. They made a perfectly matched, elegant couple.

As Lauren stood rooted to the spot, gaping at the most beautiful man she’d ever seen, he crossed the room, stopping directly in front of her, and smiled. “You don’t look like Rafael….”

Oh, God
. His voice still held a hint of the sexy Québécois accent he kept hidden in his movies and public appearances. With considerable effort and concentration, she fought to close her mouth and struggled against the need to slowly peruse his amazing body. After surreptitiously wiping off her sweaty palm, she met his gaze and held out her hand. “I’m Lauren James.”

“
Enchanté
.” Nic raised her fingers to his lips and lightly kissed her knuckles. She watched, mesmerized, as the expression in his eyes turned inquisitive. “Have we met?”

A sharp pang of disappointment stabbed her chest. He didn’t remember her.

Before she could answer his question, the redhead joined them. She had a certain ageless quality Lauren admired. Although ten or fifteen years older, the tall, slim woman with her flawless skin, gorgeous hair, and tailored clothes could turn the heads of men still in their twenties. Based on Rafael’s description, she could be none other than Vivian Carmichael, Nic’s very demanding and very protective agent.

The woman leaned forward. “Where’s Rafael?”

“He’s feeling under the weather today so he asked me to handle the photo shoot on my own.” Lauren turned to Nic. “I hope that’s okay?”

“Of course it’s—”

“Not okay!” Vivian interrupted, pointing a perfectly manicured finger at Lauren. “I only agreed to this arrangement if Rafael were here to direct and supervise.”

Nic frowned. “What’s the big deal? We agreed to do a photo shoot after the
Bad Days
premiere. Let’s get on with it.”

Vivian grasped his forearm while making a dismissive gesture toward Lauren. “This woman isn’t a professional photographer, darling. She works in a two-bit Seattle department store taking snapshots of snot-nosed babies.”

“Why’s she working with Rafael then?”

Vivian glared at Lauren. “Somehow she managed to win a contest, and you were the prize.”

He turned to Lauren, looking impossibly sexy with one black eyebrow raised. “I’m the prize?”

“Not exactly.” Heat crept up her neck and her cheeks burned. “I won a
photography
contest organized by the GI Film Festival. The prize was to assist on a photo shoot with you.”

Vivian insinuated herself between them, draped her arm around Nic’s shoulder and whispered in a loud stage voice, “I can’t let you do this. My God, she works in a
department
store. Think of your reputation. You need someone with experience and talent.”

Lauren gritted her teeth. All she needed was a chance to prove herself.

“Come on, Viv. She did
win
the contest.”

When he’d shown up late for the photo shoot, Lauren had been prepared to write Nic off as just another smooth talking, self-indulgent Hollywood celeb, but here he was, standing up for her.

Vivian patted his arm. “All right, darling. But I’m staying to supervise, and I will personally approve any shots before they are released.” She stared pointedly at Lauren. “Is that understood, Lorna?”

“Her name’s Lauren.”

Vivian smiled tightly but remained silent, apparently waiting for her response.

Sighing with relief, Lauren readily agreed. As long as she got to work with Nic, she’d deal with any conditions Vivian imposed on her. This photo shoot could be the key to jump-starting her career.

Lauren waved toward a room service tray on the ottoman in the hotel room’s sitting area. “I ordered a pot of coffee and pastries in case anyone wants some refreshments. Please help yourselves.” Nic loved coffee and éclairs, or so she’d read in
Star
magazine.
God, let them be right
. She couldn’t afford for anything else to go wrong today.

She closed the heavy curtains that covered the room’s single window and asked Vivian to take a seat in the sitting area so she wouldn’t interfere with the lighting equipment. After sucking in a somewhat shaky breath, she pasted on a bright smile and faced Nic.

“Okay, let’s get started.” She thumped the back of the club chair, surrounded by lighting equipment. “Please remove your jacket and tie, then sit here. I’ll take a few test shots.”

“The chair? Not the bed?”

Her breath caught at the sheer sensuality in the curve of his lips. The same perfectly shaped lips she’d imagined kissing hundreds of times. She absolutely
had
to capture that look.

“We’ll use the bed later,” she mumbled, lowering her head to retest the light.

“Promise?”

Startled, she looked up, her face flushed. Why couldn’t she flirt back like any normal woman, like Vivian?

With his gaze locked on Lauren’s, Nic undid the top buttons of his shirt. He lowered himself into the club chair, lounged back and stretched out his long, lean frame.

The man exuded sex.

Nic’s eyes, fixed on hers, penetrated her mind, seeing far more than she wanted him to see. None of the photos she’d seen did justice to his overwhelming animal magnetism. If she succeeded in fully capturing his allure, her career would definitely take off.

The dark slacks he wore outlined his muscular thighs as he crossed one foot over the opposite knee while the white dress shirt highlighted the broad expanse of his chest and shoulders. With one elbow on the armrest, he cradled his chin in the palm of his hand. A Cheshire cat grin spread across his handsome features. “Like this?”

Perfect
. “You’ve obviously done this a few hundred times.” Lauren smiled and raised the camera to eye level. “Now lace your hands on your stomach and lean your head back with your eyes closed. Open your eyes slowly… excellent.”

She talked him through a few more basic poses, making minor lighting adjustments to maximize the contrasts, emphasizing his deep blue eyes, making them the focal point of the shot.

“No, no,” Vivian scoffed. “These colors make Nic look bland.”
As if
. Nothing in the world could make Nic The Lover look anything less than spectacular.

Nic laughed. “Vivian, let the woman do her job.”

Lauren turned away and coughed to hide her grin. “We’ll start with something suave and sexy. Think James Bond.”

She instructed Nic to twist in the chair so he could swing his left leg over the armrest and crook his left elbow over the back of the chair. He looked delectable, but his right leg and arm were still not positioned exactly how she wanted.

Deciding it would be more effective to show than explain, she risked a glance in Vivian’s direction. Seeing the woman busy serving herself a cup of coffee, she quietly approached Nic.

With a trembling hand, she applied a slight pressure on the back of his knee to keep it bent as she grasped his calf with her other hand, pulling it toward her to extend his leg. As the well-defined muscles shifted beneath her palm, shivers of pleasure rolled up and down her spine. Shocked, she let go and backed away. She’d dreamed of touching his smooth tanned skin, but now that she had the opportunity….

“Please put your right hand on your thigh.” God, if she weren’t such a coward, she could have the pleasure of putting it there herself. “Now for the finishing touch.” She extracted a large silver gun from the pocket of her cargo pants. “Don’t worry, it’s fake,” she added, when she saw Vivian open her mouth.

She placed the prop in his left hand so it dangled from his fingertips. “Now relax and smile like you’re seeing the sexiest woman in the world.”

Lauren stared, mesmerized as Nic’s expression transformed from one of subtle amusement to one of smoldering sexual intent. His lips curved ever so slightly and a light flush colored his cheekbones. His eyelids slanted and his pupils dilated. The heat of his intense gaze was enough to melt her camera lens.

My God, the man could act.
What would it be like to have him look at her that way and mean it? His gaze filled with such lust, her stomach clenched and tumbled. This was the shot she’d been seeking. The shot that would drive women wild.

The shot that would propel her career into the upper stratosphere.

Quickly, she moved around him, capturing photo after photo. When she’d exhausted all the different angles, she put down her camera and eyed Nic from the tips of his black leather shoes to his silk-clad shoulders. He’d need to change his clothes for what she had in mind. She handed him a black gym bag. “Here’s your outfit for the next pose. We’re going for a dark, sexy soldier look. Give me a shout if you need help getting it on.”

Nic burst out laughing.

Her head jerked up. “What?”

“Nothing.” Still chuckling, he took the bag and walked into the bathroom.

Getting it on
. The double-entendre finally dawned on her. Heat baked her face. Jeez, as if Nic The Lover would ever need help in that department. Grateful he wasn’t in the room to see her blush, she concentrated on her camera, making adjustments for the next series of shots, ignoring Vivian, who roamed around the room, examining all the equipment.

“I couldn’t find a shirt in the bag,” Nic said, reentering the room a few minutes later, slowly swinging the shoulder holster around his finger. “Do you want me to put this on?”

“Not yet,” she muttered as she ducked her head.
Holy crap!
Bare-chested, in a pair of low-slung fatigues and combat boots, Nic personified rugged hotness. How could he look even better in person?

She handed him a small bottle of oil. “Rub this on your chest and arms.”

“Wanna help?” he asked, grinning.

Vivian raced forward and snatched the bottle from Nic’s hand. “I’ll do it.” She poured some of the fragrant oil into her palms and, after warming it up, began sliding her hands all over Nic’s smooth chest, his arms, and then down to his sculpted eight-pack. Judging by her expression, she enjoyed her task, perhaps a little too much.

On the other hand, Nic didn’t seem to be affected in the least by Vivian’s ministrations. As Lauren raised her eyes to his face, she found his hungry gaze focused on her, and almost groaned. Where she’d expected to see cool amusement, she saw something hot and dark that set her skin on fire. He didn’t look away and neither did she. Blood thundered in her ears, her vision narrowed, and she became blind to everything else.

“Nic, darling. Your pocket’s ringing,” Vivian interrupted as she finished with the oil. The mournful sounds of Daughtry’s
Home
finally penetrated Lauren’s trance-like state, and she tore her gaze away from him.

Frowning, he pulled a cell phone out of his back pocket. “Sorry. I need to take this.”

Nic sat on the bed to take the call. She didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but the room wasn’t very big. It didn’t matter of course, because although she could hear what he was saying, she couldn’t understand much of it. The sometimes gruff, sometimes flowing tones of Nic speaking his native language washed over her, stirring something deep inside her.

Maybe he’d interrupted her work to talk to a
girlfriend
, who was perhaps also the reason he’d arrived late in the first place. But she didn’t remember hearing anything about Nic having a steady girlfriend. In fact, in the magazine photos, he always had a different woman wrapped around him. Whenever he saw a reporter with a camera, he’d grab the nearest woman and kiss her. The press even had a name for these women—Paparazzi Girls.

Nice
. He’d better not try that with her.

Nic ended the call and pressed the base of his hand between his eyes where a headache was growing. As if the stalker wasn’t enough, now he had Rachel to worry about too.

Vivian settled next to him on the bed, her hand rubbing comforting circles on his back. “Trouble at home?” she asked.

He shot her a narrowed glance. Vivian knew better than to bring up his private life in front of strangers. His gaze swung to the stranger in question. Concern and irritation warred in Lauren’s pretty eyes. Eyes that read right through him. Eyes that seemed to know him. Lauren opened her mouth to speak, but Vivian cut her off.

“You look like you could use a break.” Vivian offered him the steaming mug she’d prepared earlier. “Have some coffee. One sugar, one cream. Just the way you like it, darling.”

“Thanks, Viv. You always know what I need.” He smiled crookedly. “What about you, Lauren?”

Her curls swung wildly as she shook her head. “I’m fine, but while you’re having your coffee, I can do your make-up.” She turned to Vivian, holding up a small face-paint kit. “He needs camo paint. Do you want to apply that too?”

Vivian grimaced. “I’ll spare my manicure. But you go ahead, Lorna dear. From the looks of things, a manicure is the least of your concerns.”

With a wink for Lauren, he leaned in close to Vivian’s ear. “Her name’s Lauren.”

Her eyes focused on the various shades of green and brown she was mixing, Lauren approached the bed to stand between his legs. “I don’t want to obscure your features, so I won’t use quite the same pattern the military does.” Her fingers shook as she drew thin lines diagonally across his eyelids and brows, horizontally across his nose, and vertically across his mouth.