Bad Boy Brody

by Tijan

  I rocked her over me, and she let out a full-body sigh, tipping backward.

  She let go of the sheet, but it didn’t fall all the way. It fell open, letting me see her. I tugged it down and then cupped one of her perfect breasts.

  I could watch as the sun bathed her through the window for hours. I felt her hair on my legs. Both her breasts free for me to touch, lick, taste. They were there for me to hold on to, every inch of her was. She was soft but toned.

  I let go of her breast and ran a hand down her waist, rubbing over her stomach and then lower, lingering on her nub. She shuddered slightly, breathing heavier, as she always did when I touched her there. And while she remained like that, literally a buffet for me to touch and taste, I leaned forward and caught one of her nipples in my mouth.

  She surged alive, straightening and sliding her hands through my hair. She moved higher on my lap, and I held her tight to me, my teeth biting her gently. I licked around her breast, loving the taste of her, loving how I could almost touch her anywhere and she would gasp in pleasure.

  “Brody,” she said on another sigh.

  I let go of her breast, tipping my head back so her lips could find mine.

  I could die touching her like this.

  Her mouth on mine. Her legs straddling me. My dick rising to her entrance.

  I caught her bottom lip with my teeth, and she gasped lightly and slid down onto me.

  I opened my eyes and looked up. She was gazing down at me, a look of wonder in them, and her hands found my face. Her thumb rubbed over my lip in a familiar gesture that I hadn’t known how much I’d missed until right then. I felt her body tighten, then that look of wonder melted into something more, something warm, something kind, something overwhelming. I felt it surge through me, and I wanted to say it first. I didn’t know why, but I knew I had to.

  I leaned back so I could see her, making sure I had her full attention.

  “I love you.”

  At my words, that emotion was named.

  It was something loving in her, but her lips found mine. That was her response, and I couldn’t do anything except savor the touch. I held her hips and began to move her up and down on me. She rolled them with me, riding me, but I wasn’t content this way. I laid her down, my lips never moving from her, and I bracketed her between my arms, thrusting in slow, deep strokes. I rode her this time. Her legs lifted, her ankles hooking around my back, and I began to thrust harder and faster.

  I skimmed a hand down her side, rubbing against her breast as we kissed.

  I kept moving in her. She kept moving with me.

  We were synced. Maybe we always had been. It was something deeper than us. I felt it when I first saw her on that horse, crossing in front of my car. It’d been there the whole time, like we were literal soul mates.

  And as I thought that word, it clicked in place for me. Everything flooded loose.

  We were.

  I just hadn’t realized.

  I stopped moving and lifted my head.

  My eyes found hers, and she twisted her head to the side. “What’s wrong?” she asked, touching my mouth.

  I caught her fingertip, kissing it before releasing it. “I have never felt like this with someone before.”

  I lowered my lips to hers.

  It wasn’t the first time I made love to her, but it was the first time I was in awe of it.

  Brody

  Gayle was glaring at me.

  I was sitting across the dinner table from my manager and raised an eyebrow. “What’s with the look?”

  Her eyes flicked to the ceiling and then she leaned close to me. She dropped her voice so no one else could hear, but she didn’t need to worry. Finn was having a lively debate with Shanna about the stock market. The two were fanatics, who would’ve guessed that? But I knew it served a purpose. No one wanted to talk about the elephant in the room, and at the moment, I didn’t know if it was Morgan or if it was the reason my manager and director both flew out a week early. I went with the latter because Gayle hissed at me, “You goddamn glow after sex. You know that?”

  I almost choked on a piece of steak. I started laughing. I didn’t expect that from her. “What’s the problem with that?”

  “Nothing.” Her eyes cut to Morgan. She didn’t say any more, but I knew her worries.

  “So.” Shanna called a halt to the other conversation, clearing her throat.

  The air suddenly shifted, growing somber. Tense.

  She looked from me to Morgan and then settled on Matthew. “We saw the press release.”

  Matthew nodded, wiping a cloth napkin over his mouth. He folded it and then set it on his lap, resting his arms back on the table. “Yes. I’m sure you did.”

  “Is it true? He aided in Karen Kellerman’s murder then?”

  The Kellermans all looked at Morgan, who didn’t respond.

  Matthew glanced to Morgan as he answered, “Are you asking for the movie? Or . . .”

  “I need to be prepared for how it might impact the movie.”

  Matthew seemed at a loss.

  I understood where Shanna was coming from.

  I leaned forward. “The evidence is good, even if he gets off.” I looked right at the director. “Put it in the movie.”

  Morgan’s hand found mine under the table.

  “I need to know what to put in. It could change the scope of the movie. Again. I have to know what it is.”

  Matthew’s attention shifted to me, and I narrowed my eyes at him. “If you’re waiting for me to heel, you’re going to be waiting till you die, Kellerman.”

  Matthew cleared his throat. His gaze went back to Shanna. “Put in the movie that he told Karen’s murderer where she was. You can leave it at that.”

  Her mouth fell open. She shared a shocked look with Gayle.

  “Okay.” She clamped her mouth shut. “Okay. I’ll do that then. That’s helpful, and I have everything planned and sorted. We’ll have to do some new scenes from the beginning, but Brody”—she turned to me—“I don’t think those reshoots will take long. We have two months before you go to New Zealand, right?”

  I straightened in my seat. I hadn’t shared that with Morgan yet. My eyes fell to her, but she was looking down at her lap and still holding my hand. She hadn’t pulled that away . . . yet.

  “Yes. I’ll be in New Zealand.”

  “He goes to Iceland right after that one too.”

  Gayle was adding that for Shanna’s benefit in case she went into editing and found more reshoots were needed.

  Shanna nodded. “That’s helpful, yes. We’ll get it all worked out. I’ll have my assistant catch up with you during one of those projects if I need to. Hopefully it’ll just be about the promotion schedule.”

  “That sounds fine.”

  I looked at Gayle. “It does?”

  “I’ve talked to the other franchise. They’ll work with us on the promotion schedule for Unbroke if it conflicts with their shooting schedule. Everything will have to be planned far in advance, though.” She sent the last sentence to Shanna as a warning. Everything took time. Everything had to be planned.

  My gaze fell to Morgan again.

  She didn’t understand that world. Contracts, agreements, itineraries. Those were words she knew, but their concepts didn’t have a place in her life. Her days were open. She could wake when she wanted, go for a walk in the woods, a ride on Shiloh.

  A knot rose in my chest and burrowed there.

  Gayle was right.

  I was under contract for the next two years. There’d be another project after another, and that was what every successful actor wanted. Being busy meant more work would come, more money would come, but it was about riding the wave.

  My wave started with the movie Kyle died trying to get to. It started there, and it seemed it would keep going.

  “She’ll never go with you. She’ll never leave those horses or those lands.”

  Gayle was watching me.

  “I want you to f
orget her.”

  Her words echoed in my head.

  Brody

  Everything moved quickly after that dinner.

  The movie was back in business.

  To keep from any leaks being released—ones that weren’t from Shanna’s people, anyway—the cast and crew filled the estate again and more trailers were brought onto the land. If I wasn’t shooting, I was with Morgan. We were usually in bed or sitting on my patio. There were a few times I went with her into the wilderness because she missed Shiloh. On the days I was working long hours, I knew I could look up and find Morgan watching from astride the mare. When we weren’t doing any of those, we spent the evenings with her siblings. Gayle joined us a few times, and even Shanna once. I think both started to enjoy the bond that was evident between the siblings. Finn and Abby were the closest, but they doted on Morgan. Matthew’s relationship was a little shaky among them all, but he seemed to be making an effort. There was no more shadiness or secrets from him, or so he claimed. He and I weren’t chums, but he didn’t protest my presence and I didn’t beat him up.

  Progress.

  There was the usual buzz among the crew. People were like that. They talked. They gossiped. The only times they fell silent were when they were working.

  And one other time.

  I was running lines with Kara by the river, but the crew wasn’t being quiet. The cameras were off at that moment. Shanna wanted to get a look at some of what we’d already shot in case she needed to redo it, so it was a normal day.

  People were laughing.

  Even Kara and I were joking with each other. Then a hush fell over everyone.

  I looked over, and saw Morgan across the opposite bank. She was sitting on Shiloh, who was pawing at the ground.

  “Oh wow,” Kara said under her breath, lowering her script.

  I looked from Morgan to everyone else before going to her side.

  Shanna’s assistant was tapping her on the arm, and she pulled her attention away from the tablet she was reviewing film on. “What?”

  The assistant pointed at Morgan, and Shanna said, “Oh.”

  She looked at me, too, before standing. There were plenty of yards before she got to the river, and even more before she got down to where Kara and I were standing, but we were immediately across from Morgan.

  I was eyeing Shiloh. “She wants to bolt.”

  Morgan leaned forward a little. I saw how she tightened her legs around the mare, signaling her for to hold. She said, “She’ll wait for me.” Morgan was watching Shanna coming toward us at a slow but steady pace. “Can I be here?”

  Should she be there was a better question.

  I wasn’t given the chance to answer because Shanna arrived almost in a huff. She forced herself back, her body almost swaying from the abrupt change in motion. Her mouth was hanging open, but she tucked some of her frizzing hair behind her ear and crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Morgan.”

  Morgan nodded back. “Can I be here?”

  Shanna had been around Morgan on a few occasions, but Morgan was either sitting by me or on my lap. If she wasn’t with me, she was with Finn or Abby. She was shielded from the burning questions everyone knew Shanna had for her. But this occasion was the second time she saw her on Shiloh, and I could tell Shanna’s director’s eye was going crazy.

  She wanted to shoot Shiloh, but she wanted to shoot Morgan on Shiloh even more. No extra or horse handler would have the ease Morgan had on that horse, or the magic.

  She forced out a breath, and I heard her counting to three under her breath before she managed a bright smile. “Of course, of course, Morgan.” She cleared her throat, her head inclining a little. “And this is your horse? That famous Shoal?”

  “This is Shiloh.”

  Shiloh backed up a few steps, throwing her head back at the mention of her name.

  Shanna was almost drooling. I saw how she tightened her grip on her arm. She was literally holding herself back.

  She blinked rapidly a few times. “Shiloh. Not Shoal.”

  “She’s Shoal’s daughter. Shoal’s with the herd.”

  “Yes. The herd.” Shanna was almost preening from excitement. “Where’s the herd? Not close, right?” Her head suddenly popped high up from her neck.

  Morgan was hiding her own grin. “They’re on the other ridge.” She nodded toward the next mountain. “Everyone’s safe.”

  “Yes. Yes.”

  Kara, who was watching the exchange with the rest of the crew, cracked a grin at Shanna’s mannerisms.

  Shanna began patting her chest repeatedly. I didn’t think she knew what she was doing.

  “Could I—um—” She shot me a look.

  I raised an eyebrow.

  “Could you—” She faltered again but took a firm step forward. Her arms fell from her chest. “Could I ask you to run your horse up and down that bank for me?” Her voice was awestruck. She gestured to one of the cameras. “It would be amazing if we could get some footage of you and especially on your horse. I’d love to capture this. In a way, this movie is just as much about you as your mother, and you’re in your natural element.” The excitement and gushing faded, and her voice grew concise. “I don’t think you realize the effect you have on that horse. It isn’t something I could ever produce in a studio or with another actor.”

  Morgan cocked her head to the side. Her eyes found mine.

  I held up a hand. “It’s your call, not mine.”

  She nodded. “You just want me to run up and down the bank?”

  “Yes, yes!” Shanna’s eyes got big as she began backing away toward the camera. “Just run back and forth. Do whatever you feel comfortable with. The more you run, the better.”

  Morgan frowned, but Shanna was running back to the camera and missed it. She was barking orders and everyone was scrambling.

  Shiloh reared back from the sudden commotion, lifting straight up so she was standing only on her hind legs.

  Kara grabbed my hand and gripped it hard.

  The only one not alarmed was Morgan.

  Shanna snapped her fingers at the camera guy, and he swung the lens around. Whether Morgan knew it or not, she was already being recorded.

  She bent forward, running her hand over Shiloh’s neck and crooning to her. She was soothing her. After a second rearing, Shiloh’s feet landed on the ground and stayed, but she was pawing there. She wanted to run. That was obvious.

  Making a clicking sound, Morgan had Shiloh turn and she let her do what she wanted.

  Morgan bent low, and Shiloh took off at a canter.

  Her mane and tail flew behind her, fanning out, and it really was magical to watch. I’d witnessed this first hand, and so much more, but I was as much awestruck as the rest.

  Morgan let Shiloh go as fast as she wanted before reining her in and having her gallop just as fast back to where we were. She kept doing it, and there was one time Morgan sat up, arching her back and letting her head fall back. Her hair looked like an extension of Shiloh’s mane, flying free behind her as she let her arms fall out like she was flying.

  “Wow.”

  I heard Kara’s soft word and glanced down. Her eyes were glued to Morgan, as were everyone else’s.

  After Shiloh’s need to run waned, the mustang faltered to a stop, and Morgan had her just walk around.

  Shanna’s assistant appeared at my side. “Shanna wants to know if she would stand on her horse?”

  I looked down at her. The assistant looked away for a moment, saying, “She knows she can. She saw it one time but didn’t catch it on camera.”

  They wanted Morgan to be a show horse for them? Where she would perform tricks and acts on command?

  I growled. “No!”

  The assistant flinched and then ran back to Shanna.

  I didn’t watch her relay my message. I was pissed, beyond pissed.

  Morgan wasn’t a circus performer. I got that they wanted to capture some of her magic because that was truly what it was
, magic, but she was precious and invaluable and she wasn’t there to be treated like an event at a goddamn festival.

  Morgan stopped after a while. She and Shiloh cantered back over to where we stood, and Kara seemed braver. She stepped forward, her toes dipping into the river. She wasn’t scared of the mustang like she had been moments before.

  Sensing my anger, Morgan narrowed her eyes at me in a questioning manner. Her head tilted to the side, just a slight bit.

  But Shanna was at my side, and she was just as breathless as before. “That was amazing, Morgan. Truly amazing.” She stopped, gulped, and looked at me.

  I knew what she wanted to ask.

  I shook my head. Don’t do it—

  She did, “Could you stand on her? For just a moment?”

  “What?”

  “You know, I saw you that night outside the estate. We were all in the living room and you were out there. I saw you standing on your horse. Could you do it again?” She was so excited, her hand jerking toward the cameras. “It would be really amazing for the movie.”

  “Let it go, Shanna,” I said. “She already gave you more than enough.” And she knew it. She turned and looked at me, her eyes telling me she did. But she wanted more. I saw her hunger. She wanted as much from Morgan as she could take.

  It would be like trying to get water from a rock. Eventually, she would throw the rock away in disgust.

  I moved in front of her, physically standing in her way. “She’s done enough.”

  Kara stood next to me, shoulder to shoulder.

  I was surprised but thankful.

  She said, “She’s done enough, Shanna.”

  We were both protecting Morgan, but it wasn’t entirely about that.

  We’d both been used at one point. We were pushed to the extreme, having demands placed on us that we wanted to fulfill because we wanted to please others. We wanted to do as much as we could for our directors, agents, producers, and fans, but there was a price. There was always a price. And if we kept trying, we became hollow inside.