by B. B. Hamel
Get your fucking shit together, you’re a goddamn adult and we’re professionals.
I wish I had that power, but Jace is something special. Can’t deny it, as much as I’d like to.
“All right, Eric,” Calvin says, his turn coming up. “Do you have any eights?”
Eric hesitates, chews his lip and screws up his face, before looking at Calvin. “Nah. Go Fish.”
“Liar,” Calvin says.
“Excuse me?”
Calvin leans toward Eric. “You’re fucking lying. You have an eight.”
“I don’t have a fucking eight.” He presses his cards to his chest. “And I’m not a fucking liar.”
“You’re a liar. I know you have an eight. I saw it when you drew it a couple rounds ago.”
“You fucking cheated?” Eric seems scandalized.
“Guys,” I cut in, but neither of them looks at me.
“You turned it over before you put it in your hand,” Calvin says. “I didn’t mean to see it, but I did.”
“You fucking cheated.”
“You’re a fucking liar.”
“I don’t have an eight.” Eric glares at Calvin, doubling down.
“Guys.” I speak louder, putting my cards down. “We’re not going to play if you’re both going to do this again.”
“Fucking liar,” Calvin says, and lunges for Eric.
It happens fast. One second they’re bickering like always, and the next Calvin’s on top of Eric, trying to rip the cards from his hands while Eric screams obscenities.
“You fucking cocksucker motherfucker, get the fuck offa me, I don’t have fucking shit, you shit-eating cunt, get the fuck offa me, you motherfucker!”
Calvin rears back suddenly, fist cocked, and smashes it into Eric’s face with a dull thud.
For a second, both guys look at each other. Clearly Eric’s too stunned that Calvin punched him to feel anything. But after a beat, the whole thing shifts, and Eric starts fighting back.
The two men roll around on the floor, knocking the table sideways. I jump to my feet, yelling at them to stop. Jace isn’t around, or else he would’ve been able to defuse this situation. My two camera guys are trying to kill each other, Eric literally trying to strangle Calvin while Calvin tries to break Eric’s nose.
They struggle for a few seconds. It can’t last more than ten seconds in total, but it feels like hours. Grant finally stands, walks over to the two guys, grabs Calvin by the shirt, and throws him halfway across the room like he weighs nothing.
Eric stares up at Grant, who stares back at him with a strange, impassive, toothy grin. “What the fuck are you looking at?” Eric roars at him, and scrambles to his feet.
Grant shrugs. Calvin’s slowly getting up.
“Get the fuck out,” I say to Calvin. “Leave, right now.”
“Leave? Tell him to fucking leave.”
“Go to the van, go for a walk, I don’t care. Just get out of this cabin, right now.”
Calvin stares at me before cursing. “Fine. Whatever.” He storms off, slamming the door behind him.
“You go cool off,” I say to Eric. “Right now. Go.”
Eric glares at me but shrugs and leaves the room. He disappears down the hall and I hear a door slam shut.
Grant slowly rights the table. He picks up the cards and he puts them back down into a single pile. I lean up against the refrigerator and sigh.
This is falling apart and quickly. We’re in the middle of nowhere and my camera guys want to murder each other. I can’t freaking have this, no way, absolutely no way.
I’m firing one of those bastards tonight, maybe both of them.
15
Jace
I’m whistling as I make my way back to the cabin with an armload of dry wood. There should be enough to get a small fire going, which that drab little cabin sorely needs.
I hate that Piper dragged us out here, but I can’t complain. We got some good footage earlier today and tomorrow’s looking just as good. This whole Colorado trip has been pretty fantastic so far, even if I still hate nature just as much as I always have. Well, maybe I’m starting to respect it just a little bit.
I get to the cabin and manage to get the front door open without dropping any wood. I push it open with my back and start stepping into the room.
“Who’s ready to burn this motherfu—”
I stop mid-curse as I turn into the room. Piper and Grant are sitting alone at the table, Grant’s smiling like always, but Piper looks downright dour. The other two guys are missing, and there’s a single playing card on the floor near my feet.
Right away I can tell the vibe is off. “What happened?”
Piper shakes her head. “Calvin and Eric, what else?”
“Shit,” I say softly. I walk over to the fireplace and dump the wood right into it before turning back to Piper. “What happened?”
“Go Fish went bad,” she says. “Jace, we have to do something about them.”
I sigh and flex my hands. I thought we already did something but those immature idiot bastards just can’t keep it together.
“Come with me,” I say, nodding toward the door.
“I’m not in the mood.”
“Come on,” I press. “You need to take a walk and clear your head.”
She glances at Grant. “Will you be okay here?”
He gives her the thumbs-up before offering her a bottle of something. She hesitates before taking it with a grateful smile.
She follows me to the door and we step outside. “Calvin should be out here somewhere,” she says. “I sent him to the van to get himself together.”
“Where’s Eric?”
“Sent him to his room.”
I laugh softly as we backtrack along the path I just walked down. “Like a little kid, huh?”
“Exactly.” She sighs. “They started arguing about Go Fish and just…. Attacked each other.”
“Can’t say I’m too surprised,” I say softly.
“Jace, I have to fire one of them.”
I stop walking, foot crunching down on a twig. She crosses her arms and meets my gaze. She’s beautiful as the sun sets over the trees behind her, soft light streaming through her full hair, making her look almost angelic.
“We can’t do that,” I say. “They’ve come too far. And plus, they’re the best.”
“We don’t need them both,” she says. “We can find a replacement, I just have to set it all up.”
“And lose how much time?”
She bites her lip. “I don’t know.”
“Exactly. This could put us off-schedule and over-budget. You know what happens to pilots that are off-schedule and over-budget, right?”
“I know,” she says softly.
“Especially pilots by an ex-addict and a producer on her last legs.” I sigh and start walking again. She hurries to catch up.
“I don’t mean to be cruel, it’s just that, if you were super established with a long list of credentials, they’d overlook something like this.”
“I know,” she answers softly. “I’m thinking about it myself.
Her hands fidget with the bottle Grant gave her before she lifts it to her lips. She takes a quick swig before her face screws up in pain, but she manages to swallow the stuff. “Oh my god,” she says, coughing.
I take the bottle from her and look at it. No markings, just a blank label. I give it a sniff and it’s definitely whisky… or something like whisky.
“What is this?”
“Grant had it.”
“Ah,” I say, laughing. “Grant’s homebrew.”
“He makes this stuff?”
“Sure, the guy’s a big homebrewer.”
“How don’t I know that?”
“Ever ask?”
“No,” she says, shrugging. “He doesn’t talk.”
“Other ways to communicate with someone, you know.”
I bring the bottle to my lips and take a big swig. I instantly regret it. The stuff is h
orrifying, basically lighter fluid, and burns all the way down. I gag slightly but keep it together enough to take another hit.
She stares at me and shakes her head. “Getting drunk isn’t going to help our problem.”
I grin at her. “I know, but it’s fun.” I hand her the bottle back but she just holds it behind her back like she’s afraid it’ll explode.
We head down the path a few more feet before I take a step into the underbrush. She follows as we stomp along, weaving through trees.
“Where are we going?” she asks.
“It’s just ahead. I spotted it when I was grabbing some wood.”
The trees thin out and a sheer cliff face juts downwards. Ahead, the valley spreads out, covered in trees and shrubs, looking absolutely incredible as the last dregs of the sunset slowly sunk behind the horizon.
We stand there in silence for a minute or two. This is what convinced me that nature is worth respecting, even if it totally sucks, and I can tell by the look on her face that Piper agrees with me.
“They both loved a girl,” I say softly. She glances at me, head cocked. “When they were both a little bit younger and just starting out. They were working on this pilot for a new sitcom, something about a family with a single father and his new girlfriend trying to make it in the city. Calvin and Eric were good friends back then, both fresh faces straight out of school, but clearly talented.
“She was one of the writers, the youngest one at the table. Fresh out of school like them, but already with a list of credits to her name. She was beautiful, fiery, exciting, smart, and funny, and they both fell head over heels. And for some reason, she liked them.
“They became like the The Three Musketeers. They spent all their time together, in and out of work. Eric and Calvin both loved her more than anything but neither of them could bring themselves to say anything to her, and they both knew how the other felt.
“It worked okay for a little while, until one day, Calvin said something that would change everything. They were out to lunch and he said, ‘Holly, did you see Eric’s stupid shirt?’
“Such a tiny moment, maybe a dickish thing to do. He insists that it was a joke, but it triggered something. From then on, the guys slowly went down a bad path, each one trying to make the other look worse. They mocked each other to her to the point where they couldn’t be in the same room together. Each of them tore the other down trying to make himself look better in her eyes, until one day, Eric confessed his feelings for her.
“But she didn’t return them. Calvin tried later, but she told him the same thing. She only likes them as friends.
“That was the final stake in their heart, so to speak. They blamed their failure on the other, and vowed never to speak again. Of course, they broke that vow the next day when they fought on-set and got fired.”
She stares at me with a skeptical look. “How the hell do you know all that?”
“Grant told me.”
“Grant… told you?”
“He’s not always silent, you know.” I grin huge at her and turn back to the sunset and the vista in front of us. “Anyway, don’t fire them. They were friends once and they can be friends again… it’s just years and years of resentment built up between them.”
She sighs and I can tell it sounds pained. “I don’t know why they were both hired to begin with.”
I give her a look. “Wasn’t that your job?”
“Actually, no. The studio did the hiring, I was just attached last minute to babysit you all.”
“Ah,” I say softly. “Well, I don’t know what to tell you. They’re here, and we can’t afford to lose them.”
“So that story about them was supposed to convince me?”
“I thought it might work,” I say, grinning at her. I shrug a little and turn away from the cliff, walking back into the woods.
I hear her come crashing after me a second later. We make it halfway back to the path before I stop and turn to her.
“You know, sometimes I don’t get why you married me.”
She stops and raises an eyebrow. “I didn’t. You tricked me.”
I wave that away. “Excuses. You walk around with a stick up your ass pretending like you hate me, but we both know you don’t.”
“You tricked me into marrying you,” she says, glaring at me. “And I don’t have a stick up my ass.”
“You definitely do. Not the fun kind, either.”
“What do you want me to say, Jace? I have to fire one of them.”
“No, you don’t.” I step closer to her but she doesn’t back away. “You don’t have to do that all.”
“Jace,” she says softly.
“It was love, Piper. They did it for love. Oh, now it’s all based on resentment and years of fighting, but they did it for love at first.”
“I don’t really care,” she says softly.
“I know you don’t.” I stop inches away from her and tilt her face up toward me. “Or you pretend like you don’t. Come on, you don’t think you could go get a divorce lawyer and sue my ass seven ways to Sunday? Face the truth, wifey. You’re a sucker for love, even when you’re tricked into it.”
“Is that what I have to do, sue you so that you’ll let this marriage thing go?”
“Maybe,” I whisper. “I guess I can’t really see another way around it.”
She sighs and returns my gaze, unwavering and intense. “I will, Jace. You know I will.”
“Goddamn, wifey, I know you will.”
I kiss her before she can reply. When she kisses me back, I know she won’t.
16
Piper
The only thing I can think is, finally, and my whole world goes blank.
His kiss drives me wild. I throw my arms around his neck and press my body against his, desperate not to let it go. The problem of what to do about the guys back at the cabin completely disappears as his hands squeeze my hips and push me back.
I stare at him, pissed as hell that he’d stop this, but I don’t have time to say anything. He presses me tight up against a tree, pinning my hands up above my head, and kisses me again. Our tongues intertwine and his soft lips slide against mine, his taste filling my mouth, and my whole body is thrumming with him.
The last dregs of light help as he releases my hands and slide his palms down my sides. He steps and unbuttons my jeans, and I arch my back for him, pressing my already soaking pussy out toward him. He pulls my jeans down over my ass, tugging them over my hips, and pushes me back against the tree. I can feel its bark against my ass but that scratchy hurt only makes it feel better as his fingers slide between my legs. He softly teases my clit as first, kissing me deep and slow, drawing out soft moans from me like a piano player. I’m his instrument and he’s the prodigy, and he knows exactly which key to press to make the perfect sound.
Pleasure rolls down my shoulders and hips and gathers in my core as he continues to rub my clit. It feels better than it should, maybe because I’ve been anticipating this moment for so freaking long. He keeps working me, making my body tense and relax, contract and expand. He bites my lower lip and I gasp as he smirks at me, his delicious mouth close to my ear.
“This is what you really like,” he says softly. “You can pretend to be heartless all you want, but this, right here, this is what you really want.”
“No,” I groan, but really I’m begging for more.
He laughs softly as he slides his fingers deep inside of me. I groan again and thrust my hips toward him, spreading my legs. He slides his fingers harder and deeper inside, pushing me and making me gasp.
“This is what I want from my wife,” he says quietly. “Complete obedience. How else am I going to make you feel good? If you fight it, you’ll only hurt yourself.”
I groan and my fingers dig into his shoulders. “I’m not hurting anything right now.”
“No, you’re not,” he agrees softly. He slides his fingers out and I groan, this time in annoyance. I don’t want him to stop, it felt way too f
ucking good.
But I watch as he licks his fingers clean, a little smirk on his lips, before unbuttoning his own jeans. I help him, kissing him again, and I can taste myself faintly on his tongue. I tug his jeans down and slide my hand down the front, reaching for that enormous cock I remember from the hotel room. That feels like ages ago, but I recognize it as soon as he’s in my hand.
I pull him out and slowly stroke him with both hands while I kiss him. He grunts his pleasure and I like that sound, animalistic and intense. I roll my hands around his tip, letting the drip of precum coat my palms as I stroke him faster again, sliding along his thick head and shaft.
He reaches up and grabs my hair, pulling it back and kissing my neck. I groan but I don’t stop, stroking him faster. His other hand finds my pussy, fingers spreading me and rolling along my clit. I gasp as I fall back against the tree, his cock still in my hand. He kneads my clit, rolls along it with his fingers, his other hand in my hair pulling it tight.
I gasp when he slides his fingers back inside. I wiggle my hips, letting him sink deeper, getting a better grip on his dick. He kisses my neck, pulling my head back by the hair again.
“Fuck, wifey,” he whispers. “If I knew you’d be this hungry for it, I would’ve given you what you wanted earlier.”
“Asshole,” I say. “I’m just drunk.”
“Liar,” he says, grinning. I know I can’t hide it from him, how badly I want this, so I smother myself by kissing him again.
He works me like that for another minute or two, kissing my lips and neck and pulling my hair as I stroke his shaft, but finally he can’t take it anymore. He pulls back, grabbing my hips and spinning me around. He drops to his knees behind me, tugging my panties and my jeans down to the ground.
He spreads my ass and licks me top to bottom. I gasp and watch him do it, and it feels so goddamn good. He licks my pussy, tonguing me and sliding back around, hands squeezing my hips.