Payback (34 page)

“Do you mind?” I growled.

“I brought you this.” He held up a flight of champagne and a glass containing the sparkling bubbly.

I had to smile; he looked so damn sexy with his jeans just tight enough to give a hint of what was behind his zipper. My eyes lingered just a little too long on his package.

“You should be ashamed! Here I come bearing champagne to make your experience complete, and you reward me by ogling my genitals.  I feel cheap and unappreciated,” his voice fluttered in mock protest.

“Oh, don’t worry, I appreciate both the champagne
and
the package.”

“Tsk, tsk. You know I’
m taken.” He crossed the room, put the champagne on the table, and then backed off without even a glimpse into the tub.

“Just because I’m on a diet doesn’t mean I can’t read the menu,” I noted.

He grinned at me. “I’m taking Jack with me back to my house for the night so that you can have some “me” time. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Really?” I said gleefully, “I feel like I’ve been sent to an expensive spa.” 

“There’s a sauna and steam room off of the indoor pool, if you want to use them.  But the shower is a steam shower too.”

“How much did this house cost you to build?”

“Six million, more or less.”

“Jesus!”

“It would have been three million more if I hadn’t owned the land already.” He paused and tilted his head and then gave me a sweet smile.  “I remember when I would wash your hair and soap you down.”

It happened to be one of my favorite memories.  Caden would run me a bath with expensive bath salts and then serve me champagne and chocolate
-covered strawberries. We would climb into the bath together, and then he would use a glass to dip into the water and pour over my hair before massaging my scalp with shampoo. Our baths always ended with us making love either in the tub or on the bathroom floor. We never made it to the bed.

“And now, I’ll leave you with that thought,” he took a deep breath and walked towards the door.

“Good night, Caden.”

He stared for a moment and then said longingly, “Good
night, Marie.”

Chapter 15

Jack’s Dysfunctional Family

Caden Kelly loved watching his son sleep next to him. Jack’s lips were pursed and his hand was under his cheek.  He looked so angelic that Caden snuck in a photo with his smartphone. They had stayed up until nine reading stories and having a pillow fight.  Dressed in his cowboy pajamas, Jack had pointed out each of the different horses on his shirt, providing the same names of the horses that they rode in Topanga Canyon. Caden couldn’t wait to take Jack on a horseback tour in the morning.  Even though he knew Jack was too young to appreciate what they would see, he still wanted his son to know that this would all be his one day.

Seeing Marie in the bathtub was both erotic and depressing. He missed those times in the bathtub, the smell of the bubble bath and bath salts, his hands in her hair sliding down to her breasts and then between her legs, stroking her thighs until he could feel them tense
, and her back settle into his chest as she enjoyed his fingers penetrating her until she came unglued with raging passion. And then she would turn and it would be his time to come.

This had been a mistake—not bringing Jack up to Montana—but being here with Marie. He thought by braving the next few weeks in close proximity to Marie he could somehow build up a resistance to her, but there was no resisting her. She would always be the one that he would have to give a wide
berth if he was to ever be happy with Brooke or any other woman.

It was a very crisp morning, cooler than usual for this time of year, but he was determined to take Jack out for a ride. After feeding Jack, he played with him for a few minutes and then changed his diaper. After cleaning him up and dressing Jack in
warm ‘Stay Puft Marshmallow Man suit.” Caden took Jack’s hand and they walked to the stables, Jack talking a mile a minute in a language that sounded like a cross between Klingon and Jabberwocky.

It took longer than it should, but he managed to get the calmer of the horses, Dusty, saddled and they were off.  Caden pointed out various landmarks, told Jack the name of the mountains,
talked about the various plants, and laughed when it was Jack who saw the moose on the hill.

“Yes, buddy, that’s a moose. Can you say moose?”

“Mooo.”

“Close enough.”

They rode for an hour before turning back. The day was warming up, and the mountains and valleys came alive under the angle of the early winter sun. With Jack on the saddle with him, he felt as if his world was almost complete. Almost. He still wanted someone in his bed at night; someone he enjoyed waking up to in the mornings.  Someone like Brooke. Brooke was fun and beautiful. She was predictable-there were no surprises.

When they returned
, he noticed that Marie was standing on the deck looking aggravated. Caden pulled Dusty up to the deck where he and Jack were level with Marie. “Is there a problem?”

“Yes, there’s a problem!  You didn’t tell me you were k
idnapping my child this morning!”

He pulled his head back. “Perhaps this is where I point out that Jack is my child too. I didn’t kidnap him—we always go horseback riding in the mornings.”

“You do?”

He nodded. “
I told you that when we’re in Topanga Canyon we ride every morning. Same here. Ol’ Jack and I get on one of the horses, Max being his favorite, and go off for a ride down to the beach in the Canyon. He’s going to be a natural; he was only nervous the first few times.”

She wanted to be angry, but she liked the fact that Jack
had this special bond with his dad. They looked happy, and she didn’t want to take that away from them. “Okay, just tell me next time so I don’t freak out when I show up and my son is gone.”

“Our son.”

Marie rolled her eyes. “Get your butts inside. I’ll make breakfast.”

They had French t
oast, fruit, and eggs. Caden took his last piece of French toast and mopped up the last of his maple syrup.  “I’m going to have to start watching my diet if I’m going to do a movie.  I’m a good fifteen pounds over my filming weight.”

Marie sighed and nodded
, even though anyone looking at Caden would think he was a slim, handsome man with nice muscle definition. But they both knew that there was truth behind the saying, “The camera adds ten pounds.” 

“Sorry, I think you’re gorgeous the way you look right now.”

“You just say that to all your men.”

I laughed. “Yeah, the dozens of men I have strung out around the world.”

“Which reminds me. Why aren’t you out there dating? You are beautiful, smart, funny, and a great mom.”

“There’s the operative word—mom. I have to make a decision—date or be a mother. I’m working so hard on this book and script that I want to spend my free time with Jack. He deserves that.”

“If it’s a matter of needing time to yourself, I can take him more often.”

Marie chuckled. “You actually sound as if you want me to say yes.”

“I do. I really miss him when he’s gone.”

“What about Brooke?”

“I won’t lie. I think she’s happy with the way the schedule works now.”

“I thought so.”

“But she’s going to have to get used to me spending more time with him as he gets older because I’m hoping to bring him up here for part of the summer…with your permission, of course.”

“I know how much it means for you to have him here. I promise to work something out. Maybe he can spend a couple of mo
nths up here during the summer. But you have to bring him back one weekend during that time so I can make sure he still has all his toes and fingers.”

Marie was grateful when Nancy showed up after her two
-week vacation. Even though Caden was taking Jack as often as he could, there were still things to do around the ranch, leaving Jack in Marie’s care. This left very little time for Marie to work on the screenplay. Nancy chose the room the furthest away from Marie to give herself some privacy. 

All hell broke out a week later when word leaked out that Caden had agreed to star in the movie version of
Marie’s book.  Her book soared to number two and the next day the Papparazi showed up at the ranch. The road that led to the ranch was Caden’s private road, and by driving on it, the paparazzi were trespassing.  Jason met the photographers with a 12-gauge shotgun and a polite request to leave the property or be shot. 

Caden watched from the front window and laughed when Jason fired a warning shot and they all scrambled to their cars. Over the following week
, a fence and a gate were installed down by the highway as far along Caden’s property as it would go and then up the border of the property on one side until it hit an impassable ravine.  On the west side, a fence was put up for approximately four acres, and then Caden had numerous ground sensors implanted.  Cameras were installed throughout the property and monitored from a trailer that Caden installed close to the front gate, which was a mile from the houses. Two weeks later, three cowboys showed up to man the trailer around the clock in eight-hour shifts. Caden spent most of his time out in the back acreage moving the cattle to better pastures and out of the view of any paparazzi.  Marie cooked for Caden, Jason, and any other ranch hands working that day, and then she’d go back to writing the screenplay after Jack went to sleep.

Caden left just after the completion of the security system. Marie finished the first draft of the screenplay and flew home a month later, just after Christmas. Without an apartment or home to go to, she booked a motel room with a kitchenette until she could find someplace to rent.

Caden didn’t like the idea of her and Jack living in a motel, so he hired a Realtor to find a house in Santa Monica and lease it for six months.

“I don’t want your charity!”

“I don’t give a shit what you want. That’s my son holed up in that motel room. Christ, Marie, that area is dangerous. What were you thinking?”

“I’m thinking that for a few weeks I can get by until I find a house or condo to rent.”

“Well, go with the flow here.  Just check the house out. It’s got two thousand square feet for the three of you. Not huge, but pleasant. Okay?”

“I’ll pay you back.”

“Out of the ten thousand a month that I give you?” the tone was tinged with enough sarcasm to boil Marie’s blood.

There was a dead silence on the phone. “Damn it, I knew you’d throw that in my face. I knew I shouldn’t have taken any of your money.”

“Whoa! Where did that come from?”

“It came because when I took that money
, it made you think you could run my life.”

He laughed. “Marie, there’s no way in hell I could ever run your life. Now, do you think you could go over and look at the house?  I’ve already leased it. It would be a shame to let it sit.”

She sighed and shook her head to herself. “Is it furnished?”

“Yes, but I can arrange to pull your stuff out of storage and store theirs.”

“Jesus! Could you just stop! I’m not Brooke!  I can tie my own shoes!”

Now there was silence on his end. “That was unfair. Brooke didn’t deserve that.”

“Yeah, well, Nancy told me that when she went to the grocery store to get diapers, she got back and Brooke was down on the beach while Jack was taking his nap! On the fucking beach!”

“Nancy needs to talk to me about these things, not you. When she’s here, she’s working for me.”

“I’m paying her salary.”

“Yeah, out of the ten thousand a month I give you,” he growled.

Click. 

She hung up her cell and screamed out loud, frightening poor Jack. The cell made a sound letting her know that a text had arrived.

“
Your new house is at 3942 Banyon Road.”

Marie texted him back, “I’m going to pay you back…
out of my book money!
And from now on, I don’t want your $10,000.”

“
Don’t be childish. The money isn’t yours, it’s for Jack.”

The war of texts continued.
“Then put it in an account for him or his college. I don’t want it.”

“I’ve already got his college covered.”

“Great, then save it for his first house.  I don’t give a damn.  I don’t want your money. We’ll do fine.”

“You forget that I’m paying for the screenplay and the novel.”

Marie could feel the anger building. “
Oh, so you own me?”

“I’m just saying that I’ve made sure your dream comes true.”

“And I had nothing to do with it? Fuck you!”

“Whoa!  Where the hell did that come from?”

She wasn’t sure where it came from, except something had been building for a long time.  He had managed to push a button that had been hidden deep inside her for a long time.  The feeling as if he did own her, or at least she owed him—not just for the book or the screenplay, but for the most important thing in her life—her son.  More importantly, she had to share him with Caden and, in turn, that meant sharing him with Brooke. And somewhere underneath she hated sharing anything with Brooke, including Caden.

Marie turned off her phone.

Caden tried calling, but it went to voicemail.  Just last week they’d had a little tiff on the phone, and before that she’d been terse when they spoke at the first review of the screenplay. This was a turn in their relationship that he had hoped to avoid. In the back of his mind, Caden knew that Marie could make it difficult for him to be with Jack, despite the signed agreement. She had gone beyond the four corners of the documents to let him have more access.  He didn’t think he could stand only having access during the times allotted by the agreement.  The kicker was that he didn’t know why she was so pissed at him.
Fuck! I can’t win with her.

Caden was thinking seriously about proposing to Brooke. Maybe if he was married, it would go over better with the courts if Marie did make a play to reduce his time with Jack. He knew that if he picked out a ring
, Brooke would pout until he took her to shop for one she liked. So he decided to buy her a small diamond ring to propose, and then they could go pick out one she liked.

As Caden looked through the rings at his favorite jewelers it made him anxious. This would be his first and last marriage. In one of the cases
, he saw a ruby ring with filigree that would match the necklace he had given Marie years ago. The reminder made his stomach turn. He’d been in this jewelry store years ago looking at engagement rings for Marie, knowing that no matter what he gave her, she’d love it.  His trip down memory lane depressed him. The idea of buying a ring for anyone but Marie was disheartening. 

Turning to Sol Greenburg, the owner of the store, Caden said, “Sol, I need a substitute ring to propose. We’ll come back later for a real one. You pick one out and send it to my house, size seven.”

“Price range?”

“Up to five thousand. We’ll be back, I promise.”

“I understand.”

Two days later, a two-
carat pave diamond ring arrived by courier. After studying it, Caden thought that Sol had great taste. Now he just needed to set up the proper time and place for the proposal.