The Pleasure's All Mine (8 page)

One month later, New York

La Guardia airport’s traffic was a madhouse. The heat from all those bodies made an already steaming Raven Ripley that much hotter, but she didn’t break her stride. Ava, wearing four-inch heels to match her purple power suit, sprinted to keep up.

Airplanes were one of Raven’s least favorite things; airports rated a close second. She avoided both as much as possible despite her profession. And she certainly didn’t see the need to be in New York again so soon.

“Now, tell me again why I have to be at this meeting and why
you,
my powerful and most trusted lawyer and agent, who is
supposed
to take care of things like this
on her own
, are getting fifteen percent of everything I make?”

Ava chuckled, still trying to catch her breath. “MEG won’t ink any deals until they’ve talked with you first.”

“Didn’t they ‘talk with me’ when we made revisions to their contract?”

“That was through lawyers; they want to meet an actual person,” she said, brushing a hand through her auburn tresses.

“Meaning
you’re
not an actual person? See, I knew something was wrong with you. You’re fired.”

“Again?” Ava stepped up to the nearest soda machine and drew down a Dr. Pepper. “And you’re killing me here. For a woman your size, you really can move all four cheeks and a couple of chins.”

Raven glowered at her. “I only have one chin, thank you.”

Ava smiled crookedly, leering at Raven’s caboose. “I see we have nothing to say about the cheeks.”

“Hey, I like my ass; it fits perfectly with the rest of me,” Raven mumbled as she sashayed down the walkway. “But seeing you’re a little deprived, I’ll let you borrow some.”

“Heaven forbid.”

“I’m only meeting with the representatives? Not one of the higher-ups, right?”

Ava paused for a moment. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

At first, Raven was secretly hoping that she’d see Pierce. She knew he was connected with MEG, but wasn’t sure how well.

“I just want to make sure I’m fully prepared for this meeting.”

“Riiiiiight,” Ava drawled with a knowing smile.

After retrieving their luggage, they turned and saw a host of people holding white cards with names on them. Spotting a sign reading Armand/Davidson, Raven waved to the man holding it. The portly driver stepped forward to take their bags. “Ms. Armand, Ms. Davidson, my name is Gerard. If you’ll come with me, please.”

A stretch limousine stood at the curb, oblivious to all tow-zone warnings. Once inside, Raven changed from flats to heels, leaned her head back on the leather seat, and watched Ava from hooded eyes. “Now tell me again, why do I have to be here?”

Ava groaned wearily.

“You never did give me a good explanation for my last trip here,” Raven replied. “That was a total waste of my time.”

“I wanted people to get to know you. Movie people. And I’m sorry I got stuck in Chicago,” Ava said with a mild shrug. “Besides, you had a couple of book signings the next day anyway.”

“Hmph.”

“Evidently you made an impression,” Ava stated with a grin. “Be glad you’re here. Not all books are made into movies, you know.”

“We didn’t need MEG for a movie deal. Lion’s Gate was ready to play ball.”

Ava shifted her briefcase to find the talking points of the upcoming deal with MEG. “But they weren’t giving you
creative control.
”

“And what’s so important about that?” Raven was on the verge of losing her patience.

The frustrated lawyer arched her eyebrows. “How many times have you read a book and then checked out the movie?”

“Lots.”

“And what did you think?”

“The movies strayed from the book.” Raven glanced out of the window just in time to see the downtown New York skyline spring into view. “Except for Stephen King’s books. Those stay pretty much true to form.”

“That’s because he has lots of creative control,” Ava explained slowly. “We can make sure your movie doesn’t
stray from the book
, because you’ll have some valuable input. Most authors would kill for that.”

Raven leaned forward, pushed a button to lower the partition. “Gerard, do you think we can get a little jazz back here?”

“Of course, Ms. Armand. Just press the small green button to your right.”

Raven relaxed as Alex Bugnon’s “Missing You Like Crazy” drifted through the speakers and it instantly brought Pierce to mind. She missed hearing his voice and envisioning all the sensations he stirred within her from just that brief dance made her hot all over again. Those late night calls were becoming too addictive. The fact that the man could give her multiple orgasms by voice and mere suggestion alone was dangerous.

“You could’ve asked him about the air conditioning, too.”

“You want a whole lot of sugar for a dime. Ask him yourself,” Raven replied, adjusting her jacket. “How long will all of this take?”

“We’ll be in, out, and having lunch with Eric in no time. And your publicist is working on some things. We can see if Lorrie and Anita are available, then be back on the plane by tomorrow night. Trust me.”

“Hmmmm,” she murmured without gazing at her friend.

“That doesn’t sound very reassuring.”

“It wasn’t supposed to be,” Raven fired back.

Ava’s hazel eyes shot daggers at her. “I swear, honey, your PMS moments are coming more and more often,” then she winked at Raven. “Especially since meeting your knight in shining armor.”

Raven took a swipe at Ava with her shoes. “If I ever meet that ‘knight in shining armor’ again, I’ll kick his ass for stealing my tablet.”

Ava ducked and let loose with a light laugh. “Oh, so it’s all about the tablet, huh? It has absolutely, positively nothing to do with that handsome man you bumped into?”

“It was mine, Ava! It was just dumb luck I’d transferred some of those chapters already.” And even better luck that she had kept her identification, credit cards and cash tucked in a spot within her bra. Outwardly, she seethed, but inside, she had to admit that Ava was right.
Whenever her thoughts drifted to the man who’d held her that night, her body responded so powerfully she was ashamed to tell even her best friend. She had wanted him. Wanted to go to dinner with him, but as she sat there waiting on the chaise, fear had seeped in, and uncertainty soon followed.

The raw masculine power of him, live in the flesh—and not just on television—had been enough to make her run for cover. Then he caught her off guard by calling that night and she had an orgasm just from
imagining
the things he would do to her. Who knew that could happen? She hadn’t kept her word to herself. And she took a few more calls from him. First he began by making love to her mind by reading poetry; then reciting excerpts of erotic musings he had written especially for her. Then to top it off—the man whipped out the classics—the writings of Barry White and laid it on her in poetry and song. In the words of her grandmother all she could say was, “Lawd ha’mercy!” Yes, he went there and then some. She hadn’t been attracted to a man since bell bottoms went out of style the first time. Being alone was safe. No one expected her to be anything but a mother, an author, a friend.
Lover
never came up anymore. Now that Eric was in New York and didn’t need her as much, the boundaries she’d used to define herself had blurred.

Then, one dance with a handsome, bald stranger had brought her feminine side to the forefront. She could only admit to herself that she had never masturbated so much in her life as in the time since she’d met
him
. And with an image of his smirk, his gorgeous brown eyes, his lips on her fingertips swimming into view each time.
Damn
!
This could
not
be happening to her. She was just fine on her own. Wasn’t she?

“Whatever happened to
Raven Armand is not available,
” she snapped at Ava.

“For something this big, Raven
is
available,” Ava replied before closing her eyes for a quick power nap.

Thirty minutes later, Gerard helped the two women step out onto the marble sidewalk in front of a black glass-sided building with Manhattan Entertainment Group displayed in large silver letters. A huge screen atop the building was showing one of Simeon Cahill’s latest videos. “No mistaking who the anchor client is around here,” Raven said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “I don’t know who told him he could rap.”

“Cut it out, Raven.”

The doors automatically swung inward, allowing them to walk into the security station. A group of big beefy guys collected their bags from Gerard, then escorted Ava and Raven onto the elevator. A tall, leggy brunette in the corner had on a miniskirt so short that every man in the immediate area could get an instant thrill if she bent over. Under Raven’s stare, the woman struggled to stretch the material to cover at least another inch of skin.

“Left the other half at home, did we?”

“Behave, Raven,” Ava snarled under her breath as she pinched Raven’s arm.

As they stepped out of the elevator on the twenty-fifth floor, Raven remarked, “She knew it was too small when she put it on.”

“Yes,” Ava said through clenched teeth, “but you didn’t have to inform her of that fashion infraction in front of the free world.”

Raven turned, blocked the elevator doors with an arm, and looked into the brunette’s ice gray eyes. “I apologize. But I’m sure you’re entirely too beautiful and much too talented to wear something that focuses attention only on your body, and not on the fact that you might have brains and the ability to use them.”

The small frown on the woman’s sulky lips turned upward as she acknowledged the apology—and the backhanded compliment.

Ava snapped, “We have to hurry up and get you some—”

“I already have what I need under my mattress at home.”

“Then evidently your vibrator’s out of batteries.”

Security barely managed to stifle their chuckles.

Raven yanked Ava’s arm and pulled her close. Security paused for the women’s little come-to-Jesus meeting. “If you didn’t want me to misbehave, you could have found a way for me to keep my ass at home,” Raven said hotly.

“And just because you don’t want to be here, doesn’t mean you have to take it out on everyone else,” Ava shot back, her hand riding high on her left hip.

Raven huffed for a moment, glanced at Ava’s flushed skin, then relaxed a little. “Oh, all right.”

“What’s wrong with you lately? For the past few weeks someone’s turned your meter to ‘bitch’ and left it there.”

Raven took a few seconds before she answered, “I’ve been that bad?”

Ava shrugged, then nodded. “I mean, you’ve never been Little Miss Sunshine, but this is really not like you.”

Raven spread out her arms in surrender. “I apologize.”

Ava’s arms wrapped around Raven, and they embraced warmly before pulling away.

The security men held out their arms for a hug, too, wearing smiles wide enough to serve as ship’s sails. Ava chuckled as everyone shared high-fives.

As security escorted them through the second set of glass doors, Raven sighed, whispering to Ava, “I don’t know what’s wrong. I just…I don’t know.”

“I think I know what it is, sweetie. We’ll talk after the meeting,” Ava said, straightening Raven’s collar. “But for now, put on your game face.”

Raven and Ava both tried to look serious. They burst out laughing instead, and security hooted right along with them.

Eric lingered in a conference room on one of MEG’s lower floors, waiting to hear the outcome of Raven Armand’s visit. He hadn’t been this nervous since he’d had to confront his mother about his choice for medical treatment. He and his Aunt Avie had sat across from Raven at the condo, discussing his tumors. The panoramic view of downtown Chicago and Lake Michigan hadn’t provided the normal comforts.

❤ ❤ ❤

“Mama, I’m done with treatments. I don’t want anybody cutting me, shocking me, starving me. None of that.”

Raven blinked twice, then cleared her expression, making the worried lines on her forehead vanish. “You’re having the operation and that’s final.”

“Not exactly,” he said slowly, almost reluctantly. He locked gazes with the woman he loved more than life itself. “If you force me, I’ll file for medical emancipation.”

The light in her eyes suddenly dimmed. “You wouldn’t,” Raven shot back, suddenly turning to glower at Ava.

Ava’s expression reflected her own sadness. “He doesn’t want it, Raven. He already went to another lawyer. That lawyer, as a courtesy to me, called and let me know that I should have a little talk with Eric. He couldn’t tell me more than that, but when I spoke with Eric, he told me everything.”

After a moment the words seemed to penetrate. Raven’s voice quivered. “I can’t just let him die.”

Ava closed her eyes and took a breath. She hadn’t been happy about Eric’s decision either, but she’d come to terms with it. “It’s his choice, Raven. As hard as it might be to accept it, it’s his body and he feels it’s right for him.”