Role of a Lifetime (2 page)

Chapter Two

Sharese
stood once again and paced within the narrow confines of her dressing room. Did the stagehand catch Joseph before he left the theatre? Should she have even written the note?  She gave her head a quick nod and reaffirmed her decision to try to get him to change his mind. Yeah, even though she’d prefer him as her co-star in the production, the role of Sammy was nothing to sneeze at. Plus she’d do anything to keep Dalton far, far away.

Thinking about Joseph
caused her body to heat up once more. Memories of his sculpted frame sent her heartbeat into an irregular rhythm. What was it about this man that made her want to strip in his presence? She’s seen plenty of good looking men and also had her share of them in her bed. But there was something about him that made the others fade away.

She thought a
bout her first role on Broadway. It was a small part and the director actually requested that she lighten her mocha colored skin with makeup. She balked initially, but finally relented when an older actress reminded her how infrequently parts like the one she’d been offered came along. In fact, the role launched her into superstardom, and led the way to her first Tony nomination. A pang of guilt sliced through her as she gazed at a picture of her taken during one performance. Sure, for a while she felt like she had sold out, but in the end the sacrifice was worth it.

She looked down at her attire and pulled a face. They were the same clothes she’d worn from the gym. Before she could change her mind, she quickly disrobed and went to the closet for a fresh outfit. She didn’t want to appear trampy, but she did want to get his attention.

A sharp rap on the door roused her from her musings. She grabbed a silk wrapper from a nearby hook, took a deep breath and shouted, “Come in.”

Before she could properly secure the wrap around her body, the door crashed open. When Joseph stepped over the threshold, it seemed as if he took up all the available space in the room. She had no idea he was so big, so male. He had to be at least six-five, and with his bronze skin and long, flowing black hair, all she could do was stare at him, her mouth gaped wide. Her nipples hardened under his intense gaze and she had to press her thighs together to keep them from trembling.

A smile tipped one side of his mouth as he stood across the room from her. Quietly closing the door, he leaned against it and continued his slow perusal of her body. “Um, hello,” he drawled.

Sh
e lowered her eyes and made a show of tightening the wrapper. Only then did she see that she was making matters worse. The material molded to her body, clearly revealing the shape of her breasts and ass. “I didn’t expect you so soon. Please excuse my dress, or lack thereof.” She let out a nervous laugh and lifted her gaze to meet his. Big mistake!

That small smile slid off his face and was replaced by a look she could only describe as one belonging to a man on the hunt, with her as the prey. She took a step back, but there was nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.

“You were watching my audition,” he declared rather than asked.

“
Yes,” she said in a small voice, watching him as he closed the gap between them.

“
Then you saw me without my clothes on stage, huh?”

She swallowed noisily, nodded her head and tugged the ends of the wrapper even tighter.
“Yes.”

He entered her personal space and with amazing speed for such a large man, flicked open the silky material, which allowed him to see her naked body.
“Well, if you saw mine, I think it’s only fair that I get to see yours.”

“
What is this, grade school?” she tossed back as she sidestepped him and headed for the door. Before she could pass by, he reached out and grabbed her by the arms and hauled her against his hard body. She opened her mouth to tell him off, but he quickly covered it with his, cutting off any retort she wanted to make.

The next sound she heard was a deep throated moan, but didn’t know if she made it or him. She’d been kissed by some of the sexiest men around, but what this man was doing to her put the others to shame.

She put her palms on his muscled chest and managed to break off the kiss. He still held her in his arms and gave her a grin that almost made her swoon. “Well, that was nice,” she said while slowly licking her tingling lips.

“
Nice?” He arched an eyebrow and lowered his head, capturing her lips once more. His tongue swept around her mouth, leaving no area untouched, untasted. She gave up trying to keep some distance between their bodies and molded herself to him. Even with all his clothes on, the heat he generated kicked her temperature up a few notches.

She needed to touch him, feel him inside of her. While still kissing, she pulled his shirt up and exposed that fine chest. Breaking contact for a second, he whipped the shirt over his head and tossed it onto the floor. After he toed off his shoes, he made a show of removing his jeans, easing them over his engorged length. Damn, she was right. Fully erect, his cock rose majestically from the juncture of his thighs, the tip almost touching his bellybutton. She licked her lips once more and reached out to take his bobbing cock in her hand. The man was so large, she couldn’t encircle him with one hand. She let the wrap slide off her shoulders and led him over to the sofa.

“Do you mind if I ride,” she purred as she pushed him onto his back and straddled his body. He handed her a condom he’d snagged out of his wallet and she rolled it on. She positioned the opening to her pussy over his cock, and allowed it to slide in its slickness.

“
Enough!” With that he grabbed hold of her hips and surged upward, his cock entering her pussy in one stroke. He paused for a moment and allowed her to adjust to his girth. Beads of perspiration rolled down his forehead as he stilled his movements.

She smiled down on him and gave a little grind of her hips, causing him to give her behind a light swat. He quickly followed that with a soft caress and lick of one of her distended nipples. She trembled in his arms, closing her eyes savoring the moment.

“Ready?” When she nodded, he began making love to her, slowly at first, his cock barely moving inside her. He was huge, filling her like no other man had ever done. Soon, she joined in and met him stroke for stroke. That seemed to set off something inside him, which made him increase his speed and depth within her. She couldn’t keep up, and decided to let him set the pace and simply enjoy the ride. When his thumb touched her clit, she lost it. An orgasm tore through her body, and she painfully bit down on her lower lip to keep from crying out. Once she found her release, he soon followed, his body shuddering beneath hers.

Sharese slumped onto his prone body, deliciously exhausted and completely sated. His strong heartbeat resounded in her ear, its rhythm keeping pace with her pulse. When he began to massage her back, the only thing she wanted to do next was go to sleep. But she realized the narrow sofa couldn’t be comfortable for such a big man, so she reluctantly peeled herself off of his warm body.

For some reason she suddenly became shy as they set their clothing to right. Hell, she’d been naked more times then she could count on both the stage and movie sets. Why in the world was she now acting like a novice?

When they were completely dressed, they stood facing one another, not speaking, seemingly waiting for the other to make the first move. It was now or never.
“Joseph,” she said hesitantly, “Um, I didn’t intend to seduce you.”

“
Who said you seduced me? Maybe it was the other way around.”

“
I guess it doesn’t matter.” She walked over to her dressing table, took a seat and gathered her courage. “We’re both adults and obviously know what we want.”

He took a few steps in her direction and perched his butt on a corner of the table.
“So if you didn’t intend to seduce me, why did you summon me to your dressing room?”

His question gave her the perfect opening. She tipped her head back and met his intense stare.
“I wanted to talk with you about the part.”

“
What part?” he asked dejectedly. “I think that ship has sailed.”

“
How about spending the weekend with me? We can discuss what the director said earlier—”

“
There’s nothing to discuss. If I can’t have the lead, I don’t want any part.” He rose and headed for the door.

Sh
e jumped to her feet and managed to insert herself between him and the door. “Then spend the weekend with me so we can get to know each other better. Do you have other plans?”

He
looked down on her with a pensive look on his face. She gave him a shy smile along with a little wink. When he took a deep breath, she knew she had him.

“
Okay. I need to swing by my place for some things first.”

Trying not to appear too excited, she turned and grabbed her purse.
“Lead the way.” Soon they were on the street, headed toward his car and hopefully a fruitful weekend together.

Chapter Three

Joseph
side eyed Sharese as she slept peacefully in the passenger seat. She conked out soon after he exited the city and hit the highway. In a way he was thankful she fell asleep so quickly. That meant there would be no awkward small talk. He hated that shit.

He blew out a loud breath and wondered how he got himself into this situation. His boys would never believe he screwed
the delectable Sharese Moore in her dressing room. Not that he’d ever tell them what happened between them. Kissing and bragging was not his thing. Now he was going to spend the whole weekend with her at her beach house, and probably have a whole lot more sex. Fucking amazing!

Running his left hand through his long hair, he allowed a smile to tilt the corners of his mouth. He may not have received the part
he wanted, but he got something for his troubles. His smile widened when she shifted in her seat and let out a little moan.

Thinking about the audition though made his blood
boil. He knew that in the script the lead was described as blonde and blue-eyed, but so what! Maybe he was being a fool because of his stance, but he had his boundaries and pride. And offering him the small part of Sammy was a non-starter.

What his grandfather told him before he left home carried him through many a hard time in the big city: never forget where you came from and who you represent. Make your people proud. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from choking up and sent up a prayer of thanksgiving for the man who taught him everything and made h
im the man he was today. She stirred slightly and slowly awakened, stretching her arms over her head. He couldn’t help but notice how her blouse tightened as she moved, perfectly outlining her pert breasts. His mouth watered as he recalled how they tasted and how the nipples instantly responded to his touch. “Have a good sleep?”

She quickly nodded and gave him a tiny smile.
“Yes, I did, thank you. As a matter of fact, it’s the best sleep I’ve had in a while.”

“
Insomnia?”

“
No, worse than that. I have horrible dreams most nights.”

“
About what?”

She scrunched up her forehead and turned to look out the passenger
side window. “You’ll think this is silly, but I dream about being poor again.” She stopped talking and closed her eyes. “I shouldn’t be telling you all this. We just met.”