The Love Campaign (Romantic Revelations Series Book 1)

by Laura Marquez Diamond

  “Stop,” he interrupted. “No. It isn’t hard. Well, it is but…” He took a deep breath as if measuring his next words. “I can’t believe I’m saying this for the first time all sweaty and dirty.”

  “With sand.”

  “Yes, right, with sand in my ass crack.” He tried to take a deep breath even as a snort of amusement escaped. “What I’m trying to say is that…Jaya Patel, I love you and that’s all that matters.”

  A rush of swirling emotions bubbled up and clogged her throat. Before her vocal cords worked, her arms knew what to do. She wrapped them around his neck and took in his ocean scent.

  When they pulled away, she rested her forehead against his and declared, “I love you too, Sebastian Beaumont. Ass crack and all.”

  ***

  Jaya could see why the Florida mansion appealed to Noah.

  It was nothing like the house he was raised in, which had been a typical 1940s Detroit homestead: two-story brick by the freeway with faulty pipes and questionable lead levels. It was a charming if modest home, but Noah always despised the fact that it had one bathroom and a yard that backed into a car repair shop.

  When they drove into the exclusive neighborhood of multi-million-dollar estates, Jaya felt a stab of pride for the high school kid she knew. No matter how badly things ended in college, she had a front-row seat to Noah’s rise to superstardom. She knew Noah’s insecurities and how hard he worked to overcome them. All through high school, it was to Jaya that he expressed his deepest hopes and brightest dreams.

  Jaya decided she was glad for this opportunity to congratulate Noah. Infinitely better than closure for an ex-boyfriend was gratitude for the success of an old friend.

  The house was cocooned in a perfectly manicured tropical paradise. At the end of an enormous driveway stood an eager valet. Sebastian passed the car key.

  They held hands, walking towards a grand portico that framed an enormous glass door. A young man in what looked like a country club uniform—a white golf shirt and black pants—opened the door and led them into an explosion of…white. White walls and white marble tiles, hard lines, and modern curves. It was a lavish-sized entrance and the same aesthetic carried into the next room where most of the guests were mingling.

  In an elegant gathering area with impossibly high ceilings and glass walls looking out to the pool, almost a hundred people milled around. Caterers carried trays of food, bartenders mixed drinks and flirted with guests, and a DJ played at an alcove separating the indoor and outdoor party spaces. It was, by all accounts, an incredibly lavish party.

  It was also a blur. Sebastian kept her close, introducing Jaya to teammates and making sure she was comfortable. They walked outside where the pool and hot tub were surrounded by palm trees and tasteful spotlights, creating an otherworldly feeling.

  “You really do live in paradise,” Jaya said to Sebastian as she felt the warm breeze tickle the back of her neck. Her hair was in a messy bun and she wore the only dress she brought to the trip. But she was too happy to care about how she looked. She wanted to lie on the grass.

  “This is paradise,” Sebastian said and something about his voice made her turn to him. “I mean this backyard. It’s amazing,” he explained.

  She shrugged. “I meant the weather and the, I don’t know, the vibrancy, I guess,” she explained, looking around at the beautiful people dancing, drinking, and laughing under the night sky. “Right now, people in the Midwest are holding their breaths for that last snowstorm. Always hits right at the beginning of spring.”

  “Just as you packed away your winter coat,” he agreed.

  “Exactly. But here? I could just wear this all the time,” she commented, indicating her halter-top dress.

  He took the comment as an invitation to look closely at her body. Sebastian licked his full and enticing lips. She didn’t know what she would do if he ever stopped looking at her like that. As if she was everything he ever wanted.

  “If you keep looking at me like that, you’re going to have to marry me,” she said, trying to be funny. The statement recalled something he teased her about in the past. Instead of laughing with her, though, his face glazed over.

  “I’m kidding, Sebastian!” she exclaimed, playfully giving a teasing pinch to his stomach. Which was rather difficult because the guy didn’t have an ounce of fat.

  He seemed about to respond, but a voice boomed from across the pool. “Jaya!”

  They both whipped around. In no time, Noah was in front of them. He hugged Jaya so hard, he lifted her off her feet. She was surprised but also overtaken by a surge of familiarity. This was Noah at his best. Fun and candid and affectionate. She hugged back.

  “So glad you’re here,” Noah whispered into her hair.

  Jaya wiggled out and pushed against his chest. She stepped back to stand by Sebastian. “Thanks for having us,” she managed to say.

  The men shook hands. “Have you walked around? Let me give you a tour,” Noah offered.

  They followed their host. It was a tour of the house and the guests in it. Jaya recognized players from the team, delaying their progress by joking around with Sebastian and Noah. She met some of the girlfriends and wives, all of them polished and gorgeous. Jaya recognized a famous sports newscaster getting wasted and heckling the DJ.

  “Hey, rookie!” The booming voice of defenseman Andor Talstad echoed through the marble once they entered the indoor gathering space. Noah, Jaya, and Sebastian walked over to the enormous hockey player, bulky even amidst the physically imposing crowd of professional athletes.

  “Shots!” He was a man of few words. Sebastian shook his head, but she stepped in front of her two male companions.

  “Bring it!” she exclaimed, leaning over the bar.

  “Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!” Andor said, grinning down at her.

  Top shelf vodka served up, they all echoed Andor’s loud “Skol!” The shot was smooth and crisp down Jaya’s throat. The cheers attracted a few other players. The next thing she knew, she was surrounded by eight or so guys from the team ready to join the next “Skol!”

  Jaya locked eyes with Sebastian, who winked. It might have been the headiness of what was turning out to be a perfect day, but she was overwhelmed with the need to wrap her arms around him. So she did, embracing his lean torso and leaning up for a kiss.

  “Booooo!” a few of the guys exclaimed.

  In response, Sebastian tightened his arm around her shoulder and whispered in her ear. “Jealous assholes, all of them.”

  She laughed before pulling away. “Go do your team-building exercise. I’ll find the ladies' room.”

  Another round of shots was poured. She started to walk away when she heard their raucous noise. Suddenly, a large hand was on her lower back and a voice was by her ear. “Let me show you where the bathroom is.” It was Noah.

  She nodded and looked back at Sebastian, who was still facing the bar and laughing with the team.

  Following Noah down a hallway, she got a better sense of how large the estate was. A long breezeway seemed to take them to a whole other section of the sprawling space. After numerous turns down long hallways, they entered a room that looked to be his office. He pointed to a door within. “Take that one. The other bathrooms have long lines this time of night.”

  “Thanks. I can find my way back,” she said, hoping to dismiss his attention.

  “You sure about that?” he asked with a half-grin. Noah knew how shitty her sense of direction could be, especially if the place was new to her.

  “Right, um, I’ll be quick. I don’t want to take you away from your guests.” She shuffled towards the bathroom so quickly, she nearly slipped on the slick tile. She felt rather than saw Noah reach over to catch her, but she straightened up and waved him away.

  “Glad to see some things don’t change,” he said with amusement brimming over a warm chuckle. In response, she turned around and stuck her tongue out before closing the door.

  In the bathroom mirr
or, Jaya saw that she had the beginning of a sunburn on her shoulders and over her breasts. Along with her flushed cheeks and crazy hair that wouldn’t stay in place, she looked like a beach bum. She loved it. She knew she wasn’t dressed for “appetizers and cocktails” but what did she care about fitting in?

  She was in Miami with her boyfriend, who told her that he loved her, and whom she suspected might be the best thing that ever happened to her. Sebastian was, out of nowhere and against all odds, exactly the man she had always hoped to meet one day. Understanding and sweet and funny, but also ambitious and dedicated. And loving. She loved him right back.

  Affection for Sebastian filled her heart when she exited the bathroom. Finding Noah, standing by his desk pouring two scotches, jarred her to the present.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Have a drink with me, Jaya. For old time’s sake.” He held out a glass and then added in a near whisper, “God you’re beautiful.”

  “C’mon, Noah. Everyone will be looking for us. I haven’t even said hi to Kelly tonight.”

  Noah shrugged. She noticed how he didn’t listen to her. Nothing surprising there. She also knew Noah was stubborn and had a mean streak. If she didn’t do as he asked, he would have no problem setting her off to aimlessly roam the house.

  “Fine,” she said, stepping forward.

  She took the glass and leaned on the desk alongside him. Noah broke the silence after a few sips.

  “What do you think?”

  “Of the house?”

  “Sure,” he droned.

  She shook her head because this is the guy who couldn’t get enough praise, who expected and needed adoration like it was his oxygen. Jaya knew he wanted more than props about his house.

  “What do you want me to say, Noah?” She chuckled, but with little humor. “You made it. You really did. I hope you’re proud and happy because this is everything you’ve ever wanted. Congratulations, man.” She raised the glass and jovially clinked his.

  “‘Congratulations, man?’ Wow, Jaya. I think I deserve a little more than the conversational equivalent of an emoji.” He seemed to be teasing, but there was an edge to his voice. He wanted to gloat. She didn’t care enough to stop him. And she tried very hard to suppress the need to tell him what he deserved. Jaya held her tongue and kept her distance.

  He seemed frustrated with her silence. Noah blurted out, “So…you and the rookie, huh.” Derision dripped from every syllable.

  “Why do you call him that?” Jaya asked. “He played four years of college and two as a drafted player in a professional team. He played for Buffalo for part of the last two seasons. It just seems, I don’t know, petty.” She had to speak her mind, having recognized another tactic from Noah’s arsenal of mind games. Jaya wasn’t interested in having Sebastian constantly reminded that he was the outsider.

  “Is that it? He’s a college graduate?”

  “What the fuck are you even talking about?” She retorted sitting up from the desk. She was genuinely appalled by the way he was talking. This was not a conversation she wanted to have. And this was not a person with whom she wanted to be alone.

  Jaya suddenly recognized something that Noah was rather good at hiding from everyone else. Upon closer inspection of his glazed and determined eyes, she knew he was drunk. Noah, if it was possible, was even more self-absorbed when he was drunk.

  “I hate that you’re here with him,” he hissed.

  Her eyes popped out of their sockets or felt like they would. At any rate, her face was contorted and she was speechless.

  He continued his steady tirade. “I haven’t seen you since the night we broke up. I was fucking awful and I’ve always regretted how things ended. But I knew, one day, our paths would cross again and we could at least, maybe, be friends. Get to know each other as adults. When I saw you with him at the player’s lounge, it was like a knife, Jaya. A fucking knife.”

  Her mind was screaming What the goddamn fuck. Her lips managed to utter, “Noah, I want to go back to the party.”

  He just stared at her. Jaya knew she needed to say something to diffuse the situation. She chose her words carefully when he raked his eyes over her stiff frame. “No one is trying to hurt you. Not me. Not Sebastian. Maybe it was just the shock of you and me seeing each other after all these years. But that has nothing to do with Sebastian. Besides, look at the life you’re building with your girlfriend! Everything happened the way it was supposed to.”

  “I’m not so sure,” he slurred.

  “Take me back to the party, Noah. I’m sure Kelly is looking for you.” Her voice was firm. The sound of his girlfriend’s name snapped him out of the weird trance. He nodded and gestured for her to go in front of him.

  They walked in silence, his hand on her lower back and his body close. Jaya walked faster, hoping to escape. When she recognized the breezeway connecting two parts of the estate and heard the party, she trotted faster. Feeling her get away, Noah grabbed her wrist and pulled, forcing her to turn.

  His face was anguish and anger in equal measure. “Can I call you? Can we at least be friends?”

  “Noah…” she said, exasperated. Because never. She would never open that door. It took a long time to eviscerate the power he had over her. To be someone other than the person he used to bolster himself. She needed to be firm. “Don’t do this.” Her voice was strong and clear.

  She yanked her hand away and walked into the crowd with one thing on her mind. Find Sebastian and leave.

  Two steps into her quest, she saw him. He wasn’t at the bar where she was headed. He was by the kitchen island that had a perfect view of the hallway from which she emerged in front of Noah. She controlled the urge to run to him. She couldn’t get to Sebastian fast enough. For Jaya, each step closer was a step towards her relief, her comfort.

  Except Sebastian wasn’t meeting her halfway. And he looked at her eerily, mouth compressed in a stiff line. His eyes darted to her and then behind her, probably at Noah who was following closely. Sebastian was reading their faces like a mystery he desperately needed to solve.

  When she got to him, she hugged his waist and laid her cheek against his chest. She breathed in deeply, waiting for him to return the embrace. He didn’t. Instead, Sebastian removed her arms and possessively put her behind him.

  She looked up to find Noah and Sebastian squared off, nostrils flaring. Noah was dangerous when he was drunk. Not because he was physically reckless, but because he said things that could rip people apart. He could hurt in so many ways.

  Sebastian, on the other hand, didn’t have a malicious streak in him. But at that moment, his protective instincts were triggered to the extreme. He didn’t understand what was happening, but he was a fighter. Born and bred in the arena of a brutal sport that required fists as well as sticks.

  She gently laid her hand on Sebastian’s shoulder so he would turn to her. Attempting composure, she said, “Hey, babe, I think the vodka isn’t agreeing with me. Or it might be sunstroke? I got sick and Noah helped me find a bathroom. Can you take me home?”

  His face softened immediately. As if forgetting that Noah was even there, Sebastian turned towards her and cupped her face. “You got sick?” He ran a thumb over her lower lip and gave her the sweetest smile. “Yeah, let’s go home and take care of you.”

  His voice was husky and his body warm. She melted into him as he wrapped an arm over her shoulder and pulled her close. They both glanced back to say goodbye to Noah, but their host was already gone.

  During the ride home, Jaya didn’t let go of his right hand unless absolutely essential for his driving. She needed the contact, the sense of being grounded in his kindness and love. Kindness with no agenda. Love with no grudges.

  He sensed her mood, staying quiet when they parked and walked to the condo, hand in hand. Once behind closed doors, he pressed his mouth to her clinging fingers. The heat seared her skin and stirred her to action. She opened her palm and guided his face to hers. By the front door, t
hey kissed with unspeakable tenderness.

  After, he said, “For someone who just threw up, you taste pretty good.” His smile was contagious.

  “Would you be mad if I told you I lied about getting sick? I just wanted to get out of there.”

  Something flashed across his face. Maybe uncertainty, or perhaps it was concern. All that mattered to Jaya was that he wasn’t mad at all. “Do you think I’m going to complain about getting you all to myself? Jaya, I couldn’t wait to bring you home and take care of you.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah,” he confirmed. He guided her to the sofa and plunked her across his lap. Where she felt like she belonged. Where she needed to be right now. “I’m glad you’re not sick though.”

  “You can still take care of me.” Her voice was laced with sweet longing.

  “That’s the plan, sweetheart,” he answered, following the words with another scorching kiss.

  “I love you,” she whispered, when their lips parted long enough to express what was in her heart.

  He released a sound between a moan and a chuckle. “Say it again.”

  She pulled away and pursed her lips in mock annoyance. “Excuse me? Where’s my declaration of devotion, sir?”

  “Your declaration of devotion. Hmm, let me check,” he uttered, playing along. He placed both hands as a cradle for her head, entangling fingers into her hair. She moaned at the feel of his caress. When their eyes locked, he was dead serious.

  “Jaya, what I feel for you is more than any one word can say. But if love is as close as I can get to express the way you make my heart burst and my life better, then love it is. I love you so much. Saying those words, though,” he paused, shaking his head. “They don’t even come close to what you mean to me. Not even close. But since it’s a declaration of devotion that you want, I’m happy to give it again and again. Jaya, I love you. I love you. I love you. So fucking much it hurts. Now, if it’s alright with you, sweetheart, I need you to say it again.”

  She stared at him, her lungs unable to let in air and her tongue no longer functional. The texture of his dress shirt under her fingers, the feeling of his erection against her hip, the iron strength of hands that roamed her neck and back. In a flash, a million little details crashed into her consciousness and then dissipated till one singular fact remained to be said. Again and again.