CHAPTER 29
~Danny~
THE PHOTO SHOOT had such promise.
But as I look at Reese’s ex, and current boss, lying on the ground in front of me, I realized it the second he walked in. None of us stood a chance.
Forty minutes earlier
“LOOK AT ME, Danny,” Bryker directs. “I want intense. I want lust. I want power. I want controlled.”
I stare straight into the camera. My jaw tenses as I hold my breath to give him all that he asked for and more. When I release, I look down and then back up. The camera hasn’t moved, but I do, shifting to give him something new. He backs away, going for a wide angle. King of the world, endless three-sixty views of Manhattan backs me as I sit back in the desk chair. Claudia comes around and with her hands on my shoulders, she massages. The boss-and-secretary scene plays out until she stops to pose.
“This is good. Danny, look out over your playground. You own this city. Devour the views, then Claudia.” I turn my back to the lens, only my head and arms in view as I stare ahead. Claudia faces the camera, then directs her attention to me. I grab her, pulling her into my lap. Her legs go up as I spin back around, the scene playful until I see Reese and her ex standing in the doorway of the room. He has his arms crossed as he glares at me disapprovingly.
Worry creases Reese’s face, her bottom lip tucked under her top teeth. I turn my gaze back to Claudia when she cups my jaw and redirects me. “Look at me, Danny,” she whispers, “only me.”
Taking my hand, she runs it over her bare leg and higher under the hem of her skirt. “Only me,” she repeats seductively.
I lick my lips and even though I want to look at Reese—want to touch Reese this way—I redirect the wants onto the model I’m paid to desire. She leans in and kisses me. My eyes close to block Reese out, but the blackness behind my lids are filled with images of her—her face as she looks back at me while I fuck her, the way her lip gets tugged under and released the moment she comes, her eyes as they take me in while taking me into her mouth.
Fuck!
My eyes flash open. Claudia is staring at me, and asks, “Where’d you go?”
I stand abruptly, setting her on her feet. “I need five.”
Bryker sways his arm in the air. “Everyone take five.”
I head right for Reese, keeping my eyes locked on hers. She does the minutest of headshakes and I walk right past and head to wardrobe, which is set up in the other room.
Becs questions, “Danny?”
I keep moving out the door, needing air, the apartment air is stale in my lungs. At the elevators, I punch the lobby button. When the doors open, I rush to the back and turn around. Reese is there. She steps inside and pushes the button to close the doors.
As soon as they do, she’s against me, chest to chest. Her hands are running through the back of my hair as I hold her by the shoulders, kissing her. Kissing her so hard, as if she might be taken away. The floors tick by and we don’t waste a second. I grab her perfect tits in my hands and squeeze, causing her to moan into my mouth.
The lobby floor dings and we fly to opposite sides of the elevator car. Our breathing matches each other’s—erratic and heavy. Her lips are parted and swollen from my lips. My fucking lips. I own hers. That fucker can go fuck himself if he thinks he’s ever going to touch her again.
She walks out and I follow in silence, both of us headed to the front doors of the lobby. It’s been raining since we’ve been upstairs, the ground wet. A few umbrellas still above heads as the sidewalk remains crowded in spite of the foul weather.
Reese stops and I stand beside her. She says, “Don’t.”
“What?”
“You know what. Don’t do what you’re doing. If I can see it, the camera can read it.”
I turn to her. “What am I doing, Reese?”
“You’re imagining the worst.”
“I’m imagining your life before me.”
“Keaton and I broke up over a year ago. He wasn’t like this, like how he is now. He wasn’t possessive.”
“I am.”
“It’s not the same. He’s become obsessive. He lost me. I’m only a prize to him now.”
“You broke up with him?”
“I did. I think I’m the first, so he’s not handling it well.”
“If it’s been over a year, why does he think he still has a chance?”
She moves back out of the pedestrian traffic, under the cover of the large forest-green awning that fronts the entrance to the building. “He doesn’t. Trust me.”
“You throw trust around as if it will make this turmoil I feel inside go away, but don’t you see I do trust you? But that fucker—no way will I ever trust him.”
My declaration brings a smile to her face. “I feel the same way.” She checks her watch. I take a deep breath. Actually, the few moments with Reese are my deep breath. My calm. “We should get back. As they say, time is money.”
Riding up the elevator, we stand next to each other, our eyes on the other. There isn’t a frenzied make-out session. The early crazed kissing came from an uncertainty that needed to be claimed. I’ve claimed her and she’s claimed me. Our feelings established.
The elevator doors open on the forty-second floor and I come face to face with him. He has the nerve to call Reese over to him. “I’ve been wondering where you went. We’re going to be late for our meeting.” His eyes hit me, and he says, “We have private business to discuss, so you should probably put on more makeup and get primped to get your picture taken.”
Reese asks, “What business?”
He whispers in her ear, his hand wrapped around her shoulders as if he has a right to hold her, much less touch her. She moves out from under his arm and keeps walking. “Have you forgotten already? You’re on Klein time. I was thinking we could grab drinks down in the Village. I know how you like it down there with that eclectic crowd.”
Waving him off, she says, “Go ahead. I have things to do here.”
“What would be the point of me going alone?” he asks, following her around. “And what business do you have here?”
The three of us enter the office again, my hands fisted at my side while the pestering gnat circles Reese. Bryker is walking with the light meter when he sees me. “Stand right here, Danny. I think this will be a good shot without washing you out from the sunlight coming in.”
Keaton mocks me. “Yes, Danny, do as you’re told and let’s get this shoot wrapped. I have a date that seems to refuse to leave until this shoot is finished.”
Poke.
He nudges Reese who’s not laughing, and says, “Funny, right? Seems he wants to pla—”
“Shut up, Keaton,” she cuts him off.
Becs appears uncomfortable and Bryker attempts to ignore the tension building off set. Claudia sets her phone down and looks up.
While I stand where Bryker wants me, I watch as Keaton takes Reese by the arm. “It’s time to go.”
Jerking free, she warns him, “Don’t tell me what to do.”
“Somebody has to.”
When he takes her by the arm again, I say, “Let her go.”
All eyes in the room turn to me, but my eyes stay right where they need to be—on her.
“What did you just to say to me?”
My gaze shifts to her right. “Don’t touch her again.”
“Jealousy is an ugly look and considering your looks are all you’ve got to offer, I suggest you watch your threats.” Surprising Reese, he wraps his arm around her waist.
While she wriggles free, I’m already in motion before I have a chance to think this through. The thing is—while I watch him fall to the ground—I don’t regret punching him. I only regret that I didn’t do it sooner.
Gasps fill the room, one of them Reese’s as she holds her hands over her mouth. When our eyes meet over the sniveling, bloody-nosed man lying between us, an understanding is shared through that look. I see beyond the blue and into her soul. It’s not about him. Everything we feel for each other is only about us. Us alone. He doesn’t matter, and that’s when I feel it. She loves me.
I smile ’cuz I love her too. Then I’m knocked down, falling head over feet—literally. I slam to the floor, landing on my ass. No the fuck he didn’t. I’m back on my feet before he can blink. One more fast swing connects, sending him down for the count.
He holds his face, wailing, “You are so fucking dead. You’ll pay for this, pretty boy!”
“That’s fine,” I reply. “It was worth it.”
He gets to his knees, still threatening as loudly as he can. “I’m going to sue your ass. I’ll see you in court, motherfucker.”
Reese stands in shock, as does Becs. Becs rushes to my aide. “Are you okay? That looked like a nasty fall. You came this close,” she says, holding her fingers two inches apart, “from hitting your head on the desk.”
Brushing her off, I tell her, “I’m fine.”
Claudia stands from the leather chair on the other side of the desk, looking bored. “Are we shooting anymore or what?”
We all stare at her. Bryker says, “I think I got all we need.”
She replies, “Good. Today’s my day to eat and I’m starving.”
Reese’s dramatic sigh can be heard as she rolls her eyes. “Can I please buy you a burger?”
Claudia looks at her. “I don’t eat meat. But I’ll take a bowl of peas.”
The asshole stands in a huff. “Peas? What the fuck? Are you people insane? Why is no one helping me? Get me a fucking icepack.”
Becs makes a move to the door. “I have one in my first aid kits. Come with me. Danny, I’ll bring one back for your hand.”
As soon as they’re out of the room, I laugh. Reese smiles. Bryker just shakes his head.
Then he comes back in, and demands, “Reese! Let’s go.”
I watch her shoulders slump as she debates. She looks at me but knows how I feel about his demand, yet she still insists, “I’ll handle it.”
Knowing she needs my support more than my judgment, I nod, but I’m still pissed. “What about the flight to Paris?”
“Be on it. I’ll talk to Vinnie and explain, but we’re moving forward with this campaign whether Klein Advertising is involved or not.”
I watch her walk away, hating the dread that fills me. I know I need to let her go, to handle this on her own, but it doesn’t take away the twisting in my gut knowing she’s going to see him. I wouldn’t give him the courtesy of even telling him I quit if I was in her shoes. But that’s not Reese and I respect that about her.
Becs comes to the door and hooks her finger. “Come on, let’s get you out of that suit and hope there’s no blood on it.”
* * *
I’M STANDING AT the entrance to the airplane, anxiously waiting. There’s been no sign of Reese and she hasn’t called or answered her phone. I got one text telling me to go to Paris even if she doesn’t make the flight.
“Sir,” the flight attendant taps me and says, “we need you to board. This is the final boarding call.”
I look down at the text once more: I’ll see you in Paris. I promise.
I board per her wish and settle into the first class seat. Just as I power off my phone, a flurry of commotion happens at the entrance to the plane. I look up to see Reese coming toward me. She flops down in the seat next to me and tucks a large purse under the seat. She’s radiant. Wild hair, bright eyes, casual clothes. She says, “I quit.”
I look at her in shock. And awe. My pride in her taking over my tone. “You did?”
“I did.” She’s nodding and exuberantly giddy.
“What about your responsibilities?”
“I’m seeing this campaign through. We’re going to get the shots we need and then… I don’t know. I have some savings. Not much, but some. I’ll come back and find a new job.”
Taking her hand in mine, I lean back. “And you did this for?”
“For me. For us. For my soul. God, I feel so good right now.” She looks at me with a new hope I haven’t been privy to since we laid eyes on each other in that first meeting back in LA. “What a weight lifted.”
But beneath the relief she’s feeling, the high she’s riding, I start to wonder how she’s going to feel when she comes down. “What happened?”
“I told him. I told him everything.”
“Be more specific, Reese.” I try to keep the sternness out of my voice, but through her hope, I can’t help but think I’m going to be the reason she loses it.
The flight attendant makes us pause. I order water and Reese orders wine. She turns to me, and laughs. “You should have seen the look on his face, Danny. You would have been so proud of me.”
“I was already proud of you. Now please tell me what happened.”
“I went back to the office and told him how I really feel about him. Then I told him I’ll finish this campaign and gave my two-weeks’ notice.”
It would be easy to get swept up in her delight, but my instincts regarding a man like Keaton Klein are usually spot-on. With dread entering my stomach, I ask, “How did he react to that?”
“I don’t even care anymore. He’s controlled me for too long. I felt I had no options, no outs. I bought my apartment because I had that job and security. But over time I realized he wasn’t going to just let me go. It didn’t even matter that he didn’t want me. I was just this thing he didn’t want anyone else to have either.”
“If he wants you, he’s not going to let you go that easily.”
“He doesn’t have a choice. Once I realized I could sell the apartment, I saw that I have options. I don’t want to be tied down by stuff when I can be living a fuller life. I don’t need that job. I can find another.” She touches her chest. “I have control of my life again. Danny, we can be together. I can live anywhere. We should be celebrating. Isn’t this what you wanted?”
“I want all that. I want you to be happy. I never want him around you again—”
“I’m not going to be after this campaign and that makes me happy. Being here with you makes me happy. A future full of possibilities scares the shit out of me, but I’m happy because I need to be scared. I need to be challenged again. I need to start living my dream.”
“What do you dream of?”
“I dream of you.”
“You don’t have to dream of me. I’m right here. I’m yours already. I always was.” Leaning over the armrest, I kiss her on the forehead and hold her hand a little tighter. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. So much.”
Sitting back when the attendant returns with our drinks, I can’t ignore my gut. This is gonna blow back in our faces. If there’s one thing I learned about her ex, it’s that he’s not afraid of the low blow. The fucking weasel.