Page 3 of Sex Symbol

She laughed. “From film school. Were you worried you were coming on to a teenager?”

He leaned back, distancing himself from Maddie. “Oh, you thought I was coming on toyou?”

Crap!Had the teasing only been in her mind? She opened her mouth to speak, but she stuttered, “Uh…”

He chuckled. “Relax. I was totally coming on toyou.”

She raised a brow. “Really? Or are you just keeping me from being completely humiliated?”

“No, I really was hitting on you. Come on, it was incredibly obvious.”

“Yes it was. Are you still hitting on me now? Or has the moment passed?”

“Oh, no, the moment hasn’t passed.” He cocked his head and his eyes travelled down her body again, lingering at her low neckline. “So…film school,” he said after a heat-filled moment. “What’s your area of interest?”

Maddie barely kept herself from a fit of nervous giggles. “You never told me why you’rehere.”

“That’s boring.”

“Impossible.”

“Okay, you really want to know? I was also dragged here. By some of the guys I work with.” He craned his neck looking around the party. “I have no idea where they are. Nor would I tell you if I saw them because they might be more attractive than I am and I wouldn’t want to give myself unnecessary competition.”

Maddie let her eyes explore his body. His casual white and black button-down shirt opened to mid-sternum and she could see serious pecs underneath. The bottom buttons also remained open and when he stretched his arms above his head—undoubtedly on purpose—a patch of tight abs and a trail of hair peeked out. Yum, yum, and yum. “You don’t need to worry about competition.”

“Seriously? Then I’m doingokay?”

“You’re doing just fine.” She locked eyes with him, and thoughts of him naked above her flashed through her mind. Blushing, she lookedaway.

“So…” she said, raising her eyebrows. Was she really flirting like this with a stranger?

“You never told me what area of film you studied.”

As a rule, Maddie stayed away from this conversation with people she’d just met. Saying you graduated from film school in L.A. was like saying you had breakfast. It was a dull, overdone topic. But this subject was safer than her fantasy thoughts and the man’s assertiveness easily drew the answer out. “Screenwriting.”

He nodded.

“And directing.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Hmm, now that would befun.”

“Directing?”

“Being directed byyou.”

Her eyes widened at his brazen comment. She quickly finished off her Corona, attempting to calm her nerves. How on earth did this stranger manage to fluster her like that? Turn her inside out so easily?

She played with the label of her empty bottle as she fought to stay on solid ground, steering away from his innuendo. “Yeah, so directing is my thing. But of course, it’s difficult to break into that biz, so I’m interested in all things film at the moment. Sound, camera, you name it. Screenwriting just fell into the mix because when you’re a kid growing up wanting to direct, you needed material to direct so you could practice. I’ve got three full-length films under my belt. Indies, but still…and I start an internship with an amazing film crew on Monday.” She stopped, realizing she was babbling.

“I’m intrigued.” He took the bottle from her and set it on the grass next tohis.

Without the bottle in her hands she felt vulnerable. And was he sitting closer than he was a moment ago? She returned to her jabber, unable to organize her thoughts. “It’s really not that interesting. I’ll be a production assistant, the lowestof—”

“That’s not what I’m intrigued with,” he interrupted, his voice husky.

Maddie met his eyes and saw a flicker of desire. He wanted her, it was obvious. Why not? For one night, why not live carefree?

She tilted her head toward him and steeled herself to tempt his seduction. “Then tell me, what is intriguingyou?”