Page 25 of One Kind Hand

“I wouldn’t want to break little Berto’s heart.”

“He really is fragile. Best to give him what he wants.”

“Breakfast sounds good. I like French toast. The thick slices. None of that skinny shit.”

“Got it. With a hefty helping of bananas. I’ll make sure it’s all ready for you.”

“No bananas, hot shot, or I’ll turn around and leave.”

“And break little Berto’s heart?”

“Yup.”

“Badass.”

God, she couldn’t get enough of this quick back and forth with him. Most guys she met couldn’t keep up, but not Austin. Maybe all his years of memorizing dialogue had trained him to be swift and clever. She suspected it was more than that though. He . . . paid attention. She wondered if he did that with everyone.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” she said.

“We’ll be waiting,” Austin said. “Good night, Charlie.” The softer tone he’d used on those last words made them sound intimate and Charlie’s flesh goosebumped.

“Good night, Austin.”

She flopped on her couch after hanging up, swearing when she landed on her elbow. The pain dissipated quickly though because her head was full of the fact that she had a breakfast date with Austin Rayhill.

Which meant she needed another badass outfit. Popping up from the couch, she jogged to her bedroom and flung open the closet, gaping at the measly selection. She didn’t have time to buy a whole new wardrobe before tomorrow morning and the first stirrings of panic whirled in her stomach.

Then she remembered she was Charlene Moyen who didn’t worry about these kinds of things.

Except she did when she had a breakfast date with a sexy movie star.

“Okay. Calm down, idiot.” She approached the closet and flipped through all her cargoes until her hands landed on a pair of jeans she never wore. Jeans weren’t comfortable for sitting in a helicopter so she often forgot she even had them, but they could work for tomorrow. Scrounging around in her dresser, she dug through various skull-themed and heavy metal T-shirts, finally locating a solid black sweater. She ran back to the closet for a charcoal jacket that was longer than the black motorcycle one she’d worn today. She’d blow by Isabel’s first thing in the morning to borrow a pair of her shoes because Isabel had a selection that extended way beyond Charlie’s combat-style boots. It would also be good to get Isabel’s stamp of approval before she appeared at Austin’s hotel.

Charlie draped all the chosen clothes over the back of a reading chair in her bedroom and wondered who had possessed her for those crazy moments where she’d been all about fashion. Totally out of character.

But then again, having breakfast with a famous dude was out of character for her as well.

Chapter Five

Austin thanked the server who had delivered the room service to his suite and rolled the cart of breakfast food toward the dining room. He made quick work of transferring everything to the table, taking a quick peek under the silver domes to make sure no bananas were anywhere near that thick-sliced French toast. He pushed the cart back into the hallway, hoping the server would get rid of it before Charlie arrived.

Charlie.

He’d spent much of the night tossing and turning in bed, nearly flattening poor Berto on several occasions. Every time he’d drift off, he’d find himself in the midst of a scorching hot dream with Charlie as the main character.

And man, did she know how to play the role of sex goddess.

He groaned now thinking about the things she’d done to him in those dreams. Berto yipped at his feet.

“Yeah, man, I know. I’ve got to settle down.” He rubbed his hands down the front of his black T-shirt, hoping his palms didn’t intend to be eternally soaked. Inviting Charlie over for breakfast had seemed like a brilliant idea last night, but after hours and hours of naked fantasies of her, he wasn’t so sure anymore.

A soft knock sounded on the suite door and Austin froze while Berto barked and scurried off, ready to greet their visitor. If only Austin was as ready.

C’mon, man. He was a fucking movie star. He large-scale charmed people on the reg. Why should a single woman push him so off kilter?

Austin stretched his neck to the left then to the right and strode to the door with at least the façade of some confidence. He drew in a deep breath as Berto went wild with anticipation. Opening the door, the breath whooshed out of him when it was only Cody standing there. Berto deflated too and trotted off to hop onto the couch.

“Dude. Why are you so flushed? Are you getting sick?” Cody clamped his hands on Austin’s shoulders. “Tell me you’re not getting sick. I’ll have the hotel bring up some apple cider vinegar for you to gargle with.” He yanked out his phone, but Austin grabbed his wrist before Cody could contact anyone.