Beautiful Series Boxset, books 1-4

by Lilliana Anderson

  I shake my head. “It sounds lonely.”

  “Then I came home to finish the album, and I was hating on myself because I have everything I ever wanted but I was more miserable than ever. Then you walked in to that studio looking like a fish out of water, asking if I knew where Marcus Bailey was, and it was the first time I had genuinely smiled for months.” He grins. “You ignited something inside me, and I just knew I had to have you. You made me work for it, but that was part of the allure.”

  “I knew it.” I grin while he chuckles.

  “My purpose in life was to find you. And there is no sacrifice too big if it means I keep you.”

  “I feel selfish.”

  “Don’t. I want this. The idea of hitting the road again makes me want to puke if I’m honest. I want the horses and the chickens. And the sex room.”

  I laugh. “If it’s our house, every room will be a sex room.”

  “You bet your arse it will.”

  “How’s your hand?” I slide my fingers between his then lift it to inspect his knuckles. “Do you need ice?”

  “It’s fine. Are you OK now?”

  “With you, always.” I sigh, running my thumb over his reddened knuckles. “I’m just afraid of the repercussions of tonight.”

  “I won’t let anyone talk about you like that.”

  Releasing his hand, I move closer and slide my hands over his shoulders. “You can’t keep going around punching everyone.”

  “I can try.”

  Lifting on my toes, I press a soft kiss to his lips. “And I love that you’d even consider it.”

  He laughs a little through his nose and leans against the doors of the elevator.

  “Honey badger is a new one though. I haven’t been called that before.”

  He slides his arms around my waist. “You’re the most beautiful honey badger I’ve ever seen,” he says, his voice smooth as silk.

  I place my hand against his chest and push back a little. “About what Craig said; you know I had no idea who you were when I met you, right? I wasn’t lying about that. And I also had no clue I was going to an industry event tonight. I would have refused to go otherwise.”

  He lowers his head and presses a kiss to the tip of my nose. “I don’t doubt you. There’s no way you could have known I’d be there tonight. Craig didn’t even know. Besides, I know you. You want the least amount of attention possible. Unless it’s from me, of course.” He winks.

  I inch closer to him, my lips craving the touch of his. “Why are you always so sure about me?”

  “Because every time I look at you, my soul speaks to yours.”

  With that, I melt. Every ounce of resolve I had. Every reason I ever had to fight being with him. It all melts away.

  His soul speaks to mine…

  I think that’s the most beautiful thing someone has ever said to me.

  “Kiss me, Marcus.”

  “Gladly,” he murmurs, pulling my body against his as his mouth closes over mine.

  From the moment I met Marcus, I’ve been trying to convince myself that I didn’t want him. That I didn’t feel anything for him. But I wasn’t fooling anyone for a second, least of all him. And now, I’m admitting it to myself. I love Marcus Bailey. I want him. I need him. And I never want to give him up. We belong.

  Marcus’s hands slide up my back, clutching the back of my head as his mouth moves on mine. He hums pleasurably as he inhales, breathing in my scent and loving everything about it. Just like I love everything about him.

  “Let’s go back to bed,” he murmurs as his kisses move from my mouth and down my neck, just before we’re jerked out of our moment by the pinging sound of the elevator arriving on this floor.

  “Karen’s turn,” he says as he pushes away from the doors, taking me with him. We ready ourselves to greet his assistant, but the lift doors open to reveal two police officers.

  “Marcus Bailey?” one of them asks as soon as their eyes land on us. Asking his name is obviously a formality. I can tell by their discomfort they know exactly who he is.

  “Yes?” he answers carefully.

  “I’m sorry, Mr Bailey. But we’re going to have to ask you to come to the station.”

  “Am I under arrest?”

  “For the assault on a Mr Craig Stevens. He’s pressing charges.”

  “What the hell?” I demand, positioning myself between them and Marcus like I have the power to stop this. “How did you even get here so fast? Craig bloody provoked him. This looks like some sort of setup.” My face burns with rage as I realise that little weasel must have had cops waiting for him downstairs. Arsehole.

  Marcus’s hands rest on my upper arms as he gives me a reassuring squeeze. “It’s OK.”

  “I’m sorry, ma’am,” the second officer says. “We were here doing crowd control.”

  Marcus releases me and places his hands on his hips. “Crowd control? There’s that many?”

  “Yes, sir. The whole front of the building is crowded with press and fans.” He looks from Marcus to me. “For both of you. They have signs and everything. It’s quite impressive.”

  “Holy shit.” Marcus wipes a hand across his face.

  “You can’t take him out there,” I say. “They’ll take photos of him being arrested.”

  “We don’t really have a choice here, ma’am.”

  “Can I at least put a shirt on?” Marcus says, indicating his bare chest.

  “Of course,” one of the officers says, going with him towards the bedroom.

  “Do you think you could wait five minutes?” I ask the other officer. “If you let me go down there first, they’ll be so busy trying to get at me you guys could sneak out unnoticed.”

  “You’d be mobbed. I can’t allow that.”

  “Well, what if I leave in his car through the parking garage? That could work?”

  He sighs. “For the sake of public safety, I have to advise you against that. But I can’t stop you if you choose to leave,” he says, and I understand his meaning.

  “OK. Thank you.”

  “Five minutes,” he says, and I could kiss him.

  “Marcus, I need your car,” I call out, just as he exits his bedroom with a clean shirt and a pair of runners and a baseball cap added to his outfit.

  “Um, why?”

  “To create a diversion. I only have five minutes, so I need them now.”

  “They’re on the bedside.”

  “Thank you.” I rush into his room and grab the silver fob along with my bag.

  Catching me as I rush past him, he cups my face on either side. “You don’t have to do this.”

  I grip his wrists. “I want to. I’ll meet you at the station so you’re out of there as soon as possible, OK?”

  “Be safe.” He presses his lips to mine.

  “You forget, I’m an old hand at this.” I keep my smile confident as I get into the lift, but the moment those doors close, my face falls. Time to meet the wolves…

  Fifteen

  Marcus

  The cops walk me discretely out of an emergency exit while the press is busy taking photos and yelling questions at Lisa. She went the long way to the parking garage so the mob would see her, and another two officers are escorting her to my car. Jesus, Lisa. She’s taking a huge risk going out there. I never would have agreed if I’d known she’d walk directly into the fray.

  As I’m deposited in the back seat of the police cruiser, my chest becomes tight at the escalating noise level. I just want to go and help her. I want to keep her safe and out of the limelight like she wanted. Now she’s put herself smack in the middle of it all to protect me. She really is something.

  “Listen, this is probably a really bad time to say this,” one of the officers says as we pull away. “But I'm a really big fan of both your work. The first concert I ever went to was Leisel Marx and I already have your next album on preorder, Mr Bailey. I'm sorry I had to be the one to arrest you.”

  “Don't sweat it, mate,” I say, givin
g him a smile via the rear vision mirror. “We all have our jobs to do.”

  Taking one last look over my shoulder in the direction of the noise, all I can do is hope Lisa broke free of the mob. This is one part of the fame game I won’t miss.

  When we arrive at the station, I’m pushed through fairly quickly and kept out of the general area until it’s time to be transferred into the holding pen. I’m walked down a corridor with cuffs on my wrists then the officer pauses in front of a wall phone and hands me the receiver.

  “You've got five minutes,” he says. “Make it count.” I’m about to call Lisa to see how she is, but since she said she’d get here as soon as she could, I take the opportunity to do something I should have done years ago. I call my brother.

  Lisa

  “What the fuck happened tonight?” Sandra blurts the moment our call connects. My heart is in my throat and I don’t know who else to call.

  “Oh Sandra. I know I’ve fucked up big time, and I’m so sorry. But I need your help.”

  “My help? You just caused the biggest fucking calamity the music industry has seen since…well, you went nuts last time. How could you not tell me I’m best friends with Leisel Marx?”

  “It’s complicated. And I promise to explain. Just not now, please?”

  “Girl, you better spill your guts like you’ve been disembowelled when I see you. I want to know everything, and I think it’s only fair that I get the exclusive interview.”

  I chuckle a little in response. She’s always thinking of her career. “Whatever you want. Just please, help me out.”

  “What do you need?”

  “Take care of Perry for me? I don’t know when I’m going to be able to go home and if the press is at my place, he’s probably freaked out by now.” I take the corner without using a blinker, still trying to lose the paparazzi. But they have motorbikes and aren’t backing off for a second.

  “Oh god. Of course. Poor Perry. I’ll go there now to get him.”

  All of a sudden, there’s a loud thumping noise coming from above and I lift my eyes to the sky. Holy fuck.

  “Thank you, Sandra. You’re saving my arse right now.”

  “It’s fine. One question though. Is that a helicopter I can hear?”

  Marcus

  “Marcus Bailey? You’re out.” The door buzzes and a cop slides it open, gesturing for me follow. I stand from the metal bench I’ve been positioned on for the last hour while a drunk guy lamented about his life. I think he pissed himself too.

  “Marcus Bailey?” The drunk frowns as I stand up to leave. “I thought you said yer name was ‘Jack Meehoff’.”

  I press my lips together in a smile, but don’t address his query. “Good luck, Davo. Hope you can sort things out with your wife when you get home.”

  As I move past the other men, some of them claim they knew who I was all along, while others are either too out of it to respond or just don’t give a shit. I flat out denied who I was the moment I was asked and then just kept my head down.

  “Can I get ya autograph?” Davo calls after me.

  The officer leads me into another room where my shoelaces and wallet are returned to me. Then I’m taken to the back of the station because there’s some press milling around the front of the station.

  “Word travels fast, huh?”

  The officer escorting me grunts. “Like we’ve got nothing better to do with our time.”

  He pushes a metal door open and I’m expecting Lisa. Although, I freeze, surprised when I’m greeted by Naomi and Theo leaning against the old Matiari van.

  “Aren’t you two a sight for sore eyes,” I say, holding out my arms to give each of them a hug.

  “You’re too pretty for the big house, little bro. Came as fast as we could.” Theo chuckles as he slaps me on the back. “Wanna get out of here?”

  “I do. But Lisa’s supposed to be meeting me here and I don’t have my phone to call her.”

  Theo opens the door to the van. “She’s busy, bro. Press is all over her.”

  “Fuck. Is she OK?”

  Naomi holds her phone in her hand, showing me a live stream. “Well, they’ve just called in the helicopters.”

  My eyes bug out of my head. “What?”

  “Leisel Marx is back, Marcus,” Naomi says. “It’s the story of the century.”

  “And you’d better get your arse in the van before they sic the helicopters on us too,” Theo says.

  We pile in and while Theo drives, Naomi and I watch the live news broadcast of my car zig-zagging in and out of traffic with four men on motorbikes in pursuit.

  “What the fuck is this?” I say, watching the scrolling bar of text along the bottom of the screen: ‘Leisel Marx attacks one and steals car in her most recent revenge plot involving Marcus Bailey. Marcus Bailey arrested on assault charges. When will the madness end?’ My mouth drops open. “This is bullshit.” The news helicopter continues to film her driving around the same block three times. A flash of footage, filming her from the side as she takes a corner shows her looking harassed and…squashed up. Suddenly, I’m reminded of why she refused to go in my car. Her head is touching the roof. I never should’ve let her go out there

  “Looks like you’ve found yourself a badarse, Marcus,” Naomi says with a smile. “She’s not giving in.”

  As I watch the news broadcast, my heart swells with affection for this woman. What she’s doing right now is nothing short of amazing. She’s keeping them busy so they don’t find me. But fuck, I wish she’d stayed in my apartment where she was safe. I can’t take the stress of this.

  Lisa

  “Holy shit, Leis. You’re all over the news. They think you’re going to smash his car into something,” Sandra informs me from the other end of the line. Her voice fills the car through the Bluetooth. It’s almost as if she’s here with me.

  I turn another corner. “I’m not! I’m trying to use all of my spy skills to lose them. But it’s not working. I’ve been driving for over an hour and now there’s a fucking helicopter! What the hell am I supposed to do?”

  “What would Jason Statham do in this situation?”

  “Crap. I don’t know. He’d pull some trick driving manoeuvre and lose them in a parking garage or something.”

  “Exactly,” she replies and I can hear the smile in her voice.

  “That’s it! A parking garage! I can see a big shopping centre up ahead. There’s no way they’ll be able to cover all the exits. I’m going to cut through there.”

  “Maybe you should leave the car there and catch a cab?”

  “Sandra. I’m driving a Porsche 911 that isn’t mine. I am not leaving it in a shopping centre’s parking garage. It will be stripped and sold for parts in no time.”

  “True. True. What are you doing to do then?”

  “Something a little illegal.”

  I hit the end call button on the steering wheel as I approach a set of lights, slowing for the stop signal and waiting for the bikes to stop beside me, their cameras flashing against the windows.

  “Come on, Leisel. Give us a smile.”

  “Fuck off!” I yell, throwing the Porsche into reverse, my heart thundering as I drive backwards until I round the corner, creating just enough distance between us that I make it into the enormous shopping centre’s car park without them on my tail. Then I flick off my lights and wind my way through the levels until I reach the exit furthest from the way I entered. As I drive through the gate, I tell my phone to navigate to Marcus’s place so I can continue driving without my lights on. It’s not the greatest plan in the world, but all I need is a few minutes head start to get into the parking garage without those bikes getting in there with me.

  When I’m almost there, I flick the lights back on to warn the cops doing crowd control that I’m coming. The mob screams the moment I slow down, and I’m so thankful for our police department for setting up barriers and keeping this calm enough that I can get inside. I’ll have to send something to the station to sho
w my appreciation.

  The moment it closes behind me, I park the car and breathe a huge sigh of relief before I burst into tears. I never want to be involved in a paparazzi chase ever again. That was just… horrible.

  On shaky legs, I get out of the car. Wiping away my tears as I head to the elevator bay, using the key on Marcus’s chain to gain access to the penthouse.

  My chest stutters as I ride up to his apartment, feeling awful because I failed. I was supposed to bail him out and I couldn’t get anywhere near the police station. I just hope he has Karen’s number written down upstairs. She’s the only person I can think to call who’ll be able to pull this off.

  My phone buzzes in my back pocket, and I pull it out, relief flooding my veins when the letter M lights up the screen.

  “Marcus?” I press the handset to my ear, sniffling. “Where are you? Are you OK?”

  “I’m fine. I’m home. What about you? Where are you? The news is saying they lost you.”

  “I’m OK.” I sob down the line as the stress of the evening comes crashing down on me.

  “Don’t cry, baby. I’ll come and get you. Forget the car, get out and dump it. I just want you safe.”

  “No. I’m fine. I’m in the lift to your apartment.”

  “I’m waiting for you,” he says in a deep rumble that calms me.

  I let out a shaky breath. “I’m coming,” I whisper.

  The doors ping open, revealing the most magnificent thing my eyes could ever see. “Marcus,” I cry out, practically throwing myself against him as I exit the lift.

  He catches me effortlessly, lifting me so I’m wrapped around his middle. Instantly, his mouth is on mine and I’m crying and kissing him, shaking like we’ve just travelled through a war zone to get to each other.

  “I hate paparazzi,” I whisper.

  He lowers me to the ground, holding me steady in his arms. “Me too,” he says. “Fucking leeches.”