Liam’s words haunted me as I made my way into the house. I couldn’t believe the way Gael had reacted. The things he’d said. How he stepped up to defend me. On the one hand, his overbearing attitude had been hard to swallow. Did he not think I could solve my problems on my own? But on the other hand, I really liked him sticking up for me and coming to my defense. Hell, he was ready to fight for me. Very few people had done that in my life. And no one had done that for me in Hollywood.
Plus, his possessiveness had been kind of hot. In an animalistic sort of way.
“Syn, we need to talk.”
“Ah!”
I jumped at the sound of Gael’s voice as I walked through the front door. My purse fell to the floor as the door slammed closed behind me. My eyes widened as he stood there, waiting for me to calm down, imploring me with eyes that looked both determined and sad.
“I-I-I—didn’t see your bike?” I asked.
“Parked it in the other garage,” he said.
“Ah.”
“We need to talk.”
“Gael, if you’re worried about Liam, I can take care of him. He’s just attention hungry. That’s all.”
He took a step toward me. “That’s not what I want to talk about.”
“Oh. Well, if it’s about the punch I took today, I’m not even hurting. I’m sure there’s not even a bruise.”
He kept walking toward me. “That’s not it, either.”
I racked my brain as to what he meant as my back pressed firmly against the door.
“Well, I mean, if you’re just worried about the fallout from all—”
His hands cupped my cheeks, and his lips interrupted me with a kiss, soft at first, until his tongue forced its way past my lips. His knee pressed between my thighs, pinning me to the door. My hands gripped his forearms, and my brow furrowed as the heat of him rolled over me like a damn tidal wave. I felt myself drowning in him as he pressed against me, his muscles blanketing me, his tongue invading me. His hands ran down my body, gripping and groping everything he managed to touch.
“Gael,” I groaned.
“Okay, maybe I don’t want to talk anymore,” he growled.
His hands gripped my ass cheeks, and he hoisted me against him. He kissed me, ravenously, as he walked us into my living room. I fell to the couch, and he fell against my body as my legs spread for him. He was like a storm, overwhelming me as the thunder of his movements rattled my rib cage. He growled into my mouth and managed to rip my clothes from my body as I tore at the fabric of his. My mind fell blank as my hands slid over his muscles, feeling their divots as he kissed down my cheek, along my jawline, down my neck, and all the way to my tits.
“Mine,” he grunted.
I sure as hell didn’t correct him.
He lapped at my pert peaks, and I arched against him as he kept murmuring that word, over and over, like a mantra. Like, if he said it enough times, it might actually come true.
“Mine.”
He tugged my nipple with his teeth.
“Mine.”
He bit his teeth into the soft curve of my hip.
“Mine.”
He kissed up my leg as his cock stood at attention, glistening for me, begging to be sheathed.
“Mine,” he said, his voice like velvet against my ears.
Then, as the tip of his cock fell against my entrance, our eyes connected.
And I still didn’t correct him.
21
Gael
Watching her face contort with pleasure was easily the best thing about this. Feeling her body open up to me was nothing compared to the sheer delight that crossed her eyes as my cock sank into her. The wetness of her walls welcomed me home. The rapid beating of her heart through her pussy synced my own pulse at the base of my cock. I bent down toward her, capturing her lips as I held myself up, the cushions of the couch screaming at us for mercy.
“Gael,” she whispered.
I nuzzled my nose against hers, one last act of kindness before I made her body mine. Because she was mine. No matter what I had to do to make that so.
“Beautiful,” I grunted.
I pulled out and slammed back in, relishing how she bowed. How she arched. How she groaned out for me. Her nails raked down my arms, marking her territory as her jaw unhinged. I did it again, stroking her in all the ways I knew she liked. Every movement, I memorized. Every sound, I committed to future use.
“Gael,” she moaned.
“Perfect,” I growled.
The sounds of skin slapping skin quickly filled the room and echoed off the corners of the walls. Her juices splashed against me, and my skin twinkled with the love I knew she had for me. She hadn’t admitted it yet. She hadn’t given in to it yet. But I felt it in the way she rolled against me. In the way she called out for me. In the way she clung to me and pulled me close to her, my face buried into the crook of her neck.
“More. More. I need more of you, please.”
I kissed the pulse point of her neck before I pinned her beneath me.
The smell of her wrapped around my head. It filled my nostrils as I sank my teeth into the meat of her shoulder. She gasped for air, clawing at my back as her nails dug in to keep hold. I’d adore those crescent marks in the morning, the red streaks her nails would surely leave behind. Seeing her with Liam stoked a fire within me, an angry fire that called to my most primitive nature. I wanted to reassure her that I had her and that I’d protect her, even if she didn’t want me standing at her side.
“Mine. Mine. You’re mine, Syn. Fucking hell,” I grunted.
“Gael, yes!”
Her walls collapsed. They pulled me deeper, massaging me as if I were its last life force. My hips stuttered as she shook against me, my broken name falling from her lips. I stroked her slowly, working her through her orgasm as her pussy quivered around my cock.
Then, I knelt against the cushions of the couch.
“Gael, I can’t,” she breathed.
My hand slowly slid down her stomach, watching her flushed skin pucker for me.
“Gael, I just…”
Her eyes rolled back as my fingertips parted her pussy lips.
“Oh, fuck,” she groaned.
I grinned. “There it is. So good for me. So right for me.”
My fingertips fell against her swollen pussy as my cock softly stroked her. I caught my breath as she wiggled around, trying to get away from my soft assault. I flicked her swollen clit with quick motions. Her legs jiggled, and her abs contracted as I watched her nipples pucker even tighter for me.
“Ga—ga—ga—oh, shi—”
“Just enjoy it,” I breathed.
“Oh, shit,” she whimpered.
I rutted against her as my fingers moved faster, pressed deeper, and pulled juices from her that dripped down my damn balls. I was drenched with her. The cushions below us were damp with our debauchery. Her hips moved up and down, back and forth, rolling against me as she fucked me. I wanted to watch her work for it. I wanted to watch her body gravitate toward me. I wanted to erase all semblance of that asshole from her mind and fill it with thoughts of me. Feelings of me. Memories of me.
“Take what you want,” I growled.
I scooted closer to her as I felt my own end approaching. My balls pulled up as she moved faster, fisting the couch below her. She raked her hands through her hair and played with her tits, tugging at those precious nipples for me as sweat dripped down the nape of my neck.
“That’s it, Gael. That’s it. Right there. Right there. Ri—iiiight the—eeeere.”
“Oh yeah,” I growled.
I gnashed my teeth together. My nostrils flared as I watched her fluids spray against me, soaking me, soaking the cushions, and filling the room with her scent. I pressed my fingertips hard against her clit. I watched her spiral out of control. And as her legs locked around me, burying the whole of my cock into her warmth, I felt myself pop.
“Fuck!” I exclaimed.
Threads of arousal shot
from my tip, coating her and marking her in ways I’d dream about for months. I fell to my hands, hovering over her as her walls continued to massage me. My head fell forward, and I collapsed against her body. And as the mess we made welcomed us back against the cushions of the couch, my face fell into the crook of her neck again.
And our breathing became in sync.
I love this woman.
The second Syn pressed a soft kiss against the side of my head, my brain finally caught up with my heart. I was in love with this woman. In love with her essence. Everything she was. Everything she had been. Everything she would be. And I wanted to spend the rest of my life showing her exactly how she deserved to be treated.
“Syn?” I asked.
“Uh-huh,” she said breathlessly.
I eased myself up. “There’s something I’d like to tell you.”
She grinned up at me. “With your dick still inside me?”
I chuckled. “Depends. How does it feel?”
I rolled against her playfully and watched her gasp.
“Oh, like you’re ready for round… whatever this is.”
“Don’t even play that you’re not ready.”
She giggled. “I might be. If we moved somewhere else. I don’t know about you, but this couch is—”
A cell phone went off in the distance, but it wasn’t mine. And by the way Syn scrambled off the couch, that pretty much answered my question. Just as quickly as the moment had come on, it was gone. It faded away with every stumbled step Syn’s body took away from me. My cock hung heavily between my legs, dripping with her arousal as I knelt there, naked and vulnerable.
“I’m so sorry. It’s just—that’s my ringtone for Madison, and—”
I waved my hand. “I get it. Trust me. Especially with today. Pick it up.”
I flopped down onto my ass on the couch as I watched her dig through her disheveled things.
“Madison, hey. It’s me.”
Syn looked at me and held up her finger before she started upstairs.
“Uh-huh. Yeah, I’m okay. It was just a rough day. Yeah, no. Liam brought the heat. He was just…”
The more she walked upstairs, the further away her voice fell, until there was nothing but the shutting of a door in the distance. I slouched against the arm of the couch, feeling more defeated than ever. A moment ago, it felt like maybe we were building something together. Sharing something together. Pouring some sort of a foundation with one another. But now? I wondered if things were more one-sided than I originally thought.
Maybe she doesn’t feel the same way about you.
I waited for a few minutes to see if she’d come back down so we could talk. But after ten minutes had passed, I resolved myself to the bedroom. I didn’t even bother picking up my clothes. I’d get them later. I took a quick shower and put on a fresh pair of clothes. I towel dried my hair and went in search of my wallet. My phone. My keys. Then, I plucked my bike helmet from the coat closet. I paused at the bottom of the steps to see if I could hear Syn, to see if she was about to wrap things up, or head out of her bedroom, or even come back down the stairs.
Silence was all that greeted me, though.
To the bar, it is.
I rode my bike back across town and slid into a parking space at the bar across from the studio. It was a natural hangout place for everyone on set once we wrapped up filming for the week. Or the day. Every night, no matter what night it was, there was always someone from set pounding back drinks for one reason or another. When Hunter waved me down, my spirits lifted.
“Holy shit! And here I thought you’d abandoned us for good,” he said.
I chuckled as he got up and clapped me on the back with a hug.
“Now, you know damn good and well that’s not true,” I said.
“Oh, come on. We all know married life changes you.”
“Yeah, how are things at home, anyway?”
“Yeah, Gael. How are things at home?” Hunter asked.
I shot him a look. “Let’s get some damn drinks.”
He winked. “That good, huh?”
I sat with a bunch of the part-time stuntmen, and we started pounding back drinks, shots of whiskey, one right after the other. We took a break after the third round of shots to have a beer. Then, we used our beer to chase the fourth shot.
And the fifth shot.
And the sixth, as most of the stuntmen bowed out to make their way home, leaving me and Hunter alone at a table in the corner.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Why don’t you slow down there, married man?” Hunter asked.
I glared at him. “Shut up.”
“So, I take it you don’t want to talk about it?”
I finished off my beer. “Another round, thanks!”
“Fancy seeing you here.”
The familiar voice made me groan as the waitress placed another beer in my hand.
“Nat,” I murmured.
She sat down next to me, uninvited. “Gael. Does Syn know you’re here?”
“Does it matter?”
I looked over at her and saw her glancing at Hunter.
“He knows,” I said.
She paused. “Something you probably should’ve told us, then.”
“Maybe you can get him to talk. He’s obviously not okay,” Hunter said.
“He’s obviously not okay,” I mocked.
“And drunk,” he said.
Nat sighed. “Something going on, Gael?”
I rolled my eyes. “Remind me again why I’m doing this?”
“Doing what?” she asked.
“Staying married to that… that woman,” I said.
“Uh-oh,” Hunter said.
“Maybe we should have this conversation in private,” she said.
“Nah, we’re good right here,” I said.
I took a massive gulp of my beer before Nat wrangled it out of my hand.
“Oh, come on. Give me something,” I said.
“You can get drunk behind closed doors, but not out in public. That’s the issue. Syn married you for the positive press it would bring her, Gael. And you getting drunk in public isn’t positive press.”
“Great. Now I can’t even live my own goddamn life,” I said flatly.
“I’m sorry if things are getting rough with her, or if she’s being disagreeable that’s just how Syn is sometimes. She’s headstrong. And when she sets her mind on something, no one can change it,” Nat said.
“Yep,” I said, popping the p.
“But, if you’re not happy and you want out, I’m sure they’d let you out. Right?” Hunter asked.
Nat nodded. “Yes. Right after the two of you get what you both agreed to. It was all written out in the prenup you signed.”
I blinked as a waitress set a water down in front of me. Holy shit, I’d completely forgotten about that slip of paper. Well, not really slip. More like that damn stack of papers. Still, it hurt.
How in the world could Syn possibly think I’d take anything from her?
“This was a mistake,” I murmured.
“Then, pull the plug,” Hunter said.
“We can get your green card paperwork started as soon as possible. Moving that forward will help,” Nat said.
“No, no, no, not that shit,” I said.
I waved my hand in the air before I fell back against my chair.
“Then, what was a mistake?” Hunter asked.
Falling in love with her. “Nothing.”
“You can talk to us, you know,” Nat said.
“Yeah, and you look like you need someone to talk to,” he said.
“I’m good. Really,” I said.
I wasn’t good, though. Not by a long shot. I felt my heart breaking and my soul shattering. How incredibly mistaken I had been to think there was anything more than business between us. I felt like a fool for considering anything else. For thinking that a woman like Syn would entertain anything else with a man like myself.
“I gotta go,” I murmured.
<
br /> “Here, I’ll help you get home,” Nat said.
Hunter shot out of his chair. “Nah. He’s good. You and your people have done enough to him. I’ll make sure he gets somewhere safe.”
“And what exactly does that mean?” she asked.
“Look at the guy! Look at what your bloodsucking devil has done to him!”
“He willingly went into this. He willingly agreed to this.”
“Yeah, and do you think he would have had he known it would make him fucking miserable like this? He deserves better and damn both of you for not seeing that.”
As the two of them continued to argue in the corner of that bar, I made my way toward the front door, my bike helmet in my hand and my legs unsteady.
I had to get out of there. I had to get away from them. I had to get away from my thoughts.
No matter where the hell that took me.
22
Syn
I felt sick to my stomach. As I pushed the baby potatoes around on my plate, I tried not to look up too much at Liam. The longer I sat there, the more I felt like I was making a mistake. The more he tried to engage me in conversation, the more I wanted to get up and run away. Get back home. Get back to my regular life.
Get back to Gael.
“So, how was work today?” Liam asked.
I nodded. “It was good, for the most part.”
He snickered. “Anything bad about it?”
“You mean other than you?”
My eyes flashed up to his, and he glared at me.
“Play nice. You know what happens if you don’t,” he murmured.
I looked down at my watch. I sighed as I watched the hands slowly tick over to seven o’clock. Madison’s call informed me that Liam had already taken matters into his own hands. He had already arranged for the paparazzi to see us as some luxurious restaurant sharing dinner together. And apparently if I didn’t show up? Liam threatened to force a confrontation on set tomorrow, in front of the cameras, with Gael.
Not me, but Gael.
And I couldn’t let that happen to him.
“So, how was work?” Liam asked again.
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