The Trouble With Gravity

by K. K. Allen

A scream tore from my mouth.

  My foot slipped against the wet metal.

  My head slammed against the plank.

  Then everything went fuzzy.

  Then it went black.

  Chapter 38

  Sebastian

  The room was too quiet, save for the beeping of the monitor hooked up to Kai. Her eyes were closed, her breathing normal. If not for the bruising on her forehead and elbows, a person could be fooled into thinking she was just resting soundly. I wished that were the case.

  A voice burst through my thoughts, and I turned my head to see Wayne arguing with a nurse outside the room.

  “My friend is in there,” he said. “I’m practically family. Just let me in.”

  I held up a hand when the nurse turned to look at me, and I nodded. “Let him in.”

  The nurse nodded and moved to one side. “Okay, but due to space, we can only allow one visitor to stay with the patient. I’ll give you fifteen minutes, then one of you needs to leave.”

  Wayne flew past her, a wild look in his eyes as he searched the room for Kai. “Oh my God.” He spotted her a second later and held a hand to his chest.

  “She’ll be okay.” My words were rushed, hoping to help him avoid a freak-out.

  “Then why is she still here?” Wayne took my spot at Kai’s side and leaned in to kiss her forehead.

  “It was a pretty good fall. She has some bruising, but that’s about it. The doc pumped her full of meds so she would rest off some of the pain.”

  Wayne’s eyes were glued to Kai. “Jesus. How did it happen?”

  I’d only texted him the CliffsNotes version of the story. “We were coming back on the ship, and she was rushing to cross the plank. It was wet from the rain, and she slipped. Then fell and hit her head. Doc said she’ll be fine. She just needs some rest. I just—” I stopped myself midway, not wanting to diminish the progress Kai had made since first stepping on the Royal Athena.

  “What?” Wayne probed.

  I shrugged. “She’s made a lot of progress, that’s all. I hope this doesn’t ruin it.”

  I didn’t have to be more specific with Wayne. He knew I was talking about her father.

  “That won’t happen.” The conviction in his voice relieved me some. “Kai’s a badass, and she is fully invested in this show. And in you.” When I fell silent, Wayne raised his eyebrows. “Which reminds me. I swear to God if you hurt my girl, I will end you.”

  As much as I wanted to promise that I wouldn’t ever hurt Kai, guilt betrayed me—guilt over my past, which followed me like a shadow, guilt that stemmed from buried secrets rising from the dead. And everything might be coming to an end after my earlier confession.

  “I have no intentions of hurting her, Wayne. But—”

  He cut me a look that froze me midsentence. “But what?”

  “But,” I started again, “Kai and I are still getting to know each other, and she may not like the things she finds out.”

  Wayne let out a heavy sigh. “Oh, lord. Why do I feel like you’re referring to something that already happened?”

  I figured Wayne would find out eventually, considering he and Kai told each other everything. So I told him what I’d told Kai earlier that day.

  “I cannot believe you lied to her about who your fiancée was.”

  “I didn’t lie. I omitted.”

  “Same thing.”

  “Yeah, well, no one is supposed to know about the whole engagement thing, so keep it between us, okay?”

  Wayne made a face. “Whatever. Fine. But what about tonight? She can’t go on like this.”

  “Well, if she can’t, then her understudy, Madeline, will take over.” It was my best guess. No way would Jimmy let Claudette on with such short notice. “Kai will have her spot back when the doc releases her.”

  “She’ll be devastated.”

  “Madeline is her friend. She’ll be happy Madeline gets a chance to perform.” I tried to believe my own words, but the truth was, I had no clue what was going to happen if I didn’t get out on that stage tonight.

  A groggy voice interrupted. “Over my dead body.”

  Wayne let out a laugh and leaned over Kai. “You’re awake.”

  “I am now. Were you two trying to plan my funeral too?”

  I stepped forward beside Wayne and placed a hand on Kai’s leg. “How do you feel?”

  She winced as she pulled herself up a bit. “Nothing a bag of B12 can’t fix. What time is it?”

  I glanced at the wall clock and groaned inwardly. The time was five o’clock, which meant Kai still had two hours to get to the theater for the night’s performance. Something told me she was absolutely going to try to get there. “Just rest, Kai. The doc will be back to check on you soon. You hit that plank pretty hard.”

  “I’m fine,” she insisted. “Where’s the doc?” She jiggled her arm where the IV was taped to her. “He can take these things out.”

  Wayne shot me a look as though he was also second-guessing her state of health. “I’ll go tell the nurse you’re awake. Maybe they can speed up the process to discharge you.”

  As soon as Wayne vanished out the door, I tuned to Kai with a stern look. “I’m glad you feel healthy enough to go out there, but maybe you should rest tonight. Let the doctor examine you further. Get some sleep, and feel better for tomorrow’s show. The weather hasn’t improved that much, which means the stage will get pretty rocky.”

  I knew Kai had been angry with me earlier, but I hadn’t expected that anger to carry through until now. She glared back at me so hard that I felt lasers pin me in my chest.

  “Sebastian, you of all people should understand that I’d rather be out there tonight. Besides, you’ll be out there. I’m not going to be stuck in this room by myself.”

  “There’s no way I’m going out there tonight if you aren’t there. I’ll stay with you.”

  Kai’s entire demeanor seemed to relax. “You will?”

  I leaned in so that she could read my expression up close and personal. “I’m not going out on that stage without you.”

  Kai blinked once, and I swear moisture was coating her eyes. “Really?”

  My next breath was shakier than I’d anticipated. “Really. Now, please. Stay and get some rest.”

  Footsteps approached behind us, and I turned to see the nurse poking her head in alongside Wayne’s.

  “I hear someone woke up,” she said with a bright smile. “I’ve called the doctor, and he should be here shortly.”

  Kai smiled back at her and nodded. “Thank you.”

  The nurse walked away, and Wayne came forward with a curious look in his eyes. “So what’s the deal? We jailbreaking this joint, or are you going to stay?”

  A tear slid down her eye as she looked back at me. “You promise you won’t regret it?”

  “No regrets, Kai. Never, when it comes to you.”

  She squeezed my hand and nodded. “Then okay. I’ll stay.”

  After the doctor returned to assess her a short while later, he cleared her even though we’d both been ready to stay. However, he did order her to bedrest and said he would assess her one final time the next day to clear her to perform. So either way, Kai wouldn’t have been able to perform.

  I helped her through the ship’s lower-deck corridor, up the elevator, and down the hall to my room. There, she rested in my arms for the majority of the night before stirring and waking us both up at two in the morning.

  “What’s the matter, Kai?”

  She stirred again. “Just thinking about stuff.”

  “Stuff?” I scooted toward her and tightening my hold around her body. “Stuff with your dad?”

  She shook her head. “No. Stuff with Claudette. And you. I can’t believe you proposed to her.”

  Suddenly, I felt happy to give Kai the entire story. Then she’d know that what I had with Claudette didn’t compare to the way I felt for Kai.

  “I never actually proposed to her.”

  “What
? But you said you two were engaged.”

  I shrugged. “We talked about being together like we were engaged, and yes, we talked about getting married. We planned on buying her a ring after Angst and Grace took off on Broadway, but all it ever was, was talk.”

  “I’m sorry, Sebastian, but you’re going to need to stop being so vague.”

  “I’m trying to explain, but it isn’t easy to admit how dumb I was when I was younger. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for success. Dirk knew that, and he used it to his advantage. He was the puppet master behind everything. He encouraged me to pursue Claudette, to ensure she was locked in to play the role once we finally made it to Broadway. But I didn’t date her solely because of that. I genuinely liked her in the beginning. Though it never would have gone as far as it had if it weren’t for Dirk. I found myself in this hamster wheel, and once it started spinning, I couldn’t stop it.

  “Next thing I knew, a year later, we’d made it to Broadway. Claudette had always hinted that she wanted more with me, and we’d made a silly promise to each other that, once we made it to Broadway, we’d get engaged.”

  “And then what?” She pushed. “Where did it all go wrong?”

  “One day, a month into our run, I felt ill and called out sick. Later that night, I ended up feeling better and decided to watch the show from the audience. When I went backstage to surprise Claudette, she wasn’t in her dressing room, so I checked mine. And there she was, fucking Dirk on my couch.” I was sickened by the visualization flashing through my mind.

  She gasped and clasped a hand over her mouth. “They were in your dressing room?”

  “Yup. That’s why I trashed it.”

  Her jaw fell open. “That’s when you got the nickname Bash.”

  “Yup.” I let out a laugh, feeling the irony of everything that had gone down. “And then they eloped a month later. But here’s the thing. A huge part of me was relieved. Here I was, twenty-six and about to marry a woman I barely knew and didn’t even love. I was more pissed at Dirk for pushing me into a relationship that he only ever wanted to steal.”

  “But…” Her mind must have been reeling. “Why didn’t Dirk just go after her in the beginning instead of pushing you to date her? So much drama would have been avoided.”

  “Right, but in the beginning, it was me with the power. Dirk and I didn’t become fifty-fifty partners until we got the Broadway deal. He’d played us both and then took what he wanted. He’s still trying to take what he wants. It will never be enough.”

  Kai went silent, and I wished I knew what she was thinking.

  “Which is why you’re adamant about this being the last Angst and Grace run.”

  I nodded. “It’s what I promised Dirk so he could make back enough money to get off my back.”

  Kai released a sigh into the darkness. “I guess I don’t understand how I’m just finding out about this now. Jake was with you and the original cast. Why wouldn’t he have mentioned anything about you and Claudette dating before she got engaged to Dirk?”

  “No one knew about Claudette and me. No one but Dirk. I suspect Jimmy knew too. It was something Dirk had made us agree to for the sake of the show. Turned out he’d only wanted us to keep a secret so he didn’t look like a prick when he went after her.”

  “So you’re telling me you never even loved her? Not even a little?”

  I shook my head and swallowed. “Never, Kai.” Not the way I love you. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I chose to hold onto them for just a little bit longer. “Get some rest, okay? You’ll need it for tomorrow so you can get back out on that stage.”

  She nodded as her eyelids fell shut and her hand fell into mine. “You’ll stay with me?”

  “Always.”

  Chapter 39

  Kai

  My eyes flickered open to a cluster of stars through the porthole window in Sebastian’s room. His arm, warm and heavy, was draped over my waist. His breathing was deep and steady against my neck.

  A slight shift of my body told me the pain was still there, but the majority of it was most likely masked by the meds prescribed by the ship’s doctor. I felt okay—better than okay, actually. If I ignored the slight aches, I would even dare to say I felt great.

  My worries had been put to ease by Sebastian’s confession—surprising, since he’d been keeping a secret from me. But in the end, all the truth did was solidify the fact that Sebastian was every bit the man I’d started to fall in love with. He was sensitive and driven, thoughtful and affectionate. Best of all, he reserved the best version of himself for me.

  The last thing I remembered was Sebastian’s piano as he played for me while I drifted off to sleep. Before that, he’d stripped me of my clothes, let me shower, and replaced my panties with a clean pair he’d washed with his things. The oversized shirt I was wearing was his.

  I shifted my body again, this time moving his arm from around me and placing it by his side. I ran my fingers down his chest and bare abdomen, finally resting where the elastic of his black boxer briefs met his skin.

  How many times had I awoken to Sebastian caressing me in ways that sent me over the edge? How many times had I awoken to his fingers pumping inside me and my body already crying out with a pending release? Sebastian always took care of me. Yet he was just as deserving.

  I slipped my hand inside his underwear and reached down to where his cock was already growing. He was so big that I’d never forget our first time, when my throat felt it would catch fire with each breath—the way he stretched me, filled me, pumped me as full and as deep as he could.

  Once he was fully hard in my hand, I stroked him slowly, rolling the skin over his shaft and earning a sweet growl from the man at my mercy.

  “God, yes,” he said as I jerked him again and again until his eyes shot open and locked onto me.

  I released him from his briefs then scooted down with a grin, placing my parted lips over his length. “Sorry I woke you.” I batted my eyes, knowing that would drive him crazy. “I couldn’t sleep.”

  A whoosh of breath left his lungs, and a hand moved through my hair. “I’m sure you’ll find a way to make it up to me.”

  My tongue darted from my mouth, swiping at his tip, like a snake getting ready to attack. I looked down at the glistening wetness, the mark of my tongue. Then I smiled. “I’m certainly going to try.”

  I slid my tongue from the base of his shaft up his length before finally wrapping my lips around him. As I eased him down my throat, I used a hand to stroke the rest of him. Sucking and moaning, I worked him relentlessly until his grip in my hair tightened with warning. But I didn’t stop, not until his warm release shot down my throat. I swallowed back each spurt then eased off his lap, swiping at my mouth with the back of a hand. His eyes were wide, his breathing heavy, and he reached for me and pulled me to his mouth.

  “Holy shit, Kai. I thought you were injured.”

  I chuckled between kisses and spread my legs, pressing my knees into the mattress on either side of him. “The doctor said to start moving as soon as I felt well enough.”

  His hands moved to my ass and pulled his shirt up and over my head. “Give me a minute, and I can really get you moving.”

  I sat back on his thighs as his fingers drew light patterns over my skin. When he got to my breasts, he cupped one and squeezed it in his palm. “I love how we fit together.”

  “Me too.” I bit my lip, testing my next thought in my mind before speaking aloud. “Speaking of that. What if I told you I wanted to feel you? Bare?”

  His eyes widened. “Are you sure?”

  I nodded. “I’m on the pill now. We’re both clean.” My cheeks heated with embarrassment, but only for a second.

  He kissed me hard on the lips before pushing his hips up into me, cocked and loaded. “I’d say, what are you waiting for?” He flicked his tongue out, swiping it against my lips. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  I slid a hand down to feel his erection growing again and
placed it at my entrance. He sat, abs tightening as he placed his palms on the mattress behind him to prop himself up.

  “Okay,” he rasped as I wrapped my palms around the back of his neck. “Have your way with me.”

  I chuckled and eased down around him, instantly sucking in a breath when I felt the intensity of his girthy cock stretching me.

  “Are you okay?” The look of concern on his face made my heart melt.

  I continued to ease myself down around him. “I am now,” I said once I reached his base.

  He slammed his lids shut and groaned while pushing his hips into me, deepening his fill. “Holy shit, you feel good.”

  I bit my lip and circled my hips before lifting and sinking again and again. My heart was already whirring so fast, as much as I wanted to take it slow, I didn’t know if I could. He met my hips with thrusts of his own, and I tightened my hold around his neck until my mouth was a breath from his.

  With a growl, he took a hand from the mattress and cupped my ass with it. “Slow down, or this will be over before it even started.” He squeezed my ass and slowed my movements with his steady grip.

  My head was spinning, but I followed his lead, wanting nothing more than to make this feeling last forever. A connection that existed only between the two of us. A bliss I know I’d never feel with anyone else.

  His lips found mine, his kiss matching the sweetness of our fucking. Slow, steady, intense. Until the build was more than I could stand. He seemed to know it, too, as he slipped his hand between my ass cheeks and applied a pressure that shot me straight over the edge. Everything tightened below my waist, between my thighs. My toes curled. My breathing shallowed. And then the scream of my release came straight from my gut and tore from my throat before being swallowed by Sebastian’s kiss.

  Sweat clung to my body as I rushed across the hall and into my cabin. I had to be at the theater at six o’clock to meet with Jimmy and prepare for the night’s show. Between the pain meds after a quick doctor visit and my thorough all-day workout with Sebastian, in his bed, I felt like a renewed woman, ready to take on the world.