“And you’re just sad,” I gently said.
“And you’re a NOBODY! What did you think about the baseball suite? Hmm? Did you think it was romantic? A baseball game with the fucking great Mr. Right!” she kept goading. My blood pressure rising, I looked at her and shook my head, a smile pasted on my lips.
“I get it,” I told her.
“Get what?” She narrowed her eyes and ran her long-nailed fingers through her shiny locks.
“That you would miss him. I do, and I’ve only known him for a short time. But when he travels, I miss him. So I understand. Having a man like him and then not… that would hurt,” I softly shared and knew she heard me when her big doe eyes narrowed.
“Shut up.”
“I would feel as lost as you look.” I wasn’t saying it to be mean. I was doing it one woman to another, trying for her to calm down and open her eyes.
“Fuck you.”
“I’m sorry you two didn’t work.”
“Oh, honey, we more than worked. He’ll never get anything like what I gave—”
“Maybe. But he’s mine. Marc and I are together now. He gets something from me that you obviously couldn’t give him. So I need you to stop.”
“You are NOT together. Please, just the sight of you two is ridiculous.” I winced at her hit. Did we look ridiculous together? “You’re a means to an end, bitch. You should open your eyes. What would he want with someone like you? A clear nobody in his world of everybody’s?” she asked, and I straightened.
By the way her lithe, lean frame was swaying, it was clear she was high as a kite, and I couldn’t stop but feel sad for her. I was about to turn to look at Marcus and urge him to walk away from her when she kept pushing.
“You’re beyond lost, Grace, if you think Mr. Right wants Miss Piggy. Time to wake up and smell the roses, honey. He doesn’t have any needs for you. He has me. Open your eyes and wake the hell up.”
“So that I’m not as pathetic as you’re being right now?” I slipped up, losing my cool.
“You can’t talk to me like that!” she proclaimed, moving in fast, her hand coming up. Not sure how, but my arm that was over his abs came up right before Katie’s hand touched my face, and I held it tightly.
Damn, for a skinny bitch she was strong!
“Don’t touch me!” I whispered, and a second later, two big bouncers came out, one grabbing and pulling Katie around the waist.
“Let go of me!” she howled, kicking and screaming.
“Katie, don’t know what you’re on, but you need to stop this shit,” Marc warned, his deep voice rumbling.
“He left me!” Her body went limp in the giant bouncer’s arms. “That little nobody piece of shit left ME! You and I… we were a publicist’s perfect dream team…” Her voice was getting quieter than it had been, almost sounding defeated.
“Kate…” he tried to warn her about the men behind us, but it was obvious she couldn’t care less.
“Now you’re with this cow!”
“You need to stop with the name calling. I won’t say it again!”
“Why her?” The disgust in her voice clear. “Why not let her loose and come back to me? I can try to stop partying…”
“She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” he hissed as he radiated anger.
“Mr. Wright, your car, Sir,” the valet mumbled, and I looked at him.
He was a kid no older than twenty, obviously embarrassed to be stuck having to interrupt the awkward situation, but I wanted to kiss him. I was so glad he had.
“Marc…” I touched his arm, and he took me into his arms.
“She is everything to me. You are nothing to me. Get it through your fucking head, Kate,” he growled as he held me close. I could feel the tension between them by his tight grip on me.
“Sir, your car.”
“Thanks, man.” Marcus turned and gave the kid a chin nod, slipping him a bill.
“Thank you, Sir,” the kid said, standing between us and the mess that was Marcus’ ex-girlfriend still being held by a huge bouncer.
“Marcus! Don’t walk away! You don’t walk away from me!”
“You need help, Katie,” he said over his shoulder as he led me to the passenger side of his car.
“I’m Katie Wells! No one walks away from me! Not even you!” she shrieked, and he opened the door for me. The cameramen slowly and cautiously moved toward us.
“Marcus, she can’t drive home,” I whispered, looking at him. His blue eyes were on mine.
“It’s not our problem.”
“She’s clearly on something. She can’t drive, and then there’s,” I moved my shoulder up and down to get Marcus to see the paparazzi, who now felt like they were inches from us, even though he was about five feet away. Marc glanced quickly, and his eyes fell on me for a heavy moment, then he exhaled.
“Fine. I’ll take care of it. Just give me a second, okay?”
“Okay, baby,” I told him in a hushed tone as his eyes burned into mine.
“Fuck, I love that,” he said in a hushed growl, his hand caressing my cheek. “Let me take care of that and we’ll be on our way, okay?” I nodded before standing on the tips of my toes, my palm flat on his chest, kissing him softly. About three seconds into the kiss, his hand went to the small of my back and he pulled me in close. Before the kiss got any deeper or everything around us started to fade away, I pulled back.
“Baby. Take care of that so we can go,” I whispered against his lips.
“Yes, Ma’am.” He winked, kissing my forehead before I folded myself into the passenger seat and he closed the door.
Almost the second I put my clutch onto my lap, my cell phone started to ring. The screen said Gabby Gab calling.
“Gabby, I can’t really talk right now—”
“You’re on the news.”
“What?” Ice water filled my veins.
“You. Are. On. The. News. Right freaking now, Grace!” Gabby said worriedly yet excitedly.
“What do you—”
“You just got into his car, right? Umm, black Mercedes?”
“Yes.”
“Shit, it is live. Holy crap! I can’t believe she said those things to you.”
“What?” I whispered, glancing down at my thighs.
“She’s a bitch and a half,” Gabby protectively chimed. My eyes went up as a commotion started outside. “Damn, esta loca! Freaking nuts. But on the bright side, your hair looks great.”
“Gabby.”
“And great call on that dress and shoes!”
“Gabby, what do you mean it’s live?” I asked again, looking down at the material of my dress over my thighs.
“And the way he kissed the top of your head after kissing you. Gah! If you weren’t my sister, I would hate you and cheer you on at the same time, but since you are, there is no hate, you lucky slut!”
“Gabby!”
“You guys make a really cute couple. And I’m not even saying that just because you’re my sister either.”
“Gab—”
“My roommates think so too.” Familiar voices chimed in the background, and I leaned my head onto the headrest.
“Gabby, what do you mean it’s live?”
“TMZ got everything,” she blurted, and I took a deep breath. “From the moment she approached to them hauling her away now.” Sure enough, when I popped my head up, I watched the giant bouncer carry a kicking and screaming Katie Wells, and a petite man next to her, who I assumed was her assistant.
“And it’s on TV?”
“No, it’s streaming live. But it’s only a matter of time ‘til this gets on TV.”
“Shit.”
“No te proqupes. Everything will be okay. Seriously, don’t worry. But just in case, Tavi says he should give Donnie a call?” Tavi, or Octavia, was one of Gabby’s four housemates.
“Don?”
“That’s his manager, right? As his manager, wouldn’t he be in charge of like damage control.”
> “Damage control.” How had those two words even come into my life?
“You never know how they will spin things.”
“Okay, I’ll tell him,” I softly said, not letting myself think about the possible ways they could turn to make this situation ugly, but immediately double guessing my behavior.
“It will be okay, Grace.”
“Yeah.”
“He protected you.”
“Gab—”
“He told her you were everything to him.”
“Babe—”
“I liked him before, but after that I think I love him,” Gabby softly shared, and I looked for him.
His broad back was to me. I could tell his hands were across his chest as he spoke to who I had assumed was Katie’s assistant. The man broke down in tears, and Marc didn’t think twice about hugging him. It made me smile. It made me fall even deeper in love with him.
“He is pretty great.”
“As he should be. You deserve someone that great.”
“Gab…”
“Love you, sister.”
“Love you too.”
“Don’t worry, okay?”
“Okay.”
“I’ll call Gloria to give her a heads up.”
“For…”
“Because they probably know who you are, or they will. Haven’t you ever seen Knotting Hill?”
“Yes, what does that have to do with anything?”
“Paparazzi. You don’t want her and Lex to wake up to a camp of photogs like Julia Roberts did in that movie.”
“That was a movie.”
“And life sometimes imitates art.”
“Call her. Tell her I should be home in a little bit.”
“Don’t rush. She’ll be okay. They both will be.”
“Love you, Gabby Gab.”
“Love you too. Bye.”
“Bye.” Ending the call, I watched as Marcus talked to security and a police officer for ten minutes before walking his sexy body to the car. Even after the drama and confrontations, I was still thinking nothing but lusty thoughts about him. I must be as crazy as Katie.
He got into the car and started the engine, pulling his seatbelt on before sighing.
“Grace, I don’t think—”
“I know.”
“What?” He frowned, and my hand covered his.
“We can’t go to a hotel. It’s okay. I should get back home.”
“Yeah.” He swallowed, and for a second I wondered if that’s what he was going to talk to me about.
“Were you going to say something else?” He turned to look at me. I saw worry in his eyes. He opened his mouth and shut it a second later. “No.” And for the first time since the elevator ride, I didn’t believe him. He’d just lied. But why? I wondered as I looked out the window but didn’t really see much.
I started to pull my hand away from his, but he covered it with his. “Grace.”
“Hmm…”
“Look at me,” he ordered, and when my eyes focused, I realized there were more cameras, and a crowd had started to gather around his car. I turned to look at him.
“I haven’t talked to her,” he told me seriously, his scowl deepening. “She sure as hell hasn’t had my dick in her mouth.” I pressed my lips together. “Not since about three months before we broke up, so that’s almost a year ago now, not whatever fucking she said.” Keeping my lips pressed together, I leaned toward him. “Grace, you listening—”
But before he could continue, I put a finger on his lips. “Shh… Take us home, Marc.” I knew he hadn’t been with her. I wasn’t sure how, but I knew in the pit of my gut.
“Us?” His frown lightened a little, and hope filled his eyes.
“Well, yeah.” I smiled against his mouth, and he leaned in to kiss me tenderly. He pulled away, our hands still joined, then like a professional racecar driver, he got out of the spot that was starting to get crowded in by cameras and looky loo’s.
After a couple of minutes of staring out the window, the city flying by, he broke the silence. “I thought you didn’t want to…”
“Go to a hotel?” I guessed, and he nodded as he looked out to the road, his hand over mine on his thigh. “Gabby called. The whole thing was streaming live on TMZ. She suggested you call Donnie.”
“Shit,” he muttered under his breath, squeezing my hand.
“I thought going home would be better in case those photographers somehow find out who I am and where I live. For their safety, it would be better to get Gloria out of there.”
“Yeah,” he mumbled as he stared out toward the road, his hands gripping the steering wheel.
“You can call Donnie from home,” I told him, and he glanced at me. Something played behind his eyes, but before I could ask, he lifted my hand and kissed my knuckles.
“I’m sure he knows by now,” he mumbled against my fingers, his eyes glued to the road. I stared at him. It was hard not to. His strong jaw twitched as he silently thought about whatever was bothering him.
“Marc…”
“I thought you wanted an out. When you said you wanted to go home. I thought we were done before we started,” he confessed, his voice full of emotion, and my heart flipped, trying to ignore everything Katie Wells had said. Laying all my fears to the side, I shook my head.
“No,” I reassured him, bringing his hand closer to me, holding it with both of mine.
“I’m so fucking sorry.”
“It’s not—” before I could say anything, my phone rang.
“Get it,” he said, and I answered the unknown number.
“Grace?”
“Donnie?”
“Hey. You guys heading home?”
“You know?”
“Yeah,” he sighed.
“Yeah, we are.”
“Okay, good. You okay?”
“You watched?” I hated that my voice went soft.
“Yeah.”
“I’m fine,” I semi-lied. I didn’t want to talk about having been fat-shamed and called a slut by an actress who was adored by millions.
“You handled yourself with nothing but grace.”
“What can I say, it’s just me.” I tried to lighten the mood, but he wasn’t going to let me.
“You did. That’s what’s all over the Internet and gossip blogs.”
“What?” Dread tightened in my belly. I could almost see the headlines. What was it Katie had said? Mr. Right and Miss Piggy?
“What is it?” Marcus asked, glancing at me with a frown.
“Donnie…”
“Put him on speaker.” Pressing the speaker button, I held my phone out.
“Hey.”
“Man! America’s Princess has lost her crown along with her rocker.”
“Don—”
“This is the shit Kev’s dreams are made of!” ‘Kev’? I mouthed, and Marc shook his head and rolled his eyes.
“Seriously, and the way Grace kept her cool. They are calling her Grace under Fire! Mr. Right Falling in Grace! Jesus, the tabloids are having a—”
“They know her name,” Marc growled, and I pressed my lips together, breathing in. I knew this would happen.
“Yeah. I sent Baker to the house. He’s going to be outside.”
“Fuck.”
“I think we should talk to him about getting him to watch Grace and Lex.”
“Do it.”
“Marc,” I whispered, but he shook his head.
“What do they know?”
“I don’t know.” Don’s voice went serious. “They know everything Katie shot off, which was a lot. They know she’s a writer. Reports are starting to flow in supposedly of you two having been spotted being cozy at different spots. Nothing concrete.”
“So far.”
“Yeah, so far.”
“Kev call you?”
“What do you think?”
“Marc—” I tried to speak, but he kept talking to Donnie, a plan clear in his head.
“We will m
eet you at the house tomorrow.”
“We?” Don asked.
“Lex, Grace, and I. We’re also going to need to talk to Baker.”
“Baker isn’t going to do a long term job, Marc.”
“I know. Just get him to my place around two in the afternoon to meet and talk. You and I will talk before. Tell him I appreciate him heading over on such short notice tonight. Again.”
“Will do. Do you want Kevin here tomorrow too?”
“You know it.”
“Bryan and Garrett?”
“If they’ll behave, yeah. Break it down to them how serious it is, yeah?”
“Okay, count on it being done. Bye, and Grace?”
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry Kate said those things to you.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“I… I’m sorry that whole thing played out—” he started to say, but I couldn’t hear it anymore.
“Again, not your fault.”
“Right.” Clearing his throat, Donnie said goodnight and ended the call.
“We’re going to your house tomorrow?”
“Yeah.”
“I, umm…” He glanced at me, raising an eyebrow, and I bit my lip. “I kind of have plans tomorrow.”
“Plans?” He frowned, holding onto the steering wheel tighter as he looked away.
“I’m going to Montana with you in a couple of days, Marc,” I reminded him, “I have a ton of things to do.”
“Things to do? Like what?” he asked with a small scowl, and suddenly I was kind of pissed. It might have been what we’d just been through or the fact that everyone and their mother had seen the blowup. I just couldn’t get myself to calm down. Suddenly overwhelmed with so much.
“Oh, I don’t know? Catch up on work from taking time off when I was following you around. Grocery shopping, and laundry, and making sure Lex—”
“Grace,” he said, and I stopped talking and bit my lip, not knowing what the hell I was feeling.
“What?”
“I’ll help you,” he vowed, and I did a double take to look at him. “With all of that. I promise. We just need to meet up with Kevin. This is the part of my life I was worried about.”
“Marc—”
“It sucks, but it’s part of it, and I need to make sure that you and Lexi are being watched over and protected.”
“I don’t know if I can swing a bodyguard, Marc,” I clipped, starting to feel more than overwhelmed.
LIE (Right Men Book 1) Page 20