Bad Company (Avery's Crossing: Gage and Nova Book 1)

by Minard, Tori

  “So good, Nova,” he said, his gaze fierce. “So tight and hot and wet. Perfect.”

  His words sent me into another orgasm. I dug my nails into his back as it rocketed through me; I worked my hips against his, begging him for more. By now I was sobbing and groaning incoherently, my voice nothing but animal noises.

  “Fuck,” he said. “Fuck, baby.”

  He lost the slow glide. His hips pounded me, his cock pumping into me as he growled above me. I spread my legs as far as they would go, clutching him and crying and pushing up against him.

  Gage caught my right leg and lifted it until I wrapped it around his waist. The pose opened me even more, allowed him to penetrate me more deeply until he seemed to reach all the way up to my heart.

  When he thrust into me in that position, I lost my mind. It was too much, too good, too everything. My nails scratched viciously at his back as I shrieked my ecstasy, as I fell apart.

  My body seemed to dissolve from my sex outward. I simply fell apart. I was nothing, no-one, just a point of blissful awareness impaled by him.

  He made a strange, growling shout. His head fell back, the tendons in his neck standing out in sharp relief. His powerful arms trembled, his whole body shuddered over mine. His perfect rhythm fell apart, became uneven and uncontrolled as he poured himself into me.

  I held him through it. I wrapped both my legs around his waist and grabbed the hard curves of his ass and held on. He continued to groan and shudder for a full minute.

  It was an epic orgasm, at least from my perspective. I’d been with Barry and a couple of other guys, and none of them had come quite like Gage did. He was totally lost, consumed, his eyes rolled back in his head, his mouth pulled taut in a grimace that would have looked ugly on anyone else. On him it looked primal. Hot.

  When he finally stopped shaking, he paused, his breath coming in long, hard pants, and stared down at me with soft eyes. I didn’t know what to say, so I just stared back. No-one had ever made me feel the way he did. He was going to be an addiction for me; I could tell. More sex than this single encounter would probably ruin me for anyone else. But I couldn’t tell him that. It would scare him away.

  Chapter 25

  Afterglow

  Nova:

  He lowered himself to me, keeping his weight off me but pressing his whole hot length against me. His mouth captured mine in a hot, wet kiss, which I returned with enthusiasm. Damn. I’d just had two of the best orgasms of my life, and I was getting turned on all over again.

  “I could do that with you all day and all night,” he said, kissing my cheek.

  “Hmm. Me too.” That’s it, Nova. Express appreciation and enjoyment, while still remaining cool about it all.

  “Did you—I mean, you seemed to enjoy it, but —”

  I laughed. “Are you serious? I came twice in one night. That’s never happened before.”

  His unsure expression turned self-satisfied. “I thought you were having a good time.”

  “The best. Ever.”

  “Really?” He grinned.

  “Absolutely.” My hand went up to his face, traced the line of one high cheekbone and down, over his stubble to the sharp line of his jaw, visible even through several days’ growth of beard.

  “I can shave it off if you want,” he said.

  “No, I like it.”

  He withdrew from me and I sighed at the loss. Then he pulled me into his arms as he rolled to his side. “I feel the same way, you know,” he said, so softly I almost didn’t hear him.

  “The same way?” I tilted my head back to watch his face.

  “Yeah. About you. About this. It was the best. Ever.”

  Wow. Now I really didn’t know what to say. The evil, insecure part of me still wondered if he were feeding me a line, but the rest of me danced around in joy, thinking that maybe he really could be mine. It was all too confusing, so I pulled him down for another kiss.

  “When the storm is over, I’m going to have to get in touch with my people,” he said. “It’s not fair to keep them wondering what happened to me.”

  “I know.”

  His big chest expanded on a sigh. “If I had a choice, I’d stay here with you.”

  “Would you? Why?” God, what a dumb question. “Don’t answer that. I mean, if you don’t want to. I wish you could stay, too.”

  He laughed. “Are you sure?”

  “Of course I’m sure.”

  His arm tightened around my back. “Sometimes I wish I could stop. Just walk away, do something else for a living.”

  “Why can’t you?”

  He glanced into my eyes. “Because it’s not that simple. Because of that thing I told you about the other day, and no, I don’t want to talk about it right now. Because I have no idea what else I’d do. Acting is all I’ve ever known.”

  “Do you like it?”

  His hand made a long, soothing sweep up and down my back. “Yes and no. I love diving into a character, understanding him, living in his world. I love meeting and working with so many different people. But the stress, the pretensions, feeling like I’m constantly on show. That part is the part I hate.”

  “Have you been mobbed for autographs?”

  “Oh, yeah. Not too long ago at a restaurant. Someone recognized me and in five minutes the whole place turned into a stampede. It wasn’t pretty.”

  “I’m sorry. I can only imagine how hard that must be.”

  “Some of my movies have been really big in international markets, too, so it’s not like I can go to some foreign country and be anonymous. The moon might work, though.”

  “Hey, you should buy a vacation house there. I’d visit you.”

  He laughed again. “I could have a secret base on the dark side.”

  “Awesome. Then you’d truly understand the power of the dark side.” I spoke the last part of the sentence in my best Darth Vader voice.

  “You’re good at that.” He grinned. “Maybe you should go into acting too.”

  “Nah. I’d hate it. Men would be throwing themselves at me all the time. It’d be a total drag.”

  “They would.”

  I poked him in the ribs. “I was only kidding.”

  “Well, I’m not.”

  “Gage, you should stop giving me all those compliments. It’s messing with my head.”

  “Good. You think too little of yourself. It makes me wonder about that douchebag boyfriend of yours.”

  “Ex-boyfriend. And I thought he was a douche-canoe, not a douchebag.”

  “Right. Didn’t he ever tell you how gorgeous and sexy you are?”

  “Not very often. Okay, no. He didn’t.”

  “Ass.”

  I laughed. “Yeah. I guess it’s actually a good thing I caught him cheating, huh?”

  “I’d say it is. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have met me.”

  I grinned up at him, enjoying the teasing sparkle in his eyes. But then I realized he was right. If Barry had been faithful, I wouldn’t have been living in this cabin. I wouldn’t have been here to pull Gage out of the river. We’d have never met. Someone else might have rescued him, or he might have died in that icy water.

  The thought of Gage dead, of him drifting away, succumbing to the cold with no-one to care or help him, made me feel sick.

  “I’m glad Barry is a douchebag,” I said. “Because now I have—I mean, now I’ve met you.”

  That possessive verb had just slipped out and I wished I could take it back. I didn’t want him to feel pressured. I’m not sure why I was so nervous about that, except I worried he’d think I was some kind of gold-digger. Trying to trap him into a relationship, maybe even a marriage. I figured there must be a lot of fans who’d do almost anything to have a chance to marry Gage Dalton.

  He didn’t seem to notice my mistake, though. He just smiled thoughtfully as his fingers combed through my hair. “Maybe we should call him when we get out of here. Let him know what a favor he’s done us.”

  I snorted. “Sure.
Go ahead.”

  “I will if you want me to.”

  “No, you wouldn’t. He’d probably tell everyone he knows. Either that or he’d think it was just a prank and ignore it.”

  Gage dragged his thumb across my lower lip. “Do you want him to know?”

  “I couldn’t care less.” It was true. I was so over Barry that I could hardly remember what his face looked like.

  The moment I’d seen Gage, Barry had almost disappeared for me. It was strange, really, because Gage might have been dead for all I knew at that moment. But that hadn’t mattered. I’m not sure what that says about me as a person, but there it is. I fell in love with Gage’s nearly-dead self.

  Oh, God. Love? Had I just thought the L-word?

  No. No, I couldn’t let myself go there. I could not fall in love with a Hollywood god who’d probably forget me a week after he got home.

  “Because of that problem I told you about, it wouldn’t be safe for me to bring you with me,” he said. “But I wish I could.”

  “You do?”

  “Yeah. Don’t sound so surprised.”

  “It’s just—like I said, I’m plain old Nova and you’re you.”

  “Goddamn it, Nova. Quit calling yourself that,” he growled, his thick dark brows descending.

  “Sorry. But it’s true. I’m a nobody.”

  “You’re not a nobody. You’re Nova Pennyman, one of the most important people in my life.”

  He pinched his eyes shut as his lips compressed to a thin line. The distress on his face was hard for me to see. He’d said I was important to him. But in the next instant, he’d also made it clear in one facial expression that he devoutly wished that wasn’t true.

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” he said in a harsh whisper, eyes still closed.

  “Gage, you won’t hurt me. Why do you think you will? I just don’t understand.” Mainly because he refused to explain things to me.

  “You’re not going to fool me into telling you,” he said.

  “Well, since you choose not to tell me, I’m choosing not to believe you when you say I’m important to you.”

  He rose up on one elbow, glowering down at me. “It’s because you’re important to me that I’m not telling you.”

  “That’s kind of like what parents say to their kids. This hurts me more than it hurts you. I’m only doing it for your own good.” I shook my head at him. “I’m not buying it. You don’t trust me. That’s what’s really going on here.”

  “Not true.” He sat up in bed and ran his fingers through his hair. “That’s just not true, Nova. I trust you more than I’ve ever trusted anyone.”

  “But not enough to tell me the truth about whatever this terrible secret is.” I sat up too.

  “It’s not a matter of trust. I’m trying to protect you.”

  “Yeah, you already said that. But don’t you think I’m capable of deciding for myself whether I want to take a risk for you? Don’t you know I’d do anything for you?”

  I flushed hotly. I’d skirted awfully close to the L-word there, and I had no idea what he’d do if it slipped out of me. Get up and run? Refuse to speak to me? Try to talk me out of it?

  He took me by the shoulders and stared intently into my eyes. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. You can’t know whether you’re willing to take a risk if you have no idea what that risk is.”

  “I would if you explained it to me.”

  “No. I can’t do that.” He got out of bed and paced, naked, back and forth across the room. “If you keep pushing me, I’m going to get pissed. Like seriously furious, Nova. You don’t want to see me like that.”

  “Why not? Do you turn into a giant green guy or something?”

  He paused and looked at me blankly for a second before snorting a laugh. “You know what I mean.”

  “I hate seeing you so worried, so alone, so down and hopeless,” I said, willing him to believe me. “It hurts.”

  “God. I knew I shouldn’t make love to you,” he muttered, pacing again.

  “What?” My stomach fell about a mile.

  He regretted being with me. I pulled the sheet up to my collarbones as a ridiculous excuse for armor. It was absurd, but it was the only thing I had. If he wished we hadn’t made love, then I didn’t want him seeing me naked anymore.

  “No, baby, that’s not what I meant,” he said. “Making—having sex—it connected us, made us feel things we might not have felt if we’d just stuck to kissing. I want that connection. But it’s not good for you. I shouldn’t have let it happen.”

  “Well, I’m glad it did.” I crossed my arms over the sheet and scowled at him.

  He sighed and subsided to the bed, opening his arms to me. “Come here.”

  Like a fool, I went to him. He was going to hurt me, that was obvious. He didn’t want to. I didn’t want him to. But he’d do it just the same. Whether it would happen because of this awful secret of his, or simply because he kept pushing me away in an attempt to protect me, I didn’t know. I only knew the pain was on its way.

  Chapter 26

  Regret

  Nova:

  A week later, the sky was clear. Not a single cloud marred the blue. We’d had breaks in the snow during the eight days Gage had stayed with me, but this was the longest one yet. It had stopped the afternoon before, and now with the blue sky, I was pretty sure the storm—or sequence of storms—was officially over.

  Our food stores were getting low, but soon we’d be able to get out of the cabin and buy more. I made us pancakes to celebrate, even though I felt like I had a giant lump of lead where my heart should be. The bright weather meant he would leave me soon.

  We’d had eight days together, some of them marred by illness but still a long stretch of intimate talks and music. He’d taught me a bunch of new songs. Then there were the drawings I’d made of him. He knew about two of them, but one I’d done while he was asleep. I’d kept that one to myself. All that friend stuff, punctuated by sex. Lots of sex for the past two days.

  It felt like we were more than just friends with bennies. Like maybe we had something deeper, something moving into girlfriend-boyfriend territory. I was addicted to him already. Unfortunately, he still wouldn’t come clean about those dangerous associates of his.

  “What are you going to do when I’m gone?” he said as I set his plate in front of him.

  “You don’t waste time, do you?” I set a plate in front of my own chair.

  Gage shrugged. “Just wondering. I think you should go home. Or maybe go back to school. Living out here isn’t right for you.”

  “Yeah, well….” I stuck my fork in a pancake and pushed it from one side of my plate to the other.

  Gage poured maple syrup over his. “I’ll worry about you if you stay here. I’ll keep thinking of you all alone in this cabin. You never know what might happen around here. Some strange guy might float down the river or something and end up on your living room couch.”

  I tried to smile for him. “I think that was a once in a lifetime experience.”

  “You’re probably right. But some other weirdo might show up.” He frowned at me as he cut a bite of pancake. “I’m serious. It’s not safe for you.”

  “Now you sound like my mother.”

  “Your mother must be a wise woman.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’ll be fine, Gage. You don’t need to worry about me. Remember how that connection between us is dangerous for me?” Yeah, I sounded a little bitter.

  He stuck the pancake in his mouth. Chewed. Closed his eyes and chewed some more. “Shit, these are good.”

  “Sourdough.”

  “You’re a talented woman.”

  “I know. And I’m glad you like them.” I seemed to have lost my appetite. But I poured a little syrup on my plate and cut a bite anyway.

  Hopefully, the joy of homemade sourdough pancakes had derailed Gage from his argument. I had no intention of staying here, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. Because he had no
right to tell me what to do. And after all that stuff about our connection endangering me, I wasn’t interested in hearing how much he’d worry about me.

  * * *

  At noon, we heard an engine nearby. We were in the living room, reading and mostly ignoring each other. Things were awkward now and I was beginning to wonder if Gage wasn’t right. We shouldn’t have had sex. Made love. Whatever it was we’d done together, it had changed our relationship and now things were strained between us.

  At the sound of the vehicle, we both looked up and locked gazes. Gage raised his eyebrows at me. I wasn’t sure what that was supposed to mean.

  “Do you think it’s somebody coming for you?” I said.

  “No. How would they know where to look? I have no idea who it is.” He got up and peered out the window at the snow-covered yard.

  I joined him. That particular window looked out on the side of the cabin farthest away from the road, though, so there wasn’t much to see.

  “I’m going to look out the kitchen window,” I said, and turned to go.

  He didn’t try to stop me. I’m not sure why I thought he would. I guess it was the sense that our strange, snowy idyll was about to end. My silly heart wished he would take me in his arms and tell me he’d never let me go. But that’s not how things work in the real world, is it?

  From the kitchen, I could see about thirty yards up the long drive that led to the highway. Someone was at the far end in a truck fitted with a snow plow. They were clearing away the snow so I wouldn’t be trapped in my cabin.

  I smiled. It was probably Joe from Joe’s General Store. He was a really, genuinely nice guy about my dad’s age who’d already helped me more than I could ever repay, just in advice alone. He’d probably be spending the next few days digging people out.

  Gage came up behind me and rested his hand on my shoulder. “You know that guy?”

  “Yeah. It looks like Joe’s truck. I should find some money so I can pay him.” I turned away from the window.

  “Nova.”

  “Yeah?” I gave Gage a careless glance over my shoulder.

  He looked worried and sad. “I don’t want things to end between us.”