Breaking Free (17 page)

She nodded against his chest, but he didn’t quite believe she'd actually call.

"I want to give you the number to my house in Mendocino," he said quietly. Because once he got home after LA, he would turn off his cell phone. Too many industry contacts had his number, but he wanted Sophie to be able to reach him, and he told her as much. "Can you give me your phone?"

She eased away and kept her eyes downcast as she retrieved her phone and handed it over.

He added his number and smiled a little at the photo of Max and her in the background.

"I need a minute—I'll be right back." Sophie wiped her cheek and rushed away from him.

Tennyson cursed and followed. Fuck if he was going to let her be alone right now.

"Tee!" he heard Asher call behind him.

Tennyson ignored it, too focused on the girl he was chasing. The dark waves of her hair bounced with each step, and her heels made clicking sounds on the marble floor.

Once they reached the long corridor, the marble was exchanged for carpet, and the music from the party faded.

"Sophie, wait up." He picked up the pace when she reached the elevators, doors already open.

"Not now, Tennyson." She sniffled and repeatedly pushed the button for the doors to close. But his hand shot out and stopped the doors before it was too late.

He pushed his way inside and met her teary glare by cornering her. "You don’t shut me out, Sophie. Ever." He had no right to utter those words, but he was suddenly overcome with anger. It was enough that they were over, but if she came up to him and started crying, she couldn’t expect him to be fine with that.

The doors closed and Sophie placed a hand on Tennyson's chest to keep what little distance remained. But when he took another step toward her, she didn’t resist anymore.

The tension thickened between them. Anger and hurt mingled with undeniable desire.

Fuck
. Tennyson's gaze dropped to Sophie's chest. It heaved with quick, shallow breaths.
Fuck, fuck
.

Her face crumpled, which broke the last of Tennyson's resolve. He was there in a heartbeat and kissed her hard, his hands coming up to stroke her cheeks, her jaw, down to her neck.

"Ugh, bastard," she whimpered into the kiss. At the same time, she pulled him closer and pushed her tongue into his mouth.

Tennyson groaned and angled his head for a deeper kiss, and the ding of the elevator only made him act faster. "Tell me to stop—otherwise, I'm carrying you to my room right now."

She didn’t tell him to stop.

Maybe she was as weak as he was.

Wrenching away from Sophie's addictive mouth, Tennyson reached for the buttons, only to see they were already at his floor. Her room was evidently on this floor, too.

"Come on." He grabbed her hand and exited the car, but true to his word, he didn’t stop there. He lifted her with ease, and Sophie let out a needy noise and wrapped her legs around him.

While he blindly searched for the key card in his pockets, he pressed Sophie up against a wall and kissed her hungrily. Jesus Christ, it had been too fucking long. Two weeks without her body next to him, two weeks without her soft lips, two weeks without her sweet laughs.

"I wish I could hate you," Sophie admitted, out of breath. "It would've made this so much easier."

Perhaps she was right, but fury was enough for Tennyson. It fueled him as he carried her to his room and kicked the door open. Fury toward the guy she'd meet some day. The lucky motherfucker would get to sleep on Tennyson's side of the bed.

He slid his fingers underneath the straps of her dress and pushed them down, quick to expose flawless skin, perky tits, and a toned stomach. She'd gained more weight, too. And it was mouthwateringly sexy.

Lowering his head, he dropped kisses all over her skin while he removed the last of her clothing. "Get on the bed."

They fucked for all the right and wrong reasons that night.

It was rough, angry, and desperate.

For hours, they got lost in each other one last time.

They were completely spent at around four in the morning, but with the clock ticking, one lazy kiss grew heated again. Sophie got him hard with her perfect mouth, and then she straddled him and sank down on his cock.

"I wish it could've been another time and place, too." Tennyson spoke the words quietly, huskily, between openmouthed kisses to her neck.

He'd never forget her saying that when they…
broke up
…two weeks ago, and it summed it up perfectly for him. It was exactly what he wished for. A time and place where they wanted the same things in life. A time and place where they weren't going in opposite directions.

Sophie swiveled her hips, taking him deeper, and he moaned through clenched teeth.

"I met you too soon," she whispered, grazing her teeth along his scruffy jaw.

"Fuck," he panted. Gripping her hips, he slammed her down on his cock and elicited a cry of pleasure from Sophie. "You're killing me, baby." In every way.

Close wasn’t close enough, so he flipped her over and covered her body with his. The desperate frenzy returned from before, and they were all over each other as they chased their orgasms.

When they finally came, it was quiet, bodies rigid with tension, and completely still.

It was goodbye.

He didn’t say a word—neither did Sophie—but it was all around them.

Tennyson knew he'd wake up in a few hours alone.

Chapter 20

So it begins
, Sophie thought grimly. Landing at LAX brought her back to reality, and paps were waiting for the next Princess Pierce scandal. Men with cameras crowded her as she exited the airport with Noah and Brooklyn, and she wished Daniel were here.

Instead, he was in a car with Max, and they were driving to Toronto. Sophie would join them there the day after tomorrow when her new job started.

Daniel had come up with the idea the day before they wrapped. He said he wanted to think things over about the whole management thing, and a few days on the road would help.

"Where's Tennyson, Sophie?"

"Is it true you got married last night?"

"Pierce, over here!"

Sophie was glad they were having their luggage delivered. It would've been impossible to get through with bags.

"You need a damn bodyguard, honey," Noah muttered. He pulled Sophie close and wasn’t afraid to push back when the paparazzi bumped into them. "Dude, fucking watch it."

Sophie kept her head down and followed Noah and Brooklyn toward the car that was picking them up. Well, not Brooklyn. She was taking a cab straight home, and she was nearly bursting with excitement to see her daughter.

"Who's the guy, Sophie?"

"Are you and Wright over?"

"Sophie, why so shy?"

For every question, Sophie imagined the comments that would follow on the internet. No matter how reporters spun it, she wouldn’t come out looking good, and she'd be ridiculed all over again.

Sophie and Brooklyn managed a quick hug and promised to meet up soon, and then they split up. Noah ushered Sophie into an SUV, and Brooklyn headed toward the cabs.

"Jesus Christ." Sophie huffed a breath and made sure the door was locked. She couldn’t believe she'd loved this kind of attention before. Every time she was spotted in a tabloid, it'd made her feel validated. She was somebody.

She had a feeling her past and present would collide one of these days, but for now, she didn’t want to look back for even a second.

Noah asked her if she wanted to check in to her hotel first or go straight to his place, and she chose the latter. It was part of the whole "looking strictly ahead." Her future home in this case, hopefully.

"What's the plan for you and Steph?" she asked, knowing Steph was off on her next job already. A production in New Zealand, if Sophie wasn’t mistaken.

"Huh? Oh, that was just casual." Noah got comfortable after giving the driver his address. "We're usually more discreet. This isn't the first time we've hooked up."

"Ah." Sophie looked out the tinted window, and apparently she'd gotten it all wrong. She thought Noah and Steph were, like, together now. "How do you do it?" She peered back to Noah again, genuinely curious. "How do you not get attached?"

She wasn’t a stranger to casual sex, obviously, but Noah and Steph had a lot in common and liked hanging out. Sophie had been all about the spotlight and looking good on some Hollywood bad boy's arm. She hadn't given a shit at all about
real
.

"We're friends." Noah shrugged. "Different priorities, different goals. Neither of us is interested in a relationship, and we're always on the road or looking for the next gig."

"Hmph." Sophie didn’t find that helpful at all, and she slumped a little lower in her seat. She and Tennyson had different priorities and different goals too, but that didn’t explain why she was a mess inside. It didn’t explain why she'd kept one of his T-shirts, why she'd snuck out of his hotel room this morning like some coward, or why she'd nearly flipped her shit when a security agent at the airport in Vancouver wanted her to take off the necklace Tennyson had given her.

It was a fucking necklace. She didn’t have a bomb hidden underneath the silver feather.

*

Sophie had lived in LA all her life, but she had no memory of ever being in Pacific Palisades. It was close to Malibu, so she'd heard of it, of course. Thousands of times. She knew many celebrities lived here, but she'd never actually been. Or maybe she had, but the neighborhoods blended together too much. It was difficult to tell.

It was beautiful, though. They passed mansions, country clubs, expansive hills, and a lot of surrounding nature for Max to go nuts over. The ocean was close, too.

It seemed more peaceful here. Tucked behind the small town center was a narrower street lined with three- and four-story, industrial-looking brick buildings, and that was where the driver pulled over.

Aside from an auto shop, it seemed this street had been taken over by artsy people. There were cute cafés, a store that sold organic stuff, and an art gallery.

"Welcome to Pali." Noah grinned and squeezed Sophie's thigh before getting out of the car. She followed and found herself looking up at the red brick building with a smile on her face. She liked this. "Maggie, my aunt's ex, turned this into condos years back," Noah told her. "I moved out here after college, before she sold the building."

Sophie nodded, knowing he was originally from Pittsburgh. "How many roommates did you say you have?"

"Three." Noah opened the door and let Sophie enter first. "Eli and Moshe are almost never around, so they share a room, but Josh should be home."

"Moshe," she repeated. "What an odd name."

Noah chuckled and pushed the button for the elevator. "He and Eli are brothers—from Israel. They're photographers for
National Geographic
, so odds are greater to see them in some random underwater cave than here."

They exited the elevator on the fourth floor, and there were only two lofts on each floor, so Noah pointed out the one that would go on the market soon before unlocking the door to his place across the hall.

"So yeah, they look exactly the same, only…mirrored. And the views, I guess. This overlooks the street, and the one across the hall overlooks hills." Noah stepped inside his loft and looked around. "Josh!"

Sophie was in love. The large loft was like one big open space. High ceilings, hardwood floors, brick walls on the eastern and western sides, and big windows.

The spacious kitchen was to the right of the hallway, and then it was all living room space.

There was a sound of a door opening and closing to the left, so Sophie turned and saw a half-naked man leaving what she presumed was his room.

Sophie wouldn’t need three bedrooms, even less so with all that additional space, but the loft was really cool.

Best part? She could afford it now, and she would keep being able to afford it by working her actress ass off.

"You couldn’t put some clothes on?" Noah smirked wryly and bumped fists with his roommate. "Are those my sweats? Dude."

"I was taking a nap." This Josh guy grinned and scratched his exposed chest lazily. "Good to have you home, man. Did you bring me back a T-shirt?"

"Clearly, you could use one." Noah snorted and then draped an arm around Sophie's shoulders. "This is Sophie Pierce. She might buy Owen's place. Sophie, meet Josh Reynolds. He steals my clothes when he's too fucking lazy to do his laundry."

"Nice to meet you." Sophie extended her hand.

"You, too." Josh shook her hand and raised a brow at Noah. "I didn’t know you were dating actresses these days."

"We're not dating, asshole," Noah chuckled. "Don’t you read the news? She's all over Tennyson Wright." He elbowed Sophie's side playfully.

It wasn’t funny, given the situation, but Sophie smiled.

"Gossip isn't news, buddy." Josh laughed through his nose. "Anyway, I should get back to sleep. I gotta be back at work in a few hours."

When it was just Sophie and Noah again, he turned to her and said, "So, how about I show you around?"

*

Approximately thirty-six hours later, Sophie was on her way to Toronto. Businessmen in nice suits filled up first class, and then there was Sophie in jeans, a pink sleep mask, and a University of Michigan T-shirt.

Ignoring the complimentary champagne, she curled up in her seat and tried to sleep, but that only made her dream about Tennyson.

She missed him so much she ached.

It would get easier, right?

At times, she got mad. Mad because her feelings were fucking her up. She had so many things to worry about; she didn’t need to get her heart involved, too. That was supposed to be reserved for the man she would spend the rest of her life with. The man she'd meet
years
down the road when she wasn’t so damn confused about life.

Yet, all the way to Toronto, she only saw Tennyson. She remembered their dates going from uncomfortable and full of bitching to sharing laughs and little touches. She remembered the look in his eyes when he kissed her in the rain, like he couldn’t help himself, like he just
had
to kiss her.

They knew each other perfectly at the same time as they didn’t know each other at all. Sophie hadn't shared much about her family, or lack thereof, nor had she opened up fully about her fears. For some reason, it had seemed…useless. Out of place.

Childhood memories were another thing. It was like sharing pictures. You let someone see a glimpse, but only the one who'd been there knew what was going on behind the camera.

When they were getting ready to land, Sophie's stomach rolled, and she realized she hadn't eaten today.
Shit
. She would have to put alerts on her phone or something because she refused to go down that road again.

It was still odd carrying some extra pounds, but that was only pressure from the past. She
felt
healthier, even though she sometimes forgot to eat as often as her diet plan instructed.

Adopting a little bit of Tennyson's style, Sophie pulled out a ball cap and a pair of sunglasses from her carry-on when it was time to get off the plane. She'd been to Toronto before; the paparazzi weren't bad here, but they also knew she was arriving today, and gossip about her and Tennyson was still hot.

Sophie didn’t have any baggage to claim, so she headed straight for the exit and checked her phone on the way. Daniel had left a message, saying he was waiting for her, and she saw him outside before she could reply.

"Since when are you a hockey fan, darling?" He flicked the brim of her cap before hugging her tightly. "A Pittsburgh team no less."

She shrugged and hopped up to pop a kiss to his cheek. "Noah let me borrow it."

No, she definitely didn’t care about hockey as a sport, but she remembered a time before her dad became a douche. He used to be a hardcore LA Kings fan, and she'd pick a random team to root for before the game to tease him. They'd watch the play-offs together and go out for chili fries and shakes.

Daniel chuckled. "You ready to see Max? He's not very fond of me."

"God, I've missed him." She sighed and followed Daniel to their car. A couple photographers took photos of them, but they kept their distance. "Has he been any trouble?"

"Nah. He's just huffy around me." Daniel winked.

"Which is the technical definition," she giggled. "Was your beloved Zane mad because you didn’t go home?"

"No, it's all good." He smiled and opened the door for her. "He's in New York this week, so he might come up to visit before he heads west again."

That was nice. Sophie hadn't met Daniel's boyfriend yet but knew the man was a model. Apparently, Zane loved fashion but hated the industry, and he was modeling to pay for college.

"So…" Sophie raised a brow at Daniel as he pulled away from the curb. "Did the thinking go well?"

Daniel side-eyed her and tried to withhold a smirk.

It was enough to make Sophie let out a small squeal of excitement. "Really? You'll be my manager?"

"Jeesh—calm down," he laughed. "We'll take it slow, okay? The fact that you want me as your manager shows how unprepared
you
are." He gave her leg a gentle squeeze. "You should go with someone who has all the connections, but I'll do my best. I'll take over step by step, all right?"

"We have to celebrate," Sophie stated. For the first time in…oh, two weeks plus change, she felt content. In Daniel, she'd found a great friend, and it looked like Noah and Brooklyn were in her life to stay, too.

It was an amazing beginning.

All of a sudden, she got a little emotional. There was so much that had her stomach tied in knots, but damn it, she was going forward. Right pace, right direction.

"I think I love you," she told Daniel randomly. "Like, honestly. You rock, Daniel."

At that, Daniel gave her a strange look before he grinned and shook his head. "I love you too, darling. God help me."

Sophie faced forward and nodded to herself, clinging to that feeling of contentment.

I'm ready to fly, Tennyson. Even if a monster truck ran over my wings
.