15. Phoenix
Phoenix
T he ride from Santa Monica at this time in the evening is a breeze. There’s so much to say, but Michaela and I spend most of the journey soaking up Los Angeles at night. Even though my driver is paid for his discretion, I didn’t want to chance it.
With little traffic to contend with, the Bentley closes in on the Manhattan Beach neighborhood where Michaela’s friend lives in record time.
After passing the security checkpoint, the chauffeur crawls through the gated community until we stop in front of Rhys Hartford’s impressive mansion.
I get out and round the hood to her side of the car.
I open Michaela’s door and extend my hand.
She accepts it and I help her out of the vehicle.
“Thank you,” she says, stepping onto the pavement.
“My pleasure.”
The warm night air envelops us as we stroll down the long path paved with waves of cobblestones to the guesthouse in silence.
A movement catches my eye.
A woman with short blonde hair lurks in front of a window of the mansion’s top floor.
I tip my head in greeting.
She returns the favor and smiles.
“Your friend is watching us,” I say.
Her eyes shoot up to the house and she waves.
Her friend waves back.
“Right before leaving the restaurant, I texted Keira to tell her I was on my way,” Michaela says.
“We’ve talked about this before, but she’s trustworthy, right?”
“You have nothing to worry about,” Michaela says. “Keira is a friend, not a foe. She’s on my team. She knows what the Villiers Grand means to me.”
“Good. I’m sure she’s going to have a lot of questions for you tomorrow morning?—”
“Keira sure is going to give me the third degree.” She laughs.
I chuckle.
We stop in front of the guesthouse.
I turn to face her. “You were fantastic tonight. You handled Payne Meldrum with such finesse. I was awestruck. I would’ve chewed him up, but you pulled out the kinder, gentle side of him. I didn’t even know he had one.”
“It wasn’t too much? I mean, after all, I kind of lied about the rings.”
“It was over-the-top, but you had me convinced.”
“ Phoenix’s Prodigious Phallus ?” She flashes me a cocky grin. “That’s quite the title. Is it a myth?”
There are so many devious ways I could answer that question, but I decide to be good. “I’m going to leave that one alone.”
Michaela cocks an eyebrow. “Are you going to leave me guessing?”
I could put an end to the suspense by unzipping my pants, pulling them down with my boxer briefs, and showing her the proof, but that might be pushing the envelope. Not to mention, my mother raised me right.
I weigh my words.
“Is that your way of saying you changed your mind and you’re no longer stuck on us entering a sexless marriage?”
She looks me up and down, stopping at my crotch. “Regardless if it’s only a myth, it’s a catchy nickname.”
Oh, she’s asking for it.
I narrow my gaze at her.
She responds with a broad smile.
She’s good at poking the bear.
Two can play that game.
“Celebrity content creation is a simple business model—more views equal more money. Payne will use any sneaky trick in the book to spin any shred of truth into an attention-grabbing headline that’s nothing more than blatant clickbait.
Although in this case, Phoenix’s Prodigious Phallus is accurate.
At least now you won’t have to wonder anymore. You know it’s not a myth, kitty cat.”
She rolls her eyes. “So, there’s no bad blood between you?”
“Payne is annoying as fuck, but I ignore him unless he’s hovering over my table while I’m trying to have dinner.
He likes to give everyone equal opportunity, so he’ll attack successful people, athletes, and celebrities.
It doesn’t matter to him as long as he profits from it.
I’m another guy with a name who’s on his radar. ”
“I thought it might have to do with your boy band days,” she says.
She read about my heydays.
“Picture it,” she says with a theatrical hand gesture, “an excited Payne, before he became a celebrity content creator, waiting for hours with other eager fans to get your autograph after one of your sold-out concerts he couldn’t get tickets to.
Alas, you refused him because you were rushing to a press junket.
He vowed there and then to one day destroy you for snubbing him. ”
“That’s a hell of an imagination.”
“I have an overactive mind.”
“No shit. You know of my first career?”
She nods. “I watched all your videos. Those were some smooth moves, bad boy Ko?nig.”
I hang my head low. “That was a long time ago. My brothers and I were young, and we were rebelling against the expectations set upon us at birth.”
“You mean in terms of joining the family business?”
“Exactly.”
“I understand that well.”
“I loved my older brother—the four of us did—but there was always an underlying message looming over our heads as we grew up. My father never came out and said it, but his actions spoke volumes. He had a favorite son. Barron excelled at pretty much everything in life, but he wasn’t musically gifted.
The guy couldn’t carry a note to save his life, and he had two left feet.
Slate, Wilder, Roman, and I didn’t succeed because we were the best singers.
We were on top of the world because we could put on a kickass show.
That, and we could rip t-shirts or shirts off our bodies on cue.
Combined with the blue eyes and winning smiles, we were set. ”
She laughs.
“Mom used to say we inherited our musical talent and stage presence from her side of the family, but for some mysterious reason Barron wasn’t born with those genes.” I laugh a little, thinking of the two people I miss every single day. “In any case, you did good tonight. You had my back.”
“No problem,” she says. “I didn’t expect those reporters when we left the restaurant.”
“Neither did I. My guess is Payne must’ve posted something on social media and that tipped off a few more piranhas who were hoping to get a scoop or a statement.”
We left Luogo Sapori like freaking celebrities, with our hands lifted, shielding our eyes from the blinding flashes of the cameras as reporters shouted questions at us.
“Payne.” Michaela shakes her head. “What a pain in the ass.”
“My guess is his parents knew what kind of human being they were bringing into the world when they named him.”
“Oh my God, that’s so funny and so accurate.”
We laugh.
“You think on your feet,” I say.
“Someone had to put Payne in his place.”
“Let’s stick to your ingenuous story about the rings. You’ll have to let me know what style you prefer, and I’ll get my contact at Harry Winston to deliver it in your size. He’s discreet, so all this will be hush-hush.”
Her eyes grow wide. “Phoenix, a Harry Winston ring is way too expensive for a fake wedding.”
“You haven’t met the members of the board yet.
If you think Payne is a hard ass, you’re going to get your bubble burst when you meet the group of nine men and women who are the thorn in my side.
There’s only a handful of people who know this relationship is fake.
To the rest of the world, our union has to look real…
all the way down to the engagement ring and wedding band. ”
She blinks.
“We have to go all the way on this, Michaela.”
“Okay.”
“This brings me to something very important…”
“What?”
“We need to coordinate our stories. Since we’re not going to be joined at the hip twenty-four seven, we need to make sure neither of us slips up when recounting the details of our whirlwind romance.”
“You want to do this now?”
“Not tonight. Tomorrow we should put our heads together before we meet with the publicist.”
“Tomorrow sounds good.”
I take a step closer. “There’s something else…”
“What?”
“Our first kiss.”
“Oh.”
Under the lights, it’s impossible not to notice how her eyes practically take over her face.
She wasn’t expecting that.
It’s been on my mind since she stepped into the restaurant, but now, it’s an obsession.
“The first time I kiss you shouldn’t be when the priest gives me his blessing to kiss the bride.
” My voice comes out like a seductive murmur and my eyes drop to her lips.
“If we don’t practice, it’s going to be obvious it’s the firsttime.
I’d hate to blow our story to pieces on the day we tie the knot. ”
“Oh.”
“You did a stellar job acting the part tonight, and I willingly followed your cue. But can we fake a convincing kiss?”
“I don’t know,” she says in a low voice.
“We shouldn’t chance it.”
“What do you suggest?”
I move close enough to smell the many layers of her lovely perfume.
Delicate. Refined. Sophisticated.
Her.
“Practice makes perfect,” I say.
“You mean, we should practice right now?”
“Why not? The more mileage, the smoother the ride.”
“Isn’t it the more mileage, the clunkier the ride?” A sly smile stretches her lips.
“It depends on the caliber of the vehicle.” I just one-upped her.
“I’m going to guess, you’re in a caliber all on your own.”
“There’s only one way for you to find out.”
“I guess so.” She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “Do you want to come inside?”
“We should get used to kissing in public.”
The truth is, stepping inside her guesthouse is a guaranteed way for my cock to accidentally slide inside her pussy. She’s made it clear that isn’t on the table. There’s no point in testing the limits of my willpower.
“You want to kiss out here?” Her eyes search behind me in the direction of the garden and the pool.
“It’s just the two of us.”
“True.”
“It doesn’t have to be hot and heavy, it can be a chaste kiss, but I should know how your lips feel against mine,” I say, placing my hands on either side of her face.
Shock radiates from her eyes. Her chest heaves, pulling my attention to her tits.
Fuck, those are gorgeous.
“Okay. Let’s practice.”
“That sounded a little too clinical for my taste. It’s like you just agreed to getting your teeth cleaned.”
She laughs a little.