‘I figured when you shut me out that you’d followed me. I came here twice, as you know, but the third night, Polly went into labor.’
‘God, Roman,’ all of her anger had dissipated now and she went to him. He pulled her onto his knee, buried his face in her neck for a long moment and held her. Kym pressed her lips to his forehead. When he looked up, she could see raw emotion in his eyes.
‘I love you,’ he said simply, ‘I’m in love with you, Kym.’
Tears dropped down her face as she pressed her lips to his, feeling his strong arms lock around her. ‘I love you too, big man,’ she murmured against his mouth, ‘so much, so very much…’
They never made it to the bed, this time…
Bay smiled at Tom as she ended the call from Roman. ‘He’s in.’ She went to bang on the window of the studio and beckon Pete in. Pete, dark circles under his eyes and a big smile on his face, joined them. Bay passed him a soda.
‘Pete? Do you think you bear to be away from Lucy for a night?’ Lucy, the three-month-old light of Pete and Hank’s life had charmed her way into everyone’s heart in the short time they’d known her. Pete, exhausted but wiped out by love, grinned at Bay.
‘You’re up to something, missy, I know that smile.’
Bay chuckled, exchanged a look with Tom. ‘You got me. Just wondering if you’d like to take a quick overnight trip to the Big Easy?’
Pete’s smile grew wider. ‘Why do I think this has something to do with our absent friend? What ya got planned, minxy?’
Roman whistled as she opened the door. ‘That, beautiful, is more like it.’ Kym grinned shyly. She had finally bleached her hair back to its platinum blonde, got rid of the spectacles (although she had gotten so used to them, she kind of missed them) and was wearing a ripped Purple Rain t-shirt and skinny jeans.
Roman, of course, was in a suit that probably cost more than her rent for a month. She didn’t care. She stood on her tippy-toes to kiss him. ‘Let me just grab my boots and I’m all yours.’
They walked hand-in-hand to the bar. ‘Our third date,’ she said, grinning slyly at him, ‘You might get lucky tonight.’
Roman laughed. ‘Third? More like three hundredth.’
‘Doesn’t count before we, you know.’
‘Oh, now she’s shy…’
They turned the corner and walked up to the Hot Tin Roof. ‘Only you would take me to my place of work for a date,’ she grumbled but smirked at him.
‘Stop complaining, woman.’
Kym walked in and stopped. The place was clear of customers – just a few regulars and all of her colleagues. They all grinned at her as she turned to frown at Roman.
‘What’s going on?’
He steered her into a booth putting himself between her and the door. ‘You’ll see. Private party.’ He winked at Cal and Lee who were balancing drinks and food on trays.
‘We’re celebrating,’ Cal told her.
‘What?’
Cal chewed on his lip, thinking as Lee and Roman grinned. ‘Friends.’
‘I’ll drink to that, buddy.’
‘Me too.’
Kym looked at the three men in confusion. ‘What’s going on?’
‘Nothing, friends, food, drinks, good times…a little music. Hang on, I’ll go put something on.’ Cal disappeared into the other bar room.
‘You’re acting weird,’ Kym said, grabbing a beer from the tray but grinning. What the hell was going on?
Cal came back in just as the first chord of The Killer’s Song, Just Another Girl, started.
‘Oh love this song, we used to…’ She trailed off as someone who was definitely not Brandon Flowers started to sing, a very female, very familiar voice rang out over the speakers. For a second Kym froze. She could feel the eyes of everyone on her.
‘That’s not a mp3,’ she said in a monotone.
‘Nope.’
The voice rang out, so sweet, so rich. Drive by your house, nobody's home…
‘That’s a live band.’
I'm trying to tell myself that I'm better off alone…
Kym stood unsteadily, looked back at Roman, her eyes streaming. ‘How could you? This is not what I wanted…’
She pushed past the shocked Roman and out into the street. In a flash, he was beside, his hand gripping her upper arm.
‘Get off me,’ she struggled but he held her fast.
‘Kymberly, stop, look at me.’ She had never heard that tone from him before, fierce, commanding. She stopped struggling.
‘Why,’ he said, ‘why are you running away? Tell me.’
‘Because…’
‘Because what? Because you love your friend, because you miss her? Miss Pete? Miss getting up on that stage and belting your heart out? Yeah, big fucking news. I know you miss all of that. So why the fuck do you keep…Jesus…’ He let her go and span around, breathing heavily.
His outburst shocked her and she reached out to touch him. He shook her hand off.
‘Do you know what gunshots sound like, close up? Like your ear drums bursting, like your heart exploding. Do you know what it feels like to have hot metal rip through you, to know that someone hates you so much that they could do that to you? My Dad did. That girl in there did. And none of it, none of it was your fault. Dad getting shot wasn’t my or Otis’ fault. Stu shooting Bay is all down to that pathetic slug. Not you.’
Kym was trembling so hard that Roman, his eyes still burning with passion, wrapped his arms around her.
‘Do you know what I would give to be able to speak my Dad again? To hold him? Please don’t waste this, Kym, please.’
Kym couldn’t help the tears that came then and his arms tightened around her, holding her.
‘Kym?’
Kym heard her calling out her name so hesitantly, so unsure of the reaction she would get. She turned to face her best friend, the girl who nearly died, her Bay. Kym took one stumbling step toward her and then they were in each other’s arms crying and laughing at the same time and telling each other over and over how much they loved each other.
Roman smiled and, stepping around them, left them alone, going back into the bar. He went to the room where they had been playing and saw Pete, complete with his family, enjoying a beer. He gave him a thumbs up. Tom looked relieved, and Dash and Emily clapped with delight. Otis and Shae hugged him in turn then Roman looked at his brother.
‘Otis…we need to talk.’
Otis’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Oh?’
Roman half-smiled. ‘It’s about Dad…and our sister.’
Epilogue…
All of them watched as Norah Jones and Eddie Vedder crossed the stage to read the nominees. Bay, Pete, and Kym could barely believe that they were there – the Grammys.
Pete grinned and nudged Tom. ‘I think you’ve lost her.’ He nodded at Bay, who was staring, completely and utterly star-struck at Eddie Vedder, her hero, Pearl Jam’s legendary singer.
‘I hope he’s the one who says our name,’ she said, sounding like a kid. ‘Not that I don’t love Norah but, y’know, it’s Eddie?’
Kym was laughing. ‘Hey, remember your boyfriend? That tall, handsome man sitting next to you? Tom?’
Bay grinned then looked around wildly. ‘Who? Tim, was it? I have no idea who you mean.’
‘Funny girl.’ Tom was laughing as he kissed her. ‘Girl done good,’ he whispered. She grinned then put her hand over his mouth.
‘Hush, now, my future husband is about to speak.’
Tom shrugged good-naturedly as the others laughed.
As the two superstars read out the nominees and the audience were treated to a snapshot of their music, Kym felt Bay’s hand slip into hers. She leaned against her best friend. Their name was the last to be read out – by Eddie. Bay squeaked in delight.
‘And the winner is….’ Norah handed the envelope to Eddie, who opened it and bent his head, speaking in that low growl of his…
‘Seattle’s finest - The 9th & Pine!’
&n
bsp; Bay, Kym, and Pete all froze as the crowd erupted around them. Hands were pulling them up then, pushing them towards the stage. Bay felt Tom kiss her but couldn’t make sense of what was going on. Kym cried and Pete high-fived everyone on the way down to the stage.
Finally, stumbling and incoherent, they made it to the stage be presented with their Grammy. Bay nearly fainted when Eddie hugged her. Later she would tell Tom that ‘I think I might have said I love you to him. God, I hope I didn’t,’ as Tom cried with laughter. Kym raised her Grammy in the air as Pete, the only person who could form an entire sentence, said most of their thank yous. Neither Bay nor Kym, however, forgot to announce their love, their thanks to their partners.
It was a crazy whirl of interviews and shaking hands then until they finally made it back to the penthouse suite Quartet had rented where Shae, Otis, Emily, and Dash were waiting, along with Hank and Lucy. Their Grammy’s took pride of place on the long glass table as they relaxed. Tom popped the first of many champagne bottles.
‘Well, kids, we made it. The last two and a half years have been…tumultuous, to say the least. Pete, Kym, and Bay,’ – he grinned down at his lover, who reached around and grabbed his butt, making the others laugh – ‘Despite everything that’s been thrown at you, you did it. And you deserve every bit of your success. Guys, raise your glasses to The 9th & Pine…’
Kym and Roman flew back to Seattle that same night, wanting to be alone. As they lay in bed together, damp skin from making love, Roman trailed a leisurely finger up and down her spine.
‘You know what’s weird?’
‘What’s that?’
‘Even in this, quite frankly, way over the top house of yours,’ she grinned and he chuckled, ‘I still miss that little apartment in sweaty, dirty, New Orleans.’
‘You know,’ Roman said, ‘me too. It was tiny but god, we had some good times there.’
Kym kissed him. ‘I fell in love with you there.’
‘And I you, beautiful.’
She smiled. ‘Thank you. Thank you for giving me my life back, even though I was so sure I didn’t want it. You knew better.’
Roman cupped her face with his big hand. ‘It was the life you deserved, Kym. I would do anything to give you the world.’
Kym sighed happily. ‘Roman? Maybe Polly and the baby would like to come stay here for a while. She and Otis seem to have connected amazingly.’
Roman pressed his lips to hers. ‘See? See what you’ve done for me?’
And silencing her with his mouth, he rolled her onto her back, covering her body with his. Kym stroked the hair above his ears and smiled up at him as they began to make love.
‘Forever?’ She whispered and Roman nodded, the love in his eyes unmistakable.
‘Forever,’ he agreed as they made their way, with love, into that forever.
The End
Arsen’s Rules
Box Set
1-15
An Alpha Billionaire Romance
By Michelle Love
Copyright 2016 by Michelle Love- All rights reserved.
In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher
Arsen’s Rules
Book 1
For Her
ARSEN SLOAN
For Her
Cool air hit his face as he left the building he’d been stuck in the last eight hours. His tie couldn’t get off fast enough as his large hands pulled it away from his neck, letting it hang loose.
He’d felt his throat closing in on him as he was accused of things that were beyond him to execute, beyond him to perform, beyond him to even think of doing.
Arsen Sloan was a thirty-five-year-old criminal lawyer. Tall, at six feet, nine inches, he dwarfed most of his colleagues. To make sure they all had even further insecurities in his presence, he kept himself in peak physical condition. Pecs and abs that most men would die to have and biceps the mere sight of made women wet with desire for him.
Arsen prided himself on his appearance which he used to his advantage whenever possible. He was a machine of a man, using everything he could to get the results he was seeking, whatever they were.
In law, he used his well-educated brain to find every last law or case to make sure he won his client’s cases. Arsen Sloan had never lost a case since he began his career as a criminal lawyer, ten years prior. Well, there was that one, but it was only his second case.
Arsen tended to forget about the first few cases, the first two anyway. He never mentioned the first two as a matter of fact.
When it came to sex, Arsen used everything in his personal arsenal to make sure he stayed on top of that game. Love had played no role in his sex life.
Love was a word he hadn’t used since he was a naïve kid in his late teens before the girl he thought loved him watched him be broken and near dead.
Arsen kept his shoulder length waves in perfect order, accenting his dark brown, brooding eyes. Thick, dark lashes surrounded them, giving him the slightest hint of a soft side to the hard as nails man.
After the day of horrible accusations, Arsen just needed a drink. A stiff drink and to be able to unwind and get rid of at least a little of the tension which filled his muscled body.
As he got into the backseat of his Escalade the privacy window went down. His driver and long-time friend, Paul, looked at him through the rear view mirror.
The tension Arsen felt, radiated off him and Paul knew better than to ask any questions. “To the club, boss?”
Arsen nodded and closed the door, then ran his hand over his face and rubbed his temples. He pulled a bottle of beer from the little fridge and took it down in one gulp. The evening sky was growing dark and a thin fog was already moving in as they made their way up the coastline of the San Francisco Bay.
Arsen’s eyes followed the lights that were coming on along the edge of the road. He was wondering when it had gotten so bad. When had his world started to rule him rather than he rule it?
After the first five years as one of the top criminal lawyers in the entire state of California, Arsen Sloan had not only managed to gain a reputation as a winning lawyer who would do anything to win his cases, but also became a billionaire. His ability to make great investments proved to be yet another thing Arsen did with near perfection.
Perfection was a thing he made great strides to achieve in every part of his life. Up until that day, he’d done pretty well at keeping his life near perfect at all times.
The alley was already dark as they pulled up to one of the main clubs he frequented. Though, if not a member of the exclusive club, no one could tell any type of social gathering was going on there.
People tended to get dropped off at the clubs he went to. Clubs that catered to his tastes that some considered immoral and worse. The rusted metal door was closed and only a small sign at the very top of the old door let on it was a bit more than an old storage facility.
‘Fierce,’ was the word etched into a small metal sign and suddenly Arsen’s stomach was in knots. He knew he shouldn’t go in there. He knew that was why he was in the precarious situation he was in.
“You know, Paul, I better find another place to go from now on,” Arsen’s deep voice called out to his driver and friend.
Paul was a friend who knew all about Arsen’s past, and present, but he was being left out of why Arsen had been so moody when Arsen told him he had a meeting at the main police station in San Francisco.
“Sure thing, boss,” Paul said and pulled out of the alley and headed back to the part of the city where the regular people went to get drinks and socialize with one another.
“I’ll take you to the club my younger sister likes to go to, but if you see her in
there, she’s off limits, bro,” Paul told his old friend. “Lots of young law majors in that place. You should find someone to your liking, boss.”
Arsen’s throat was growing tight again, so he unbuttoned the two top buttons of his stiffly starched white shirt he wore under a black suit jacket. The tie came all the way off and he stretched his long, leanly muscled legs out. Another beer he grabbed and popped the top, this one he took a long drink of, but stopped short of downing the whole thing.
“Paul, let the boss shit go for tonight. I need a friend, not another employee. Shit’s coming down on me and without any family to support me, I’m going to need you to keep me from jumping off a bridge.” Arsen looked out the tinted window and felt his eye twitch.
The first of many physical signs his body was sure to start exhibiting, just like it used to do when he was young and things were out of his control. Things he worked hard to get under control, and here he was with things beyond his control again.
His stomach hurt, another sign and another thing he’d left behind him, or thought he had anyway. Paul pulled along the curb and jumped out to open Arsen’s door. He gave him a clap on the back and said, “Arsen, things will work out, man. You’re beyond smart and whatever has you this worried I know you can figure out how to take care of it. You’re good at this shit.”
Arsen wished he had the faith in himself his old friend had, but the truth was his marks were all over the accusations made against him. He’d represented tons of people he knew were guilty and managed to get them off the charges.
He just needed to figure out how to get himself off charges where the evidence pointed right at him and he had to tell the men who questioned him things he never thought he’d have to explain to anyone.
“I need a drink and a piece of hot ass would do wonders for me,” Arsen said with a deep chuckle. “I’d ask you to come, Paul, and help me drown my sorrows, but one of us has to drive and I think I pay you to do that, so I’ll go in alone and hopefully come out with a wicked little thing on my arm to take home.”
Quartet Complete Series: Billionaire Romance Box Set (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) Page 28