Bet Me Something (Something Series Book 3) (24 page)

“That sounds
ominous, but I don’t need any details.” And I meant it. Because if there was a
story to be told, I’d rather hear it from Colby.

“I shouldn’t
have brought it up. Anyhow, I can stay through the end of the week if you
want.”

I waved him off.
“Thanks, but I’m sure you miss Sasha and I’m capable on my own these days
although Colby insists on a car service for my appointments. Hopefully I’ll
receive the all clear for driving by next week.”

“Good. Now, what
are you going to do about Mom?”

“Aside from
disappointing her in six weeks’ time by coming home for the baptism with no
intention of staying out there and subsequently being cut off, nothing.”

“I’m not sure
what’s going on with her lately as I never got a vibe until recently that she
was freaking out over you staying in LA.”

 “Yeah, it’s
like she’s in panic mode. I did feel terrible when she asked why I hadn’t
called her after the accident, though.”

“Me, too. Maybe
it wasn’t the right decision, but she has to understand why you didn’t want to
tell her. Anyhow, I think you should call your dad in the meantime. Maybe he
can shed some light on why she’s acting crazier than normal. Plus, I don’t
believe he would agree to cutting off your trust fund. He may be sympathetic.”

“And if he
isn’t?” I might not be able to face my fears yet, but I was getting better at
vocalizing them.

His face
softened. “Then you tell them both to go to hell, and so will I.”

My brother
always knew the right thing to say.

***

By the time
eight o’clock that evening rolled around, I was restless in the house all by
myself. After dialing Colby’s direct line at his office, I smiled when he
answered.

“I meant to call
you.”

“Uh-huh. Your
boyfriend survival manual should’ve told you not to answer the office phone,
letting me know exactly where you are.”

He chuckled.
“Are you giving me tips on how to successfully avoid my girlfriend?”

Okay, hearing
him call me his girlfriend made me want to squeal like an annoying teenager
who’d never had one. I rolled my eyes at myself. “Nah, I rather enjoy that you
suck at this part. You doing okay?”

“Ah, the family
grapevine must be prompting that question. I take it Brian gave you the
rundown.”

“Only that you
and Josh had a disagreement, but when you’re ready, I’d rather hear you tell me
about it. In the meantime, I’ll let you get back to work as I just wanted to
check that you were doing all right.”

“Is this one of
those moments where you say that, but you’ll be pissed if I don’t come home
right now?”

“No, turns out
I’m terrible at the quintessential annoying girlfriend stuff. You’d tell me if
there was anything I could do to help, though, right?”

“You already
have. ‘Night, Kenz.”

“‘Night.”

***

Colby’s warm
body curled into mine sometime later in the middle of the night. His arms went
around me from the back as he inhaled my scent.

“I fucking
missed you more than what’s healthy,” he whispered.

“Says who?”

“No one who’s
ever been with you, that’s for sure.”

His words made
my heart flutter. “I missed you, too.” I sucked in a breath when his hands
skimmed down over my hips and stomach as if he needed to feel every inch of me.

His fingers
worked my panties down before discovering I was already aroused. “Remember
where we were before your brother interrupted us?”

“It’s all I could
think about over the last couple of days.”

“You thought
about me sliding into you with nothing between us?”

My powers of
speech temporarily eluded me when his finger entered me gently, causing desire
to unfurl in my belly.

“Hmm?” he
prompted.

“Yes, I need to
feel you. Especially when you come deep inside of me.”

“Christ. You’re
not supposed to be good at this.”

I grinned in the
dark. “Good at what?”

“Dirty talk.”

I giggled,
thinking about the fact I hadn’t even been trying and was suddenly impatient to
feel him.

He shifted, but
before he was about to slide into my heat, he reached around with the intention
of using his fingers on me first. “Let me get you ready.”

I pushed back
onto him. “I already am.”

We both let out
collective sighs of pleasure when he sunk deep inside, stretching me with every
inch. He gripped my hips to keep it slow.

The exquisite
sensation of him filling me overwhelmed all of my senses. “Oh, God. Does it
feel different?”

“Fuck. It’s like
a religious experience.” He took me to the hilt, then held there.

“Oh, yeah?”

He lifted my top
leg over his, giving him a deeper angle, and then set a delicious rhythm of
long, powerful strokes. “Yes. Are you sleepy at all?”

“Uh, no, I’m
wide awake.”

“Selfishly, I
ask because I’m hoping you’d be tired enough to think more time went by before
I finished. I’m not going to last long. You feel too good like this.”

“Mm, I quite
like that idea.” I reached behind me, gripping his ass to urge him on. When his
fingers circled my clit, I was done for, igniting his climax in return. If I’d
thought he was done, however, I was proven wrong when he moved his hips again,
this time in a languid motion. Hell, he didn’t feel as though he’d softened at
all.

“You don’t have
any plans for the morning, do you?” he asked huskily.

“Other than
this, not a thing on the calendar.”

His hands
splayed over both breasts and he lifted my back onto his chest, tucking my head
into the crook of his neck and giving him complete access to my body. “Good.
Me, either.”

***

I fell asleep
with him inside of me and woke the same way. I’d lost count of the number of
orgasms and had no idea what time it was. The sunlight streaming into the
bedroom windows was the only indication it was now morning. My head lay on his
chest while he stroked my body lazily.

With a sigh, he
started talking about what was weighing on his mind. “I want to start a new
line of the production company focused on indie films and documentaries. I’ve
met some talented young writers and producers who I’d love to work with. In the
meantime Josh is looking at the bottom line, and those types of movies don’t
generate a lot of money.”

“Why do you need
your brother’s approval?”

“He controls the
cash which I need to put up for this venture.”

I didn’t
understand why Josh would have this kind of veto power when it was Colby’s
business.

“Anyhow, I’ve
decided to fund the first film out of my own private money. Over the last
forty-eight hours, I’ve been working with the producer, getting things set up.
We’re on a tight budget, but I’m hopeful it’ll come together. With any luck, I
hope to premiere the film at Sundance next year.”

“That sounds
amazing, but why can’t you control the cash in your business?”

For a minute, I
thought he wouldn’t answer, and then finally he spoke.

“The first year
I started Gamble Productions, I was twenty-three and ignorant about a lot of
things. I put in a ton of hours to secure some great scripts and had a viable
business model, but I had this work-hard, party-harder mentality. Inevitably,
it caught up to me a few years ago, and I screwed up big time.”

“You lost
money?”

“If only. I,
uh—Shit. I guess I should be grateful your brother didn’t tell you.”

“He may not
know.”

“Yeah, right.
Brian is closer to my brother than I’ve ever been. Mark, too, for that matter.
I’m confident they both know. Especially Mark, since he most likely handled the
settlement.”

I sensed the
vulnerability in his statement about the other two men having a better
relationship than he did with his older brother and propped up in order to meet
his gaze. “You don’t have to confide in me but know if you do, it won’t change
how I think about you.”

“And what do you
think?” His hands palmed my breasts.

“At some point
everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt. You work hard and shouldn’t have to
continually prove that to someone else, no matter what happened.”

“I’m not sure if
it’s naïveté or blind faith which inspires you to say that to me.”

I quirked a
brow. “And you say I’m the master of deflection. I try to give you a
compliment, and you turn it into my inability to see the real you?”

He exhaled
unsteadily. “Maybe I enjoy your blind faith more than the thought of you ever
getting a real dose of my past.”

“I assure you my
faith is not blind. If it was, I wouldn’t get wet every time you flashed those
damn dimples at me.” I laid my head back down on his chest, kissing him softly.
“You don’t need to tell me anything you don’t want to.”

He laughed,
squeezing me tight. “I know, but I’d rather you hear this from me than in some
rumor someday.”

“Okay.”

“Despite my, uh,
previous reputation with women, you believe I’d never take advantage of one,
don’t you?”

I didn’t
hesitate with my response. “Of course you wouldn’t.” Even if I didn’t know his
heart, the notion was ridiculous considering how many women threw themselves at
him willingly, not to mention frequently.

“There was a
woman who I met at a party about three years ago. She acted like she didn’t
have a clue who I was, but turns out she was well aware, and it wasn’t a chance
meeting. We had sex, and then she proceeded to blackmail me.”

“For what?”

“The second time
I saw her was months later when she showed up on the set of one of my films.
She was in a pretty substantial role, and next thing I knew, I was being
slapped with a lawsuit saying I’d extorted sex in exchange for her movie part.
She’d timed it all out with the offer and everything.”

“You’d never do
that. The police believed you, right?”

“She didn’t
press charges. The threat of publicity was enough to garner a payoff, which
ultimately is what she wanted.”

“You gave her
money?” It made my blood boil.

“My brother
insisted and took controlling interest of the company’s cash after that. I run
the production company’s operations; however he’s the responsible one in charge
of the finances.”

“How can you say
you screwed up when you obviously were conned?”

“Because I was
stupid enough to take her back to my office to have sex. Her idea, of course.
Overlooking the city, blah, blah, but it put it on camera, and it only made
more of a case that I was using my position to ensure we both got what we
wanted.”

“Jesus.”

“Look, I’m not
faulting my brother for what he did back then. Hell, I was nothing but a
manwhore, party every other night, and not putting in the quality of work I
should’ve been. I wasn’t careful when it came to protecting, not only my
company, but the entire Gamble label. He was rightfully angry when he had to
step in to clean up my mess.”

“It was a
turning point for you.”

“Exactly. It was
a hell of a wake-up call. Luck only gets you so far, and I was tired of this
perception I was living off my family’s money, not doing anything to earn it.
Honestly, it became a relief to step out of the party life at that point.
Although, there have been some exceptions with regards to a weekend or two in
Vegas, it’s just different now.” He paused, sighing deeply. “I’ve never told
anyone outside of my brother that story.”

“Thank you for
trusting me.”

“I should be the
one saying that to you. I warned you I’ve done things I wasn’t proud of.”

“And yet I’m
still here. Please tell me that woman didn’t end up making it big in
Hollywood?”

He shook his
head. “Hardly. She took the money and evidently went through it quickly. I
guess the next man she conned didn’t take it well and went to prison for
beating the crap out of her. That’s the last I heard and, to be honest, I don’t
keep track.”

“Karma.”

“Maybe, although
as much as I despise her for what she did, I wouldn’t wish a beating on anyone.”

“That’s because
you’re a good man.”

“You’re biased
because of the seven orgasms I’ve given you in the last twelve hours.”

I had to laugh
that he’d been counting. “Huh, I only remember six,” I teased, wanting a change
of subject onto happier things. I found myself pinned with him looming over me.

“Guess it’s time
to refresh your memory.”

The next week
went by quickly with Colby working a lot of hours on his documentary project
and me balancing volunteer time at the hospital with my physical therapy.

After receiving
the all-clear from my doctor to start driving on Friday morning, the first
thing I did was have the car service drop me off at my apartment to pick up my
own car. I couldn’t believe how much I missed the simple act of driving. I was
practically giddy with the regained freedom.

Once I returned
to Colby’s house, I packed up my things, surprised I’d accumulated so much over
the last few weeks. With my car filled, I arrived back at my place and began
the painful process of schlepping stuff, making several trips up and down the
stairs to the second story. The irony wasn’t lost on me that I’d be moving out
in another month and trekking everything down again. Of course, I’d yet to
figure out exactly where that would be.

By the time I
was done, I’d worked up a quite a sweat and my ankle, now sporting a brace was
throbbing. After jumping in the shower, I curled up atop my own bed for the
first time in weeks to ice my swollen joint and rest my eyes. I woke to a very irritated
voice.

“What the hell,
Kenz? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you the last hour. Then I drive home to
find, not only are you gone, but you moved out?”

“Huh?” I sat up,
rubbing my eyes and trying to process in my sleepy mind what Colby was saying.

“You moved out
without a word.” He took a seat on the bed beside me, a healthy dose of
irritation in his expression.

“I—uh—I received
the all-clear that I could drive today and figured this was the plan all
along.” It hadn’t occurred to me he’d be upset about it since me living with
him had always been a temporary situation. Just because we were having sex now
didn’t mean I was moving in, so I hadn’t given a second thought to him taking
offense over my going back home. If anything, I would’ve assumed he’d be
relieved to have his space back.

“I know I’m new
to this whole couple’s thing, but do you think you could’ve told me first?”

My eyes went
wide. “Can I use one of my relationship advice lifelines to phone a friend for
help?”

A smile teased
his lips. “What do you think they’d say?”

“That, at the
very least, I should’ve texted you and, at the very most, I could’ve talked to
you about it.” I was as new to this relationship thing as he was, but it was
obvious I should’ve communicated better.

He scrubbed a
hand over his face. “I thought that maybe with the hours I’ve been working, not
to mention the fact that we haven’t had sex in a few days, and I haven’t taken
you out on a date in quite a while—God, I sound like a fucking girl.”

I had to bite my
lip to keep from laughing. He was being vulnerable and, obviously, it wasn’t
sitting well. I’d been on my period this week so the not-having-sex hadn’t
bothered me. “No, I’m pretty sure you’re simply telling me how it made you
feel, and I hear that’s what normal couples do. I obviously wasn’t thinking how
it would look to you, and I planned on driving back to your place, but I
accidently fell asleep. Why were you trying to get a hold of me?”

He sighed.
“Because I was pissed off.”

“With me?”

Exasperation
clouded his features. “Yes, with you.”

Clearly, I’d
missed something. “So you came over here angry with me for moving out because
when you’d tried to talk to me about being pissed off, I wasn’t at your house?”

“When you say it
like that, it sounds ridiculous and makes me want to kick my own ass.”

I no longer
fought my smile. “What on earth did I tick you off about?”

“Mark told me
today he’s looking at international volunteer organizations because you’re
planning to travel abroad come fall.”

“Oh, that.” I
hadn’t meant to keep it from him, but in hearing the way he’d found out, it sure
seemed that way.

“Yeah, that.
Jesus. And I thought I was bad at this communication thing.”

I hit him with a
pillow. “Maybe I’m trying to make you feel better about your inadequacies.”

“Mission fucking
accomplished then,” he muttered, sounding wounded.

I reached for
his hand. “Hey. I’m sorry. I haven’t made a decision and only mentioned it to
Brian who, in turn, said that before I took any steps, he wanted Mark to do a
background check on the organization. A woman at work brought up the program,
and I was curious. That’s the furthest I went with it. In my defense though, I
did tell you I might want to travel and see the world.”

“So, you’re
seriously thinking about it?”

Yes, however up
until now, I hadn’t thought about how it might affect my relationship with him
if I did leave. “I love the way working with kids and doing music makes me
feel.”

He stroked my
face. “You’re absolutely amazing at it, and I’d never be upset you’d pursue it.
I was just caught off guard when Mark mentioned it casually over the phone this
afternoon—that I heard it from him instead of you.”

“Looks like I
suck at Couples Communication 101.”

He smirked.
“Well, if I’m going to suck at a relationship, I can’t think of anyone else I’d
love to suck at it with.”

“Aww, you really
don’t hear enough romantic declarations with the word
suck
being used.”

He leaned in and
sucked on my neck, making me giggle. “Did you call your dad?”

“Not to abuse
the word, but you have sucky timing with that question.”

He smiled and
kissed me again. “It’s been a week since your mom dropped the bomb.”

“I’m well aware,
but don’t you think the first thing she would’ve done when she returned home
was to tell him all about it? She’d have to vent to someone. And did he pick up
the phone to call me? Nope. Plus, Brian tried talking to her and she bit his
head off. So clearly it’s not a subject she’s willing to discuss at all.”

He hugged me
tightly, stroking my back with his strong hands. “I’m sorry I brought it up.
What do you think about getting away for a few days?”

I sighed,
letting the stress of discussing my mother go. “That sounds amazing. Whatcha
thinking?”

“Dinners on the
beach.” He kissed me once. “Breakfast on the balcony overlooking the ocean.” He
kissed me a second time. “You in bed, naked. A lot.”

My breath caught
when he deepened the kiss. “I’m in.”

“Good. Kenz?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Are you off
your period?”

“Yep, as of—” I
didn’t get to finish the sentence before he commenced ripping off my clothes.
My hands became equally frantic in accomplishing a similar mission with his.

It wasn’t until
he sank deep inside of me that we both groaned in relief, almost as though we’d
needed the link to steady any disconnect we’d experienced over the last few
days. Thirty minutes later we were laughing during a quick shower.

“Do you have
your passport?” he asked afterwards while we both dressed in my bedroom.

“Sure do, with
my one stamp from your brother’s wedding in it.”

“Good. You won’t
need to bring a lot. Beach wear and at least a couple dresses for dinner, but
not much else.”

“Okay.” Clearly,
I was behind the curve when he put my suitcase on my bed. “Are we leaving now?”

He grinned.
“Depends on how fast you can pack.”

“What about your
work on the film?”

“It’s in
post-production as of this morning, and it occurs to me that while I’m hoping
this is coming off as wildly romantic, it could easily slide the other direction
into presumptuous that you don’t have any other plans.”

I put my arms
around his neck. “I’m leaning towards romantic since I don’t have anything
going on over the next couple of days that I can’t reschedule. Where are we
going?”

“South of the
border, baby.”

***

After a two-hour
flight, we arrived in Cabo San Lucas as the sun set. I knew Colby’s family had
a resort down here, but when the car drove us to one with an unfamiliar name, I
had to ask, “This isn’t your place, is it?”

He took my hand
in the back seat. “No. I figured since I intend on being all over you this
weekend, it might be better to stay at a different hotel.”

Right. Because
we weren’t telling our families. Funny how a couple weeks ago when Brian had
showed up, it had been a no-brainer not to spill the beans, yet now I found
myself disappointed that our relationship remained a secret. I mentally shook
myself out of the thought. There’d be time enough to talk about it later, but
for now we were here to enjoy paradise and each other.

“When does this
being all over me start?”

He framed my
face in his hands, flashed the PDG, and kissed me soundly. “Right now.”

The resort was
beautiful, and it took no time to get checked into our own private villa. I walked
around the spacious room while he took care of the luggage. Venturing out onto
the balcony, which boasted a beautiful view of the ocean, I breathed in the
fresh scent of salt water and tropical air. When Colby’s arms wrapped around me
from behind with his chin resting on top of my shoulder, pure contentment
washed over me. Whether it was his kisses down the side of my neck or the
moment itself that made me shiver, I wasn’t certain.

“What are you
thinking?” he whispered.

“That this here
with your arms around me makes me realize I was missing something I wasn’t
aware I even wanted.” Sure, I’d always had feelings for Colby, but never having
been in a relationship, I hadn’t appreciated how much I craved this type of
physical intimacy.

He turned me
around, locking his eyes on mine. “Me, either. Maybe that’s why I freaked about
you moving out.”

“I don’t want us
to burn out on each other.” Considering he’d lived the life of a bachelor for
so long, I figured he’d be the one to do so first.

“Not possible.
If I’m being completely honest, I always assumed that in a relationship I’d get
tired of being with the same person, but with you, I can’t seem to get enough.”

I put my hands
on either side of his face, pulling him down for a scorching kiss. Colby Singer
may never have eloquent words to convey his feelings, but his unfiltered
thoughts resonated far more than any smooth declaration ever could.

When the knock
came, he reluctantly pulled away. “That would be dinner.”

“That was fast,”
I commented, watching him go to the door.

“I preordered,
and the driver let them know we were on the way. Cheeseburgers okay, I hope?”

“Do they come
with beer?”

After opening
the door and signing for the meal, he wheeled a cart across the open space to
the small dining table with a smile. “
Si
. Dos Equis.”

“Limes?”

He lifted off a
cover to reveal a small plate. “What are we—animals? Of course there are
limes.”

We both laughed
and sat down to dinner.

A short time
later, after enjoying my burger along with two beers, I pushed back from the
table. “Tell me about your documentary project.”

His face lit up.
“You really want to know?”

“Of course I do.
I picture you in your office looking all hot in your suit and tie—and then
wonder what you’ve been doing with your time.”

He flashed his
dimples. “No two days are the same, but the current documentary is about the
Zika virus and the spread of it. The doctor we’ve had on the project is from
Brazil and insists it will be a worldwide pandemic in the next couple of years.
There are already countries urging women not to get pregnant and thousands of
babies being born with birth defects due to this mosquito-spread virus. We also
look at the economic factor, in that the problem spreading to the US is most
likely the best scenario for funding a cure and prevention. These Third World
countries can’t afford to put the money for research into it, but now that it’s
moving north, it can’t be ignored for much longer.”

I sensed the
conviction in his voice that he believed this an important topic. “Wow. No
wonder the timing is so important to get this out there.”

“It is. We’re
dealing with a lot of experts and including footage from the hospitals in
Brazil and El Salvador. There are both political and economic ramifications,
too. Hopefully they can create a vaccine soon.”

I got up from
where I was sitting, walked over and curled into his lap. “I can’t wait to see
it and understand why you’re so excited about this project.”

He kissed the
top of my head. “It feels good to share it with you, and now you know that’s
it’s not about the money, but the message.”

“Did tell that to
your brother?”

He shook his
head. “We didn’t get past the bottom line. Anyhow, onto happier things. What do
you feel like doing now?”