Chapter 4 4

Kennedy said with a smile, "The girl has a temper."

"Told you."

"Hey," Kylie said as she walked up to the two at the bar.

"Hi," Jessica told her, "Do you know who that guy was?"

"I do not know and I do not care," Kylie said with a sigh. She signalled the bartender for a drink and took the empty seat next to Jessica.

"Okay. Well, he deserved it," Jessica said with a laugh as she remembered the slap; it had looked painful. She could not wait to see Kylie's reaction when she learned that the guy was the male lead. There was no way she was going to miss that.

Kennedy coughed a little to remind Kylie of his presence. "Oh yeah." Jessica slapped her forehead with her hand; she'd forgotten about him for a moment. "Kylie, this is Kennedy Jasper, the choreographer I told you about; he's going to help you dance."

"Me?" asked Kennedy in surprise.

"Yes, we have already talked about it," Jessica said, wiggling her eyebrows to remind him of their bet.

"Kennedy, this is Kylie. She's here in New York for the movie," she finished the round of introductions.

"Nice to meet you," they both said as they shook hands.

"Jessica said she would help me, but, I did not know she'd be so quick," Kylie said, and when she realised he'd seen her too, she added, "Sorry about that scene earlier, I am not usually like that."

Wow! This guy was dreamy. Wait a minute, this was the same guy she'd noticed on the set. She'd recognise those tousled brown curls anywhere and now she could get a good look at him. Finally her question was answered; his grey eyes were captivating and beautiful. Through the fabric clinging to his skin, she could almost see the outline of his abs. This guy was truly a feast for the eyes. Seeing him from a distance had been okay, but seeing him up close now was just stunning. She tried really hard to look calm, but inside she was furious.

It had probably been quite a long time since she had had sex. She and Christian had been putting things on the back burner for some time. The way things had been going, she did not even know she could feel that way again.

"It is nothing. He really deserved it," Kennedy assured her. Damn. Up close, she was beautiful. He could drown in those gorgeous eyes that were as blue as the depths of the ocean; he had to force himself to avert his gaze. Even her strawberry blonde hair matched her temperament perfectly. He did not want to do anything with this girl, even though she was so beguiling and alluring; and the fact that he would be spending a considerable amount of time with her did not make things any easier.

"So, now we have done the introductions, it's time for the party," Jessica said, trying to lighten the mood.

For a moment, she had been uncomfortable. Even a stranger could sense the tension emanating from them; she had been right, they were a perfect match. The chemistry between them was practically palpable. She knew she had given her word, but she could not just sit back and not play a little cupid.

"Let us go dancing," Jessica suggested.

"You know that is not a good idea," Kylie said.

"I am fine here," Kennedy also said. He was still trying to get himself under control.

He just hoped Jessica did not notice the effect Kylie was having on him, or he would not live to see the end of it.

Jessica was so pushy, especially in his affairs, but he had to hand it to her; she just wanted to look out for him.

"Kylie, I really need you to keep him company so Kennedy knows who he is going to be working with," Jessica told Kylie. She was really enjoying this.

Kylie just rolled her eyes. Jessica always got what she wanted.

This was going to be very awkward, and she could not do it sober. She turned and signalled the bartender for more shots, which she immediately gulped down and followed Jessica, who was already moving toward the dance floor.

She was nervous because she could feel Kennedy's eyes on her. She had never felt the need to impress anyone before, and it was no use to her now, because she knew fully well that she could not dance, but Jessica had already dragged her into this, so she had no choice but to just get it over with.

On the dance floor, Kylie did not know what she was doing at all. She just followed what the people around her were doing, but she knew she could not even get that right.

Jessica got carried away with the music, and Kylie was sure she had all but forgotten her as Jessica swayed to the music and got high on it.

That left Kylie with two choices: Either she stayed and continued to make a fool of herself, or she give up and go back to her seat. Well, she decided on the latter, better the guy than this dance floor and besides, she needed another drink, her throat was pitted. So with that decision she made her way back to her seat. She had been right, Kennedy had been looking right at her and that only made her more nervous.

_ _ _

Kennedy could not keep his eyes from her on the dance floor as she danced or what was her own version of dancing. He had tried so hard to suppress his laughter, but one thing was for sure, she was unique.

Once she had stopped trying to dance like the others around her, she had moved with the music. She had potential, but she just needed to loosen up and let go, because everything holding her back was all in her head.

He had a lot of work to do. She approached him again, so he assumed she was done dancing.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," he replied.

Kylie took a seat next to him and ordered another drink. The silence between them grew more uncomfortable until she decided to break it. "How was I out there?" she asked.

Kennedy was surprised at first, then cleared his throat. "You were pretty good," he replied, trying not to give the impression that he had been staring at her the whole time.

"That bad, huh?" said Kylie with a laugh. "You really do not have to cheer me up."

"No, seriously. You were not that bad," Kennedy assured her.

"You are the choreographer, so I'll take your word for it. Do you think you'll be ready in time for the dance?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll make sure of that. That's what I signed up for, right?" he said, laughing.

"Could you show me some of the other guys I'll be working with?" asked Kylie.

Kennedy showed her the other people. They talked about other things. The two were joking and laughing like longtime friends in no time.

As they were still talking, Jessica said, "It seems like you guys are having fun without me,"

"No, he just told me about the one time in his childhood when his mother had bought a pink backpack for his sister and he got a blue one. He had cried all day because he wanted a pink backpack too, but his mother had refused, saying pink was too girly for him. He had thrown a tantrum for days and refused to eat, but later he had gotten his way," Kylie told the story. She could well imagine his sweet face pleading with his mother and the poor woman having no choice but to give in. Who would not give him everything he wanted with those eyes that could just captivate you. She would bet that it had been very hard to say no to him.

"Oh, that story," Jessica said with a laugh.

"That's still one of my favourite stories. I cannot imagine why he wanted a pink backpack, too. And his poor mother, who could not say no to anything he wanted."

"It's not my fault," Kennedy said, trying to defend himself. "I was young. I thought it was beautiful." He joined in the laughter.

Kylie was easy to talk to; he just felt comfortable when he was with her.

Kylie looked at her watch, "Shoot, I did not know it was this late."

"What does it matter? You do not have any plans tomorrow." Jessica reminded her.

"I know, but I wanted to check on rentals in the area. I do not want to keep inconveniencing you," she explained.

"You know I am not complaining," Jessica said.

"I know, but I just like being independent."

"I could help you," Kennedy offered. "I know a place." No sooner had the words left his mouth than he wished he could take them back.

He did not want to spend extra time in her presence unless it was absolutely necessary, like class time, but Kennedy could not deny that part of him really wanted to spend that time with her and get to know her better.

"No. I am sure I'll be fine on my own." Kylie said very quickly, as if she did not even have to think about it.

"Kylie, you do not have to be so strict about this. Remember that you need to practise. After you get the car,maybe you two can get the lesson over with," Jessica interjected.

"That's true," Kylie conceded, not that she had anything to lose.

"Well, that's settled then. I'll give him the address where you are staying, if you do not mind. He will be coming by tomorrow, so be ready." Jessica concluded.

"Okay," said Kylie. She said goodbye to him and left.

"That went well," Jessica said as soon as Kylie left.

Kennedy looked at her suspiciously. "You promised not to try anything."

"I did not do anything," Jessica said, raising her hand in surrender, "but you are not going to tell me you do not like her," she said, winking at him.

Kennedy stammered, but pulled himself together. "Even if I did, I have already told you that I am not going to start anything with her or anyone else. So let us leave it at that."

"Okay, if that's what you say, but we will see," Jessica said. "Let's get out of here."

He paid for their drinks and they left. He had really enjoyed himself and Kylie had been the highlight of it all. He was glad he would see her again soon, even if she did not quite like the arrangement, she had just accepted it because she had no choice.

But Kennedy knew he would hurt himself if he approached her, especially if she had to leave, but he would think about that later. He was not going to start anything with her like he had told Jessica, he would fight those feelings.