Dynassy had told me about how their mother had tried to break up Nick and his girlfriend, Eden. I didn’t blame the guy for being pissed. The Barnes matriarch sounded like a piece of work, and I wasn’t really looking forward to meeting her.
“You’ll be fine,” I said, trying to reassure her. “It’s only a few lines.”
“And at the end, you’ll go out there with me, when Eden and the babies come out?”
“Sure.” I didn’t like the idea of being unveiled as the token veteran in the bunch, but I disliked the idea of disappointing Dynassy more.
This would be my first time meeting any of the Barneses, besides Ivy, and I had to admit I was nervous. Even though I didn’t view celebrities as anything more than regular people, it was intimidating to be in the same room with five of them who were all related.
Just before she took me into the trailer to meet them all, Dynassy rolled her eyes at me. “Don’t worry. They’re just my family.”
That didn’t help. I’d be nervous meeting the family of any girl I liked as much as I liked her.
But as I followed her into the ice-cold trailer, I plastered a smile on my face and shook a lot of hands as the introductions flew.
“Hi again,” Ivy beamed.
“Hi, Ivy. How’ve you been?” At least there was one person I’d already met, and if the smile on her face was any indication, she was going to be friendly.
“Hey, man. Good of you to do this.” Leo shook his head with admiration. “You’re a braver man than me.”
I wasn’t sure what he was talking about, and it must have showed on my face, because he said, “Meeting the girlfriend’s family and agreeing to be on TV all in one day? That’s brave, my brother.”
Relief flooded me, and we both laughed.
“Yeah, it’s a lot, but your sister asked, so I had to say yes.”
“Ouch!” He clapped me on the shoulder. “So you’ve got it bad, then?”
“I guess I do.”
“Shut up, Leo,” Dynassy griped.
“What?” Leo held up his hands then retreated. “Just making the guy feel at home.”
“Don’t listen to him,” Lucinda said, linking an arm with mine. “I’m so thrilled you’re here. Today is going to be a busy day, but I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”
“Me too,” I said.
“Where’s Nick?” Dynassy asked.
“He’s with Eden and the twins. I got them their own trailer, screaming babies and all that. It’s behind this one if you want to go see them. Just be quiet in case the babies are asleep. Eden gets so mad if you wake them up.”
Just then the door to the trailer opened and Nick Barnes ducked his head inside. “Hey, anybody got any infant acetaminophen?”
“No. Why would we?” Lucinda asked impatiently.
“I thought we might have left it in here. I don’t know.”
“Hey, Nick, this is Bridger,” Dynassy said.
Nick looked up at me and extended a hand. “You work with Sal, right?”
“Sure do.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“You too,” I said.
“Why do you need the medicine?” Dynassy asked.
Nick put his hands on hi head. “Annabelle and Albert are both teething. It’s nonstop screaming unless they’re sleeping or nursing. I don’t think I’ve slept in days.”
“That’s why you should have let me hire that baby nurse for you, but noooooooo.” Lucinda turned to me, a new person to tell the story to. “But Eden wouldn’t hear of it.”
I felt like I was being drawn into a family argument, and I didn’t like it.
“We can get one of the runners to go pick you up some,” Dynassy offered.
“Oh, that would be great. Thanks.” Nick staggered out the door, and I hoped the guy got a nap soon.
Dynassy got on the phone and started giving instructions.
“Hey, Bridger.” Leo motioned to me from the back of the trailer.
Unsure if I should leave Dynassy, I followed him to the back where they had a couple of comfortable chairs and a TV.
“NBA 2K?” he asked, handing me a game controller.
Grateful for a distraction, I took it and sat down. “Sounds good. Who gets to be Nick?”
“That trash player?” Leo kidded. “You can have him.”
“All right then.”
So Leo and I played video games until his sound check, but he was back pretty quick, and that’s how we passed the time until the show started. At first I wondered if Dynassy might feel abandoned by me, but she and her mother seemed so busy running around checking on things, I’m not sure she missed me.
“It’s best to just stay out of their way on days like this,” Leo advised, and I could tell he had enough experience to know.
As I observed from a short distance most of the day, I formed the impression that Dynassy’s mother, Lucinda, was a true force of nature. She rushed around decked out in some frilly blue outfit that was heavy on the ruffles. Her hair was so black it was almost blue, and she reminded me of an older version of Veronica from the Archie comic strips.
She was much more charismatic than I expected, at one point taking both my hands in hers. “Bridger, we are so honored to have you here with us today. Thank you for your service. I don’t know what we would do without brave young men like yourself.”
“Let’s hope we don’t have to find out. Thanks for inviting me,” I said, and I was starting to mean it.
Her smile lit up, and she turned to Dynassy. “I think this one’s a keeper.”
Dynassy just smiled. It was then I noticed the cameras were rolling. This was going to take some getting used to, having everything that you did being filmed.
Once the show began, I had a front-row seat, along with several of the other veterans Dynassy had met at the wounded warrior event. We watched as Ivy and Leo put on a show that was a mixture of their pop songs and patriotic and Americana tunes.
Then they took a break and showed some clips on the Jumbotron of American soldiers returning home after deployment, then an orchestra played some of John Philip Sousa’s marches, and ended with a medley of songs about the American flag. Then Dynassy came out and joined Ivy and Leo for the last song, a rousing version of “I’m Proud to be an American.”
When it was her turn to sing, Dynassy belted out her line, and the crowd cheered. I wasn’t sure if she was aided by Auto-Tune or if she just nailed it, but either way I was proud of her. It wasn’t easy singing with her brother and sister, who had so clearly inherited their father’s vocal talent. Near the end of the song, she invited me up on stage, where she embraced me enthusiastically and kissed me on the cheek.
Was Dynassy using me to improve her public persona? I didn’t think so, but even if she was, I was no better, keeping secrets from her that I knew would change how she felt about me.
I knew that once she and her clan found out about my business, she would dump my ass. In fact, if the public found out, her reputation would take a nosedive, and she didn’t deserve that.
But did I come clean and tell her the truth about me?
Fuck no.
Why?
Because she was the answer to my wet dreams, the ones that had been nonexistent for the past five years. She was my boner fairy, and I was too superstitious and selfish to tell her the one secret I knew would make her bolt.
I had no business judging the Barnes’ motives, as mine were probably even more insidious, so I just smiled at the audience and was happy to be there.
Then a video popped up on the Jumbotron. It was an interview with Dynassy about her relationship with me. There was even footage of us dancing at the benefit.
As she hugged me to her, I stiffened.
Thousands of eyes were on me in the park—and millions watching me and this video online. I tried to keep from cringing under the lights, and forced myself to keep smiling.
Then Dynassy was onscreen again with her mother again saying how proud
she was of me for the way I served our country. “His sacrifice makes you love him even more, doesn’t it?” Lucinda asked.
Dynassy nodded and Lucinda enveloped her in a hug. Then Lucinda inclined her head to the camera as if to say, “Aren’t they adorable?”
What the fuck? When I turned to look at her, she reached up and planted a big kiss on my lips.
The crowd went wild, the orchestra launched into the “1812 Overture,” and I strode off the stage.
Dynassy was right behind me. “Bridger, what’s wrong?”
I marched ahead, until I’d gotten out of earshot of the crew, then I turned to her.
“That was really awkward out there.”
“I didn’t know what Lucinda was going to show. I should have thought to warn you, but I honestly didn’t think it was going to be that big of a deal.”
“So you ‘love me’ because of my service? What the hell is that?”
“I don’t know. I do. I mean, I could…”
“Really? That’s how you tell me you love me? Or was that just a load of crap for your fans?”
She tilted her chin defiantly. “I have feelings for you.”
“Feelings? So that was just an exaggeration?” I paced the floor, fuming. “Your family is something else, Dynassy. How much of this is real, and how much of it is so you can look good on TV?”
“The internet. This special is going on the internet.”
“You know what I mean!”
“Okay, okay. Sorry. But no, it is real. I do have feelings for you. Bridger, I really like you. I think I am falling for you. I admit, I do hope it helps the American people see me as more sensitive and kind to vets, but that’s not why.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“No—I mean yes. I was worried about repairing my reputation after I fucked up and said that stuff about the homeless guy and it was all caught on video. That’s why I was at that veterans event where we saw each other in the first place. I thought you knew that.”
“I did, but I didn’t know how far you would take it.”
“You mean you didn’t know if I’d pretend to like you just to improve my reputation? Listen to yourself. Doesn’t that sound messed up?”
“Yeah, but I hate to tell you—your family is fucked up. Your mom is manipulative as hell, and scary charming. She tried to break up your brother’s family and yet he’s still here. What’s up with that? If that was my mother, I don’t know if I could forgive like that.”
“Look, I can’t control what happens in my family. Eden’s mother convinced Nick and Eden they needed to forgive Lucinda. Her mom’s all about peace and told them if they didn’t forgive her, the babies would suffer, and that it would eat them alive inside.” Dynassy shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not sure I’d be able to forgive her either if I was Nick, but Bridger…families are fucked up. That’s how they are. Ours is just more fucked up than most.”
“And you’re fucked up on camera.”
Dynassy laughed. “True.” She put her hand on my arm tentatively. “Listen, I’m sorry I didn’t warn you. I’m used to going out with guys who want to be on TV.”
My brain told me to stay mad at her, but the way she looked at me with those big brown eyes made me melt. “The internet. It’s going to be on the internet.”
We both laughed.
“Yeah. I’m sorry. This is all new for me,” she said. “I’m going to make mistakes.”
“Even newer for me.”
She hooked her arm through mine. “Maybe we can navigate it together?”
“Roger that.”
And I kissed her like I never wanted it to end.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Dynassy
I knew Bridger had issues with my family, so when we were alone later that night, I did my best to make him forget all about that.
He took me back to his house, a place I was getting used to. During the last week I’d spent several nights there.
“You really did me a favor today, you know.”
“Yeah?” he teased, and I was happy to see from the grin on his face that he wasn’t mad at me.
“However will I pay you back?” I giggled, sliding to the floor, my hands running down the denim that covered his muscular thighs. With deft fingers, I unzipped his jeans and peeled them back, kissing the scars underneath.
“I think you’re off to a good start,” he said with a hitch in his voice.
Some women might have been turned off by the puckered patches of skin, but to me they were a visible reminder of Bridger’s heroism. Badges of honor, they ensured I never took his presence for granted. Each time I looked at them, I breathed a little deeper, aware of how close I came to never even meeting Bridger. If he’d been standing just a few steps closer to where that IED went off, I never would have known him, and I certainly wouldn’t be kneeling before him, touching him, loving him.
As I freed him from his boxer briefs, I gave him a firm tug before I covered his tip with my mouth.
A ragged sigh escaped his lips, and I cupped his balls in one hand, settling in to pleasuring him with my mouth.
“God, you feel so good, girl,” he crooned, and I swelled with happiness. There was nothing I loved more than melding our bodies so they moved as one.
In the past with my lovers, I’d hated to give guys blow jobs. Chalk it up to me being spoiled, always in demand. I have to admit I took advantage. I’d only seen the giving as part of the bargain you made with the other person. A tit for tat sort of thing. Watching the clock while giving head was something I’d done frequently, wondering, how much longer do I really need to do this? You know, to be a good sport.
But with Bridger, it was different. With him, I actually enjoyed giving him pleasure. I liked the musky smell of him, reveled in the little sounds he made that told me I was driving him crazy. Nothing turned me on like the catch in his breath when he was about to come. I even craved the taste of him.
Being with him was like rediscovering sex. I couldn’t get enough of it, every bit of it.
He caught me by the wrists and withdrew from my mouth and I let him pull me to standing. “Take off your clothes,” he ordered me, and I complied. As I unfastened my dress and let it slip to the floor, he stripped his clothes off, leaving them in a pile next to mine.
Dragging me to the bed, he lied down on his back and beckoned me to climb on top of him.
When I did, he shook his head. “Other way. I want to watch that ass bounce up and down on my dick.”
A shiver ran through me. I loved it when he ordered me around like that. I’d never have put up with it from anyone else, but there was something about him that made me feel okay about submitting to his wishes.
I trusted him. In many ways, Bridger Thompson was the best person I’d ever met. Selfless. Intelligent. The kind of man I could place my faith in. And it felt kinda nice to let someone else take the lead.
Climbing astride him, facing his feet, I lowered myself onto his stiff rod. Knowing he’d requested this position for the view it provided, I rode him sensuously, rounding my hips in a rhythm like a belly dancer.
He smacked my bottom with his hand.
“Ouch!” I cried, though it didn’t really hurt that badly. In fact, I liked it.
His response was to smack it again.
I moaned, enjoying the intoxicating mixture of pain and pleasure.
I raised and lowered myself onto him, plunging him deeper and deeper inside of me, the sweet tension building with each movement until he finally said in a husky voice, “Turn around. I need to see that beautiful face.”
Flushing at the compliment, I turned and readjusted my body so that we were face-to-face.
“That’s better.” He reached up and took my face in his hands, and pulled my lips to his. Supporting myself with my hands, I collapsed on top of him, losing myself in his kiss.
When I’d switched positions I’d lost the connection, but his cock throbbed against my opening, seeking me out once more, and before
I knew it he was filling me from below.
I lifted myself onto my hands, grazing a breast across his face. He took it into his mouth as he buried himself inside me. He suckled, fueling my lust until I couldn’t stand it anymore and I pulled away, sitting up.
“Oh yeah. That’s it. Let me look at you while I fuck you.”
I laughed nervously. For all the sexy photoshoots I did, and the confident persona I showed to the world, I didn’t always feel that way inside. Being under such scrutiny in such an intimate situation was different. Suddenly, I felt vulnerable and tried to cover my breasts with my hands.
Bridger’s hands clamped down around my wrists. “No. Let me see you.”
He held my hands together in front of me then began to thrust up into me. At first his strokes were long and slow. Drawing out every inch of his intrusion, he held me captive above him, torturing me with the pleasure of his pulsing penis sliding in and out of me.
Closing my eyes, I lost my balance, but he steadied me with his strong grip. “I won’t let you fall. Just feel it,” he encouraged.
I whimpered, and he drove up into me, this time picking up the pace. Biting my lip at the intensity, I concentrated on my climax and tried not to topple over.
I groaned, and it wasn’t long until a roaring orgasm took hold of me and racked my entire body. The divine sensation started in my legs and rose up into the tips of my fingers, constellations of lights crashed behind my eyelids, and I shook with ecstasy.
He pumped his hips a few more times before I heard that catch in his throat that was becoming all too addicting as he came.
Dropping my wrists, he welcomed me into his arms, and I snuggled into the crook of his armpit as he drew me into a comfortable embrace.
“That was wonderful,” I said.
He gave me a squeeze. “Glad you liked it.”
I giggled softly. “I did,” I said, squeezing him back.
Before long, he was snoring like a bear in his winter cave.
I tried to fall asleep myself, but my mind insisted on going a hundred miles an hour. I was thinking about the show earlier, an upcoming photo shoot scheduled for next week, as well as the christening of Nick and Eden’s twins, which they told us about today. With so much rolling around in my brain, I knew I wasn’t going to be sleeping anytime soon, so I decided to get up.
The Barnes Family Romances: (Books 1-3) Page 26
