For One Night Only (Siren Publishing Classic)

by For One Night Only (lit)

  A hollow lump formed in his chest as he recalled just how awful life with them had been. His father never actually hit his wife, but he used the threat of violence to control and intimidate her. Hell, his mother was no saint and hardly ever sober, but nobody deserved that. The abuse had continued until Ruben was twenty and living away from home.

  Ignoring his better judgment, he’d returned from New York, where he had been attending college, for Christmas. Like some bad movie he’d seen a million times, his mother began drunkenly abusing his father and he knew what would happen next. Except Ruben had changed the ending that time.

  His father had taken a little longer than usual to react—maybe in deference to his son’s visit—but eventually he had lunged for his wife, pinning her against a wall. The shock on his face as his son punched him to the floor was something Ruben would never forget. Nor would he forget the way his mother leapt at him, screaming that he should leave his father alone. He’d stormed out of the house that night and had never gone back.

  The only time he saw his parents now was if he had a gig anywhere near Mexico. He would fly them in and spend the afternoon in the city but he never went ‘home’ again. Hell, he hadn’t even seen the house he’d bought them. He was their son and they would never want for anything, but he couldn’t imagine a time when they could ever be a real family again.

  His mood worsened—the day had been traumatic enough without filling his head with bad memories. He shouldn’t stay in his suite any longer. Bitter experience had taught him that no good would come of staying alone when he was in this frame of mind. Problem was, he didn’t really want to go anywhere.

  After picking up the cell phone, he scrolled again through the list of names until he found her number. He’d had it, along with her home address, for just over a week now thanks to the Internet. That was a first, the Internet working for, rather than against him. He’d lost count of how many crazies had gotten his address that way.

  He toyed with the idea of phoning her, but realized the most he could hope for was hearing her voice and making himself even hornier. Throwing his phone back down on the bed in disgust he picked up the hotel phone instead and dialed Byron’s extension.

  Wherever he went, there was always a stack of invites waiting for him and Byron came in a few moments later carrying a handful. Usually, Ruben could think of nothing he would rather avoid than those types of parties, but he needed a distraction.

  They decided on the after party of an awards show. He knew the place would be crammed with women—none he would want to introduce to his mother, but that wasn’t what he was looking for. Women loved being with him. If Bethany didn’t want him, there were plenty more who did. It was time he remembered that and forgot about her.

  Bethany pushed her plate away in disgust. She had picked at her food, unsure why she had even bothered to cook for herself. Bored beyond belief, but aware it was too early for bed, she turned on the TV.

  Flicking through the channels, she stopped on an entertainments program. ‘Beautiful people’ flittered by on the screen, barely registering with her. The location changed to an outdoor shot of an exclusive nightclub. An overly made up presenter was almost beside herself with excitement as she fawned over the stars on their way into the party. Picking up the remote to change the channel, Bethany froze as Ruben’s face filled the screen.

  Every part of her body recognized him and instantly sprang to life as she watched him flirt with the presenter. Charm oozed from his every pore and she felt insanely jealous as his warm brown eyes caressed the woman. He had been looking at her that way less than two weeks earlier. God, she missed that.

  He spoke briefly of his reasons for attending, explaining that he was in town and needed to unwind. The shot ended with Ruben disappearing into the club. Turning to camera, the woman excitedly explained that Ruben had arrived alone but that ‘this reporter’ was sure he wouldn’t be for long. Snorting in disgust—at herself as much as the simpering female—Bethany reached for the remote and turned off the TV.

  Resting her head back on the sofa, she fought the sadness that invaded her so often these days. Her time with Ruben had been fun but it was over. So, she would never see him again, but at least he’d given her confidence a huge boost. Yeah, but he had also given her something else to add to her list of regrets, she argued. She shouldn’t have left the way she did, but she’d panicked. Disappearing had seemed the easiest way out of a potentially embarrassing situation. She’d probably done them both a favor.

  Bethany had been certain that Ruben was the last thing she needed in her life, but that night of mindless, mind-blowing sex had sure done her a power of good. And, for a while, she’d been satisfied. Since that night though, her world seemed grayer and drabber than before. Ruben sure wasn’t the answer to her problems—she guessed he didn’t even remember her name by now—but that brief, bright moment in her otherwise dreary life made her current situation almost intolerable by comparison.

  The phone rang, startling her out of her reverie. She was relieved to hear her sister’s voice. Bless her—she always seemed to turn up just when she was needed.

  Donna was in her usual upbeat mood. ‘What’s going on Sis?’

  ‘Not a lot.’

  ‘Uh-oh. I recognize that tone. What’s wrong?’

  Bethany sighed, reluctant to unload on her again. It was all she ever seemed to do recently. ‘I’m ok. A little bored I guess.’

  ‘Don’t you dare complain about boredom,’ Donna said. ‘I can’t believe you were in bed with that horny bastard back in LA and you ran out on him.’ She laughed then to soften her words. ‘You’re crazy, you know that don’t you?’

  Bethany couldn’t help but smile down the phone. ‘I am not going over this again. I explained on the plane home…I just freaked out. That’s all.’

  ‘Well, from what you told me, I am amazed you could walk, never mind run out on him in the middle of the night.’ Donna’s raucous laugh made her blush as she recalled how wild she had become with him. She wished now she had never told her about her night with Ruben —her sis was never going to let her live it down.

  ‘It just seemed easier to leave before—’

  ‘Before you dared to relax and allowed yourself to get close to somebody again?’

  ‘Hey! I’m not that bad,’ Bethany protested.

  ‘Sweetheart, you are fabulous. I just wish you could forget about the past and enjoy what life is trying to give you.’ Donna’s voice had become serious. ‘It’s been a long time since you let anybody get that close. I know you, Beth. You found some reason to push him away, rather than risk being hurt.’

  Where had that come from? Her sister knew her so well she had probably guessed what she’d been thinking about. ‘Donna, I am fine. I understand what you are saying, but that really wasn’t an issue. I doubt if Ruben has even thought of me since then.’

  Bethany ploughed on, filling the rare silence from her sister. ‘The experience was fabulous and a night I will never forget. But that’s all it was…a night.’

  She heard Donna sigh and expected an argument, so found her words surprising. ‘Ok, so now that you have been reinvented as this wild child who loves them and leaves them, who is your next victim?’

  ‘Very funny.’ Her kid sister could be a real smart ass sometimes.

  ‘Seriously Beth, use this as a turning point. Don’t allow yourself to settle back into your old routine.’

  She was right. Bethany knew it.

  Searching for an excuse to change the subject, she asked about her beloved niece. She laughed as Donna told her that her husband Fletcher had banned the name ‘Ruben Navarro’ from ever being mentioned in his house again. She also mentioned that Tyla had become the ‘it’ girl at school—due to her aunt’s connections with the rich and famous.

  ‘I think ‘connection’ is stretching our involvement a little too far,’ Bethany objected, although secretly flattered that her niece thought she was so influential.

 
‘Well, based on the pathetically small amount of juicy gossip you deigned to share with me about that night, I’d say you were pretty ‘connected’ for most of the evening!’ Donna’s laugh drowned out Bethany’s mortified shriek of embarrassment.

  ‘You must think I am as wild as you, Donna,’ she laughed, shaking her head at the thought of what her sister must be like in bed. That Fletcher was a brave man. Well, either brave or stupid.

  ‘Hey, we aren’t that different, as much as you would like to convince yourself that we are.’

  ‘I guess you’re right.’ Bethany didn’t think for one minute that she was anything like her, but decided against sharing her thoughts. How could she disagree without making it sound as if she disapproved of her sister’s much more relaxed outlook on life and love…well, everything really? They shared the same sense of humor and a quick temper but, deep down, they were different in a way that Donna could never understand.

  The call ended quickly due to Tyla’s insistent whining in the background that she had to use the phone.

  Bethany thought back over her sister’s words. Forget the past and enjoy what life is trying to give you. That’s what Donna had said, and it kept repeating in her head, over and over.

  Mindlessly finishing the last few household chores before she went to bed, she couldn’t shake the feeling that things needed to change. She didn’t want to go back to the emptiness of her life before.

  The weekend was coming up and she was surprised to discover she had no desire to spend it alone. She would get her hair and nails done, perhaps go out to dinner.

  Roger, the medical sales rep who asked her out every time he dropped off supplies, was due in the following morning. If he asked her out again, this time she would accept. He wasn’t really her type and she seriously doubted she would be able to tolerate him for more than an evening, but the thought of having a reason to dress up appealed to her.

  She crawled into bed feeling a little better than she had in a long while. She was too wired to sleep though, thoughts of Ruben floating in and out of her head. Seeing him had brought a lot of feelings flooding back…feelings she didn’t want when she was alone.

  There had been no further sightings of the mystery brunette by the time The Fan checked into her hotel in Corpus Christi some two weeks later. Dogging his every move from the time she’d caught up with him again in San Diego—the next step on his tour after LA—she knew he had traveled alone, save for the usual companions. She didn’t want to spend more money booking into yet another expensive hotel at the last minute. His schedule allowed for an extra couple of nights in the city, giving Ruben—or rather, both of them—a much-needed break.

  As far as she knew, none of the other fans she was ‘friendly’ with were in town. None of them had turned up at any of his scheduled appointments. A couple of interviews at a local radio station and an evening with the press must have seemed like a pretty easy day for him compared to his usual routine.

  She hadn’t had the energy to follow him all day, and returned to her hotel, resigned to an early night.

  Sleep didn’t come easily; she felt unsettled but didn’t know why. He was alone, she was sure of it. Still, the night he had spent with the brunette had shaken her to the core. The thought Ruben might find someone else hadn’t really occurred to her before—not seriously. She knew his sexual appetite well enough to be sure he couldn’t go long without release but there had been very few women in the six months she had been traveling with him—and none of those had spent the night.

  Her own experience had been a perfect example. He’d invited her back to his room after seducing her effortlessly. Her virginal naivety had been no match for his easy charm. She’d known before she agreed to go with him that he believed her to be more experienced than she actually was, but she wasn’t afraid—in fact, she had barely been able to control her excitement at the prospect.

  Keen and eager to please, she hoped her enthusiasm would hide a lack of experience. She’d acted in the same way that the women did in the dirty videos she had found in her daddy’s bedroom once. Ruben had seemed to like it so she’d gotten wilder, mimicking the sounds she had heard in the movies and groaning as if in ecstasy when she had taken his penis into her mouth.

  Oral sex had been a surprise. She’d had no idea that she would be so good at it or enjoy it so much. Soon, she was no longer faking her reactions. The power she got from seeing how turned on he was, made her wet and totally ready for him.

  Her initial nervousness had soon been replaced by an insatiable need and she’d begun to take over—telling him what she wanted. He’d been happy to oblige, grinning in surprise as she had ordered him down between her legs. Her first orgasm had been mind-blowing, coming almost as soon as she’d felt the first touch of his tongue. Her second had been just as powerful although less intense, but deeper, somehow. He’d been inside her by then; riding her with such force that she had known he was as moved as she was. His orgasm had been brutal, robbing them both of breath.

  Nobody since had made the same impression or gotten the same reaction from her. Older and wiser, she’d come to realize that what had happened that night had been much more than just sex. That kind of connection came from something deeper and could only be found with a soul mate. She remembered laying in the safety of his arms afterwards, feeling like she had finally found the place she belonged.

  Suddenly something had changed, and to this day, she didn’t know what. Jumping briskly from the bed, he’d thrown on a robe, his eyes not meeting hers as he explained he needed to speak to someone. He’d barely been gone more than a couple of minutes before the door opened again and the man mountain she now knew to be Albert, walked in.

  It turned out Ruben liked his privacy and Albert ensured he got it. Barely suppressed fury rose in her as she remembered the way he had dragged her naked from Ruben’s bed, throwing her clothes in her face and telling her to get out. He had not listened to her protestations that Ruben had simply left to speak to someone and would be expecting to find her waiting for him. Albert had laughed—if you could call the menacing, grunting sound he had made ‘laughing’—and told her that she had thirty seconds to get her clothes on, or he would throw her out as she was.

  The heartbreak had almost killed her in the days and weeks immediately after that night. She’d tried in vain to get in touch with Ruben for a while, sure that he must have been as hurt and upset as she that their time together had ended so suddenly. She often wondered whether he knew the truth about that night. Had Albert ever confessed to throwing her out like a common whore? Or had he simply allowed Ruben to believe that she had snuck out on him while his back was turned?

  Finally, the futility of her efforts and the demands of an invalid father had forced her to abandon her destiny until recently. Sobs racked her body as she relived the anguish of those first days after she had met Ruben. She wouldn’t be whole again until they were reunited. Being with Ruben again was all that mattered now. The death of her father, and subsequent sale of the house she had inherited, had finally given her the money and the freedom to get what she wanted.

  Desperately in need of comfort and a connection to him, she reached into her bag, pulling out the stolen pillowcase. Inhaling deeply, she could still make out the faintest trace of his scent on it. Sliding further down onto the bed, she opened her dress, rubbing the smell of him over her breasts and abdomen, before slowly pushing the fabric down between her legs.

  He didn’t remember her yet, but she knew once she had broken through the veneer that he used to protect himself from the outside world, once he was buried deep inside her again, he would remember.

  Chapter 8

  Ruben rang the doorbell nervously. He had traveled all day to get to Bethany’s house by early Saturday evening. Why hadn’t it occurred to him beforehand to check whether she would be home…and what kind of reception he could expect?

  The awards show party had been a total washout. There had been hot women everywhere he turned
, but none of them had held his interest. They all looked brash and cheap and were no substitute for the memory of the woman that had driven him out in search of a warm body in the first place.

  After being pinned into a corner by a very predatory female with too much make-up and not enough clothing, he’d had enough. Leaving the party, he had resolved to ring Bethany as soon as he got back to the hotel, but he’d changed his mind by the time he reached his suite. Knowing instinctively that she would try to talk him out of seeing her again, he made the decision for both of them.

  He had to have her again, if only so he could forget about her. It had been a very long time since anyone had occupied his thoughts in such a way. Now, standing outside her door, he wondered at his rashness. Would she be happy to see him?

  The door opened to an empty hallway. Peering around the frame he saw her walking briskly back to the living room, shouting over her shoulder that he should come in and that she would be ready in a minute. The realization that she was expecting someone else hit him.

  Stepping into the hall and closing the door, he watched her silently. From what he could see, she wore a long black sheath dress that fit like a second skin, molding to the arch of her spine and the long, lean line of her legs. It had a split up to the mid-thigh area that exposed a lot more as she reached over the sofa to get her bag. Turning, she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw who occupied her hallway.

  Ruben decided there was no way she was going anywhere with another guy in that dress. At the front it clung to every curve, from her full breasts right down to her shapely knees. The keyhole neckline showed only a tiny amount of cleavage, but it was enough. He wouldn’t have made it through dinner without having her if she’d been wearing that dress during their date.

  Realizing that she was expecting some kind of explanation for his presence and that he couldn’t just stand there staring at her, he was about to speak when the doorbell sounded.