“You talked to Josh today?” Tyler didn’t remember her being on the phone but then he’d fallen asleep in a hammock on the front porch after breakfast. They’d been up most of the night doing debauched things to each other. “What did he call you about?”
“He’s sending some scripts to the house and would like me to look them over when we get home. It seems that being your fiancée is a big boon to my career. Go figure.”
He’d been thinking about that and more. “I had a thought that maybe we should work together. I can talk to Josh about putting the word out. We can actively look for a project for the both of us. If you wanted to, that is. I know you have your own career.”
Sitting up, Billie looked more excited than he’d expected. He’d thought she might not want to have her acting career more entangled with him than she already did.
“I think that’s a great idea. We could do a romantic comedy. Like Spencer and Tracy.”
He smirked at the idea, not sure the public was ready for him to tell jokes for an hour and a half. “Hmmm…or maybe an action movie. Like Pacino and DeNiro.”
“As long as I get to be DeNiro.” She nudged his leg with her toes. “You’d be great in a romantic comedy. You have great timing and you’re genuinely funny.”
He gave her his best sad puppy face. “Yeah, but I’m not trying to be funny. People just naturally laugh at me.”
She threw back her head and laughed for real, her green eyes sparkling with delight. How had he not noticed how incredibly beautiful she was? How sweet and smart? How kind and caring? How had he not whisked her away and married her before now?
Marriage. Not the fake kind that they were planning but the real fucking deal. He’d been thinking about it more and more and he’d come to a conclusion. He needed to talk to Billie about this whole mess he’d dragged her into. He wanted to cancel the showmance for good and this time propose for real. Like on one knee, begging if he needed to. He didn’t want her to ever think for one single minute that he’d married her for a movie role.
Billie was the one.
And now that he was sure, he couldn’t wait until the autumn and a big fancy wedding. When she was in the shower yesterday he done some research online regarding getting married in Las Vegas. It was easier than he’d imagined. If she wanted the big to-do he’d bite the bullet and wait, but if she didn’t? Vegas, baby.
“I know why they laugh at you,” Billie said, pushing up her sunglasses and putting her nose back into her book. “You’re a big goof, remember?”
“But I’m your big goof.”
He’d be content with that. For now.
* * *
Billie was having the most amazingly erotic dream. She was lying on the sandy beach, water tickling her toes with every pull of the tide. The sun beat down on her nude body but suddenly she felt a shadow fall over her, blocking her from the warming rays. Opening her eyes, she blinked a few times as a figure came into focus. Tyler, as naked as she was, hovering over her with that look on his face. The hungry one that made arousal stir inside of her at the very thought of someone wanting her so fiercely.
He fell to his knees on the sand and began kissing her, their mouths fused together and their tongues dueling for supremacy. Tyler’s hands were everywhere at once it seemed, leaving a trail of fire in their wake. Billie moaned his name as his lips trailed lower, down over her breasts, tickling her belly, then finally brushing her clit with the flat of his tongue.
Jolting awake as if she’d been stabbed with a cattle prod, she moaned Tyler’s name as her eyes focused more clearly on the ceiling above her. She was lying in bed and that naughty boy was kneeling between her legs, his face pressed up against her most intimate parts. What a lovely way to wake up in paradise.
His skilled tongue did devilishly evil things to her swollen button and it didn’t take long until he had her legs trembling and her head thrashing back and forth. The little shit was keeping her on the edge deliberately and she would have none of that dominant control bull. At least not this morning. Maybe they could play that game tonight. Right now she wanted an orgasm and Tyler had taken her to the brink.
Curling her fingers into his scalp, she gave his hair a tug to let him know her patience had waned. She felt his chuckle against her sensitized flesh as his mouth closed over her clit, giving it flicks with his tongue until she plunged over the edge. Given barely any time to enjoy the bliss, Tyler flipped her over onto her belly and pulled her up to her knees. His fingers flexed on her hips and he leaned forward, his lips close to her ear and his warm breath caressing her shoulder.
“Brace yourself, babe. We’re doing this fast and hard.”
It was her own fault, really. She’d teased Tyler the night before when they’d been fucking in the kitchen, her on the counter with her legs over his shoulders, that she wasn’t made of glass and she wouldn’t break. Apparently he’d taken those words to heart because he thrust into the hilt in one go, sending a shockwave through her already overwrought nervous system.
Already starting her climb, she braced herself with her hands planted on the mattress to withstand his hard thrusts, each one stimulating her g-spot and sending her arousal spiraling upwards. Tyler had one hand tangled in her long hair and the other anchored onto her bottom, giving him the control he needed. There was something so incredibly hot and sexy about this. He was taking her as if he couldn’t help himself and she loved every single second of it. She was probably going to be sore afterward but it would be totally worth it.
“Yes,” she hissed as his cock ran over a particularly sensitive area. “Fuck me harder.”
Their breaths ragged and labored they crossed the finish line together when Tyler reached around and rubbed her clit, his dexterous fingers finding just the right rhythm to make her scream with ecstasy. Eventually they fell back to the mattress, their bodies covered in sweat and happy, satisfied smiles on their faces. They had nothing better to do all day than stay in bed if that’s what they wanted to do.
Rolling over, Billie nuzzled Tyler’s chest, pressing a chaste kiss just where his heart beat below, his skin salty on her lips. “I love you.”
She didn’t feel the need to dress up her declaration in fancy words or complicated adjectives. The words weren’t the important part. It was the emotion behind them.
“I love you too, baby girl. More than you can possibly imagine.”
Looking up, she searched in his expression for any form of fear or regret.
“Are you okay with that? You didn’t plan on this.”
“Neither did you but here we are. And it’s great. I thought I was happy before but this is so much better. You make everything in my life better.”
Tyler wasn’t the talkative type either, preferring actions to make his point, so his words of love meant all the more to her and she tucked them away in a corner of her heart for safekeeping. No matter what happened in the future, no one could take them from her today.
They dozed off, cuddled together in the luxurious bedroom, Billie tucked into the space under Tyler’s chin where she fit perfectly. She’d been dreaming of fluffy clouds and sunshine when a buzzing sound made her open one eye, groaning at being awoken so abruptly. Tyler had rolled over and was holding her phone up in front of her.
“It’s yours.”
Squinting to see the screen, her heart stopped momentarily when she saw who it was. Connie. Hopefully with good news about Sierra. Could divorces be arranged that quickly?
Placing the phone to her ear, she sat up in bed. “Hi, Connie. How is everything? Is Sierra recovering well?”
Connie didn’t beat around the bush. “You need to get Sierra out of Wisconsin, Billie. That asshole found her and she’d be six feet under if her neighbors hadn’t stepped in. He’s in jail now because he violated the restraining order but I don’t know how long they can keep him. The social worker moved Sierra but I think he’ll just find her again.” Billie could hear the tears in her old friend’s voice. “Please get her out
of here so she can be safe.”
Billie would have gone a long time ago but Sierra had been adamant that her sister stay out of her life. She didn’t want Billie’s interference.
Glancing at Tyler who was wearing an expression of concern, Billie responded the only way she could. Sierra might not want Billie in her life but she needed her. Paradise was going to have to wait for another time.
“Tell me where she is. I’m on my way.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
“You didn’t have to come with me,” Billie said for the twentieth time since the phone call from her friend. “You could have stayed in Hawaii and taken the rest of your vacation.”
Tyler wasn’t quite sure what to say to his woman as they settled into the rental car at the Madison, Wisconsin airport. The little town where Sierra was hiding was only about an hour away. Connie had given them the address and he’d easily programmed it into the GPS.
Sure he could have stayed in Hawaii all by himself, soaking up sun and drinking rum drinks but why the hell would he? The woman he loved needed him and he didn’t want her dealing with this alone. Of course he was going to go to Wisconsin. He was a self-absorbed son of a bitch, that was true, but he wasn’t an asshole.
“Why would I stay in Hawaii when you aren’t there? I’m happy to be here, babe, helping you.”
Shoving her purse down on the floor, she folded her hands primly on her lap. “I was just saying that you could have stayed.”
Blowing out a frustrated breath, Tyler pulled out onto the freeway. “No, what you were saying is that you think I’m too shallow to want to deal with anything that isn’t fun. You’re not trusting me again with the good and the bad. You think I only want the good.”
She was studying her hands as if she’d never seen the before. “I do trust you.”
“Good. Then know that we’re there for each other no matter what. Do you think I don’t know how difficult this is for you? You’re going to see your sister for the first time in years and that has to be a big goddamn deal. I’m not letting you do this alone. We’ll go together to get her and take her back home with us. We’re a team, right?”
They always had been but even more so now. He’d never felt this crazy bond with another human being and damn if it didn’t feel like the best thing ever.
“A team,” she repeated softly. “Then I think I should warn this team that Connie said that Sierra still isn’t convinced that she should come to California.”
“Then we’ll convince her,” Tyler said firmly. He couldn’t let the sister of the woman he loved be in danger any longer. If he had to hire a team of bodyguards he would keep her safe.
The drive was easy and the weather cooperated, staying sunny and fairly warm despite the forecast for rain. The GPS guided them to what looked like a fairly new apartment complex, all the buildings painted blue with white trim. Well-maintained and cheery, there was row upon row of buildings but it only took a few minutes to find the one they were looking for. Her apartment was on the second floor overlooking a little pond with flowers planted on the sidewalk leading up to it.
“Are you ready?” he asked as Billie gathered her things, but he knew the answer without her having to tell him. Her face was pale and her lips trembled visibly. She was terrified and he wasn’t sure how to make everything okay for her. This wasn’t in his control. He couldn’t drop a bunch of money or use his fame to fix it all.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. Let’s go try and convince my estranged sister to pick up her life and move to a completely new state with me. This should be easy.”
There was sarcasm in Billie’s tone which was a good sign. She still had her sense of humor although he could feel the tension in her body as they climbed the stairs side by side. She was – rightfully – nervous.
Connie was supposed to have warned Sierra that they were coming so Tyler hoped he didn’t scare the young woman by knocking but they had no other choice. There was a flurry of activity behind the door, although he couldn’t tell exactly what is was—hopefully not a gun—and then a muffled voice spoke.
“Who is it?”
Clearing her throat, Billie leaned close to the door so she didn’t have to speak loudly.
“It’s Billie and Tyler. Can you please let us in?”
The door didn’t open right away and for a moment Tyler thought that maybe Sierra was going to refuse to do it, but then he heard the locks being disengaged, one after the other. Good, she’d had decent locks on the door. That was something at least. When she swung it open, he wasn’t sure what to expect. A woman who looked just like Billie? They were twins but not identical. Sierra’s hair wasn’t as dark and her nose was slightly different. There was definitely a strong resemblance, but Sierra had her own brand of beauty. It was there clearly in her delicate features despite the faded bruises on her cheek and eye. Shorter than Billie by about two inches, Sierra looked like a strong wind might blow her away. The t-shirt she was wearing had short sleeves that showed off more cuts and bruises on her way too thin arms. Even the shorts she was wearing hung off her frame as if made for someone ten pounds heavier.
“I guess you should come in,” Sierra said, stepping back and allowing them to enter. The apartment was decorated in a sparse fashion with only the basics. A couch and a chair in the living room along with a small television on a table. There were no personal effects at all, nothing that told him about the personality of the person that lived there. Sierra must have left all of it behind when she escaped. That made Tyler want to take her shopping and replace every bit of it with brand-new. He’d have to wait, though, because this abode was simply a temporary stop off on the road to a better life.
Sierra moved past them and sat down on the edge of the chair, elbows on her knees and her head hanging down so her curtain of dark hair hung across her face. Tyler couldn’t see her expression but the tension in the air was so thick even he wanted to tug at the collar of his white button-down shirt. Several years of unspoken words hung in the air between these two women.
“Connie called me.” Billie perched on the far end of the couch as far away from her sister as she could. Trying to be the buffer between them, Tyler sat on the couch as well but closer to Sierra. “She believes you’d be safer coming with me and Tyler to California and I think she’s right. We can’t let Brian find you again and there’s no way he’d think you left the state.”
“I’m fine. You didn’t need to come here.” Sierra was still staring down at the floor, not looking up to speak.
Billie’s lips tightened and she let out a frustrated breath. “You’re not fine. The social worker is worried about your safety. We can get you out of here right now and make sure he doesn’t get to you.”
“I appreciate you wanting to help but I’m not your problem.”
Throwing her hands in the air, Billie stood. “You’re my family. That makes your problems my problems.”
Jerking her head up, Sierra’s face was wet with tears. “I can take care of myself.”
Her purse falling to the floor, Billie stepped closer to her sister. “I’m sure you can but you need a little help to get back on your feet. I can give you that.” Billie’s eyes flashed with what looked like anger. “Or is it that you’ll take help from everyone but me? Because I could have sworn you told me that you hated me for trying to break you and Brian up and that you didn’t want me around anymore. So I left you alone like you asked me to. I’ve felt guilty every single day for leaving but frankly you never gave me a choice. You cut me out of your life with a dull knife.”
Every cell in Tyler’s body screamed to intervene, pull Billie into his arms and soothe her anger and hurt. Tears were falling on her face now as well and he had to fight his instinct to wipe them away. Those were cleansing tears of anger and hurt and his baby girl had been holding them in far too long. He loved her and he’d lay down his life for her but at this moment she and her sister had to say a few truths to one another. They were both hurting.
�
�Of course I said that,” Sierra yelled, more tears gushing from her swollen eyes. “Brian didn’t want you around and every time after you visited me he used to get so…”
Dashing at her cheeks with the back of her hand Billie growled, her teeth bared. “He beat you, didn’t he? After I left he’d beat you. That useless, fucking waste of goddamn skin. Every time I came to see you I begged you to leave with me but you never would. If I ever see his lazy fucking ass again I’ll beat the shit out of him with my bare fucking hands.”
That was a lot of dirty words out of his woman’s mouth but she’d had a good reason. Tyler felt the same way about this Brian guy and he hadn’t even met him, but he was already thinking of ways to ruin the man’s life.
The two women seemed to have run out of things to say, which was a surprise to Tyler because it appeared they had a hell of a lot more to talk about, especially after that little tidbit of information. Billie simply stood there waiting for Sierra to respond but the young woman didn’t say anything. Her body shook as she sat in the chair whether from anger, fear or something else, Tyler wasn’t sure.
“Are you going to say anything?” Billie asked after several long moments passed. “Anything at all?”
And just like that, Sierra’s lips tightened. Exactly like Billie’s had a few minutes ago. They were sisters and if Sierra had some other things in common with Billie then she was stubborn as hell. This standoff could last for hours…days, even. Tyler had many faults and lack of patience was one of them. They could argue in California.
“Sierra,” he finally said, his gaze flicking back and forth between the two women. “Would you like some help packing your things?”
It was time to take control of the situation because this was getting them exactly nowhere. There was a plane to catch and he wasn’t leaving Sierra here. He’d remembered how his mother had taught him to be assumptive when he wanted something. He’d used it with Billie quite a bit so he’d give it a shot with Sierra. From this moment on he was simply going to act as if it had all been decided and she was going with them. Case closed.
Wild on the Red Carpet (The Hollywood Showmance Chronicles Book 3) Page 20