Aced Read Online Free Page B

I’ve seen before showed up at the read-through today, and I wasn’t…expecting it, is all.”
    “Oh hell.” Kenny looked wary. “So he’s what, a producer? One of the writers?”
    “Try model turned actor on his first fucking film.”
    “Uh…” He stopped and put his hand on my arm. “You’re not thinking of getting involved with this guy, are you?”
    That’s all my cock is thinking about. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
    “Look, you know I want you to be happy, and yeah, find someone, but… You know what they say about dating in the workplace, man.”
    “Don’t come knockin’ when the trailer’s rockin’?”
    Kenny gave me a nudge and nodded over at the bottom of the trail at the two men with long-lens cameras aimed our way. “Don’t fucking do it, is what they say.”
    I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. Considering I’d already said more than I should in front of both Dylan and Russ, I hadn’t exactly started things off in the most professional, platonic way. I wasn’t even sure I was capable of that with Dylan.  
    He made me feel reckless. He made me forget that I was in a room full of my peers, some of whom I didn’t know overly well. He made me forget my role, and all because he had a face that had literally stopped me in my tracks for weeks.  
    I didn’t know this guy any more than I knew a passing acquaintance, but the second I’d realized who he was, my brain had shut off and my dick had activated.
    Like I said…he made me reckless.

    * * *

    WHEN I WALKED into my tiny studio apartment later that afternoon, I threw my backpack down on the floor and headed toward the bathroom. I’d just left J.T., the barber who cut my hair for the film, and I was freaking out a little.
    I shoved open the bathroom door and stopped in front of the mirror. God, I didn’t think it would bother me so much, but I really hadn’t wanted to chop my hair off. I know it sounds vain, but I loved my hair. It had been just the right length, kinda long on the top and highlighted perfectly, and now… I pulled my baseball cap off and groaned. Now it was cut short, a.k.a. Maverick from Top Gun style, J.T. assured me. But all I saw was short hair and no highlights.
    I looked like every other guy. Normal. Nothing about me stood out and screamed—unique. Which was what photographers and designers wanted in a model. I had every other guy’s run-of-the-mill, short brown hair. Awesome. My agent was going to freak.
    Shoving the cap back on, I walked out through my apartment and headed to the fridge for a bottle of water. It was burning up in this little rat trap I lived in, and the AC wasn’t doing shit. I took a swig from the bottle and then thought fuck it, and peeled my shirt off over my head, throwing it on the back of the couch as I flopped down into it. The fan oscillating above me in a wonky fashion made me think I might die one of these days from it spinning clear off its joints.
    What a day.
    First day working on a multimillion-dollar Hollywood movie? Check.
    Almost run over by hottest guy on the planet? Check.
    Called jackass by hottest guy on the planet? Check.
    Find out hottest guy on the planet has a hard-on for me? Check. And holy fucking shit. What was I supposed to do with that info? Well, I thought, as I pressed down on the erection straining against my jeans, besides the obvious.
    It was all starting to make more sense now. Okay, not the first run-in—that was just pure coincidence and the fact that I wasn’t paying attention. But the intense way Ace had been focused on me. The way he’d called me out, made sure he had my attention, like he wanted me to notice him. And now I knew why. He had noticed me first. And that fact was blowing my mind.
    For years I’d been watching Ace’s movies with Derek, and admittedly fantasizing about the guy in a way that was probably unhealthy, and when I’d had the opportunity to work with him, I’d jumped on that in a quick second. Then today had happened. I