Page 33 of Down & Dirty (Holden Cove #1)

CHAPTER 33

SKYLAR

Dad: Saw the highlights from last night. He’s looking good.

Sky: Yeah, that media training is paying off.

Dad: Better be for what we paid for it.

Sky: ROI dad.

Dad: How are you feeling?

Sky: Fine.

Dad: Headache gone?

Sky: It was gone later that day. I’m fine.

Dad: We can’t have you running yourself down right before the season.

Sky: The holiday season or the supercross season?

Dad: Both.

Sky: I’ll be fine.

Dad: You sure you don’t want to come home for Christmas?

Sky: I’m sure. We’ll miss you guys, but I really want to show Micah Maine.

Dad: You sure it’s the largest state in New England that’s drawing you three thousand miles from your family for the holiday?

Sky: Snow. Cold. Hot chocolate . . . Want me to go on?

Dad: Family matters, Skylar.

Sky: I know, Dad. We’ll be up there soon enough.

Dad: Okay, but let me know if you change your mind. I’ll book you both first class from Logan. Just say the word.

Sky: Thanks, Dad.

Dad: Love you, Skylight

Sky: Love you too.

H eading down the hall of the hotel in Anaheim, I tucked my phone back into the pocket of my navy pants suit. I was feeling better. One hundred percent, actually. I wasn’t going to give all the credit for my rapid recovery to Cory. Though his particular type of ‘healing’ had been quite nice, that soup he brought over was the real hero.

I had to get the name of that market.

My energy was back full force just in time for a huge press junket leading up to the pre-season launch. There had been so much h ype about this new combined season, the two series had wanted one official kick-off event before the holiday. Supercross would take center stage once we got back from break, and then it was one fast downhill slide into a grueling season many of us were still wary of.

“Your room have chocolates on the pillow?” Ronnie asked me as soon as I found him in the lobby.

“I don’t know,” I replied, my eyes down as I rifled in my purse for a mint. “I didn’t look at the bed.”

“What were you doing up there?”

I straightened, checking to see if he was serious. I gave him an incredulous look as I waved a hand in front of me. “Do you think all of this happens on its own?”

For all the concern I’d had around appearing in public for Cory, it was events like this that actually spun me. Walking the fine line between being professional and attractive in a male-dominated field was exhausting.

“You look nice,” he offered in a rush, his tone halfhearted.

“Shut up. Did you get my email about the change to the line-up?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yes, I got the memo. We’ve got plenty of time.”

I cringed, swatting my brother’s shoulder. “You know better than to say that. Now you’ve jinxed us.”

He laughed as I went back to looking for a mint. But when he cleared his throat uneasily, I glanced up, following his eye line. One of the team’s lawyers was coming right for us, and it took only a quick glance at Ronnie to know something was about to go down.

“Can I speak with the two of you?” The suit asked. “Privately,” he followed up, turning to usher us to the hallway lined with conference rooms. I knew OTM had some space set aside for private meetings, but I hadn’t gotten any invites this weekend. Until now.

Ronnie and I followed, and as soon as the door closed behind us, I saw it was more than just the three of us. Two other members of the corporate team were already sitting on the opposite side of the long wooden table. My palms started to sweat; this didn’t feel right.

“Please, have a seat. I’m Jensen Howe, head of alliance management. And this is Stephanie and Carl, from my team.” Carl looked young enough to be an intern, his close-set eyes behind a pair of wire frame glasses that didn’t fit with his age. But Stephanie was all business. She was mean-mugging Ronnie like he’d personally offended her.

We took our seats. Ronnie was tugging anxiously at his sleeves and I got the gut feeling he and I were going to be getting into it later. I didn’t even need any details, the guilt in his eyes alone told me he was the reason we were there.

“It’s come to our attention that you’ve been in conversation with All Bright Shoes, a subsidiary of Blast Apparel.”

My eyes slid over to Ronnie and his cheeks turned pink; our hereditary giveaway painting his response all over his face before words even left his lips. This was bad. I went to casually wipe my sweaty palms on my pants, but my hands were shaking so bad I changed my mind and sat stock still as the room filled with tension.

“I wouldn’t call it a conversation.”

The tiny blonde in the middle sat forward in her chair. “Mr. Stone, did you meet with a representative from their team, Colson Ashe?”

“Mr. Ashe and I had coffee two weeks ago, but it wasn’t work related.”

Jensen tapped his fingers on the table. “And what was it related to?”

“We were just shooting the shit,” Ronnie said, correcting himself quickly when my eyes darted in his direction. “No part of our discussion was about racing or sponsorships.”

The trio opposite us didn’t move, their expressions frozen in masks of disapproval. “Are you aware of clause 16 in your agreement, Mr. Stone?”

Ronnie smiled at them, a cheeky grin of relief, before he turned toward me and said, “I’ll defer to my assistant. She’s more versed in the details of our agreement.”

Blood surged in my ears, the rush drowning out the sound of my internal scream. I hadn’t memorized his damn contract. And even if I had, the fact that Ronnie had been caught yet again talking to a potential competitor was filling my veins with adrenaline-soaked rage. How many times were we going to have to go over this?

Jensen sighed, giving me a slanted look of sympathy before he refocused on my brother. “Mr. Stone, let’s just cut to the chase. You’ve been warned more than once that we have strict rules around collaborations, sponsorships, and endorsements. Blaze Apparel would be a direct competitor for our partner HardSpun Elite. They’ve voiced their concern about your engagement with Blaze, and we take that concern seriously.”

“I haven’t signed anything,” Ronnie said, his petulance only serving to dig Jensen in even further.

“You have a choice to make,” he said, pushing away from the table. His two compatriots followed, the three of them standing on the other side of the table looking down on us. “Cease any and all engagement with any outside sponsors, or you’ll be relieved of your position on the team.” Jensen opened the door, letting his colleagues out first. “Is that clear?”

Ronnie held the man’s gaze longer than was wise, given the position he was in. “Clear.”

“Good. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.” Jensen slipped out into the hallway, the puff of air from the door sighing shut punctuating his departure.

I shoved up from the table. “Jesus Christ, Ron. What the fuck have I been telling you?”

He leaned back in his chair, shaking his head with a smug grin on his face. “I haven’t broken any of the rules, Sky. This is bullshit.”

My mind was whirling. We had so much riding on this contract. If he got dropped by OTM I wasn’t sure we’d be able to get him picked up by another team, and the cost to try and go privateer would be way more than we could afford. Every vision I had of the next nine months hinged on us traveling the circuit. All of us.

Ronnie and Cory. Tommy and Geena. And me and Micah.

“What the hell are you thinking? Why are you skating the line like this?”

“We both know they have two sets of rules. There’s no reason I can’t have as many outside endorsements as other guys.”

He kept his eyes down when he said it, but I felt the words like a heat rushing across my skin. “You mean like Cory?”

Ronnie leveled me with a cold stare. “He’s a good example.”

The door swung open, and my breath caught in my lungs. Relief and anxiety bursting in my chest as Ronnie’s expression soured in equal measure to Cory’s eager grin.

“Hey gorgeous, I found ya...” Cory stalled as he approached me, his gaze swiveling between Ronnie and me. “Bad time?”

The laugh that filled the room wasn’t one of humor. It was menacing and unkind and Ronnie’s disregard for the two of us showed in his eyes. “No, no, this is perfect. We were just talking about you.”

Cory’s posture went rod-straight before he turned to face Ronnie head on, putting himself between us like he was my shield. “Oh yeah? Anything you want to share?”

“No,” Ronnie said, rolling his chair back so he wasn’t looking straight up at Cory’s face. “ You might have something, though. How is it that you’re allowed all those cush endorsement deals, but the rest of us slobs can’t sneeze in the wrong direction?”

I sighed, disappointment twisting in my gut. Ronnie was better than this. “His deals are none of your business—” I started, before Ronnie barked over me .

“He can answer for himself! Or are you his assistant now, too? In addition to whatever other roles you might be filling?”

Cory snapped. “Family or not, you’ll watch your damn tone when you talk to my wife.”

Like snow muffles sound in a storm, Cory’s words filled in around us until they were all I could hear. His wife... His wife .

“What the fuck did you just call her?” Ronnie pushed up, sending his chair banging into the wall.

“You heard me or you wouldn’t be asking.”

Sickening anxiety rippled through me. This wasn’t how this was supposed to happen. I wasn’t ready for my family to know about us. I wasn’t telling them about the arrangement, so they’d never understand why we moved so fast. But there was no undoing this now, so I pulled my shoulders back when I met my brother’s gaze. His expression lost some of its anger when he locked eyes with me.

“ Sky ?”

I nodded. It was going to come out eventually, that had always been the plan. But I had never imagined the look of disgust on my brother’s face.

He pulled at his hair, his eyes widening as he looked between us. “Holy shit.”

Cory turned, his hands landing on my shoulders. “Can you do me a favor?” he reached into his pocket, coming out with his hotel room key between his fingers. “Can you head up to my room? I’ll meet you there.”

As insane as this moment was, leaving in the middle of it made no sense to me. “He’s my brother. I need to deal with this.”

Cory cupped my cheeks in his big, rough, hands, giving me a smile that was sweetly reassuring. “It’s going to be okay. Let me talk to him for a minute. Then I’ll be right behind you. Room 808.” I went to argue again, but he nuzzled his nose against mine, pleading in his tone, “Trust me, babe.”

In that moment, I did. I took the card and headed for the door, looking back at Ronnie with frustration before stepping out into the ha ll. The din of noise around me was a blanket over the harsh echo of what he’d just said. I had never seen Ronnie be so callous. At least, not with me.

When I got to Cory’s room, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t understand what had just happened, or what would happen next. I stood in the middle of the bland beige space staring at the black-and-white photo of Marilyn Monroe on the wall and wondering how the hell that had just gone so sideways.

We’d had such a good time at Thanksgiving, and Micah had loved playing with Cory the other day. Things finally felt so good, so right. And now Ronnie was on thin ice with OTM and he was about to tell my parents I’d gotten married. Without them . I felt sick all over again, imagining that conversation, and their disappointment. I stood there for a long time playing out all the worst-case scenarios, the world feeling like it was spinning out of control.

When the knock came at the door, it startled me. Looking through the peep-hole, Cory’s wide grin curved bizarrely in front of me. I hesitated, my pulse starting to thrum harder in every corner of my body, and he looked at the little glass dot and sing-songed, “ Gor-geous ...”

I sighed, tugging the door open and stepping back to let him pass. He was smiling, but he radiated unease.

“What did you say to him?”

A small voice, deep in my chest worried that he’d taken it back. That he’d told Ronnie it was all fake and asked him to keep the secret with us. The thought cracked like a fissure down the middle of me, and I struggled to find my next breath.

“I told him if he wants to keep you as his assistant, and to keep breathing, he’ll watch himself.”

Relief and apprehension warred inside me. “You didn’t have to tell him about us.”

Cory glared at me with hard, determined eyes. “The hell I didn’t.” He paused, his frustration finally showing as he raked his hands through his hair. “Go to my bag, open it up. ”

I wasn’t in the mood for whatever game he was playing. “Can we please just talk about this?”

He clenched his jaw, closing his eyes, before he said it again. “Skylar, go to my bag.”

I sighed, fighting my own irritation, and did as he said. I flopped the lid open, letting it thump against the wall. When I gave him an annoyed glance over my shoulder, he licked his lips nervously.

“Unzip the top pocket.”

Now I was nervous too. My shaky hands unzipped the pocket and I slipped my fingers inside. The shallow compartment shifted as I dug around, a tinkling sound making me freeze.

“Pull it out.”

My fingers closed around a tiny silk pouch, the sound ringing through the room again as I did. My heart started to race, panic washing over me as I held the pouch in my hands.

“Open it.” Cory was still in the same spot, as if he was holding himself there across the room with his eyes glued to me.

I tugged the loop of ribbon loose and poured out the contents. Two platinum rings landed in my palm. One a simple band. The other a matching band, but adorned with a single square cut diamond, the edges flanked with a border of pale pink gems just as vibrant and sparkling as the rock in the middle. This wasn’t the same band he’d given me at the courthouse. And the engagement ring...It was stunning.

“ Cory . . .”

It was his movement, finally, that drew my eyes up to him. His hand was in his pocket, his fingers moving beneath the fine silk of his suit.

“I’ve been carting these around for weeks,” he admitted, his voice low, like he was afraid I’d physically startle at hearing the truth.

“Why?”

We’d gotten married to sell the relationship to the press, to get me and Micah on his medical insurance. It was all for the arrangement. But we hadn’t revealed it yet.

And still nothing about the last few weeks had felt fake, none of it planned or even public. We’d somehow managed to forget that we had a goal for this whole thing. And the rings in my hand were either a part of that or they weren’t.

One look at Cory’s expression told me which it was.

“It’s not fake, Sky.”

I froze, the reality of what he was saying pinging through me.

“But we haven’t even told the press,” I said, my mind racing.

“Fuck the press.”

He took a handful of steps toward me, stopping short of completely consuming my space, but I had to crane my neck to look up at him.

“We got into this for a lot of reasons, Cory. We don’t know yet what this is. If it’s even real.”

My mouth was speaking every rational thing that came into my mind, but my heart was in a rage, flailing against my ribs like a crazed animal that knew its freedom was close.

“Don’t tell me this isn’t real. Don't tell me what I'm feeling is fake. ‘Cause nothing in my life has ever felt more true than us. We're in this now, Sky. You and me. I'm not here for anything but you. We can take it slow for Micah. I'll follow your lead. But I'm not pretending this is for looks anymore. I’m done acting like there’s a single goddamn fake thing about us."

My racing heart surged almost painfully. The devotion in his eyes, the way his voice was strong even as it trembled. Happiness and hesitation bubbled inside me as I tried to believe this was really happening.

He finally showed me what he’d been fidgeting with in his pocket. A matching platinum band.

“I’ve carried this in my pocket since the day I got it,” he hesitated, slipping the ring down halfway before he caught my eye. “I’ve never wanted to wear anything more in my life.”

He slid the ring the rest of the way down his finger, both of us watchi ng as it settled in place. He flexed his hand and the metal caught in the window light. When he reached for the two still carefully perched in my palm, it was like slow motion. My breath held in a frozen moment.

“I want the world to know you’re mine, baby. ‘Cause I sure as hell am yours.”

He slid them onto my finger, first one then the other, snugging them gently in place and bringing my hand to his lips. He kissed the backs of my knuckles, the soft caress running like a live wire down my arm, the current pulsing to my toes. A simple contentment filled through me, pushing out all the other sensations until I was burning up.

“Yours,” he whispered against my skin, his eyes shining with a haze of desire and possession. I couldn’t look away, his expression determined and desperate. For me .

“Mine,” I answered, stepping into his arms as he bent to kiss me. He cupped my cheeks, holding me still while he devoured me. Teeth and tongue and lips clashed, my fingers raking through his hair, taking fistfuls as I clamored to get closer.

We were like two people drowning, clinging to one another, at risk of pulling us both below the surface. But we wanted to go. We needed to. All these months of doubt and hesitation spilled out of us as we stripped each other naked. Clothes fell into a heap at our feet before Cory lifted me, wrapping my legs around him.

“From that first fucking kiss,” he said, his teeth clamping down on my neck. He spun us, the cold wall meeting my back as he ground his hips into me with a groan. “You’ve owned me ever since.”

My heart shook loose the last strands of fear and uncertainty, a trust blooming through me so hard I trembled. Cory paused, pulling back to catch my eye.

“You’re nothing like I thought you were,” I admitted, sweeping my thumb along the hard edge of his jaw, taking in his beautiful face. “You’ve surprised me at every turn, and nothing has ever felt as right as this. ”

Cory’s eyes closed, his forehead landing gently on mine. “Baby...”

“I want to do this with you. I want to see how good we can be,” I shifted, sliding myself over the hard ridge of his cock, the friction so good we both shuddered. “I want all of you, Cory.”

His eyes flashed open, pinning me to the wall. “You’ve got me,” he whispered, kissing me hard before his voice came out unsteady, “You’re the only one who ever has.”

As if he could feel the way his words broke me into pieces, he cinched his arms around me tighter, claiming my mouth with a bruising, frantic kiss. Taking my ass in both hands, he ground my pussy against him again, driving the shaft between my folds and skimming my clit with perfect pressure. I moaned into his mouth, wrapping my arms around his neck as he drove me higher.

Every muscle in my belly was pinched and shaking, the feel of his cock sending tingles down my legs. I rotated my hips, seeking the stroke that would push me over, but then he pulled back, robbing me of my climax.

“No,” I whined, writhing in his grasp.

“If you come on my cock like that, gorgeous, I’m going to lose it.” His brow was misted with sweat. “And I have better ideas.”

The glint in his eye was a warning and a promise, and I bit my lip as I stifled another moan. No one had ever learned my body the way Cory had. The study had enthralled him, consuming him for hours as he showed a degree of focus that deserved an award. But every time, I’d been the one to receive the prize, wrung out and exhausted, more sated than I knew was possible.

“I’ll let you ride my cock, baby,” he teased, his arrogant smile beaming beneath a devilish stare. “But first you’re going to ride my face.”

The room whirled as he spun and dropped onto the bed. He was on his back, hauling me up his body before I’d found my bearings, and then his mouth was on me. I reared away from him, my head thrown back as my eyes screwed shut.

“ Cory !” I gasped, when he sucked my clit between his lips, every nerve tied to that one place knotting tightly. He licked a long line up my slit and I curled forward, catching myself on the headboard.

“You taste so fucking sweet,” he mumbled, looking up at me with greedy eyes. “Do you want to come on my tongue, baby?”

I wanted to come any way he’d let me at this point. I reached down for a handful of his hair, tugging him into place so I could ride his mouth like he’d said. Even half-hidden, I could see the smile on his face, his eyes twinkling up at me as I took what he’d promised.

Stars started to swim in my vision, my focus failing as the sensations pushed me closer to the edge. When Cory took one hand off me, I followed where it went. Looking over my shoulder my eyes fixed on the sight of him fisting his cock. He stroked it roughly, his hips peeling up off the mattress as he fucked his own hand.

I lost it. The sight of him pleasuring himself was too hot for me to hold off the wave any longer. A wail broke from my throat as I came, clamoring against the headboard to hold myself upright as the waves drove through me, shaking and breathless, Cory stroking his tongue over my clit to push me further, until I couldn’t take any more.

“Fuck, baby,” he ground out, his hand still working his length in a rush. “I don’t want to come yet.”

I brushed his hair from this forehead, shifting backward until he had to let himself go and I was perched above him, our hips perfectly aligned. I bent over him, kissing a line up his chest as he struggled for air. When I sucked one of his nipples into my mouth, he bucked up off the bed, his arms closing around me.

“Jesus, Sky, you’re fucking killing me.”

I rested my chin on his chest, looking up at his red face. “You want me to stop?”

He growled, his brow cutting into a deep frown. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

With his eyes on me, I took his nipple into my mouth again, giving it a bite that had his hips ramming up into mine. A long swipe of my tongue soothed the sting, before I kissed a path up his chest. Over his collarbone. Kissing the scruff of his neck, he arched his head back to give me access to the tense cords of this throat. His breath gusted out of him as his restless hands swept over my body.

“You feel so damn good,” he groaned, and my pussy got slicker.

Cory was strong and powerful, he carried himself with the confidence of a man who knew his size, and exactly what his body was capable of. Seeing him rendered helpless to my touch was like a shot of arousal straight to my core. I savored his body as much as he did mine, and making him unravel was like a gift he gave me every time we touched.

“Are you ready?” I whispered into his ear, as I sat back, riding the ridge of his cock until it was soaked and slippery. He looked up at me, the muscles of his jaw working every time I hit the sensitive head. “Because I want to watch my husband come.”

Cory’s expression detonated, heat and possession and emotion rippling across his features and swirling in his eyes like he’d snapped some tether and nothing would ever be the same.

He grabbed my hips, grinding me against him one more time, before notching himself at my entrance and surging into me. He seated himself in to the base, the invasion stealing my breath.

“ Fuck, Sky ,” he hissed, freezing.

The sensation of fullness followed the initial stab of discomfort and I rocked back and forth to ease him in even farther. The walls of my pussy pulsed around every thick inch of him, fisting and releasing in time with our labored breaths.

“You’re too perfect,” he said through gritted teeth, pitching his head back, “I’m going to fucking come and you haven’t even moved.”

Sweat dripped from his temple, his gaze on the place where we joined as I slowly rose all the way off him. He grimaced. But then I slid him back home, just as slowly, and his eyes floated closed.

I rocked my hips, riding him as his fingers dug into the flesh of my thighs. He was like a spring coiled too tight, about to break. And I wanted to watch him go over.

“Let go, Cory,” I said, reaching back to claw my nails up the inside of his thighs as his expression folded with need. “Don’t hold back.

Another cord of tension snapped and Cory surged up, wrapping me in his arms before rolling us over. He thrust into me, his hips working, chasing his release.

“Tell me if it’s too much,” he whispered roughly.

“You’re never too much,” I told him, taking his face in my hands and kissing away his doubt.

He pumped into me harder, his hips hinging in a punishing rhythm, building a fire back inside me that took me by surprise. Every thrust landed so deep, our hips crashing together so perfectly. The flood of sensation overtook me, sending me craning off the bed, my fingers digging into his back.

“ Cory ...” I cried out, his cock still surging into me as my climax closed my pussy around him like a vice.

“Holy fuck,” he growled, driving harder and faster as he gripped the nape of my neck and held me to him, staring into my eyes as he froze in pained pleasure, my name a whisper on his lips before he groaned his release.

Cory gazed down at me, bewildered and spent. I felt his heart pounding into my chest, beating as furiously as my own. We were sticky, and sweaty, and slick. Tangled and messy in every way that mattered. Because now it all mattered. This was us. This was real.