“Does this mean you’ve given us extra time, you know, for a quickie in the limo?”
“No, you sex fiend,” I replied, pulling him by his tie. “Let’s go. I have more presents to receive.”
“Happy birthday, Holliday!” Tinley squeezed me tight.
“Thank you, for the tenth time,” I said, taking another glass of champagne from the bar. It was nearly eleven in the evening, and the crowd had mostly filtered out of Lorenzo’s. While chatting about the party, we walked back to the private dining room, and I noticed Ella sitting at a table by herself. I excused myself and told Tinley that I’d catch up in a bit.
“Hey, Ella,” I said, taking a seat beside her on the velvet bench. “You okay?”
“Oh, I’m fine,” she replied with a sweet smile. “It’s a work problem I need to fix, but it can wait until Monday.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is?”
Her mascara was smudged, and her lips were puffy. It was clear that she’d been crying.
She pushed to her feet. “I’m positive,” she said, giving me a hug.
“Okay. Well, if you need to talk, you can call me anytime.”
“Thank you. I hope you had a lovely birthday, Holliday. Will you excuse me?”
With her phone in her hand, she rushed towards the bathroom before I could reply.
Then warm hands wrapped around my waist from behind.
“Where’s my sister run off to?”
“Phone call,” I replied. “I think it’s a work thing.” It might have been a guy thing, but that was for Ella to talk to Ronan about, if she wanted.
“What’s going on in there?” I nodded towards the dining room.
“It’s winding down. Your gifts were taken to the limo, and Charlotte made sure they boxed up some cake for you to take home.”
“That was nice of her to do that,” I said before taking a sip of champagne.
“Speaking of nice,” he murmured in my ear. “It would be very nice if you’d accompany to the dance floor.”
The rush of bubbles from my champagne tickled my throat, and I hiccupped. “There’s no dance floor in there.”
“Sure there is,” he coaxed. “Let’s dance. I want to hold you.”
He led me to a corner at the far side of the room. I set my clutch and my drink on a nearby table. With one hand at my back, he took me in his arms and we glided casually across the floor. Soon, Matthew and Tinley joined us as well as Lucan and Charlotte.
“We’ve started a trend,” I said with a laugh.
“Where there’s music, there’s always a dance floor.”
I pressed my cheek to his shoulder. Breathing in his scent, I licked my bottom lip. He smelled sinfully good. It was that clean crisp scent that was unmistakably Ronan. Warmth flooded my veins at the feel of his thumb tracing small circles against my back.
“Holliday, I need you now.” His voice was thick and provocative.
“I can’t leave my own party,” I protested, fumbling my fingers along the silk of his lapel.
“It doesn’t look like much of a party any longer,” he said, nodding towards the four other people in the room. “Besides, I am quite sure there are rules of exception when you are the lady of the hour, not the hostess. I want you all to myself.”
His mouth was tender as he brushed his lips over mine. My heart fluttered.
“I need you.” He pressed a kiss to my cheek before drifting down my throat. “I want to be inside you. I need to be inside you.”
“Yes, I want that too.” My voice was breathy, my pulse racing. “But not here.”
His hand slid down my leg, the stroke warm and seductive. When he slipped his hand between my legs, I bit my lip to stifle a moan.
“My beauty,” he whispered into my hair. “Where are your panties?”
“In my clutch. I took them off for you.”
“Vixen.” His mouth claimed mine as he roughly kissed me with a possessive need.
Heat climbed up my legs, spreading through my thighs.
“Say goodbye, Holliday,” he whispered darkly.
“Goodnight, everyone,” I said as we slipped out of the room.
Ronan
She barely got the words out before I hauled her ass out of the room, through the kitchen, and down to the service elevator. When the doors closed, I caged her against the back wall. Her eyes were wild and lust filled. The delicate skin of her neck revealed her pulse pounding. Holliday’s hands pushed into my hair, her lips sliding heatedly over my throat.
“Bring the limo around,” I barked and then dropped the phone back into my suit pocket. Dean would have to forgive my gruff tone, but I had important matters to attend to.
I smoothed my hands up her back, crushing my lips to hers, thrusting my tongue into her mouth. Then I caught her bottom lip between my teeth, growling as I nipped her tender skin.
“Ronan...” she moaned against my neck. The vibrations rippled straight to my cock.
The doors opened, and my ardent hands pushed her forward, through the hallway, and out the side door. As we stepped onto the pavement, the crisp fall night air swirled around us. To our left, Dean had the limo idling at the curb.
“Drive,” I said, ushering her inside. “And don’t stop until you hear from me.”
The door shut, and her head fell back against the seat. I was out of my jacket and on my knees, ready and waiting to devour and worship her. The moment the privacy shade locked in place, I shoved her dress up over her hips, revealing her glistening cunt.
I grinned. “You’re beautiful.” I sucked her clit into my mouth, pushing two fingers into her pussy. “My greedy girl, you’re always wet for me.”
My tongue lashed over her sensitive skin. Her legs shook as she cried out. Her eyes popped wide open as I pinned her thigh to the seat with one hand and lifted her other leg over my shoulder. I sank my tongue deeper inside her wet heat, relentlessly fucking her with my tongue. Holliday’s hands gripped the edge of the seat. I rimmed her harder, driving us both mad. Her taste drugged me. I craved it, craved her.
“Ohhhh…shit…” she moaned, writhing beneath me.
My hands gripped her hips as I slowly rocked her against my mouth. I plunged my tongue again, dragging upward to swirl around her clit. My cock throbbed, straining against my trousers.
“Ronan, please,” she begged.
“Please what?” I asked, replacing my tongue with two fingers.
“More…Just more.”
“More of what?”
“More of you. Want all of you.”
She was better than any dream. She was my ultimate fantasy. My perfect, beautiful goddess. I couldn’t have imagined I’d be so lucky to fall in love with such an amazing woman. Holliday was everything I wanted, everything I needed.
“You want my cock, beauty?”
She moaned, licking her lips. “Yes, please. I need to feel you inside me, driving deep.”
I withdrew my fingers from her body, and her eyes flew open. Upon rolling up, I shoved my trousers and my boxer briefs to my knees. Hooking my arms underneath her knees, I pulled her forward, nudging her beautiful cunt with the broad head of my cock. She was slick and hot, more than ready to be fucked.
“Get on your knees, Holliday. I’m going to fuck you hard, fast, and deep.”
She slid off the bench seat, and turned away from me, arching her ass up. I shifted, urging her legs apart. As I pushed into her, sliding through her slick arousal, my hands dug into her hips.
“Ronan,” left her lips in a hushed whisper.
My teeth gritted together in an attempt to restrain the growl in my throat. A shiver racked my body from head to toe as I buried myself to hilt. She clawed at the back of the seat as I ground my hips against her.
I groaned harshly as I inched out before slowly sliding back inside. She moaned, her inner muscles tightening. She met me thrust for thrust as I pounded into her.
“So good…I’m so close,” she whimpered through decadent moans. “Yes�
��Yes…Ronan, fuck me harder.”
Closing my eyes, my chest heaved against her back. I could feel her all around me, clenching tightly. I brought my fingers to her clit and added some pressure. Then I pushed into her harder, and her inner walls spasmed around my dick. Pleasure spread through my muscles, charging straight to my balls.
“Fuck…Holliday,” I rasped, my voice harsh. I let go, my orgasm unravelling, coming hard in thick, hot spurts.
She turned to face me, her gaze heavy-lidded. Beautiful, pink cheeks, smudged mascara, and mussed hair. Her chest heaved with each word she said next.
“Best…birthday…ever.”
“We’re just getting started sweetheart,” I replied.
“You can do that again?” she asked, her voice as rough as mine.
“Have I let you down in that aspect…ever?”
She leaned back into the seat, pulling the hem of her skirt down over her hips. “Hmmm…Let me think.”
Rising from the floor, I pulled my pants on and settled beside her. “Well, if you can’t remember, maybe I should stop fucking you. You seem to be losing your memory.”
“Never,” she said, resting her head on my shoulder. “If we’re going to do that again, I need food.”
“Your wish is my command,” I replied before pressing a kiss to her temple. I reached across the aisle to get my phone out of my jacket. “Burgers and fries, then?”
“Sure,” she said through a yawn. “Ronan?”
“Yes.”
“Thank you for a wonderful night.”
“You’re most welcome.”
And a minute later, she was out like a light.
“Goodnight, my beauty,” I whispered into her hair.
Holliday
One Month Later
On Halloween, the sky was streaked with shades of grey and orange. I was waiting for Ronan to get home. In a little over an hour, we were going to Charlotte and Lucan’s for dinner and a scary movie.
“Holliday, can you help me with my hair?” Leah called from across the hall.
“Yep. I’ll be right there.”
“She probably wants more glitter sprayed on,” Jade remarked, rolling her eyes. “She has a boyfriend, you know.”
“Oh, really?”
Leah appeared in the doorway of their bathroom. “No, I don’t, Holliday,” she said, bopping back and forth on her heels. “Don’t believe her. Boys are manky.”
I laughed at her British slang. “Someday, you won’t think boys are gross,” I said as I finished curling Jade’s hair.
They wrinkled their noses and collectively wailed, “Ewww!”
Smiling, I shook my head and added more glitter to Leah’s braided ponytail. We added a few more bangles to her costume, and I touched up her blue eyeshadow. Since she was only seven, I didn’t want to put too much makeup on her, just enough to add some flair.
“Boo!”
“Ahhhhh!” All three of us jumped at the same time.
My heart was in my throat, and Jade was clinging to my leg.
“Daddy, you scared us,” Leah said, swatting his arm.
“I’m sorry. I was just having a bit of fun,” he said before kissing them both. “Happy Halloween. Here are your treats. I promise no more tricks.” After asking how my day was, he kissed me.
“Ewww! This is the very reason why I don’t like boys,” Leah said. Then she stuck her tongue out.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because you have to kiss them.”
I wanted to tell her that, someday, she would really enjoy kissing boys, but that was a conversation better left for her mother. And, by the look on Ronan’s face, I suspected he was not too eager for that day to arrive.
The girls showed their costumes off for their dad, and I finished packing their bags. They were going to a school party, and then their mother was picking them up.
Ronan came around the corner and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Emma called. She asked if we wanted to have dinner with them Sunday evening.”
“That sounds like a wonderful plan,” I answered truthfully.
“I’m going to hop in the shower.”
“You better hurry.”
Emma’s show started production two weeks ago. The pilot was scheduled to air sometime in February. She’d invited me on set with her and gave me the grand tour. We’d become closer since they moved to Manhattan, and we’re developing a slow friendship. We shared a mutual love of fashion, and to my surprise, I learned that Emma had been kind of a wild child like me in her younger years. At my suggestion, Emma had Charlotte design her wedding gown along with Leah and Jade’s bridesmaid dresses. The girls were excited for the wedding. They kept talking about their dresses and how they were going to stay in a castle like Cinderella.
While making my way to our bedroom, I picked up the board games that had been left out in the den and stacked them on the bookshelf. I ran my hands over the smooth grain of the wood and straightened the framed pictures that lined the shelf. Moments were being captured and would remain timeless memories encapsulated in these frames. I dusted off Leah and Jade’s first-day-of-school pictures. My hands drifted to the picture of Ronan and me from my birthday party, and next to it sat a picture of Tinley, me, and Maggie from her wedding day. In the corner of the bookshelf was a picture of my father and me dancing at Big Bear. Ronan had remembered the story and asked my mom for the photograph. Then he’d had it matted and framed for me.
“Hey, girls. We have to leave in ten minutes.”
“Okay. I’m ready,” Jade said from her room.
Leah chimed in. “Me too! I’ll be right down.”
I wished the girls could stay another night, but we had to be up early for the ribbon cutting at Charlotte’s boutique opening followed by brunch at The York with Mom and Perry. The boutique was the first of three set to open over the next ten months. In early summer, the second location would open in The Hamptons, and then her Beverly Hills location would follow at the end of summer.
Standing in front of my vanity, I splashed some perfume on my wrist and fluffed my hair. Molly had finalized the patent on the fragrance she and Ronan had created for me, and it was going to be sold exclusively at Charlotte’s boutiques and online soon. After slipping on my boots, I grabbed my handbag and headed downstairs.
Soon, my own company would officially launch. I had a few clients booked for events through the end of the year. When I received the go ahead, I would officially plan the fragrance launch party. We were thinking of tying it in with Charlotte’s resort collection presentation next year.
In between helping Charlotte and getting my business off the ground, I found time to become involved with the Hope and Faith Foundation. Mostly, I went on Wednesday afternoons and talked with women who were survivors of rape, abuse, and trauma. This was my therapy now, since Dr. Goodwin had released me from his care, having praised me for my excellent recovery process. My physical scars had been erased, and even though I’d never forget what happened to me, the overwhelming fear no longer occupied a place in my life decisions.
In August, Derek had been brought up on multiple charges for extortion, prostitution, and drugs. He’d pled guilty and was sentenced to four years in jail and fined $1.6 million However, his sentence had been reduced by two years for helping the police with another matter. His life would never be the same—his empire is gone, and Side Effects Media filed for bankruptcy earlier this month.
Life was good. Actually, it was better than good. It was wonderful. We had our ups and downs like any other couple, except my boyfriend was one of the hottest movie stars in Hollywood. Dealing with tabloid rumors was becoming less of an occurrence. Although, last week, the stalkerazzi had photographed me going into my gynecologist’s office and the baby bump watch rumors flooded the Internet. People would be disappointed when they found out that I’d just had my annual checkup.
“Hello, beautiful.”
At the sound of Ronan’s voice, I looked over my shoulder from the chal
kboard hanging in the kitchen. Smiling, I watched him come around the breakfast bar on his way to the refrigerator. He’d changed into a dark pair of denim jeans and a grey cashmere sweater. His curls were still damp, and his eyes sparkled with amusement.
“Well, this is quite the sight,” he said, giving me a kiss.
“Yes, I know,” I said, wiping the chalk from my hands. “My calendar-organizing skills are top notch.”
I’d become quite the expert on making school lunches, after-school events, parent-teacher meetings, and drop-off and pick-up times.
“I even got the girls to eat a proper snack and clean their rooms.”
“Impressive,” he said with a full smile. “Although that’s not too hard seeing as they really do not care for American chocolate or sweets.”
“Yeah, fine. You might have me on that one.”
“Where’s Sadie?”
“I sent her home earlier. I felt confident that I could handle checking homework folders and washing lunch boxes without her. Besides, she had plans with her boyfriend.”
At the end of August, Sadie had been hired as the girls’ part-time nanny. Leah and Jade loved her, and it didn’t hurt that she lived a few blocks away.
The girls came skipping down the stairs, and Ronan helped them with their coats. He asked them if they had all of their belongings. I stood in awe at the sight before me: my amazing boyfriend, the Hollywood movie star, engaged in an easy conversation with his two beautiful little girls. I’d never dreamed I’d ever experience an evening like this or a life where I was in charge of the weekly classroom snack, much less shopping for stainless-steel water bottles or plastic ones with a BPA-free label.
Only months ago, work, therapy, and limited social situations had been my life. Most of my weekend nights had me faking my way through a party without drawing attention to myself or eating dinner alone at The York. Life was meant to be lived fully each day. What could I do, except be grateful that these three had come into my life and made me so very happy?
An extraordinary ache bloomed inside my heart. I wished I had a camera so I could take a picture and freeze this moment forever to add it to the collection of pictures upstairs.
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