Promiscuous (19 page)

“Why wouldn’t you just tell her? Why hide from her?” I didn’t get it. If he had been watching her, he would’ve known exactly what she’d been through. What kind of father would just stand back and let her cope with that alone?

“Come on, Roman. Look at me. I’m a petty criminal. Hell, I should be in prison for some of the things I’ve done. Do you really think she needed someone like me in her life? Her mother wouldn’t let me anywhere near her. Then when she went to live with Kayla, I figured she’d be better off there.”

“And when Kayla died?” I challenged.

He shrugged. “She was still a hell of a lot better alone than with me. Look at her. She’s a superstar. All I would have done is messed up her life. She didn’t need me.”

“She needed
someone
,” I roared. Blood pulsated through my veins. “Do you have any idea what she’s been through? Why did you hire me? Did you know about Ivan?”

“Ivan? Ivan is a piece of scum. I never trusted him.” Carlos narrowed his eyes. “Wait, what do you mean? What are you talking about, Ivan?” He took a step forward. “Did he hurt her?”

“He raped her. He raped her, then threatened her, and now she’s mixed up in something really bad because she doesn’t think before she acts.”

“I’ll kill the son of a bitch,” he cursed. “That fucking good-for-nothing piece of shit. He’s gonna pay. Where the hell is he?”

I put my hands up and shook my head. “Trust me, he’s not going anywhere for a few days. I may have lost my temper.”

“I don’t give a flying fuck! I want to kill the bastard,” he seethed, wrapping his hands behind his head. “Fucking fuck-knuckled shithead. Nobody lays a finger on my daughter and lives to gloat about it.”

“Carlos, don’t do anything stupid, okay?” I sighed. Not that I could talk; I’d been as angry as him when I’d found out.

“What, like slice his fucking dick off?” Carlos growled. “I’m not stupid, Roman. I can look after myself and my family.”

I groaned. Great, so now she was family. I slapped a piece of paper down on his desk.

“What’s this?” he asked, picking it up.

“That is the owner of the ten pounds of coke Beth flushed down the toilet.”

“She what?” Carlos sputtered, roaring with laughter. “That’s my kid, all right.”

I frowned. “She is happy to pay for what she damaged, but can you take care of this? I don’t want her to have to deal with anything else.”

“Yeah. Leave it with me.” He stood up, leaning over his desk until he was nose to nose with me. “You fucking hurt a single hair on her head and I’ll rip your balls off, stick ‘em in a blender, and pour them down your throat. Got it?” He glared at me menacingly.

“Got it, Carlos.” I shook my head and walked out.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Roman

“Tickets?” I asked.

She held up our two first-class tickets.

“Okay, then. I guess that’s it.” I picked up the last of our luggage and carried it out to the waiting cab.

Getting the role in the movie could not have come at a more perfect time. Even though she had missed her audition and now had no manager, they had been so keen to secure her for the part, they’d offered her a deal she couldn’t pass up.

After the last few months, we both needed to get away from here for a while—and it was only for six months. To be honest, I couldn’t wait to start my life with Beth. I fell asleep thinking about her and woke up wanting her. She was truly the most amazing woman I’d ever met, and I still struggled to comprehend that she chose me. Out of all the men in the world, I’m the one she wanted.

I’d left Scarlett in charge at the club. She had been shocked when I’d asked her, but it hadn’t taken much to convince her that she was up for it. Strangely enough, without the debts hanging over my head, I actually felt really relaxed about leaving my baby in her hands.

Carlos had surprised me with his restraint in dealing with Ivan . . . if you call planting ten pounds of coke in his home, tipping off the cops and getting him thrown in jail being restrained. Ivan had pleaded guilty and received six years.

Six years was nothing compared to what he’d put Beth through. He would get his life back in six years; she would remember that night forever.

“So, I guess we are really doing this, huh?” Beth asked, linking her arm in mine.

“Guess so.” I cradled her face in my hand as I kissed her, not caring that we had an audience in the middle-aged driver who was watching us in the rearview mirror.

Beth giggled.

My phone beeped. Pulling it out of my pocket, I recognized the number as Carlos’s.

I told you I’d take care of him

At first I thought he was referring to planting the drugs. Then I saw the link at the bottom of the text. I clicked on it.

A fifty-six-year-old prisoner serving time for drug possession and distribution charges has been left paralyzed and brain damaged after a vicious attack. The apparently unprovoked assault occurred during exercise time Monday morning.

The prisoner suffered major internal injuries after being sodomized with an iron bar and beaten to near death. Prison officials are holding two inmates on suspicion of committing the assault, both of whom are already serving life sentences for murder convictions.

Holy fuck.
I glanced at Beth, who was gazing happily out the window. She didn’t need to hear this right now.

She was happier than I’d seen her in months—too happy for me to tell her this news right now, and too happy for me to tell her the truth about how we met. The only people who knew that were myself, Scarlett, and Carlos. Telling Beth wouldn’t change the way I felt about her, or what had happened between us.

She had been through enough. I knew I could make her happy. I was going to make her happy. I could care for her better than anyone else ever could.

And maybe one day, I’d be able to share all my secrets with her.

Epilogue

Beth

“Glad to be home?” Roman came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. I smiled, turning my head to kiss his cheek.

“I am. But home is anywhere you are.”

After wrapping up the movie, we were back home in New York. Things were going really well. Roman had been just amazing. He had been my rock. There was not a thing he could do wrong. I’d been so hesitant to let another man into my heart, but he’d just refused to give up on me.

I’d kept in contact with Coop—we spoke a few times a week, and our friendship was stronger than ever. Sometimes I got the feeling that he might’ve wanted something more between us, but I was happy the way things were. Maybe I was still in love with Coop, but the love I felt for Roman was so effortless, and I just knew he would always be there for me.

Acting had been surprisingly enjoyable. Much more so than singing. I had a new manager; a middle aged woman known as the shark. As tough as she was, I felt completely at ease around her—something I’d never felt with Ivan.

Ivan. When I heard what had happened to him in prison I was happy. It seemed deserved. I never thought I’d wish harm on another human being, but that was before…I was a different person now. A stronger one. I could handle anything.

Roman

It didn’t get any better than this. I gazed down at Beth, wrapped in my arms, and smiled. I was so proud of her, and the way she had handled herself. She had even been seeing a couselor back in L.A.

I finally felt like we were moving forward. Nobody knows what the future holds so it was pointless worrying about it. I had secrets. Plenty of them. If Beth ever found out some of the things I’d kept hidden…that was something I didn’t want to think about.

Did I regret accepting Carlos’ job offer? No, because had it not been for him, I never would have met her. My only regret was not telling her the moment I started falling in love with her, because now, this had to stay buried.

She would never find out. I’d make sure of it.

Book three in the Tease series,
Scandalous
, will be released mid 2014

See over the page for Chapter One of Scandalous

Scandalous

Chapter One

Beth

 “You sure about this?”

I nodded, my fingers entwining in his. I’d been hinting to Roman that I wanted to see his club. The way he explained it to me…sex, adventure, pushing the boundaries while
you
are in control. How could that
not
appeal to me?

Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had no idea what I was getting myself into. He pulled up out the front of the entrance, where a man in a suit stood, waiting to take the car. From the outside, it looked like just another factory. Dirty and dark, it resembled something out of a horror movie. You would never suspect what took place inside.

“Does it make you aroused? Having me come here?” I asked, a smile spreading across my lips.

“I guess you could say that.” He chuckled as he opened the front door. “Are you ready?” He asked, his voice husky. I nodded, pushing aside my uneasiness. The last time I’d felt this nervous, things had gone badly.

I scanned the room, unsure of where to look first. People stood in clusters, chatting, laughing and drinking. There would’ve only been forty people, max. All were dressed elegantly in cocktail dresses and suits. This place had much more class than I was expecting. There were no strippers dancing on poles, or naked women serving alcohol. Just every day people. People like me. I glanced at Roman, who squeezed my hand.

“I wont leave you, and the second you feel uncomfortable, we’re out of here.” He spoke in a soft voice, his eyes searching mine for reassaurance that I was okay.

I nodded, not wanting to let on just how exciting I found all of this. Not yet, anyway.

Roman led me over to the bar. His arm slipped around my back, holding me close. I took the opportunity to take in my surroundings. The place was huge, with a large space that at first glance could be mistaken for a dance floor. The walls were lined with plush red sofas where people sat, nursing drinks and interacting.

“So everyone here is a participant?” I was still having trouble grasping the concept. It wasn’t a brothel…but people had sex?

“Not the staff. The staff can participate, but not while they are working. Everyone is here willingly, and we have plenty of measures in place to ensure nothing gets out of hand.” He pointed behind us. “See over there?”

I looked at what appeared to be giant glass boxes. Roman laughed.

“They are the private rooms.”

“They don’t look very private,” I muttered. He chuckled and took my hand, leading me in that direction.

“Sit down here,” he said as we stopped outside one of the “rooms.” I gawked at him.

“But there is a couple in there! I’m sure they don’t want us watching them…” He sat down, pulling me onto his lap. I gasped and glared at him. He was hard!

“Beth, people come here to be watched. Look at them.” I did as he said and turned my attention to the couple. The chick was stunning. She leaned naked against the bed, her knee bent and her foot resting on her partners shoulder. He kneeled between her legs, his tongue buried deep inside her.

This is so naughty.

As if she heard me, she opened her eyes and stared directly at me as she gripped the back of his head. Her chin tilted up as her body began to convulse, her eyes still on mine.

Holy fuck.

I heard the sound of Romans zipper as he guided my hand behind my back and curled my fingers around his hard cock. I worked my fingers into a rythym, moving up and down his shaft.

He expertly manovered my panties down and flipped up the back of my dress. I gasped, closing my eyes as he lifted me onto his tip. Slowly, he thrust inside me, his hands on my hips.

Glancing back at the couple, he stood behind as he drove himself inside her. She bit her lip and groaned, making eye contact with me. Her eyes narrowed and her lips lifted into a smile.

Roman’s hand moved down the top of my dress as he massaged my breast. I couldn’t believe how turned on I was right now. This was unlike anything I’d ever experienced.

Reaching to the side of my strapless dress, I shrugged it down, exposing my breasts. Roman groaned and kissed my neck, his hands moving rapidly over my breasts as he began to ride me faster.

“Oh god,” I whispered, tweaking my nipple. I lowered my hand between my legs and began to rub myself.
Oh shit, yes, fuck!

“I’m nearly there babe,” He whispered in my ear, his tongue swirling behind my ear. “Fuck, you feel so good,” he groaned, pumping his hips into mine. “Yeahhh….”

My fingers worked inside me as I began to climax. Both the man and the woman were watching me now, obviously enjoying the show. I cried out, falling back against Roman, as his fingers trailed down to my wetness, easing the last few moments of my climax from me.

“Wow.” I exhaled, exahusted. And hot. I wiped away the moisture from the back of my neck, and repositioned my dress. As I stood up, Roman eased himself out of me and tucked himself back in.

“I’m surprised, Beth” He murmured as we walked back over to the bar. “I didn’t expect that.”

Neither had I. Being watched…and watching…wow, I couldn’t string words together to give the pleasure I was feeling justice. I glanced around the room and smiled. How this place had stayed such a secret was beyond me. But if there was one thing I knew better than anyone, it was that secrets don’t stay secrets for long.

And sometimes when they broke, they became scandalous.

A Note From The Author

If you, or someone you know has experienced a sexual assault it is important to know you are not alone. There are many centres, some with 24 hour hotlines with experienced counselors who can help you and offer you assistance.

U.S

National Sexual Assault Hotline 1-800-656-HOPE