‘Oh come on,’ Cliff said, stifling a yawn. ‘The yacht. The other guests. This whole incredible set-up.’
She turned on him. ‘Are you impressed, Cliff?’
‘Why would I be impressed?’ he said, laughing and shaking his head.
‘Then why would I?’ she countered, taking out her makeup case.
‘’Cause you’re twenty-four, sweetie,’ he pointed out. ‘You’ve got to admit that you’ve never seen anything like this yacht before. You shouldn’t forget that you’re one very, very lucky girl.’
‘Am I?’ she said, giving him a piercing look.
‘For fuck’s sake, what’s the matter with you?’ Cliff said, his handsome face suddenly scowling. ‘You’ve been acting like a petulant little bitch ever since we left L.A.’
She was tempted to tell him exactly what she was pissed about. Excuse me, Mister big fucking movie star. Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you just about getting ready to dump my ass? So why shouldn’t I be pissed off?
‘It was a long journey,’ she said, deciding that backing down was probably the best way to go. ‘And yes, Cliff, this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Thanks so much for including me.’
‘That’s better,’ Cliff said, satisfied.
And before she knew it, he was unzipping, readying himself for the inevitable blow-job.
* * *
Guy personally escorted Senator Hammond and his wife to their stateroom.
Hammond glanced around and said, ‘This’ll do.’
‘Is there anything at all I can get for you, Senator?’ Guy asked. He was impressed with Sierra Patterson. She was quite lovely, even more so than the photos of her he’d seen in magazines and newspapers.
‘A bottle of Grey Goose vodka would be very welcome,’ Hammond said, winking at Sierra. ‘Right, darling?’
Sierra summoned a weak smile. She was in shock. Total shock. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she would run into Flynn again.
Yet here he was. Flynn Hudson. The love of her life.
It was all too much.
* * *
15 years earlier
Sierra would never forget the first time she saw Flynn. It was at a party, and he came racing over to rescue her from the man who would one day in the far-off future become her husband.
What a joke! What a travesty! Marriage to Hammond should have never happened.
But it had. Unfortunately.
She remembered getting a quick look at Flynn on his rescue mission. Tall, with longish hair and the most incredible steely blue eyes. She’d run off yelling they were both drunken assholes, and then she hadn’t stopped talking about him to her girlfriends. ‘Who is he?’ she’d wanted to know.
‘Give us a clue,’ they’d all replied. ‘We don’t know who you’re carrying on about.’
She’d shrugged, she had no idea who he was or where she could track him down. Until a few weeks later, she’d been sitting in Hamburger Hamlet in Westwood, when she’d spotted him through the window.
‘Quick!’ she’d shouted at her friend. ‘It’s him! Do something!’
They hurriedly made it outside and tried to appear casual.
The good news was that her friend knew him.
The bad news was that he had a girl clinging to him like a magnet.
But they exchanged names, discovered they both attended UCLA, and Sierra knew it was the start of something special.
Flynn Hudson was her future. There was no doubt about it.
Chapter Forty
Lying out by the pool, located on the middle deck, Bianca and Luca indulged in a major gossip-fest as the sleek yacht navigated the shimmering blue waters of the Sea of Cortez.
‘What do you think of the group we’ve gathered?’ Bianca asked, sunning herself in a barely there Brazilian bikini, her dark skin gleaming in the sunlight.
‘It’s some crazy mix,’ Luca observed.
‘Isn’t it just,’ Bianca agreed, stretching one leg above her head. ‘I only know half the people.’
‘That’s more than I do. And stop flashing.’
Bianca lowered her leg and grinned. ‘Anyway, all I can say is thank God you’re here.’
‘Who’s the tall guy with the two-day stubble?’ Luca asked, reaching for the bronzing oil.
‘Oh, you must mean Aleksandr’s writer friend, Flynn. Sexy, isn’t he? I just met him for the first time.’
‘There’s something kinda cool an’ yet major hot about him,’ Luca observed, rubbing oil on his legs.
‘Hmm,’ Bianca murmured knowingly. ‘Could be you fancy him?’
‘Maybe,’ Luca said, with a wide grin. ‘Don’t you?’
‘I think just about everyone does,’ Bianca said. ‘Only we may as well forget it, ’cause according to Aleksandr he’s major straight. And anyway he’s with that pretty little Asian piece.’
‘Ah,’ Luca said knowingly. ‘Men are like spaghetti, they’re all straight until they hit hot water.’
‘Luca!’ Bianca exclaimed, giggling. ‘I thought you were happily joined at the ass with Jeromy?’
Luca shrugged. ‘I can look, can’t I?’ he said, handing her the oil and turning onto his front.
‘Is that what you’re doing?’ Bianca said, amused.
‘You can bet that Jeromy does more than look.’
‘Really?’ Bianca said, obligingly smoothing the sticky oil all over Luca’s bronzed back.
‘Yeah, really. He thinks I don’t have any idea about what he gets up to, but I know everything.’
‘Yes?’
‘Hey, it’s not as if I care,’ Luca said casually. ‘Do you see me as the jealous type?’
‘I’m jealous as shit,’ Bianca said, rolling her eyes. ‘If I caught Aleksandr screwing around I’d cut off his balls and bounce them from here to Moscow.’
‘You’re such a girl,’ Luca teased.
‘Guilty as charged,’ Bianca said, putting down the bottle of oil and wiping her hands on a towel.
‘So this is what true love is like in all its glory?’ Luca said, still lying on his stomach.
‘I suppose you could say that.’
‘Ah,’ Luca observed. ‘The girl who’d do anyone has finally found the one.’
‘Yep,’ Bianca said, nodding vigorously. ‘Aleksandr is it for me. He’s so sexy, and he treats me like a queen.’
‘Darling,’ Luca objected, ‘I’m the queen, you’re just a girl in lust.’
‘Love,’ Bianca corrected briskly. ‘True fuckin’ love.’
‘Okay, okay, but trust me – I know you. You’ll get bored eventually.’
‘No, I won’t.’
‘Yes, you will.’
‘Don’t be such a Debbie downer.’
‘If you’re giving me a girl’s name, make it Lucia.’
‘Oh my God!’ Bianca exclaimed, once more rolling her eyes. ‘You’re too much!’
Luca sat up, picked up his drink and took a sip. ‘Hey – remember when you and I nearly—’
‘Don’t remind me!’ Bianca squealed. ‘Shades of you couldn’t get it up, and I was totally insulted.’
‘Yeah, but then later we became best friends.’
‘After I discovered you were gay.’
‘For your information, the reason I couldn’t get it up was ’cause I had a hard-on for one of Suga’s back-up dancers,’ Luca confessed. ‘He was that black dude with the amazing abs.’
‘Had him,’ Bianca said matter-of-factly. ‘All abs and no cock.’
They both fell about laughing.
* * *
As soon as she’d finished servicing Cliff, Lori decided she did not wish to sit around watching him snore. He was almost fifty, he needed his rest. She was twenty-four, she needed to explore the yacht. Why waste a single moment of such a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ experience?
After changing into a polka-dot bikini and skimpy cover-up, she put her hair up in a ponytail and left the room.
A helpful steward directed her to the swimmin
g pool, where she came upon Bianca and Luca Perez in the middle of a full-on laughter fit.
She was reluctant to disturb them, but Bianca waved her over and said, ‘Pull up a lounger and come join us. We’re catching up on old times.’
Lori immediately felt at ease. Even though Bianca and Luca were both enormously famous, she didn’t feel intimidated. Besides, they were way nearer to her age than Cliff.
‘You’re with Cliff Baxter, huh?’ Luca said. ‘I’m a big fan.’
Oh God! She was so sick of hearing those four words. Didn’t anyone have anything original to say? And surely he could come up with better than that?
Apparently not.
‘How long have you and Cliff been together?’ Bianca enquired.
Another much-asked question.
‘A little over a year,’ Lori answered, settling on a lounger.
‘Hmm . . .’ Bianca mused, stretching out a perfect leg. ‘You think he’s marriage-minded?’
Lori bit her bottom lip. Wasn’t that a somewhat personal question coming from someone she barely knew? Besides, she was sure Bianca must read the entertainment rags, and it was a well-documented fact that Cliff Baxter had no intention of ever getting married. He was anti-marriage. He drove the point home in every interview he gave.
Before she could come up with a suitable reply, Luca saved the day. ‘Stop pestering the girl with questions,’ he said. ‘I want to find out if Aleksandr is marriage-minded – that’s what I want to know.’
‘Aleksandr is still married,’ Bianca pointed out, turning quite frosty. ‘He’s in the middle of getting a divorce.’
‘That’s what they all say.’
‘Don’t piss me off,’ Bianca snapped. ‘You know better than that.’
‘I guess that means no giant ring for Bianca,’ Luca teased.
‘And no giant ring for me either,’ Lori said, quickly taking the opportunity to bond with the famous super-model. ‘Cliff isn’t into the whole marriage bit. And quite frankly, neither am I. I’m too young.’
‘Oh honey,’ Bianca advised, nodding sagely, ‘a man like Cliff Baxter, you need to put a ring on it.’
‘Yeah, a cock ring,’ Luca said with a raucous chuckle.
Bianca dissolved into peals of laughter. ‘You’d better not talk like that around Aleksandr,’ she warned when she’d finished laughing. ‘He doesn’t appreciate dirty talk.’
‘What’s dirty about a cock ring?’ Luca asked innocently.
‘And I thought stardom might’ve changed you,’ Bianca chided. ‘But no, you’re still the same old potty mouth – thank God!’
‘Careful with the “old”,’ Luca warned. ‘Have you forgotten we’re almost the same age?’
‘I’m guessing you two have known each other a long time,’ Lori ventured, noting the camaraderie between them and wishing she had a friend like Luca.
‘Right,’ Bianca said. ‘I was nineteen and doing a swimsuit show in Rio. Luca was one of the boys in the background. Oh my God, he was totally edible!’
‘And how about you, missy,’ Luca said, joining in. ‘You were like a black Bond babe with a major kick-ass attitude.’
‘I couldn’t wait to jump his luscious bones,’ Bianca confided. ‘Only he wasn’t interested, even though he was supposedly straight at the time. Course, I understood immediately. Gay as a fruit fly – although he didn’t come out until years later, and that was only after one marriage, one son, and a red-hot career. Finally he emerged from the closet and I was vindicated.’
‘I love this woman,’ Luca said, raising his glass to toast her. ‘She never changes.’
‘You’d better believe it,’ Bianca said, calling for another round of champagne.
* * *
Flynn and Xuan were shown to their stateroom together as if they were a couple. Flynn was so shocked at seeing Sierra, that he didn’t really notice until Xuan demanded to know why they were supposed to share a bed.
‘This is ridiculous,’ she said, quite angry. ‘Did you plan this, Flynn, just to get me into bed? If you wanted to fuck me so badly, you should’ve said so.’
‘What?’ He stared at her, his mind taking him on a trip that he had no desire to go on.
‘We must have separate cabins,’ Xuan said firmly. ‘I demand it.’
‘You do, huh?’ Flynn said, narrowing his eyes.
‘I most certainly do,’ she retorted. ‘I will call for the steward.’
‘No,’ he said quickly. ‘You can’t do that.’
‘And exactly why can’t I do that?’ Xuan demanded.
‘Because I’m uh . . . kind of caught in a situation,’ he muttered, trying to get his head straight.
‘What situation?’ she wanted to know.
He didn’t care to tell Xuan the sad story of him and Sierra, but if he expected her to stay with him, then he’d better tell her something. And she had to stay with him. There was no way he could face being on this cruise alone – he had to at least give the impression he was with someone.
Why hadn’t he asked who the other guests would be?
Why had he walked blindly into hell, because seeing Sierra with Hammond was exactly that. Pure hell.
He was trapped. The yacht had sailed, and it was too late to get off.
* * *
15 years earlier
Sierra was not easy, like most of the girls Flynn encountered. After getting her number he called her several times. She blew him off. Finally he ran into her at a frat party, and when they got to talking, she offered to fix him up with her roommate, a raucous party girl who was more than hot to do whatever he fancied.
He fancied Sierra, and only her. There was no doubt about it. Not only was she cool and smart and achingly beautiful, she apparently had old-fashioned values, and his reputation as a player had obviously reached her.
But he persevered, and when they eventually began to date, he wasn’t that surprised to discover that sex wasn’t on the menu. ‘I’m not a casual girl,’ she informed him. ‘And I do not intend to start being one now.’
Surprise, surprise.
Was she a virgin? He didn’t dare ask. Instead he developed a close relationship with his right hand and kept the faith.
Sierra Snow. He would do anything for her, and eventually she would do anything for him.
They were together six months before they had sex. And it wasn’t just sex. It was a mind-blowing, loving, incredible experience of epic proportions.
Suddenly he’d dropped his plans of trekking around the world when he finished college. He only wanted one thing, and that was to be with Sierra forever. She told him that she felt the same way.
They swore to each other that even though they were both young, they would never allow anyone or anything to split them apart. They would drop out of college, travel the world together and share every adventure out there.
Then one day he’d received an urgent call from his grandmother in the UK informing him that his grandfather had been rushed to the hospital, and that she needed him to fly to England immediately.
Sierra drove him to the airport. She hugged him tightly and pledged her undying love. He promised he would come back as soon as he could.
A week later he received a FedEx envelope marked High Priority. It came from a name and address in Los Angeles he did not know. Inside the envelope were half a dozen photos of Sierra in various stages of undress with several different males. One of them was Hammond Patterson. Sierra looked dreamy, almost happy, with the little half-smile on her face that Flynn knew only too well.
SHE WAS ENJOYING HERSELF.
There was a typed note enclosed.
STOP BELIEVING YOUR SO-CALLED GIRLFRIEND IS PERFECT.
OPEN YOUR EYES AND SEE THE TRUTH.
He felt a sickness and rage he had never experienced before. He felt betrayed and hollow inside.
Why?
Why had she professed undying love?
Why had she spent all those months play-acting something that didn’t exist?
/>
And what was she doing with Hammond Patterson?
His fury knew no bounds. He wanted to get on the next plane to L.A. and confront her.
But he couldn’t. His grandfather was not expected to live much longer and his grandmother needed him.
He was stuck in England, and there was nothing he could do about it.
Chapter Forty-One
When Cruz Mendoza wasn’t out causing mayhem on the high seas, he was a lazy son of a bitch, spending his days lolling by Sergei Zukov’s pool in Acapulco, wearing nothing more than a skimpy man-thong while entertaining hookers he’d picked up the night before at some dubious night club in town. It made a pleasant change from life in his guarded compound in Somalia, where he always had to tread carefully, for he had many enemies intent on taking over his lucrative business.
Although only in his early forties, Cruz appeared to be much older. He was stocky and balding, with weather-beaten skin, two prominent gold front teeth, and a pronounced limp – the result of being shot in the thigh by an irate husband who’d caught him screwing his sixteen-year-old trophy wife. Cruz had gotten his revenge by persuading the sixteen year old to run off with him, then dumping her when he’d had enough.
Watching Cruz play was putting Sergei on edge. Cruz had insisted that everything was set, but the way Ina’s brother was sitting around bothered him.
‘Relax,’ Cruz told him. ‘We strike at the right moment. My contact on the yacht tells me everything, an’ here in town my men wait for me to give ’em the word. We let the rich motherfuckers get comfortable on their fuckin’ yacht trip, then we move in when I say so. I’ve done this a hundred times, an’ believe me, surprise always works.’
‘So there’s no way you’ll fuck it up?’ Sergei growled.
‘No, Sergei,’ Cruz retorted with a slight sneer, a sneer that Sergei did not appreciate. ‘I’m as dependable as takin’ a daily shit.’
Sergei knew that Ina’s brother was a slippery son of a bitch. He wouldn’t put it past him to try and pull something.
Then again, Cruz wasn’t stupid. He must realize that to fuck with Sergei Zukov would be beyond dumb.
Sergei was impatient, but Cruz was confident that everything was on course.
Only time would tell.