Page 6 of Never Too Late for Love
He pulled her against him and nuzzled her neck. “Perhaps you could ease up on the movie schedule, love.”
“I already told the gang that. But this latest batch were scheduled and backed. We can’t just say, ‘Sorry, producer needs a month off with her family,’ and reschedule. I do that, somebody better be dying.”
“I thought Nick was going to take a more active role behind the camera instead of in front of it?”
“He is, but he’s contracted for the picture he’s currently in, and two others. They’re part of that movie franchise he’s in, so he didn’t want to pass up the roles. So there’s twelve months of his life spoken for. At least they’re filming them all pretty much back-to-back and it’s the post work that’ll be spread out.”
“Ah. And then?”
“Then I’m going to make Venice our base of operations. The gang is on board with that, too. We’re already talking to the staff in London about moving some of them to the States, either here or LA. Lucas is talking to a contractor about building a studio here, FX garage and everything, so we can not only make our own films but hire out to other companies. We can build our own cottage industry right here in Venice. When you add in the facilities available up in Orlando, and we have Ringling to draw new talent from, it’s a no-brainer. Just need to find the right piece of land, and see what kind of tax deals the county commission will give us for being job creators.”
“Poppa, are you coming into the pool?” KC called.
“No, love. Not right now. Later this afternoon, perhaps. Daddy and I need to place a work call after lunch, which Père will have ready soon.”
He glanced over his shoulder, spotted Bob in the kitchen, and thumbed the small remote control in his hand. Tilly had also watched and saw Bob grab the counter for support for a moment before straightening and getting back to work making lunch. Landry chuckled and bumped the controller back to the original setting, smiling and blowing Bob a kiss through the glass doors when he looked their way with an aggravated smile on his face.
Bob blew a kiss back.
Tilly softly snickered. “Take it easy on him, huh? Don’t go scaring him off.”
“My sweet pet,” he whispered in her ear, “I would have no reason to cage his cock were I able to freely ride it. The temptation is simply too great for me to bear. That is as much for my benefit as it is his. As you said yourself, he’s still very much like a new toy I’m enjoying playing with.”
“Uh-huh. Try again.”
He smiled. “Love, I’m hurt. I think you don’t believe me.”
“Of course I don’t. That’s because I know what a sneaky, evil fuck you are.”
Chapter Three
Sure, Tilly knew Landry—and Cris, and Bob—wished she hadn’t left that one tiny restriction in place. In the grand scheme of things, she really didn’t want it there either.
Yet she wanted to be careful. That was a final borderline that could not be uncrossed. Sheneededto be certain. It wasn’t only her own heart at risk, but her men…and her daughter.
KC loved Bob, already considered him family, a third dad. And having known him for most of her life, she would never remember himnotbeing a part of it.
For KC, thiswouldbe a “normal” life, as close to normal as their household was, anyway. Three loving dads who’d help raise and protect her. A damn sight better than Tilly went through as a kid. Bio father up and leaving when he found out Tilly’s mom was pregnant—at only seventeen.
A step-father who’d molested and raped her.
Yes, KC had started life behind the eight-ball with her bio mother, Cris’ younger cousin, Sofia, being a recovering addict who ended up dead in jail due to a gang hit.
Tilly would always feel at least a little guilty that they couldn’t do more to protect Sofia at the time. Sofia had been the pawn of the state attorney’s office, who’d wanted her to give testimony against her gang-banger ex-boyfriend and his fellow gang members. All Sofia had wanted to do was change and better her life, move to Florida with them and her baby, and rebuild her life away from her ex-boyfriend.
The lawsuit award the triad settled on KC’s behalf with the county over Sofia’s death went into a trust fund KC could use for college or trade school, if she chose to do so, or to buy a house, or whatever she wanted it for.
But they would raise her with a good work ethic. To never stop trying.
And they’d raise her to be open-minded and accepting, unlike most of Cris and Sofia’s biological family.
There was one other tiny little reason Tilly left the restriction in place…
She was, after all, a bit of a sadist herself. She was really interested in seeing to what lengths Landry might go to try to get her to drop the no intercourse rule early. She suspected he’d likely use Bob for that purpose, because after what had happened between her and Cris in the past, Cris was far too cautious of doing anything to violate Tilly’s trust. Cris would shut Landry down if he thought Landry was trying something sketchy to manipulate her.
Okay, not exactly sketchy, but just like she had let Landry think he’d scored two victories already by getting Tilly to let Bob go down on her, and her to go down on Bob—both times by working her into a desperate sexual frenzy and not letting her come until she did—she wasn’t exactly beyond a little gamesmanship herself to fuck with the sadist. Landry would never outright break her rule. She totally trusted him and the other two men.
She would, however, completely expect the sadist to find any and all loopholes he could to try to nudge her closer to the goal line as quickly as possible. If he didn’t do that, it would sorely disappoint her and make her wonder if something serious might be wrong with him.
