A pillow hit me in the back, and I laughed out loud but still didn’t turn to face her. “Hurry up,” I urged as I bent down to get my boots. “You only have about thirty minutes before the car gets here.”
“Car? What car?” she demanded.
“I might have gotten a limo for tonight.” I had a vision of making love to Emmie on the ride home tonight. With her spread out on the long back seat and my head between her legs as I licked her toward orgasm after orgasm. My dick swelled at just the thought and I had to readjust myself so that I didn’t split the crotch seam of my slacks.
“Thirty minutes!” She yelped and I heard her jumping out of bed. “You are such an ass. You can’t expect me to get ready in thirty minutes.”
Her distressed tone had me finally turning to face her. “Why not?” I had lived with Emmie for over six years now. It never took her longer than ten minutes to get ready for anything. She wasn’t like most girls who spent hours in front of the mirror before starting the day.
“Because…” She grunted. “Just because, Nik!” Emmie went into the bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind her.
I sighed. Now she was mad at me. What a great way to start our first date.
Terrified of making her angrier than she already was, I went downstairs to wait for her. Jesse was standing at the stove stirring something that smelled incredible. His eyes widened when he saw me. “Where are you going?”
I shrugged, pulling a beer out of the fridge. “I’m taking Em out to dinner.”
“Wow, look at you. Getting smart and shit.” He grinned and turned back to whatever he was cooking. “So I guess you won’t be eating any of my hamburger helper.”
“Is that what that is?” I crossed over to the stove to stand beside him and looked down at the pan he was working on. Macaroni noodles, hamburger, thick cheese, and what looked like some green onion and red peppers were added to the mix. “Dude, that looks awesome. Save me some for later.”
“I’ll try, bro.”
“I’ll bring you home a slice of cake or something.” I wasn’t above bribing. My stomach growled and I was tempted to starting eating from the pan right then and there.
“Fine. I’ll make another batch later, just for you.” Jesse rolled his ever-changing dark eyes at me. “I want some chocolate cake.”
“You got it.”
Emmie still hadn’t come down by the time the limo pulled up in the driveway. I opened the front door to wave at the driver, letting him know that we wouldn’t be long when I heard heeled footsteps coming down the stairs behind me. Turning around to see if Emmie was ready to go, I froze at the sight before me.
To me Emmie was sexy in a pair of baggy pajamas and one of my old shirts. My breath caught in my throat as I took in the beautiful vision that was walking toward me: knee high, stiletto, black boots; a black dress that fell just short of mid-thigh with a modest neck line. Her hair was down, curled around her shoulders and shining. Make-up made those incredibly big green eyes stand out in her perfect face.
My tongue felt like it was glued to the roof of my mouth, and I struggled to form words as she stepped off of the last step and twirled around, showing off the back of her dress. It dipped down to the small of her back, showing off her creamy complexion and slender shoulder blades.
The smile she gave me told me she was over being mad at me, but I was still standing there staring at her like an idiot. “How do I look?”
“I…” I cleared my throat. “Wow… You… I… Wow.”
Her giggle did something to my stomach. I was sure there were butterflies flying around in there. “That good, huh?”
“Fuck, Em.” Jesse came from the back of the house and saw her standing at the front door with me. “You look hot.”
“Thanks, Jess.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek before turning back to me. “Are we ready, Nik?”
I shook my head, trying to clear it of the desire she had fogged it with. “You look beautiful, Emmie.”
Chapter 15
Jealousy. What A Bitch
A week went by that was full of complete bliss where Emmie and I were concerned. I couldn’t ever remember being so happy. Each morning I woke up with Emmie snuggled against me and made love to her until she begged for mercy and something to eat, which had to include something with bacon. The rest of the day was spent hanging out down on the beach or in front of the television with the guys. I took her out every evening, whether to dinner or a movie or just dessert—again with the bacon. Then I brought her home and made love to her until we were too exhausted to move.
Now we were sitting out on the deck. Jesse was lying on a lounger beside me and Emmie was snuggled up on my lounger with me while Drake snored soundly across from us. I was content, close to falling asleep and loving life.
Of course Emmie’s phone kept vibrating every five minutes. She had turned the ringer off to keep from disturbing me, but she was texting with someone and the vibrations were starting to get annoying. Yawning, I picked the phone up off my stomach where she had placed it after the last text. “Who are you talking to?”
She shrugged. “Axton.”
I tried not to stiffen, tried not to let the images of Emmie kissing my friend fill my mind. Of course it happened anyway. My hand fisted around her phone before I relaxed it enough to look down at the screen and the new text. My eyes narrowed when I read his message. “He is not coming here!”
Emmie raised her head, a frown creasing her forehead. “Of course he is.”
“No, Em. He fucking is not coming. I don’t want him here.” I carefully untangled her from around me and stood. I was trying to stay calm, not act like a jealous asshole. But the more I thought of Axton Cage close to my girl, the more I saw red. “He has no business here.”
“What the hell is your problem?” she demanded. “Ax is our friend. If he wants to take time out and come visit us he can.”
“Friends? He had his hands all over you more than a week ago, Em!”
Green eyes narrowed dangerously on me. “He kissed me. Big deal. He was just messing around. We both know he didn’t mean anything by it.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it.” I raked my hands through my hair. “He has a thing for you. Everyone freaking knows it. Even Brie.” Gabriella Moreitti hated Emmie just as much as Em hated her because of it.
My back was turned to her as I tried to calm down enough to keep from punching something. Of course it didn’t help, so I didn’t see the look on Emmie’s face, didn’t see the hurt and anger that filled her green eyes. I was lost to everything but my own jealousy as I glared out at the Gulf.
“Emmie?” Jesse’s voice was full of concern, and I turned to glance at my friend. His eyes were on Emmie, who was still sitting where I had left her. “Emmie, deep breaths.”
Tears were pouring down her cheeks as a silent sob had her catching her breath. I was so startled to find her like that my legs nearly buckled. “Em?”
She sucked in a deep breath and a broken sob escaped her, waking Drake. “You have a lot of fucking nerve.” Scrubbing a hand over her face, she stood. “One stupid, innocent kiss and you act like I committed adultery. Fuck you, Nik. And fuck precious Brie too. Oh, wait. You already did that!”
“What?” I blinked, unsure I had heard her right. “What did you say?”
“You fucked Gabriella! Don’t act all innocent. She told me all about it just days after it had happened while we were still in Australia last year. You think that was fun for me? Having one of your fuck buddies tell me the details?” Her phone was clenched in her hand, but she used it as a missile and threw it at my head. “So you can get over Axton because I had to get over Gabriella.”
She walked away from me, tears still pouring down her face while I just stood there. Too stunned to do more than stare after her. I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about and it only made my head hurt to try and comprehend it all.
Sex with Gabriella? Had she lost her mind? I didn’
t even like the little Italian spitfire. Sure she was hot, smoking hot at that. But Axton had hooked up with Gabriella not long into the tour and that had meant hands off in my book. Not that I would have touched her if they hadn’t. By that time Emmie had invaded my head to the point that I couldn’t think straight, and the few girls I had been messing around with had reminded me of her.
“Well that explains a lot,” Jesse muttered.
Drake groaned and turned over on his lounger. “I’m surprised that Em didn’t scratch her eyes out when Gabriella told her that.”
I glared at my two friends. “Did she really just accuse me of sleeping with Brie?”
Jesse sighed. “Dude, if you want to keep your man parts, I suggest you drop the little nickname that Ax gave Gabriella. That isn’t going to win you any points with Em. And to answer your question, yes. I had suspected something like this at the time, but Emmie would never tell me for sure or not.”
“There was a rumor going around that you had bagged the little Italian.” Drake shrugged, reaching for his half empty bottle of Jack Daniels that was sitting on the deck beside his chair. “I didn’t pay any attention at the time, what with her being with Axton.”
I groaned. “So she really does think I slept with Br—Gabriella?”
“You mean you didn’t?” Drake questioned, taking a pull from his bottle.
“No!”
“Dude, chill out. I believe you.” Drake grimaced. “It’s Emmie you have to convince.”
It seemed like all I was doing was cursing as I threw a few more at my friends and headed into the house after Emmie. Of course she had locked herself in our bedroom. I stood there glaring at the offending door that stood between me and the woman I loved. It might as well have been a thousand foot wall because until Emmie was ready, I wasn’t going to get through it.
I tapped lightly and like I had expected, I didn’t get a response. “I love you, Emmie,” I called to her. I waited in vain for her to scream at me through the door, anything. Nothing came and I reluctantly left her.
Why had Gabriella lied to Emmie about the two of us having sex? Had it been because Gabriella sensed what I had always sensed? That Axton Cage was half in love with Emmie? I had suspected it for years, and it wasn’t just my imagination. When I had been so jealous of Jesse, part of me had known that it was just my possessiveness and jealousy rearing its ugly head. But with Axton there was definitely something there.
I couldn’t really blame the man for having feelings for her. Not really. Emmie was amazing. She was strong and brave. She had her head on straighter than most women twice her age. She was sassy and feisty and so, so very beautiful.
There wasn’t any other reason I could think of that Gabriella could have had to fill Emmie’s head with lies. But whatever her reason, that didn’t mean I could condone them. Her toxic lies had poisoned my relationship with Emmie and I hadn’t even known.
Grimacing, I stomped back downstairs and out onto the deck where Drake and Jesse were still seated, quietly watching the water hitting the beach and rolling back out. I had left my phone out here so I snatched it up and pulled up my contacts. Axton’s information was near the top and I hit connect.
It rang three times before my friend answered. “Still pissed at me?” He sounded amused but I could tell that he really was upset.
“We need to talk, Ax.”
“Is this about me coming out there in a few days?”
“Yes. No… No, this isn’t about you coming. Actually, it would be better if you came today.” I was pretty sure that Axton’s presence was the only thing that was going to help me convince Em that Gabriella and I had never happened.
“Ah, does Nikki miss me that much?” Axton taunted, laughing. “Sure, man, I’ll grab the first flight out.”
…Emmie…
I wasn’t sure how long I cried. An hour, maybe even a full day. My head was throbbing by the time my tears dried, and I fell asleep for a few hours. When I woke up, the headache was a dull ache but my heart was still hurting. I let out a shaky sigh and glared off into space.
I had thought I was over the whole Nik and Gabriella thing. Of course with my hormones in ten different directions thanks to being pregnant I had made a liar of myself. I wasn’t sure if I would ever fully get over Nik having slept with Gabriella.
I could still see the look in that little bitch’s eyes as she walked toward me the year before. I could still hear the amusement in her voice as she had said the words that had been like a physical punch to the stomach.
“You should have told me Nik was so talented with his tongue,” the beautiful Italian musician had said, her brown eyes alight with laughter. “He really takes care of his women.”
Up until that moment I had been undecided if I liked Gabriella Moreitti or not. I had watched her for a while and noticed both positive and negative things about her that could have tipped the scale either way. She was talented, could rock hard, and didn’t back down from anything. All pluses. She was also vain, vindictive, and a snob. Not pluses. But I had promised Axton that I would reserve judgment for a while because he had liked her.
I was sure all women had a sixth sense when it came to another woman’s weaknesses. I had four, and only one of them could actually break my heart into a million pieces. Gabriella must have known that and had shattered me almost completely the day she told me how good of a lover she found Nik to be.
In that moment Gabriella Moreitti had become public enemy number one in my book. I hated that bitch with everything inside of me. If Jesse hadn’t come along and stepped between me and the little Italian violinist, I was sure I would have scratched her pretty eyes out of her beautiful face.
I couldn’t understand how Nik could be so upset over a little kiss between me and Axton, a man that was nearly as close to me as Jesse, Drake, and Shane. He had no right to try to put up walls between me and Axton when I should have been the one doing that so he wasn’t around Axton’s girlfriend so often.
Rubbing a hand over my tear-stained and swollen face I headed into the bathroom and showered. It was dark outside, telling me I had slept for more than seven hours. The steam from the hot shower made me feel just a little better, but I was also starting to feel stupid. I had no right to be mad a Nik for something he had done when we weren’t even together. He said he loved me now, and that was all that mattered.
I dressed in a pair of sweat pants and one of Nik’s shirts. My stomach was growling and the craving for a bacon sandwich was making my mouth water. When I walked downstairs I could hear Jesse, Drake, and Shane talking in the living room. A Boston Red Sox game was on and they were losing. Shane wasn’t happy.
Not feeling up to facing them after my humiliating outburst earlier, I bypassed the living room and took the long way to the kitchen. To my surprise there was some freshly fried bacon in a bowl, the grease draining onto a folded paper towel. Not questioning my good luck, I grabbed the bread and the jar of mayo from the fridge.
I stuffed a crispy piece of bacon into my mouth as I added some sliced tomato to my sandwich. My mind was completely on making my sandwich, eager to satisfy the baby’s cravings.
“How are you feeling?”
I jumped at the sound of a voice I definitely hadn’t been expecting. Frowning, I turned to find Axton standing by the back door. “What are you doing here?” I demanded with a smile.
“Nik asked me to come.” He shrugged, leaning against the wall by the door, watching me with that sly grin of his. The thing I loved most about Axton was that I never knew when he was being serious or not. That was also the thing I hated most about him. You had to truly know him before you could figure out his tells. He seemed laid back and carefree, but I knew that he was just the opposite.
Over the years, as we had become closer friends, he had told me a little about his past. He came from a crazy rich family that had never supported his love and passion for music, especially rock. His mother had had her own plans for him. Axton would become a lawyer, take
over the family business, and marry a girl that his mother thought was appropriate. Not the type of person to just let someone dictate his life, Axton had simply told her to go fuck herself and had signed on with Rich Branson the very next day with OtherWorld. I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t think that Axton had talked to his mother since.
I wiped some of the bacon grease from my fingers, trying to digest what Axton had just said. Nik asked him to come? But Nik had been completely against Ax coming at all. “Where is Nik?” I hadn’t heard him in the living room earlier.
“Sitting out on the beach, drinking a beer.” Axton took a step toward me. “So Brie slept with Nik. Not.”
I blinked, confused by what he had just said. “What?”
He grimaced. “He didn’t sleep with her. Brie doesn’t even like Nik, as far as I know. Besides, Brie isn’t the type for one night stands. It took me freaking forever before she had sex with me. She’s old school Italian like that. Well, I guess not old school. She wasn’t a virgin waiting for her wedding night, but still.”
“Ax…”
“Nik loves you, Emmie.” His jaw tensed as he said the words. “More than anyone else ever can or will. I’m not telling you this because he asked me to. He did, but that’s not why I’m doing it. I’m telling you because you are probably my best friend in the fucking world, and I want you to be happy. Nik didn’t have sex with Gabriella. She’s a bitch, and I’m not sure why I even put up with her. She lied to you because she thought that I was into you, and that made her mad. So she hurt you to pay you back for something you never did.” Axton grimaced, running his fingers through his hair in a very un-Axton kind of way. Ax didn’t get frustrated to the point that he started tugging at his hair often.
The ache in my heart eased a little. “They really didn’t have sex?”
“Nope, I don’t think they have even been alone together.”
Tears filled my eyes and I turned away from Axton before he could see them. I wasn’t sure why I was crying again. Maybe it was because I felt like my heart had had a deep crack healed by Axton’s words. Maybe it was just because I was on some kind of hormonal overload because I was pregnant. Either way I hated crying, but that was all I seemed to be able to do!