Action (Hollywood Nights (Book 7)) (6 page)

             
“Can we maybe lighten the mood some and get lunch?” Harmony sighed.

             
“Of course,” her mother said. “Come, Juan. Let’s go grab them something to eat.”

             
Her mother pulled her father by the hand. He said, “You don’t even know what they want to eat.”

             
“I’ll figure it out, sweetheart.” Her mother winked. Harmony smiled. Her mom handled the business end of the business. She had taken some business classes after Harmony moved out. Without two kids in the house they earned enough for her to do a lot of things, but she took the classes and they were saving their money to do exactly what they were doing now.

             
As soon as her parents were out of earshot Bruce whispered, “How deep am I?”

             
“What?” She looked at him.

             
“I know I’m in trouble. You looked like you wanted to stab me when I said four kids.” He slid his hand up to grab hers.

             
“No one believes in me as an actress.” She shook her head. “I have to give up my dream to have kids.”

             
“No, that’s not true. I believe in you and you don’t have to give up anything. Except maybe that job, because I honestly don’t like you working nights. I know, I know. It’s chauvinistic, double-standard, blah blah blah, it’s still true. I don’t have a problem with other women working the late shift. Just you.” He was being a bulldozer again. “You have worked some as an extra right? Have you tried other things, like theatre, or commercials?”

             
“I wanted to be a movie star.” She laughed after saying it out loud. Sheesh, she was as bad as everyone else in this town. Thousands of people wanting the same thing.

             
“And I wanted to be a quarterback, but I made a lot of money as a wide receiver. You don’t have to let go of your dreams, gorgeous. You just have to make the dream work for you.” He let go of her hand and then put his hand on her neck and pulled her in for a kiss. Nothing too scandalous, just sweet enough to make her smile. She nodded.

             
She had to tell him this next part because she was pretty sure it was true. “I think my dad might think you are here to ask his permission.”

             
“Isn’t that why you brought me here?” He lifted his eyebrow.

             
“I brought you here because you wanted to meet my parents, and…I didn’t think it would go that far this fast.” Harmony popped herself with the cast as she tried to rub her forehead.

             
“Careful with that thing,” Bruce said as he chuckled.

             
“Awe,” her mother cooed as she sat drinks down on the table. “He’s good for you. You are good for her.”

             
“Then you can marry her,” her father said as he placed the food in front of them.

***

The next day…

              “You can’t get married after knowing her for two weeks!” Dagney shouted at him. To make matters worse, she was yelling as she was driving him to a jeweler to pick out a ring. He hoped they made it there alive.

             
“You want me to pine after her for a year first?” He wasn’t letting her judge him.

             
“That’s different,” she said.

             
“It’s the exact same. You may have been around him longer, but you have only been in a relationship with him a week longer than me. You’re heading to Europe for six months on tour based on what, three maybe four weeks of a real relationship?” He scoffed. “I’m grown. I’m almost forty. I want to settle down. I want a place to live where I’m not worried that I might get traded to another team and have to uproot. I want a family. I came here to be near the only family I have left and you are heading away. I’m not mad. I get it, but I was coming out here to start a new life and by God that is what I am doing. I love her.”

             
Dagney screeched the car to a halt. She almost ran the red light.

             
“Jesus, Dagney!”

             
“You’re not worried that she will find someone else? You’re not worried that when the new and freshness wears off and you see the not so great parts and she sees the not so great parts she might stray?” Dagney was talking to him, but it wasn’t about Harmony.

             
“No, Dags. And I don’t think you will do that to Foster either.” He reached across the seat and grabbed her shoulder. “You’re not her. She’s not her. We make our own lives, Dags. The hard decisions remember?”

             
She started crying.

             
“Let me drive.” He opened his door and ran around. She scooted over in the seat. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

             
“He asked me to marry him!” She screamed. “I told him no.”

             
“You don’t want to marry him?” Bruce asked and looked at the navigation system quickly to get his bearings on their location.

             
“Of course I do.” She sobbed. “I’m afraid to.”

             
He punched the navigation buttons and selected Foster’s address clearly identified as a saved place and entered the new route.

             
“What are you doing?”

             
“Taking you back to Foster,” he said. “You’re better than this, Dags. You don’t lie to both of you because you’re afraid. You think this shit is easy? It isn’t. It’s scary. It takes work. You’ve never been afraid of anything. You need to tell him the truth. You want to but you’re scared. He’ll give you time. Hell, he gave you a year to go on a date, I’m sure he can give you a few more months to settle into the idea.”

             
Bruce was surprised to see where Foster lived. They had been meeting for lunches or dinners and the past week Dagney had been meeting without her beau in tow. He knew why now.

             
Foster came to the door and said, “Well this is unexpected. Come in.”

             
Bruce realized at that moment, his little sister was hiding behind him. “Both of us?”

             
“Both?” He let out a heavy sigh as Dagney made herself visible. He left the door open and walked into the house.

             
“This is a really nice place you have here.” Bruce tried for the small talk approach as he put both of his hands on Dagney’s arms and moved her to stand in front of him rather than behind him.

             
“It’s lovely, really.” Foster motioned for them to come farther into the house. He was heading towards the back.

             
“Why are you hiding?” Bruce whispered.

             
“I’m nervous. In my normal clothes I could be nervous and not worry. In this stupid outfit I feel like…” She looked down at the pretty dress she had on and the heels.

             
“Vulnerable? Like a lady? You can’t just bluster through your feelings?” He shook his head no. “Pretend you are in jeans and a t-shirt Dags. Take the shoes off so you can feel more like yourself.”

             
“People have started to put pictures of us up on the internet.” She frowned.

             
Bruce chuckled. “Get used to it. Stop looking. The public isn’t sleeping with him Dagney, you are.”

             
“I know he says it, but Bruce I’m not…” She teared up again.

             
“You’re not…Oh, Dags. Come here.” He pulled her in for a big bear hug. “You are. You always have been. You were cute as a kid, you didn’t have that really awkward stage as a teenager, and you are beautiful as a woman. One of the reasons I never brought you around more people in college is because they would say inappropriate things not realizing you were my sister.”

             
“What’s this?” Foster asked. He looked at Dagney, but didn’t look at her. The guy was crushed and it was obvious he feared she would finish the job.

             
“She was nervous about what I would say about your proposal. It’s soon, you know. I told her to follow her heart.” Bruce set her away from him. She pushed her hands over her cheeks wiping the tears. “You have my blessing.”

             
“She doesn’t want to marry me, mate.” Foster turned and walked back towards the back door.

             
“Dagney. Tell him. Tell him the truth.” Bruce pushed her towards Foster. He had stopped upon hearing that. He didn’t turn around to face them.

             
“I want to marry you. I am just afraid…”

             
“You’re breaking my heart, luv. Shredding it like a paper in one of those machines,” he said it low and solemnly. “I told you I’d delay the tour if you needed more time. I just wanted to protect you; to be sure you were treated properly at all times.”

             
He walked out the back door and onto the beach.

             
Dagney looked at Bruce. “I don’t know, kid. Tell him you found some tape. He’s a musician. I guess that makes his heartbreak more dramatic than every one else’s. Do you want me to go kick his ass?”

             
She smiled, laughed. “No.”

             
“Then do something about it, because I don’t like seeing you cry. I feel bad for him, but you’re my concern here.” He put his hands on his hips and waited. She nodded and went out the back door.

             
As if on cue his phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and sighed with relief. “Hi, gorgeous.”

***

Later…

             
Harmony was sure that he was going to officially propose to her sometime soon. It apparently wasn’t going to be today. He looked exhausted when he came in the door. He walked over to her and hugged her so tight she could barely breathe.

             
She asked, “What’s wrong?”

             
“Are you scared?” he asked and looked down at her.

             
“Should I be?” She had no idea where this was coming from.

             
“Of me, of marriage, of everything. If you are I want you to know it’s okay to tell me. I know it’s scary. I’m not impervious to it.” He looked down at her confused expression and must have read it wrong because he said, “I’m sorry for rushing you.”

             
“What are you talking about?” She was starting to panic. “I put in my notice today because of that speech you gave my parents. Are you getting cold feet? I need to know right now before I can’t undo—”

             
He cut her off with a kiss. His hands were suddenly everywhere at once. She could not keep up with him. He had her half naked before he even let her up for air.

             
“Bruce!”

             
He pulled his shirt over his head and went back to kissing her. He lifted her up and carried her to her bed.

             
“What are you doing?” She was giggling now. He unfastened his pants and her laughter stopped. “Bruce?”

             
“I want to marry you. Now.” He tossed his pants aside.

             
“That will be difficult if you keep taking our clothes off don’t you think?” She gulped. He had a look of sheer determination in his eye.

             
“Well maybe not right this minute, but soon. You tell me when.” He reached out and grabbed the elastic of her panties and stripped them down her legs. She was falling backwards a moment later as he pulled her legs apart and upwards as he leaned down to lick the tender flesh there.

             
Any and all arguments she may have had about his lack of romance in that proposal, not to mention the lack of a ring, went out the window. Since he had done this a few time by now he was able to get her up that mountain pretty quickly. Faster than even she had in the past.

             
Her orgasm slipped through her in a silky wave of little throbs and pulses. She called out to him. He stripped his underwear down and moved between her legs. He didn’t have a condom on. He looked at her and asked, “When?”

             
“Now.” She practically breathed. Just the silky feel of him was enough to make her want him bare.

             
He snickered, “I thought you said we need clothes to do it now.”

             
“Stop teasing me.” She pulled at his back. The head wedged and she groaned. “I’m not on birth control.”

             
“I was counting on that. We’ll take your parents, Dagney and Foster, and go to Vegas this weekend.” He pushed into her and she arched her back as she groaned. He felt good with protection. He felt amazing without it.