Wethering the Storm

I watch in awe as he throws his head back, the muscles in his neck tightening, straining, as he growls out his orgasm, pumping his hips hard into mine.



When he’s done, he falls onto me. Brushing my hair from my face, he tenderly kisses my lips, then rests his head beside mine.



I turn my face to his. “So that’s the living room christened. Only sixteen more rooms to go, excluding bathrooms, of course.”



“Well, I’m good for a few more rounds,” he says, grinning. “Where next?”



CHAPTER FIVE



Today is moving day.



We’re leaving Jake’s old house behind; it’s on the market now.



We’ve been back in LA two weeks now, and I’m really starting to like it here.



I still miss Simone and London like crazy, though. The one thing I miss most is our girls’ night out on Friday nights.



I’m constantly surrounded by men here, so any girlie nights are pretty much out of the question.



I really do need to try and make some new girlfriends here. It’s just not so easy to make new female friends when you’re Jake Wethers’s girlfriend.



Half the women here hate me because they want to sleep with Jake. The other half hate me because they have slept with him and they want round two.



I’m currently not liked amongst my gender in LA. Well, worldwide, I’d imagine, because I’m the one who took Jake off the market.



So you see my problem.



Even though I miss London with all my heart, LA has one great perk: the clothes shops.



Stuart’s been giving me the guided tour of the best shops here. The man is a maniac when let loose around fabric, credit card in hand. Therefore, he encourages me to buy way too much. Stuart’s a hard guy to say no to. Pretty much like Jake in that respect.



I’m near to maxing out all my credit cards with my purchases. But they are all so completely worth it. Especially the new underwear I bought from Agent Provocateur, if only for the look on Jake’s face when I modeled them last night.



My modeling debut ended up turning into a marathon lovemaking session. I cast aside my self-imposed sex ban at his house, knowing we were leaving.



I also put a no-ripping ban on the new underwear. After his initial disappointment, Jake removed them the old-fashioned way, quite slowly in fact. And there were certainly no complaints coming once he got in the rhythm.



Jake and I also spent time this past week furniture shopping. I’ve loved every minute of it.



First item on the list: a new bed.



We bought a custom-made Parnian bed at Jake’s insistence, which is being delivered today.



Don’t get me wrong, it’s beautiful and supercomfy, but I did initially suggest that we could get one equally as good from IKEA. I thought it was such a large amount of money to spend on a bed. I know money is no issue to Jake, but it’s still taking a little time for me to get used to that fact. Jake’s argument was that if he’s going to spend most of his time in it, on his knees making me come, then he wanted the best bed money can buy. Got to love his crass. And really, what could I say to that?



Between bouts of fun and crazy spending, and keeping on top of work, I’ve started planning our wedding. Well, kind of. I bought some bridal magazines and looked at wedding dresses.



It’s the best kind of start, if you ask me.



I still haven’t yet decided whether we will get married here or back home in the UK. Mama is naturally pushing for the UK, but I’m just not sure.



One thing Jake and I did do was decide on a date for the wedding.



I will become Mrs. Jake Wethers on 21 July 2013.



Trudy Wethers.



It’s so weird. And I so can’t bloody wait!



The reason we picked 21 July is because it’s the date I went to interview Jake. We’ll be married a year to the day we fell back into each other’s lives. I still can’t believe how much has happened in such a short time.



So I’ve got a little over nine months to plan our wedding.



Plenty of time. I think. I don’t know. I’ve never planned a wedding before. To be honest, it kind of hurts my head when I think of the enormity of what I have to do.



Jake suggested I hire a wedding planner, but I don’t know if I want a complete stranger organising my wedding. It feels like it’s something I should do with the help of my mum and girlfriends.



Honestly, though, I have been secretly considering taking Jake up on his offer of Vegas.



The only thing stopping me is the fact that my mother would quite likely never speak to me again if I got married standing before a guy dressed as Elvis.



On the other big news front, Jake and Zane, who I’m still yet to meet, discovered who was stealing from the label.



The A&R director. No one I’ve ever met. His name is Scott Speed.



Scott has worked for Jake pretty much from the beginning, like Zane.



Apparently Scott is a gambler, and he had run up some pretty big debts. He stole the money to pay the not-so-nice people he owed.



That was his excuse, anyway.



For me, there is no excuse for stealing.



I saw how what he’s done has affected Jake, and that’s what really pisses me off. I get that Scott may have been in a tight fix, but there are other ways out.



Jake even said that if Scott had just told him what was going on, he would have helped him pay off the debts and gotten him the help he needed with his addiction.



Jake above anyone knows what it’s like to deal with an addiction.



The worst thing for Jake was that he had no choice but to report it to the police, and now Scott has been charged with fraud.



It’s sad, but Jake’s hands were tied. Scott had committed a serious crime, and if Jake hadn’t reported it, he would have been in trouble himself.



One good thing is Jake has managed to keep it out of the news. The last thing the label needs right now is any negative press.



But that’s all behind us now, and today we start our life together in our humongous new house.



Our $30 million humongous house in the Hollywood Hills.



I still cannot get over how much this house is worth. Or that I’m going to be living in such an amazing house in Hollywood.



It’s all still a little surreal.



Currently, I’m standing outside my amazing house, in my surreal moment, feeling a little redundant.



The movers are shifting all our belongings into the house for us, and Stuart is at the helm directing. I currently have nothing to do and no clue where Jake is.



He was here a minute ago but vanished, leaving me here looking like a lemon.



Almost all of the stuff being moved in is Jake’s. What little stuff I have, which Simone kindly boxed up for me, was shipped from London. It consists of clothes, shoes, makeup, accessories, handbags, and photos and mementos I’ve collected over the years.



Not a lot, really. It makes me a little sad that I have so little to show for my life in London.



Making my way past one of the movers, through the front door and living room, I go out onto the patio area, where it’s quiet.



Thankful I’m wearing denim shorts, I kick my wedges off and sit down at the edge of the infinity pool and immerse my legs in the water as I stare out at the skyline.



Suddenly awash with homesickness, I decide to call Simone.



“Hey, gorgeous!” comes her chipper voice down the line.



Hearing Simone’s voice, and London in the background, causes my throat to thicken.



“Hey,” I say, forcing my voice out.



“How’s moving day going?”



“Ah, you know.”



“You don’t sound very excited. I would be bouncing off the bloody walls if I were moving into that house!”



I e-mailed Simone photos of the house last week, and she was, let’s say…mega impressed to say the least. She screamed down the phone—a lot.



“Maybe Denny will buy you one,” I say, deflecting the conversation from me to her and Denny.



“Yeah, I’d be so bloody lucky!” she laughs.



Denny is the drummer in TMS and one of Jake’s closest friends. Simone and Denny met when I was on tour with the band. They’ve been together ever since, and are managing to successfully maintain a long-distance relationship.



How long they’ll stay long distance, I’m not sure.



I can’t see Simone giving up her job and coming over here anytime soon, even though for purely selfish reasons I wish she would. And Denny has commitments here with the band.



“I wish you lived here so we could see each other every day like we used to,” I murmur.



“Me too.”



“So why don’t you just move here?” I say. “Move in with Denny.”



“Tru, for starters, I don’t even know if Denny would want to live with me. He’s never mentioned it.”



“I bet he would. He’s crazy about you.”



“Yeah,” she sighs. “But I also love my job too, you know. I’m doing so well at work right now that I’d be crazy to throw it all away.”



“I guess,” I sigh.



Unlike me, who moves halfway around the world to be with the man she loves. But then, that man is Jake. The person I have loved for my whole life. And I guess I didn’t have to give up my job either. I’m lucky enough to have the best boss in the world, who’s letting me work transatlantic. Thank God for Vicky—and technology.



“Anyway, why are you on the phone with me in the midst of your move? It is still happening, isn’t it?”



“As we speak. I’m just…not needed. The movers are putting everything away, and Stuart is making sure everything runs smoothly, which I don’t mind, because it’s his job to do that kind of stuff. I guess I just…” I let out another sigh, kicking my leg against the blue. “Ignore me, I’m just being silly.”



“Not how us normal folk move, eh, babe?”



“Nope.” I love how I don’t have to say the actual words to Simone. She just gets me every time.



“You remember when we moved into the flat?” I say, the memory tickling me. “Just me and you, lugging furniture and boxes in. And oh my God! That bloody van we hired that kept breaking down!”



“Sodding thing kept cutting out when I was driving it!”



“And on our first night in the flat we ate Indian takeaway straight from the containers, using plastic forks, and drank the wine straight from the bottle because we couldn’t be arsed to unpack any plates or glasses!” I’m really laughing now.



“God, we used to have such a laugh!” Simone crows, sounding a little breathless.



“A lot’s changed since then,” I muse, my laughter quickly dying as I stare into the water.



“For the better,” she says. But it actually sounds like a question.



She loves Jake, but he is who he is, and he has the problems he has. I know Simone worries for me.



“Definitely for the better.” I smile, the thought of Jake instantly bringing it to my lips.



I hear movement behind me. Turning, I see Jake making his way toward me.



“My absent fiancé has just reappeared,” I say to Simone. “I’ll call you later, once we’re all settled, okay?”



“Okay, honey, speak to you later.”



“Simone?” Jake asks, sitting on the edge of one of the chairs.