PLAYED - A BRITISH BAD BOY ROMANCE (13 page)

She was experiencing a multiple orgasm around mine, and when her rapid
heartbeat finally began to slow down, and her tense grip on my muscles started
to relax, she looked me in the eyes with a completely defenseless gaze.

“Did… did we just come together?”

My chest was heaving as I nodded. “Yeah,” I breathlessly responded. “I
think so.”

“Oh god, Lex, I didn’t really think that could actually happen,” she
murmured in my ear, resting her chin onto my shoulder. “I mean, I’ve
heard
about that kind of thing, but it
seemed so… unlikely… you know?”

I nodded again. “I know what you mean…”

Gently, I set her back to the ground, and we popped back into the shower
to clean off the sweat from our furious fucking. We enjoyed the steam of the
shower, taking our time in washing each other off, tracing the outlines of each
other’s bodies as we bathed one another.

Inevitably, one thing led to another, and I was taking her nipple between
my teeth as her fingers wrapped lightly around my stiffening cock…

About two hours later, we were finally resting in bed, where we had
finally wrapped up our marathon sex for the moment. My thoughts were
ricocheting around in my head, and I felt the undying compulsion to finally
speak my mind…

And to take a very dangerous step forward.

“What is it that you want, Riley?” I asked her as she ran her fingertips
along my chest. “What do you want out of this?”

She turned her head, gazing fiercely into my eyes. I could sense such
strength and determination in those retinas that they almost burned into my
own.

“What do you mean?”

I paused, collecting my thoughts.

“We both know that I’m going back in a few weeks. I understand that your
life is here… your friends are here… but… have you given any thought to…”

“To coming back with you?” Riley finished my question, her catlike gaze
still focused intently on my eyes.

“Yes,” I replied truthfully.

Riley maintained that gaze for a few moments, not speaking a single
word. As the silence dragged out, she turned her head back, settling it against
my chest again.

“So that’s a no,” I answered.

“That’s a… deceitfully complicated question,” Riley replied. “Everything
that I know and love is here. Are you actually asking me to give it all up to
return with you to England? My friendships, my life, and my entire world… it’s
here in New Orleans. You would ask me to drop it all?”

I realized the mistake I had made now.

I’d pushed her too hard.

I’d reached for too much.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve wanted to go to England,” Riley
told me. “I grew up watching British sitcoms, classic episodes of
Doctor Who
. I can tell you all about
Daleks and Cybermen and Ice Warriors… I can recount tales of Gallifrey and Skarro,
of Davros and the Time Lords…”

“You know your stuff,” I observed.

“You present an interesting opportunity,” Riley thought aloud. “And I
understand that this is a painless way to make a clean break. I can return with
you and submerge myself in Great Britain, although that might set me back a
little on the painting front…”

“You will have all the room you need to paint,” I whispered.

“Is that so?”

“You should see Lambert House,” I told her, recalling the estate fondly.
“It stands proud and tall in the English countryside, down a long, winding road
lined with beautiful trees…three stories tall with a sprawling basement and a
massive attic, a thick wall all around for privacy, and magnificent gardens
lining the front and the back… my cluster of orange trees bloom so brightly in
the spring, growing the most delicious citrus you’ve ever tasted…”

“You paint a compelling argument,” Riley whispered. “Will I have a
studio?”

“I know just the room already,” I thought wistfully. “On the west side
of the house, with a great glass ceiling, where the sunlight catches just right
no matter if you work at noon or sunset. The oranges and yellows of the horizon
are so beautiful there, and you’ll have enough space for a small gallery in
that room alone… and a raised platform for your work.”

“It sounds very beautiful,” Riley murmured, closing her eyes to picture
it. “Are there any closets?”

“Several,” I answered, “clustered near the raised flooring. There’s
plenty of shelving, several bookcases… and ample light. You can store
absolutely anything that you need, and if it’s somehow not enough… I can always
call out my contractors to install more space for you. Anything that you need.”

“You actually mean that, don’t you, Lex?”

“Absolutely.”

Riley considered this carefully, her fingertips still stroking along my
bare skin.

“Can my friends come to visit sometimes?”

“I see absolutely no reason why not.”

She turned her face one last time, regarding me cautiously and
carefully.

“Why me?” Riley finally asked.

I smiled. Answering that question something that didn’t require even the
slightest ounce of brainpower… because I’d known the right response for a while
now.

“Because you’re not like the others Riley… Your art… Your mind… The way
you make me feel when I see you… I’m always left wanting more.”

“That’s a nice little speech there,” she chuckled. “Kind of convincing,
too. Have you always been this silver-tongued?”

“I’ve had a lot of time to think about this.”

Riley seemed to accept that reply.

“You realize, of course,” she told me, “that in order for me to join you
back abroad… I can’t just be your partner, or your girlfriend, or your friend
with benefits. I need my art, Lex, and I won’t give up my business. Getting a
work visa in the UK is nearly impossible. Even money can’t cut through all the
red tape. It might be years before I can get the necessary paperwork, and the
damage that would do… I can’t pursue my work there unless…”

“Unless you were my wife.”

“It’s not going to be that easy. I expect more from people who are
asking me to make that plunge with them. You’re going to have to propose your
ass
off if you want any remote chance
that I’ll agree to something this crazy. I barely know you Lex.”

“You could look me up, if you really wanted to,” I said quietly. It was
all there online… My checkered history… My indiscretions…

“I guess I was just enjoying the surprises… A part of me didn’t want to
know who you are,” she replied quietly.

“If you won’t look, let me tell you the most important thing.”

A faint, deviant smile crossed her lips.

“I love you, Riley.”

Chapter 11

Riley

A couple of blissful afternoons later came the day that things finally
came crashing down with Lex. Unaware of the things to come, I wandered into Connor’s
record store with Reiko by my side, ready to answer a strange text message to
drop by.

He was busy running some paperwork in the back, so Reiko and I perused
some of the records. Even if he had a misguided jealousy complex, I couldn’t
ignore the fact that Connor had extremely great tastes when it came to music.

Probably why he drew so much of the local talent… and the bigger names
that passed through town, playing their venues. More than one legendary secret
show had happened within the basement beneath this record store.

When Connor finally popped out from the back, his eyes immediately
zeroed in on me. He called his assistant over and waved his hands around
animatedly, clearly telling her off under his breath.

I could imagine why, although it didn’t please me that he was so hard on
her. She was helping other customers, after all.

She looked absolutely downtrodden as she returned to help a pair of
punks check out some vintage material. Meanwhile, Connor waved us both over,
and we followed him towards the back of the store.

Passing through the beaded curtain along the doorway behind the counter,
he guided us past a couple of storage rooms and to his main office. We leaned
against the wall, avoiding the various tables that were buried under spare
record sheaths and mountains of paperwork, while Connor slipped around the back
of his small, beaten desk.

“What kind of favor did you need?” I asked him, crossing my arms.

“Actually, I just said that to get you to come over, although I was kind
of hoping that we’d be… alone…” he glanced over at Reiko guiltily.

She sighed and rolled her eyes.

“Why’s that, Will?” I demanded, just waiting on him to fuck this up.
What he did next… I could never have seen coming.

“So, I looked into this Lex of yours,” he started, pushing his glasses
up the bridge of his nose.

“You don’t have to say anything Connor. I already know he’s wealthy…”

“Wealthy is part of it… He’s a goddamned celebrity.”

“A celebrity?” I asked, my curiosity piquing.

“Yeah… he’s a huge deal in England, actually. He’s not just
any
soccer player, he’s basically
the
soccer player… captain of what they
call the National team, sort of a football super-group that represents the
entire country in the international World Cup Series.”

“Oh shit,
seriously?
” Reiko
chimed in. “That’s wicked cool!” She elbowed me lightly in the ribs, a massive
smile across her face. “What a fucking catch, girl!”

“I knew he played… But… The World Cup? Are you sure about this?” I
asked, pensively.

“Yeah. He’s been playing with them for a couple of years now. Before
then, he was in some of the major teams, so he’s what you might think of as a
national icon. The audiences love him. He’s one of the best players in the
world… handsome, charming… and absolutely great with the fans.”

“So, why do you care?” Reiko asked, tilting her head. “We all know that
you’ve been pissed off about this guy for a few weeks… have you finally come
around, or what?”

Connor’s face darkened.

“No, actually, because there’s more to it.”

“What, is he a fucking
astronaut,
too?
” Reiko chuckled. “Does he play that sport on the goddamn moon?”

“No,” Connor gravely answered. “He stays relevant to pop culture for his
skills, his charm… and his reputation.”

“What
kind
of reputation?” I
asked.

Before he could respond, I was already dreading the answer. My stomach
began to turn as he quietly hid the fact that he was
relishing
this fucking moment… that meant that, whatever I was
about to learn?

It was going to be bad.

Really
bad.

“Instead of telling you, I should probably just
show
you,” Connor replied carefully, reaching for a nearby manila
folder. He scattered a couple of sheets off of it, retrieving it from a nearby
pile of documents, and unsheathed a stapled stack of papers before handing them
to me.

As I glanced down at what I was seeing, my blood began to completely
boil.

Each page was a different printout of a British tabloid cover or
interior article. On every page, there was a large snapshot of Lex Lambert in a
compromising position, with a sensationalist headline that put his exploits
front and center:

Lightning Lex Caught with
Innocent Starlet!

Lambert Throws Destructive
Hotel Orgy!

Lightning Strikes Again! Now
with Two Co-eds!

Lightning Lambert’s Beach
Sex-capades!

Lex’s New Record: One Night,
Five Dancers!

I flipped through page after page of his sexual exploits, each one more
ridiculous than the last. Paparazzi shots with tasteful blurring adorned the
package of files that Connor had handed me, and I could barely make it two-thirds
through before I just skimmed the rest and sank to the floor.

The two of them remained silent.

Reiko took the folder from my quaking hands and skimmed through the
pages, and then sighed as she set it down beside my ankle.

“Well… I guess nobody’s perfect,” she mumbled. “I’m really sorry,
Riley.”

I clenched my fists, opening and closing them repeatedly. “I can’t
believe I trusted him so implicitly,” I spat out between my grinding teeth.
“How could I be such a goddamn idiot?”

“You’re not an idiot, sweetie,” Reiko tried to comfort me. She placed a
hand on my shoulder and rubbed it lightly. “You just trust people. You take
them at their word sometimes. And, to be fair, that guy is
hella
hot. It’s no wonder you’re just finding out about this now.”

“Why?” I asked nobody in particular, scraping the heels to my shoes
across the tile. “I knew his name. Why didn’t I bother to even remotely check
on him?”

“Google is a beautiful thing,” Connor commented dryly. “I’m just glad I
looked into this before it got any more serious.”

I flashed him an ugly stare, and Reiko immediately took in a quick
breath of air.

“Will,” she mentioned, “now’s not a good–”

“You didn’t do this because you were looking out for me,” I accused him,
rising up the length of the wall and stepping towards him. “You did this
because you’re jealous of him. We all know you’ve got a huge crush on me. I get
it. You’re pissy that I found someone else. You’ve been passive-aggressive over
Lex for weeks.”

“Wait, Riley–” He tried to blurt out.

“No. Fuck it all. You
love
that
he’s got these fucking skeletons in his closet. It takes him out of the running
so that, what, you can swoop right in and rescue me when I need you? What kind
of white knight bullshit were you thinking?”

“Riley,” Reiko tried to intervene. “I think you’re being a bit hard on
him–”

“Stay out of this, Reiko,” I commanded her before turning back to him. Connor
simply stood there, seated on the edge of the desk and staring at me with
sadness staining his eyes.

“Of course I’m fucking mad that this has happened. But I’m angrier still
with
you
.
You
didn’t bring this to my attention out of the kindness of your
heart, and we all know it. You did this to get a leg up on him.

“Well, spoiler alert, Will. You’re a good guy, but I’m not into you.
I’ve
never
been into you. And I never
will
be. You’re like a brother to me.
You know this. How many times do I have to tell you?”

Connor swallowed, and rose up from his desk. He turned around and faced
the large David Bowie poster up behind his desk – the single piece of
decoration in his office.

“Please go,” he half-croaked.

“Will…” Reiko whispered after him.

“I need to be alone,” he insisted miserably. “When you go, please tell
Tiana to lock up and excuse herself for the day. I’ll give her a full shift’s
pay.”

I grunted my approval of that response, reaching down to snatch up the
folder of revelations into Lex’s past. As I stood up, I noticed that neither of
them had budged an inch.

“Are you coming, Reiko?”

She didn’t turn away from him.

“Reiko?”

“No, I… go ahead without me,” she spoke.

I suppressed a deep, angry sigh, and passed down the hallway and towards
the front. Tiana had just finished ringing up the two punks, and they were
traipsing back out of the store, leaving just us.

I relayed the message to her, and she avoided eye contact with me. It
seemed that she’d probably heard some of the exclamations from the back, so I
shook my head bitterly and let her lock me outside as she flipped the
Open
sign around.

By the time the streetcar got me to the end of my street, the sun was
already beginning to set on the horizon. I called ahead to a Chinese takeout
place further up the road, and stepped in to pay and take my dinner home with
me.

I was expecting Lex for the evening, like usual. He had told me he would
be running a little later than usual, as he was training harder today for his
upcoming football season.

He always loved to fuck me on training days.

Tonight, was going to be a little different than what he expected.

It was an hour later that he walked through the door to my apartment.
I’d just wrapped up dinner and cleaned up the place, and I was perched
comfortably on the couch in front of the TV when he let himself in.

“Ello, Riley,” he chuckled to himself as he stepped into the living
room. His expression fell as he took in my glaring face, and his gaze shifted
to the stack of pages on the corner of my coffee table.

From his angle, he undoubtedly recognized the top sheet… and that
explained why he turned to me with a careful, fearful look.

“Riley, I think we should talk–”

I cut him off, leaping up from my seat.

“When were you planning on telling me that you’re publicly known as a
womanizing asshole?” I demanded to know, throwing the stapled stack of papers
into his face. “Or that you’ve been caught fucking your way across the tabloids
for years?”

With the reflexes of a trained athlete, Lex snatched the fluttering pack
of papers from the air, flipping backwards and forwards between the pages.

“I can explain,” Lex stiffly offered.

“I seriously doubt that.”

“If you’ll give me a moment–”

“You know, I knew there was more to you, but I never expected this,” I
bitterly told him. “And here it is. How many sex scandals have you been a part
of?”

“You tell me,” he said sharply. “You appear to have done your research.
What I’m wondering is why you’ve dug this all up
now
, of all times…”

“I
didn’t
,” I defiantly
exclaimed.

“Then how…?”

“My friends. They look out for me. They pulled you up online and dug up
all this crap on you. What the
hell
,
Lex? What else have you been hiding from me?”

“I enjoy my privacy, and last I remember you didn’t care about my past,”
he wearily answered.

“Certain things you reveal to the strangers you whisk up into your
arms,” I angrily rebutted. “Such as the fact that you’ve fucked your way across
half of the United Kingdom. Or that you’re apparently a World Cup player?”