by Sam Crescent
“Will you take me home?” she asked. He’d already called his lawyer friend earlier, and they all agreed to meet each other tomorrow to discuss everything. His friend had several details that he intended to look into before that meeting.
“Do you want to go home?”
“My landlady is waiting for me.”
“Does she know what is going on?”
“Yeah, Cathy has been amazing. She’s so supportive. Of course, she has promised to beat the shit out of Eric or set her poodle onto him, whichever would amuse her first.”
“I am sorry that your ex did this to you.”
She chuckled. “You really need to stop apologizing for my ex. It wasn’t you.”
“He’s male, I’m male. I guess I need to apologize for all assholes of our species.”
“In that case, I’ll apologize for all mega-bitches.”
“You see, you’re getting it.”
They moved toward the edge of the pool. Kirk passed her the clothes, and she quickly pulled them on, marveling that no one joined them.
After changing in his room into her now-clean clothes—he’d offered to wash and dry them for her—she was ready to go.
Once in his car, she gave him the directions that would take him back to her apartment block, and as they sat outside, she was sad to have come home.
“This is me,” she said, climbing out of the car.
He surprised her when he followed her out, moving up to the front door.
“I’d like to see you again,” Kirk said. “Not just for the lawyer either. I’d like to date you, Bella, if you’d have me.”
“Like proper dates?”
“Yes. No sex involved unless you want it, and that is a deal breaker.”
She laughed. It was fun to be able to do that again. It had been way too long since she’d felt so carefree. “I’d like that actually.”
“At least we’ve got the icky business out of the way.”
“Icky business?”
“Yeah, me with the porn star background, you with the sex tape. No awkwardness.”
“Absolutely not. I mean, we’ve even had sex and gone further than most couples do, and it’s only our first day.”
He stepped up toward her, and her heart started to race. He cupped her cheek, sinking his fingers into her hair and tilting her head back.
“I’m so pleased I met you, Bella.” He pressed a kiss to her lips, so chaste and sweet. Watching him go, she quickly stepped into her apartment building, and Cathy was already there.
“Well, I guess it went really well for you, dear?”
She leaned against the door and sighed. “I think I’m in love.”
“That’s lust, and no surprise there. Rock Hard has a big enough dick to make a nun fall for him.”
She rolled her eyes and followed Cathy into the older woman’s apartment. “How do you know who he is?”
“I did research. I wanted to make sure I was prepared for today. You’re all intact, and you don’t seem to be losing your shit so you must have done okay.”
“It was so scary. Kirk thinks he can help me though.”
“In what way?” Cathy asked.
She brought her friend up to date on the details of the sex tape that her ex had uploaded and what it could mean.
“I tell you what, if it brings Eric to justice for that shit he pulled, I’m all for it. When do you meet this lawyer friend of his?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Well, I hope he’s damn good. I hate men who think they can get away with stuff, all because they have a dick. You deserve better.” Cathy patted her hand.
Bella wasn’t going to get her hopes up after the past year.
Chapter Six
Three weeks later
“Chocolate chip with peanut butter sauce, with double chocolate brownie bites,” Kirk said.
“Damn, that sounds like it would clog the heart,” Bella said.
He watched her lick her ice cream as they walked across the beach front. It had been three weeks since they’d seen the lawyer that believed he could bring a court case to Eric, but also allow Bella to earn half of the royalties that her ex had taken. The fucker not only uploaded it, he’d sold it, and earned a decent figure from it as well as other costs that Kirk’s friend Chad had been able to find out.
The instant Chad had looked into Eric, he’d not liked him, and Kirk was happy. He’d also gotten Chad to deal with the little hiccup of what happened on set, and all matters had been resolved.
So that Gus or the company didn’t bring a lawsuit to Bella or himself, Kirk had forfeited his paycheck, and also paid damages. He’d demanded they pay Bella her salary though.
When it came to Bella, he wanted to take care of her. Since that last day with her on set, he’d called his manager to start the process of retirement from the industry. It had been a long time coming, and now he was ready for it.
He wanted to do other things, like take Bella out on dates, which they were on right now. Their tenth, actually.
“You asked what would be my favorite dessert, and that would be it, totally.”
“Mine would be a strawberry cheesecake with chocolate sauce, yum.” She licked at the ice cream, and watching her tongue tease the cool ice did things to his dick.
“So, have you had any calls? Or anything?”
She’d been looking for other kinds of work, and he’d actually put her in contact with his manager. Bella was a great secretary, and they were always looking for people to help. He also knew from listening to his manager that she was in need of someone reliable that would file away contracts, deal with complaints, and wasn’t squeamish about the industry.
“I spoke to Lindsey, your manager. We’re having a trial run right now. I’ve had a couple of calls about doing scenes and movies, but I’m not interested.”
He finished his ice cream and pulled her close. “You’re not?”
“No. I’ve done my stint in porn, I hope. I don’t know. I was working the other day, and I heard a couple of women say that it can never just be one. That from one it ends up being two, and three, and I guess I’m scared. I have a plan, and I wanted to make some quick money because mine had pretty much run out—”
Kirk slammed his lips down on hers, silencing her fears. Sliding his tongue into her mouth, she wrapped her arms around his neck and moaned.
“You keep doing that.”
“You need to learn to stop freaking out. You’ve done nothing wrong. You’re an amazing woman, and it’s about time you saw that.”
“I don’t know. Maybe you should kiss me again and make it all better.”
“You’re a wiseass.”
She opened her eyes and smiled. “I love this, being with you. I feel like I’ve known you for a long time.”
“The feeling is entirely the same. I don’t … I want you to be mine, Bella. I know I’ve been with a ton of other women, but I can be faithful. I’m out of the business. I want to start a new life, one away from it all, and even though we’ve known each other such a short time, I want to take that chance with you.”
“You do?”
“Yeah. I mean, we’ve already gotten the sex out of the way. We know we’re compatible.”
“That is so true.” She chuckled, then sighed. “I’d like to be yours as well. I thought I already was though. You keep taking me on these amazing dates.”
He took hold of her hand and led her down to the ocean. Sitting down in the sand, he drew her between his thighs, wrapping his arms around her. Resting his chin on top of her head, he watched the sunset, marveling at the raw beauty in front of him. The woman in his arms who he was falling for.
“I think it’s time you met Cathy,” she said.
“Your landlady?”
“Yes. She wants to meet you herself. Keeps asking about you as well.”
“Well, that could be fun, I guess.” He’d heard a lot of tales about Cathy, but not all of them were flattering, so he wasn’t exactly thrilled at the idea.
&nb
sp; She chuckled. “She’s not that bad.”
“We’re meeting friends and relatives now.”
“My parents are both passed away,” Bella said.
“I didn’t have any. I was a foster kid. Bounced around the system until I got to leave at eighteen. Stumbled into the porn business and ta-da, here I am now.”
“So it’s just Cathy then.”
“You’ve met most of my friends.” He didn’t have a lot of time to build bridges with people. “I’ve spent a lot of my time working. There wasn’t much else to do.”
“It sounds really lonely.”
“It wasn’t so bad. I was always surrounded with people. I’ve had a pretty decent life, and you know what, I’ve got a feeling it’s going to get better. Unless I don’t survive Cathy.”
“There’s no doubt for me. You’ll survive her. She’s not a bad woman.” She tilted her head back. “Like you, she didn’t judge me or what happened. She welcomed me with open arms and helped me out.”
“And that’s why I will put up with whatever she has to throw at me. I’ll do it for you.”
With her head back, it gave him perfect access to her lips, and he dropped another kiss on her mouth.
Yes, he was definitely falling for this little blonde.
****
“And you think screwing all those women makes you a fine lover?” Cathy asked, glaring at Kirk.
Maybe inviting Kirk in for drinks and to meet Cathy wasn’t her best idea.
“Cathy!” Bella stared at her friend in shock.
“It’s okay,” Kirk said.
“It’s not okay.”
“If he can’t handle a few hard questions then he doesn’t deserve you, and I’m right to be hard on him. Are you now a man?” Cathy asked.
Bella dropped her head into her hands, not really sure what to do or to say.
“It was part of my job to be a lover, and no, I don’t think it made me a good lover. Me wanting to be good is what makes me so,” Kirk said. “I get it, you’re worried that I’m going to hurt your girl here.” He touched her knee. “I’m not going to hurt her, Cathy. I just want to help her, and to show her that not all men are assholes.”
“A good portion are,” Cathy said.
“That I don’t deny, but so are a lot of women,” Kirk said.
Bella burst out laughing and looked at Cathy. “We can’t deny that.”
“No, we cannot.” Cathy lifted her fruit juice. “To men and women who are worth the time of day, and to those that aren’t, fuck ’em.”
They all raised their glasses in a toast and took a long drink. After enjoying some dinner and conversation, Cathy gave a thumbs-up to Kirk.
“He’s a keeper. You don’t want to lose him.”
“Well, you could have sent him on his merry way with the way you were talking.”
Cathy wrinkled her nose. “Why do you think that I consider him a keeper? He didn’t run, and he also put up a fight for you. Now that makes him a keeper in my book.”
She hugged her friend tightly before she went. Cathy also extended an invitation to Sunday lunch, only this time Kirk demanded she come to his place for food.
“I’m really sorry about Cathy,” Bella said. “She’s always so opinionated and she has her own mind, and she’s not afraid to speak it.”
“I loved her, actually. I found her really refreshing. She spoke the truth and her mind. You’re lucky to have someone like her. She clearly cares about you a lot, as do I.”
He held her hand as they drove back toward his place. She loved it when he touched her or found any excuse to be near her.
When they were apart in the mornings and he’d call her up they could spend hours talking. He also found a reason to stop by Lindsey’s office building. Her new boss had told her that she’d never seen so much of Kirk before.
Arriving back at his place, he got her a drink before he started cooking. They’d gotten into a routine with each other, and instead of knowing each other for weeks, it had started to feel like years.
She felt so comfortable with him, and that kind of feeling normally only came from years of friendship.
While he was finishing cooking her cell phone rang. She saw it was Chad, and left Kirk cooking as she answered.
“Are you ready for some good news?” Chad asked.
“Yes.”
“Eric has to present you with a formal apology, and also serve ninety days community service. He also has to provide you with fifty percent of the royalties that he has already earned, along with subsequent film right deals.”
When Chad told her a figure she was surprised. “That is … wow.” She knew the money in porn wasn’t always great, but the deal Eric had gotten was quite good. With the money earned from the clips she’d done with Kirk, she’d be okay for a little while.
“I was hoping the son of a bitch would serve some prison time, but he agreed to a more lenient charge so long as you get your money.”
“It’s fine. Thank you so much, Chad. Really, it means a lot to me that you did this.”
“I’m also waiving my fee for this, Bella. I don’t like this kind of thing. I find it a personal affront to relationships and one of the reasons I have come to despise technology.”
“I bet you’re saying all of this on your cell phone.”
“I have to be part of it, but it doesn’t mean I like it,” Chad said. “I will have a written apology from Eric by the end of the week.”
“Thank you,” she said.
Anything out of Eric’s mouth, she didn’t want to hear or read. To be honest, the fact she had gotten anything out of the situation was a shock. Since he unleashed that video, her life had turned upside down.
Ending the call, she went back to the kitchen and updated Kirk.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I’m angry, I guess. Frustrated. I mean, at least something has come out of it, right?”
“I found you. If I ever see this Eric I will have to shake his hand before I punch him in the face.” Kirk cupped her face and pressed his lips against hers. “You’re the gain I’ve gotten, baby.”
Damn it.
He always had a way of saying and doing the right things that aroused her. Only his words also made her fall for him as well.
Watching him in the kitchen, she kept her confession on the tip of her tongue. It wasn’t the right time to tell him that she’d fallen for him, not that she believed any time was the right one.
Instead of putting unnecessary pressure on the both of them, she sat down, drank her fruit juice, and watched him cook.
Life was okay for the time being, and she was just going to enjoy what happened.
Chapter Seven
Three days later, fresh from the shower, Kirk made his way out toward his office when he heard the moans and sexual demands filling the air. Bella sat behind his desk where he’d left her to search for something. He couldn’t recall what it was, and he knew she was looking at his website along with his porn selection.
“See something you like?” he asked.
Bella looked up at him, her cheeks red and flushed. She looked like a naughty girl that had been caught watching porn.
She’d been caught, but she was far from a girl.
Moving behind her, he leaned down. This was one of the scenes where it was a woman with three men. He was the guy in her mouth. “That was a long time ago. One of my younger movies, as you can see.” He pointed out that he’d not gotten the ink he now possessed on his back.
“Yeah, I mean, wow, you’ve done so much.”
“Does this bother you? I’m clean, I promise. I get tested every single time.”
“No, it doesn’t bother me. It’s kind of surreal to see our scenes have become bestsellers, and some of the comments are a little … much.”
Their scenes had gone live through the company’s website a few days ago. He knew they were doing really well as Gus had called him and asked if they both wanted to do more.
Lindsey, his manager, had also told him that everyone knew to go to him. They were together, and Bella didn’t have a manager, which annoyed him.
Pushing some hair behind her ears, he stroked her cheek. “Bella, I … I want to make this work with the two of us.” He knelt down beside her, staring up into her eyes.
“I know. We are, right?”
“No, I mean … this is not just some fun for me. I know you’ve had a bad experience and I promised myself not to pressure you and again I’m breaking all my old rules, but I want you.” He paused and gritted his teeth. “I’ve never told anyone this in my life. I refused to say the words until I knew that was how I felt.”
“Kirk?”
“I love you,” he said. He smiled. “Wow, I really do love you. I know our meeting and our first day together was incredible, and it certainly will need to be doctored in years to come if we have kids.” He saw the shock on her face. “Is that too soon? Okay. I would love to one day have a family, and we’ll deal with whatever that means at the time. I want to have a life with you.”
“We’ve only known each other a few weeks.”
“Some people know on that first moment, Bella. They know how they felt, and it never goes away. Those feelings get stronger. When I’m with you or when I’m away, my feelings for you never diminish. They never go away; they always get stronger.” He cupped her cheek as he held her hand, kissing her knuckles once again. “I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. There are times I feel awful because the worst thing that happened to you, is probably one of the best things to ever happen to me.”
“What do you mean?”
“If Eric hadn’t done what he did, and I wasn’t given this opportunity to be with you, I wouldn’t have known who you were, or ever known these feelings.” He pressed her hand against his chest. “You’re in here, babe, and I don’t want to let you go.”
She cupped his face and kissed him hard. Sinking his fingers into the back of her hair, he held her tightly, not wanting to let her go.
“I love you too. I’ve been so afraid to say that in case it made things awkward, but I love you so much, and I’m so scared right now.”
“No need to be scared.”