Meet Cute, Elise Faber [audio ebook reader .TXT] 📗

fabric and pressing it into my skin.

I understood that part wasn’t pertinent.

But it was easier to process than the disappointment coursing through me at her tone, at the fury on her face.

“How dare you?” she said again, the question short and clipped and—

Her hands came to my jaw and she yanked my head down, kissing me until my body was on fire, until my lungs were desperate for air, until my brain was hazed with the fog of desire. I could feel only Tammy. I didn’t care one bit about my dirty shirt or the burning in my lungs. I could survive on just this woman’s kisses, and her kisses alone.

“How dare you?” she said for a third time, finally pulling her mouth free and staring deeply into my eyes. Her fingers didn’t move from my cheeks, just held me in place as she finished, “tell me that you love me when I couldn’t hold you without risking giving you salmonella?”

Her lips curved.

My heart stuttered and stopped.

“As insane as this is,” she whispered, “considering I’ve known you only for a few freaking days.”

My lungs froze.

“I love you, too, Tal,” she whispered. “I don’t know how—” A shake of her head. “No,” she said, more firmly. “I know how.” Her hands tightened on my face. “It’s because you showed me who you were, you showed me that I could be important to someone, you showed me that I could find that importance in myself.” She smiled. “Maybe I would have gotten there eventually, but you—”

“I what?”

“You’re wonderful.”

My heart thudded against my ribs.

“Just—” Her lips twitched again, and I felt that smile in my soul. “You’re just absolutely wonderful, baby.”

Her lips found mine.

And I forgot about the other people in the house. I scooped her up, carried her down the hall, and dropped her into bed.

“The meatloaf,” she murmured.

I ripped off my dirty shirt, tugged hers off as well, throwing both to the floor. “They can order in.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

Tammy

This time when I walked into the kitchen, after the sun glaring in through the windows again woke me, I wasn’t surprised to see the man standing by the coffee pot.

I wasn’t thrilled to see him, however.

Especially, since Talbot had carried me off to bed, and we hadn’t emerged for dinner. A fact that every one of the security guards would certainly know.

“Morning,” I whispered as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Morning.” He held up the pot.

I nodded.

He filled me a mug while I went to the fridge, searching out something for breakfast and finding that someone had wrapped up my meatloaf components. Which was just as well. I could make it tonight.

My phone buzzed, and I pulled it from the pocket of my leggings, saw that it was Maggie calling.

“Hey,” I said, swiping and putting it up to my ear.

“How’s the throat?”

“I—uh—what?” I asked, closing the fridge and moving to grab the mug. The security guard had already left the room, so I had free reign as I surveyed the rest of the kitchen.

“Never mind.”

“No,” I said, grabbing a banana out of the basket. “What is it?”

Maggie chuckled. “I’m just being an asshole because we all heard how very happy Talbot made you last night.”

It took me a second.

And then it took me too freaking long to melt into the floor.

Because it didn’t happen.

Ugh.

“See?” Maggie said. “Asshole.”

I made a face. “Yes, you are.”

She giggled, and I found myself smiling and shaking my head. “Asshole-ness aside, you’re a good friend, Mags.”

“Because I have an in with sexy-as-shit actors who can give you copious amounts of happy times?”

“Yes, that,” I said, still smiling as I sipped my coffee. “And also because you give a damn about me. You always have.”

Mags was quiet. “I wish I hadn’t lost contact with you when I left town.”

My friend had a similar upbringing, a tough childhood and not a lot of support, outside of Aaron. But they’d been boyfriend and girlfriend in high school, and far too young to settle down. So Mags had left to pursue her dream of living a big life—which she’d found, of course, in Talbot, Pierce, Artie, and recently in a second chance with Aaron. Still, that big life had meant things had gotten left behind, especially since it wasn’t nearly so easy to communicate then as it was now.

We’d reconnected by chance, and now . . . I had my friend back.

“We were all too young and stupid to look that far ahead,” I said. “I’m just glad we’re back in each other’s lives now.”

“Even though it’s brought you into a media frenzy.”

“I still don’t like my face on all those papers and posts,” I said, “but my life with you and Tal in it is infinitely better than without you.”

“Flatterer.”

“Yup,” I teased. “Everything I feel about you and our friendship is a joke.”

“If I was there, I would swat you.”

“Speaking of that,” I said. “Why aren’t you here? Are we not having our daily crisis meeting of the minds?”

“Actually, no,” she told me. “We don’t need that today.”

I slurped down more coffee. “Why?”

“Because word got out about the intruder, and the public isn’t happy. They’re boycotting any images of you and Talbot.” She laughed. “You guys even have your own hashtag.”

My brows were practically in my hairline. “A hashtag?”

“Yup. Hashtag FreeTalmy.”

“Um, what?”

“It’s your couple name,” she said. “Talbot and Tammy equals Talmy.”

“That’s . . . “

“Super, ridiculously cool?”

“No,” I said, wrinkling my nose. “It sounds like the brand for a tampon.”

Maggie hooted with laughter, and I found myself unable to stop the giggles. “Talmy,” I breathed, plunking down my mug. “How is that a thing?”

A warm arm slipped around my waist. “How is what a thing?”

I was still laughing as he hauled me up, didn’t protest when he snagged my cell from my hand and put it on speaker. “How is what a thing?” he asked again.

Maggie got control of herself much sooner than I did.

“You two have a hashtag,” she said, still chuckling. “And a couple name.”

His eyes