What?
“So, a month from tonight, I’m planning to take you to the fanciest restaurant in Manhattan. I’ll make sure all the media is there. I’ll get down on one knee and pop the question. I was thinking we’d have a summer wedding.”
I kept staring at him, seeing his eyes light up in their usual way when he was excited. He’d been grinning at me this entire time, his smile charming.
All I could think about was Hunt.
Thorn’s smile slowly faded away as he watched my stoic expression. It kept disappearing until it was completely gone, his face just as hard as I was. The car vibrated slightly as we headed to the event, the businesses along the sidewalk all lit up. Classical music played in the background, but the car felt silent. “Titan?”
“Sorry…I just wasn’t expecting you to say that.”
“You’re thirty, so I know you’ve got a timer on your eggs. It’s the perfect timing. We’ll be married for a year, and then we’ll pop out our first kid. We probably shouldn’t wait much longer anyway. You have any idea how cute our kids will be?”
“Yeah…”
“So that night is good for you?”
“Uh…” I couldn’t get Hunt’s face out of my head. Just the other day, he’d said he didn’t see us walking away from each other when his time was up. I didn’t say anything at the time because I didn’t know what to say. And now I would tell him I was getting engaged to Thorn… He wouldn’t take that well.
Thorn dug into his pocket until he found the small box. “I know you’re simple and don’t want anything too flashy. But since you’re going to be a Cutler, I had to go all out.” He opened the black box and revealed a white-gold band with a solitaire diamond. But the diamond was huge. I’d be worried about knocking it on things all the time. “Or Titan-Cutler. Whatever you want.”
I watched the diamond reflect the light, casting rainbows inside the car.
“What do you think?”
“It’s beautiful…” I couldn’t pull the words out of my brain because I didn’t know what to say. It truly was extraordinary.
“It took a lot of searching for me to find it. But it was worth the wait.”
I stared at it, speechless.
Thorn finally closed the box and stuffed it into his pocket. “Is it okay? Because there’s still time to get something else. I haven’t shown it to anyone.”
“No…it’s perfect.”
“Great.” His smile was back on his face.
I faced forward and looked out the window, feeling the car shift when it turned left at the light. I gripped the door handle as I looked outside, seeing the lights blur as we moved. A million thoughts were going through my mind, each of them heavier than the previous one. “What made you decide to do this now?”
He shrugged. “Why wait?”
Thorn and I had never picked a date. We just assumed it was somewhere in the future. When it was the perfect time for both of our professional lives, we would tie the knot. Nothing had changed much in our careers, but he obviously thought otherwise. “Especially with that shoot you did with Connor, your popularity will be through the roof. Stocks will rise, and we’ll both benefit. I think now is the best time.”
Maybe. Maybe not. I wasn’t sure.
“Titan?”
“Yeah?”
“Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I lied. “I just…that ring is huge.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, it is. But only the best for my future wife.”
Future wife. I was Thorn’s future wife.
And Hunt’s future memory.
7
Hunt
I wanted to remove Thorn from this equation.
I was the one in charge, but he had a distinct hold over her. I didn’t have a clue what the man did to deserve her unflinching loyalty, but he never should have been the recipient of it. If he really cared about her, he wouldn’t engage in this false relationship. He wouldn’t allow her to marry someone she didn’t really love.
He was the one benefiting from this relationship a lot more than she was.
Why didn’t Titan see that?
I stayed at home that night and watched the game, ignoring people’s texts when they asked if I was at the gala that evening. My mind kept circling back to one of the last things I said to her. I took her face in my hands and said we weren’t going to walk away from each other. That when this arrangement ended, a new relationship would begin.
She never corrected me.
Disagreed with me.
Said anything at all.
That told me there was hope.
That I wouldn’t be another name on her list.
That I would be something more.
When ten o’clock rolled around and I didn’t hear from her, I texted her. Where are you?
The three little dots popped up. I just got home. I’m not feeling well, so I’m going to turn in for the night.
I leaned forward on the couch, my elbows resting on my knees. What’s wrong?
Not sure. Just an upset stomach.
Something told me she was lying, but I had no idea why. The context of a text message was hard to decipher. She might be lying to avoid the punishment she was due, but a fearless woman like Titan wasn’t scared of anything. How can you have an upset stomach if you don’t eat anything?
I guess I drank too much.
If she drank too much, she’d be begging me to come over. I’m coming over.
Why? I could actually hear her demand in the word.
Because I know you’re lying to me.
When I didn’t get a response from her, I knew I was right.
* * *
I walked into her penthouse and noticed the empty glass on the coffee table. There were still two ice cubes inside, so I knew she’d been drinking. Her lie was even more apparent now. “Baby, it’s me.” I walked down the hallway, making my presence known so she wouldn’t be startled.
I found her in her bedroom, sitting on one of her couches in the gray shirt I gave her. A tablet was in her hand as she scrolled through the news. Her hair was a loose curtain around her face, and her makeup was still heavy because she hadn’t removed it.
I sat beside her and rested my arm over the back of the couch. My arm pressed against her delicate shoulders, feeling their petiteness through the fabric. I watched her expression, noting how it didn’t change when I walked into the room.
It always changed when I walked into the room.
“What is it?” My hand moved into her hair and tucked the strands behind her ear.
She didn’t move at the touch. “I don’t want to talk about it, Diesel.”
“Why not? This is me we’re talking about.”
She finally looked at me, her eyes softening against their will. “I know…”
“You can tell me anything.” I eyed her lips, seeing their plump smoothness. They were still vibrant red, but the color was smeared in places, probably from drinking from a glass all night. “I’ll always keep your secrets.”
“It’s a secret I’m just not ready to tell. Nothing personal.”
“Will you tell Thorn about it?”
Her eyes shifted away, and she looked out the window. “No.”
Then it really wasn’t personal. “I’m here when you change your mind.”
“I know, Diesel. You’re always there…”
I tugged on the collar of her shirt and kissed her shoulder, swiping my tongue across her skin. She seemed to feel better when my mouth was on her, when she was the recipient of my hot and carnal kisses.
She closed her eyes and released a hum so quiet, I wasn’t sure if I heard it.
My mouth moved to her ear and kissed the shell. “Can I give you some advice?”
“How can you give me advice when you don’t know what my problem is?”
“Because all problems are different, but all solutions are exactly the same.”
She stared at me, her lips slightly parted.
�
�Just do whatever the fuck makes you happy. You’ve worked too hard to feel anything less.”
Her gaze dropped, and a small smile formed on her lips. “Do you take that same advice?”
I was screwing the most successful woman in the world for a reason. “Every day.”
She chuckled before resting her head on my shoulder. She pulled her knees to her chest and cuddled into my side.
I brushed a kiss to her forehead. “You still want me to leave?”
“No…I never want you to leave.”
Maybe she did have too much to drink tonight. “Then I won’t.”
* * *
I crawled on top of her, my naked body resting on hers as I spread her thighs with mine. We’d spent the last half hour making out on the couch, exploring each other on top of our clothes like teenagers at a kissing party. I moved her to the bed once she undid my pants.
“How do you want me, baby?” I liked her just like this, underneath me with beautiful tits staring back at me. Her smooth skin was soft like a flower petal, and her fairness made the surface easier to bruise with my tough kisses.
“I thought you were the one in charge?”
“I am. And I want to make love to you the way you want me to.” I kissed her on the mouth, my tongue parting her small lips and delving inside. I didn’t want to fuck her, to grip her by the throat and slam my cock into her ass. I wanted gentle kisses, quiet breathing, and slow sex.
“I didn’t think Diesel Hunt made love…”
“I didn’t think Tatum Titan did either…but that’s what we’ve been doing.” I pressed my head into her and moved all the way until I was completely inside her. My arms pinned her behind the knees, and I spread her wide apart, wanting all the room I could get to rock into her.
She bit her bottom lip and moaned. Her long nails dug into my arms, and her nipples hardened.
I let my cock sit inside her for a moment, surrounded by the wet tightness that made me feel more like a man. My thickness stretched her tiny cunt apart, filling every single inch of space that her body could create. I made her feel full, giving her so much man that she felt just like a woman. “Baby…this pussy is all mine.” I slowly thrust into her, feeling the slickness she produced just for me. I didn’t believe she’d ever been so wet for another man, so tight. I didn’t believe she’d ever enjoyed being with a man as much as she did with me.
“Yes…”
I held my face above hers and looked her straight in the eye as I slowly moved inside her, pushing deep and pulling out again. I kept my body rigid and tight, using my core to move in and out. Every time I was deep inside her, I never wanted to pull out.
I never wanted to leave.
“I’m already going to come…” Her hands wrapped around my wrists, and she used them as an anchor to slowly lift herself up and take my length.
“Because I always make my woman come.”
“God, Diesel…” Her head rolled back.
“You love it when I call you that.”
She bit her bottom lip again, tightening around me.
“Tell me.”
“I love it when you call me that…”
“Tell me you’re my woman.”
“I am, Diesel.”
“And I’m your man.”
“Yes…you’re my man.” Her hand suddenly tightened further on my wrists, and she came, her face contorting into an expression of pure pleasure. “Yes…Diesel.” She bit her bottom lip and thrust her hips upward, getting more of my length.
I wanted to come the moment she said I was her man. I buried myself deep inside her and released with a groan, pumping all of my white come deep inside her. I shoved it deeper, thrusting so it would stay inside her as long as possible. I wanted her to walk around all day with my seed sitting inside her, heavy and warm.
Because she was my woman.
Her hands ran up my chest, and she panted as she caught her breath. “More…”
My cock was softening, but it would only take minutes before it was back to full mast. “Yes, baby.”
* * *
We didn’t shower after sex like usual. We kept going at it until we were both satisfied. Then we rolled over and fell asleep. My limbs were wrapped around her even though I was hot and sweaty. The heat was fine as long as I got to be near her.
And she was all over me.
She clung to me like a little girl who needed her teddy bear to sleep well. When I looked at her, I saw the powerful woman who owned an empire. But after seeing that picture in the back of her father’s book, I couldn’t stop looking at her in an innocent way. She was just like everyone else, a vulnerable woman with feelings and sensitivities. She just erected skyscrapers and corporations around it.
I liked both versions of her.
But I’d always preferred Tatum.
I was dead asleep when I felt her shift in my arms. She didn’t just turn over like she normally did in sleep. She was thrashing, her arms moving from left to right and her legs kicking.
I was partially conscious of what was happening.
But when she screamed, I was wide awake.
Tears were all over her face, and she struggled to breathe. Her hands were around her neck like she was choking herself.
“What the fuck?” I grabbed her hands and yanked them down.
She punched me so hard, I actually fell back.
She kept thrashing until she fell off the bed and hit the hardwood floor.
“Tatum!” I jumped over the bed and landed on the ground beside her.
Her eyes were open, and she looked at me like I was the one who had just been choking her. “Get away from me.” Her voice was eerily calm, nothing like it was just a second ago. She scooted back on the floor, inching away from me. “Don’t touch me.”
I raised both hands in the air and stepped back.
She didn’t turn her back to me as she kept scooting backward. She slowly moved, not blinking as her eyes stayed on me. When she thought there was enough distance between us, she finally stood up and walked into the bathroom. The lock clicked when she pressed it.
What just happened?
That wasn’t a nightmare. That was a night terror.
I suddenly understood why she didn’t sleep with anyone. The night terrors must be a regular occurrence for her. They were terrifying, disturbing, and frankly, dangerous. She didn’t seem to recognize me, and if she’d had a weapon, who knows what she would have done.
I waited five minutes before I stood outside the bathroom door. “Baby…it’s Diesel Hunt. I’m standing on the other side of the door. I’m not going to hurt you.” Maybe she was sleepwalking. Maybe she still wasn’t awake, still wasn’t sure of her surroundings.
“Please leave, Hunt.”
Now she was calling me by my last name again. “Baby, talk to me.”
Her voice remained steady; Titan was the one in control. Her attitude was so calm, it was as if she was trying to convince me the outburst had never happened in the first place. “You should go.”
“No. I should stay. This is where I belong—with you.”
“I’m not going to unlock the door.”
“Then I’ll stay right here.”
Silence.
I waited, hoping she would open the door.
“Hunt, please go. I’m not going to ask you again.”
“You aren’t going to hurt me.” Maybe she wasn’t afraid of what I would do to her, but the other way around.
“I just need to be alone right now.”
“No one in the history of time has ever said that and meant it.”
“Hunt…”
“We’re in this together, baby. You can tell me anything. That applies right now.”
Silence.
Why wouldn’t she open up to me? I couldn’t unsee the distress I just saw. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t see her choke herself. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t see a version of Tatum Titan I couldn’t forget.
“I’m not unlocking that door,” she
whispered. “I need to be alone right now, Hunt. We can talk about this later…but not right now. Right now, I just need to… I need some space.”
Listening to the heartbreak in her voice shattered my emotions. It hurt to hear her sadness. It broke me to listen to her pain. It was devastating that I couldn’t help her, that she wouldn’t allow me to.
“Please.”
I knew she wasn’t going to open the door for me. I knew there wouldn’t be any progress made tonight. I knew I need to give her space. “Okay, I’ll leave. But we are going to talk about this, Tatum.” I wasn’t going to sweep it under the rug and pretend it never happened. I wasn’t going to let this slide, not like the other times she’d dodged my questions.
After a long silence, she responded. “I know.”
* * *
I didn’t get anything done because all I’d been thinking about was Titan.
How was she doing?
Did she go to work? She said she never missed a day, that she didn’t get sick or take vacations. Would this qualify as an exception?
I went to Stratosphere at midday, the usual time we met and discussed our goals for the week. The assistants were working on the main floor, and I noticed Titan’s door was wide open.
That meant she was there.
I walked inside without announcing my presence and walked straight to the desk.
She was perfectly groomed like always, sky-high heels, a tight dress, and perfectly manicured hair. Her makeup was done with the same detail as usual, and she looked as though she’d slept like a rock.
She looked up and met my gaze. “Good morning.”
It was a shitty morning. I didn’t go to sleep when I got back home last night. I sat in front of the TV and drank all night.
“I took care of some reports.” She opened her drawer and pushed a stack of folders toward me. “I spoke with our product team in France. Everything is good on that end. I also hired a new marketing specialist. Didn’t make sense to keep the previous guy…”
I didn’t even glance at the folders. “Are we going to—”
“Not here, Hunt.”
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