Blake: A Bad Boy Romance

by Day, Laura

  “Do you have any comment on your sex tape with Blake.”

  The nausea came suddenly and Ivy balled her hands into fists and looked away from the reporter focusing on keeping her expression blank. Ivy ignored the woman as best she could, but she kept inching closer and closer to her. Her microphone jammed in Ivy’s face. There were more with her now, too. They were like sharks in bloody water, each circling around to see what the best point of attack against Ivy would be.

  Finally, Tim was done answering questions even though the reporters were still screaming at him.

  Ivy walked gratefully into the elevator still stunned and dazed from all that just happened. Her ears were ringing and she was still seeing flashes every time she closed her eyes.

  “You all right?” Blake asked her, rubbing her arms.

  “Yeah, that was intense,” Ivy said shaking her head. “I can’t believe you read that statement in such a calm voice. I had no idea how hard that was.”

  “You did an excellent job, Blake. The BreakerSpin article comes out tomorrow. They’ve been writing it night and day; the only thing that’s left is interviews with the two of you. You can do it together, if you would like.”

  “Yes,” Ivy said reaching over to grab Blake’s hand. “I don’t want to deal with the press alone.”

  “You’ll be great,” Blake assured her.

  “And you’ll never talk to the press alone. I am always there when you talk to the press, clear?” Tim asked.

  Ivy nodded, glad Blake had such a good team behind him. Now would be the hard part. They would have to talk about their relationship and they would have to do it in front of a reporter. It was a trial by fire and Ivy was hoping to not get burned.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  The agreement was this: the BreakerSpin reporter would get an exclusive interview with Blake, but only if he downplayed the stepsibling angle. He could only ask one quick question about it and it would only get one short mention in the article. Ivy didn’t really know what to think about the man writing the article. He was tall and thin with a dark beard and thick, dark glasses. He seemed nice and agreeable, but Ivy still felt nervous around him. He had such a power over her life. He would be the one to sway the public’s opinion.

  She didn’t enjoy feeling this out of control. She knew what was going to happen. This man would tell his story and the information would be sent out to the world. She could see it on the front page of newspapers and the front page of the ever-popular BreakerSpin. It would travel the world. People all over would read about Blake, and they would read about her. Ivy would be known; she would be famous. But, unlike so many other people, she didn’t want that. She wanted privacy, not fame.

  She was terrified of strangers knowing the personal details of her life. She was worried about the assumptions that they would make. People would be talking about her, around the dinner table and in comment sections online. They would gossip about her and talk about her. People would call her horrible names and think awful things and she would be powerless to change their opinions of her.

  “I am asking the court to consider all of the evidence and reduce the charges from a felony to a misdemeanor,” Blake said.

  “It definitely doesn’t sound like a felony charge is warranted,” the reporter agreed. They were chatting like old friends.

  It was disconcerting for Ivy. This man had come to ask them questions and probe their personal lives. She was sitting on a couch in Tim’s office. Blake held her hand firmly in his own. Ivy felt nervous; she had to force herself to stop fidgeting. It took all of her effort to just sit still.

  “I am sorry for losing my temper,” Blake said with a nod. “I should have contained myself, but it’s hard when a violent man is threatening someone. It’s hard to do nothing. I don’t like the idea that we basically have to wait for him to physically hurt Ivy before we can land any charges against him. The system is really stacked against her.”

  Ivy tensed up. Anytime Blake or the reporter referenced Ivy’s part in all of this, she felt uncomfortable, like she was under a microscope and a spotlight all at the same time.

  “So, I do have to ask about the nature of your relationship. Your parents are engaged, right? So, will you two soon be stepsiblings?”

  “Our parents are getting married. But Ivy and I are not related in any way. We didn’t grow up together. We were friends growing up and we dated in high school and now we’re back together. I think once people hear the full story they won’t think it’s weird.”

  “I don’t,” the reporter said with a shrug.

  They had been talking to him for over three hours. Ivy was exhausted and ready to go home. But, next to her, Blake looked relaxed and cool like he did this sort of thing every day. His clothes hadn’t wrinkled and there wasn’t a hair out of place on his head. Sitting next to him Ivy felt awkward and uncomfortable. She didn’t know how he was acting so calm.

  “So, have either of you seen the sex tape? You claim it was made illegally by a planted device in your apartment by Ms. McCormick’s stalker.”

  “Yes,” Blake said. “The police found it shortly after I was arrested. I have no idea how long it was there or what else is on it. We didn’t film this and we didn’t consent to it being filmed. I’m asking people to not watch it and to not look for it. It was a private moment between two people and it shouldn’t be part of a public spectacle.”

  The reporter nodded as he took down his notes. He seemed suitably impressed by Blake and so was Ivy.

  They shook hands, Ivy struggling to keep hers from shaking as she stood. She wanted to be calm and confident. She didn’t want people to think she was some weak-kneed damsel in distress. She didn’t want people thinking she had ruined Blake’s career.

  “That went well,” Blake said putting his hands on her shoulders.

  He sounded confident. She wished she had his confidence. It seemed he had so much to spare. She wished it were something he could dole out, she could take just a little of his, just what she needed to sustain her through the next day.

  ***

  The next morning, at Blake’s apartment, Ivy stood in front of a full-length mirror and looked at herself. She looked pale and there were dark bags under her eyes. She began to apply concealer and eyeliner to make herself look presentable. She left her hair down, blowing out and curling the ends. She knew her picture would be on the front page of more than a few newspapers and websites the next day.

  She dressed in a blue pencil skirt with a white button down shirt tucked into the waistband. She looked herself over and tried to put a smile on her face. She looked good, but her smile looked fake and forced. She would need to stay as calm as possible; she would need to wear her neutral mask.

  Tim drove them and Ellen to the courthouse. There were news vans and reporters camped outside, but they were ignored. Walking behind Blake, Ivy kept her face down as the reporters screamed her name.

  “Ivy, how do you feel?”

  “Blake, what will you do if you the judge won’t reduce the charges?”

  “Blake, what’s going to happen to you and Ivy when your parents marry?”

  “Blake, your sex tape was just rated number one in a Pornhub favorite amateur porn poll. What do you think of that?”

  “Ivy, is it true you’ve accepted a two-million-dollar deal to do a sequel to your video with Kink?”

  She forced herself to keep walking. She took her cues from Blake and Tim who nodded at the reporters as they pushed past them and into the courthouse. There was a line between rudeness and giving in. But Ivy didn’t know where that line was. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to treat and react to the reporters. They were their enemies and their greatest allies all at the same time. They needed to keep them on their side without giving away too much. It was a tightrope act and Ivy was the only one who had never practiced before.

  The courtroom was a silent oasis compared to the outside world. The judge refused to permit any press inside. The gallery was almost empt
y. Tim held open the doors to the courtroom and Ivy and Blake walked in together.

  Ivy came to the low wooden gate that separated the gallery from the judge and the lawyers. Blake squeezed Ivy’s hand and he flashed her a smile, one she tried valiantly to return.

  Sitting next to Ellen, Ivy perched on the edge of her seat. She glanced to her left, but Darryl was nowhere in sight. His lawyer was sitting alone, frowning towards his phone. Darryl had been released yesterday afternoon. Ivy heard nothing from him in the last few hours. For the first time, she wanted to see him. She wanted to see if he looked different after his stint in prison. She hoped he did. She hoped he looked broken and sad and ruined.

  Blake sat next to his attorney. He looked sharp and sophisticated in a well-fitting black suit. He really was a changed man. Instead of lounging back in his seat and rolling his eyes, he was sitting up straight, going over paperwork with his lawyer. This was a new Blake, one who regretted rash actions and who was ready to apologize when the time came. Ivy liked this new Blake. She had liked the old one, but something about this new maturity he had struck her. He was an adult now, someone she could depend on.

  The judge entered and Ivy looked around, confused. Where was Darryl? He might have been rich and from a famous family, but not even he could skip a court date. Her heart skipped a beat in her chest as she smiled for real. If Darryl didn’t show up, he would face even more charges; he could go to jail even longer.

  “All rise! Now presiding the Honorable Judge O’Brian.” Everyone stood as a short balding man in a long black robe walked towards his seat and he hit his gavel twice as everyone took their seats.

  “Mr. Anderson. Is your client running late?” the judge asked as he turned to face Darryl’s lawyer.

  “He has not yet arrived, your honor. If I could request a continuance on this matter-”

  “Your client was released from police custody yesterday at two-thirty in the afternoon. Have you lost him in less than twenty-four hours? Do you have any idea where he is?”

  “At the moment, no, your honor,” the lawyer said looking sheepishly to the ground.

  The judge sighed and shook his head. “Are you sticking with a felony charge?”

  “That was the last request of my client, your honor.”

  “Your client who is not here for the hearing?”

  For a moment no one spoke. The judge looked sternly down at Darryl’s lawyer before he began to sort through papers in front of him. “A felony charge for a single punch? Seems rather an overreaction to me especially when you consider that your client was violating his restraining order and threatening someone when he received his hit.”

  Darryl’s lawyer said nothing, but Ivy could see a line forming between his eyes as his frowned deepened. He was being made a fool of.

  “Mr. Lambert,” the judge said and Blake stood up and smoothed his tie and looked respectfully at the judge. “I have heard all of the evidence for and against you and I agree with your lawyer that a felony charge is unwarranted.”

  Ivy gasped quietly and Ellen reached over and they held hands and waited for the judge to continue.

  “Since Mr. Linden has chosen not to grace us with his presence and considering he was violating a restraining order at the time of the attack I am dropping the charges against you. However, I do not ever want to see you in my courtroom again. Is that clear?”

  “Yes, your honor. Thank you.”

  “Dismissed!” The judge cried, banging his gavel twice as Ellen embraced Ivy in a long, deep hug.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Blake Lambert vs. The Linden Family

  That was the headline BreakerSpin went with. It was one long piece detailing everything that had happened to Ivy. The reporter heard all the dangerous voicemails Darryl had left for Ivy. He saw the deranged stuffed animals and pictures of the strange notes. He saw the restraining order that Darryl had violated twice.

  It was good. Really good. It made Ivy look innocent, Blake a hero, and Darryl a dangerous lunatic. The best thing it did was call out the Linden family – the rich parents who ignored their troubled son and paid his problems away. The parents refused to make any sort of comment to the press about their son. But there was only so long they could get away with that.

  There were lengthy sections with pictures of the elephant covered in black paint and the deranged words written on Blake’s door. There were quotes from psychologists about the mentality of stalking and from the police about how impossible it was to charge someone with the crime of stalking. There was a short paragraph that detailed Blake’s relationship with Ivy, but it downplayed the stepsibling aspect. Instead it showed them as what they were: two unrelated adults who wanted to be with each other. And the sex tape was treated as a gross invasion of privacy and not something they needed to be embarrassed about.

  “This is good,” Tim said. “This is all very good. The public is with you, Blake. I have messages from sponsors and fight organizers. They’re looking to work something out.”

  “Work what out?” Ivy asked.

  “Some sort of penance. Charity would be a good step. We could start a charity in your name to help other people who are being stalked and harassed,” Tim offered.

  “Or we could donate to a charity that exists already,” Ivy said crossing her arms.

  Blake saw the flash of anger there and he was desperate to keep Ivy calm. “We’ll find something, Ivy,” Blake assured her, reaching out to her arm. “We can make sure it’s legit.”

  “Sometimes people, especially athletes, set up ‘charities’ and then hire their family to work in it. They don’t do any actual charity work. It’s just a tax dodge because they call it a nonprofit. I don’t want to be part of anything like that, Blake.”

  “No way,” Blake said. “I would never do that.” He knew plenty of people who did, but not Blake. Something about that just seemed so wrong. He couldn’t bring himself to even consider it.

  Blake was happy and when Tim advised him to not Google himself and to never ever read the comments on anything, Blake listened. Ivy was another story. The night of his court date he awoke at two in the morning to see Ivy wasn’t with him. Under the crack in his door he could see a faint blue light, the glow of a computer screen from the other room. “Are you kidding me?” Blake demanded as he stepped out into the living room. Wearing nothing but his boxers he tried to smooth down his hair as he walked to Ivy.

  She was lying on the couch in nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of white cotton panties with the laptop resting on a pillow on her stomach. “I can’t help it,” she said in despair. “I couldn't sleep, so I got up to look at pretty wrapping paper on Pinterest, something that always calms me down, but then I couldn't help myself and I just thought I would do a quick search and now I can’t stop.”

  Blake sat down next to her and took the laptop. He shut it and put it on a side table and then pulled Ivy’s feet up on his lap. “Why would you do that?”

  “How can you not?” Ivy demanded throwing her arm over her eyes. “The curiosity was driving me mad. Did you know there’s an entire online forum devoted to discussing whether I’m curvy or not and if that’s a bad thing or not? It’s awful.”

  “You’re beautiful,” Blake said, stroking her bare leg with his hand. He reached up farther and lightly stroked her thigh. He felt goose bumps appear on her flesh and he couldn’t help but smile.

  “The first thing that comes up when you search my name is Ivy McCormick sex tape. There are over millions of links. Millions!”

  “People will forget. Just don’t talk to the media. Don’t feed the beast. With no new information it’ll starve. People will forget about you and it will just be a little bump in the road.”

  “A bump in the road?” Ivy demanded in disbelief. “I’m infamous. People hate me and think I’m a slut and I didn’t even do anything.”

  Blake lifted Ivy’s leg and kissed her knee and he felt the shudder that ran through her. She giggled and reached up for him. He twis
ted and leaned down and she slipped her hand into his hair and then down to his neck. She stroked the soft skin of the back of his neck and said, “I don’t know how you take everything in stride like this.”

  “I focus on other things,” Blake said.

  He took Ivy’s arm in his hand and pulled it to his mouth. He laid a kiss on the inside of her wrist and Ivy sighed and bit her lip as she looked up at him. She was moving her legs, sliding them up and down the couch, something she did when she was turned on. He was glad it was a habit she hadn’t broken. He kissed the inside of her elbow letting his tongue slide between his lips and caress the sensitive skin.

  Ivy’s other hand came up and she pulled him to her. He hovered over her and kissed her lips softly. She looked up at him and he could see the want in her dark eyes and he leaned down and kissed her deeply. He sucked on her lower lip and felt her squirm beneath him as he slipped his tongue over hers.