The Secret Note

Again, my skin pricks. This man is turning me on like crazy. I can feel a wet spot forming on the crotch of my panties.

Ben continues, “Plus, like I said, even if my mind had been right with her, she just wasn’t like you in the sack. No fun. Totally repressed.”

“Well, she wasn’t experienced.”

“It was more than that. She was all hung up. Felt guilty and dirty. She wasn’t carefree and fun like you.” He looks sheepish. “Honestly, I couldn’t get her to come. Don’t know if it was her or me, but it was just a train wreck. With you, it was exciting. Thrilling. I felt like a god.”

I laugh.

Ben continues, “You knew exactly what to do to get me off. You showed me how to get you off. And that made me get off even harder. With you, it was like the earth moved. With her, it was just, you know, clinical.”

I nod. It’s not the first time a guy has told me sex with me was heads and shoulders better than sex with any other girl he’s ever been with, to be honest. But it’s the first time the words are making me feel like bursting into tears of joy. I take a long sip of my martini to steady myself. “I hope to God you’ve had better luck through the years, making women come.”

“You bet.” He winks. “But still, nobody’s ever held a candle to you. Don’t know if it was because you were my first, or if you’re just a unicorn, but I can honestly say, you’re still the gold standard to this day.”

Warmth spreads through my core. “Thank you.”

“Just speaking the truth.”

Holy shit. I clear my throat. “So what’s the job that brought you to LA?”

“A role on a soap opera.”

“You’re an actor?”

“I pretend to be.” He grins. “So far, I’ve got ’em all fooled, it seems.”

I laugh. “Which soap opera?”

“It’s called General Hospital.”

“Get the fuck outta here!”

He laughs. “You know it?”

“Of course I do! I used to watch that with my grandma! I haven’t watched it in forever, but it’s super famous here. Oh my gosh, Ben! Congratulations.”

“Thanks.”

“How’d you get into acting? I remember you being shy.”

“Yeah, I still am in big groups. But thanks to a lot of acting classes, I’ve learned how to, you know, fake it till I make it. I got started as a fitness model back home when a scout saw me on campus. That led to a bunch of print work. Then TV commercials. From there, I started getting small roles here and there on the telly. I got a small role on the most popular soap opera in Australia, and then my part got expanded after the producers got a flood of emails about me. That led to me getting an agent here in LA and finally getting offered a role on General Hospital. My contract is for six months, but my agent says they might renew for another six months if things go well—if I still want to continue on the show by then, that is. My agent says she’s positive she can get me lots of auditions for movies and TV shows out here, so who knows what might happen.”

I palm my forehead. “Ben, that’s incredible. I’m so happy for you.”

“Thanks. I’m pretty chuffed about it.”

“Is your character Australian or will you be doing an American accent on the show?”

“The part was written to be American, but my American accent is so damned terrible they decided to make the character Australian.”

I laugh. “Wow, they must really love you.”

He smiles broadly but doesn’t deny it.

“Let’s hear your American accent,” I say.

“Oh, God, it’s terrible.”

“That’s why I want to hear it. Tell me about your family or something.”

Ben babbles a bit about his family back home, using an American accent, and I swoon and giggle and correct him now and again on his pronunciation.

“Told you I’m terrible,” he says, a huge smile on his gorgeous face.

“I wouldn’t say terrible,” I say. “You’re not perfect by any stretch, but you’re not nearly as bad as you think. I’d be happy to help you with your accent whenever you like, if you think you’ll need it for any upcoming auditions.”

His face lights up . . . and, suddenly, I realize what I’ve just implied—that tonight isn’t a one-shot deal for us.

“Cheers, that’d be great, thanks,” he says.

“I mean, you know, if we see each other again after tonight,” I say, just before bringing my glass to my lips to hide my smile.

Ben rolls his eyes. “So you do play games.”

“Told ya.” I grin.

He leans forward. “Just to be clear, there’s no doubt we’re gonna be seeing each other again after tonight. In fact, I’m already planning our second date in my head.”

I blush. “Is that so?”

“Fuckin’ oath.”

I laugh. “How can you be so sure? You don’t even know me. Maybe I’m a nightmare.”