Between Us: Sex on the Beach by Jen McLaughlin Read Free Book Online

squeezed my eyes shut, closing out the world—and him, too. “God, not again.”
    I couldn’t be betrayed again. Couldn’t see it blasted all over the tabloids again.
    Finally, I opened my eyes and looked at him. He sat there, naked in the middle of my bed, looking perfectly calm about it, and lifted a hand. “Mackenzie, calm down. This isn’t what it looks like.”
    What would the headline read now? Probably: America’s Sweetheart Is An Idiot! That’s what it should say, because once again, a guy who I was trying to get intimate with had lied to me. Maybe I was destined to be single and alone, and I just had to accept that. “How long have you known?”
    He flinched. “Since the second you took off your hat.”
    “Of course you did,” I said woodenly. I’d never learn my lesson, would I? “I should call the cops on you right now.”
    He stiffened. “I didn’t do anything wrong, so calling the cops is a waste of time.”
    “You know who I am,” I accused. “But you didn’t tell me.”
    He rolled off the opposite side of the bed and sighed. “Yeah, and that’s totally a punishable crime. Lock me up for not admitting I knew you were famous.”
    Well, when he put it that way, of course it sounded stupid. Because it was. “Why didn’t you tell me the truth?”
    He put his hands on his hips. He was still naked. “I didn’t tell you because you didn’t tell me. You obviously didn’t want to. Why should I ruin the mood by admitting I knew? What good would it serve?”
    “It’s called honesty,” I snapped. I wanted to believe him, but if he’d been hiding that from me, then what else could he be hiding? For all I knew he was a freaking reporter for TMZ or something. “You should try it sometime.”
    “Seriously?” He raised a brow. He was so freaking distracting in his nakedness. I mean, how was I notsupposed to look at him? “You’re going to preach honesty with me when you hid your identity from me?”
    “I did it for a reason,” I said, my cheeks heating.
    “Maybe I did, too.” He picked up his trunks and stepped into them. “Ever think of that? Or do you have to be a celebrity to be entitled to lie?”
    He stepped toward me. When I stumbled back from him, my heart racing, he stopped and glowered at me. I flushed at the sign of weakness I’d given him. “Just…stay there. I can’t think when you touch me.”
    He dragged a hand through his hair. “Fine. But knowing who you are doesn’t change anything. I’m still here, and I still want you. You can trust me not to tell anyone or sell the story, just like you could have if you never found out I knew who you were.”
    I shook my head. “I can’t trust you anymore. You lied to me.”
    “Oh, for fuck’s sakes,” he gritted out. Then he crossed the room and grabbed my arms, his grip firm but not painful. “I’m not going to sell you out, but I’m not going to fucking beg you either. Like I said, in my world, you’re in or you’re out.”
    I wanted to be in, but he’d already lied to me once. That was a warning sign if I’d ever seen one. I put a hand to his chest, but didn’t shove him away. I could have, but I didn’t. “Well, I’m out.”
    He kissed me hard, his tongue dueling for dominance with mine. By the time he was done, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to send him away or throw him back onto my bed. “You know how to find me if you come to your fucking senses. I’d like to finish what we started, but if you refuse to trust me, I can’t force you. Believe it or not, I don’t usually have to swear to honesty to get in a girl’s bed. And I damn well don’t have to beg.” His fingers smoothed over my skin, and then he let go of me. “Goodbye, Mackenzie Forbes.”
    He gave me one last heated look and turned on his heel. I stood there, watching him leave, and bit my lip. Damned if I didn’t want to call him back to my room.
    But I stayed silent.

 
    L ATER THAT night, I swiped the rag across the surface of the bar,