Like whatever it is that makes Dylan attractive to me.
The man can’t say the word vagina without laughing.
As if sensing her attention, Dylan looked across at her. Their gazes met and held. Regardless of all the reasons she believed it shouldn’t, her heart began to race. Her breath became shallower and there was a little flutter in her chest. A fucking flutter. She narrowed her eyes out of irritation with herself.
I should just have sex with him and be done with it.
She mentally charted her cycle and blamed it for her enhanced attraction to a visibly strong man. There was a reason why the study of human sexuality was such a complicated field. Although she had little interest in them, recent studies supported the theory that chemosignaling played a role in sexual responses.
Fundamentally, regardless of how much one might want to deny it, people were still mammals—still operating on instinct and behaviors driven by their biological design. Those factors were the only rationale for Aly’s body having a mind of its own when Dylan was around.
Funny how arbitrary life could be at times. The only reason Aly was on Clay Landon’s jet, flying off to watch Dylan on the set of his latest movie, was because her two best friends were marrying into this mix. Angelina’s engagement to Connor had drawn Aly and Joanna into the group. Joanna’s relationship with Bradford, a good friend of the Barringtons, had tightened the bond.
Aly’s gaze wandered back to Dylan, who was shaking his head over something his brother had said, likely something outrageous. Connor was loveable, but he did like to shock people. She could only imagine what he’d say if Dylan ever dated a gynecologist. She groaned. The jokes would never end.
Prior to falling for Bradford, Joanna had considered Dylan a romantic prospect. She’d joked that if she married Dylan and hurried children along, she and Angelina could have offspring that looked similar. Despite her own attraction to Dylan, that pairing had made sense to Aly. Ultimately, though, Joanna’s interest had turned to Bradford.
I still worry about them.
Bradford loved Joanna, but he had a dark history that Aly hoped would never endanger Joanna. He and Ian said they sometimes worked for the government but were evasive about what they did. There was an edge to both men that Aly was too realistic to find attractive.
Not that she could see herself with a puppy like Connor.
Or a peacock like Clay.
Dylan met her gaze again and she shuddered as a wave of warmth flooded her. Oh, hell no. Not him either. Rev up as much as you want, body, but he’d never be more than a guilty indulgence.
After giving herself a mental shake and Dylan another glare, Aly turned to look out the window. She would have tried to read again, but she was too distracted.
Two hours left.
Then I can put some distance between us and enjoy being on vacation with my friends.
Chapter Two
“Have you tried talking to her?” Claire asked.
“Who?” Her question had come out of the blue and took Dylan by surprise.
Claire lowered her voice. “You know.”
No, not falling for that. “I don’t.”
After a pause, Claire leaned closer. “I can’t tell if you really don’t know or if you don’t want to discuss it.”
He smiled. “You’ve taught me well.”
Humor shone in her eyes. “I guess I have.” Then her expression became more serious. “It’s good to see you doing as well as you are. You look happy. Are you?”
“No reason I wouldn’t be. I never saw myself as an actor, but the more I do it the more comfortable I’m becoming with it.”
She searched his face. “This movie kept you away from everyone for long enough that we all want to make sure you’re okay.”
He frowned. “That’s what this is about? You’re worried about me?”
“No. No.” She sighed. “We care about you, that’s all. Connor struggled with finding a balance between who he was and his new fame. How are you handling it?”
“I’m not Connor,” Dylan said firmly, but kindly. He took a moment to choose how best to express the difference. By job description, Claire was a life coach. She was more than that, though. She’d become a good friend, a trusted source of advice, and more family than anything else. Few people had had as big of an impact on his life as she had. “Sometimes it does feel like there are two versions of me. Although I like both of them, it can be difficult to navigate the waters where they mix. Connor is funny as hell and when we’re alone we’re who we’ve always been—and it feels good. When I’m away from him, I’m—”
“More dignified?”
“I was about to say free but that doesn’t sound the way I mean it.” He rolled his shoulders backward. “All this acting has made me realize that we also play roles in our daily lives. Some we write ourselves, some are written for us.”
Claire’s eyes rounded. “Deep.”
His smile twisted. “And unexpected. I know. I have played the strong clown most of my life. It worked for where I was and what I needed to be. My path before the Barringtons was clear. Connor and I didn’t need college. We both intended to take over our father’s business and we would have done well there. I didn’t ask for my life to change, but when it did I saw it as an opportunity to discover what else I could be.”
Claire blinked a few times fast. “That’s beautiful.”
Feeling a little self-conscious, Dylan shrugged. “I don’t know about all that, but it’s why I chose this movie and to do it on my own. I’ve had time to see who I’d be away from everyone else.”
“And?”
“And I like this version of me as well. Don’t get me wrong, there are parts of being famous I could do without, but you prepared me for most of what I’ve encountered.”
Claire gave his forearm a quick squeeze. “I like it as well. Just don’t turn your back on all the things that made you wonderful before.”
“I won’t.”
She gave him another long look. “Are you concerned about having Connor on the set of this movie?”
She was the only one who might understand why he didn’t have a quick answer to that. There was nothing in the world more important to him than his family. Hell, if they needed him to, he’d walk away from his movie deal, weather the legal battle that would follow, and give up his new career to do what needed to be done.
But if Connor had a few drinks and told the movie crew about any of the shit the two of them had done as kids . . .
“I’ll speak to him,” Claire said.
Dylan opened his mouth to say it wouldn’t be necessary, then decided it might be best to let her. She had a soft way of bringing a person around. Dylan nodded once in place of saying anything. He didn’t want his brother to feel judged, but Connor had always been impulsive.
When he’d streaked naked across the football field, it had been Dylan who had punched the snot out of anyone who would have given him shit for it. When Connor fucked his way through everyone’s sister in their town, Dylan had met the angry brothers at the end of the driveway. Connor had no idea that the blessed life he’d lived had been possible only because he and Viviana had held the wolves at bay.