by Sam Crescent
“I’m fine.”
Tammy sighed. “Don’t you want him to be successful?”
“I do.”
“Look, honey, I don’t know what the problem is here. I’ve said this before. You’ve never been so happy before in your life, and I know it’s because of Zane. He doesn’t want to leave you behind but he wants you to be part of his life, and I don’t know which part of that you’re struggling with.”
“He’s not said that he loves me,” she said, biting her lip and feeling the guilt.
“Have you told him you love him?” Tammy asked.
She shook her head. “I don’t know what to say. I want to just blurt it out, but then I start to panic. What if he doesn’t feel the same way, and this was only supposed to be some fun?” She rubbed her eyes, and groaned. “Ugh! I can’t handle this.”
Tammy giggled. “You think you’re the only woman on the planet that has been in this position?”
“No, of course I don’t. I just don’t know what to do, and everything is moving so fast. He’ll have tour dates and other dates, and I’m worried. What if he doesn’t love me, and he just wants me to come along for a bit of convenience?”
“I’ve seen the way he looks at you. You’re not that, Wynter.”
She ran fingers through her hair.
She’d not even put it up for her coffee date with Tammy. They’d only been able to say a few words in passing over the phone, and she didn’t have anyone else to talk to.
“Have your parents been to see you?” Tammy asked.
“No. Why?”
“They stopped by the house last night. They asked some questions about you and Zane.”
Wynter sighed. “What did you tell them?”
“Marshall told them if they wanted any information on their daughter, they were to go and ask. He doesn’t play with gossip, Wynter.”
She leaned her head back, looking up at the ceiling.
“If they came around, you know they wouldn’t like Zane.”
“I don’t care what they like, Tammy. I’ve spent way too long caring about what they like.” She rubbed the side that had her ink, and she smiled. This was her life now, not theirs. She hadn’t once missed her parents, and it probably made her sound like a bitch, but she didn’t care.
Zane was part of her life, and there was no way that she’d give him up. She loved him more than anything else in the world.
Her nerves were getting to her. The feelings she had for Zane were not little or insignificant. They were everything.
Tammy chuckled. “You know you could just tell him. Just go up to him and say, ‘Zane, I love you.’”
“Can we just do that? I thought it was supposed to be something special. A dinner? A declaration?”
Tammy took hold of her hand. “Just relax. Be yourself, and let the words flow from you. Tell Zane how you really feel. What it means to you. If you don’t, you could lose him.”
They finished off their coffee, and on the way out of the shop she picked up a chocolate chip muffin for Zane. She knew they were his favorite. She’d walked all the way to the coffee shop, so she began the walk back to her home.
Zane was due back later today, and she wanted to tell him how she felt.
It was important to her for him to know that she’d fallen in love with him. She’d tried to put her finger on when exactly she’d fallen for him, and each time, she came back to that first night when he was at her front door.
He’d looked cocky, and so confident and sure of himself. She’d been at her limit, and still he didn’t lose his temper but he got his house under control, bringing the party to a close.
Glancing around the neighborhood, she felt happier. Regardless of what Zane said to her, or how he felt, she knew this was what she wanted.
She wanted Zane.
She loved him.
Making her way toward the end of her street, she came to a stop when she saw her parents, along with Carey, standing in her driveway. She spotted Zane in her doorway and from the noise along with the neighbors being nosy, she knew she’d missed something. Rushing across the street, she walked straight past Carey and moved in front of her parents to stand by Zane’s side.
She was surprised to see them on her doorstep trying to cause a scene.
“Who is this man?” her father asked.
“What is he doing inside your house?” her mother asked, staring down at him.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Wynter asked.
“Watch your language, Wynter. We taught you better than that.”
Just like that, Wynter felt the sting of her mother’s words, and she realized after seeing them right now, why she hadn’t missed them at all. She didn’t want the constant insults about her language, or the way she looked, or how she should perfect herself.
Not once since she moved had she thought about them, or cared what they were doing, what they were getting up to.
Her life had been perfect.
With Zane.
“Now, I knew my parents leaving you some money would be ridiculous, and look what you’re doing. Allowing strangers into your home,” her mother said.
“He’s my boyfriend,” she said, making both of her parents pause.
“Don’t be so stupid, Wynter. You’ve been dating Carey.”
The man in question stood at the back, looking bored.
“No, I can’t stand Carey, no offense. I don’t want him.” She moved toward Zane, who wrapped his arms around her. The moment he touched her, everything in her world felt … complete. “I love him.”
She stared into his eyes, and she saw that she’d surprised him.
“I’ve been wanting to tell you.”
He pushed some hair that had fallen off her face, and she realized how much she loved it when he did that to her.
“I love you, too.”
“This is just plain stupidity. I will not have a daughter of mine dating this … this ruffian.”
She smiled. “There’s nothing you can do, and he’s not a ruffian. He’s a rock star. I’d be careful, Mother. You wouldn’t want all my neighbors to know what a fucking bitch you are.”
With that, she took Zane’s hand, walked back into her house, and shut the door.
He pulled her into his arms, kissing her head, and she held him tightly, never wanting to let him go.
“I can’t believe I just swore at my mother.”
“I can’t believe you love me.”
Just like that, her focus went back onto Zane. “I’ve been wanting to tell you for some time now. I was so worried.” Then she realized he’d said the same thing back to her, but insecurities hit her hard. “I understand if you don’t—”
He silenced her with his lips, pressing her up against the wall, holding her hands above her head as he ravished her mouth.
She opened her lips, and he plundered inside her.
Zane released her hands and sank his fingers into her hair, tilting her head back, and she lowered her arms to grip his hair.
“I love you,” Zane said. “You’re my reason for everything.” He pulled away, and she stared into his eyes once again. “You’re my muse. My inspiration. I’ve never known a woman like you, and I don’t want to ever find anyone else.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she stared at the man she loved, and for some strange reason she thought about their homes. “Do you think it’s real?”
“What?”
“The crazy idea that our homes bring people together.”
“That all depends,” he said.
“On what?”
He went down on one knee and held up a velvet box. “Only if you say yes to my next question.”
Her heart pounded, and she didn’t have a clue what to do. He opened up the box, and inside rested a small diamond ring.
“Wynter Princess Griffin, would you please do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
“You know my name,” she said.
“Of course I know your name. I just pref
er Princess a lot more.” He held the box up and chuckled. “You’re really making a man wait here.”
“Yes. A gazillion times yes.”
He took the ring from the box and slid it onto her finger. Kissing him back, she cupped his face, and knew this was where she was meant to be in the world.
“I want to come with you. When you’re on tour. I don’t want to miss a moment.”
“You’re sure?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything else in my life. I know what I want, and I know it’s you,” she said. “I’ll be happy listening to you, and watching you guys. I know your friends don’t really approve of me.”
“Fuck ’em.”
“What?”
“My friends will come to adore you, but it’ll be me that will love you until the end of time.” He pressed his lips against hers, and she moaned.
This was exactly what she wanted, and she knew without a doubt she’d never look back.
Epilogue
One year later
After touring for the past year, and having a number one release, Zane and Princess had no choice but to head back home to deal with their houses. They couldn’t leave them vacant for much longer, and they had both recently sold. Leaning against his truck, he watched as Princess handed over the keys to two men who’d decided to purchase the house. They were two good-looking men as well. Muscular, strong, and Zane noticed quite a few of the women on the street made a point of putting out the trash when they came around.
He wasn’t taking any chances with his woman, who was smiling as she came toward him.
“They’re charmers. Asked if I’d stay with them.”
He pulled her into his arms, and watched as the girl he’d sold to came out of the house just as a movers’ van appeared.
“Do I need to go and kick anyone’s ass?” he asked, holding his wife as he watched the three people move in.
“Nah, I told them straight. I come with a plus one.”
They’d gotten married while on the road. They’d been in Vegas on a break when they decided to tie the knot. Jones, Silas, and Riot had all been there. They’d called Tammy and Marshall, who’d been there on a video call to watch the event.
He’d loved it, and now he had Princess all to himself.
Kissing her neck, he chuckled.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Well, if we’re to believe that our houses bring people together, which I’m more inclined to believe…”
“Yeah?”
“Well, there’s two men there and one woman.”
He saw the smile spread across her cheeks.
“Oh, my, you said she was so nice. They’re great guys as well. I wish we were sticking around to see this, Zane.”
“Yeah, well, we’ve got a plane to catch.” He gripped her ass, turning her toward him. “I love you more than anything in the world, Mrs. Wynter Webster.”
“You love saying that.”
“I’ll never get tired of saying that. Come on, let’s get out of here just in case our presence spoils the magic of the house.”
Maybe, just maybe, there was truth in it, and another couple of people were about to find theirs.
The End
www.samcrescent.com
Other Books by Sam Crescent:
www.evernightpublishing.com/sam-crescent
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BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
BRED BY THE BILLIONAIRE
Breeding Season, 1
Sam Crescent and Stacey Espino
Copyright © 2017
Chapter One
“Where’s my fucking coffee?” Tobias Bennett sifted through the files on his desk. He was getting too old for this shit—late nights at the office and staff who couldn’t follow simple instructions. At this point in his life, he’d imagined living on a private island, a mojito in one hand and The Wall Street Journal in the other. But he was still running the family business with no sign of slowing down. He’d been termed a perfectionist, and probably a lot worse, but he strongly believed wealth was the measure of success.
A couple minutes later, one of the interns set a mug on the corner of his desk. She scurried out of his office, nearly breaking into a jog. Was he that much of an asshole?
Tobias scrubbed both hands over his face. He knew exactly what had been driving him crazy lately. His parents were riding him hard for an heir, another Bennett to carry on the family empire. The problem—he wasn’t looking for a wife. His bachelor life suited him just fine, and even at forty-five, he wasn’t ready to settle down. He would have told his aging parents to back off, but they had a point, one that kept crowding his thoughts.
Morgan peered in his office. “Why are you still here?”
“Work.”
“Go home. It’s Friday night, for God’s sake.” He’d gone to university with Morgan, and hired him to work on the Bennett Corporation legal team over a decade ago. Morgan was the only man who dared to speak freely with him.
“I’ve got that big bid on Monday. I need to be prepared,” said Tobias.
“We’ve already got it covered. Everything’s in order.”
“It has to be perfect.”
Morgan exhaled, then shook his head. “Well, I’m heading out.” Then he added, “Don’t push yourself so hard.”
“See you Monday.” Tobias leaned back in his leather chair and gave his friend a mock salute.
Once alone again, he pondered Morgan’s words. Yes, he pushed himself. It was life as a Bennett. His parents expected perfection from day one, and he’d always delivered. The company was strong, profitable, and dominating the stock market because he didn’t fuck around. He always put a hundred percent effort into everything he set out to do, and demanded the same from his staff. If one of his employees couldn’t meet the mark, he didn’t think twice about showing them the door. He had no room for weakness.
After another couple of hours, he packed up his paperwork and flicked off the lights to his corner penthouse office. As he stood in the darkness, the lights of the city sparkled with life beyond the floor to ceiling windows. He grabbed his briefcase and walked over to the window, looking down from one of the highest vantage points. It was one big party below, a city that never slept.
He’d put the Bennett Corporation on the map, made his father’s business into something multi-national, but what happened next? What would happen when he died? The legacy he’d built would die along with him, all his hard work and sacrifices for nothing. The business might continue with the family name, but without the blood of a Bennett, it would be a soulless enterprise, nothing more than dollars and cents.
“Mr. Bennett?”
Tobias snapped out of his reverie, turning to see a silhouette in the doorway of his darkened office. “Yes?”
“Would you like some company tonight?”
He narrowed his eyes as he strode to the door. “Aren’t you one of the new analysts we just hired?” Tobias had thousands of employees, so couldn’t remember many names and faces. He only allowed minimal staff on the penthouse floor of his skyscraper. He remembered this woman from the new staff tour yesterday morning, and only because she’d worn a short skirt.
“Yes, sir.”
“And why are you up here?”
“I wanted to offer my company.” She ran her finger along the low collar of her blouse. Was she actually trying to seduce him? “I have many skillsets beyond analyzing, and I thought you’d like me to show you some.”
He scoffed. “You thought wrong, sweetheart. If you’d actually done any digging, you’d know I never mix business with pleasure.”
“But—”
“Stay on the fifth floor. I don’t want to see you up here again.”
Sh
e sulked off, clearly not expecting him to reject her. Tobias wasn’t hard up. He had a long list of women he could call for a hook-up. None of them meant a thing to him. They were available for sex, and that’s how he liked it—until now. If he wanted a kid, he had to find a decent woman to be the mother. Unfortunately, most of the women he fucked were gold-diggers, and he didn’t want any baby drama. He just wanted the heir, nothing more.
He could already envision it, a life similar to his own childhood. His son would be raised by a nanny, go to boarding school, and be trained to be the best at everything. Tobias knew parenting wouldn’t take much effort on his part—he’d rarely seen his own mother and father growing up.
Tobias took the elevator down to the parking garage, trying to push thoughts of babies and legacies out of his head. This responsibility shouldn’t have fallen on his damn shoulders. He’d been the younger brother—until he turned sixteen. Maximus had been nineteen when he died of a heroin overdose. Of course, his parents made sure the real cause didn’t hit the media, appearances being more important than the truth. Tobias had seen it coming. He’d done nothing. Unlike him, Maximus wanted more, wanted the love and warmth he’d seen in other homes. Their father said he was weak, he couldn’t cut it, and that’s why he killed himself. No one ever mentioned Maximus, like he never existed.
The elevator dinged, and Tobias stepped out into the secure garage. He dug the keys to his Mercedes out of his pocket, turning off the alarm system. Once behind the wheel, he tossed his briefcase onto the passenger seat and squeezed the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. Reflecting on a past that couldn’t be undone was pointless, and like his father taught him, emotions were for pussies. He needed to block that shit out, forget about the brother taken from him too soon. Trying to imagine an alternate reality would only break down his carefully maintained exterior.