If Love Had A Price
: Chapter 30

Nate discovered there was a downside to getting the best blowjob of his life in his car: he could no longer drive without getting hard. Every time he got behind the wheel, he pictured Kris’s head bobbing up and down on his cock and bam! Instant hard-on.

“You’ve ruined me,” he said, feeding her another strawberry and watching with interest as a trickle of juice slid down her chin. “I’m going to have to constantly take care of myself in my car now. If I get pulled over by the cops for lewd behavior, it’s your fault.”

Kris swallowed the fruit and laughed. “I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you.”

“How?”

“Lots of phone and cybersex?”

Nate thought about it. “That works.” He leaned forward and slowly licked the juice off her chin before he moved his mouth up and grazed his teeth over her bottom lip.

He’d borrowed his friend Will’s boat again for their last night together in L.A. It only seemed fitting, considering this was where their official romance began.

Hell, at this point, the vessel held so much sentimentality for Nate he’d buy it from Will if he had the money.

“I’m going to miss how you taste,” he murmured. “I should eat my fill tonight. Enough to last me for another month.” After that, it was going to be him, his hand, and Kris’s voice, if he was lucky.

Depressing as hell, but better than nothing. He’d take Kris any way he could get her. If that meant long stretches of lonely nights until the next time he could see her, then so be it.

“Only if I get to feast, too,” Kris said, her voice hoarser than usual.

“You drive a hard bargain.” Nate traced circles on her inner thigh with his thumb. “Okay. Unlimited feasting tonight for both of us, phone sex every hour, cybersex every day, and one of us visits the other at least once every three months.”

Once every three months wasn’t nearly enough, not when he wanted to be with her every second of every day, but it made sense given their schedules.

“Nate!” Amusement twinkled in her eyes, and he ate that shit up like candy. He loved seeing Kris like this—unguarded, her joy and zest for life shining through the walls she’d erected around herself. He knew very few people had the privilege of witnessing this side of her, and he wasn’t taking it for granted. “If we had phone sex every hour, we would do nothing else.”

“I fail to see the problem. Also, might I remind you, you promised me—and I quote— ‘lots of phone and cybersex?’”

Kris’s mouth twitched. “Fine. Phone sex twice a week and cybersex once a week.”

“What? That’s not a lot,” Nate grumbled. “I feel cheated. Gypped. Robbed.”

She rolled her eyes, but her laughter sparkled in the night air. “We don’t want it to lose its magic. If we had cybersex every day, don’t you think we’d get bored?”

“Not at all.” He heaved a deep sigh. “But fine, I agree to your terms.” He swept his palm down the length of her thigh and gently squeezed her knee. “Honestly, I’d take anything. Phone/cybersex or no. I’m just happy to be with you, even if we’re not together physically.”

God, that was sappy, but Nate meant every word. Yes, he loved having sex with Kris, but if he had to choose between sex with her for a short while and no sex but a lifetime by her side, he’d choose the lifetime option. No question.

Kris’s eyes, mouth, and body softened all at once until she was melting into him—her curves pressed against his, her gaze locked on his own. “We’re really doing this, huh?”

“Yeah.” Nate’s mouth tipped up. “A long-distance relationship. We’re going to kick its ass.”

He’d never been one to turn down a challenge. He was a fighter; so was Kris. They were going to make this L.A.-Seattle thing work, come hell or high water.

Besides, Kris only had one year of school left. After that, who knew?

They hadn’t discussed her post-graduation plans yet, but Nate hoped she’d return to L.A. for good. That, however, was a conversation for another time.

Tonight, he just wanted to enjoy the last hours of their summer together.

Speaking of which…

“I also have some news.” Nate cleared his throat, an uncharacteristic ripple of nerves cresting in his stomach. “It’s been in the works, but I didn’t want to say anything until I was sure.”

Kris’s brow arched a fraction of an inch. “Okay…”

“I got the lead in the new Scott West movie. I found out this morning.”

The wind whistled by, ruffling Nate’s hair and filling his nostrils with the salty scent of the sea. Fuck, it felt weird to say those words out loud. Surreal, like he was a dream version of himself.

He’d been floating around in a strange bubble of this-can’t-really-be-happening since he received the call from Marty.

As Marty had predicted, Scott West himself had been present for the callback auditions. He didn’t speak or move the entire time, but Nate had had a gut feeling that the director liked him. Or maybe he’d liked Nate’s gray shirt, because yeah, gray was Scott’s favorite color.

Did that help seal the deal?

Who knew? Who cared?

Nate was going to star in a motherfucking Scott West film.

It’d killed him to keep the auditions a secret from Kris, but he hadn’t wanted to jinx anything. Now that his new role was confirmed? He wanted to scream it from the rooftops.

Kris’s eyes grew round. “Scott West, the Oscar-winning director? The one who makes a movie, like, once a decade?”

He chuckled. “Something like that.”

“Holy shit, congratulations!”

Before he knew it, they were tangled together—Kris’s arms and legs wrapped around his neck and waist, her lips firm and insistent on his, her scent enveloping him like the world’s best-smelling blanket.

Heat raced through Nate’s veins, and he hissed when she ground her hips against his. He responded in sync, cupping her ass with his hands and exploring her mouth with urgent, pent-up need.

“If I’d known this was how you were going to react, I would’ve told you sooner,” he rasped when they broke for air.

“You should’ve.” Kris nuzzled his neck. “This is incredible news. It’s your big break, and you deserve it.”

Another, larger ripple of nerves.

It was funny. Nate had spent his entire life dreaming of stardom, but now that it was close enough for him to touch, it was scary as hell. Exciting too, yeah, but what if he messed things up?

There was nothing more nerve-wracking than having your dreams come true and not knowing how to handle it.

“We don’t know that,” he said. “The movie could be a flop.”

Scott West hadn’t directed a single flop in his life. The man had the Midas touch when it came to critically acclaimed blockbusters. But there was a first time for everything, and Nate didn’t want to get his hopes up.

“No, it won’t,” Kris said firmly. “The movie’s going to break records. It’s going to be one of those legendary franchises that everyone lines up to see in theaters on opening day, and you’re going to be the newest, hottest addition to the A-list.”

He grinned at her confidence. “You have a lot of faith in Scott West.”

“No, I have a lot of faith in you. You got this.” Kris paused. “I swear to God, if you ditch me for some up-and-coming starlet while I’m in Seattle, I’ll fly back here and pin your balls to the wall.”

“As you should.” Nate pulled her into his chest. “Don’t worry. You’ll forever be my red carpet date.”

“Excellent. I love dressing up in designer gowns and strutting down red carpets with arm candy.”

His grin widened. “I love you, Kris Carrera.”

Kris ran her fingers through his hair, her eyes pools of liquid chocolate in the moonlight. “And I love you, Nate Reynolds.”

Their lips met in another kiss. It started soft and sweet, but soon escalated to a heat level that sent all of Nate’s blood rushing south.

He slipped his hand beneath Kris’s thong and found her wet, warm, and ready.

His cock pulsed, screaming at him to get a move on already, but he didn’t want to rush this. They had hours before sunrise, and he was going to make good use of every second.

Nate laid Kris on her back and tugged her underwear down her legs while she watched him with hot, hooded eyes. She was so beautiful it made his heart ache, and when she orgasmed around him, her head tilting back and her mouth falling open with pleasure, he knew without a doubt that his heart would never belong to him again.

It was hers. Always.