I can’t be certain a life with me would be enough for her. I can’t be certain that even Iwould be enough for her.
“What do you want to be next, Ally?” I hold my breath.
Her eyes sweep over my lips, my chin, my neck then back up to my face. “I don’t know. The future is scary. I just know that I’ve never felt this way before. I’ve never been so out of control and reckless and totally wrapped up in a person...ever. But then again, what if all this is just a temporary high? What if the taboo of it all is what’s driving us together?”
I brush her cheek, just so I can keep touching her. I need to remind myself that she’s here. Here with me. Not him. “Is that what you think this could be?”
“Honestly? No. But I’ve been wrong before. And that’s cost me my freedom. Walking away without repercussion isn’t an option for me. My life would come crashing down.”
I stay silent, because anything I could say would just be static. She’s right. She can’t just walk away. No matter what Evan does to her, no matter what he does with his little weasel prick, Ally has to play her role. The supportive, loving wife. Strong, resilient and tolerant. A perfect picture of grace and elegance.
“Justice?”
I smile through the infection of my thoughts, feeling them seep into my conscience. “Yeah?”
“Do you want me to walk away? Do you want me to leave him?”
My lips part, the answer burning my tongue. I swallow it down before answering. “I want you to do what makes you happy.”
She kisses my lips in response before nestling into my chest like a sleepy cat. My lips are in her hair, and I wrap both arms around her body, refusing to let her go.
I could make Ally happy. I could fill that void that’d be left from being extricated from the upper crust. But then what? What would that mean for my business? My reputation? Would I be exposing myself and reigniting the witch hunt that led me out to my lonely desert years ago?
I feel her breaths growing deeper and heavier, so I let my own tired eyes slip closed. “Please don’t leave me, angel,” I whisper, somewhere on the edges of sleep and the most beautiful dream. “I don’t want to be in the dark anymore.”
DRESSED ONLY IN soft, flannel pants, I pad out to the kitchen, led by the scents of bacon, eggs and toast. And coffee. Oh, sweet, wonderful coffee.
A hot breakfast and fresh coffee would be enough to make most men salivate, but the sight of Ally fluttering around in one of my prep school sweatshirts and nothing else, with a messy bun on top of her head, is just downright delectable. The thick, grey cotton is about five sizes too big for her and slips over a bare shoulder, exposing the top of her breast. I waste no time making my way over to cover that delicious patch of skin with my mouth.
“Good morning,” she smiles, her attention on the pan of fluffy, scrambled eggs on the stove.
“Morning. You weren’t there when I woke up.”
“I was sticky and hot, so I needed to shower. Plus, I was too hungry to sleep. We only had ice cream for dinner.” She turns her head and gives me a soft kiss.
“Speak for yourself. I ate more than that.”
A blush paints her cheeks, and I can’t resist kissing the one closest to me, feeling her skin heat under my lips. Soon, they’re trailing down her neck and to the sensitive area under her ear.
“Hey!” she squeals. “Some of us are working with scalding hot food here! Go sit down; your breakfast is just about ready. And your coffee’s on the counter.”
I give her bare ass a pinch before doing as I’m told.
“Oh, today’s paper was on the counter when I came out here. I hope whoever brought it in didn’t peek in on us. Holy shit, could you imagine?”
“Nah. My people aren’t like that,” I say sipping my brew. I push aside the Arizona Republic and pick up the New York Post, thankful that it’s still neatly folded. Ally didn’t read it.
I stop at the top story on Page Six, and blind rage has me seeing red. I can clearly read the headline—see his fake, solemn mug looking pathetic as fuck—but I can’t digest it. I can’t accept it. It’s a myth, a lie, like the fucking Easter Bunny or Santa Clause.
I read the story again, dissecting every word. It’s bullshit. It’s all bullshit. Evan was reeled in by his equally fucked up father, and was basically spoon-fed those manufactured lines of regret. He probably had the same song and dance memorized, considering he’s spewed the same rubbish more than once.
“Hey, can I get that after you’re done?” Ally asks, startling me from my murderous thoughts.
I look down at the paper in front of me. Evan looks so distraught, so remorseful. He looks exactly like a loving husband would when he’s missing his other half. “Sure,” I nod. Then, most unfortunately, the mug in my hand, the one I’m tipping to my lips, suddenly slips from my fingers, and drowns those blasphemous pages with hot coffee.
“Shit!” I hiss, jumping off my stool before the scalding liquid can hit my bare skin. I grab some napkins and sop up the mess, folding the ruined papers into a ball. Ally rushes over with a dishtowel just seconds after Evan’s face is marred beyond recognition.
“It’s ok,” she says, drying the countertop while I discard the mess. “I’ll get you another cup.”
“No,” I reply, coming up behind her. I kiss her neck, while my hands snake up the oversized sweatshirt that stops at the middle of her thighs. “You sit. I’ll take care of the rest.”
Evan may play a doting husband in front of the cameras, but I’m the one putting cream and sugar in Ally’s coffee. I’m the one serving her breakfast, even feeding it to her while her smooth, bare legs rest in my lap. And I’ll be the one spreading her body out on my kitchen breakfast bar and covering her swollen sex with mouth while she chants my name like a prayer.
Ally may be Evan’s by law, but she’s mine by nature. And in a battle between lions, no one gives a fuck about what’s lawful. It’s all brute strength, cunning and instinct. Three things I’ve utilized my entire life to survive.
WE’RE SITTING ON the couch, kissing like horny teenagers, while the TV plays in the background. Ally insisted she borrow a pair of boxers before sitting down, although I was more than happy to let her scent permeate the butter-soft leather.
“So what do you want to do?” she asks, straddling my lap.
I nudge my hips forward so that the hardened bulge under my thin pants presses against her mound. “I can come up with a few things.”
She rolls her eyes and purses her lips, stifling a smile. “I’m sure you could. But seriously. Let’s do something fun.”
“Like what?”
Ally reaches over to grab my phone, and I nearly jump out of my skin. However, she doesn’t slide the unlock icon, and instead pulls up the camera.
“Smile,” she says, taking the picture before I can react.
I grab her by the hips and tip my head to the side. “What are you doing?”
“Taking home a souvenir. I’m going to send these pics to myself. Come on, give me something I can work with.” The whir of the camera sounds three more times as she takes shots of my face, chest and abs.
“Mmmm, very nice. This’ll do nicely in my spank bank.” I snatch the phone away before she can get another candid shot of me, causing her to protest. “Hey! I wasn’t done yet!”
“My turn for a souvenir,” I reply, turning the camera on her. She instantly covers her face with her hands.
“Are you crazy? That’s exactly what I don’tneed. Half-nakey pics of the sullied socialite while she vacations alone with an unknown man.The tabloids will spin it to make it look like I was spread eagle on the couch, sucking a cherry red lollipop while making a sex tape.”
“Now that’s an idea,” I smirk, the visual in my head making my mouth water.