Page 34 of Nothing to You (Nothing to… #7)

“THIS IS A DISASTER!”

Facedown in bed, it took her a second to place the voice. Leon. Mm, the fabric smelled of Rourke. Must be his pillow.

“It’s not a disaster.” That was Rourke’s voice. “Knox’s people are working on it. I’m pissed I missed the drama. Where was I?”

“How the fuck do I know?” Leon exclaimed. “This will be a PR nightmare.”

“No, it won’t. Why do you think I’m friends with the Colliers? We can spin this if it gets out.”

“If?”

“Yo! Radley!” Rourke shouted. “The cops are looking for you!” She smiled without opening her eyes. “Get up!”

“She’s here?” Leon asked.

Someone tugged the sheets down to uncover her back. “Lazy witch is still in bed. I did all the work last night, why do you get to sleep in?”

With all the time in the world, she rolled onto her back. Leon screeched and spun away.

“I threw the party,” she said, stretching her back. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Your tits offend him.”

“Why?” she asked, dropping her chin almost to her chest to check them out. “You left stubble burn everywhere again.” And more than a few bruises. “How is this discreet?”

“Who gives a fuck about discreet? You just flashed Leon. That’s sexual harassment. You’re the harasser. Another lawsuit I’ll have to settle out of court. Your tits are fucking expensive, and not in the good way.”

“You didn’t mind my boobs last night,” she said, pulling herself onto her hands and knees to crawl toward him. “And this is our private bedroom. What did he think he’d see?”

“ My private bedroom,” Rourke said. “Cock, maybe.”

She rose high on her knees at the end of the bed. “Did I interrupt? I can tag out if you and Leon need the bed.”

“You are tagging out because the cops are here.”

“So? I’m over twenty-one, handsome. I promise.”

“That’s good to know. But they want you, not me.”

“Are you over twenty-one?”

“Last time I checked,” he said. “Wanna role play?”

“With the cops or age play?” she asked.

“Either. Both. We should get rid of the real ones first.” He looked at Leon, who still faced away. “Did we check they are real cops? She probably ordered herself strippers.”

“Why do I need strippers when Roxie already invited me to her bachelorette party? A guaranteed six-pack feast. Want to bet that will be a night to remember?”

“If you get there,” Rourke said. “Know why the cops want you?”

“I’m hot. I’m in demand.”

“These guys want to put you in the slammer.”

“Am I playing a bad girl? Are you directing a porno? Hollywood’s gone to your head.”

“No, this is something to do with you threatening my ex-girlfriend.” Her smile dropped as his curled. “You think I wouldn’t find out?” His eyes stayed on hers. “Leon. Scram.”

The guy did as told.

“I don’t care that you found out,” she said, pushing him aside to climb off the bed. “Where are these cops? I’ll talk to them.”

“Naked?”

She glanced down, but put her hands on her hips, thrusting her shoulders back. “Yeah, maybe I’ll direct my own porno.”

“My people are dealing with it. They just want to lay eyes on you.”

“Okay.” She turned to eat up more of the room. “Naked makes me memorable.”

He hurried over to snag her wrist and pulled her to him. “Slow it down.” The pause dragged. “You didn’t have to.”

“I didn’t have to what?”

“Scare her away. Threaten her with violence.”

“I’m sorry, since when do I need your permission for anything?” she asked, angry and offended. “I did what I did for me. Because I wanted to. It’s nothing to do with you.”

“Nothing to do with me, really?” he asked, deadpan. “You just so happened to railroad my ex-girlfriend out of a party you didn’t invite her to? She just showed up? For no reason? And you were pissed for you?”

“I didn’t want to hear it, to witness it. Last night was about Huddle Hope and I need your attention. I don’t want you getting distracted by supermodel putang.”

“Oh, my focus.”

“Yes, your focus. I don’t know if you remember what it was like to be with her, but you weren’t the most together. You were distracted. Always tense. Always on edge.”

“I wasn’t distracted. I couldn’t shout at her,” he said. “You got the heat because you could handle it.”

“You twisted yourself into knots for her. And you are not that guy. Every demand she made, you made it happen, even when it was totally unreasonable. Impossible. The business suffered. You suffered.”

“I took care of it. I took care of her.”

“And who took care of you?” she asked. “You deserve to be who you are, not who she wanted you to be. It’s okay to be over. It’s okay to quit when something is sapping the life out of you.”

Maybe she was biased against the leech, but beauty wasn’t enough for Rourke. He’d always need more than a pretty face.

“You,” he said, catching a section of her hair between his first two fingers to tuck it behind her ear. “You took care of me, Radley.”

And she wouldn’t shy from that responsibility. From that honor.

“That’s all I did last night,” she said, softening. “We’re good, aren’t we? Life is good.” He nodded. “So why do we need her?”

“You do things like that without telling me, I can’t protect you. I don’t give a shit about her hurt feelings or that she wanted to cause a scene. I mind you went behind my back.”

“No, you don’t. Because it’s exactly what you would’ve done if someone showed up to hurt me.

What was it you said? I don’t apologize for who I am or the decisions I make.

If it feels good, it’s allowed. And it felt good to get between you.

She wanted to use you. And I won’t let anyone do that. Not anyone but me.”

“And if the cops take you away for it, who looks out for me then?”

“If I go inside, I’m taking you with me,” she said. “They wouldn’t be able to handle both of us.”

“Because of all the sex or all the arguing?”

“Alternative is you go into the corrections business. Build me my own prison.”

“That would look a lot like my bedroom and your mouth sewn shut.”

“You have uses for my mouth,” she said, cupping his cock through his pants.

“Good point. We’ll take your vocal cords or something. Keep you quiet.” Sly delight crept onto his face. “Ultimate fantasy.”

“If you’ll build my mother her own hospital, you’ll build me my own prison.”

“A lot of building going on for a woman who lives in my house.”

New York. Had no one told him? She hadn’t.

“Rourke,” Leon’s voice came from the doorway where he stood facing out. “This detective—”

“She’s naked already. Send him in here.” Despite the order, he went to grab her a robe from the closet. “All else fails, Rad, flash him. I’ll stand up in court and confirm he grabbed your boob.”

“Excellent defense strategy, baby.”

“Perjury,” he said, slinging an arm around her shoulders to lead her out past Leon. “Nothing I won’t do for you, Babycakes.”

“How do you know he won’t grab my boob?”

“You’re right! Maybe we can trade. No charges for a little DP. There’s two of them, right, Leon? This is shaping up to be a good day. I love LA!”

“LA hates us!” Jane exclaimed as they entered the living room.

Roxie was there too, though she seemed to be having a ball. “This is so typical,” her friend said. “You should’ve stayed with us at the house last night. We might have missed all the fun.”

Rourke was in a fancy hotel suite. Fancier than the room she’d been in all week. Roxie, Jane, and Lilya had gone back to their house with their guys after the party.

She’d stayed late, until the last guest left, and Rourke had been with her all the way.

“Where are the cops?”

“The Zs have them in the hall,” Lilya said. “Zach and Zairn.”

“We have experience,” Roxie said, opening her arms to drop onto the middle of the couch. “A lot of experience with law enforcement in LA. At least it wasn’t me getting arrested this time.”

“You got arrested in LA?”

“Twice so far,” Roxie said, showing the peace sign. “Zairn enjoys bailing me out. It’s foreplay.”

“And there was the time you went missing,” Jane said. “Had all of us stressed out.”

“That stress got you laid, Little Miss,” Roxie said, pulling Jane onto the couch with her.

“Not that night!”

“I don’t get enough credit for getting you and Knox together,” Roxie said, finger combing the length of Jane’s hair down her back. “You’re so pretty.”

“I never heard how you and Kintyre met,” she said to Lilya.

The expectant mom was eating toast from somewhere. “He was naked, commandeered me to his plot. From there, I guess it was inevitable.”

And she was none the wiser.

“Lola!”

Came a call at the same time the door swung shut.

“Yes, my love?”

“We’re getting the hell out of LA. Leaving LA and never coming back.” He and Kintyre appeared and nodded in greeting at Rourke. “What is with you and this city?”

“This one wasn’t me. But I do miss New York. Should we stop in Chicago on the way back home?”

“If we stop in Chicago, we’ll never leave again. Though your dad wanted to talk investment opportunities.”

“You are not investing money in my family. Not in my sister’s boyfriend or my dad.”

“Actually, he wanted to invest with me.”

“Stop taking money from my dad!”

“I didn’t take the wedding money. We talked about it in private. And I have a guy who can double his yield. Triple it.”

“Since when were you a shady shyster?”

“We pay Dunlap to be our shady shyster,” he said. “You mean a grifter.”

“I mean a scammer. You’re scamming my father.”

“By marrying his daughter and ensuring he’ll have grandchildren?”

“You’re too friendly with my dad,” Roxie said, suspicious. “You talk all the time.” Her friend gestured around. “Look at all these people, all these guy friends you have. Take their money. Call them. Talk to them.”

“They’re busy. I talk to your father because he calls and I enjoy it.”

Roxie blinked, almost aghast. “You enjoy conversations with my dad?”

“More than I enjoy this.”

“You’re right,” Roxie said and leaped up. “Let’s go back to New York. One out, all out.”

“We’re staying here,” Kintyre said and looked at Lilya. “Are we staying here?”

“For now. Roux might stay in our New York place.”

“Not like we’re using it,” Kintyre said.

“Why would she be staying at your place?” Rourke asked.

“Yeah, I told her to stay with us,” Roxie said. “Rouge HQ is where it’s happening. And we have a club in the building. Alcohol. Hot guys. Backstage passes.”

“Memories in that club,” Zairn said. “Backstage.”

The moment his eyes met Roxie’s, they both smiled, obviously remembering the same moment.

“We should mount a commemorative plaque,” her blonde friend said.

Zairn’s drawl was smooth. “Mounted something.”

Rourke grabbed her shoulder to haul her backwards, drawing her away from the others to hustle her back into the bedroom.

“New York?” he said the moment the door closed. “You’re going to New York?”

“Reid has medical contacts. If we pitch Hope to them and get them on board, our credibility will grow. We need it to grow. Now we have the momentum and the support. We’re going to gather pace. This is going to work. I know it is.”

He skimmed a fingertip down her jaw. “New York is a big step.”

“You want to come with me? If we’re both there—”

“Someone needs to steer the ship,” he said. “You’re going to eat New York up.”

And it was such a relief he wasn’t making a big deal of it. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to believe she was trying to take anything away from Mosaic.

“If I’m allowed to leave California.”

“Why wouldn’t you—the cops? One thing we rich have is lawyers. Don’t worry about the law. I’ll deal with that.”

But could she warn him against contacting his ex? Yes, actually, she could. Hadn’t he said she wasn’t allowed to hold back?

“If I get even a whisper that you’ve talked to Diva or seen her…”

He laughed and wrapped a fist around the finger she raised. “Yes, Mom.”

“And I will hear. I am now friends with the women who sleep with your best friends. You did that and can’t take it back. Roxie will tell me.”

“And Jane can’t keep a secret… or so everyone thought before Knox.”

“I can’t get a read on him. We haven’t spent much time in each other’s company.”

“Oh, if you think he’s an enigma, you’ll love Matteo Reid.”

With so much to look forward to, there wouldn’t be time to look back. Would there?

“Fuck!”

The exclamation rattled through the walls from the other room.

“That’s not good,” Rourke said. “When Knox Collier is unhappy, the rest of us should watch out.”