Chapter Nine
It was dark and quiet, the ocean outside a barely whispered accompaniment to the sound of two people panting heavily. Paul and Toni were completely spent, lying limply on the bed and covered by a tangled sheet. Toni’s leg rested comfortably across Paul’s and she’d tucked her head against his chest.
Paul sighed. “I think my cock may be out of order for a while.”
“Uh oh.” Toni snuffled and rubbed her nose on his skin. “I killed him, didn’t I?”
“At least he died happy.”
“Remind me to tell you about my talent for reincarnation.” Toni snickered and reached beneath the sheet to give Paul’s cock a quick caress.
“This sucks.” He frowned.
“What does?”
“I have to get up early and meet with Bud. Then I have to go over the shots to make sure we got everything he wanted. And I heard some investor might come by to talk and Bud wants me there. My morning’s gonna be shot to hell.”
“How terrible.” Toni sighed dramatically and lifted her head. “My morning’s going to be rough too. I have to sleep in, then I have to eat breakfast, maybe do a little shopping and then, to top it all off, I have to pack. It’s gonna be…horrible.” She sniffled.
The silence spoke volumes.
Paul smacked his lips and cleared his throat. “You know there are times when a good spanking is definitely needed.”
“Promises, promises.” She laughed and gently stroked her fingers through the hair on his chest. “Paul?”
“Mmm?”
“I really don’t know if I want to do this.”
Her voice had turned serious and Paul shifted to try and see her face. “Do what?” You mean us?”
“No, no. Not us. Us is great.” She blinked, her eyelashes brushing his skin. “I’m talking about the film. The whole acting in a porn movie thing.”
“Oh. That.” Paul found a wave of relief sweeping over him, but tried to keep it out of his voice.
He really liked Toni. Not just because she was beautiful, sexy, great in bed, smart, possessed a superb ass, and had perfect white teeth. He just liked her. She wasn’t fake or preoccupied with herself. She was interesting to be with, enjoyed other people—she was just totally real.
“Yeah, that.” She thought for a moment. “I don’t know how to explain it. The people I‘ve met here are really nice. And I’d never judge anybody because of what they do, whether they’re porn stars or whatever. This has been a totally professional group and they treat the whole thing like the job it is.” She laughed a little. “And I can’t lie—the sex was great.”
“Why, thank you.” Paul puffed out his chest and smirked.
“I meant with Ryan.” She lifted up on one elbow and grinned at the frown on Paul’s face. “Don’t sweat it. You aren’t too shabby in that department either, Mr. Stud Cameraman.” She tickled his stomach.
“What are you going to do, then?” Paul watched her expressive face.
“Honestly? I don’t know.” She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I’ve got an education. Some marketing courses under my belt and plenty of experience selling products. But this—the adult movie business—it’s a little too close to selling me, you know? It’s all about sex, all the time. In the last three days I’ve had a woman go down on me, a guy fuck me silly and met you. Which wasn’t a bad thing, of course, but you catch my drift.”
“Um…you sure you’re okay with us? Here?”
“Oh yeah. Most definitely.” She stroked Paul’s chest with her hand, letting it linger over where his heart beat inside. “It’s just that being with you—well, this is the real thing. Honest sex. Something I wanted to do with a man I wanted to be with. I’m afraid that if I ended up doing porn movies for a living, it would change things. That I might end up slipping into someplace where the pretend and the real got muddled up.” She sighed. “I’m not explaining this very well, am I?”
Paul shook his head. “No, I get what you’re saying.” He wondered if he could make her aware of just how much he did understand. “I just got out of a relationship that was completely fake. I hadn’t realized how fake it was until recently and it was with someone in the industry. I told myself that was it. No more dating anyone working in this business.”
He smiled wryly. “I wasn’t looking to meet someone else. Certainly not so quickly. But I like you Toni—a lot. On a whole bunch of different levels than before. I can talk to you about anything, not just movies. I’d like to spend time with you. To get to know you better, away from all this.”
Toni sighed and snuggled against him. “I like you too, Paul. We kinda jumped into the sex stuff. I guess. Maybe because of where we are and what we’re doing all the time. And then, of course, there’s your incredible animal attraction that got me real hot under the collar.” She giggled. “Or whatever I wasn’t wearing at the time.”
She rested her fingers over his lips as he took a breath to answer her. So he waited and let her continue.
“What I’d like is to get to know you too. To be with you just like two ordinary people. Grab dinner now and again. Maybe spend a day together doing normal stuff. With our clothes on.” She paused. “Er—if we date, we can still have sex every now and again, right?”
Paul pursed his lips. “Jeez, Toni. I don’t know. Let me think about it.”
He thought. For approximately one point two seconds.
“Okay.”
~~~~~
Late the following afternoon, Toni began to pack the few things she had brought with her into her suitcase. Clouds were covering the sunshine and just about everyone was getting ready to head back home. The sun-filled, sex-riddled few days were pretty much over and done with.
With so much on her mind, it wasn’t surprising that Toni never noticed a thin strip of light under her bathroom door.
“Leaving so soon?”
She jumped and squawked as she turned to see who the hell was talking to her. It was Nick, standing in the bathroom doorway and posing like a lingerie model. He had on a robe and a pair of underwear that left nothing to the imagination.
“Yes. It’s time for me to head home.” Toni was uncertain what to say next. She hadn’t invited him in. But there he was.
“That’s too bad. I didn’t get a chance to work with you.”
“Yeah.” She shrugged casually. “Luck of the draw, I guess.”
“What about now? I’m always ready for a good fuck.”
A shiver of unease brushed her spine. “Excuse me? I so don’t think that’s gonna happen. Why don’t you head on out and pack, Nick? I’m busy.”
“What’s wrong, baby? I saw you lookin’ at me. When I fucked that bitch Suze, you were checkin’ out my cock.” He thrust his hips forward suggestively, pushing the hard-on beneath his underwear into full sight.
“Nick, I want you to leave.”
“I don’t think so. Come on. Just give me a crack at that tight little ass. Once you have Nick you’ll never want another guy fucking you.’
Toni narrowed her eyes, angry at his words. “I don’t know who the fuck you think you are. But I want you out of here. Now.” It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him she’d already been warned about him, but she figured that would probably feed his ego.
He just stared at her. “I’ll leave as soon as we get done. I’ve wanted a piece of you since we met. Let’s fuck.”
“No.”
He snorted. “All fancy now, huh? You sign on to do porn and all of a sudden you don’t want to fuck? I saw you and Paul all smiling and flirty downstairs. You fucked him…”
“I’m done with this conversation.” Toni turned and stepped toward the door but Nick’s hand shot out and pulled her to a stop.
“You ain’t going anywhere, bitch. Your ass is mine.”
Toni struggled. “Let go of me you asshole! You’re hurting me.”
Ignoring her, Nick pulled her toward him and tried to force a kiss, his tongue sliding all over her face as she twisted her lips away from his.
Furious, Toni hauled off and slapped his face, as hard as she could.
All it did was bring a nasty smile. “I guess you want it a little rough. I can do rough. I like rough.”
Her head rocked backward and a strange sound echoed through Toni’s brain. Pain radiated from her cheek and jaw as Nick backhanded her across the face. She had never been hit by a man before, swearing that if a man ever struck her she’d have his balls on a plate.
Nick stood between her and the door and she was hurting, stunned and madder than she’d been in her entire life. “You fucking bastard.” She lunged forward and punched any part of Nick’s large frame she could reach, putting every bit of strength she possessed into her swing.
He laughed and ignored her like she was a fly buzzing around him.
Then he lunged and grabbed her, ripping her blouse open.
She was almost smothered by his massive arms but that didn’t stop her fighting back, even though all she had were her hands and feet. She kicked and twisted, finally lashing out, raking his cheek with her fingernails and feeling the skin tear as she ripped at him, frantic to break free.
Nick yelled as he let her go at last. “Fuck. That hurt.” He looked at his hand where he’d touched himself and stared at the blood she’d drawn.
Toni rushed for the door but Nick was quicker. He grabbed her by the hair, yanking her backwards then shoving her at the wall. There was a searing flash of pain.
After that everything went dark.
Until a savage pounding in her head made itself known and she tried to open her eyes.
Someone was pulling at her legs. When she finally managed to focus, she froze at the sight of Nick with her underwear in his hand, holding it to his face.
“Oh yeah, I’m gonna enjoy tearing this sweet pussy up.” He paused, smiling, seeing her awake and glaring at him. “Good. I hate fucking a bitch who’s unconscious.”
The words “steroid” and “rage” flashed through Toni’s brain, scaring the crap out of her as she fought to scream. She gagged on the cloth stuck in her mouth and couldn’t push it free since there was something tied around her face holding it where it was. Her hands were bound behind her and there was no way she could get loose to fight back.
Terrified and about as mad as she’d ever been, Toni knew that all the typical stereotypes were being played out by this wild-eyed, insane porn stud. She was helpless and frantic to stop what Nick clearly had in mind. But nothing she did could loose the ties around her wrists.
She tried twisting, kicking out at Nick, at anything she could possibly reach, but all she did was hit the dresser with her foot, bringing tears to her eyes as the pain shot up her leg.
“Oh no you don’t. Quit kicking. Trust me baby, you’re gonna enjoy this as much as I am.” Nick grabbed her ankles and clamped his strong hands around them.
Toni screamed behind the gag but made very little noise and tears dripped over her face as she watched this asshole look over her body and lick his lips. His eyes were wide open, his pupils black and huge, and he was sweating. The muscles across his chest were rigid and gleaming from perspiration.
Oh Jesus Christ. He was going to do this. He was going to rape her and she was helpless to stop it. At that moment, all she wanted was for him to go away. To have this nightmare end.
She felt something between her legs and lifted her head awkwardly to look along her body. Nick’s hugely aroused cock rested on her pubis and he was lowering his hips to position himself. She squirmed again, trying to fight this…to stop this…it seemed to do little but fuel his flaring temper and send him even more out of control.
“Fight me all you want, bitch, but I’ll win in the end.” He squeezed hard on her legs, his fingers hurting her flesh, then spread her wide as he lifted her ass up off the bed.
Toni closed her eyes and braced herself for the inevitable, teeth locked around the gag and a scream of fury choking in her throat.
Suddenly he let her go and she thumped back down onto the bed.
Cautiously lifting her eyelids, she saw Paul—with his arm around Nick’s neck, pulling fiercely against it and making Nick move away. “Get the fuck off her, Nick. Stop it. Stop it now.”
“Let go of me, you fucking dick.” Nick was struggling to pull Paul’s arm loose, drops of spittle flying from his lips.
He tore at Paul’s choke hold, only to find himself flying into the wall as Paul let go all of a sudden. Nick staggered and fell to the floor.
Paul cursed. “What the fuck are you doing Nick? Are you nuts? You don’t rape a woman because she won’t fuck you!” He took a step toward Toni on the bed.
Nick wiped a hand over his face. “Fuck you, camera boy. Just ‘cause you fucked her doesn’t mean she belongs to you. I’ve had my eye on that bitch all weekend.” He pulled himself back up onto his feet with a snarl. “You should have taken me out when you could, Paul. ‘Cause now I’m gonna have to seriously fuck you up, boy. But good.”
Nick lunged and Paul quickly sidestepped him, taking a swing at him with all he had, first a solid punch in the gut, then an uppercut that hit Nick squarely on the chin.
But neither blow fazed Nick. Toni watched in horror as he turned and elbowed Paul in the face.
Unable to watch, Toni closed her eyes, held her breath and waited for the next move, the next terrifying stage in this battle. Paul wobbled and Nick grabbed him by the neck, slamming him against the wall. “You dumb ass. Nobody fucks with me. One squeeze and I’m gonna break your neck.”
“One squeeze and I’ll blow a fucking hole through your hollow skull. Let him go, Nick. And I mean right now.” Even over the heavy breathing, Toni could hear the clear sound of a sharp click. It was Suze.
Standing right next to the two men, she had one hand raised to Nick’s head. The one that cradled a neat gun. Which, as near as Toni could make out, was currently pressed hard into Nick’s hairline. Suze didn’t mince her words. “You are such an asshole, Nick.”
“Fuck you.” Still hostile, but at least he had the sense to stand still.
“Fuck me? No, fuck you! You steroid-pumping freak.” He turned to sneer at her but stopped again when he found that Suze was still pointing the gun at him. Directly into his face this time around. “Yeah. It’s a semi-automatic. Only a twenty-two, but at this range, I don’t think I’ll miss. My hand’s shaking a little. Might make my finger a bit quick on the trigger, huh? You know why it’s shaking, Nick? It’s shaking because I’m so fucking pissed right now I could spit steel railroad spikes.”
Toni wanted to cheer, to cry, to scream and to beat Nick to a pulp. But all she could do was wait as Paul stumbled over to her and pulled the thin tank top free of her mouth.
“Oh God—“ She coughed and spat out the taste as Paul reached behind her to undo the tie of Nick’s robe around her wrists. Tears were pouring down over her cheeks as she rubbed some feeling back into her arms, tears of humiliation, anger and fear.
For some reason she felt naked—more naked than she’d ever felt in her life. As if he understood, Paul grabbed her robe from her open suitcase and wrapped it around her, holding her tight and just letting her shake for a minute or two before urging her to stand.
“Can you walk? Did he hurt you?”
Toni shook her head and blinked away the tears. “Yes and no, not really. You got here in time.” She looked across at Suze. “Both of you.”
“Don’t worry Toni, I’ll take care of this fuckhead.” Suze smiled as Nick looked down at his feet. Even he wasn’t about to argue with a .22-caliber weapon wielded by a six foot Amazon woman.
Together, Paul and Toni headed for the door, but before they reached it, Toni stopped. “Gimme a second.”
She walked over to Nick and glared at him, then licked the blood from her split lip. “Nobody—and I mean nobody—ever treats me like that.” She looked him straight in the eye as she brought her knee up and rammed it with a great deal of force into his balls. “You stupid fuck!”
Nick screamed loudly and fell to his knees, retching and cradling his pride and joy.
“You go, girl.” Suze nodded approvingly.
Paul winced. “That’s the second time in a week I’ve seen a woman almost neuter a guy.”
“He made me mad. Really really mad.” Toni leaned against Paul and they walked out of the room together. “I don’t like it when people make me that mad.”
“Got it. Never make Toni mad. I don’t think I’ll forget that.” Paul gulped and led her downstairs.
~~~~~
Three Weeks Later…
Paul closed the microwave door then paused. He could swear he’d heard a thud outside his apartment. Yep, there it was again. A definite thud, followed by a muffled noise that could well have been a curse.
He grinned. Toni had finally arrived. Almost on time, too.
Walking quickly to his front door, Paul opened it and looked out—then down. Toni was on all fours grappling with several thick folders, her handbag and two pizza boxes.
“Hello.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “A hand here would be nice.”
Paul could not resist it. He applauded quietly.
She blew a gust of air through her lips. “If you want to eat either of these pizzas, not wear ‘em, I suggest you quit doing that. Like right now.” She growled low in her throat. “You’re making me mad.”
“Uh oh.” Paul grinned and cupped his crotch. “You gonna hurt me?”
“Depends.” She stared at his hands. “Nah. I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors if I did.”
Paul breathed a loud sigh of relief then bent to help her. He gently picked up the most important things. The pizzas. He opened the boxes to make sure they weren’t too damaged. “Well, that’s good. The pizzas are…“ He saw the look in Toni’s eyes and stopped talking for a moment or two as he helped her to her feet. “What the hell is all this? I mean I know the pizzas are there, but the rest of it…?”
A lightning quick smile darted over Toni’s face. “I got it, Paul. We’ve got it. The very first project. I’m just—well, I’m real excited. Can’t wait for you to see it.”
“Okay. You want to come in and show me? Or shall I just sit here in the hall and look?”
“Idiot.” Toni stood and carefully balanced her folders, passing the pizzas over to him. “Watch them. They’re still hot.”
“Got ‘em.” He took the precious boxes into the kitchen as Toni followed him in and shut the door. “I have some microwave popcorn for later.”
He waited for Toni’s response. It wasn’t long in coming.
“You got it? You got the movie? Oh wow, Paul—” She flung her arms around him. “I can’t believe it. What a day, huh? Did you have to twist Bud’s arm for it?” She dropped her stuff on the table and danced around him. “Jeez, I can’t wait to see it.”
“Hold on. Pizza first, then the movie. And tell me your news.” He peered out the window. “Did you park next to me?”
She nodded, opening one of the boxes. “Yep. I just hope you’re right and number 23 is away on vacation. I hate like hell to park Bud’s car on the main drag.”
Paul passed her a plate and a piece of kitchen towel to use as a napkin. “I keep telling you, it’s not Bud’s car. It’s a company rental.”
“I know.” She tore a piece of melted cheese off the top of the pizza and slurped it into her mouth with relish. “Mmm. Good. Got a beer?”
Paul opened the fridge, remembering once again why he was totally crazy about this woman. “Here.”
“Thanks.” She twisted the top off the bottle. “But the car came at Bud’s orders. Therefore, it’s Bud’s car.”
“It’s his way of saying thank you for not suing him, Nick or Four Coin Productions. And it’s only until you get your own, honey. You know that.”
“As if I’d sue Bud.” She snorted and loaded her plate. “It wasn’t his fault Nick was hyped up to the eyebrows. You heard anything about him, by the way?”
Paul led the way into the living room with his own beer and pizza in his hands. “He’s still detoxing, apparently. They’ve got him off the steroids, but his package just isn’t the same. Side effects of that shit, so they say. I reckon his career as a super stud porn star is pretty much over.”
“Can’t say I’m sorry to hear that.” Toni settled on the couch and tucked her jean-clad legs up under her.
“So.” Paul stared at the folders. “You gonna show me?”
“Okay.” She grinned. “This is it. Our very first project presentation. A series of five movies, all based in and around a beauty spa.” She picked up the top folder and showed him the cover. “Isn’t it gorgeous?”
Paul looked it over with an experienced eye, admiring the rich colors and the merest hint of a woman’s hip in the clouds scudding over the building. “Tasteful.”
Toni nodded. “That’s what Suze said she wanted. If we’re going to sell our ideas and get our movies funded, Paul, we have to place ourselves into the right niche. We’re not porn, not in the traditional sense. We’re erotica, sensual erotica, aimed at women. So we had to get the look right before we could start to market anything at all.”
Paul grinned. “You think it’ll fly?”
“If I have anything to say about it, it will.” Toni nodded her head emphatically. “I plan on putting everything I’ve got into this marketing plan. I owe it to Suze. And myself, I guess.”
“You do, Toni. You’ll make it a great success.” He leaned over and gripped her hand. “I know it.”
Paul did know it. Not long after that eventful weekend at the beach, Toni had called him and told him of Suze’s proposal. A studio producing adult movies aimed at women. Stories with plots, scripts, stars who could act as well as fuck and the best production values they could possibly manage. And when she mentioned the fact that Suze had asked her to be their Marketing Manager—well, the thought of the celebration they’d had that night still made Paul’s eyes roll.
Since then, Toni had worked like the devil, pouring every moment she had into something she was excited about. And never once had she ever mentioned appearing in front of the camera.
“Thanks. That means a lot.” She smiled. “We have the first five outlines, a few shots from each location, synopses and a list of potential stars. That’s enough for me to start making calls. Perhaps work up a solid presentation or two. It’s sooo fun.”
Crunching down on a piece of pizza crust, she leaned over and nudged him. “Your turn.”
Paul smiled as he reached over to the side table and with the air of a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat produced—a blank DVD case. “Ta da.”
“Uh…honey? Isn’t there supposed to be a picture or something on the cover?”
Paul rolled his eyes. “There will be. But you were in such a hurry to see the damn thing I had to swipe this off the pre-sale pile. They’ll label them before distribution.”
“Ahh.” Toni looked suitably impressed. “It’s nice the way you teach me things.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He reached for the remote. “You want popcorn now? Or shall we wait?”
“Let’s wait for a bit. I’m good with the pizza for now.”
“Okay.” Paul turned on his TV, the surround system, the DVD player and all the other associated electronic gizmos that a twenty-first century man needs to watch television with one elegant flourish of his phone.
Toni settled in next to him, nursing her beer. “This is cool.”
He put his arm around her. “Yep. A new movie on a big screen TV, my girl next to me, beer and pizza. What more can a guy ask for?”
They leaned back together as the movie began.
“What’s that?” Toni nodded at the odd frame references appearing one after another.
“The cues for the coming attractions. They’ll be added to the commercial release.”
“Oh.” She nodded. “Okay.”
“Er, Toni?”
“What?”
“If you keep your hand there, the attractions aren’t going to be the only things coming.”
The music swelled, muffling Toni’s giggle and the sound of a zipper being lowered. Her head dipped downward. “Mmm. I sure hope you’re right…”