What If

                                                                        Chapter 36

The next morning, Oded entered the Offices of Stan Martin Publicists, Inc. for his meeting with Stan Martin. His meeting with Stan wasn’t until 10:00 a.m. and it was just after 9:00 now. He wanted to talk to Trish before the meeting, hoping that she would tell him the truth. He’d only talked to her once since last Saturday morning and that was only to tell her to keep away from him. She had pretended to be shocked and hurt, but she hadn’t called him once. He hoped he would be done with his meeting with Stan quickly. He was to pick up his baby sister from LAX this afternoon. In all the commotion going on in his life, he’d completely forgotten that she was coming for a visit from Israel for a week.

Entering the reception area, Oded found Debbie not at her desk. He glanced around and noticed Trish’s door cracked open a bit, and he could hear her talking. Normally Oded abhorred eaves dropping, but under the circumstances, he decided that listening in on what Trish was saying might be to his benefit. He quietly approached the door and stopped before it.

Trish laughed. “No, no. I’m telling you, I got him where I want him. It’s just a matter of time.” Pause. “I realize that, Michelle, but he’ll soon realize that I’m the only one who will ever understand him.”

Oded’s eyes widened at her statement. God, this woman needed some serious help!

“Well if he doesn’t come to me soon, I’ll just have to tell him I’m pregnant or something. He’s the real old fashioned type, he’d marry me just because of that. By the time he realizes that I wasn’t pregnant or that we never slept together in the first place, it will be too late. By then, we will have slept together and I will be pregnant.”

Oded’s knees nearly buckled as his hands came up to brace himself against the doorframe. He felt sick at what he’d just heard, but he had the truth now. He’d been right, she had set him up. Oded took a deep breath as his anger threatened to explode. He raised his hand and hit the door with the flat of it, sending it flying open. Trish glanced up and froze as she saw the pure, intense rage that filled Oded’s dark eyes.

“Oh shit!” she cursed. “Michelle, I’ll have to call you back later.” Trish hung up the phone and gave Oded a smile. “Oded, I didn’t know you were visiting today.”

“I have a meeting with Stan in about half an hour. I’ve requested a new publicist be assigned to me,” he informed her quietly, but the tone he used told her he was anything but calm.

“Why? I’ve done a good job for you . . .”

“God damn it, Trish!” Oded exploded. “Just stop it already! For god sakes, I heard what you said on the phone. I know you set me up! I’m going to meet with Stan and if you know what’s good for you, you will accept this change and leave me the hell alone. Because so help me god, if you don’t, if you continue to harass me or Raegan, I will have you arrested for stalking!”

Trish stood up suddenly, sending her chair flying back to hit the wall behind her. “You wouldn’t dare!” she hissed. Trish new that stalking a celebrity was a very serious charge nowadays. The cops in L.A. took these charges very seriously. If Oded was to press charges against her, whether they stuck or not, she would never work as a publicist again.

“Try me!” Oded answered, then turned and left her office. He was so furious when he left Trish’s office that he decided to go for a walk to cool down before meeting with Stan. He felt vindicated now that he knew that it had all been a lie. He could call Raegan today after the meeting and tell her. They could work things out. Oded stopped, remembering his sister. “Rachel,” Oded groaned. Okay, well whether he liked it or not, Raegan would have to wait until Rachel left at the end of next week. Oded glanced at his watch and saw that it was almost time for his meeting. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, he turned and headed back to the agency, feeling better than he had in weeks.

Oded’s meeting with Stan Martin went well. They talked at length about Oded’s reasons for wanting a change. Oded told Stan that there was a conflict of interest with Trish, that they did not get along, without going into all the details and telling him everything, Oded eluded to the fact that Trish was harassing him. He wasn’t prepared to destroy her career completely, but neither would he lie to Stan about his reasons for wanting a new publicist.

“Well, I’m really sorry to hear you and Trish have had so much conflict, Oded. She’s one of my finest publicists, but I certainly can’t have the clients paired up with publicists that they don’t get along with. Just a moment.” Stan picked up his phone and punched a button. “Cyndi, can you send Troy in here now? Thanks.”

A moment later a short, stocky man walked in. He had dark hair and blue eyes. He wore a nice business suit and had a confident look about him. “Oded, this is Troy Lewis. He will be your new publicist. Troy, this is Oded Fehr.”

Oded stood up and smiled. “Nice to meet you, Troy,” he said as he reached out to shake Troy’s outstretched hand. The only thing that would have made Oded happier at that moment was if Raegan forgave him. Oded thanked Stan for everything, then followed Troy back to his office where they discussed a few things before Oded told him he had to go and pick up his sister at the airport.

“No problem, Oded. I’ll call you later this week. In the mean time, I’ll get your file from Trish and go through it,” Troy told him as they shook hands again.

“Thanks, Troy. I’ll talk to you soon.” Oded left the building feeling as if things were finally starting to look up.

Nancy slowly started introducing the idea that Oded had been set up to Raegan over the next few days. She had to word it carefully and to move with caution. She didn’t want Raegan to think that she was betraying her and siding with Oded. It was a hard process. At first Raegan didn’t even want Oded’s name mentioned around her, but by the time the weekend was over and they were halfway through the next week, Raegan felt she was ready to talk about him. So while she and Nancy were having lunch together at work on Wednesday, Raegan finally glanced up at Nancy and asked, “So why do you think Oded would have been set up?”

Nancy had been so surprised by the question that she had nearly choked on her bite of sandwich. After coughing a few times, she cleared her throat. “You ready to listen or is that a rhetorical question?”

Raegan looked around the small restaurant where they sat, then finally met her friends gaze. “I’m ready to listen,” she answered softly.

“Good. Rick and I, well mostly Rick, have been keeping in touch with Oded,” Nancy began.

“I see,” Raegan said flatly.

Nancy sighed. “I didn’t speak to Oded myself until this past Thursday, Rae, but Rick has been talking to him since the whole thing began.” Nancy went on to explain how apparently after Rae had left Oded that Saturday morning, Oded had called Rick and asked him to come out. “They talked. Oded told him what had happened and Rick believed him. It wasn’t until this last Thursday that Rick convinced me that Oded was telling the truth. That he felt Trish had set him up and made it look like they had had sex, but when in reality they hadn’t.”

“And you talked to him?” Raegan asked tentatively. Her heart was racing triple time. She missed Oded so much, and she desperately wanted what Nancy said to be the truth.

“Yes, I talked to him briefly, Rae,” Nancy answered. She paused a moment, then added, “He misses you too, Rae. I could hear it in his voice. This has been really hard on him. He asked about you, and was really upset when I told him how hard you were taking this.”

“Oh god!” Raegan breathed in sharply, trying to keep the tears at bay. She brought her hands up to her face and pressed them to her eyes as if it would keep the tears from falling.

“Talk to him, Rae. Give him a chance to explain everything about what happened. He’s never lied to you before; I don’t see why he would start now. Oh and before I forget,” Nancy paused to take a drink of her soda. “He told me that he was getting a new publicist, that he was meeting with the owner of the firm and having a new one assigned to him.”

Raegan’s eyes widened. “Really? So Trish is out of the picture?”

Nancy smiled. “Looks that way. At least she will have nothing to do with his career anymore and no excuse to be over at his place or to show up where he is filming.”

Raegan considered what Nancy had told her. “Thanks Nancy, I’ll think about what you said. Maybe I will give Oded a call soon.”

Soon came that very afternoon. After Nancy and Raegan had returned from lunch, Raegan had sat at her desk and stared at Oded’s picture. She had pulled it from a drawer that she had shoved them all in. She contemplated it for over an hour before she finally got up the nerve to call him.

“Hello?” A young accented female voice answered.

Raegan gasped softly and nearly hung up, but decided she’d better make sure that she didn’t get a wrong number. “Is Oded there?”

“Yes, but he’s taking a shower now. Can I take a message?”

“No, thank you, bye.” Raegan nearly tumbled over her words and hung up the phone quickly. She nearly sobbed as she put her head down on her desk and began to cry. A woman was answering his phone now. Obviously, Nancy had been wrong and Oded had moved on with his life . . . without her.

Oded came down the stairs in a pair of cut-offs and a tank top. His hair, wet from the shower, was combed back and hung down past his shoulders. He saw Rachel hanging up the phone. “Did somebody call, Rachel?” Over the past several days since Rachel had arrived, Oded had caught himself almost calling Raegan. It was hard when the pronunciation of your sister’s first name began like the woman you loved.

“Yeah, really weird, Ded. She asked for you, but then refused to leave a message, almost hanging up on me.” Rachel moved towards the kitchen, her long dark hair hung braided down her back.

“Really? It was a woman?” Oded asked, heading over to his phone.

“Yeah. She sounded a bit scared, like she wasn’t sure if she should be calling or something. Like I said, Ded, it was really weird,” Rachael answered and went into the kitchen.

Oded held his breath as he wondered if it could have been Raegan. Nobody that he knew of would hang up without leaving a message, except maybe Raegan. Oded picked up the phone, deciding to take a chance. He dialed the number to Raegan’s office and asked Tina to connect him to Raegan’s desk. Oded could hear his heart pounding in his ears when the phone began to ring.

“This is Raegan.”

Oded had to sit when he heard her sweet voice. She sounded as if she’d been crying, and he wanted to hold her so badly his arms literally ached with the need. “Hello Raegan.” His voice came out deep and husky.

“Oded!” Her voice hitched as she said it. His deep voice washed over her, and she had to close her eyes to keep from swaying. “You knew it was me didn’t you?” she asked softly.

“I had hoped.” Oded released the breath he’d been holding. It had been her calling!

“Who is she?” Raegan asked curiously. There was no anger anymore, just an insane desire to know who she’d been replaced with.

Oded frowned. “Who is who?”

“The woman who answered your phone,” Raegan asked, wiping tears from her cheeks, not really sure if she wanted to hear his answer.

Oded chuckled. It was a wonderful sound, and Raegan shivered as the vibration of it came through the phone, making her whole body come alive with wanting him. “You mean the young girl who would like to think she is a woman? That is my baby sister, Rachel. She is here visiting me for the week. She got here on Friday afternoon and leaves Saturday morning.”

“Your sister?” Raegan squeaked, wishing she could have crawled into a hole. “Oh god, she must think I am a complete moron the way I practically hung up on her.”

Oded sighed. “Oh Rae, did you think I had replaced you in my heart already?”

Raegan froze, not able to breath. She swallowed hard, her heart beating triple time, only to skip a beat then race on. “I, I uh, well, haven’t you?” she finally asked, frustrated with herself.

“God no!” Oded said in a breathy rush. “I could never replace you, don’t you know that? I miss you so much, Rae, it hurts every moment that we are apart. I want to hold you, kiss you, taste you, touch you, make love to you . . .”

“Oh my god!” Rachel exclaimed disgustedly from behind him. “Just wait till Momma finds out! I can’t believe you are into that phone sex stuff, Ded. That is so sick!”

Oded clenched his jaw as he closed his eyes. Damn, he’d forgotten Rachael was there! “Hold on, sweetness, while I deal with my wayward sister.” He could hear Raegan laughing quietly, and he had to smile. He couldn’t help it. To hear her laughing again was the most beautiful sound he’d heard in a long time. “Rachel, do you mind? I would like a little privacy here!”

“Oded!” He heard Raegan yelling at him. “Don’t you talk to her like that!”

Oded smiled again. God it was good to hear her voice again, even when it was yelling at him! He sighed, “Rachel, I’m not having phone sex. I’m talking to Raegan.”

Rachael had circled the couch to stand in front of him. “Really? That’s your girlfriend, right? The one you’re so nuts about? The one you’ve been telling Momma about?”

“Yes.” Oded smiled at her. “So would you mind going outside or upstairs so I can finish talking to her?”

“Sure, okay. Tell her I said hi and I hope I get to meet her before I leave Saturday,” Rachel said and headed to the back yard.

“Did you catch all of that?” Oded asked Raegan once Rachel was outside.

“Yes I did.”

“Raegan,” Oded began.

“I would really like to meet your sister before she leaves, Ded. If that is all right with you?” Raegan asked, still uncertain of how things were between them. She doodled on a pad of paper before her, writing out his name over and over.

“That would be nice, Rae. Maybe we can come and take you to lunch tomorrow?”

“Yes, that would be nice,” Raegan answered, her heart leaping at the thought of seeing him. Her palms were already beginning to sweat at the thought of it.

“We still need to talk, sweetness,” Oded finally said, bring to front the problem they still faced. “I have a lot to tell you.”

“Yes I know, but I’m ready to listen now, Ded,” Raegan informed him.

Oded sighed softly and drew a hand across his face. He suddenly felt very tired. “I’m glad. But it will have to wait till Rachel is gone. Can I come get you Saturday after I see her off safely?”

“I hoped you would,” Raegan answered.

“Oh god, Raegan, I don’t know if I can wait. I need to see you right now.”

“Oh Ded,” Raegan started to cry again. “I want to see you too.”

“Damn!” Oded cursed softly. “All right, that’s it. I’m on my way.”

“What about Rachel?”

“She’ll be fine. Don’t worry, I won’t stay long, I just need to hold you.” His voice nearly broke on the last part, and he breathed in deeply through his nose.

“Come to the conference room, you remember where?” Raegan asked.

“Yes. I’ll see you there in about fifteen minutes,” Oded answered and hung up. “Rachel!” he yelled as he headed up to his room to grab his wallet and his keys. He glanced in the mirror quickly and winced. He looked haggard, and he had bags under his eyes from not sleeping well. He also hadn’t shaved in several days and his face looked scraggly with beard stubble. He ran a brush through his already drying hair. The curls had already shrunk up his hair till it was even with his shoulders. He grabbed a pair of tennis shoes and shoved his feet inside, not bothering with socks. As he bounded down the stairs, he saw Rachel standing at the back door.

“Yes?” she said.

“I’ve got to go out for an hour. Will you be okay here alone till I get back?” he asked, grabbing his cell phone off the kitchen table.

“Sure, I’ll call if anything comes up. Go enjoy your time with Raegan.”

Oded whipped his head around to stare at Rachel. She was very perceptive for someone her age. He smiled. “I promise I won’t be gone long. We are having lunch with her tomorrow, so you’ll meet her then.”

Rachel smiled back. “Cool!”

Oded crossed the room and kissed her forehead. “Be back soon, sis. You have the cell number if you need me.”

“Go already!” Rachel pushed him away and watched him as he headed to the garage.

Fifteen minutes later Oded tapped on the conference room door, and it opened immediately. He could only stand there and stare at her for a moment before she was grabbing his hand and dragging him in. And then she was in his arms, her body pressed against his, her sweet lips opening on his as his tongue swept through her mouth, his arms closing around her. He groaned as he pulled her hard against him, one hand moving up to cup the back of her head, holding her still so that he could plunder her mouth, taste every exquisite inch of her mouth. Her arms were wrapped around his neck. She was up on her tiptoes, pushing against him. Her tongue was fighting to get into his mouth but Oded was being greedy, and he wasn’t ready to relinquish the lead yet.

He turned her suddenly, lifting her as her legs wrapped around his waist. He drove her back into the wall behind her, nearly knocking the wind from her. He maneuvered her until his erection was grinding against her womanhood. They both groaned, each swallowing the sound from the other. Dear god, he needed her. He hadn’t meant to do this. He had only wanted to hold her, but now, now he couldn’t help himself. They had been apart for too long, and having almost lost her again only added to the need. He pushed his hips into her again, rubbing himself against her, mimicking the rhythm.

“Ded!” Raegan cried out, her climax nearing.

“Sweet Jesus!” Oded whispered as he dropped her legs long enough to strip her underwear down from beneath her sundress and to unbutton and unzip his cutoffs, shoving them down. Seconds later he was lifting her again and impaling her on him. She clutched at his hair as his mouth found her throat. He drove hard into her, the feel of being inside her again brought him to his release almost immediately. Raegan cried out softly as her own release shattered her completely. Tears ran down her cheeks as Oded thrust hard and fast, pumping his seed deep within her.

Oded sank to his knees, holding her to him. He kissed her face, tasting the salt of her tears as his own ran unchecked down his cheeks. “God, I love you, Raegan,” Oded breathed against her face as his lips moved over hers and continued across her the other side. “Please forgive me for hurting you, for letting you down.”

Raegan shook her head, bringing her hands up to frame his face. “No Ded, it is I who am sorry. I should have gone with you. If I had, none of this would have happened. But most of all I should have trusted you. Forgive me for not believing.”

Oded groaned as he crushed her to him. His hands tangling in her long hair, messing up the long braid she wore. They held each other for a long while before Oded finally had to move. His legs were getting numb. Raegan eased off him and put her panties back on. She laughed when Oded nearly stumbled trying to stand up. He got his cutoffs up and buttoned, and then sat down in a chair because his legs were in pain from sitting on them for too long. He smiled at her when she came to sit in a chair next to him, but he caught her hand and yanked her across his lap.

Her hand came up to caress his stubbled cheek. “You look terrible,” she smiled.

Oded laughed softly. “And you are the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen!” he answered, kissing her lightly.

Raegan leaned back to get a look at his clothes and began laughing. “Trying to make a fashion statement, sweetheart?”

“What’s wrong with what I am wearing?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. “It’s hotter than Hades outside. You want me to put on a suit or something?” Raegan only smiled and shook her head. She continued to touch his face, unable to help herself. Her fingers traced gently across the dark circles under his eyes as his hands rubbed up and down her arms. “I can’t stay, sweetness.”

“I know.”

Neither one of them moved. They continued to sit there, touching each other and gazing longingly at each other’s faces. Oded’s hands moved to her waist, his thumbs grazing across her ribs. “You’ve been losing weight, Rae,” he observed.

“And you haven’t been sleeping, Ded,” They both smiled at each other.

Oded raised his hands to frame her face as he drew her close for a kiss. “Okay, now I really have to go.” Raegan nodded as she moved off his lap.

They left the conference room hand in hand and were almost back to the reception area when Nancy came around the corner, nearly running into them. “Rae, hey listen, I wanted . . . Oded!” Nancy exclaimed.

Oded smiled. “Hi Nance.”

Nancy stood there wide-eyed, her eyes shifting from Oded, to Raegan, down to their joined hands, then back up at Raegan’s tousled hair and red rimmed mouth. “Damn, I’d say a lot has happened since lunch, huh, Rae?”

Raegan smiled. “Yeah.”

Nancy smiled back, glancing back over at Oded. “Good! Nice to see you again, Ded. Nice legs.” Humor danced around in her blue eyes as she started to turn away. She turned back at the last second and grinned. “Oh and um, you might want to, ahem, zip up.” She wiggled her finger in an up and down direction towards his cutoffs.

Oded glanced down to see his shorts were indeed unzipped. He rolled his eyes as his cheeks turned a bright red. “Thanks Nance, you’re a real peach!” he said as he zipped his shorts.

“Always glad to be of service, Dedman!” She laughed and walked away.

Oded turned to Raegan to find her hiding a smile, but her eyes were dancing merrily. He grinned at her. “I guess we were busted.”

“Mmmm hmmm.”

He leaned forward and kissed her. “Rachel and I will be here to get you tomorrow about one, all right?”

“Yes.”

Oded groaned as he forced himself to step away from her. “I love you,” he said as he backed away from her towards the elevators.

“I love you, too,” she answered. Raegan turned to go into the bathroom to straighten herself up when Oded called out to her.

“Rae?”

She turned back and looked at him. “Yes?” God, he is beautiful, she thought.

“I just wanted you to know that I did find out it was all a lie,” Oded said.

Raegan smiled. “I’m glad.” Inside, she felt as if a giant weight had been lifted. “Nancy said you asked for a new publicist.”

“Yeah, his name is Troy,” Oded smiled. “Really nice guy.” They stared at each other until the elevator dinged its arrival and the door slid open.

“See you tomorrow,” Raegan said. Oded nodded and stepped into the elevator. The door slid shut and he was gone.

                                                               ********************

                                                                        Chapter 37

“Yeah, you’d better be coming in here and parking your ass in that chair!” Nancy quipped as she glanced up to see Raegan enter her office. They both grinned at each other. “So?”

“After thinking about what you said, I knew I needed to call him. So I did,” Raegan began. “His sister is in town visiting, so he just came by to see me real quick.”

Nancy laughed. “You mean he came by for a quickie.”

Raegan turned bright red. “Well, that wasn’t the intention, but yeah, that’s what ended up happening.”

“Uh huh, so when are you two going to get together and talk if his sister is here?”

“She leaves Saturday morning. He said he would see her off, then come and get me,” Raegan answered.

“Will you get to meet her before she goes? Is this his younger half sister?”

“Yes and yes,” Raegan smiled. “Her name is Rachel, and they are going to come and take me to lunch tomorrow.”

“Cool,” Nancy answered eyeing her closely. “Are you happy, Rae?”

Raegan nodded. “Very. We are going to work things out, Nance. Just before he left, he told me he found out that it was all a lie, so I guess Trish fessed up. He also said that his new publicist is a guy.”

Nancy smiled. “Good. No more women troubles!”

“Well, I need to get back to my desk,” Raegan said as she stood. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

“Okay,” Nancy answered and watched her best friend leave. She picked up her phone and dialed Rick at work to tell him the good news.

The next day, Oded and Rachel arrived just before one to pick Raegan up for lunch. Oded greeted her with a chaste kiss, but his eyes told her he wanted to devour her. He had called her later the night before, and they had talked for several hours. Not once did they touch on the subject of Trish, only playing catch-up on things that were happening. Oded told her all about Alberta and how the filming had gone. He told her about the things that he and Rachel had been doing since her arrival. Their goodnights had been full of promise for the weekend coming up, and now that he was standing before her looking sexier than any man had a right too. She was already wishing it was Saturday.

“Raegan, I want you to meet my baby sister, Rachel. Rachel, this is Raegan Lacy,” Oded introduced them.

“Nice to meet you, Rachel,” Raegan said as she held out her hand to the young girl.

Rachel took her hand and smiled, revealing straight, white teeth. “Nice to meet you too, Raegan. I’ve heard a lot about you over the last few months. You’re all Ded ever talks about anymore when he calls home - OW!” Rachel yipped when Oded poked her in the ribs.

Raegan laughed. “Oh really!” she said as she glanced over at Oded, whose cheeks were darkening under his olive complexion.

“You guys ready to go?” Oded asked, changing the subject. He reached for Raegan’s hand and gave it a squeeze as they headed out of the office and towards the elevators.

They had a nice lunch over in China Town and got back an hour later. Rachel had thrown her arms around Raegan and given her a big hug before they left, making Raegan feel really welcomed into Oded’s family, even though she had yet to meet any of his other family members. “I really like you, Raegan. Momma will be glad you two are back together again.”

That was the first Raegan had heard that his family had even been aware that they had broken up, but Oded only smiled and kissed her. “I’ll call you later, sweetness,” he said as he turned to leave.

“Have a safe trip home, Rachel,” Raegan called out.

“Thanks. Ded will bring you to Tel Aviv soon. Momma is going to be anxious to meet you,” Rachel called back as the elevator arrived. Oded ushered Rachel onto the elevator then turned to face forward. Their eyes met and Oded winked at her just as the elevator door closed.

Raegan let go of the breath she’d been holding. Go to Tel Aviv? The thought excited her even as it scared her to death. It was one thing to meet his sister, but to meet his mother? “Aye yi, yi!” Raegan turned and headed back to her desk.

By the time Saturday afternoon arrived, Raegan was a nervous wreck. For some reason she felt as if it were their first date all over again. Oded had called a bit ago and said that Rachel’s flight had just left and that he was on his way. Nancy was already gone with Rick, so Raegan was left alone with her thoughts. Just to keep busy, Raegan had cleaned the kitchen, including the fridge. Nancy would like that; she was forever griping about how Raegan let old food stack up in there. When she was done with the kitchen and Oded was still not there, she started on her bathroom. She was just finishing up when she heard the doorbell.

Oded smiled at her when she opened the door. “Hey, gorgeous!” he said as he stepped in and pulled her into his arms. He bent his head and kissed her soundly.

“Mmmm, hi to you too,” she whispered against his lips. “Did Rachel get off without any hitches?” she asked as Oded trailed kisses down her throat.

“Mmmm hmmm.” He nipped at the sensitive skin just below her ear and smiled when he heard her breath in sharply. “Where is Nancy?”

Raegan’s head fell back on her neck. “Gone with Rick.”

“Good,” he answered, and suddenly stooped to hook his arm beneath her legs and lifted her up. He kicked the door shut with his foot and carried her back to her bedroom.

Oded laid her across her bed, and after removing her shoes and socks and removing his own, he stretched out beside her. His hands were everywhere, caressing her tenderly, lovingly as if it might be the last time he ever touched her. His fingers worked the buttons on her blouse and eased it off her. Her bra followed quickly behind it. He worshiped her breasts with his hands and mouth, bringing her to tears as she moaned her pleasure.

Raegan pulled his shirt over his head and dumped it next to hers. Her hands smoothed over his warm skin and felt him shudder beneath them. Their pants came next as Oded continued to work his way down her body. He left no part of her untouched. He was intent of refamiliarizing himself with her body and a herd of wild horses could not have stopped him. Raegan enjoyed every aching moment of it. She reveled in his caresses, at his murmurs of love, and when he placed his mouth on the center of that ache and stroked her with his tongue she thought she would die. Raegan couldn’t have been happier than she was at that moment. She had her heart back, the man she loved. He was here with her now, loving her as if she were a precious gift. Oded lifted his head and their eyes met. He moved up her body until his lips met hers.

“You are precious to me,” he whispered as he thrust his tongue into her mouth.

How had he known what she’d been thinking? The thought flittered through her mind then was gone a split second later when he entered her body. The connection they shared was back and it hummed between them as Oded surged deep inside her. He couldn’t get deep enough as he thrust his hips forward. He widened her legs more, pushing gently at them, allowing him to sink deeper, but still he couldn’t get deep enough. “I want to be inside you.”

Raegan groaned as her fingers tangled in his hair. “You are love,” she whispered.

“No,” Oded gasped as he pulled out and surged in again. “I want to be inside you! All of me!”

Raegan felt her climax building as the friction of his thrusts sent waves of electrical shocks through her body. “Oh god!” she gasped. She felt like a live wire, her body jerking beneath him, electricity shooting out from her skin everywhere he touched.

His hands moved up her arms, pushing them back against the bed so that his fingers could lace through hers. His rhythm picked up as his breath came out in gusts against her throat. Raegan wrapped her legs around his hips and met his hard thrusts with her own as her release shattered within her and sent her soaring. Her fingers tightened around his as her body convulsed beneath him. Oded groaned out his own release and spilled his essence deep within her. He collapsed on top of her for a brief moment, before easing out of her and rolling over to his side. Raegan turned with him and his arms wrapped around her as they waited for their breathing to return to normal and their hearts to stop racing. It was several hours later when they both woke, neither one of them realizing that they had fallen asleep.

“You awake?” Oded asked softly as his hands moved up and down her spine.

“Mmmm hmmm,” Raegan answered as she shifted next to him.

“It’s almost 5 o’clock.”

“Mmmm hmmm.”

Oded chuckled. “Are we going to lay here all night?”

Raegan felt the vibration of his soft laughter against her cheek. “Mmmm hmmm.”

Oded moved suddenly, turning onto his back and bringing her up with him. She squeaked then, laughed as she looked down at him. “I’m hungry,” he announced.

“Me too.” She grinned and kissed him. She trailed her tongue along his full bottom lip, eliciting a groan from him.

“I’m talking about food, you little demon!” he growled playfully as he rolled again to pin her beneath him. Raegan laughed as his mouth caught hers for a long drugging kiss. “Let’s go get some dinner then go to my place,” he finally suggested after breaking the kiss.

“I was ready to do that several hours ago when you first got here, but nooooo, you had other ideas!” Raegan teased with a grin.

Oded smiled. “Oh I see, it’s my fault huh?” His fingers came up to find her ticklish ribs. Raegan screamed in laughter and began wiggling beneath him.

“Stop!” she shrieked. “Okay, okay!”

Oded released her as he rolled off her and sat up. Raegan gasped for breath and looked over at him. He smiled back at her over his shoulder, his eyes looking everywhere along her naked form. “Come on, sweetness,” he finally said a bit more seriously. “We still have a lot of things to talk about and it’s important that we do.”

Raegan nodded, her smile fading. “Okay.”

They got cleaned up and left. Oded took her to her favorite Mexican food restaurant, and they talked while they ate their dinner. Oded told her again everything that he remembered about that night that Trish had come to his hotel room. It pained Raegan to hear it, but she knew she had to. Even though Oded told her that it was all a set up, Raegan still blamed herself for it all happening. If she had just gone with him like he had wanted, then none of it would have ever happened. He told her about Trish showing up early at his condo that Saturday morning. They had argued until finally he had given up and gone to take a shower so he could call Raegan and possibly drive out to see her. “That’s when you showed up and, well, you know what happened after that.” By then Raegan was fighting tears. Her eyes burned, and she had to rub at them several times.

“Are you alright, sweetness?”

“Yes.” She looked up at him and smiled. She swallowed hard, knowing that she needed to tell him about her fears.

“Talk to me, honey,” Oded encouraged as he reached out and took her hand in his.

“I feel so guilty for not going with you, Oded. If I had of gone . . .” She let the sentence hang open between them.

“Rae, neither one of us could have predicted what was going to happen. I wish to God that we could have been spared all of this, but we weren’t. The only thing we can do now is allow ourselves to heal, learn from it, and move on.” Oded squeezed her fingers gently. “Move on together, sweetness.”

“I want you to know the truth about why I wouldn’t go with you,” Raegan said as she took a deep breath to settle her nerves.

“Okay, Rae, I’m listening,” Oded answered, giving her his full attention.

“It’s really quite silly. I’m not even sure where the fear came from, since it was the thing that drew me to you in the first place. But, well, I’m scared to death of your celebrity status,” Raegan announced. She eyed Oded closely to gauge his reaction.

“Wow!” Oded said as he leaned back in his seat, releasing her hand as he did. He had no clue what to say. Acting was what he did; it was a part of his life, just as Reagan was.

“The thought of going with you and being directly involved with your work as an actor frightened me. I was afraid that I would be in the way, that nobody would like me, that they would just think of me as another groupie or something,” Raegan elaborated. Oded sat there silently, just letting her get it off her chest, knowing he needed to hear it all before responding.

“So far we have pretty much been able to avoid the media and being in the limelight, so I haven’t had to deal with it. But I know that will change as you become more popular. I want to be there for you, Ded, I really do. I don’t want this to come between us, but I’m scared to death that the very popularity that you are looking for to boost your career will be the very thing that tears us apart. It seems that everyday you read about how this actor is divorcing his wife or vise versa. The reasons being that they are never together, or,” Raegan paused, “or one of them is unfaithful.”

“I see,” Oded said as he leaned forward. He propped his elbows up on the table and rubbed at his beard-covered chin with one hand. “So are you saying you don’t trust me?”

Raegan’s eyes grew wide as she realized he had misunderstood her words, “Oh god no, Oded. I trust you. I was only saying that it is something that breaks up celebrity marriages.”

“Raegan, I’m not asking you to marry me.” The words were out before he could stop them, and he knew immediately that he had hurt her feelings. “Ah hell, baby, I’m sorry.” He reached out and took her hand in his. “I didn’t mean it like that, really, I’m sorry.”

Raegan swallowed and wiped at the tears with her free hand. “I know you didn’t, but I probably deserved that, none the less.”

“No you didn’t,” Oded nearly growled at her. “I knew you weren’t talking about us in the marriage sense. I understood what you meant. I just had to open my big mouth and shove my foot in.”

“It’s alright, Oded, really.”

“Rae, don’t shrug this off. This is a serious fear for you, and I apologize for my thoughtless words. We have never talked about marriage, and who knows…” He smiled. “Maybe someday we will, but right now I think we need to concentrate on keeping our relationship together as it is.”

Raegan nodded and gave him a forgiving smile. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers before she continued. “Anyway, this fear has been gradually building without me realizing it because like I said, we haven’t really had to deal with that part of your life yet. So when you asked me to go with you a while back to San Francisco, I freaked. Yes, I couldn’t have gone with you anyway because of the trial, but ultimately that was just an excuse. I would have fought going regardless. Then when you asked me to go to Canada while you filmed your scenes for the movie, I just couldn’t do it.” Raegan sniffed. “I was so afraid of letting you down, of being a disappointment to you.”

“Oh Rae, you could never disappoint me,” Oded answered. “I have no answers for you, sweetness. I can only say that I love you more than anything and I will do whatever I can to make this work for us. But don’t ask me to give up my acting. I don’t know if I could just walk away from that.”

“Oh god no, Oded, I would never ask you to stop acting!” Raegan exclaimed.

“We have had it fairly easy so far regarding my career, Rae,” Oded began. “But it won’t be like that for long. I’ve got a new movie coming out in December ,and there will be premieres to attend, and if all goes well, I’ll be busy filming The Mummy sequel early next year. I will not be separated from you during that, Raegan, I’m telling you this now. I’m talking that I’m be out of the country for several months, not weeks. I’ll need you with me.”

Raegan nodded. “And I will go with you, even if I have to quit my job. I’m ready to do that now.”

Oded felt hope bloom within him. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Raegan answered as she looked him directly in the eyes.

“Will you move in with me?”

Raegan’s smile nearly blinded him as his heart leaped in his chest. “I thought you’d never ask.”

“I love you, Raegan. We will work through this, I promise.”

“I love you too, Oded.” Raegan smiled, knowing that everything was finally going to be all right for them now. She still had her fears, but Oded understood, and he was willing to work with her through them. It was all that mattered.

The End.