Taking Beauty (Taking Beauty Trilogy Book 1)

by Wild, Nikki

  “Good lord, Lex,” Riley murmured to herself, taking in the sights as she quietly explored the suite. “This is fucking incredible… and exactly what I needed after the day I’ve had…”

  “It did sound like something was the matter earlier, over our texts,” I commented. “Do you want to tell me what happened?”

  “I met Gloria Van Lark,” she answered calmly. “She appeared in town and was seen in a few museums that featured my art… I had a confusing conversation with her.”

  “Oh? That’s fantastic!” I grinned, before realizing the implications. “Wait… it doesn’t sound like that went particularly well.”

  “She turned me down,” Riley sadly told me. “I had my chance, and I blew it. She’s gone.”

  “I’m sorry,” I murmured, pulling her into an embrace and stroking her hair. “I know how much it meant to you to earn her respect… I’m sure you’ll get another chance sometime. You’ve got a long career ahead of you, and you’ll be in one of those galleries before you know it.”

  “It’s funny, one of the visitors said something kind of like that…”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah. Someone who overheard and took pity on me after she saw the kind of effect meeting Gloria had on me… but anyway, that was earlier, and this is now. And now is… wonderful,” she told me.

  Riley glanced warmly up into my eyes and kissed me on the lips again. After a few seconds, she pulled out of my arms to admire the etched crown molding along the edges of the room.

  “Did you seriously get this incredible suite for us tonight? It’s absolutely amazing in here…”

  “I wanted you to have a taste of deConnorce,” I commented casually, stripping off my blazer and setting it on a hanger in the large walk-in closet. “Renting that small motel room down the other block is a modesty… this is something a little closer to my tastes.”

  “You’re richer than I thought you were,” she realized aloud, turning to me.

  “Richer is relative. But does this change anything for you? Maybe how you feel about me?”

  “Not a goddamn bit,” she smiled, pulling me into a tight hug as she leaned up on her toes, planting her lips on mine…

  Ten minutes later, the shower was running, her palms were against the glass wall, and mine were on her hips – as I bucked into them, again and again.

  My lips found her throat and I groaned my satisfaction into the tender flesh, grazing my teeth along the edge.

  She cooed in response, and I bit down, feeling her body murmur against me in complete, unadulterated delight. “Oh god, Lex,” she whispered as the water drizzled down and the steam rose up around us. “You know how to fuck me so well…”

  I released one hand to clutch a fistful of her hair, and I tugged backwards, holding her face up near the glass. Before the steam could completely cloud our vision, I forced her to watch us fucking in the large mirror, just a couple of yards straight ahead.

  “That’s right, just like that,” she half-whispered, half-moaned. “Fuck me with your huge cock…”

  At first, I ignored the request, relinquishing my grip on her skin and withdrawing from inside her. But before she could mutter her dislike, I changed my mind… and pulled her from the shower, wiping my feet off on the mat just outside.

  Confident in the grip of my soles against the tile, I spun her around, lifting her up beneath her buttocks and supporting her against the glass wall. The water continued to drizzle on the other side of the glass as her ankles wrapped around my hips, clasped together into the small of my back.

  “Oh wow… oh fuck,” she groaned, enjoying the position as she realized what I had done. Now, she could rest against the wall, completely supported by my strength, and watch me plow into her again and again in the mirror.

  “Lex… goddammit, Lex…”

  My lips forced themselves down on hers, and I lifted her just a few degrees higher, giving myself a better angle to penetrate her on my cock. I loved how she was growing accustomed to the length, and within a few minutes of this, she was relaxed enough to allow my full length inside.

  Once I was hilting her, feeling her slick, warm pussy clamp around my thick, throbbing tool, I felt my mind melt into a blissful paradise.

  There were no stresses now.

  No bellyaching publicist friend.

  No rivals, dangling for what was mine.

  No concerns over corporate contracts.

  There was only the way that our bodies intermingled, our blood pumping through our veins as we fucked each other, so blissfully full of life and passion.

  The sex I’d had before?

  Mechanical. Just a means to an end, a way to release my own personal drug – a blinding mixture of endorphins and chemicals that flooded my head, giving me the high that let me forget all about the darkness in my past.

  When I fucked, it all went away.

  I could sleep at night… fitfully, sometimes, but at least it was something.

  With Riley, though… it was as if an entirely new height was being reached. Even from the start, I’d felt something different about the ways our skin pressed together, and our bodies bent for one another.

  I felt my restraints falling apart.

  Riley was moaning at the top of her lungs now. I could feel her body tense up as she released a mighty scream, unimpeded by thin walls or the need for privacy. She let loose every ounce of strength she had, lost in the throes of passion as she came hard around my cock.

  And as her pussy clenched, desperate to milk me dry, I felt my body grow rigid. I couldn’t hold on any longer, and my limbs stiffened, pinning her into my embrace against the walls. Her fingertips were digging deep into my shoulders as my balls seized up, and I exploded with a roar of blinding ecstasy as my cock drained itself completely dry inside her – pumping the hardest, thickest, most voluminous orgasm I’d ever experienced in my entire life deep into her wet, sopping chasm.

  She was experiencing a multiple orgasm around mine, and when her rapid heartbeat finally began to slow down, and her tense grip on my muscles started to relax, she looked me in the eyes with a completely defenseless gaze.

  “Did… did we just come together?”

  My chest was heaving as I nodded. “Yeah,” I breathlessly responded. “I think so.”

  “Oh god, Lex, I didn’t really think that could actually happen,” she murmured in my ear, resting her chin onto my shoulder. “I mean, I’ve heard about that kind of thing, but it seemed so… unlikely… you know?”

  I nodded again. “I know what you mean…”

  Gently, I set her back to the ground, and we popped back into the shower to clean off the sweat from our furious fucking. We enjoyed the steam of the shower, taking our time in washing each other off, tracing the outlines of each other’s bodies as we bathed one another.

  Inevitably, one thing led to another, and I was taking her nipple between my teeth as her fingers wrapped lightly around my stiffening cock…

  About two hours later, we were finally resting in bed, where we had finally wrapped up our marathon sex for the moment. My thoughts were ricocheting around in my head, and I felt the undying compulsion to finally speak my mind…

  And to take a very dangerous step forward.

  “What is it that you want, Riley?” I asked her as she ran her fingertips along my chest. “What do you want out of this?”

  She turned her head, gazing fiercely into my eyes. I could sense such strength and determination in those retinas that they almost burned into my own.

  “What do you mean?”

  I paused, collecting my thoughts.

  “We both know that I’m going back in a few weeks. I understand that your life is here… your friends are here… but… have you given any thought to…”

  “To coming back with you?” Riley finished my question, her catlike gaze still focused intently on my eyes.

  “Yes,” I replied truthfully.

  Riley maintained that gaze for a few moments, not speaking
a single word. As the silence dragged out, she turned her head back, settling it against my chest again.

  “So that’s a no,” I answered.

  “That’s a… deceitfully complicated question,” Riley replied. “Everything that I know and love is here. Are you actually asking me to give it all up to return with you to England? My friendships, my life, and my entire world… it’s here in New Orleans. You would ask me to drop it all?”

  I realized the mistake I had made now.

  I’d pushed her too hard.

  I’d reached for too much.

  “Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve wanted to go to England,” Riley told me. “I grew up watching British sitcoms, classic episodes of Doctor Who. I can tell you all about Daleks and Cybermen and Ice Warriors… I can recount tales of Gallifrey and Skarro, of Davros and the Time Lords…”

  “You know your stuff,” I observed.

  “You present an interesting opportunity,” Riley thought aloud. “And I understand that this is a painless way to make a clean break. I can return with you and submerge myself in Great Britain, although that might set me back a little on the painting front…”

  “You will have all the room you need to paint,” I whispered.

  “Is that so?”

  “You should see Lambert House,” I told her, recalling the estate fondly. “It stands proud and tall in the English countryside, down a long, winding road lined with beautiful trees…three stories tall with a sprawling basement and a massive attic, a thick wall all around for privacy, and magnificent gardens lining the front and the back… my cluster of orange trees bloom so brightly in the spring, growing the most delicious citrus you’ve ever tasted…”

  “You paint a compelling argument,” Riley whispered. “Will I have a studio?”

  “I know just the room already,” I thought wistfully. “On the west side of the house, with a great glass ceiling, where the sunlight catches just right no matter if you work at noon or sunset. The oranges and yellows of the horizon are so beautiful there, and you’ll have enough space for a small gallery in that room alone… and a raised platform for your work.”

  “It sounds very beautiful,” Riley murmured, closing her eyes to picture it. “Are there any closets?”

  “Several,” I answered, “clustered near the raised flooring. There’s plenty of shelving, several bookcases… and ample light. You can store absolutely anything that you need, and if it’s somehow not enough… I can always call out my contractors to install more space for you. Anything that you need.”

  “You actually mean that, don’t you, Lex?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Riley considered this carefully, her fingertips still stroking along my bare skin.

  “Can my friends come to visit sometimes?”

  “I see absolutely no reason why not.”

  She turned her face one last time, regarding me cautiously and carefully.

  “Why me?” Riley finally asked.

  I smiled. Answering that question something that didn’t require even the slightest ounce of brainpower… because I’d known the right response for a while now.

  “Because you’re not like the others Riley… Your art… Your mind… The way you make me feel when I see you… I’m always left wanting more.”

  “That’s a nice little speech there,” she chuckled. “Kind of convincing, too. Have you always been this silver-tongued?”

  “I’ve had a lot of time to think about this.”

  Riley seemed to accept that reply.

  “You realize, of course,” she told me, “that in order for me to join you back abroad… I can’t just be your partner, or your girlfriend, or your friend with benefits. I need my art, Lex, and I won’t give up my business. Getting a work visa in the UK is nearly impossible. Even money can’t cut through all the red tape. It might be years before I can get the necessary paperwork, and the damage that would do… I can’t pursue my work there unless…”

  “Unless you were my wife.”

  “It’s not going to be that easy. I expect more from people who are asking me to make that plunge with them. You’re going to have to propose your ass off if you want any remote chance that I’ll agree to something this crazy. I barely know you Lex.”

  “You could look me up, if you really wanted to,” I said quietly. It was all there online… My checkered history… My indiscretions…

  “I guess I was just enjoying the surprises… A part of me didn’t want to know who you are,” she replied quietly.

  “If you won’t look, let me tell you the most important thing.”

  A faint, deviant smile crossed her lips.

  “I love you, Riley.”

  Riley

  A couple of blissful afternoons later came the day that things finally came crashing down with Lex. Unaware of the things to come, I wandered into Connor’s record store with Reiko by my side, ready to answer a strange text message to drop by.

  He was busy running some paperwork in the back, so Reiko and I perused some of the records. Even if he had a misguided jealousy complex, I couldn’t ignore the fact that Connor had extremely great tastes when it came to music.

  Probably why he drew so much of the local talent… and the bigger names that passed through town, playing their venues. More than one legendary secret show had happened within the basement beneath this record store.

  When Connor finally popped out from the back, his eyes immediately zeroed in on me. He called his assistant over and waved his hands around animatedly, clearly telling her off under his breath.

  I could imagine why, although it didn’t please me that he was so hard on her. She was helping other customers, after all.

  She looked absolutely downtrodden as she returned to help a pair of punks check out some vintage material. Meanwhile, Connor waved us both over, and we followed him towards the back of the store.

  Passing through the beaded curtain along the doorway behind the counter, he guided us past a couple of storage rooms and to his main office. We leaned against the wall, avoiding the various tables that were buried under spare record sheaths and mountains of paperwork, while Connor slipped around the back of his small, beaten desk.

  “What kind of favor did you need?” I asked him, crossing my arms.

  “Actually, I just said that to get you to come over, although I was kind of hoping that we’d be… alone…” he glanced over at Reiko guiltily.

  She sighed and rolled her eyes.

  “Why’s that, Connor?” I demanded, just waiting on him to fuck this up. What he did next… I could never have seen coming.

  “So, I looked into this Lex of yours,” he started, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

  “You don’t have to say anything Connor. I already know he’s wealthy…”

  “Wealthy is part of it… He’s a goddamned celebrity.”

  “A celebrity?” I asked, my curiosity piquing.

  “Yeah… he’s a huge deal in England, actually. He’s not just any soccer player, he’s basically the soccer player… captain of what they call the National team, sort of a football super-group that represents the entire country in the international World Cup Series.”

  “Oh shit, seriously?” Reiko chimed in. “That’s wicked cool!” She elbowed me lightly in the ribs, a massive smile across her face. “What a fucking catch, girl!”

  “I knew he played… But… The World Cup? Are you sure about this?” I asked, pensively.

  “Yeah. He’s been playing with them for a couple of years now. Before then, he was in some of the major teams, so he’s what you might think of as a national icon. The audiences love him. He’s one of the best players in the world… handsome, charming… and absolutely great with the fans.”

  “So, why do you care?” Reiko asked, tilting her head. “We all know that you’ve been pissed off about this guy for a few weeks… have you finally come around, or what?”

  Connor’s face darkened.

  “No, actually, becaus
e there’s more to it.”

  “What, is he a fucking astronaut, too?” Reiko chuckled. “Does he play that sport on the goddamn moon?”

  “No,” Connor gravely answered. “He stays relevant to pop culture for his skills, his charm… and his reputation.”

  “What kind of reputation?” I asked.

  Before he could respond, I was already dreading the answer. My stomach began to turn as he quietly hid the fact that he was relishing this fucking moment… that meant that, whatever I was about to learn?

  It was going to be bad.

  Really bad.

  “Instead of telling you, I should probably just show you,” Connor replied carefully, reaching for a nearby manila folder. He scattered a couple of sheets off of it, retrieving it from a nearby pile of documents, and unsheathed a stapled stack of papers before handing them to me.

  As I glanced down at what I was seeing, my blood began to completely boil.

  Each page was a different printout of a British tabloid cover or interior article. On every page, there was a large snapshot of Lex Lambert in a compromising position, with a sensationalist headline that put his exploits front and center:

  Lightning Lex Caught with Innocent Starlet!

  Lambert Throws Destructive Hotel Orgy!

  Lightning Strikes Again! Now with Two Co-eds!

  Lightning Lambert’s Beach Sex-capades!

  Lex’s New Record: One Night, Five Dancers!

  I flipped through page after page of his sexual exploits, each one more ridiculous than the last. Paparazzi shots with tasteful blurring adorned the package of files that Connor had handed me, and I could barely make it two-thirds through before I just skimmed the rest and sank to the floor.

  The two of them remained silent.

  Reiko took the folder from my quaking hands and skimmed through the pages, and then sighed as she set it down beside my ankle.

  “Well… I guess nobody’s perfect,” she mumbled. “I’m really sorry, Riley.”