Read Beautifully Revealed Online
Authors: Bethany Bazile
Beautifully Revealed (8 page)
I walk into the office in the morning hoping I don’t look as bad as I feel. In my rational mind I know it’s ridiculous, but I miss Liam to an unbearable extent. I guess love isn’t rational. It’s illogical and foolish. It makes me feel like a raving lunatic one moment, blissfully content the following day.
Lillian is not at her desk so I head to Rich’s office. This time I knock and wai
t until he yells for me to enter, lest I get another live porn show. Fortunately, Rich is alone. He waves for me to take a seat while he finishes a call. He cuts it short and gives me an odd look.
“What’s wrong?” he asks. Is
it that obvious? I must look like shit.
“Everything.” I
slump over in my seat.
“Care to elaborate?
”
“
Well Vegas was a disaster. After the news about Anna, I felt really bad for Lucas so I slept in his bed to comfort him.”
“
Oh oh, sounds bad already.”
“Yeah it was because I woke up in the
morning to Lucas molesting me.”
R
ich sits up in his seat and his eyebrows furrow. “What do you mean molesting you?”
“I mean putting his hand into my panties while I was as
leep. Then to make matters worse, as if he didn’t violate me enough, he throws it in Liam’s face at the hospital. Their mother is in the room dying and they’re having a pissing contest in the hallway. What kind of shit is that?”
Rich shakes his head in disbelief
. “You might not want to hear this, but I think Lucas is selfish. Everything you’ve ever told me about him points in that direction. This only makes it worse. He doesn’t want to see you happy unless you’re with him, and throwing how he took advantage of you in Liam’s face only proves it.”
Lucas is my friend. My only friend for ten years
, but as much as I hate to hear it, Rich is right. Lucas has probably been selfish from the beginning, but I was too busy being manipulative to care. So maybe back then we deserved each other. Getting what we needed out of each other in underhanded ways. I don’t want to be that way anymore and I definitely don’t want a friend who wants to destroy what’s most important to me.
“Liam put me out last night
,” I confess. There might be something to this opening up to people after all, because soon as I say the words the tightening in my chest releases a little.
“What? Where did you go?”
“He didn’t actually put me out, he offered to leave, but I didn’t feel right about chasing him away from his home so I offered to leave instead. I got a room at the Brazilian Court.”
“Well you’re not staying
there. You’re coming to stay with me.”
“Not a good idea
, Rich. Liam is already suspicious of our friendship. Staying with you would only fuel the flames.”
“What better way to get a man to come to his sense
s than to make him crazy with jealousy.”
“Fine
, I’ll come stay with you, but only because that hotel room is so lonesome. Now enough about me, how are things with Lillian?”
His face falls and he drops his head back against his chair. “
She won’t even look at me, and I’m lucky to get a few words out of her when we’re here.”
“
Before I left you were talking about taking her out on a real date. What went wrong?”
“Her
son walked in on us last week, and let’s just say he saw a lot more than you saw that day you walked in on us.”
“Oh my god
Rich, that’s horrible. He’s probably traumatized.”
“He wasn’t supposed to come home that ni
ght, in hindsight I guess I should’ve at least taken it to her room but the kid went crazy on me.”
“Kid? You’re practically the same age.”
“No, he’s a twenty-year-old college kid. When I was his age I was graduating magna cum laude.”
“Well we can’t all be super geeks,” I laugh at him.
“I may be a fucking genius, but I’m not a geek.” He crosses his arms over his chest.
“I don’t know how you’re going to dig yourself out of this one.”
“Seems like we’re in the same boat so pack your shit, and get over to my place tonight. We’ll make popcorn and watch sappy love movies while we sulk.”
“
Aww…I’ve never done that before.” My eyes glaze over with unexpected emotion. I quickly get up and head for the door before I get all mushy, but I pause before turning the knob. “Thanks, Rich,” I say, looking over my shoulder.
He winks at me and smile
s. “Anytime.”
Isabella
That night I knock on Rich’s door with my duffe
l bag on my shoulder, wishing I could just turn around and go home to Liam. Rich opens the door in a pair of sweatpants, a t-shirt, and a huge smile on his face.
“You’re just in time
.” He grabs the bag from my shoulder and pulls me in. He lives in a fourth floor condo that’s been recently developed less than ten minutes from Liam’s place. We enter the living room filled with plush carpet and gray furniture. The high ceilings make the place feel spacious, yet homey. He pulls me up the staircase, way too enthusiastic to have a houseguest.
“This is where you’re sleeping.” He opens the
first door in a long hallway and leads me into a large bedroom decorated in beige and brown tones. The bed has a ton of pillows on it, and I can’t wait to throw myself on that bed and get lost in them.
“There’s a private bathroom through there
.” He points towards a door on to my right. “My room is the last door at the end of the hall.” He puts my bag down and pulls me into a hug. “Don’t look so sad. That man won’t last long without you. In the meantime, popcorn is in the microwave and I’m about to start the movie.”
“Which movie are we watching?
” I ask as he walks towards the door.
“
The Notebook
.” He smiles at me.
“No, absolutely
not. What else do you have?”
“
A Walk to Remember
?” he asks with a sheepish smile.
“What the hell
, Rich? Are you one of those people that like to cry when they’re heartbroken?” I’ll stay in this room before I fill my heart with more sadness.
“I don’t cry so that doesn’t apply to me. I was just kidding
, I won’t torture you that way. We’re watching
This Means War
.”
“Seriously! One girl and two g
uys. That’s just perfect for me,” I say sarcastically.
“I thought you might appreciate the irony,” he laughs on his way ou
t and I can’t help but smile. Maybe staying here won’t be so bad. Rich always bring out the fun in everything.
********
I haven’t seen Liam in four days and I’m constantly fighting back the feeling of despair. Rich tries his best to keep my spirits up, but he’s just as lovesick as I am. Each day I get in this elevator with my hand clutching the key card in my pocket that will take me up to Liam’s floor. The work week is almost over and if I don’t build up the courage to go see him soon, I’ll regret it all weekend.
I quickly slide the card in the slot and pray I’m doing the right thing. I gave him his space as long as I could, no
w I just need to see his face, get lost in his eyes for a few minutes. It takes an eternity for the elevator to reach his floor. When the doors finally slide open, my legs feel heavy as I walk across the lobby.
I nod at the receptionist a
nd she gives me a surprised look. I guess my absence was well noted and filed in the
“It’s over”
bin. “Is anyone in with him?” I ask her.
“No
,” she answers as I walk towards his office. My heart is beating so fast I can hear it pounding in my ears. The door opens before I touch it and Liam is standing there, breathtaking in all black. His shirt outlines his powerful frame. A few buttons are left open at the top, exposing the tanned skin of his neck and upper chest. His slacks are snug and my eyes immediately trace the bulge in the front. He’s dark and dangerous today and my wild side wants to do deliciously wicked things to that body.
Butterflies
flutter in my belly when he smiles at me. I evaluate that smile trying to decipher what it could mean
. Was he done keeping his distance from me? Maybe he’s ready for me to come home?
This is silly, I’ve been with the man in a hundred different positions and I’m still flustered every time he simply glances at me. I want him so badly I have to hide my trembling hands in my pockets.
He pulls me through the door and up against his body. He smells like soap, the aroma tempts me to taste the smooth skin of his neck. His warm breath caresses my ear and my bo
dy instantly responds. My nipples harden and the ache increases between my legs. I lean my head back and stare into his lust filled eyes as our labored breaths linger in the air as we inch closer. His lips take an eternity to reach mine, but when they do it’s a tender caress, a slow exploration of the longing we share.
It doesn’t take long before our slow kiss turns into
a deep heated kiss, with us battling to consume each other. Our hands fumble with buttons and zippers between those kisses. My body is screaming at me for this release, yearns for the feel of his thick shaft sinking deep into me.
“I came to see you last night.” He whispers against my lips as my fingers graze the heated flesh inside his form
-fitted boxer briefs. “They said you weren’t staying there. Where are you staying?” My hand freezes and I stare at him panic-stricken.
No, no, no,
if I tell him I’m staying with Rich now, it will be like throwing a bucket of ice water on him and my opportunity to have him will disappear. I rain kisses up his neck in an effort to preserve the moment, but he freezes up, and holds me off within arm’s reach.
“Where are you staying, Ella?”
His voice is cold and his eyes suspicious.
“With Rich,” I answer
honestly. I have no reason to feel bad about staying with a friend. Just because his jealousy refuses to let him see the truth, I won’t act guilty. A deep frown mars his beautiful face before he steps back and begins to readjust his clothes.
“You’re staying with Harris?”
He shakes his head, avoiding any eye contact with me.
“I’m not going to go through my friendship with Rich with you again. I needed a friend and Rich is helping chase away the loneliness.”
“I’m sure he is,” he says with a hint of sarcasm.
“You don’t trust me and I don’t know how to fix that.”
“How the fuck am I supposed to trust you,” he snaps. “You never let me in, I’m constantly learning things you should have revealed months ago and you have a bevy of men at your beck and call.” He throws his hands up in defeat and walks off towards his desk. “I have work to do,” he says, dismissing me.
I watch him until he’s seated trying to come up with anyt
hing that will fix this. Fix us. I know words are not what he needs from me. He needs me to prove my love through actions, but I’m still learning how to do that. I just hope it’s not too late by the time I figure it all out.
Liam
She’s finally going to do it.
I’v
e been watching Ella will herself not to come up here for days. The small glimpses of her I get on the screen only make me miss her more. I want to touch her, smell her, and hear her tell me she loves me. Last night I caved. I couldn’t sleep and thoughts of her were too overwhelming. Maybe it was a sign that she wasn’t at the hotel I went to, that I should maintain the space between us, but as I watch her get off the elevator I decide to meet her at the door. It slides open just as she appears in front of it. She shouldn’t look so good when I’m so miserable without her. The vest she’s wearing over her shirt is too tight, the button near her bust line is near bursting off, and that skirt…
If I get my way I’ll have that skirt wrapped around her waist in less than five minutes. I reach out and pull her in
, her soft curves crashing into my chest. She leans back and I get lost in her smoky gray eyes. It’s still there, the invisible force that pulls at my heart and soul at the sight of her. When our lips touch I savor the moment, hoping to express my feeling with a simple kiss. But as usual, a tender kiss ignites a fire in us that has us tearing at each other’s clothes. Her soft hand skims across my abs and creeps into my pants, her fingers feel like silk against my rock hard erection.
“I came to see you last night,” I confess.
“They said you weren’t staying there. Where are you staying?”
Her body
tenses up and her eyes are immediately alarmed and fearful. She snaps out of it quickly though, ignoring my question, and trying to distract me with her kisses. I hold her off and force her to look at me.
“Where are you staying, Ella?”
“With Rich,” she answers, and just like that my hard-on is forgotten and my anger threatens to erupt.
“You’re staying with Harris?” I
begin to fix my clothes. My moment of weakness is over. I missed her so much I was ready to forgive her, bury myself deep inside her, and let her wrap me in her love.
“I’m not going to go through my friendship with Rich with you again. I needed a friend and Rich is helping chase away the loneliness.”
“I’m sure he is,” I say annoyed with her excuses.
“You don’t trust me and I don’t know how to fix that.”
“How the fuck am I supposed to trust you,” I surprise myself by my angry tone. “You never let me in, I’m constantly learning things you should have revealed months ago, and you have a bevy of men at your beck and call.” I’m done with this shit or at least I wish I could be. What is it with this woman that makes me willing to go hell and back for her? She’s standing there staring at me, but I really need her to leave before I cave in.
“I have work to do,” I
say, hoping she’ll take the clue and leave.
I’m being a fucking juvenile
, but I don’t care. I watch Ella’s retreating frame and bite back the urge to ask her to stay. Losing my mother has me more scared than ever to love again. Before Ella, I was cold and unfeeling. Maybe my heart was even frozen, but frozen hearts don’t bleed the way mine does now.
All this emotional bullshit isn’t for me, if I was capable of letting her go I would do it in a heartbeat, but even the thought of an existence without Ella terrifies me. My co
ndo is unusually quiet and I dread going home every day after work.
The intercom buzzes and Stephanie announces, “Mr. Maddox, Arianna
is here to see you.”
I should
send her away, but surprisingly I tell her to let her in. Moments later she struts through my door in a red dress that’s clinging to her body like a second skin. She’s definitely here to stir up trouble and her seductive smile further confirms it. Instead of sitting across from me, she walks behind my desk, and sits next to me on the edge of the desk.
I watch
cautiously for her next move. She leans over and kisses my cheek. “Hey,” she says.
“What do you want
, Arianna?”
She sighs and runs her hand over her thighs causing her dress to inch up. I almost roll my eyes at her obvious attempt to seduce me.
“I left a couple things at the condo and I was wondering when I can come over and pick them up?”
“Let’s not do this bullshit
, Arianna. That has to be the most ancient trick in the book. Couldn’t you come up with anything a little more original?”
She
pouts her overly red lips at me before sighing in defeat. “Okay, you got me. I miss you.”
“What is there to miss
? All we ever did was fuck.”
“Maybe that’s the problem, you were the best fuck of my life.”
“Arianna, you know I’m with someone now.”
“I heard she moved out.” She smiles coyly at me.
“Whether she’s staying with me or
not is irrelevant, she’s still mine.”
“Wow, I always thought I would be the girl to change you, make a
committed man out of you…” A sad look crosses her face. “Can you tell me where I went wrong? What she did differently?”
“Why is it always a competition between women? You did nothing wrong and she did nothing right. When you feel it there’s nothing someone can do or not do to change it. It’s sort of just there and it’s unexplainable.”
“Alright I get it, you’re in love and we’re over. Can we at least be friends? For real this time, I won’t try to break up your relationship, or make catty remarks about Isabella anymore.”
I give he
r a suspicious look and she smiles at me before crossing her heart with her finger.
“Alright
,” I shrug my shoulders. Hopefully my answer will get rid of her quicker.
“Great,” she says jumping up from my desk. “Let me take you for our first friendship cup of coffee.”
“No, that’s a bad idea.”
“Come on Liam, it’s just a cup of coffee.”
“Arianna, I swear if this is some kind of ploy…”
“It’s not. It’s coffee between friends.”
“Let’s go, but I’m paying.” I need to get out of here and stop thinking about Ella.
I find myself smiling at her silliness on the ride down the elevator, she was always a carefree, happy sp
irit. It’s nice to see her acting like herself again, instead of the petty jealous version I’ve seen lately. We exit the elevator at the same time that Ella and Lillian step off the opposite one. She freezes and watches as Arianna and I walk by her. I’m not doing anything wrong and I definitely don’t owe her an explanation. I hardly glance her way so I’m a little startled when she jumps in front of me, stopping me midstride. She gives Arianna a nasty look before pulling me off into a corner.
“What are you doing?” she hisses at me. I almost smile at how cute she is when she’s angry.
“
Going out for coffee with a friend.” I glance at my watch in an attempt to rush her little confrontation.
“Is this Alice all over again? Soon as we disagree about something you’re ready to run out and further damage what’s left of us.”
She accuses.
“We’re
friends. You go out for coffee with Harris weekly, don’t you?”
“It’s not the same, Liam
.” She’s practically seething and I have to put an end to this before she makes a huge scene in my lobby.
“It is the same. Now go home to your
friend
and stop making a scene.” I leave the building with Arianna, a little annoyed that she threw Alice in my face again. I thought we had left that behind us.
Arianna senses the change in my mood and tries to cheer me up with her quirky jokes
, but I’m not in the mood, and I barely even talk while we’re in the coffee shop. We part ways outside the café with a hug and a promise to keep in touch, but I doubt that will happen because it felt a little forced and awkward being around her. Sometimes it’s best to leave the past behind you.
********
That night
, as I lie alone in my bed, my head is pounding from the rage I feel. Every second that I spend alone in this bed pisses me off more. Why did I have to fall in love with the most difficult woman in the world? The secrets she keeps are like a huge wall between us. I don’t know what else to do to get her to trust me with her past.
The investigator I hired is having a hard time uncovering anything on that Damon guy. Apparently most
of his records have been sealed. He must have some really important people in his pocket for that to be possible. Ella’s past is not easy to dig up either. Other than the information the investigator was able to get me about her from college until now, everything else is blank. I should have figured out she had a lot of money a while ago. No one can cover their tracks that well unless they pay a high price.
What happened with Lucas is what’s really keeping me from letting her come home. If she had only listened to me and not gone to Vegas with Lucas we would still be in a good place. I believe her when she says Lucas took advantage of her, but that doesn’t stop the sick feeling in my gut when I imagine him touching her like that. It’s exactly what I was trying to warn her about, but she was determined to go heal their friendship. If my mother hadn’t been on her deathbed that day in the hospital, I would have done far more damage to him than I did. Now she’s staying with Harris. Hmm…
Fuck it.
I know I shouldn’t, but I need to see her. I jump out of the bed, pulling on a pair of jeans, and the shirt I discarded earlier. I button it up on my way out the door. I’m not sure why I’m going to Harris’s place to see her, maybe I just need to see her face, hear her voice, or maybe I just need to fuck her until I get her out my system.