Paola's Bookshelf: Tour: Already Famous by Heather Leigh

Drew Forrester is a regular guy from Boston, MA with an unusual job. His work keeps him from getting close to anyone, unwilling to give his trust, especially after a terrible betrayal when he left home at nineteen to pursue his dream.

He throws himself into his work and his favorite way of releasing his frustrations, Brazilian Ju Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts. He resorts to short term hook-ups, figuring he'll be alone forever.

When a gorgeous redhead literally falls into his life, he decides that it's fate and pursues her relentlessly. But this girl is seriously damaged, and keeps secrets that he doesn't understand and can't get her to reveal. Her lack of trust and seeming paranoia about letting anyone get close to her leads Drew to keep some secrets of his own.

This is a companion novel to Relatively Famous, told from Drew's point of view.

Title: Already Famous (Famous, #4)

Author: Heather Leigh

Release Date: October 26, 2014

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Caribbean Vacation

We land on St. Bart’s on a terrifyingly short runway with the bright turquoise ocean gleaming at the end. Gail opens the door and the salty smell of the sea surrounds us as we walk down onto the hot pavement. It’s perfect here. Warm, ocean breeze, gorgeous girl on my arm… I couldn’t be happier if I tried.

Chad’s caretaker, Philippe, gets out of his Mini-Moke, a Jeep-like car I’ve heard about but never actually seen in person. Chad was supposed to tell this guy not to act weird around me or say anything about who I am, so he better not fuck this up.

Philippe introduces himself to Sydney then to me, shaking my hand just a little too long for me to be a normal person. The dude is super-cheerful, with short tufts of gray hair, and is way, way too tan. He grabs our stuff out of the plane and I help Sydney into the back seat of the open top Moke. I can’t ride around in this thing without my disguise, so I get my Sox hat out of my bag and pull it down low.

When I climb in next to Syd she bursts out laughing at the sight of my hat. Nice, she thinks I’m an idiot with hideous fashion sense, which I find quite charming. I grin at her. “What? I know you said I don’t need luck, but it can’t hurt.”

Philippe starts the Moke and takes us to Chad’s villa. He describes a bunch of stuff about the island, but I could care less. I’m too busy watching Sydney take in the surroundings, her long auburn hair whipping around her face as we wind through the tropical greenery. When Philippe points out some wild peacocks, I think Sydney’s going to fall out of her seat she’s so excited. I chuckle at her reaction. She’s so happy and carefree, as if the island has lifted a huge burden from her weighted down shoulders. Her outright joy is contagious.

I’m so fucking gone on this girl.

When we pull into the gravel driveway of Chad’s house, the nervousness from this morning comes back full force. What if this Philippe guy left movie shit all over the house? If Sydney sees it, she’ll freak out and he seems like a little bit of an idiot.

I hear a banging sound and see Philippe struggling, he’s already opening the front door and bringing our bags into the house. It’s like this guy is on speed or something he’s so damn quick. I need to get him alone and make sure he took care of everything.

Sydney and I step into the huge open kitchen behind Philippe, who’s nowhere in sight. While she’s looking at everything I lean in and give her a quick kiss. “Wait here a minute, I’m going to chat with Philippe.” She nods and I hurry after the caretaker and find him in the master bedroom, placing our bags on the bed.

“Hey, Philippe, can we talk for a minute?” I corner the really tan, really happy guy in the bedroom.

“Of course, Mr. Forrester, what can I do for you?” He stands there looking way too fucking delighted to listen to me bitch at him.

“I need to make sure all of Chad’s movie stuff is out of sight. He said he explained to you the importance of getting rid of it all.”

Philippe nods and starts to leave the bedroom. Fuck dude! I can’t talk about this shit in front of Sydney. “Yes, I got all of it. No worries.”

Like I’m not going to worry that the fate of my relationship with the woman I love is in this weirdo’s hands. “You’re sure you got all of it?” I ask, trailing after him down the hall.

“Yes, yes. All of it.” Philippe responds as he continues to walk back toward the kitchen.

“And you put it all in the office, correct?”

“Yes.” He stops to give me a funny look, clearly starting to think I’m either OCD or crazy as he hurries back to Sydney. I watch him pull a key out of his pocket and place it on the countertop. Then he quickly shows us a map of the area. “Here are some additional phone numbers you may need.” Philippe points to a list on the refrigerator. “The fridge and pantry are stocked, let me know if you need anything, day or night. My number is on the list.” He shakes Syd’s hand then mine and leaves.

“Well, Philippe is…” Sydney says.

I want to say ‘a twitchy fuck’ but I stick to saying, “Interesting?” instead.

“That’s one way of putting it, I suppose,” she responds. We both crack up at Philippe’s expense.

I hold out my hand and ask her if she wants to see the house. She takes it without hesitation, and threads her fingers through mine. I have to admit, Chad has great taste. The house is massive, with comfortable furniture. My favorite part is the huge deck. I start imagining all the things I can do with Sydney on one of the plush double lounge chairs.

Gently tugging on her hand, I lead Sydney across the hardwood deck. “This is even better than I imagined,” I tell her as I yank her down with me onto one of those tempting chairs, making her squeak in surprise.

“You’ve never been here?” She asks, looking somewhat confused. Did I tell her I’ve been here before? I don’t think I did, but she’s acting like I have.

“No, I haven’t. Why?”

“I’m not sure, I just assumed. You said the owner was a friend, I don’t know why I thought that.” Oh, she made her own assumptions because she never asked me any details about this house or the trip. Just like she never asks me any other questions. Or answers them.

“The owner is a friend, as well as a business partner in some of my investments. But I work a lot, and haven’t had the opportunity to just take off and come here. I don’t get to take a lot of vacations.” I don’t need to tell her that she’s the first girl I’ve wanted to spend this much time with since I was a teenager. It would probably freak her the fuck out.

“Yet you’re here with me, I assumed you brought all the girls you date here.” She gives me a fake smile to hide her embarrassment.

Now this line of questioning makes sense. She wants to know if this is something I do a lot, seduce beautiful women and bring them here for a weekend of sex. “No, no other girls, Sydney. Just you. You make me want to take time off from work.” I push her down on the poolside chair and roll her hot little body underneath mine. My tortured cock responds immediately.

“Miss Allen, I do believe we’re wearing too many clothes for this tropical heat. What do you say we fix that?”

I can’t wait any longer to have her. Sitting next to her for four hours on that plane nearly killed me. My fingers are literally itching to touch her skin. I lean my head down and bite along her slender neck, her scent, amplified by the hot sun is driving me mad with lust.

She moans and throws her head back so I can have better access to her throat. Her voice is raspy and needy, “Mr. Forrester, I couldn’t agree more.”