‘Look at me, Summer,’ he demanded, in a voice that told me non-compliance wasn’t an option. I peeked through my fingers, at least he hadn’t stormed out, but I cringed to see he was holding it up in the air. ‘This box?’
‘Yes,’ I whispered, feeling sick again. He surprised me by bursting out laughing, before running and leaping onto the bed, landing next to me.
‘I’m in love, Summer. I’ve not had a bloody lobotomy, proposing after we’ve spent a total of three nights with each other. We’re great friends and amazing lovers, but we need to know if we can live with each other, if we’re compatible in all areas, before I even think about buying a ring.’
‘You weren’t proposing?’ I gasped, as relief flooded my body and I dropped my hands to look at him wide eyed. He smiled and shook his head, holding the very box that had given me so much worry, out to me.
‘No. Here take it, look inside,’ he insisted, as he waved it at me. I frowned and struggled upright, pulling the duvet up to my chest, before taking the velvet box off him.
‘It looks like a ring box,’ I advised him as I shook it.
‘It is, it’s the one this titanium ring came in,’ he chuckled, as he held up his right hand to show me the overtly masculine ring he wore on his index finger. ‘Open the damn box before you have a heart attack.’
‘Ok.’ I opened it, the lid flipping back with a satisfying pop, and bit my lip as I giggled on seeing the contents. ‘A key? You got me a key?’
‘I figured if we were going steady, you should have a key to my place, so you can come and go to suit you. I even made space in the wardrobe for you, and cleared out a drawer, but if I’m “rushing things” then I guess we’d better call the whole thing off,’ he teased, his grey eyes twinkling with amusement.
‘Don’t you dare,’ I laughed, as I dropped it on the bedside table, then snuggled back down into the bed. I grasped his face and kissed him. ‘A key and some clothes space I can handle. I’m so sorry I over reacted.’
‘You nearly killed me this morning, please don’t ever run from me again. If you’re scared you talk to me in future, tell me how you’re feeling, don’t run. Ok?’ he tucked my hair behind my ear and held my face as he kissed me back.
‘Ok,’ I nodded. ‘Can I tell you how I feel now?’
‘Hungry and tired, and probably in that order. We didn’t get much sleep last night and we have been extra physical.’ A proud smile crept across his face.
‘We have,’ I blushed. ‘And I am hungry and tired.’
‘So I’ll make you pancakes and bacon with maple syrup, which I know you love, then we can sleep, ok?’
‘Ok, but that wasn’t what I was going to tell you.’
‘I’d better warn you, sexy as I find you, if you’re about to tell me that you need the toilet urgently, I don’t do well with the whole bowels talk stuff. My friend Brooke makes me cringe with some of her toilet tales.’
‘No,’ I laughed. ‘It’s not ladylike to discuss that, let alone with a boyfriend.’
‘O shit, say that again,’ he groaned, as he dipped his head and pressed his lips against mine.
‘You, Lucas Logan Steel, are now my boyfriend, but so help me God, if you hurt me I’ll castrate you.’
‘Never, angel. I’m in this until the universe implodes and everything ceases to be. Even death won’t diminish my love for you,’ he uttered sincerely, making my eyes fill with tears at the emotion in his voice.
‘Lucas. That’s so … beautiful.’
‘Just like my girlfriend,’ he smiled as he kissed my forehead. ‘So what were you wanting to tell me?’
‘Do you remember how you told me you were falling for me, and asked me to tell you that you weren’t in it alone?’
‘Yes,’ he nodded, a faint smile curling the edges of his sexy lips.
‘Well, you’re not. I’m right where you are too,’ I smiled, with a nervous bite of the inside of my lip.
‘Blissed out from impeccable sex and curled up in bed?’ he winked, mischievously.
‘Stop teasing me, I’m … I’m trying to …’ I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. You are twenty-four years old, Summer Beresford, you can do this, I told myself, as I reopened them to look at him. ‘You don’t have to wait forever to hear it, Lucas, because I’m in love with you too.’ I bit my lip harder as he blinked at me a few times, then slowly sat up and back on his heels as he stared at me. ‘Say something,’ I whispered.
‘I’m not sure I heard you right,’ he whispered in return. ‘I’m thirty now, I’m getting on and my hearing’s not as good as it was.’ I smiled and shook my head, I was always teasing him that he was an old man, given he had a few years on me. I pulled the duvet back and knelt in front of him, taking his hands and placing them over my heart, letting him feel how out of control it was.
‘I’m in love with you, Lucas. I panicked about you saying it to me earlier, but as soon as I got home I realised I was making a mistake trying to run from it, I was far too late to be running, because it had already caught me. You caught me, Lucas. I’ve been in emotional freefall since Antony tried to hurt me, never knowing who I could trust, but this morning as I sat here crying, I realised that I trusted you. That I loved you. You healed me with your patience and respect. You’re my best friend, my lover and my heart and soul. I need you like I need oxygen. Tell me that you won’t hurt me? I couldn’t bear to lose you now if we’re really going to do this.’
‘Angel,’ he groaned, as he grabbed my hand this time and kissed it. ‘You’re my oxygen too. From now on we’ll breathe for each other. Nothing in this world will ever make me hurt you, or I’d just be hurting myself. You own my heart, Summer. Completely.’
‘And you mine.’ I smiled as I watched some tears of happiness roll down his face. I reached out and wiped them away with my fingers. ‘So what now?’
‘So our relationship begins and nothing’s ever going to come between us.’ He grabbed me and pulled me back down onto the bed with him, holding me tightly, planting kisses all over my hair, as I responded with ones on his firm smooth chest. I was so happy. I bit my lip as I grinned like a teenager. I had a boyfriend. My first boyfriend. A seriously hot boyfriend with a capital … everything, as my best friend Mandy would say. Lucas Steel was as much mine as I was his.
After a hot shower to clean up, as well as get dirty in again, we finally got dressed and went to make a late breakfast. We discussed meeting each other’s parents officially. Lucas had met mine when he helped move us all into our new homes, I’d told them he was just a friend. Mum I was sure didn’t believe me. She knew we’d slept together that first time, then again when I spent the night with him after the premiere, but I hadn’t lied when I’d told her friendship was all we had since that moment. Until last night at least. I hadn’t met his parents yet though and that filled me with nerves. He was very close to them, what if they didn’t like me? He distracted me by telling me that he wanted to take a trip up to Scotland, when filming ceased, to introduce me to his best friend and his wife. I suggested us going to see my parents today, as I was due there for Sunday lunch anyway and Mum always cooked too much.
‘I’ll need to go home and change,’ he stated, as he looked down at his dark blue jeans.
‘You look fine,’ I tried to reassure him. Mighty fine, I thought.
‘I’m not meeting your parents, not officially as your boyfriend, dressed in my jeans. Let’s head over to mine, we’ll stop on the way for you to buy some spare stuff to leave in my wardrobe.’
‘Ok,’ I nodded with a smile and jumped up as my intercom rang.
‘I’ll go and get my jacket,’ he smiled, pecking me on the lips before disappearing. I headed out to the lobby and looked on the monitor, smiling to see Albert with a box in his hands.
‘Good morning, Albert,’ I beamed, as I opened the door.
‘Good morning, Miss Beresford. This just arrived for you, it looked expensive, so I thought I’d better not leave it down in reception.’
<
br /> ‘Thanks so much.’ I took the white box off him and smiled even more. It was from Parkers, London’s most expensive florist and it was tied with a black ribbon. Lucas. When had he arranged these? Albert winked at me before heading back to the lift. I shut the door and headed into the kitchen, placing the box on the island as I pulled the ribbon apart and lifted the lid. I frowned, the flowers inside were beautiful, very unusual, but so not what Lucas normally got me. He always got me calla lilies, my favourites, or red and white roses nestled in electric blue silk, as he said it matched my eyes. In this box, lined with jet black glossy satin, were five black roses. It seemed a little morbid and creepy. I pulled out his card and dropped it when I read the short message, horror coursing through my veins.
It looked like someone already knew we were a couple, which was incredible given that we’d only got together last night. We’d never kissed or held hands in public. Not that it mattered, me having a boyfriend wasn’t going to hurt my career, especially not one as hot as Lucas. What would hurt it, and my family, if I was reading this message correctly, was that someone knew he was Logan Steele, former escort for hire.
Logan
I pulled the envelope out of my jacket as she went to get the door, this bliss of the last few hours suddenly being washed away by a horrible sinking feeling as I looked at the printed “Mr. L. Steele” on the envelope. Maybe I was reading into things, maybe someone had just spelled it wrong, but how would they have known to leave me a message here? Today of all days as well. I rarely came here, in case the paparazzi took pictures. We’d agreed that as we were just friends, we shouldn’t be seen too much together, we’d tried to be careful when we met up. I guessed that was something we’d have to discuss now, if we were going to go public with our relationship. I ripped open the envelope and pulled out a small white card, my frown deepening as I saw it had white tape on with embossed black writing.
Logan? Fuck! So it wasn’t a spelling mistake on the envelope. Someone knew me as Logan Steele. It didn’t exactly matter that someone seemed to be threatening to out me to Summer, given that we first met when she booked me to take her virginity, she knew my history already. What mattered was that someone was making threats full stop. What was this, a disgruntled former client? Was someone looking to blackmail me in exchange for their silence? I turned the card over, but there was nothing else on it. It looked like one of those blank business cards you could buy in a perforated sheet to print your own cards at home. I shoved it back in my jacket, resolved to question Albert fully when Summer wasn’t with me. There was no point in upsetting her, not when I didn’t even know if this was just someone messing around, clutching at straws, or even what they hoped to gain from this. I strode into her open plan room to see her looking shaken, as she gazed down into a box on the island.
‘What is it?’ I asked, as I hurried over.
‘Did you send these?’ she asked, as her eyes flicked down, directing my gaze to the box of black roses. I recognised them as being from Parkers immediately. I used them for all of my flowers for her and my mother.
‘No of course not. Black roses is a bit creepy.’ She nodded her agreement and took a deep breath.
‘I didn’t think they were yours, but I had to ask in case you were messing with me. Someone knows, Lucas,’ she whispered, her voice shaking as she looked up at me, her bright blue eyes wide with fear as she handed me a small white card.
‘Knows what?’ I asked, trying to keep my voice calm as I looked down to see the same white tape and black writing and read the message. Your boyfriend is not what he seems. This wasn’t someone messing around. Someone had it in for me. That in itself I could handle. What I couldn’t handle was them dragging Summer into it too. She was too gentle and innocent to be played with.
‘Someone knows what you are.’
‘What I was,’ I corrected. ‘If that’s what this is even implying. It’s probably a practical joke by a crazy fan. We’ve had our picture taken together a couple of times, speculation was high after the movie premiere. Don’t let it upset you.’
‘It has upset me. If it got out about your former life, or that I booked you, it could end my career.’ Her voice was still shaking and I was inside, with anger at whoever was doing this. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her forehead. No way was I telling her about my note as well, not if she was this upset. I pocketed the card she’d given me.
‘Let’s just ignore it and go for lunch at your parents. If we get anymore like this I’ll get someone on it,’ I reassured her. The minute I was alone I’d be ringing a Private Investigator. There would probably be fingerprints on the card and with Ian’s computer hacking skills, it shouldn’t be too hard to match them up to someone. No one was threatening my girl’s career or upsetting her and getting away with it.
No one.
Tis the Season
Lucas
It had been a month since we got together, the best month of my life. Summer had just had a two week break after wrapping up on Broken Promises, before starting training for her next leading role. Much to her Dad’s relief, mine too, it was an action thriller, not an erotic romance movie. It had been bad enough watching her faking it on screen with Daron before, but now we were a couple, I’d want to rip apart any guy who laid his hands on her. We’d been up to Scotland to stay with my best friend and his wife. Summer had loved it there and they’d absolutely loved her, as I knew they would. I smiled to myself as I adjusted my shirt collar in the mirror, memories of sex with her yesterday morning playing through my mind. Not only was my angel a quick learner when it came to all things sexual, she was coming out of her shell, becoming more vocal in her demands, more sexually aggressive. And I had the scratch marks on my back to prove it. We’d spent Christmas Eve apart, which I’d found harder than I’d expected. We were spending today with my parents, as they hadn’t met yet, then Boxing day we were spending with hers, but she’d wanted to have Christmas Eve with them, it was a tradition and while she’d asked me to come, I didn’t want to intrude. We’d have plenty more Christmas Eves to spend together. I hadn’t done this couple thing in forever, definitely not the meet the parents thing. Sex aside, or watching Summer smiling and happy, one of the happiest moments for me was when I was watching Football or Rugby, a beer in my hand, and her head in my lap. Just being a normal guy, doing normal things. I grabbed my phone and smiled to see a message from her.
Happy Christmas! Dad’s just dropped me home, I forgot to pack the dress for meeting your parents, I’m a bag of nerves. See you here in a while. Love you, S x
Happy Christmas angel. They don’t bite you know, they’re going to love you, just like I do. Calm down and deep breaths. Leaving now, see you in a while x
I grabbed my overnight bag and the large bag of presents and headed out, locking up behind me. I loaded up the boot of the car, before climbing in the driver’s seat and adjusting my rear view mirror. I was about to reach for my seatbelt, when I noticed an envelope tucked under my windscreen wiper. I was parked in one of my two spaces, outside my warehouse apartment, so it wasn’t a parking ticket. I grabbed it and got back into the car as I opened it. My stomach dropped as I pulled out a familiar white card, with a message applied in tape.
‘She already fucking knows,’ I hissed, anger igniting me as I looked around, to see if anyone was nearby, or watching. How the hell did someone know where I lived? I rubbed my forehead as I tried to process it. Ian had found me one of the best Private Investigators in London, he’d worked the famous Campus Killer case in Westhampton a few years ago, saving the life of my lawyer’s daughter-in-law in the process. Mason had confirmed that the original cards sent to Summer and I had no finger prints anywhere on them. The florists advised that a few months earlier she’d received an envelope, put through her letterbox, containing cash and a small sealed card, with instructions not to open the card but attach it to a delivery when requested. She was instructed to hold the cash until she received a call from a Mr. Black, requesting five black
roses in a black satin lined white box, tied with black ribbon, to be delivered to Summer Beresford, address to be confirmed.
Apparently this “Mr. Black” had also enclosed a £500 tip to ensure that she followed his demands. She hadn’t kept the envelope and Ian had hacked her phone records for the morning the order was placed, but the number that seemed to fit the timeline was no longer in service. Ian was sure it was a burner phone. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to cover their tracks. None of us had any clue why at the time. We’d worked on the assumption that if they wanted money, they’d have threatened to out me with the first warning and demanded something for their silence. Or at least give us some damn evidence that they could backup their claims. But this second card seemed to imply that it was all about Summer, not me or money. And that got me seriously angry. I headed back into my apartment and grabbed a freezer bag, carefully putting the card and envelope into it, trying to preserve any trace of evidence for Mason to follow when I got it to him. I shook myself down, it was Christmas bloody day, I wasn’t going to get wound up today of all days, not when Summer was meeting my parents for the first time. Besides this warning was hardly a valid threat, when she already knew about my past and had accepted me regardless. We loved each other, some arsehole with a bloody Dymo label maker and too much time on his hands, with cash to burn, wasn’t going to change that.
Summer
‘Dad, I really need to get ready, Lucas will be here soon,’ I warned him, as he showed no signs of moving from the armchair he’d positioned himself in. He’d spotted the contract for my new film on the coffee table and had taken it upon himself to read the fine print.
‘I can’t say hello to my future son-in-law on Christmas day?’ he winked.
For the Night - Complete Box Set Page 50
