She laughs. “No. But I can’t promise you I won’t use this.” She holds up her fist. My eyes widen, so she quickly adds, “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t hit a pregnant lady. Not even a bottom-dwelling scum-sucker like Karen. How did you get her to agree to this meeting anyway?”
“Well, she didn’t actually agree to a meeting with you per se. I told her you were moving away and that I wanted to meet with her.”
“Oh, my God, Gavin. Does she think you’re here to get back with her or something?”
“I don’t care what she thinks, darlin’. You wanted a meeting with her. I’m in a position to give you what you want.” I reach up and put my hand on the nape of her neck. “I’ll always give you what you want, Bay.”
The door opens and the smile on Karen’s face quickly falls, being replaced by a pucker on her mouth. She crosses her arms defensively and spits out with a venomous voice, “What is she doing here?”
“Baylor wants to talk with you before we move back east,” I say.
“We?” she pouts. “You’re moving with her?” Karen’s angry eyes move back and forth from Baylor to me. “I don’t want her at my house.” She goes to shut the door.
I jam my foot in the door before it can close. “Karen, might I remind you that this is still my house, too. A house that I have graciously decided to gift you as part of the divorce. Unless you want me to change my mind and force you to sell the place that you love, I’d let us in. I can promise you we won’t be here a minute longer than necessary.”
She chews on her lip as she debates her next move. She opens the door and reluctantly waves us in, smoothing her hands down the sides of her dress. “Don’t expect tea and biscuits,” she says, following us into the large sitting room off the grand foyer.
Nobody takes a seat, but I don’t miss the fact that Baylor stands in the doorway, presumably to keep Karen from stomping off if she doesn’t like what she has to say.
I have no idea what Baylor’s going to do. She didn’t tell me anything. But if the look on her face is any indication, she’s about to tear Karen a new asshole, and I’m only too eager to witness it. Karen has done everything in her power to break Baylor. I’m proud of her for wanting to confront Karen, especially in her vulnerable state, still recovering from her injuries. I back away from the two of them. This is Baylor’s show. But I stay close enough to avert a physical altercation. As much as I’d love to see Karen’s face rearranged, it would probably only lead to nothing more than subsequent delays in our divorce proceedings.
Baylor takes a deep breath and looks at me. I nod my head at her as if to say, you’re on.
“I’m here to offer you a deal,” Baylor says.
Karen huffs. “I hardly think you are in a position to offer me anything,” she says self-righteously.
“Oh, but you’re wrong,” Baylor says. “And the only reason that your bony pregnant ass isn’t in an orange jumpsuit right now, is because I don’t want to stay in this godforsaken city any longer than I have to.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking—”
“Shut up, Karen,” Baylor raises her voice in sheer anger. “You will shut the hell up and listen to me or I will ruin your life as you’ve tried to ruin mine.” I see Baylor’s hands trembling. “I know you are behind that woman coming out here to stalk me. Gavin’s had private investigators looking into it. We can have you brought up on any number of charges, not the least of which is aiding and abetting a criminal resulting in the death of Callie Spencer.
“So here’s the deal. We are leaving soon, moving back to Connecticut. If you contact me or my family in any way—if you so much as talk about me to your gossipy friends—if you contact Gavin personally and not through his lawyer—we will be on the first plane back here. And on our way to the district attorney’s office we will call your father, the press, and every media outlet that will listen. Your face will be plastered on TMZ, Entertainment Weekly and The Nightly News, and not because you’re running a charity auction at your garden-of-the-month club. Yours and your family’s precious reputation will be ruined. Do you understand me?”
Karen smirks. “If you had anything on me, you’d have gone to the police already. I didn’t do anything and you have no leg to stand on.” She tries to walk past Baylor, but Bay grabs her arm.
“I’m not done,” Baylor growls in Karen’s face, throwing her a sharp look that dares her to argue.
Holy shit! What happened to my sweet innocent blushing girlfriend? I stand in awe as my lady rips apart the woman who shattered her so long ago.
“I’m writing a book, you see. It’s the story of my life with Gavin. It’ll be published as fiction of course, but that can easily be changed. I can very well turn it into an autobiography. Every detail of every sick move you’ve ever made will be documented on those pages. And don’t think for a minute that I don’t have the clout to get people to listen.”
Baylor nods to me. “Your soon-to-be ex has this little thing called a film production business, and guess what? He’s going to make my book into a movie for everyone to see. Look around you Karen, your so-called buddy, Angie, is all too happy to corroborate. You don’t have as many friends as you think. I suppose you can crawl back to Daddy and hope that he will overlook your pitiful past. But your life as a Hollywood housewife will be over. Your reputation won’t be worth the paper that your surgically-altered face is printed on in the tabloids.”
Karen takes a few steps back as if she’d been pushed. She huffs at Baylor and looks over at me.
“Don’t look at me, Karen,” I say. “You dug your own grave.”
“So here’s what you’re going to do,” Baylor demands, taking a meaningful step forward. “These are non-negotiable.” She holds up her hand and counts off on her fingers. “One—you will release all your pregnancy records to Gavin to prove once and for all that you got knocked up after he filed for divorce. You will also state in writing that he is not the father and that you will submit to any paternity tests ordered. Two—you will refrain from contacting any of us in any way shape or form. Three—you will go back to your maiden name. I don’t plan on sharing anything with you, including the McBride name. Four—you will instruct your attorney to quit dragging his feet on the divorce.
“If you don’t do these things. If we don’t have official word from your lawyer that you’ve agreed to these terms within the week, you will not only lose your precious house, but you can bet your low-life existence that I will make good on every one of these goddamn threats.”
Her eyes blaze with anger as she gets in Karen’s face again. “Are. We. Clear?”
I try not to smile at my brave girl as I walk across the room and take her hand. I lead her to the front door and open it. On our way out, I turn and face Karen, who is standing frozen in place looking like her dog just died. I say, “Goodbye, Karen.” Then we walk through the door and I shut it once and for all on my former life.
We walk silently to the car. Once we’re inside, I grab Baylor’s shaking hand to calm her and say, “I don’t think I’ve ever been so fucking turned on in my life.”
chapter forty-seven
Boxes are packed ceiling-high in the condo. Unlike when Baylor and Maddox moved out here, I don’t have any desire to keep a home in L.A. Sure, I’ll have to come back for studio business from time to time, but I can crash at Scott’s or Angie’s place.
My mom left a few days ago, but Skylar has been here all week, staying to pack and help out with Maddox while Baylor takes it easy. The change in Baylor is immense. She has started writing again. Between the anticipation of our move, the reality of her friend dying, and her confrontation with Karen, her emotions have been all over the place which apparently has her creative juices flowing.
I can see a change in Maddox as well. Although he’s understandably upset about Callie’s passing, he never stops talking about his friends back home and how he can’t wait to show them the DVD he made that first day at the studio.
Baylor and Mad
dox have been to visit Callie’s grave twice this week. Maddox no longer asks to go every day. He’s seeing a counselor who has helped him deal with his feelings.
Writing is Baylor’s therapy and she’s vowed to write her next book about the great love affair that would have happened between Callie and Collin.
I get a call from the lobby that there is a courier down in reception that needs my signature for a delivery. I have him sent up and after I sign for the packet, I take it into Baylor’s office, that has been stripped down to just the furniture and her laptop.
I plop down in the bright-purple chair next to the window. She looks up at me and I hold up the packet. “From Karen’s lawyer,” I say.
She gasps. “What does it say?”
“I don’t know yet. I thought we could open it together.”
She gets up from her chair and sits down in my lap. I wrap my arms around her, careful to not touch her ribs as we open the large envelope. We read the cover page, smiles overtaking our faces as our eyes absorb the words.
“She’s agreed to all of it!” Baylor shrieks. “Look, she’s even going to change her name. I never thought I’d get that out of her.”
I laugh. “Are you kidding?” I say. “You had me scared, darlin’, and I was on your side.” I read further through the documents and point out, “It says here that by agreeing to our terms, she is in no way admitting any guilt or wrong doing, but that she simply wants to move on with the next chapter of her life.”
“It’s about fucking time!” Baylor says, blushing at her bluntness and giggling into my chest.
“I have one more thing for you to see,” I tell her. “I can’t believe it came on the same day.” I hand her a smaller envelope that I had previously opened.
She smiles at me, knowing what it is based on the official seal on it. She opens it and pulls out Maddox’s new birth certificate. She bounces in my lap as she recites, “Maddox Mitchell McBride.”
I smile proudly.
Baylor stares into my eyes. “Everything’s coming together, isn’t it? It’s almost perfect,” she says, turning to stare at her laptop that now boasts a screensaver picture of her and Callie at the beach.
All her squirming around on my lap is causing an unintentional reaction. “Uh, darlin’, I’ve tried to be mindful of your injuries, but if you keep movin’ around on top of me like this, I might well strip you naked and screw you right here on this chair.”
A smile spreads up her face as she checks her watch. “Maddox and Skylar aren’t due home for another hour,” she says, seductively running a fingertip across my bottom lip.
My dick instantly gets hard thinking of having sex with Baylor after almost three weeks without it. “Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt—”
Before I can finish speaking, she shoves the papers to the floor and turns around to straddle me. “You can’t hurt me if I’m on top.” Then she carefully pulls her shirt off with my help.
I take a moment to appreciate her amazing body. Her wounds have faded to faint scars that will most likely disappear in time. Her ribs are still tender so I remind myself not to grab her there. Her tits are fair game, however, so I lean forward and take one in my mouth as she thrusts them further into me when I suck the tips.
“Oh, God,” she moans. “I missed this.”
“Never again,” I say, pulling my mouth away from her hot flesh. “We’ll never be apart again, darlin’.”
She grasps at my shirt, practically ripping it from me in an attempt to get at my skin underneath. I happily oblige her and remove it completely as her hands roam every inch of my chest. I stand up with her, careful to hold her only by her ass. I start to walk out of the room but she stops me.
“Gavin, no. Let’s make love here, on this chair.”
I raise my eyebrows at her.
“If there is one thing I love about L.A., it’s this view,” she says, nodding her head to the window. I momentarily place her on the floor as we quickly wrestle the rest of our clothing from our bodies. Then I position the chair directly in front of the window so that when she’s riding me and screaming out my name, she can look out and see the waves crashing onto the rocks.
Hey, it’s good shit for her book, anyway.
Baylor, Maddox and Skylar all visited Callie’s grave one last time while I ran some last-minute errands before our flight. I had to hire a moving company to move my car and everything in the condo, but I wanted to do this right, so I chartered another private jet to fly us back to our permanent home.
Once we have reached our altitude, I wink at Maddox and he goes up to the front of the plane to the small kitchen where the flight attendant is waiting for him.
“Is he going to see the pilot again?” Baylor asks.
“Mmmm,” I mumble at her while Skylar smiles over at me.
A minute later, Maddox emerges from the kitchen with a mile-high plate of french fries. I clear my throat prompting Baylor to look up from her stare out the window.
“Good Lord!” She laughs at Maddox as he tries to balance the large plate without falling.
I pull the tray table out next to her and Maddox puts the heavy plate down. She looks up, surprised that they are for her. She smiles over at me. “Twenty questions?”
I’m shaking. I’ve never done this before. I want it to be absolutely perfect. “Not twenty questions,” I say. “Just one.”
I nod to Maddox and he sits down next to me, both of us directly across from Baylor. He says, “Daddy and me want you to be a McBride too, Mommy.” He points to the plate of food where on the very top sits a diamond and platinum ring surrounding several of the fries.
Her hand comes up to cover her mouth as she gasps. Tears stream down her cheek as I reach for the ring and remove the fries from inside it. I push the tray aside and get down on one knee as Skylar sniffs behind me. “Baylor, our story started over eight years ago. But it was left unfinished. The truth is, there is only one woman I’ve ever wanted to marry. There is only one woman I would ever ask to marry me. There is only one woman I want to spend every day of the rest of my life with.”
I reach into the bag Skylar brought on the plane. I pull out a small bouquet of purple orchids, handing them to Baylor. “I want to be the guy who makes you so happy that you cry. I want to be the guy who gives you that magical life you dreamed of when you were five years old. I want our love story to be the greatest of any book you ever write.”
I take her hand in mine and slip the ring onto her finger. “Darlin’, will you marry me and make these two McBrides the happiest men alive?”
She smiles through her tears as she nods her head. “Yes,” she cries. “Of course, yes.”
I pull her into a hug which Maddox joins immediately. Just as he should, making us once and for all—a family.
epilogue
Six months later . . .
“How long is it supposed to take?” I ask her, as she returns from the bathroom and climbs into bed next to me.
“Three minutes,” she says.
I set the timer on my phone.
“Soooo,” I say and we both laugh, not quite knowing what to say to pass the time until we find out if our lives are forever changing.
I reach over and play with her wedding rings, twirling them around her finger. “How’s our book coming along?” I ask.
She smiles. “I think it’s the best thing I’ve ever written. I’m almost done with it, as a matter of fact.”
“Really?” I say. “How’s it going to end?”
“I don’t know yet.” She gestures to the bathroom where the pregnancy test sits on the counter. “But we’re about to find out.”
On cue, the timer on my phone dings. Our eyes get wide and we stand up slowly, walking across the hardwood floor to the threshold of the bathroom. Baylor covers her eyes, looking like a little girl with her pajamas and her messy bed head.
I guide her in until we’re standing in front of the vanity. I hold her trembling hand. Or maybe it’s mine that’s sha
king. I say, “Together on three?”
She nods her head, with her beautiful eyes still covered.
“Okay, here we go,” I say. “One . . . two . . . three.”
I look. She peeks. We smile.
The End
white lilies
part one
skylar
prologue
“Oh, God. Not again,” I mumble, tasting my horrid morning mouth. I look around the dim unfamiliar room hoping to gain some clue as to how I got here and who the guy lying next to me might be.
I lift the covers to investigate. My eyebrows shoot up in appreciation of what I find underneath. I’m vaguely amused at myself for not having beer goggles on last night.
The scorching-hot, totally naked man snoring at my side is the epitome of every girl’s panty-soaking fantasy. My mouth waters at the sight of him, reminding me of my rancid breath. I spy my purse on the floor next to the bed, along with two condom wrappers. Two! I reach in the pocket for a breath mint before resuming my perusal of Adonis.
He must be tall. His feet are practically hanging off the bed. He has large, toned thighs like that of a cyclist—points for that. It looks like you could bounce off his tight abs and I wonder momentarily if I did. His face is hard and rugged, even in sleep. I’ll have to give him a pass on the hair because of how delectable the rest of him is. It’s short. Buzz-cut short. And it might be red. I lift the sheets again. Yup—red.
While my gaze is focused on Ginger’s nether region, the south starts to rise again. And what a generous lift-off. My eyes widen and flicker to his only to find him, um . . . appreciating my body in return. Our glances meet in an awkward recognition. Recognition that neither of us recognizes the other.
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