CHAPTER TWELVE
I STARTED A JOKE
Belinda soaked in a hot bubble bath, hoping to ease some of the soreness from her muscles. Two weeks of endless, incredible sex was a better workout than boot camp. She hadn’t felt this relaxed and happy in . . . well, forever? No, make that never. And it pissed her off, because this was coming to an end all too soon, when she dearly wished they could go on like this forever.
But she and Oliver had put off the publicity charade for as long as they could, and now Devin and Julie were on them both constantly First they used her twisted ankle as an excuse. Then Oliver said he was needed at the foundation and had to stay in Sea Breeze. But Dev was turning up the heat, big time. In just a few days they were scheduled to go to Key West and be seen lovey-dovey in all the famous hot spots. Well, her favorite hot spot was in the pool house, right here. Their little cocoon of happiness was going to be shattered very soon.
Belinda told herself that this publicity stunt was what she wanted, needed, to get her career started. Keep your eye on the prize. She closed her eyes and pictured her parents’ farmhouse, the rocking chairs on the back porch. Then she took a mental trip through the backyard, her mother’s garden, the woods where she’d played, and the pond where she’d fished and swum on hot summer days. The beauty of the Smoky Mountains would always be deep inside her soul. And the music. She sighed, remembering singing with her father’s Stone Gap Band at barn dances and weddings. How she missed those days!
Oh, and the farmhouse? Belinda loved it. No, she had to do this for them and for herself too. She could not imagine anyone else living in that house.
And, okay, just maybe this seclusion in this tropical paradise was merely an illusion, and not based in reality. Seriously, how could life be this perfect? A dozen more maybes danced around in her head, nearly bringing her to tears because deep down, she feared she’d already fallen in love with Oliver, or at the very least, was heading in that direction, fast. Her search for flaws had come up empty. Of course, Oliver thought his inability to make decisions was a major flaw, but for someone like Belinda, who jumped in with two feet, the ability to think things through was a precious gift. She smiled, thinking how they balanced each other so well. And damn, they sure knew how to scorch the sheets.
While she’d been out of commission for a while, she’d never experienced anything even close to the passion she shared with Oliver. Not even in the same ballpark . . .
She sat up so quickly that water sloshed over the side of the tub. Love. She really was in love. Not just falling for him. No, she’d never felt like this before. This . . . this was the real deal.
Well . . . fuck.
She’d just created the perfect storm for heartbreak.
Belinda’s heart sank. Truthfully, going back into the music industry and traveling constantly pretty much left no room for romance. Oh, she knew people did it, somehow. But she just could not imagine being away from Oliver for extended periods after their time together here.
And that’s why she needed to end this before spilling her guts to him. He must never know that she loved him. He wanted his solo career and she didn’t want to come between him and his career. They should have stuck to the strictly business thing from the beginning.
Belinda stayed there until the bubbles disappeared and the water started to turn cold. She didn’t want to go to Key West and she didn’t want to sing pop music. She didn’t want cameras following then everywhere, taking away her privacy.
After getting out of the tub, she wrapped herself in a fluffy towel and started brushing her hair, but almost immediately she sat down in the middle of the tile floor.
For a few minutes, she cradled her head in her hands. A single tear escaped the corner of her eye. Belinda gave it an angry swipe and sniffed hard. She tried to swallow the hot ache in her throat, but tears started to flow.
Belinda fought to remain silent, because when she had a full-blown crying jag, it was noisy and peppered with cuss words, and she was quickly heading in that direction. Sometimes she threw things, but since this was Oliver’s house, breaking anything was strictly off-limits. So she just cried. And cried, and cried.
Belinda hated this feeling-sorry-for-herself crap, but she couldn’t pull herself together just yet. She heard her cell phone ping and grabbed it from the counter near the sink. Oliver. Wanting to know when she was heading over to the main house for dinner. “I can’t!” she shouted at the phone, and then cried some more for being angry when he didn’t deserve it.
She inhaled a deep, shuddering breath, knowing she wasn’t going to see him tonight. She just couldn’t. Shouldn’t.
Her phone rang this time and she looked down to see her mother was calling. What? Ugh, the timing couldn’t be worse, but worry trumped her current meltdown, so she picked up. “Mom!” she answered with false bravado.
“Belinda, dear,” her mother said, and if she noticed anything wrong, she didn’t say so. “I have news!”
Belinda sat up straight and dabbed at her face. Clearing her throat, she asked, “Good news?”
“Are you sitting down?”
“Yes,” Belinda said, clutching the phone so tightly she was certain it would shatter.
“Okay, so a while back, we had this guy show up on our doorstep asking if we had any old barns on our property, and of course we do. So your father took him out and showed him, and, Belinda, the wood is worth a fortune! Apparently old barn wood is the thing people want for mantels, beds, flooring, you name it. Who would have thought?”
“What about Dad’s stuff in the barns?”
Her mother groaned. “I’ve got some serious egg on my face.”
Belinda cleared her throat. “Come again?”
“Well, about half the stuff in the three barns is junk.”
“And the other half?”
“Worth a fortune!”
Belinda’s heart picked up speed. Her parents’ view of a fortune could be a couple of thousand dollars. “Can you be more specific?”
“You know how your dad is a Civil War nut?”
“All too well.”
“Some of the stuff he collected is authentic, along with his coin collection.”
“Bottom line me, Mom.”
“With the barn wood and the junk? I think somewhere in the range of four hundred fifty thousand dollars. So we can pay off the fifty thousand we owed the bank.”
“Only fifty thousand? You said you owed a fortune, Mom. And part of it was what you borrowed for me to go to Nashville. I want to pay that off.”
“Now what gave you that idea? Darlin’, we paid off that loan years ago when you tossed money at us like it was nothing. The money we owed was money your father spent buying all that junk, and that was after he bought stuff with the money you gave us.”
“Not junk!” her father shouted in the background. “I told you I knew what I was doin’.”
“I’m not sure he did,” her mother whispered into the phone. “But who cares?”
“Right . . .” Belinda tried to comprehend the enormity of the news, but her mother kept right on talking.
“So we used the extra four hundred thousand for a down payment on the music theater that went belly up during the recession.”
“What?” Belinda squeaked. “Why?”
“So you can come home and turn it into a country-music mecca. Belinda, everything is building up around Brookside Bend. Restaurants, two new hotels. We’re going to be the new Pigeon Forge someday! And with you at the helm, we can get lots of talent at the theater. And with your permission, we’d love to name it the Belinda Beal Theater.”
“Mom, I was famous for pop music,” she said absently, her blown mind still trying to understand this bombshell. So this was the secret her father had been harboring?
“Pffft. And now you’ll get back to your country-music roots. We’ve got the Stone Gap Band back together. And we’re remodeling the theater to include a dance floor so people can two-step. Isn’t this the best news ever?”
“If this was in the works, why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, even though she’d been harboring a few secrets of her own.
“Because we knew you’d say for us to save the money for our future. Am I right?”
“Well, yeah! Why take a chance with that kind of money?”
“Because I know deep down that you never wanted to sing pop music to begin with.”
Belinda sighed. “Mom, I should have listened to you, Dad, and Gayle. I’m sorry.”
“We were still so proud of your success, but we also figured you did it for the money, and we felt so guilty when you wanted to switch your direction and it ended your career. We should have stood strong to begin with.”
“Oh no, don’t take that blame. That was all on me.” And her guilt was the reason she’d kept her distance from the two people she cared about more than anything.
“But, Belinda, now you can have the best of both worlds. Sing country, bluegrass, and gospel because you’re the boss. Bring in talent and give them your advice. Bring in locals because you are the belle of Brookside Bend. So what do you say?”
“Mom, my head is spinning. This is just . . . crazy.”
“Tell me about it.”
“And I have some obligations to fulfill.”
“What, did you sign a new contract?”
“Not yet, but—”
“Then you’re good to go! Jack! Belinda’s good to go!”
“Mom—”
“I can’t wait for you to see the theater. We’ll have the sign up soon. The entire town has been buzzing with the news.”
“I wish you had come to me with this first.”
“Nope, you can be such a Debbie Downer. We didn’t want to give you a chance to talk us out of this, and don’t tell me you wouldn’t have tried. We already have requests pouring in for opening night. Sweetie, this is going to be a huge success. Your father wants you to sit in with the band now and again.”
Belinda felt as if she might pass out. Seriously.
“Isn’t this better than Christmas morning?”
“Well, yeah, I thought you were losing the farm.”
“We were for a minute there. Your dad was spending like crazy.”
“Ha! Not so crazy after all!” her father shouted from the background.
“I’ll never live this down,” her mother grumbled. “So when can we expect you?”
Belinda swallowed hard. “Uh, I’ll get back to you in the morning, if that’s okay.”
“Sure, honey. But you sound upset. Want to talk about it?”
“No.”
“Where are you, anyway?”
“Um, traveling for business.”
“Well, now you can come home where you belong. Isn’t that wonderful? You get to sing right here with the people who love you. It will be like our back porch, only before a huge crowd. And we did the homework. This community is starving for a concert venue. Are you excited?”
“Yeah, wow. Yes.”
“Okay sweetie, I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Yeah, soon,” Belinda said weakly. After ending the call, she sat there clutching the phone, shocked. Stunned. This news should make her over-the-moon happy, relieved. This was like a gift from heaven. Everything she could hope for, wish for.
Except she was in love with Oliver Heart. And she’d promised to do this publicity thing. How could she back out?
She couldn’t. Could she?
Wait, okay. She should just be honest and tell him what her mother just told her.
Belinda closed her eyes and tears threatened once more. She needed to just be truthful to Oliver. And honestly, this was the distance from him that she didn’t want but needed. Every moment spent with him had her falling deeper in love, so a clean break instead of doing this romance thing for several more weeks would be so much better in the long run. Her phone pinged again and she winced. It was Oliver. She didn’t respond. At this point she just wanted to curl up in bed and drift off to sleep. Talking to him could wait until morning.
But when Belinda slid between the cool sheets, she found herself wanting him, needed his strong arms wrapped around her. But how could she back out on their deal? After all, she was the one who had shown up on his doorstep, pushing this forward before he was even on board.
With a little hiccup, she put her fist to her mouth, determined not to shed any tears. Oliver was talented enough to make it on his own without any stupid fake romance. She’d initiated this for her parents and they needed her now, so she didn’t have any choice but to leave as soon as possible.
She hugged the pillow and stared into the darkness. When her phone pinged again, she didn’t even look at it. She knew it was him. She bit back a sob, knowing it wasn’t right or fair to ignore him. She should just text back and say she wasn’t feeling well. After all, it wasn’t really a lie. But just as she picked up the phone she heard him knock and then open the door to the pool house.
“Belinda?”
She pulled the covers up to her chin and remained silent. Maybe he would figure she was out for a walk or something.
“Belinda?” he shouted, sounding worried. Okay, she would just have to fake it.
“In here,” she said in her best fake I’m-too-sick-to-go-to-school voice that always fooled her mother.
A moment later Oliver entered the dark bedroom. “Belinda?”
“Yeah?” she asked in a small voice.
He sat on the edge of the bed. “Babe, what’s wrong?”
“I think I caught a bug of some sort.” She coughed.
“Really? You seemed fine this morning.”
“I know.” Cough. “It just . . . just came on me all at once.”
Leaning over, Oliver put his palm on her forehead. “You don’t feel warm.” He put the back of his hand on her cheek and her breath caught.
“Something hurt? Your tummy?” he asked, and the concern in his voice was her undoing. Try as she might, a tear slipped down her cheek. “Belinda, please, tell me what’s wrong.”
She inhaled an audible, shaky breath. “Will you just climb in here and hold me?”
“Sure,” he said gently, and slid in next to her, hugging her close.
Belinda sighed. She’d totally forgotten she was naked. Maybe he wouldn’t notice. Right . . .
“Talk to me.”
Belinda shook her head, not ready to tell him her news. And dammit, it was such good news on so many levels. She didn’t want him to get the wrong idea.
“Why not, babe? Did I do something to make you cry? If I did, I’ll kick my own ass.”
Belinda gave him a weak chuckle. “I don’t think you are capable of doing anything to make me cry.”
“Then who did? I’ll kick their ass,” he said more firmly. “Dev getting on your case about the publicity thing? Cuz I wanted to talk to you about that.”
“No. I mean if he did, I didn’t pick up the call.”
Oliver kissed her shoulder. “Then what is it?”
Belinda kissed his hand that was wrapped around her. “I’ll tell you in the morning. But now, I just really want you to make love to me, Oliver.”
He hesitated and she didn’t blame him. She would want to know what the hell was going on too.
“Okay then,” she said. She scooted around, cupped his face, and kissed him. “I’ll make love to you.” When she fumbled with the snap on his shorts, he stood up, shed his clothes, and turned on the small lamp on the nightstand. God, when he slid his naked body next to hers, she groaned with the sheer pleasure of being in his arms
“I’m all yours, Belinda.”
“Queen for the day?”
“No,” Oliver said, and her heart thudded so hard she wondered if he could hear it. “Forever,” he said.
Stunned, she looked down so he couldn’t see the turmoil in her eyes.
“Babe, when you didn’t return my texts I went crazy with worry.” He ran a fingertip down her cheek. “In that moment, I made the decision to let you know how I truly feel. I know it’s only been a couple of weeks.” He smiled at her tenderly. “But I’ve never felt this way before. I’m falling in love with you. Funny, huh? Now I don’t have to pretend.”
“Oliver . . . Oh God, Oliver.”
“You don’t have to say it back. But I wanted you to know. And it feels good to tell you. My brothers know and I’m ready to tell the world.”
Hot emotion gripped Belinda’s throat. It was as if life were playing a prank on her. She was about to lose it, so instead of answering, she captured his mouth and kissed him, sweetly, and then with more heat. She wanted to lose herself in his body, forget about tomorrow, and make this night count. She had no choice but to return to her hometown and help her parents. Her mind was still reeling from her mother’s phone call. But Oliver didn’t need to know any of that right now. She wanted to give him a night to remember, because she planned on leaving tomorrow.
Scooting up to her knees, she straddled him. “I’m going to have my way with you.”
“Do . . . and don’t even think of holding back.”
“Oh, I won’t.” Belinda nodded and she could see the passion in his eyes, but she sensed a bit of disappointment. She longed to tell him she loved him too, but what good would it do? Would it just hurt him more in the long run? No, she wouldn’t think about it right now. Dipping her head, she gave him a hard, hot kiss, just short of wild. Then she leaned over and trailed her fingers over his chest and caressed lower until she reached the silky hair leading to where she wanted to give her undivided attention. But she played with the upper part of his thighs, admiring the firm muscle. He scooted higher on the pillows and spread his legs for her, giving her full access to his cock. She touched everywhere except there, until he moaned.
“Belinda . . . touch me.”
“Soon. Patience,” she whispered. She raised up and slid forward. With a deep moan, he cupped her ass and brought her forward to the heat of his mouth. But he paused there, teasing her right back, giving her a taste of what she was dishing out.
Belinda longed to inch closer to his face, but she didn’t. Instead, she remained as still as a statue. She felt the warmth of his breath and he squeezed her ass tighter and leaned in just a fraction. She closed her eyes and clung to the headboard. He kissed her mound, licking just slightly, causing her to throb with need. She wanted him to part her folds and drive her wild. “Oliver?” she asked in a barely audible voice.
“You’re making love to me, remember?” he said.
“I can’t remember my name at this point.”
“Belinda.”
“Right.”
“Don’t. Hold. Back.”
She nodded and then reluctantly scooted away from his mouth. Reaching down, she put her hand around his shaft, loving the steely hardness, the soft skin. When she swirled her fingertip over his swollen head he sucked in a breath. A pearly drop appeared and she leaned over and lapped it up with her tongue. Then, starting at his sac, she licked upward, back down, and up again and again until he was wet, pulsing, twitching. With one quick move, she rose and sank down onto his stiff cock.
“Oh!” He was big and he stretched her, filled her. She wanted to ride him, but her thighs quivered in protest. “Help me.”
Oliver put steadying hands around her waist. “Remember . . .”
“Don’t hold back,” she said. With her hands on his shoulders, she started a slow rhythm. Then she leaned forward so he could take a nipple into his mouth and it drove her crazy. She moved faster, loving the feeling of having his body beneath hers, strong, solid. His firm hands helped her move and she felt her orgasm start to build, reaching higher. Pleasure, just out of reach, had her bucking, riding him, and giving him every ounce of her energy and all her love. She wanted to say it, shout it, but she kept it inside, close to her heart. Emotion tangled with building pleasure and she came, clenching, until he flew over the edge with her.
Belinda fell forward against his chest. He held her tightly, obviously knowing something was wrong, but he didn’t ask, didn’t press. He gently eased her to the side, and it wasn’t until he pulled out that she realized they hadn’t used protection. He knew it too, but didn’t seem fazed, so she didn’t bring it up. She didn’t want to think; she just wanted to be held until she fell asleep.
Both physically and mentally exhausted, Belinda hoped she’d fall fast asleep, but she didn’t. Oliver’s even breathing wasn’t deep enough, so she suspected he was awake as well. Maybe she didn’t want to sleep so she could squeeze every last minute of being in his arms.
“Belinda?”
“Yes.”
“Tell me what’s going on. I can’t sleep wondering what’s bothering you.” He kissed her shoulder. “Please?”
Belinda nibbled on the inside of her cheek. “Well, it seems that my parents were sitting on a fortune and didn’t know it.” She relayed the crazy tale her mother had told her earlier. “Who knew that old barn wood was worth so much? And apparently, there’s more oak trees on the farm they can sell if need be. Crazy.”
“Wow. So, you were going back into pop music to save the family farm.”
Belinda nodded. “And the thing is that they weren’t really in danger of losing it. Joke’s on me.”
“What made you think they were going to lose it?”
“I was at their house for the holidays last year and overheard my dad talking on the phone to a friend. It sure sounded like the situation was pretty damned dire. He said he owed the bank a fortune and wasn’t sure how to pay it back.
“You didn’t ask for details?”
“At the time, I didn’t want to ruin Christmas, and I’d been thinking about trying to revive my pop career anyway, since I was getting nowhere in Nashville. And later, when I asked about the loan, Dad shrugged it off but hinted at a surprise. Little did I know what they had in store for me! But in fact, the money he borrowed was for buying all his junk. Well, I guess it’s not junk after all. I thought that the money he owed the bank was from when they backed me when I first went to Nashville. And I frittered all my money away, so . . .”
“You had no choice.”
“Or so I thought. See, I don’t think things through. I jump. Draw conclusions. It’s a real big fault of mine.”
“And now your parents are the proud owners of a music theater.”
“Uh, yeah. The Belinda Beal Theater.”
“Has a nice ring to it.”
Belinda groaned.
“So do you know where they’re talking about?”
“Yes. I mean, it’s a beautiful building. White brick with antebellum columns.”
“Why did it go under?”
“Couldn’t survive the recession. It’s been empty for a while, so I’m sure they got it for a song. And we’re close to the Great Smoky Mountains, you know, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. Have you been there?”
“A long time ago with my family. I remember being disappointed that I didn’t see a bear, but the saltwater taffy was the best.”
“Yeah, tons of tourists in that area, so we will get the overflow from there. Great location, I guess. Like you, I come from a musical family. My dad is super excited.”
“And you?” He hugged her closer as if she might vanish at any moment, and the gesture clutched at her heart.
Belinda cleared her throat. “This is like the perfect venue for me to go back to singing what I love. And I hated being on the road. So this is perfect,” she said, and felt him nod. “See, I started out singing at barn dances. This will have that same feel, only on a bigger scale. And I get to spend time with my parents. I miss them. And I miss Tennessee. And I’ll have fun going to Nashville, scouting for talent.”
“I understand completely,” he said, but there was an achingly sad tone to his voice.
“But, Oliver, I’m letting you down. I promised to do this publicity thing with you.”
“The fake romance? No. I was down with it when it was a farce. I wouldn’t want paparazzi following us around now . . . now that it’s real. At least for me.”
Belinda untangled herself and turned to face him. “Oliver, I—” she began, but he put a fingertip to her lips.
“Don’t say it. I can’t bear it.”
She put her hands to his cheeks and held his gaze. “I’m so sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about.”
Tears sprang to her eyes.
“Will you do me one favor?” he asked.
“Sure.”
“Stay through the weekend. Grady invited us over to his house. We can make it last just a little bit longer.”
“God . . .”
“Hey, if things had gone as planned we’d have eventually been pulled apart by our separate careers anyway.”
“I know, but . . .” she began, but was unable to finish. “Oliver, these past three weeks have been just . . . I can’t even put it into words. Okay, one word: perfect.”
“How in the hell do we just move on like this never happened?”
“I don’t have a choice.”
He inhaled a deep breath. “Yeah, I know.”
“I’ll stay the weekend. Go to Grady’s with you,” she said, even though she knew it was going to be gut-wrenching.
“Thank you. Now I can sleep.”
Belinda smiled and only just stopped herself from telling him she loved him. Her heart was breaking and there wasn’t a damned thing she could do about it.