“I didn’t—” She gasped for air. “Stumble.”
She would argue in the middle of a panic attack. “You’re right. You fell. Flat on your gorgeous face. Could have knocked out your teeth too. Good thing I was your knight in shining armor.”
“You were not!” she argued as her breathing seemed to level out.
“Was too. Shh, you’re ruining the story.” My arms tightened around her. “And then when I sang to you… wow. You almost swooned right then and there.”
“I never swooned.”
“You wanted to swoon.” I chuckled at the memory.
“Alec—”
“—tsk, tsk, who’s telling the story?”
She sighed and took another deep breath. Her body sagged against mine in defeat.
“…I never told you, but…” My lips found her earlobe and then her neck. “I wanted to taste you so bad that day at school that I didn’t care. I didn’t care if I was going to hell. I didn’t care that I was hurting my brother. I didn’t even care that I was forcing your hand and putting you in a position where you had to choose. All I knew was I wanted you. Crazy, huh? My heart beat, her, her, her, over and over again. Every damn night until I thought I was going insane.”
“It beat for me?” she asked in a small voice.
How could she still not get it? How was it possible that she still didn’t know the way I felt about her?
“It still does. Every damn day, Nat. The day you said yes, the day you chose me, was the day that my heart stopped wanting to beat for me… it wanted to beat for you — only you — forever.”
A single tear ran down her cheek. “But, you’ve been so distant and weird and you’re smiling and—”
“People smile, Nat.” I could feel my control slipping. What if I just told her? Would she believe me? Believe my ridiculous story? It would make things so much easier. If I told her then… well, the fear that she could find out would be gone. Then again, she may never forgive me for ruining her life, for ruining our future — for ruining Demetri’s. I closed my eyes and lied. “And I’m stressed about the show and Demetri. Hell, it’s like I’m everyone’s dad. I’m just trying to figure out life.”
“I thought we were supposed to figure it out together.” She turned and got on her knees to face me. “Isn’t that what you do in relationships? You partner up? Fight for the greater good? Suffer together? Laugh and cry together? Isn’t that what we have, Alec?”
So much truth fit into her pleasant words. It sounded easy. But I knew it wasn’t. I knew that her words were just words that any person says when they’ve lived the perfect life. We can get through anything? Damn, Nat. I wish that was true. God, how I wished it. “Come here, sweetheart.”
She straddled my lap and sighed as my hands traced her face and finally cupped her chin. Nat needed the words. She needed the truth, but all I could do was lie again and hope to God that it would someday become truth. Because as of right now, I felt her slipping even further away from me. “What we have is more.”
“Promise?”
“With all my heart.” My voice caught as the words stumbled out of my mouth. Shit. I couldn’t go on like this. “I would never intentionally hurt you. You know that, right?” I played with a lock of her hair, twisting it around my fingers.
“I know.”
“Good.” I sighed. It was good enough for now. “Now, if your moment of hysteria is over… I think we should pop some champagne, eat some food, and be lazy.”
“Yes!” She yelled in my face, making me shake my head in laughter. “Sorry. I was bummed that we were going to miss lazy whore day today.”
“Me too.” I chuckled and patted her butt. “Okay, up. Let’s tell Mr. and Mrs. Smith what we want.”
“You.” She shrugged.
“Unfortunately, they still refuse to put me and Demetri on the menu. Weird, right?”
“I’ll lick you anyways.” She nudged me as we walked to the door.
I groaned. “You better run, woman, before I tackle you to the ground and have my way with you.”
She shrieked and took off running down the hall, laughing the entire way.
Chapter Seven
Alec
I let her win. I mean, we jogged with each other every day. I ran marathons; she used to be on track team in high school. The competitive streak in that one was incredible, but I felt bad since she just broke down in my arms.
I felt even worse when I realized I was the cause of it. It was my fault. I knew that much. I knew I was acting like an insane person, but I couldn’t shake the guilt, the worry, the threats. Maybe if everything wouldn’t have happened at once, I would have been able to carefully deal with each situation. Instead, it was like I woke up one day and I was in Hell. And I haven’t been able to leave ever since.
“Beat you!” Nat huffed and crooked her finger in my direction. “I shall receive my winner’s kiss, good sir!”
“Knight. Knight in shining armor, please.” I rolled my eyes. “At least get it right.”
“Fine.” She did a little curtsy and laughed. “Knight in shining armor.”
“At your service.” I swept her into my arms and swung her around the dining room, ravishing her mouth with such hunger that I was having trouble remembering my name. Just as I was pondering how strong the table was next to me, and if we would break it if I just so happened to slam my girlfriend against it and rip her clothes off, I heard a throat clear.
“Ain’t that kind of establishment.” Mr. Smith laughed and waved his apron in the air. “But oh, how I remember the days when the missus and I used to—”
“Oh, stop!” Mrs. Smith came barreling in. “Do you want to scar the young ones for life?”
Thank God. Pretty sure I would have had to cut my own ears off after that particular story.
“Sparkling soda, chocolate soufflé, followed by a light lunch and tea sound good?” Mrs. Smith smiled at us and put her hands on her hips.
Needing something stronger, I added, “A bottle of champagne too.”
Mr. Smith winked and added it to the order. I knew he would. Drinking alcohol underage was only one of the many perks of being famous. People never said no. Shit, I felt like Demetri in that moment. He used to use his fame as a way to get anything. If it was illegal, he wanted it.
“So…” Nat wrapped her arms tightly around my waist. “Do you guys want us to help or—”
“—Absolutely not! You’re guests! Shoot, you’re even staying in the honeymoon suite.”
Expecting a horrified glance from Nat, I looked down and waited for the reprimand. Instead she merely shrugged and said, “Cool.”
Cool? I booked a honeymoon suite with a girl that just graduated high school a year and a half ago! She should be freaking out! Hell, I was kind of freaking out. I didn’t want to pressure her, then again she had thrown herself at me and basically begged me to take her virginity. Okay, maybe begged is the wrong word. But still.
“Everything’s almost ready.” Mr. Smith winked. “We’ll just knock and set everything on trays outside the room, okay?”
“Sounds great.” I nodded at Mr. Smith and led Nat back to the room. She was eerily quiet. I watched the waves for a few moments. I felt in control when I focused on things. Balanced even.
“What are you thinking about?” Nat asked from behind me.
“Life.”
“Oh.” She laughed, and then her hands were underneath my shirt and lifting it over my head. “Guess you’ll have to catch up with my train of thought then, huh?”
“What?” My shirt fell to the floor. I turned around and nearly passed out. I blinked once, twice. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if my eyes were screwed in right.
“Nat?” My voice cracked.
She stood in front of me in nothing but one of the bathrobes from the Inn. Her long hair dangled in front of the silk robe, leaving nothing to the imagination, and I had to fight to keep from charging toward her like a caveman.
“Bath?”
“Hell, yes.” I almost tripped as I swept her into my arms. She wrapped her legs around me. I was going to die. I pushed her up against the door in the room and placed one hand underneath her so she wouldn’t fall. Her soft moans and sighs were killing me.
Such a sweet death.
I nipped her ear.
“Oh, that felt good. Do that again.” She giggled.
My blood ran cold. Shaking, I put her down and kissed her on the nose just as a knock came on the door. “Room service!”
Luckily Nat didn’t notice anything. She simply blushed and went to open the door.
“I’ll be… just a minute.” I could hardly get the words out as I ran into the bathroom and locked the door. In two strides I was in front of the toilet puking my guts out.
Guilt tasted like Hell.
And sin tasted like being damned.
“Oh, that felt good. Do it again…” She giggled, totally drunk out of her mind as we staggered into the hotel room. “Alec, come on… I’ll help you forget her.”
“Doubt it.” Disgusted with myself but too sad to do anything about it, I pushed her away and sat on the bed. I hated it when my publicist made me do these things. Just be seen with her and it will help both your careers.
I’d gone back to LA to clear my head. Nat and Demetri. Of course it would happen. He deserved that after the shit I pulled.
“Baby, lay down with me,” she whined.
“No thanks.”
“Such a gentleman.” She hiccupped. “Please? I’ll make it all better.” She reached for me and moaned.
Said the snake to Eve in the garden. I laughed at my own joke. “Doubtful, and I’m not even feeling nice enough to let you try.” I slapped her greedy little hands away and got up.
“Fine.” She threw a pillow at me. “Just leave.”
“Fine!” I yelled and stormed out of the room, directly into her.
“That lasted long.” She smiled. I’d seen her before. She’d been at a few movie premieres with Jaymeson. She looked like an older version of Nat.
“She’s crazy.”
“Aren’t they all?” The pretty woman tilted her head to the side. “Wanna come in my room? I promise. No crazy here.”
“Promise?” I rubbed my eyes. Damn, I just needed to get some sleep. I’d had too much to drink and wasn’t feeling particularly like going back into that witch’s room. Besides, I wasn’t sober enough to drive home, not by a long shot, and the last thing I wanted was to leave my car overnight at the same hotel that Satan was staying at, or worse, get a room and somehow find my face next to hers on the tabloids. Which really begged the question what the hell was I doing at the same hotel?
“Absolutely. And you can tell me why such a famous rock star like yourself looks like someone just kicked your puppy.”
“It’s a long story,” I muttered catching a whiff of her rose water perfume.