by King, Kelsey
I gather my composure, straighten up, and walk back to my office. I have to talk to Liam as soon as possible.
14
Liam
I'm on the phone with a good friend of mine, Quinton Harvey, when I hear a knock at the door. “One second, Quinton,” I say, pushing off the hotel bed and crossing the room to get the door. I expect to find room service, but instead, it's Harlow. She doesn't look too happy. I usher her in before continuing my call.
“That’s great, Q,” I say, smiling. “Thank you so much for doing me a solid. You’re helping me out more than I ever could’ve expected. Tell the wife I said hi. Okay. Bye.”
When I hang up, Harlow looks at me expectantly. “What was that about?”
“Well,” I say smugly, “That was about me getting Destiny a deal with Quinton's most popular author. I met him and a bunch of other agents at an event a couple of years ago, and we talk quite a bit. His author Sylvia Patterson has been looking for a publishing house for some of her more erotic stories. She didn't know who to go with, but I got Destiny to negotiate an amazing deal with her.”
Harlow doesn’t seem as excited as me. “Why with Destiny?”
“She works at Hourglass, right? If there's one thing Destiny loves more than flirting with people—and blackmailing you—it's money. I called in a favor and got Sylvia a killer contract for a two-book deal in exchange for Destiny to keep our relationship away from everyone else. I don't need anyone in our business until we're ready to tell the world that we're together. It should be on our terms, not Destiny's.”
She smiles softly, but I sense her holding something back. I take a seat beside her on the bed and pull her into my arms. “What’s going on? You’re not jumping for joy like I thought you would.”
“I…” She pauses, her brows knitting together as she struggles to find the right words. “I lost my job.”
“What?” No, this isn't possible. “I talked to Kristen this afternoon, and she said that everything is going to be okay.”
“Yeah, she told me the same thing. Then she said that she'd rather not risk the reputation of Midnight. A scandal like this could negatively reflect on a new imprint, and she couldn't put everyone else's job at risk for mine.” Harlow puts her head in her hands, and her shoulders begin to shake.
Stunned, I pull her closer and rub her back. “I’m calling Kristen,” I say. “I’m calling her out and telling her I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure my book doesn’t come out with Midnight.”
“You can’t do that,” Harlow murmurs, her voice frail.
“Yes, the hell I can. I don't care how much I have to pay; I don't want this book published without you. You helped me make it into something great. You should be getting just as much credit as me.”
I can feel my irritation growing more and more. From the way Kristen sounded on the phone, she was on our side. She seemed supportive of our relationship as long as we didn’t let it interfere with our work. And now, just when we’d gotten so close to pulling through, she’s thrown a curveball and knocked us off course.
“You can’t call her and tell her your quit,” Harlow says, shaking her head.
“Why not? Why shouldn’t I go up there and cuss them out for letting you go?”
Harlow sits up straight, a wide smile on her face. “Because they didn’t fire me.”
“What?”
“I was just messing with you; they didn't fire me. Kristen said it was fine, but we had to be careful. I still have my job. Plus, she loved your rewrite and thinks we should go with it.”
I should be upset by Harlow's prank, but instead, I grin and pull her into my lap, attacking her neck with kisses. She squirms and tries to shove me away, but I'm much too strong to let her get from me that easily.
“You scared the shit out of me, baby,” I murmur, snuggling up against her. Harlow practically melts into my arms, the fight in her going out like a light.
“Did I really?”
“Of course you did!”
“Well, it’s only fair. You told Kristen about us without talking to me. When she called me into her office, I was scared out of my mind.”
I have to let her have this because she's right. I can't imagine what that must've felt like. “Fair enough. How about I make it up to you?”
She brushes her hair from her face and looks up at me, smiling. “How are you gonna do that?”
Without another word, I ease her onto the bed, down on her back. She props herself up on her elbows, watching as I inch her skirt higher up her thighs. The more skin I expose, the more I want to see. I pause to dip my head and bite lightly on her inner thigh. Harlow lets out a soft whimper, but the smile on her face never leaves.
“I’ve thought about you every night since you said we had to stop this,” I say, licking at the light bite indentions.
“Yeah?”
“Every single night.”
She spreads her legs wider. “What did you think about?”
I drag the flat of my tongue higher up her thighs and then across the front of her panties. She shivers and instinctively closes her legs, but I don’t let her. I spread them open again, my fingers digging into her soft, supple skin.
“I thought about how good you taste,” I say between swipes of my tongue. She grows wetter by the second, and I love the taste of it. “How badly I wanted to run my tongue over every single inch of your body until you were left shivering.”
She moans and laces her fingers through my hair, encouraging me to come closer. I oblige and press my tongue harder against the fabric of her panties. She's so warm, and soon I'm not satisfied with just teasing her. I take both sides of her underwear and slide them down her legs to her ankles. With nothing covering her, Harlow's exposed.
I can't believe how lucky I am to see her like this again. Her cheeks are red like she's embarrassed, but her eyes are dark, and I know she wants me to keep going and never stop. I hike up her skirt and lower my head until I'm close enough to drag my tongue over her pussy. The moment I do, she gasps, her grip on my hair tightening hard. I grin and repeat the same movement, this time with much more pressure. My tongue slips inside for just a moment, but I'm already hooked on her taste once more.
Harlow's body responds more and more to my tongue, growing wetter with every flick I give. She can barely sit still, her hips rolling in sync with my tongue movements. I reach up and grab her ass, tugging her closer to me. Burying my face between her legs.
“Fuck,” she whimpers, her nails digging into my back as she rocks forward to match my speed.
I’m relentless, teasing her for a moment before flicking my tongue over her clit. Each time I do, it’s like a bolt of electricity shoots through her. She shivers nonstop, her body trembling with pleasure. I can’t get enough of her, and I slide my hands up her hips to her breasts, squeeze them. The fabric of her dress is in the way, so I pause to tug the dress down her shoulders to expose her skin. When I squeeze again, she lets out the most beautiful moan I’ve heard since we last had sex.
“Don’t stop.” She pants, her thrusts forward growing more and more frantic. I take her directions well, keeping the same pace as she approaches that peak. I can feel her muscles tightening, her thighs gripping around my neck as she chases the feeling. “Oh, god,” she cries, throwing her head back in pleasure.
Feeling her climax makes my cock ache impossibly hard, but I refrain from touching myself, at least for now. Harlow pants hard as ecstasy takes over, body even more sensitive to touch. I brush my fingertips over her nipples and trace light circles around her clit with my tongue, insatiable, greedy for more of her.
“Jesus, Liam,” she whispers after a few minutes, her body no longer vibrating with tiny shivers. She brushes her dark hair back and looks down at me. I pull back and look up at her with a smile, pleased with the complete satisfaction on her face. For a moment, Harlow says nothing. Her eyes sparkle, and without a word, she leans down to kiss me passionately. I ease myself up from the ground without break
ing the kiss. As I stand, I begin to undo my pants, starting with the belt.
Harlow pulls away and takes over for me, unbuttoning and unzipping my jeans. She shucks them down in a quick move, her palm flat against the bulge of my boxer briefs. Without warning, she leans forward and runs her tongue over the thin material.
“Mmm,” she murmurs, a mischievous look in her eyes. “I’m gonna get you nice and wet for me.”
Once she's finished teasing, Harlow discards my underwear as well, leaving me just as exposed as she is. She wraps a hand around the base of my cock, slowly stroking as she looks up at me. Just as I drew circles against her, she runs her tongue around my tip, peppering kisses here and there. It feels like forever until she wraps her lips around me.
The feeling makes my knees weak, a satisfied growl rumbling deep in my throat. Her mouth is hot and wet, and when she sucks just the head, she draws out more moans from me. I watch as she bobs her head and run my fingers through her hair. Before I get too close, I pull her head back and lean in for a kiss. When our lips pull apart, I lay Harlow on her back, climbing on top of her.
“Are you ready for me?” I ask, gripping myself and lining the head of my dick with her entrance. She nods, smiling as she bites on her bottom lip. I don't need any other signs that she's ready. With a slow, steady push, I slip inside, filling her with my cock. Her eyebrows knit together in what looks to be pain, but I know better. She moans that look soon melting into pleasure.
I go slow at first, relishing in the feeling as every inch of me slides inside her. Her body constricts around my length perfectly, and I can’t help but groan as I move my hips. I press my lips to her neck, sucking gently. I don’t want to leave any marks where someone might see, but I do lightly bite at her skin. She wraps her arms around me, pulling me closer.
“Yes!” Harlow pants, practically clawing at me. “Fuck me, Liam.”
When she says this, I begin increasing my speed, gradually getting faster and rougher with her. She takes it perfectly, whimpering each time I bury myself. She turns my head and kisses me, her hot tongue against mine, and I feel goose bumps on my arms.
I feel my temperature rising as I move faster, blinded by my need to make the two of us feel good. I don't stop, thrusting harder into the woman I love. To my surprise, in the middle of this intense moment, Harlow pulls back to look at me. She traces my bottom lip with her thumb, smiling softly. It's a tender gesture, and the look in her eyes makes me feel better than any sexual stimulation ever could.
“Fuck,” I exclaim, my hips mercilessly jerking forward as I come. A wave of ecstasy takes me over, and I squeeze my eyes as I ride out the powerful climax. By the time I come down from the feeling, I’m sweating, overworked from the activity. Harlow pulls me close and presses her lips to mine. After, she wraps her arms around me in a hug, her lips by my ear.
As softly as a whisper, she makes me promise. “Promise me you’ll always be here for more.”
After everything she and I have been through in the past four months, I'm ready to stick around for anything. We deserve more moments like these, without the fear of drama rearing its ugly head in our lives and overturning everything we've worked toward.
I don’t even have to think about my answer. “I promise, baby.”
Epilogue
Harlow
I can’t believe the turn out of this party. I always knew Liam had a lot of supporters, but this… This is something else entirely. People have come from all over the country to attend the celebration of Dirty Little Secrets topping both the USA Today and New York Times Bestseller’s lists, and I can’t feel anything but pride for my fiancé. He worked hard on this novel, putting up with all of my changes and all the drama that surrounded our time working together. It was almost impossible to think that just six months ago, I’d been worried we wouldn’t be able to pull this off.
With Kristen’s advice to keep the drama out of our work, somehow, we’ve managed to become the perfect team. He writes all night while I edit. There’s something beautiful about being able to sit in a room with the man I love, not saying a word, but feeling comforted with just his presence by me.
For so long, I've been someone that likes my time alone. I tricked myself into thinking that I could only ever be happy if I were by myself, but since moving in with Liam, I've found that I much prefer having someone else there with me. Someone who can talk to me about the stress of authors not meeting deadlines, or something much simpler like the plot twist in a show I'm binge-watching. When he's with me, I feel like I'm home.
A woman with a tray of drinks passes me by, offering me one of the sparkly concoctions. I wish I could say yes, but I shake my head, instinctively touching my growing stomach. “Only four more months until I can drink again,” I say to myself.
Even to this day, I still can’t believe that this is who I am now. Last year, I was the woman that relished in being alone and turned her nose up at the idea of a husband and family. Now? I’ve already designed our nursery and Liam and I have set the wedding for next November. It all came so fast, and my head is still spinning. Mom couldn’t be any happier.
She walks toward me with a smile on her face and a plate of finger food in her hands. She offers me a mini sandwich, and I snatch it up, devouring it.
“Someone’s hungry,” she teases.
“I’m starving,” I groan. “This girl is going to be the death of me.”
Mom chuckles and pats my shoulder. “Just wait until she’s born and you have to take care of her.”
The idea is terrifying and exciting at the same time. I'm not prepared, but then again, who is? Such a life-changing development. I'll no longer be living for myself. I'll have a child to take care of, someone to worry about for the rest of my life. A beautiful little source of never-ending stress. I love her already.
“There’s nothing to be scared of,” another voice says. I turn around to see Britney and Andrew together. She’s carrying a plate of snacks provided by Tyler’s catering service. Having my brother cater was Liam’s idea. One of my biggest fears was that they wouldn’t get along, but everyone in my family has been so open to the idea of Liam joining the bunch and marrying into the family.
“Yeah, well that’s easy for you to say. Three kids and all,” I murmur.
“The first is always the scariest. By the time I had little Bryce, he might as well have walked the red carpet out of me. No fear whatsoever. I didn’t even need the needle,” she says.
It’s supposed to be reassuring, but I wince at the idea. Noticing my discomfort, Andrew quickly says,
“Just squeeze Liam’s hand if you need it. Britney almost broke my fingers when she gave birth, but she told me it helped a lot.”
The idea of Liam wincing trying to keep up with my vice-like grip makes me laugh. “I’ll be sure to tell him to wear a boxing glove,” I say.
Mom starts to say something else when Liam steps up beside us. He gives her a quick hug and then pulls me into his arms. “Sorry to interrupt,” he says, “but they want us on stage here in a minute or two.”
I nod and finish the last of the sandwich. “Are you nervous?” I ask.
He snorts. “Not at all. The designers did such a good job. I can’t wait for everyone else to see it.”
I can’t argue with that. Danika, the head designer at Midnight, created such a stunning cover for the follow-up to DLS. We’ve already got the first print framed in Liam’s office. I know without a doubt that the crowd is going to go wild when they see it.
Across the room, I see Kristen waving us over. “Showtime,” I say, patting Liam on the butt and walking toward Kristen. She hands Liam a microphone. Before he goes on stage, I stop him and smooth out his clothes. He can be so lax about presentation, and I want him to look the best he's ever looked when he announces the name and the cover of the second book in his series.
When Liam steps up on the small stage, everyone at the party cheers for him. I can't help but clap as well. He deserves this kind of ce
lebration. Eventually, we all settle down, and he can talk.
“First, I want to say how grateful I am for each one of you for coming out tonight. I've never had a turn out as big as this for one of my parties before. It's genuinely insane. I don't even think I could thank you all enough, but I'll try. Thank you all so goddamn much.” He smiles when the room cheers again.
“I also want to thank my fiancée, Harlow Knight.”
Suddenly all eyes are on me. I dip my head in acknowledgment, heat creeping up my cheeks. Liam isn't finished, though, because he pulls me up on stage and kisses me. I playfully give him a shove when I pull back from his kiss.
“Without Harlow as my editor, this book would look a whole lot different. And by different, I mean shittier. She took my idea and helped me make it into something beautiful. And not only that, but she showed me, like Max in my novel, that risking it all for the woman you love is sometimes the only ending that makes sense.”
The crowd eats this up, and I’m overcome with a swell of emotions for Liam. I hate how cheesy and sentimental he is, but I never want him to stop. I could listen to him all day long.
“Now,” he says when the audience quiets down, “I’d like to show off the cover of my second novel in the Secrets series.”
When he says this, the large screen behind him hums to life. Displayed on it is the cover of the book. A man and a woman embrace passionately with the stylish script font spelling out the title. The pinks and blues and purples look gorgeous together, and I find myself mesmerized by it all over again. Danika outdid herself.
“There’s no official release date yet, but right now, we’re hoping for a summer release next year.”
The applause is deafening, and I can see the joy in Liam’s eyes. He turns to me and slips an arm around my waist. Despite how loud everyone else in the room is, I can hear him say something that makes my heart leap and my stomach flutter. Something I never thought I’d hear from a client, let alone one I’d gotten involved with.
