by Teagan Kade
“Well, that picture in your hand will go viral, my boss will fire me, and no one else will want to touch me. I’m supposed to clean up my clients’ scandals, not be part of them.”
“Come work for me directly. No more working for anyone else, and no more having to worry about that kind of bullshit,” I said.
“I’ll consider it. There is one thing we can and should do, though,” Tori said thoughtfully. “Do you trust me?”
I felt it in the depths of my soul. “You know I do.”
She looked over at Kevin. “You have it all lined up like I asked?”
He nodded to her. “They’re waiting in the press room.”
Tori smiled at me as she pulled the ponytail down, her long, curly waves roaming free over her shoulders. My fingers itched to touch her, but I knew it wasn’t time for that yet. She and I were going to have a talk, but I’d let her do her thing first.
“Make sure Shaun’s ready,” she directed Kevin. “I just need to make a quick stop to the little girls’ room. Give me ten minutes and meet me in there.”
“You’re the boss,” Kevin said with a mock salute.
Tori moved toward the restrooms while Kevin gave me a quick once-over. “Another fifteen minutes and she’ll be all yours.”
That was the best god damn news I’d heard in a long time.
Chapter Seventeen
Tori
I was in my element standing in front of a dozen of the most reputable reporters from across the industry. A quick change in the restroom had me in clothes I was much more comfortable in, though I had left my hair down because I knew Shaun liked it that way. After everything I’d done to him, I wanted to please him more than anything else in the world. This was one small step in the right direction.
“Thank you all for coming here tonight on such short notice. I know I promised you the first scoop on what is going to be the biggest story in sports for at least the next few days.”
“So, what’s the big secret, Tori?” one of the reporters in front asked. “Another big scandal?”
“It has come to Mr. Nichols’s attention that his manager, Mr. Nigel Ross, has been profiting from his recent run-ins with the press. In fact, Mr. Ross was paying both individuals and members of the press to show up and manufacture the sensational events that were then played out in front of the cameras without Mr. Nichols knowledge or consent.”
Several voices started speaking at once. I put my hand up in the air to quiet them. I looked next to me. Shaun stood there. I saw his jaw flex as he clenched his teeth, but otherwise he was the picture of calm composure. That was just how I needed him to be.
“Mr. Ross, having obtained these exclusive images and footage, then proceeded to sell these materials through an intermediary to the highest bidder in order to profit on their sale. I want to reiterate that my client, Mr. Nichols, had nothing to do with these fabricated, elaborate set-ups and was a victim in these circumstances of Mr. Ross’s attempts to slander him.”
“He beat up a guy, Tori,” one of the reporters broke in.
I saw Shaun’s eyelid twitch out of the corner of my eye, but I was prepared for this too. “Mr. Copeland, the reporter in that incident, has gone on record saying he was the one who initiated the physical contact in the incident between him and Mr. Nichols.” There was a collective murmur through the crowd as they processed this new nugget of information. “That’s why the charges were ultimately dropped. Mr. Ross was also collaborating with the witness to the incident, Ms. King. Mr. Nichols’s side of the story where he tried to tell officers this detail was buried. I am rectifying that now.”
I certainly hoped Kevin remembered to brief Shaun on that particular morsel of information. I knew he was probably beating himself up about the whole thing, but after some digging and a bit of cash, the reporter confessed he had been told to start something that day even if Shaun didn’t. Whether Shaun threw the first punch or not, Nigel had intended for the situation to go down exactly the way it had.
“Mr. Nichols! Do you have a comment?”
I stepped back from the podium. Shaun took my place. I sucked in a deep breath hoping this would go off the way we both needed it to and he would keep his cool.
“Thank you all for coming here tonight. This has been a long road for me since Rio,” Shaun said. He paused and shook his head as if he was silently trying to find the words to say what he wanted to say next. “I know everybody out there thinks I’m some kind of ticking time bomb. With everything that has happened I have to admit there was a part of me that started to believe it too. It seems like something out of a movie or book to think someone so close to me would be willing to sell me out so easily. What I’ve come to realize is that I put my trust in the wrong person. That has been a hard lesson to swallow.”
He looked at me, and I saw something in his eyes that called out to me. I knew I did the right thing. I didn’t care about my career anymore. I could build a new one. If Shaun was serious about hiring me, I didn’t have to give a flying crap about Martin or anyone else. I could manage Shaun’s career exclusively, and that was fine with me, because I found something else I wanted even more than a corner office at a top PR firm. I found a guy who made my heart sing and set my body on fire. That was worth whatever blowback would come our way if Nigel did release the picture. I’d manage it, and Shaun and I would get through it. Together.
That was assuming he still wanted to have anything to do with me in the romantic sense. He and I needed to talk about that, but right now, I was so proud of him for speaking his truth in front of the press. He was finally being released from the shackles of the bad boy image. He was starting over, and so was I.
“So what’s next?” came the next question.
“I’ve been fighting for years. I think it might be time to take a step back and reassess my life and my goals for my career.” Immediately, the questions rang out in a snarled mess. Shaun held his hand up. “I’m not retiring or anything like that. I just have a lot of other things on my plate right now that require my attention. I want to make sure that when I’m back, I’m showing all of my fans I am the right kind of role model for them, no matter how old they are.”
Shaun turned to me and motioned for me to come closer. “I’ve said already trust is something more important than I ever realized, and where you put that trust is important to evaluate on a regular basis.” He put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into him. There was a moment of hesitation before I let him squeeze me. I sensed this was important to him. “You have all met my PR agent, Victoria Ellis. I want to state for the record I am crazy about her, and if she’ll have me, I’m ready to yell from the rooftops exactly how I feel about her.”
My mouth fell open.
“Is Tori the girl in the photograph?” These guys were astute, no doubt about it. Shaun looked down at me with a question in his eyes. I took a deep breath.
“Yes, that was me,” I said, not taking my eyes off of Shaun. He leaned down and brushed his lips against mine, and for the first time I didn’t care who saw it. I was in the arms of the man who was about to change my world. I knew it could only be for the better.
Chapter Eighteen
Shaun
The press conference went on for another few minutes, but I didn’t even remember what I said. All I could think was when crunch time came, my girl didn’t flinch. I put myself out there and could have been publically kicked in the balls, but she didn’t do that. Instead, it was obvious, despite our heavy-handed diversions around the questions of our relationship status, that Tori and I were together. We were officially a couple. That made me the happiest man on earth.
I sat in the back of the taxi waiting as she told her friend Kevin goodnight. She crawled into the back next to me. I couldn’t help but wrap my arm around her and pull her close up to my side.
“That was exciting,” I said to her.
She chuckled. “Even more exciting than I expected.”
“Look, if you don’t want this
, then just tell me. But I figured if I let the cat out of the bag about our relationship, if Nigel does release the picture, it’s not any big revelation.”
“I know. He’ll still make a mint off of it,” Tori said.
“Well, I had his phone and laptop confiscated as soon as I figured out he’d been lying to me,” I said. “Hopefully we’ll have the originals on that.”
Tori sighed and leaned back against the seat. “I can’t believe this all happened. It’s like a dream.”
“The end of a nightmare,” I agreed. She looked up at me, and I wanted to crush her lips to mine, but we still had to talk about what happened between us.
As if she sensed my thoughts, she shook her head. “I’m sorry about what happened when I left. Nigel threatened to expose me and ruin my career if I didn’t leave right then. He told me I couldn’t say goodbye or speak to you ever again. He didn’t like that I was getting in the way of his plans for you, so he figured out a way to sabotage me.”
“Why didn’t you come to me and tell me what happened?” I asked, rubbing my thumb across her cheek. “I would have taken care of it. You should have trusted me.”
“Because I was scared,” she admitted. “I worked hard to get to where I was at and thinking about having that all vanish in front of my eyes seemed like it was the end of the world.”
It made me angry all over again to think of what Nigel had done to her. What he had done to us. “So what changed your mind?”
Her smile was soft and coy. “It took me a few days to realize it, but losing my job wouldn’t have been the end of my world at all. Missing out on something pretty great with you was the thing that scared me more than anything else. But by the time I figured that out, of course, you had already fired me and stopped calling. I was afraid you were already over me.”
I stared at her in shock. “Fired you? Nigel told me you quit. And you didn’t have any faith in us at all if you thought I could get over you in just a couple of days.”
We both realized we had been played. “That man is one incredible manipulator,” Tori said. “Maybe he should have gone into PR after all.”
“After that press conference, he won’t be able to show his face anywhere for a long time,” I said, gruff. “He made his bed. Now he can lay in it.”
I looked through the windshield and saw we were outside Tori’s hotel. “So, are you up for a nightcap?” I asked.
“No.” She shook her head.
I felt a small jolt of shock, but she put her hand on my face. “We always go to my place. I think it’s about time you took me back to yours, don’t you?”
I tossed the address to my hotel to the driver and offered to pay him double if he could make it in half the time. Tori laughed as I pulled her into my lap and finally claimed her lips.
“I missed this sexy body next to mine.” I nuzzled my nose against her ear and nipped at the tip of her earlobe. She gave a small yelp.
“Shaun!” she said in a weak protest, but I could hear the heavy note of desire in her voice.
I knew if I slid my hand between her legs there was a chance I’d be able to feel the heat of her desire even through her very professional dress pants. I wanted her naked and underneath me. That was all I could think about.
I scooped my hand under her hair against the nape of her neck and pulled her mouth back to mine. I slid my tongue against her lips, and she opened them for me. She gasped as my other hand slipped inside of the neckline of her shirt to dance along her collarbone.
Thankfully, the taxi pulled up outside of my hotel a minute later, because I was ready to strip her down and have my way with her right there in the backseat. I had no idea how much cash I actually threw at the driver when I got out. It had to have been more than double the fare, but I didn’t care. Hell, he should have been paying me for the show we gave him in the backseat.
I held Tori’s hand in a vise grip as I pulled her through the lobby. I didn’t care about the stares we got as we passed, and based on her pace as it quickened behind me, I don’t think she really cared either.
As soon as we were in the elevator and the doors closed, I pulled her closer and started to unbutton the top buttons of her shirt.
“Shaun,” she said, as she sucked in a breath, her head ducked against my chest. “We’re almost there.”
“Exactly. I want to have you naked and spread eagle in front of me in less than thirty seconds flat once we get through that door. I’m giving us a head start.”
She stopped my hands and looked up into my eyes. “I want this to be perfect.”
She wasn’t telling me no or to slow down. With those words, I understood what she wanted was something else entirely. I cupped her cheek. “Let’s have a drink first, okay? I have something I want to say.”
Tori nodded mutely, and I pulled her into a hard embrace. I wanted her. There was no hiding that fact. But my girl needed something else before we got there, and I wanted to give it to her.
We reached the top floor and stepped out onto the landing. My room was the only one on this floor, and Tori followed me to the door. I opened it. The first thing anyone would see was the skyline across the far wall that was floor to ceiling windows. I liked it because it reminded me of home. There was a balcony that ran the length of the floor on that side of the room. Tori went to it immediately.
She pushed open the sliding door and stepped outside. Seeing her hair blowing in the breeze against the backdrop of the skyline made my heart feel like it was going to burst. Somehow, someway, we’d done everything right this time. It called for a celebration.
I went into the minibar and found a bottle of champagne. Pulling it out, I noted the year and the label. This would be one to remember. I found a pair of champagne flutes in the glassware above the bar. There was a mirror behind the glasses that reflected the balcony behind me. I saw Tori leaning onto her forearms on the railing, standing still, watching the world below.
I popped the cork on the champagne bottle still watching her reflection. She turned her cheek over her shoulder at the sound and I saw there was a smile on her face. I wondered what was going on in her head. I hoped they were happy thoughts. She deserved to be happy.
Pouring the bubbly liquid into the glasses, I made my way out on to the balcony. Tori stood up straight and faced me as I came to stand beside her. I offered her one of the glasses, and she took it.
“What are we toasting?” she asked
“New beginnings,” I said. It was simple and perhaps a bit trite, but it felt honest.
She raised her glass. I clinked mine against hers. Then we both took a long sip. I took another step forward knowing that this put me in her space. She gazed up at me and didn’t move. I brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes.
I took another sip of champagne and lowered my lips to hers. She opened her mouth to me and gasped as I kissed her, my tongue delving into her mouth. I tasted her sweetness mixed with the sharp bite of the bubbles and felt heady. It was as if we had all the time in the world to explore each other. There was no hurry. There was nothing else that would pull us apart. I would make sure of that.
Tori’s body trembled against mine and I wrapped my arm around her to draw her close. I wasn’t sure if it was the chill or her response to me that caused her trembling, but either way, it was an excuse to feel her curves pressed against me.
I deepened the kiss and Tori melted. I pulled my lips away and took another sip from my glass as I felt her nip the point of my chin.
“I like it when you use your teeth,” I joked.
“Especially on particularly sensitive areas of your body, if I recall correctly.”
“Oh, you do,” I said, taking her hand as I stepped backward. I kept her at arm’s length and dropped into the chair behind me. “You know what I’d like to see?”
“What?” she asked.
“Your beautiful, naked body highlighted by the night sky,” I said, putting the glass down on the floor beside me. I clasped my hands behind my head
, leaning back.
She hesitated for only a moment before she took one more long sip from her glass and put it down beside her. Her fingers started to work on the buttons of her shirt, and then she pulled the hem out of her pants.
She left the shirt unbuttoned to her navel and slipped her pants down her toned legs. I spread my thighs so she could see the bulge in my pants. It was crazy how much she turned me on.
“More,” I said gruffly.
Tori turned around so her back faced me. She did a little shimmy and stuck her ass out toward me. The hem of her shirt rode up the backs of her thighs and I saw the tight globes of her ass come into view for just a second.
“You’re killing me here, babe,” I groaned. I slid my hand down to rub my cock.
“You get to touch yourself, but I don’t?” Tori asked in a mock sullen tone.
“Fuck, babe. You do whatever you want, and I’ll enjoy every minute of the show.”
She twisted around again and pulled her hair down around her shoulders as she let the shirt fall to the ground. She was bare everywhere underneath, but the strategic positioning of her hair hid her breasts from view. Still, the effect was stunning. She looked like a goddess.
“You minx. You weren’t wearing anything underneath that professional get-up,” I said, rubbing myself harder.
“How else do you think I was able to get ready for a press conference in less than ten minutes,” she chuckled. “You look like you’re hard for me.”
“Like a fucking rock.”
She slid one hand down between her legs and widened her stance. My eyes almost bulged out of their sockets as she reached down and dipped two fingers inside. Then she moved closer to me. As soon as she was in range, I grabbed her hand and pulled those two fingers into my mouth. I groaned, tasting her wet juices on my tongue.
She straddled my legs and stared down at me. “Tell me what you want, Shaun.”
I pushed forward in my seat and grabbed hold of her hips, rocking her body backward so she grabbed the railing behind her for balance. I pulled on the back of one of her thighs to lift her leg up and hooked it over my shoulder. This brought the juncture of her thighs directly in front of my face. I didn’t hesitate dipping my tongue into her wet folds.
