I drenched a cloth in cold water and wrung it out, then dabbed it across my forehead, under my eyes and across the bridge of my nose. I took my time, giving myself a few moments to breathe and get my emotions in check.

Even if I didn't have blips in my past that I didn't want anyone to know about, I was bothered by the fact that he had me investigated. He'd said he didn't dig that deep, but he dug deep enough to find the thing I was hiding and trying to forget. The thing that had nearly destroyed me.

Having had clients in his line of work though... I understood the need to know if a person could drag you down.  He was right, I had checked him out. I just didn't hire "a guy". A person couldn't be too careful, especially someone in the public eye. And if I was being honest with myself, I'd probably advise a client to do the same thing.

I lingered in the bathroom for a few more minutes, then opened the door and stepped into the hallway. The scene from my point of view made me smile. JC was camped out on the floor, Barksdale's head in his lap. JC scratched him behind his ears, then ran a hand across the crown of his head and down his neck, then circled around to his ears again. Barksdale's tail wagged so hard it thumped against the floor.

"He's why I have to live on a lower floor," I said, leaning against the door jamb, arms crossed and observing the scene. "He doesn't have a slight gait; he stomps. The sound of his tail vibrates through the floor. He doesn't just lay down, he flops. After a ton of complaints at my last apartment, I bought this place, mostly because it's close to Runyon but also because no one lives under us. He can be noisy to his heart's content."

"I'm sure he's worth it."

Having broken the ice, I ambled into the room and lowered myself to the floor beside JC. On the table, two glasses sat in front of us, both bearing a gold liquid.

"You busted into my tequila stash."

"Figured I'd just keep being creepy. I looked through your cabinets while you were gone. I thought you might need something a little stronger than water. And it's almost my birthday. I hoped you would have a drink with me."

Surprised, I reared back a little. "Your birthday? It's tomorrow?"

He nodded. "Yeah. The big one."

"Forty?" He nodded again, briefly sweeping his eyes closed. "Oh boy. That one's coming up for me, too. Just a few years."

"So I'll just warm it up for you."

"You worried?"

"Nah," he answered, but much too quickly.

"You sure? It's kind of... all downhill from there."

He laughed. "That's... not necessarily true. It's what you make of it. I plan to make a lot of it."

"Oh?" I shifted sideways so I could see him head on. "You've done so much in your life. Traveled the world, topped the charts, starred in movies, written, produced. What do you have planned for your forties?"

"Well..." He stalled for time by playing with Barksdale's ears. "I don't actually have anything planned. We'll see what comes up. I'll be open to new opportunities if they happen. And I'd like to..."

"You'd like to..." I prodded, after he was quiet for a few beats.

"I was going to say I'd like to meet somebody. But..." He glanced up at me, ever so briefly. "I did. So I'm hoping I can get to know somebody."

I flashed hot and a blush reddened my skin. It had been a long... long time since I felt a genuine like for someone, a real interest. I was nervous about liking him. About him liking me back. About him being a celebrity. About repeating the past and making the same mistake again.

"Rex..." I hardly ever said his name aloud. My chest grew tight and I ran out of air, so I stopped to catch my breath. "That relationship... it changed me. I trusted someone that I shouldn't have been trusted. It opened up my whole life in a way I never would have imagined it would be. I didn't realize it until after it was over and I had lost my job and I moved back to Chula Vista while my lawyer worked to basically remove me from the Internet. It took being back home with my family. All those people you were looking at earlier-"

I angled up to the mantle where the groupings of photos were propped so I could see them from anywhere in the room. "They were my lifeline. They helped me find me again. When I came back to LA I just wanted to be a different person. Just a regular girl with a job and friends and a private life. And I want to stay that different person."

"I don't have any intention of changing you or asking you to change. If you checked me out, you know I have regular friends. I don't hang out with the celebrity set unless I have to. I just want to know you, Lena. To be a part of your life. And, to be honest, have more access to this guy." He nodded his head to the slumbering animal next to him. "I... really love dogs."

"I can tell. He's getting far more action than I am."

JC's eyes popped wide open then, his eyebrows shooting up toward his hairline. "You wanted action?"

I shrugged, stifling a grin. "You didn't come in after our date to hang out with my dog, did you?"

"Actually..."

He laughed, then moved so he faced me. He was so close I could feel his breath on my cheek, see the deep blue in his eyes, practically run my finger along the indentation across his forehead where the Dodgers cap had sat all day.

"How long until your birthday?" 

He flicked his wrist, then swiped a finger across the square face of his Apple Watch. "Four minutes," he said, dropping his arm back to the couch, but closer to my shoulder. I felt him tugging at my curls, winding a thick band of hair around his finger, then releasing it, then winding it up again.

"I assume you wanted to toast your birthday? That's what the tequila is about?"

"Yep. I'd love it if you joined me."

"So... what are we supposed to do for three minutes?"

"I have some ideas."

"Do any of them involve kissing me?"

"I could move that one to the front of the line, if you want."

He leaned forward, tipping his head toward me. Just to be a brat, I arched back, placing my palm over his face. "Wait... what else was on the list?"

"Honestly..." He said, his words muffled behind my hand and through laughter. "After spending a day with you and your dog, my ideas start at kissing and get progressively worse. Or better."

"Okay, well let's start there." I removed my hand and dipped my head toward him, my mouth slanted over his. He met me more than halfway and pressed his lips to mine. Gentle, but firm. Sweet, but an undercurrent of sensuality lingering just beneath the surface.

I tilted slightly and opened my mouth when I felt his tongue along the seam of my lips. Once he made contact, he let out a deep, sultry moan. His tongue swirled around mine, his fingers curling into my hair as he pulled me into him. I scooted closer, closing the small space between us and sank into the kiss. It was slow and heady and... erotic.

That was the difference. Rex had always been manic, in a hurry, all about himself and his pleasure. Kissing was nothing more than a few pecks before he moved on to sucking my nipples and rubbing my clit, trying to get me in the mood. I never felt so much seduced as... manipulated.

This kiss was sensual and seductive and purely designed for my enjoyment. Enjoy, I did.

Until a loud, incessant beeping broke through the haze. JC tore his lips from mine and lifted his wrist. He showed me the face of his watch, where an alarm named OLD MAN had been set to go off at midnight. He laughed and swiped to turn off the alarm.

"My friends are pretty funny. Must have set that alarm when I took my watch off the other day."

"Well it's a good thing or we would have kissed well past the moment."

"That wouldn't have been such a bad thing," he mumbled. He handed me a glass from the table and took the other. "But let's get this out of the way so we can work on the rest of my list."

We clinked the rims of our glasses together. I tipped mine up, letting the velvety smooth citrus and ginger flavor of Roca Patron slide down my throat.

JC didn't fare so well. Halfway through about two fingers of the gold liquid, he coughed, gripping his chest. "Wow," he said, gasping, holding the glass aloft as if looking at it would explain why it burned his throat.

I giggled. "Puts hair on your chest, huh?"

"Holy shit! I can feel it growing as we speak. What proof is this?"

"Eighty-eight," I chirped. "Surely you've had real tequila, JC."

"Well, yeah.  But I mean... I don't drink it every day. It's been long enough that it feels like the first time." He sucked in a loud breath and tipped his glass up, downing the rest in a single swallow. After showing me the empty glass, he set it onto the coaster.

"I know you're trying to hold in a cough. Don't choke to death on my account."

He let out a loud, lung-clearing cough. Barksdale's head popped up at the sound. Finding his new friend still in the room, his tail began to thump against the floor.

"Have some water," I advised, pushing myself up. "It's time for his evening walk and then he goes to bed. I'm surprised he's not circling the couch. Normally by 11:30 he's whining because I haven't put him to bed."

JC got up, too, hanging one arm over the back of the couch and reaching out for Barksdale while I put his leash on. "You have to put him to bed?"

"Yeah, we have a ritual. And he works best on a schedule. We'll be right back."

"Should I come along?"

I smiled, realizing that I hoped he would want to come along. "Sure. It's just around the back of the building."

Barksdale knew the way, leading us through the low-lit breezeway to the open, grassy area behind the building. I released him from his leash and he trotted away. I couldn't see him, but I heard the tinkle of the tags on his collar.

"Don't go far!" I called into the darkness.

"Does he obey that?"

"Hardly ever," I answered, dropping onto my usual bench. I tapped the spot next to me and JC took it, then slid closer and dropped his arm around my shoulder.

"This is where I talked to you when I called you."

"When he was eating a shoe string?" I nodded. "So what do you do, when you're out here?"

I shrugged. "Whatever strikes me as an interesting thing to do, I guess. Our place is small and he's normally cooped up all day, so I try to give him as much time outside as I can."

"Well, I thought we could finish doing what we were doing when we were so rudely interrupted."

"Oh, that would be a good way to pass the time."

"I thought so," he mumbled, leaning in. This time, our open mouths met and we hungrily devoured each other, sucking in air through our noses, groaning muted moans. For a few long minutes, I was lost in the kiss, melting into him.

I heard a loud crack and opened my eyes in time to see a bright flash streak across the sky. JC opened his eyes when I pulled back. His gaze followed mine to the cloudy night sky.

"It's about to pour." He stood, offering a hand to help me up from the bench.

"Barksdale!" The tinkle of his dog tags got louder as he trotted nearer. I clipped the leash to his collar and let him lead us back to my condo. As soon as we made it inside, the sky lit up with another flash and the building shook with another clap of thunder.

I unhooked the leash and hung it in its normal place. "Okay, get to bed," I told him. He trotted over to his bed and plopped down in the middle of it. I grabbed the blanket that I normally kept stored behind his bed and spread it across his body. He laid his head down and thumped his tail against the floor a few times.

"That's Barksdale saying goodnight," I whispered.

JC reached toward him, squatting down to pat him on the head. "Night, buddy." He stood again, shaking his head at the scene. "That's the cutest thing I've ever seen."

"Now, here's another thing. If we sit out here, even just to watch TV and we're quiet and everything? He'll get pissy. So..." I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the hallway, turning off lights as we passed through the living room.

Once we crossed the threshold of my bedroom, I closed the door behind us and turned on one of the bedside lamps. "We'll have to finish your list in here."

He closed the space between us, pulling me to him and wrapping his arms around me. My arms draped across his broad shoulders and I smiled up into his face. "Honey, that is fine by me."