Unmasked

by Stefanie London

  “So am I,” he said.

  “Yet you’re here, wearing a mask. Why?”

  “I needed to see you.” His cologne mingled with the heavy air, the scent of impending storm making it feel like she was experiencing him through a veil. It was otherworldly. Dreamlike. “I needed it like I have never needed anything else in all my life.”

  Her breath stilled. Believing him was hard, because she’d fallen for him over and over again—her heart couldn’t take another hit. She was battered and bruised and still in recovery.

  “How the hell did you even get in?” She glanced at the doors, which glowed with warm light. “This party is pretty exclusive, in case you didn’t know.”

  His lip twitched. “I have my ways.”

  “Are you trying to tell me you gate-crashed a party in a mask just to talk to me?”

  His soft chuckle rolled over her like a wave, threatening to pull her under and hold her there until the last bit of air was suffocated out of her. “I wish I could say I was as successful a gate-crasher as you, but no. I pulled strings...a lot of them. All of them, actually.”

  “All of them?” She tilted her face up, terrified of the glimmer of hope in her voice.

  “I bribed Imogen and Corinna to find out where you were. I called every person I knew on this side of the world until I found someone who could get me into this party, and I got a call with the lecture of my lifetime from Jerry McPartlin because I bumped his meeting to get on the earliest possible flight.” He laughed. “The bastard fired me and went back to Ben.”

  And he didn’t sound the least bit cut up about it. Lainey blinked and shook her head. “But you worked so hard to sign him.”

  “It was all worth it to see you.” His hand came up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear and she shivered—not from the cold, but from fighting the need to launch herself into his arms. “I love that you kept your hair red. It’s perfect on you.”

  “Damian, stop.” She closed her eyes for a second, trying to ground herself. “Why did you do all that?”

  “Because you were right. I was chasing revenge and clinging to the past. I wanted to sign him for all the wrong reasons. I would never have pretended to be engaged for any other client, but I was so hell-bent on getting back at Ben that I was willing to do anything.”

  “Even pretend to be engaged to me,” she whispered.

  “That part wasn’t a hardship, trust me. But it was still wrong.”

  “And you came all this way to tell me that our fake engagement was wrong.” Bitter disappointment clawed at the back of her throat. “Sounds like a waste of a flight.”

  “I came here to tell you I’m sorry.” He cupped her face, brushing at her cheek where an errant tear had fallen. She hadn’t even realised her eyes had welled up until she saw the moisture on his thumb when he pulled his hand back. “I shouldn’t have involved you in my personal problems. I especially shouldn’t have asked you to act for me. But more than that, I’m sorry I was too fucking stupid to acknowledge that you stopped being a friend a long time ago.”

  “How long?” she whispered.

  “Too long. The night you kissed me... God, I wanted to kiss you back. But it wasn’t appropriate.” He shook his head. “You were so young and vibrant, and I was terrified I was going to drown you with all my baggage.”

  “Screw being appropriate. I left school the second I could because I was sick of all that thou shalt behave bullshit. I won’t be forced to fit into someone else’s box.”

  She knew that now. Trying to mask her feelings—whether with a physical mask or with loud clothing and lewd jokes—wasn’t working for her. Some of it was real, but much of it was a front. A way for her to pretend like nothing hurt.

  But it did. Walking away from Damian that final night had been as painful as any real blow.

  “You always danced to the beat of your own drum, didn’t you?” he said.

  “Yeah. Too bad you wanted some perfect wife who wouldn’t buck the rules.” She was baiting him. “I can’t be that person. I won’t be that person. I need to be me.”

  She had to—it was the only way she could be happy.

  “You should be you. But I do love that you’re crazy enough to dress up in disguise and take what you want.” He lowered his forehead to hers. “I love that you don’t take no for an answer and you find your own solutions when life doesn’t give you what you want.”

  “Even if I fooled you into sleeping with me?”

  “If you hadn’t, we probably wouldn’t be here now. And I’d still be blind to the fact that I’ve wanted you for too goddamn long.”

  “What are you going to do about it?” She squared her shoulders and met his gaze, telling him with her whole body that she wouldn’t settle.

  The rain fell, drenching them with fat, pelting drops. Her tights clung to her legs, chilling her and making her yearn for the warmth of his lips and hands and tongue. But she wouldn’t move an inch until she had what she wanted. Him. All of him. The only man she’d ever loved.

  “I’m going to be honest with myself. With you.” He gripped her hands, the water running in rivulets over them. “I love you, Lainey Kline. I love your antics, your determination, your loyalty, your incredibly sexy body. I wanted you and I always have, even when I couldn’t admit it.”

  “Why now?” Her voice trembled.

  “Because I lost you and it was the single most painful experience of my life.” His Adam’s apple bobbed. “It felt like someone had ripped my heart out, and I wasn’t prepared for it. So I’m here. I gave up McPartlin & Co. and I will give up everything else in my life if it means I can have you. I will move my whole fucking life to this godforsaken storm cloud of a country, if that’s what it takes.”

  The flicker of hope had turned to a blaze, the fire in her heart kindled by his words and his touch. “You’d move here for me?”

  “For you, princess, I’d go anywhere.”

  She threw her arms around his neck and mashed her lips to his. It wasn’t a kiss fit for a fairy tale—it was messy and hot. Open and seasoned with rain and tears. The weather continued to bear down, but Lainey wouldn’t let go. It was nothing like how she’d dreamed it would be as a girl. But it felt so right. So perfectly imperfect. Like her. Like them.

  “I guess I’ll have to take you inside now and introduce you around.” She grinned. “How are we going to explain the mask?”

  “Tell them it’s payback.” He coaxed her lips apart for another searing kiss. “You fooled me once and now I’m getting you back.”

  “You’re a vengeful man, Rumpelstiltskin.” She tugged him toward the light. “You’re lucky I love you.”

  “I am so incredibly lucky.” Even with his mask, she could see the sincerity shining in his piercing grey eyes. “And I promise I’ll spend the rest of our lives making up for all that time I wasted.”

  Her eyes darted to the door. “Ah, screw the introductions,” she said, pulling him deeper into the shadows of the garden. “Time’s a-wasting. Let’s start making it up now.”

  EPILOGUE

  Three months later

  DAMIAN BOUNCED UP and down on the balls of his feet, jittering like a fighter waiting to swing his first punch. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, turning his usually calm and collected self into a bundle of nerves. Tonight was a big deal. The biggest deal.

  He finally had Lainey back home. All to himself. Her job in London had kept her busy, and she had settled in. Eventually. But doing the long-distance relationship wasn’t easy, and she’d insisted he keep his business in Australia. Because she was going to see her six-month contract to completion and then she’d bring all that knowledge home and use it to find her dream job in the place where she belonged. In Melbourne. By his side.

  But there was only so much Skype sex that could satisfy him, and with their schedules—not to mention the twent
y-four-hour travel time from Melbourne to London—he’d been missing her like crazy. He hadn’t seen her in a whole damn month, and it was killing him.

  Tonight, however, would be everything he’d been waiting—and planning—for. It’d had taken him a bit longer than he’d wanted to get things arranged. But time had been required to get the stars—or in this case the moon—aligned.

  He tapped his foot as he stared at the stream of people in the arrivals area. They all seemed to blend into one human blob, until she appeared. Her bright red hair was a shocking contrast to her all-black outfit. She looked like some kind of sexy superhero ninja.

  And it sure as hell felt that way when she launched herself into his arms with all the force her slender frame could manage. He kept his feet firm on the ground and enveloped her, pressing his lips to hers and inhaling the oh-so-familiar scent of her perfume. His hands were in her hair, at her back, holding her so tight because the fear that she would evaporate into thin air was terrifyingly real. His throat felt raw from the emotion rushing up out of nowhere.

  Damian wasn’t the kind of guy to get all teary, but fuck if he didn’t feel a prickle at the back of his eyes. Who the hell was he right now?

  “I missed you so much,” she said, her own eyes sparkling. “And I really can’t wait until they invent teleportation so people don’t have to be on a plane for that long.”

  “Cool your jets, princess. You were in first class. That is nothing to complain about.”

  She grinned. “I was comfortable. But it was way too long before I got to see you.”

  “You’re here now.” The words clogged in his throat. “We’re together. Everything is right again.”

  The drive was quick. Lainey filled the car with her chatter and every little update on her life in London, her excitement and happiness radiating out and tangling him up. He’d planned the evening meticulously—every detail was carefully arranged, from the venue to the dessert to the view. And now he found himself as anxious as a teenage boy on his first date.

  “So what’s your angle tonight?” she asked as he navigated them farther into the city.

  “My angle?”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “I feel like you’ve got something up your sleeve.”

  He stifled a grin. The sky was darker now, but the city lights were a wash of glitter around them. He pulled up to the building that contained his new home and drove into the underground car park.

  “Where are we going?” Lainey peered out of the window, but there wasn’t anything to see except concrete pylons and rows of cars. “I thought you said you were staying in the hotel so we could find something when I came back.”

  “I never said that specifically.” He pulled into his parking spot and killed the engine. “Now will you stop it with the questions?”

  “Never.” She shot him a grin.

  How had it happened that he’d fallen head over fucking heels for this crazy girl who was a decade younger than him, who was wild on the surface but loyal and fierce underneath? Who had an open heart and an open mind and a set of legs that totally undid him?

  They sat in the car, the silence only broken by the sound of their breath. “Do you trust me?” he asked.

  She looked at him with love shining in her face. “Absolutely and completely.”

  He got out of the car and retrieved her suitcase from the boot. Its wheels squeaked as they walked toward the elevator, and he made a mental note to send her back to London at the end of her week off with a new one.

  The second the elevator door opened, Lainey squealed. “I know this elevator!”

  “Damn, and I was hoping to keep it a surprise until the big reveal.” A roguish smile tugged at his lips and he ran a hand along his jaw.

  “When did you move in?” They arrived at the top floor and entered the apartment.

  “Last month. They had trouble selling it, so I had the chance to negotiate.”

  “I know how much you love doing that.” She grinned. “I can’t believe you bought this place.”

  The apartment was almost unchanged from when they’d inspected it together, because he wanted her input when she finally returned from London.

  “It’s perfect,” she said, her eyes wide and her hand clamped over her mouth.

  “We’re going to make it ours, Lainey. Together, as partners.” He gently tugged her hand down and scooped her up in his arms. “We’re going to decorate it together, and we’re going to mark it with memories. When I said I would spend my life making up for lost time, I meant it.”

  He took her to the bedroom and laid her down on the bed, her red hair fanning out all around her. She looked like a goddess. A vision.

  “Don’t even think about it,” she said, squirming under his grip. “I showered at the lounge on my stopover in Singapore, but that was eight hours ago. You’re not getting into my pants yet.”

  “Don’t think about it?” He laughed, crawling up over her body and nudging her legs apart with his knee. “Baby, it’s all I’m capable of thinking about. You don’t know how hard it makes me to know I’ve got the woman of my dreams in my bed. Our bed. I’m not letting you go until I’ve felt those beautiful thighs shake around me, until I’ve heard that sexy, raspy voice begging me to go harder and deeper.”

  “You think you’re so enticing,” she teased, looping her arms around his neck. Her back bowed as he pressed his hips down to hers. “And for the record, I know exactly how hard you are.”

  “It’s so good to have you home. Skype doesn’t cut it.” He pressed his lips to her neck, slipping one hand under her top to find her breast. His cock pulsed, desperate from weeks of knowing nothing but his own hand.

  She reached down between them and pulled his zipper down, wrapping her fingers around his cock. “Hmm, home. I like the sound of that.”

  “Enough talking.” He tugged her pants down in one smooth motion.

  When he slid into her, it was like everything he’d been waiting for—the feeling of rightness rocketed through him and he bundled her up in his arms the way he’d dreamed of every night since he’d come back home from that first trip to London. Her lips were on his, her body needy and demanding, hips meeting his thrust for thrust as he buried himself inside her. They were still mostly dressed, but he didn’t care. Because he needed her now, and not one second could be wasted.

  “Lainey,” he sighed into her ear as he cradled her, taking and giving with everything he had. “I love you so much.”

  “I love you, too.” Her eyes were heavy-lidded, her cheeks flushed. And the little dent her teeth made in her lower lip was enough to make his entire body shudder with pleasure.

  “I’m in this for the long haul, you know.” He brushed a strand of red hair from her forehead, touching his lips to hers. “Forever.”

  “And ever,” she whispered, her body trembling as he nipped at her skin. “Just like I always wanted.”

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from INKED by Anne Marsh.

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  Inked

  by Anne Marsh

  CHAPTER ONE

  Vik

  BEFORE I TOUCH even so much as an inch of sweet, creamy skin I know I want to spank her, mark her. Make her mine. Take her heart-shaped ass and all the softness she’s hiding from me. Doesn’t hurt that she’s wearing plain white cotton panties, the kind designed to cover up rather than to showcase but that instead makes a man like me think about turning good girls bad. She’s tucked the waistband down to give me more room to work. Thoughtful as fuck, right? I can’t stop looking at the tattoo chair where she’s spread out, waiting for me to ink her. I’ll be her first because nothing but virgin skin meets my greedy eye.