Chapter 26
TWENTY-SIX
I n my forties, and I’ve never learned how to keep my hands to my fucking self.
A kindergartner learns those things, yet I took Empire against the wall, on the table, like an animal, savage in my desire to claim her.
It’s no use asking what’s wrong with me. I’m so irreparably damaged that I’m a lost cause. I just don’t want to hurt her anymore, but I keep doing it. Intentions mean nothing when it comes to someone else’s shattered emotions.
Not only am I content to break her heart and use her body, but I go a step further and grind the pieces into dust.
She’s as far away from me as she can get in the confines of the car and absolutely stunning in the dress. The pale color offsets the tones in her eyes, and her hair is loose and soft around her shoulders, practically begging my fingers to run through those strands again.
The sweat from fucking me only adds a glow to her skin.
Her moans fill my memories, and I hear them repeatedly like a ringing in my ears.
The strain in the air is thick enough to rip it into pieces with my bare hands, and Empire refuses to look at me. I give myself a glance in the window and hate the man staring back.
She’s got a single trail of black dripping from the corner of her eye where her liner smudged. It takes everything not to reach out and clear it away for her.
I’ve already stepped over the line too many times to fucking count.
If there’s even a shred of integrity left in me, I’ll leave her alone. I’ll follow through on my goddamn word to let her go and actually do it instead of just thinking about it.
She’s like a drug. I’ve never been an addict, but she’s made me into one, and I’ll happily open a vein for her. I’ll do anything I can for her—except let her go.
Christ. I shake my head and withdraw a bottle from the bar in the console of the town car. Time to drown it all away. Bottom’s fucking up. Weak . Coward .
I’ve got a lot of nerve drinking and asking her if she’s done the same.
Empire slowly shifts her gaze toward me and tracks the movement of the bottle to my lips. Her throat works. The liquor trails down into my empty gut, and when I’ve chugged a few sips, I replace it, forcing myself to stare at her. Professional mode is much easier. Safer, almost.
“Here.” I reach behind me for the envelope that’s been burning a hole in my pocket for the last hour. “I meant to give this to you earlier.” Before I got distracted.
Empire scrubs at the black line of makeup and leans forward on her elbow. “Where have you been hiding this?”
“I have my ways.”
She doesn’t want to take it. Eyes it like I’m offering her a dead fish instead of paperwork. She’s not going to like what’s in there regardless.
My brows furrow together, and I shake it, forcing her. “Go on.”
“Nothing good ever comes from these, you know.” She pinches the envelope between her thumb and index finger and dangles it in front of her. “The last time I got one, it was from Sherry with the paperwork to dissolve your guardianship.”
The mention of it churns my stomach uncomfortably. “I know,” I reply. What else is there to say?
I’ve run out of words. The excuses died a long time ago. As for amends? Those words are nothing more than a blip on a distant and unreachable horizon.
“This is everything Stanic Maxim and his people had on us, everything they could have used against us. I’m giving it to you.” I swallow, my throat burning and somehow swelling shut. It’s not from the alcohol. Stress, perhaps. Or a desperate desire to see her reaction. “These are the only copies. I’ve made sure of it.”
Her lower lip drops in shock, her eyes going wide and dark. “What do you mean everything they had on us?” she repeats. “What did they have , Marcus?”
I’d never told her. Would it have been better if I laid it all out on the table when Celeste first showed me her photos? Impossible to say at this point, and we’re too far gone to put the horse back in the stable. That’s the fucking phrase, right?
I grit my teeth, shifting my legs and crossing one over the other. “Blackmail. The old-fashioned kind. It was nothing for you to worry about because I had it handled.” The way I’ve handled every other thing.
Not well .
But I dragged us out of the muck and mire before Empire realized.
She pries open the small metal arms, slides the clip out of the hole, and empties the contents of the envelope onto the seat at her side. Her face pales, and her eyes go round as marbles before she catches herself.
The bobbing of her throat captures my attention.
“They watched us,” she murmurs, her voice dripping with surprise and disgust. “They took pictures of us together.”
It doesn’t excuse the way I’ve treated her. Nothing will, I realize. I’ve been an asshole and purposely caused her more pain than she deserved. Do the ends ever justify the means?
“I’ve taken care of things,” I repeat.
Her fingers shake as she flicks from one photograph to the other, fingering the zip drive containing the rest of the audio and video Celeste made sure to send my way.
“Thank you for getting it for me.”
Her voice is hardly audible, nothing more than a whisper and lost to the constant pulse of the tires. It’s a shot straight through my heart regardless.
I still feel her on me, all around me, despite the way she shuts down. Letting her have her reaction is the only thing I can do, but it still pisses me off.
“You’re out completely now. You never have to work with me or anyone connected to Maxim again. True freedom.”
It’s a punch to the gut to say out loud. Especially when her gaze lands everywhere but on me. Her thoughts, no doubt, are on her next moves. She’s not a stumbling little girl or a weight for me to carry anymore.
She’s not some precious gem who matters more than anyone else in my world. She’s a woman.
“True freedom,” she repeats. She flicks her gaze up to meet mine, and the weight of her attention lands squarely in my chest. “It sounds like a joke when you say it that way.”
“I released you. Isn’t it enough?”I lower my voice. Emotion, thick and heavy, drips through me like tar. “Empire, come on.”
How can she not realize how much strength it took to shove her away from me?
Her body stiffens as she licks her lips. Despite what happened earlier, my cock reacts.
“Is that what you were doing when you fucked me against a wall?” she asks with a chuckle. “You were releasing me? Oh, you meant giving me an orgasm.” Her scowl reeks of disappointment, and I’ve earned every single bit of it.
No words come out, and luckily I’m saved by the gentle pressure of brakes, the car rolling to a stop. Her head cocks to the side, and she studies me a moment longer before someone drags the door open.
Empire says nothing further, and there’s no time for me to force the issue, either. Not when perfect, golden-boy Jacob stands there, waiting, with his arm outstretched. A modern-day version of Prince Charming. My gut plummets at Empire’s smile, brilliant and filled with white teeth.
“Ah, there you are,” she calls out loudly against the snap of the press at Jacob’s back.
“I’ll always be here for you,” he murmurs.
Like a good boy, I shut my mouth and let her go. No one makes me as uncomfortable as Empire. It’s payback for all the scars I’ve left on her with my words and actions.
The two of them remain on the outskirts of my periphery for the remainder of the night. Throughout the festivities, the focus is on her. Not me.
I’m the asshole who forced her to work herself to the bone.
I’m the one who fucked her again, as she reminded me, who took her no better than a possession after rejecting her countless times. It’s better for her to stay with Jacob.
He’ll treat her better than I will, even if their relationship is all shiny because of its spanking newness. I have to believe things will be better for her no matter how inevitable it is for the flaws to reveal themselves.
Jacob Kessler is perfect on the outside, but I guarantee there’s more to him to discover on the inside.
And Empire looks like a goddess on his arm, a true starlet, made for this kind of dazzling sparkle and attention.
The distance is a knife through my torso. I don’t blame her for wanting to stay the hell away from me or for gravitating toward someone easier. This is what I want, right? What I’ve been working for this entire time.
I stay put when a slender arm slides across mine, a pale hand lingering on the crook of my elbow, a spider nestled against dark webs.
“What’s put such a sour expression on your face, Mr. Ortega?” Celeste cajoles. “This is a party. You need to enjoy the attention.”
To prove her point, she angles her face toward the waiting paparazzi and forces me with her, the lights blinding for half a second. A purposeful move on her part.
Cameras click, voices blur together in an endless stream of questions, and the only thing I know is that I’ve got the wrong woman touching me.
“I suppose it doesn’t matter that you look ready to explode. It fits the image you’ve worked hard to cultivate,” she continues.
“No hard work necessary. It comes naturally,” I bark out.
She only chuckles at my thunderous tone and smooths her free hand down the sheer front of her ebony gown. “How about we go have a chat with your little starlet? She has an opening. It’s best to take advantage of it.”
An opening? My mind goes straight into the gutter, and the momentary lapse makes it easier for Celeste to manipulate me. Her eyes glint beneath a layer of thick makeup. Greedy cunt. She knows exactly what she’s saying.
Her grip is as strong as iron.
The silk of her dress is a stark contrast to the lightness of her hair and the eerie glow of her skin. Her makeup is minimal with the exception of the dark smoky effect around her eyes and the extra-long lashes placed on top of her own.
To anyone looking on from the outside, Celeste would be stunning.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“What?” She tosses back innocently. “She’s the woman of the hour, of course. I need to make my move before she’s once again swamped by the press.” A sly smile lights her vulpine features. “Of course, the handsome star at her side is surely helping her deal with the barrage of attention.”
A dig, and one she easily throws at me. I nearly stumble over my feet, and then, in the blink of an eye, we’re in front of the happy couple.
Empire lifts her gaze to meet mine, and there’s a hollowness there. One she quickly suppresses in favor of the winning smile I’ve seen her practice in the mirror.
For a moment, she looks so much like her mother that my heart breaks all over again. But it’s not because of Olivia. Not because of the lost chance with her but because of the loss of her daughter.
I’m so well and truly damned it isn’t funny.
“Congratulations are in order,” Celeste greets smoothly, without bothering to make introductions or say hello like a normal person. “The early buzz around this picture is that you are certainly in line for a round of nominations.”
Empire grins, and there’s a cold detachment to the gesture. “Yes, I’ve heard the same. It’s appreciated. The crew worked overtime to pull this off.”
A slight dig at me this time. She’s learning. Growing.
Jacob looks like a fish out of water in comparison.
“It’s best for you to get used to the breakneck pace,” Celeste continues, a sharp edge to her words now. “Rising stars such as yourself are always in high demand. Sooner or later, you’ll have to learn how to juggle and make the best out of the opportunities presented to you.”
“Enough.”
“What?” Celeste chuckles. “I’m only stating the obvious. I’m sure she understands. If not, she will soon enough.”
“The only thing I understand,” Empire starts, taking a step forward with Jacob bobbing in her wake, “is that you may believe you can escalate things in public, but I am not going to rise to the occasion.”
“Who’s escalating? The only thing rising to the occasion will be Marcus, soon enough.”
The innuendo is impossible to ignore.
“I’m sorry,” Jacob says smoothly. “I think I’ve missed something.”
Celeste smooths her free palm across my chest in a proprietary way I feel down to my bones, filling every last atom with a hot sickness. “Marcus belongs to me now.”
“As slavery is illegal, I highly doubt it.” Empire squares her shoulders. “You aren’t able to own another human being.”
I’ve never been prouder of her and more terrified.
“I’m sure he hasn’t told you.” Celeste looks down her nose at the couple, her disdain evident. “He made a deal. He gave himself over to me, so you’re able to do whatever you like. Those were the terms boiled down to their basest roots. You’re out for good.”
She curves her fingers, nails biting down into my skin. I feel it even through the suit. Her proximity to Empire has my nerves on fire and ragged. She clearly has an agenda, and I highly doubt it’s only to rub my new status in the younger woman’s face. Something’s going on I don’t understand, and I’m too fucked up to realize what it is.
“What kind of deal has he struck?” Empire continues. “Although I believe only the worst kind of woman would trap another and gloat about it.”
“I’m confused.” Jacob still has his ridiculous for-the-cameras smile in place, tacked on at the edges like a professional. “Is Mr. Ortega no longer your manager?”
“No, he’s not,” Empire snaps.
She refuses to break her attention away from Celeste, and I have a feeling Jacob and I are nothing more than outliers in this battle of wits between the two women.
But I know who will win.
There is no doubt that of the two of them, Celeste is more practiced, with no sense of a moral compass.
“He’s moved on to different avenues,” Celeste continues. “Now he’s mine to do with what I will.”
“There you go again, talking like you can own another person.”
Celeste only smiles because she knows it’s true. I’ve sold myself to her willingly. The deal is mine, and she’s the one who holds the keys to the collar around my neck.
There’s no use telling her that everything is going to be okay because it fucking won’t be. No matter how I try to spin it. Through it all, my tongue is tied in knots, no longer capable of speech, if only because silence is the last weapon available.
It helps to know the reality of the situation. I used to spin those fantasies to get myself through the day, dreaming of what I’d have and do and be one day. I made it to the peak, and now there is nothing but a swift decline into the hell of Celeste’s arms rather than the heaven I’d gotten to know.
A choice I made.
Jacob glances between the two women and their silent standoff, with the cameras and the world connected to their lenses watching closely. “I’m not sure what’s going on. I feel like I’ve missed something important,” he says.
“Try not to worry overly much,” Celeste replies. “You’re not here to think, only to look pretty.”
It’s the first time I’ve ever seen Jacob scowl outside of a part he was hired to play. And I’m willing to bet no one has ever talked back to him the way Celeste just did.
“Well, while this has been fun, I think I can do without going inside. The festivities are a little droll, aren’t they?” The sympathetic grin she flashes toward Empire says enough about what Celeste believes.
I wince, hiding the motion in a cough.
Celeste tightens her grip on my arm in a way that tells the entire world what she plans to do. She arches her back, her chest heaving against the fabric of her silken shift. “It’s time for us to go home.”
To emphasize her point, she nips my ear, and it’s fucking hard to ignore Empire’s disgusted gasp.
I force myself to meet her eyes. Trying to memorize the lines of her face because my gut tells me this is the last time I’ll ever see her.