by Cora Kenborn
“You’re the fire in my soul and the beat in my heart. The road’s been hard, but for you, I’d do it again, all from the start. Just to see eyes so blue. You paint a world full of color, movement full of motion. Music dies when you’re not around. You bring life to my world, my wife. Breathing you, I’ll never come down.”
Emotion hit me hard. It burned my chest, and the honesty almost brought me to my knees. She wiped the mascara running down her face and opened her mouth to speak, when Russ’s voice interrupted her.
“I think Julian has something else he’d like to share.”
She stared in amazement as my confidence gained momentum. “Phoebe, when I sang this at your birthday party, it seemed like the perfect song. But after all we’ve gone through, now it means even more. You’re in every song, every word, and every note I sing.” Taking the deepest breath I could hold, I sang the first notes to U2’s Iris.
The song said it all. She told me not to fear what I couldn’t see. She taught me to stand up to what tried to tear us apart, and she pulled back the darkness to show me that hiding behind it was the strength of our own character. And in the song, the one line that brought me back to it each time caught my voice hard.
The world wasn’t desolate because of the life living inside of her.
I held the last note until it faded into the back of my throat. I had nothing left.
“Do you, Julian James Bale, take Phoebe Nicole Ryan to be your wife?”
Slowly opening my eyes, my mouth dried as I watched the tears roll down her face.
“I do.”
“Phoebe?” he prodded. “Would you like to say anything?”
Nodding her head, she glanced back at me with no fear in her eyes. Her look was steady and strong—the look I’d waited to see from her. “Julian, you stole my phone and my heart that night at the club and I didn’t know it.” I chuckled softly. “I see a man in front of me with artistry in his soul and integrity in his heart. I’ve never had to wonder where I stood with you. You’ve always made me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world…even as a pregnant mess. I want forever with you.”
“Do you, Phoebe Nicole Ryan, take Julian James Bale to be your husband?”
She answered without hesitation. “I do.” A panicked look crossed her beautiful face. “Do we have rings?”
A smile broke my concentration. She was cute. I’d had rings since I’d placed the engagement ring on her hand back in New York. I’d wanted them all to match, so I figured, why the hell not? They’d been burning a hole in my pocket ever since. Fishing them out, I handed them both to Russ and winked at her.
The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur. We slipped the rings on each other’s fingers, her hands shaking, my big thumbs fumbling with the tiny circle. It was almost comical. Finally, as the rings were in place and all vows had been repeated, Russ grinned and said the words I’d been waiting to hear.
“By the power vested in me by the State of California and the internet, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.” He turned away to give us some privacy, a smile crinkling his eyes.
Phoebe chewed on her cheek and smiled back. Without hesitation, I pulled her against me, my hand rounding the back of her sticky head. The kiss was slow, purposeful, and raw.
From the other side of the greenhouse, Russ called over his shoulder with a wide grin, “It’s my honor to announce to a perfectly empty room, Mr. and Mrs. Julian Bale.”
Chapter Twenty
Phoebe
“Good morning, Mrs. Bale.”
Rolling over, I grunted at his oh-dark thirty obnoxious cheerfulness. “I’d say good morning to you too, Mr. Bale, but, somehow, it doesn’t quite pack the same punch.”
“True. Probably because you haven’t been going fucking gray waiting for it to happen.” Furrowing his brow, a deep line embedded between his eyes. “In fact, I’m not sure I’ll ever call you by your first name again.”
I grinned, resting my cheek against his heart. I loved feeling the beat of it against my skin. “That could get awkward in public, don’t you think?” I twisted my lips into a wicked smirk. “But then again, you are older than me. Isn’t formality a sign of respect for your generation?”
He smacked his free arm across my bare ass. “I’m only three years older than you. Don’t be a smart-ass.”
“Yes, sir,” I mumbled against his chest. “Sir—isn’t that what the elderly like to be called?”
Throwing his hands on either side of my face, he pushed himself up and leaned over me. “You’re treading on very dangerous ground here, princess.”
I couldn’t resist running my fingers through his hair. “Maybe I just like to live dangerously.”
With a salacious shake of his head, he exhaled slowly, the blanket sliding off his hip, revealing the deep cut V in his abs. “You’re a brave woman, Mrs. Bale.” His eyes darkened to a hooded midnight shade.
“I think you might be the brave one, Mr. Bale,” I taunted him. “What with your precarious position and all.”
An underlying darkness fueled a quick curl of his lips as he grabbed each of my wrists and pinned my hands by my head. Lowering his lips to my ear, he whispered with a husky warning, “I think that’d be you.”
“What are you going to do about it?” The deep dimpled ghost smile emerged as he nuzzled my neck. “Princess, the question isn’t what am I going do about it, it’s what aren’t I going to do.”
“You talk a big game, Bale. Think you’re up for it?”
He released one hand and secured it with the other in his large palm. Sweeping the blanket off both of us, he exposed our bare flesh, and stared at me with an expectant expression. “I don’t know…you tell me.”
I held his gaze as his hand held my arms firmly above my head. “I would, but I don’t have use of my hands at the moment.”
“It seems you’re at a disadvantage.”
“Depends on whose perspective you’re speaking from.”
“Hmmm, put a ring on the woman’s finger and she talks back.”
“But I’m so good at it.” The sly smirk I gave him made his grip on my wrists tighten in response.
“I don’t know, Mrs. Bale, I’m kind of enjoying your submissiveness right now.”
“Julian, I may be a lot of things, but submissive is not one of them.” I dropped the playful act and my tone reflected it. We were husband and wife, but I’d never be someone’s submissive. Not his, not anyone’s.
Mom submitted. Not me.
Glancing at the hand holding my wrists, his devious grin faded to a smile. “That’s not what I meant and you know it. You’ve never been submissive to me. I’d never want you to be. But you are pretty much at my mercy, which is exactly what I want you to be.”
I relaxed, knowing he understood me. “Sounds intriguing. So, tell me, Mr. Rock Star, what are you going to do with this newfound power?”
Clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth, he shook his head. “Always with the questions.”
“Translation, you have no plan.” I boldly bantered with him, knowing in the end I’d give in to whatever he wanted. Without responding, he straddled me, and roamed his gaze across my face, slowly trailing them down my neck.
“Oh, I have a plan. I’m trying to decide which part of you I’m going to take advantage of first.” The fierce determination on his face made me ramble.
“Julian, you need to define a course of action and—”
He cut me off as his hand dipped toward my inner thigh. I moaned, as with skilled precision, his hand found its destination.
He commanded my body and watched for a reaction. With every cry of his name, he thrust his hand forward, brushing the pad of his thumb exactly where I wanted it. Leaning down, he kissed me hard, and a self-satisfied smirk crossed his face as I splintered apart. As my hoarse cry filled the empty room, he dragged his lips to the small indentation at the base of my neck.
Aftershocks continued to shake me, and his groan signaled
his growing impatience. Bending my knee, I brought a leg up against him, and he took full advantage of the perfect positioning. With a hand secured on each hip, he pulled me against him, our restraint proving useless. He caught my stare and plunged into me. I struggled to just breathe.
“I love you.” The words slipped out during the most heated moment—when a mist of exertion coated our bodies.
He paused mid-thrust and cradled my face. Parting my lips, he took what belonged to him. With our mouths fused together, he drove one last time into my body. Swallowing each other’s names, we brought each other to completion.
I sighed as he rested his cheek against my breast and closed his eyes. “Okay,” I said, stroking his hair. “So you did have a good plan.” I felt the smile spread cross his cheeks.
“Told you. Don’t doubt me, wife. I always get what I want.”
“What makes you think that I didn’t just play along to get what I want?”
Lifting his head, he hovered his mouth inches away from mine. “Are you telling me you used me for sex?”
“Oh, and he’s quick too, ladies and gentlemen.”
He dropped forward and mumbled against my lips. “I can live with that.” Stealing repeated kisses, he wound a hand through my hair. “No one’s ever made me lose control like you.”
I folded an arm underneath my head. “And no one better try.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Jealous?”
“Oh please. I’d have to be a moron not to know most of your fans want to make you scream like a little bitch.” I’d watched the display firsthand. His bandmates didn’t call him Jagger for nothing.
“You know,” he placed a hand over his heart in an exaggerated motion, “it’s the demure way you talk that makes me love you.” A roll beneath his stomach demanded his attention. Shifting, he slid off me and ran his palm around the outside of my belly. A ripple followed his lead and chased his touch. Bending his head, he pressed his lips against my skin. With a single finger, he traced a line down to my hip. “It’s still hard to believe.”
“What is?”
He hesitated. “I’m going to be someone’s father.”
The thought wasn’t new to me. “I know. It’s scary.”
“No, not scary, Phoebe. I just never saw myself being a father at this point.”
I remained quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry. I thought the pill would work. I mean, when they say ninety-nine percent effective, you kind of assume…”
He opened his eyes wide and leaned back. “Whoa! Hold on. You didn’t exactly do this by yourself. I think I was there.” I nodded reluctantly. “I meant I never saw myself being a father at this point in my life—but now, there’s nothing I want more.”
Something wouldn’t let me buy into his truth. “But you…”
“But nothing. I’m being serious.” Quiet consumed the room for a few desolate moments. Clearing his throat, he swallowed hard and turned his face away from me. “So, I guess we should get going. We have a ton of stuff to get done before my flight.”
“Your what?” I raised an eyebrow at him as he leaned back on his elbows.
“My flight. Remember? Zane and I are flying to Seattle to do an acoustic set interview for a satellite radio station.”
Reality crashed around me. I knew our post-wedding bubble couldn’t last forever, but I didn’t expect it to be less than an hour. “But the baby shower’s tomorrow.”
“Phoebe, look at me.” He secured my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “I leave tonight, and I’ll be back by tomorrow afternoon. It’s a morning drive interview that’ll last ten minutes. The shower isn’t until six o’clock, right?”
I nodded as much as his hold would allow, heartbroken I’d been married a few hours and my husband was already leaving the state. Normal people didn’t act like this. “Yes, six.”
“Perfect. I’ll be home no later than two o’clock. Plenty of time.” He rubbed his eyes as if hesitating in telling me something else. Just from the way his jaw ticked, I knew I wouldn’t like it. “There’s one other thing. I know it’s not a topic we like to discuss—especially today of all days—but I still don’t like the idea of you here alone.”
“I’m a big girl, Bale.”
“That being true, I’m your husband now, and I’m kind of taking the position seriously. If I can’t be here to make sure you’re safe, there’s only one other person I trust completely.” He dropped his hand from his eyes and risked a look at me, gauging my reaction.
“Oh fuck.” There was only one person he could be referring to. “No, Julian. I won’t be your brother’s prisoner again.” My inner child emerged and I crossed my arms over my bare chest and pouted.
“Fine.” He conceded with a dip of his head. “If having Ryker here bothers you so much, I won’t push the issue.”
I grinned victoriously. “Thank you.”
“I’ll call Ryker and Ty and they can both stay here while I’m gone. That should shut you up.”
Hell no. I’d take my chances wandering around fucking Griffith Park first. “You wouldn’t.”
“Are you willing to take that risk, Mrs. Bale?” Staring in unadulterated amusement, he smiled that damned ghost dimpled grin. My breath caught as he lifted a brow. “Are you done now?”
“Maybe.” My stubborn streak refused to give in so easily.
“I’m not fighting with you on this, Phoebe. I don’t want to leave any more than you want me to. We’re newlyweds for Christ’s sake. I’ll make it up to you.”
“Yeah, you will,” I said, finally cracking a smile.
“One more thing.”
“Julian, no more of the ‘one more things,’ I can’t take one more thing.”
“This is important.” He sat up and turned my palm over in his hand. With more concentration than required, he drew designs in the center of it with his index finger. “Let’s not tell anyone about getting married today.”
“What? Why?” The shock I felt had to register on my face.
“I don’t know. It just feels special. Everything I do is so public, Phoebe. I drive down the street and it’s in the tabloids the next day. I paid Russ Harper more than he makes in a year running that fruit farm to ban any workers or cameras from the property, and to keep his mouth shut.” He glanced up with pride. “I even made him sign a non-disclosure agreement. No one will know until we tell them. I can’t tell you how long it’s been since I’ve had that. I just want to hold off for a little longer. I’d like to tell my mom before fucking Access Live.”
Something about the lost look on his face got to me. Who was I to take his peace from him?
“It can be our secret for now. I mean, legally, I’m still a Ryan anyway. I can change it after the baby’s born.”
I’d barely gotten the words out when his face broke out into a huge grin. “God, it just hit me. We’re really married, aren’t we?”
“We’re really married. Oh my god, I have to call Faith.”
His eyes widened. “Call Faith for what?”
“Julian, she’s my best friend. You can’t expect me not to tell her we’re married.”
“You’re damn right I do!” He flung his legs off the side of the bed. “Look, I like Faith, but this is how shit leaks. The last thing we need is our family finding out through mail order gossip.”
“Come on, just her. I promise she won’t breathe a word. Please?”
“Stop giving me that look.”
I batted my eyes at him. “What look?”
“That look. It won’t work.” His resolve crumbled as the corners of my mouth dropped in a devastated frown. Running both hands over his face, he groaned in frustration. “Fine. Jesus. Only Faith, and you’d better swear her ass to secrecy, or I’ll take Zane to every strip bar in Seattle.”
Squealing, I grabbed my phone and pushed the speed dial number. Covering the mouthpiece, I flashed a brilliant smile. “First of all, you go to a strip bar and I’ll make a bracelet out of your balls. Second, Faith is married,
at least in name. Besides, she and Zane aren’t together anymore.”
“Such violent threats to the family jewels today, wife.” Reaching for his pants, he pulled them on as he continued. “And as far as those two not being together? Yeah, okay. Whatever you say. I give it a few weeks. He won’t be able to stand it.”
“You’re probably right.”
“Of course I am.” After dressing and packing his overnight bag, he leaned against the doorframe looking every bit as dangerous as he did the moment I met him. Holding out his hand, he smiled as he slid his fingers through mine. “All right, Mrs. Bale, are you ready to face the world?”
I brushed his jawline with a light kiss as we walked down the hallway. “The question is, Mr. Bale, is the world ready to face us?”
Chapter Twenty-One
Julian
“Time to turn the volume up in the car, people.” Stone Acer pointed a finger at the program director across the glass partition, signaling the interview had begun. “Coming at you live from Seattle, this is your main man, Stone, waking you java heads up with two members of one of the hottest groups to hit the metal scene in years. These guys signed with Circa Records less than eight months ago, and three hits from their debut album, Immortal, have already topped the charts at number one. In the studio with me now, I’ve got lead guitarist, Zane Tierney, and front man, Julian Bale, from Lords of Lyre.” Adjusting his headset, the heavyset disc jockey nodded in our direction. I assumed that was my cue to make my presence known.
“Hi, glad to be here, Stone. The one with the shitty piss-face is Zane, and I’m Julian. I hope you have an industrial sized coffee pot around here, because damn, it’s early.”
I found self-deprecation always worked well as an ice breaker.
“I think he covered that in the introduction, Jagger,” Zane grumbled, less than thrilled to be on live radio. The dude made statements through his guitar, not a microphone. If I had a dollar for every finger he’d flipped me since we’d entered the building, I’d be well on my way to paying next month’s mortgage.