Because of His Future (For His Pleasure, Book 26) (6 page)

“Then I suppose that makes it all okay,
doesn’t it?”

“No, it doesn’t,” Vera said.
 
“But it’s what it means to be a
Houston.
 
We are nothing if not
ruthless.
 
It’s one of our defining
characteristics.”

“It’s called being an asshole, Vera. Stop
dressing it up in flowery language and just be honest.”

Vera’s lip twitched into a smile.
 
“So be it,” she said softly.
 
“Now that you understand what will
happen if you and Liam continue seeing one another, let me offer you an
alternative.
 
An altogether
different future.”

“I don’t think I want to hear anymore of
your predictions,” Grace said.

“You and Liam break up,” Vera said,
twirling her teacup from side to side as she spoke, looking down at it.
 
“It’s painful and sad and perhaps it
takes a year for you to feel like yourself again.
 
But in the meantime, your brother Scott
has more business than he knows what to do with, and he has you to thank for
it.
 
And he knows you sacrificed for
him.”

Grace recoiled.
 
“Are you serious?”

Vera met her gaze.
 
“Scott could become the biggest wedding
planner on the East coast if we so desired.
 
Our word in the community is very meaningful,
very prized.”

Grace rolled her eyes.
 
“Somehow I doubt you’d really follow
through on your promise.”

“Oh, but I would, Grace.
 
You see, despite what you might believe,
I don’t hate you at all.
 
I sort of
admire you, actually.”
 
Vera
smiled.
 
“But I won’t let you become
part of my family.
 
It’s never going
to happen.”

“Yes, you’ve mentioned as much,” Grace
said with bitter sarcasm.

“On the other hand, I’d be more than
happy to consider you a comrade, someone who went through the war with me.
 
And if you’re on my side rather than
fighting against me, I’d be only too glad to give you all of my assistance.”

“No thank you.”

“But you haven’t even heard it all.”

“I don’t need to hear it to make my
decision.”

“There’s one last thing.”
 
Vera took a check from her purse and
slid it across the table.
 
“This
check is good for one day.
 
But it’s
only valid if you break up with Liam immediately.”

Grace didn’t touch it, but she did look
at it.

The check was for two hundred thousand
dollars.
 
Her eyes widened.
 
“You can’t be serious, Vera.
 
This is beyond sick, even for you.”

“Why is it sick?”

“I’m not going to be bought off.”

“Just stop being angry and think for a
moment.
 
I’m asking you to make an
enormous sacrifice, and I understand that you should be compensated for it.”

Grace shook her head.
 
“Never.
 
Never.”

“Just think for a moment, before you
simply react.”
 
Vera reached out to
touch Grace’s hand and Grace pulled away from her.

“You’re the devil.”

“The devil comes in many forms,” Vera
said.
 
“Some say pride is also born
of the devil.”

“You think this is pride?” Grace
scoffed.
 
“Because I won’t accept a
bribe to stop seeing the man I love?”

“I’m not bribing you,” Vera said.
 
“I’m making you a very clear peace
offering.
 
You can either have
devastation, war and ruin—or you can choose to make a sacrifice and gain
peace, wealth, and security for you and your family.”

“I’m not interested in your blood money,”
Grace said, disgusted as she pulled her seat back.

“On the contrary,” Vera said, her gaze
hardening.
 
“The blood that will be
spilled if you continue like this will be your brother’s blood.
 
And Liam’s blood.
 
Maybe you’re more comfortable if it’s
others who do the sacrificing on your behalf?”

“Fuck you.”

“My entire life has been about family,”
Vera said calmly.
 
“And the way I
see it, I’m offering you a chance to do good for
your
family.
 
You can be
selfless and sacrificing and make life better for those you love.
 
Or you can be selfish and prideful and
destroy everyone around you.
 
It’s
your choice.”

Grace stood up, feeling suddenly
ill.
 
“I need to go.
 
Don’t contact me again, Vera.
 
I mean it.”

“The offer’s good for one day,” Vera
called out.
 
“Once it expires,
you’ll never see it again.”

Grace didn’t look back.
 
She just forced herself to keep moving
as fast as she could, because somehow—despite her disgust for Vera and
everything she stood for—the cold hard logic of it all had started to
work on her.

And she needed to leave.

Needed to leave before she broke down and
accepted the deal.

***

It was hard to lie to Liam, but Grace
didn’t have a choice.

She returned to the hotel room carrying a
bag full of snacks and ice cream, and if Liam noticed that she’d been gone a
little too long for a quick trip to the store, he didn’t say so.

“I’ve got anything and everything you
might want,” she said, pulling things from the bag like a magician producing a
string of colorful handkerchiefs from his hat.

Liam was still watching television with
that same disinterested attitude.
 
“Yeah?” he said, not really caring.

“I’ve got ice cream,” Grace said, smiling
wider, sounding much happier than she actually felt.
 
“So many flavors.
 
Peanut butter cup, cookies n’ cream,
brownie sundae…”

Liam changed the channel and now there
were loud gunshots coming from the set.
 
“Paparazzi didn’t get at you?” he asked.

She shook her head.
 
“I kept my head down.
 
They were on the lookout for you, not
me.”

“Huh,” he said.
 
The channel changed again and now there
was laughter and then the distinctive voice of a famous comedian telling some
raunchy joke before another wave of laughter echoed.

Grace realized that her charade wasn’t
necessary.
 
Liam was totally checked
out, in his own world.
 
She took the
various containers of ice cream and put them away in the freezer.

But she kept one pint of cookie dough for
herself, grabbed a spoon, and started eating it as she walked over to the
couch.

Liam lifted his legs, allowing her to
sit.
 
Then he went back to watching
TV.

The entire time they sat together on the
couch, all Grace could think about was that awful conversation with Vera
Houston.
 

Her terrible, cruel predictions.
 
The threats.

Her stomach soured and she got up, threw
the half-eaten pint of ice cream into the garbage.

***

Later, it was dark and they were in bed
together.

“Are you asleep?” she whispered.

“No,” Liam said.
 
His voice was clear, awake.

“I feel distant,” she said.
 
“Like you’re so far away from me.”

He slid across the vast expanse of the
enormous bed, making his way to her and wrapped his strong arms around her,
pulling her close to his warm body.
 
“I know it’s been crazy,” he said, his breath warm against her
cheek.
 
“But Mother’s funeral is
tomorrow and then things will get better.”

“How can you be so sure?
 
Your family hates me.”

Liam chuckled.
 
“Everyone’s hurting, Grace.
 
But my brother and sister—they’re
not so tough.
 
I know them well
enough to know that they’ll settle down eventually and accept the new way of
things.”

She thought about Vera’s cold eyes and
wondered if Liam really knew his family as well as he thought he did.

“So you don’t think they’re going to cut
you out of the will?”

Liam sighed.
 
“No, not in the end.
 
I think they want me to believe they’ll
do that.
 
They’re trying to scare
me, trying to make me do what they want.
 
But they’re just bullies.
 
Vera
and Ex don’t have the stomach for a real fight.”

“But, Liam, you’re not giving them a real
fight.
 
So what do they have to be
afraid of?”

There was a long pause.
 
“I just know that I’m not going to stoop
to their level.
 
I’m also not going
to do what they want me to do.
 
I’m
going to keep being me,” he said.

Grace smiled and kissed his chest.
 
“This is why I love you,” she said.

“You’ve been so patient with me,” Liam
said, running his fingers through her hair.
 
“You’re my rock, baby.”

Something about the darkness, and the
intimacy of their conversation…Grace found herself getting wet, wanting Liam
and needing him in a new kind of way.

She was turned on, but it was more than
just physical.
 
She needed to be
close to him, to feel the evidence that what they had was real.

What they had was strong enough to fight
off all of the people who wanted to tear them apart.
 

She began kissing his chest, running her
hands down his flat belly, and then kissing his torso.
 
Soon, she was pulling his rigid cock
from his boxer shorts.

It was too dark to even see it, but she
could feel how hard he was, how erect—and knew that he wanted this too.

“Fuck,” he whispered, as her mouth slid
over his cock, down his shaft.
 
She
started to suck his cock, climbing onto him, straddling him and then burying
her face into his groin as she sucked.

Liam wrapped his hands in her hair and
squeezed, his hips moving as he participated fully in her oral ministrations.

His dick was slick, hot and full in her
mouth, and she liked sucking it.

Especially now.

Her pussy was so wet, throbbing and
churning with the excitement of being so close to the man she loved more than
anything.

This
is real.

Oh,
fuck, this is real.

She gave him the best head she could
possibly give.
 

She let him fuck her mouth.

Grace took his cock deep, and tongued his
prick until he shot his hot come all over her mouth, and she swallowed it
gratefully as he spurted again and again.

“Fuck,” he whispered once more.

He came in her mouth, and she took it
all.
 
Every last bit.

I’m
yours and you’re mine
,
she thought.
 
They’re never going to break us.
 

I
love you.
 
And you love me.

Don’t
let them break us, Liam.

***

The next morning, Grace got dressed for
the funeral.
 

Liam had made sure that the proper dark
dress was delivered to their suite and luckily it fit almost perfectly.

He was wearing a black suit that was
somber and yet, seeing him in it, Grace couldn’t believe how handsome he was.

Even in grief, Liam was
beautiful—perhaps more so.

They didn’t speak much as they got
dressed and neither of them ate.
 
As
they left the hotel together, Liam gripped her hand, while the paparazzi
converged and snapped pictures and shouted their questions.

But moments later, they were safe and
secure in the limousine that was taking them to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, where
the funeral mass would be conducted.

It was intimidating to walk into the
famous church lined outside with gawkers and reporters and cameras.
 
Inside, the church was absolutely packed
with people—many of them celebrities, politicians.

And they were all staring at Liam and
Grace as the two of them made their way down to the pew in front that had been
reserved for family.