Luke still hated Raven. He doubted that anything could have made him like her even a little bit, even back in the days when he hadn’t figured out the extent of her rottenness yet. But it was interesting to him to think that even Raven, with her fiery temper and dead eyes, was human enough to fall in love.
Chapter 7
LUKE DIDN’T PICK UP the first time Shayla called, which filled her with a sense of dread. It was late. Maybe he was asleep? No, surely Luke wouldn’t be in bed this early. It was midnight, yes, but far from truly late.
She called again, not caring how desperate that made her seem. She just needed him. She needed Luke. Only he made her feel safe. Tomorrow evening she’d be at Anthony’s house. The thought made her want to retch.
When Luke still didn’t pick up, Shayla curled up in a ball on her bed and held her knees to her chest, repressing panicked sobs. Her life was over. Her career was over. All gone in a flash because of the malicious intent of one sleazy newscaster. And Raven, of course. Or her brothers. It didn’t really matter who had taken the video—only where it had ended up.
Shayla’s phone rang and it sounded like heaven’s choir. She fumbled with the device and answered it breathlessly.
“Is everything okay?” came Luke’s panicked voice. “I missed two calls from you. I was worried.”
Shayla let out a sigh of relief, though not one that eased much more than a slight amount of the ache in her chest. “I need you to come over. Now. Can you do that?”
The sound of the door slamming behind him caused Shayla’s heart to flutter. “I’m already on my way,” Luke said. “Will you be okay until then?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll see you soon.”
Shayla hung up the phone and curled back up into her ball. She hated feeling and acting so weak, like she was just going to let the grindstone of the world pass over her and crush her to smithereens, but she didn’t know what else to do. She couldn't think. She could barely breathe. Every part of her screamed, and she knew the only thing that would calm her was Luke.
The fifteen minutes it took to get him to her house were long. She’d been fine at work. Well, fine enough. The anxiety had been lingering under the surface, but it was hard to hurt in any visceral way when she was surrounded by other people. But since she’d gotten home she’d been surrounded by quiet and cold, and it seemed every empty space was mocking her and her decisions. She hated it.
When the noise of Luke’s boots thumping up her front steps jarred her back to the present, Shayla swelled with joy. “I’m in here!” she called out to him when he walked through the door.
His footsteps echoed down the hallway, and when he appeared in the doorway and caught sight of her wretched appearance his eyes bulged. He was so handsome, even with the lines of worry etched into his skin. So handsome and hers. Soon he’d be the only thing that was hers. Unless...unless she did sleep with Anthony. Then she might not even have him.
Luke rushed to the bed and pulled her up onto his lap, cradling her in his arms. “What’s the matter?”
His warm and comforting voice sent waves of relaxation through Shayla. It was hard to feel stressed with his big, strong arms holding her tight. And the way his stubble scratched at her forehead actually made her smile. She allowed herself to enjoy the moment, the security, for just a second longer before she spoke.
“Anthony yesterday...came and talked to me,” she said finally, clenching her hands into fists. “He has a video of us in the cemetery. He says if I don’t have dinner with him tomorrow he’s going to put it on the internet.” She took another long breath and then said the rest of the truth. “He implied a lot more than dinner.”
Luke inhaled slowly, and Shayla felt the complicated web of muscles of his frame tense all at once. “That fucking prick.” His tone was low, dangerous. She’d never heard him sound quite so scary.
In that moment, when she looked up at him, Shayla saw what everyone else saw when they looked at Luke. At least, what she presumed everyone saw. He was all hard lines and fury, his jaw tight and his eyes staring far away.
“I don’t know what to do,” said Shayla. “Because I know by dinner he means...”
Though she wasn’t sure how it was possible, Shayla felt Luke become even more rigid. “I’m going to kill him.”
His next movement was far from the comforting gesture he’d originally started by pulling her into his arms. He slid her off his lap and stood up, back straight, and headed toward the door. Shayla had no doubt in her mind, in that moment, that he really did intend to kill Anthony.
She clambered out of bed, stumbling after him. “Luke! Wait!”
He was nearly at her front door by the time she caught up with him, wrapping her arms around his middle and holding him. He could have dragged her along behind him, and she would have been powerless to let him leave, but he stayed still long enough for her to try to talk to him.
“Don’t! It won’t do any good! Raven has the video too!”
“But Raven’s not trying to fuck you!” he roared. He turned to her, grasping her face in his hands. “I don’t care what happens to me, but I’m not letting that asshole manipulate you any longer. He’s going to pay for what he’s done.”
There was fire, burning bright in his eyes. He looked like an avenging angel on the path to smite a nonbeliever. And god, was it glorious. Shayla did the only thing she could think of to stay his hand and calm him down. She leaned forward and kissed him, hurriedly reaching for the button of his jeans before he had time to push her away. She had only a few moments to fully distract him before he’d be lost to her forever.
She guided Luke to the wall and pulled her mouth away from his, dropping to her knees in front of him. Like a light switch flicking on, Luke’s eyes changed from fury to lust so quickly it astounded Shayla. And the way he looked down at her darkly, his lips parted, made her heart quicken in her chest. Heat pooled between Shayla’s legs as she wrenched open his jeans and dropped them to the ground, pulling out his cock from his boxers and bringing it to her lips.
She’d given Luke head before, but it had never been this passionate. This intense. This was on a whole other level of eroticism. Her whole body ached for him, and her mouth watered at the thought of him taking his pleasure there. She licked at the tip, making sure she had his attention, and Luke closed his eyes and gasped.
Shayla stroked her tongue along the shaft, making sure to get each and every inch of his cock with her ministrations. She held his balls in one hand and squeezed gently, dropping the other to rub her tits through her shirt. Her nipples were hard and aching, straining against the fabric of her shirt.
Before she could take him in her mouth, Luke’s hand shot down to the back of her head and fisted in her hair, drawing her back slightly. She looked up questioningly, thinking that she’d misread him somehow. Was he telling her to stop?
But Luke didn’t want her to stop. “Take off your shirt,” he said. “And your bra.” His voice was molten. “I want to see your beautiful tits.”
Shayla was only too happy to do as he asked, stripping off quickly and easily until she was bare above the waist, staring up at him through her lashes. He bit his lip and stared down at her through clenched teeth. “Perfect.”
She took that as her sign to continue and inched toward his cock again, licking along the tip and then slowly sliding it into her mouth. She could barely fit him, but stretched her jaws open as wide as she could to accommodate his girth. The feel of him filling her in this way always turned her on so much, and she continued kneading her breasts with one hand and Luke’s balls with the other.
He brought his hand back to the back of her head and gently urged her to take him deeper. She tried her best, gagging slightly, but managed to press him in so deep she nearly had her face against his hard stomach. She took her hand from her breast and began to work it along the remaining bit of his shaft, stroking him with her mouth and hand in time and eliciting noises of pure satisfaction from above.
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The salty taste of him on her tongue, and the urgent way he clutched at her hair, caused her arousal to heighten. She was acutely aware of how desperate she was to feel him inside of her, wishing that he could stroke similar spots in her mouth that he could in her pussy. Nonetheless, it was pure pleasure for him and sweet torture for her. Shayla couldn’t ask for much more.
She worked at him with vigor, even though her mouth began to ache. She was determined to bring Luke some relief. He was so pent up with frustration and ire that she worried he would actually do something stupid. Not only that, but she longed to feel him release down her throat. She was so turned on that it seemed nothing else would do.
Luke’s fist tightened in her hair and he began to push her faster, guiding her mouth in a rhythm that had Shayla’s heart racing out of her chest. She kept up with him, though not easily. There were times that she felt she couldn’t breathe. But it was all worth it—every damn second.
When his balls tightened and pulled up against his body, Shayla prepared for him. He let out a low groan as his cock twitched, releasing his salty load into her waiting mouth. She swallowed it greedily, licking along his shaft and tip in order to get every last drop. Then she sat back on her heels and looked up at him, trying to gauge how much her work had done to distract him.
Apparently it had done enough. Luke pulled her up and kissed her, clearly not caring about the taste of his seed still on her tongue. He sighed and leaned back against the wall, pulling her to him and plying her mouth open further with his tongue. His kiss was tired but enthusiastic nonetheless, and his hands roamed over Shayla’s bare chest with relish.
“That was amazing,” he whispered against her jaw, pressing a kiss there before moving to her neck. “Now I’m going to give you the same treatment.”
Shayla nearly protested. After all, she hadn’t sucked him off just so he would return the favor. But, then again, she certainly didn’t feel like turning down anything considering how alive her body still was, and how much her core throbbed at his touch and the memory of the act she’d just performed.
Luke led Shayla over to her room and slid her onto the bed, kissing her languidly as he reached down and unbuttoned her pants. He pulled them off slowly, eyes on her the whole time, and each stroke of the fabric against Shayla’s legs felt like a kiss.
After dropping her pants on the floor, Luke sat down at the end of the bed and pulled her legs over his shoulders, dipping his head between her thighs without further delay. She arched against him as he began to lavish her with his tongue, stroking her most sensitive areas sensually and with perfect precision. Shayla loved these moments with Luke, when they both became so lost in each other’s bodies that the rest of the world hardly mattered. She thought only of his hot mouth on her pussy and the way his hands gripped onto her hips to hold her steady.
The pleasure she got from Luke’s mouth was on another plane. It was pure and unrelenting, like heaven itself had landed between her thighs. Shayla cried out each time he swirled deeper, her legs quivering with each stroke. Her orgasm was close, if not looming. She was so worked up from giving him head that it wouldn’t take much to drive her over the edge. She was surprised it was already taking this much. When she’d been doing it, she thought a mere touch against her core would send her spiraling.
When that fine, beautiful moment did come, Shayla was barely ready for it. It hit her like a semi, dragging her along through waves of pure, undulating bliss. She slammed her head into the pillows and screamed, her body tensing down to the smallest of her toes.
Luke rubbed his raspy chin against each thigh, kissing his way all the way back to her lips. He took his time on her breasts, giving them the attention that he’d clearly been too busy to earlier. In the afterglow of her orgasm, Shayla’s nipples were sensitive and hard. Conscious of this, Luke kissed them so lightly it felt like his lips were feathers.
When his journey finally ended at her mouth, Luke pulled her to him for a long, lazy kiss. Shayla could feel the pounding of both of their hearts, almost in time. And as she pulled her lover into her embrace, nuzzling her face against the hard and warm plane of his chest, she forgot everything except from how good and right that moment felt.
SHAYLA WOKE SLOWLY, languidly, conscious of the fact that she had the day off from work and so had nowhere to be. Luke was beside her, still fully clothed. She giggled, noting the contrast between his attire and hers. She was naked, her skin lit by the mid-morning sun.
He was resting peacefully still, his soft snores both cute and comforting. A smile played on Shayla’s lips as she snuggled up further to him. It wasn’t until a moment later that she remembered why she’d called him over in the first place.
Shayla’s smile dropped. Goddamnit. It turned out she couldn’t just screw away her problems. Well, in the case of Anthony maybe she could. But not with Luke, and that was a problem.
As if sensing her discomfort, Luke stirred. His large hands reached for her and pulled her tighter. “I’m still going to kill Anthony,” he said quietly.
Shayla snickered. The threat lost some of its edge when delivered by a slumbering tiger. She kissed his cheek and waited for him to open his eyes. He wasn’t as much of a morning person as she was.
When he slowly blinked open to look at her, Luke’s lips twitched into a grin. “I have to say, I enjoy this style of pajamas.”
Shayla chuckled. “I only wish you’d chosen to copy me.”
He closed his eyes and rested back against the pillow. “Maybe in, like, fifteen minutes.”
A beeping noise cut off Shayla from the question that’d been perched on her lips. Grateful for the momentary reprieve from having to face the horrid reality of what tonight would bring, Shayla reached over to her bedside table and grabbed her phone.
“Oh my god.” She shot up, causing Luke to groan at the disturbance.
“What is it?” he asked sleepily, resting his arm across his eyes.
Shayla patted his arm and tore it away. “It’s Naomi. She wants to talk.”
“The other anchor from your channel? The one who went to rehab?”
“Yeah.” Shayla jumped out of bed and began pulling on clothes. “I haven’t heard from her in so long! I need to go see what she has to say.”
Luke accepted his fate and blearily rose from the covers. “I’ll take you.”
Shayla was about to fight him on it, contending that she was a big girl and could go places alone, when she realized she’d do anything to not have him leave her side today. She needed him.
So, together they went off to rehab.
Chapter 8
LUKE DIDN’T KNOW MUCH about Naomi, or about the conditions that had brought her to the Templeton Heights Rehabilitation Center. He only knew that her job was the one Shayla currently occupied. Admittedly, he had little respect for drug addicts and thought that her story was guaranteed to be just as pathetic as the next.
It was a harsh way to operate, and he knew that. It was probably unfair to Naomi as well. But, for the short amount of time that Trojans MC had sold drugs, Luke had come in contact with enough unsavory characters to know that addiction was something even he found distasteful.
The rehab center looked exactly as he pictured it would. A fountain out front seemed designed to remind visitors that the people they were visiting were the moneyed version of addicts. These weren’t the sort that had to get clean on their own on the streets. These were the kind whose parents and loved ones sacrificed thousands of dollars to send off to do yoga and write in journals for weeks at a time.
The excitement of the girl beside him, who clearly cared for Naomi, was the only thing that kept him from staring around in distaste at everyone he saw and surely getting kicked out. Yes, the people there had made the decision to better their lives. To get better. But how many of them would relapse before long? And then how many more thousands of dollars would bring them back here?
After signing in at the front desk, Shayla and Luke headed into the elev
ator and up to the third floor. The bright, cheery surroundings were part hospital and part hotel. He saw room service trays outside some of the doors, with the half eaten remains of gourmet meals stacked on them in disarray.
Naomi’s room was different, somehow. Everything was neat and tidy, and there were no personal effects to clutter the space. She was a slight woman, and she greeted them at the door with a kind, if tired smile, and led them over to the chairs by the window at the back of the room.
Naomi’s brown hair had been shorn close to her head, and Luke doubted that it was by personal choice. At least not a sober personal choice. She had angular features, made even more angular by her half-starved appearance. Shayla seemed shocked to see her like she was.
“I didn’t realize...” Shayla began to say, trailing off.
“I know.” Naomi smiled, resting a frail hand on Shayla’s. “It looks worse than it is. I probably weighed the same when I was still at the station, but I just wore a lot of makeup.” She laughed, a tinkling sound that reminded Luke how she had probably gotten into television.
“Why did you decide you wanted to talk after all this time?” Shayla asked. “I thought you didn’t want to see anyone from your old life anymore.”
“Is that what Anthony told you?” Naomi said with a scowl.
Shayla nodded briefly.
“That man is a lying sack of shit.”
The abrupt nature of her comment and the delivery of it endeared Naomi immediately to Luke. He had never met her before, but at least they could form a bond over how much they hated Anthony.
As if sensing he was thinking about her, Naomi turned her head and looked at Luke. Her gaze was appraising, and she finished it with a smile. “I watched all of your segments, Mr. Cinder,” she said. She turned back to Shayla and addressed her next. “You did a great job. Both of you. But you especially, Shayla.”
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