by Pamela Ann
Barbara kept telling me to hire a personal assistant, but honestly, the woman already nagged and always went into my business. I didn’t need another fellow in my personal space and life.
I was grateful that Emma mentioned Lindsey getting back earlier in her text messages, so when I got outside their seaside home, I knew who to call.
It took her two rings to pick up the call. “My, my, should I assume you’re drunk dialing and you got the wrong number?” Lindsey was surely entertaining herself with this phone call.
“No on both counts. I’m actually outside and I need you to let me in, is that cool?” My voice was truly tired because I had to stifle a couple yawns as I said those words.
She perked up, curious. “You’re outside, why?”
Damn, what’s with all the questions, man? I just wanted Emma and a bed to sleep in. “I need to talk to her, that’s all.”
“Been naughty, have we, Mister?”
I groaned into the phone before I heard her laugh and then said, “Yeah, yeah, get your hot ass to the door now.”
These women were great, but sometimes they got to be too much. At times, I wasn’t sure if I was going to turn tomato red or brush it off as a joke. After a quick thanks and a goodbye with Lou, I went straight to the door with my duffel bag slung over my arm.
Lindsey was dressed in a kimono silk robe, grinning like I’d never seen her before. Guess I had to get used to this since Dimitris was now in the picture.
“Doing late night calls now, huh?” she teased, opening the door wider to let me in.
“Something like that,” I absentmindedly responded as I walked inside their home. Looking around, the dimmed lighting and the quietness of the surroundings told me everyone was in bed or maybe out partying since this was a college town. “Mind if I just go in her room? I’m beat,” I asked, not looking back as I eyed the dimly lit hallway entrance upstairs.
“Sure, but don’t think I won’t ask questions tomorrow.” She closed the door shut and then came up next to me. “Snuggle tight, buddy.” She winked at me twice.
I gave her a tired smile. “G’night, Linds,” I said before heading towards the stairs then into Emma’s bedroom.
My sleepiness and the fogginess in my brain all cleared away the second my hand clasped around the brass door handle. Taking a deep breath, I opened it. Slowly walking inside her darkened room, I noticed that she had one lit candle on her side table. By the looks of it, it was halfway melted already.
Emma was on the bed with her back to me. It made me wonder if she was staring at the candle while letting her imagination run riot. If the situation were reversed, I would’ve been out of my mind with jealousy, not to mention all kinds of demons my mind was capable of taunting me with when I was at my lowest. The thought brought no comfort, and the picture of Emma mentally torturing herself was not sitting with me well.
So I stood there a moment, still holding my things, while I tried to make sense, seeing things from her perspective. The room might be aglow with the comforting and cozy ambiance, however I knew her heart wasn’t being warmed at all. The last thing I wanted was for her to be unhappy. My separation from her brought so much sadness and pain, and if I could help it, I would try to ease any pain coming her way as much as possible.
The moment my eyes got used to the dimmed lighting, I studied her back, perking my ear to confirm that she really was asleep. When I heard her long, deep breathing, I started to move quietly towards her bathroom to shower and change.
Emma’s bathroom overlooked the ocean, so with the moon high up in the sky, I didn’t have to turn on the light as I navigated my way around. Fifteen minutes later, wearing only my boxer briefs, I strode out of the bathroom and stepped into her bedroom as quietly as possible.
Once I reached the other side of the bed, I put my phone on vibrate before sliding into bed with her. I inched my body closer to her, spooning her from behind as I slid my arm beneath her neck and pulled her against my body. The second my nose hit her neck, I was instantly annihilated by her scent. It didn’t matter how dead tired I was, holding my woman close made all of it worthwhile.
Leaving soft kisses behind her ear, I whispered into it, “I’m here, my love. No need to fret.”
Emma made a noise, but remained fully asleep. I sighed, smiling as I pressed my nose against her neck, ready to sleep away. Listening to her breathing pattern immediately knocked me out in seconds.
~B~
The following morning, I awakened the second Emma moved like she was about to jump out of her skin before tensing up like she was made of wood. I knew I should’ve said something then, yet for some reason, my wickedness led me to keep my mouth shut.
“Shit—what the fuck did I do last night?” Emma whisper-hissed into the air, probably trying to figure out who I was.
Trying not to bark out and laugh at her total confusion was an accomplishment. I had to hold it together, needing to see how this scenario would unfold.
I could feel her tensed body starting to move, but when she realized that my arm was over her stomach, holding her in, she made another pained sound. The crisp sound of the comforter being lifted clued me in as the cold air hit my hand, evaporating the warmth that had ensconced me with her body seconds before and was now gone, as she tried to pry my limb away from her then she stilled, pausing.
“Bass?” she questioned before swiftly moving to face my pretend-sleeping state.
“Oh my God! You’re here.” Her hand reached out and cupped my cheek, cradling it as her thumb left gentle strokes against my skin. “I know you’re sleeping and all, that’s why I’m telling you this now because I might not have the balls to say it when you’re awake…but I somehow sensed that you were going to come for me last night.” She paused. “I’m glad you did,” she spoke against my lips before leaving a long, meaningful kiss.
“Argh. What—” Emma started to groan when her phone started ringing. I felt her twist her body to the side, reaching up to get it. “Trista, I can’t go in today.” She started, sighing as she listened to her friend. “I know. I’m sorry, but Bass surprised me this morning—yes, here—of course, I’m not bullshitting. He probably flew in last night from Canada—What? Of course he is. What the heck, Tris?—Yeah, he’s sleeping right next to me—What do you mean talk to him? I did say he was sleeping!” she hissed.
Acting like I was just waking up, I made a sound as I reached out for her body. I leaned against the phone and made myself known. “I’m really here, just in case you were wondering.”
“You just woke him up, Trista Stevens. I wanted him to sleep in because he must be exhausted,” Emma sighed into the phone.
I immediately snatched the phone away from her and then spoke directly to Trista. “Don’t worry, Tris. I was awake before you called.” My eyes were greeted by the sight of her face. Seriously, would it be too cheesy if I said that my heart literally swelled in my chest by the mere sight of her?
“Sorry. Sorry. I thought Emma was trying to sleep in, you know. She was late yesterday and Angela is sort of attached to her, that’s all. I didn’t mean to interrupt you guys’ morning, I swear. I know Emma loves these kiddos, but I know she’d take a day off just to be with you. We should catch up soon,” she rambled on without giving me a moment to say anything. “I’ll have your buddy call you for the details, all right? Okay folks. Have a good morning!” She then hung up on me.
I even double checked the phone to see if she truly did, and yeah, the screen was clear, back to its main screen of a picture of Emma and me kissing. “She just hung up on me,” I said out loud. “I didn’t even get to say a word the moment she started talking.”
“She was probably nervous. That woman goes wonky when it comes to you.” Emma made a chortled sound, moving closer to me before snatching her phone from my hands, throwing it to the side as she situated herself on top of me. “Where were we?” She made a look like she was thinking hard. “Oh, yeah. You and your sneaky surprise.”
When Em
ma acted all cute, I found it endearing, but right now, the last thing I was thinking about was that as she gently rubbed her body against mine.
“Good morning—” Long lashes flickered innocently before me. “Wood?”
Sweet torture was her expertise. “I want you, always. Anytime. Anywhere. You know that, but before we get physical, we need to talk about last night.”
Her forefinger traced the ridges of my abs before her eyes hesitantly met mine. “What are you so opposed about?” she asked, confused. “Apart from you thinking that it will hurt me, what other factors are there that’s making you uncomfortable?”
I had thousands of objections. One being her using this as a weapon against me later on; an excuse to hide behind when she decided to leave our relationship. “Why do you even want to put yourself in that position? What bothers me more is that you’re requesting to see them. Help me understand your reasoning because I can’t, for the life of me, figure out what you’re trying to get at here.”
She sighed, rolling off me then sitting up with her arms wrapped around her knees, staring at my chest. “I want to see if you’re different with them. I guess after this whole Nikki thing, I’m starting to feel ordinary.” She made a careless shrug, biting her lip to stop it from quivering. “When it comes to you, I have always felt special, like what we have is rare and one of a kind.”
Emma was affected to this extent? I knew it was bad, but hell, she was now questioning if what I truly felt for her was solid.
“How could you say that when you’re the only woman I’ve ever loved?” Getting up, I sat across from her, placing my chin against her knees, hoping she’d let me see her eyes because I could usually tell how she was taking my words if our eyes connected. “That alone should soothe your worries away.” My nose touched the tip of hers, brushing it back and forth. “At the end of the day, my love for you is the only thing that matters. Nikki, the other women, my family, the media and the rest of the frazzle-dazzle crap out there doesn’t matter at all because what you and I have is far more important to protect, secure and nourish. Doesn’t me coming here in the middle of the shoot prove that to you?”
A smile started to form on her lips before I saw her small nod. “It does. You don’t know much it means to me that you’re here.” She finally lifted her gaze and reached into mine. They were still sad, but the small tears that formed on the edges were tears of joy. “I hope I didn’t get you in trouble.”
“Nothing that I couldn’t fix. Don’t worry.” I was lucky that I had convinced the producers to shoot the scenes that didn’t have me in them. This was the last KOC film, so it was a big deal, and for them to let me go for a few days to fix things with Emma was unheard of. However they knew that I would be better in my craft and more focused if I went to see Emma. When I got back, though, I was definitely going to be worked extra hard.
I couldn’t hold back a laugh when I heard Emma’s tummy complain about being hungry. “Time to feed my woman and her demanding belly.” Slowly getting up on my knees, I leaned over and kissed her before moving away. “Let me go use the bathroom then I’ll meet you downstairs.” Her eyes were on me as I walked away, heading towards the restroom.
Inside, I took my time washing up and changed into black sweatpants and a black crew tee. When I came out of there barefoot, I was surprised to find Emma still sitting on the bed. She had a weird expression on her face.
“Babe?”
“Yep?” I strolled closer to her.
Her hand had my cell phone in it. “Your phone’s been ringing. It’s Nikki.” Emma handed it to me with the caller’s name flashing repeatedly, vibrating.
Nikki. Of all things, did she need to come into the picture this morning? Fuck, what luck.
Lately, she seemed to be needing a lot of things. She would be hysterical about what happened in Dallas, then overly excited the next about giving birth. If I didn’t know she was pregnant, I’d think she was mental. Hormonal women were dangerous. That much I knew.
Grabbing my phone, I sighed, eyes trained on her. “I’m sorry about this, Em.” I knew even if I said sorry a million times, nothing could erase the pain Nikki’s news brought to our fragile relationship.
Emma only gave me a sad smile, but I pulled her against my lap, holding her close, eyes boring into her. “What can I do to put a smile on your face again, moro mou?”
“I don’t mean to be a childish about this whole thing, Bass. Sometimes I just can’t help it—what if you choose them over me? What do I do then?”
I had never seen her like this. She now doubted herself—us—constantly. It was starting to gnaw at me. “Emma—” How could I break this down for her? The more I thought about the baby and Emma, the more I saw things clearly. It was my child against the woman I vowed to love and protect. There wasn’t going to be a competition because she will come first. Always. “No matter what happens later down the road, know that it’s you that I’ll choose over any woman.” And as for the latter… the main issue… “When it comes down to it, I’ll choose you over the baby, too, but I hope that you’ll be kind enough to let me be part of his or her life. Being a parent is a big thing, and I don’t want my child to be messed up even if the situation that he or she was born in was unusual.”
“I’m being too whiny. I hope when the time comes, this will all go away. I want to be there for you; you know that, don’t you?”
The back of my fingers brushed the tears that were on the side of her eyes. She wasn’t crying, but she was quite a bit more than misty-eyed. “Come on, let’s go downstairs.”
With our arms both hung loosely around each other, we strode downstairs.
We were halfway towards the kitchen when Emma directed a question at me. “Hey, mind getting the paper? It should be outside, somewhere around the doorway.”
“Right away, ma’am.” I smacked her ass, squeezing it good, before I slapped the other side and left her with her own devices.
It was barely nine-thirty in the morning and the house was silent, the grass dewy and the sun barely heating up the air as I scanned for the reading material.
The rolled up newspaper was lying against the cemented driveway. Moving towards it, I bent over to get it, untying the white straw it came with. Scanning over the headlines before I reached the entertainment section, I started moving back indoors when something caught my eye.
An article about Emma was printed, stating that she was only with me to gain more publicity and fame; that she also broke Nikki and me apart. There was also an innuendo about her still being with Carter and that she was cheating on both of us.
It was pure bull and these “sources” were off the point.
This was the second time something similar had been printed about Emma. The last one, it took her a good two weeks to get over. With this new one, I hoped she would be willing to brush it off.
“What’s up?” She came up behind me.
Damn, she’s got some stealth moves. Folding the paper immediately before tucking inside my arm, I answered, “Nothing, really. What do you want me to cook for breakfast?” Changing the subject was the safest bet. I hate seeing her hurt.
She looked at me suspiciously—eyes flicking from the folded newsprint to my face then back at the folded paper again before moving a little closer to me. “What are you hiding from me, Bass?”
Studying her face, I knew she wasn’t going to buy the crap I was meaning to feed her. “Emma.” I cleared my throat, buying time. “It’s nothing important. Just a bunch of crap. I suggest you don’t Google yourself until you’re ready to stomach all the media trash and have grown some thick skin.”
She made an understanding nod, processing it. “Was it as bad as the last time?”
“Only a little.” They weren’t really crazy or anything, yet to Emma, the words were painful. A person just needed to learn not to read every printed article written about oneself. Sometimes it was the only way to keep grounded and not have these lowlifes dissect the picture without knowing
real facts.
“If you don’t tell me what’s written about me, I might just have to do it myself.” Emma folded her arms, not willing to shove the subject into the trash bin.
Stubborn woman, I silently cursed. Her threats weren’t empty either. That’s why, even though this was something I didn’t want to do, I’d rather that I give her the scoop instead of her taking it all, word for word, and be an epic mess afterwards. “Apart from the whole Nikki crap, they’re saying that you’re two-timing Carter and me. That you’re also seeing me for fame and to gain more publicity.” Cupping her face, I gave her a sorry face, knowing how much the words were affecting her. “I told you it was bullshit.”
“You do know that I’m not using you, right?” Her eyes scanned my face, flickering back and forth.
Did she really just ask me that? “I doubt it would be possible for me to love someone who would.” I kissed the tip of her dainty nose. “Of course I know, my love.” My lips were on hers, kissing her softly. “I’ve always known.”
Women… a man had to say a hundred words to make them feel what we truly wanted them to feel. Some might not bother, but for those who did, that meant he took her seriously. Those were the kind that would be there for the long haul.
Chapter 8
Bass
I wasn’t sure why Emma wasn’t mentioning anything about her birthday weekend, but I had plans of my own.
It was only Thursday and I had already gathered everyone to free their night schedule for us tomorrow. As for the rest of the day, I meant to spend it with her. Alone. And back at our house.
Waving Lou and Chris goodbye after bringing my car around, I was half-jogging as I went inside the house and up the stairs. “Ready, my sweet?” I knocked on the door with my middle finger before opening the door to let myself in.
“Almost…need a couple minutes,” Emma yelled out from her closet.
Striding towards her bed, I let my back fall against the mattress with my hands behind my head, staring up at the ceiling. “Take you’re time. There’s no hurry.”
