Page 4 of Give Me More
RJ’s nostrils flared and the temper he was typically good at holding at bay was on the brink of implosion. “Are you serious? Why would Veronica tell you we’re here? She knows Chaz and Riley wanted the location of their wedding kept secret.” She couldn’t really mean what she’d just said. Of all the people in this world, Grace knew how he felt about the feud, and she knew how protective he was of his family. This had to be a cruel joke, like the manner in which they’d reunited.
“I’m very serious about this and I don’t know why Veronica gave me the information instead of just granting me an interview back in New York. And listen, before you go off about this, I’m the best person to write this story and you know it. I know you and your family, and I—”
“You,” he said in a tone that was deathly calm, but as lethal as he’d ever sounded in his life, “will go back to your room, pack your stuff and get the hell off this island. And there will be no story. I’ll see to that.”
If he had to burn down whichever newspaper, magazine or other outlet had authorized it, he would do just that. Nobody was going to write about his family’s past for purposes of embarrassing or exploiting them in the media. Especially not the woman he used to love.
It was RJ’s turn to walk away from her, and he’d turned so fast, Grace almost let him go without saying another word.
“I’m not leaving,” she said before he could get too far away.
When he stopped, she knew this conversation was about to go as badly as was possible. RJ was not a man who took no for an answer, not easily, anyway. Even though he’d surprised her when he’d let her walk out of that restaurant ten years ago and never tried to contact her again. She told herself it wouldn’t have changed anything if he had come after her; she’d made up her mind, but for a while the realization that he hadn’t even tried had stung. She’d gotten over that, just like she’d gotten over him.
His shoulders were broad and looked strong in the tight-fitted shirt he now wore. His sweatpants, hanging low on his waist, had done nothing to cover the semi-erection she’d glimpsed before he turned away. It had her mind wandering to all the passionate nights she’d spent in his arms.
“This is my job, RJ, and it’s an important story, one that needs to be told.” He didn’t move, so she couldn’t see his face, but it didn’t matter—she’d never forget how he looked. His head was bald now, a new look from the last time she’d seen his photo in the media, but he still had the goatee, neatly maintained as always. He also still had thicker and fuller eyebrows than she could ever hope for, and his eyes were the deepest pools of dark brown she’d ever seen. Despite being an excellent swimmer, this was a place she’d drowned more times than she could count. She’d stared into RJ’s eyes on so many occasions, and into his heart. Those glimpses had made her fall in love with him in the first place, that rare access he’d given her to the man beneath the gruff exterior.
Why that thought made her chest ache now, she didn’t want to explore, so she continued, “What happened between Ron and Tobias set the stage for what the fashion industry is experiencing now for the first time. An intense rivalry and professional face-off between the top two designers in the game. The top twoBlackdesigners. You know that’s groundbreaking.”
“No!” he yelled, turning around, and she almost jumped back. It was exceedingly rare to see RJ this angry. He took his reputation and that of his family very seriously, so he always tried to maintain decorum, regardless of the situation. “That’s my family and you know I don’t tolerate any bullshit when it comes to them.”
“This is my career” was her firm and resounding retort. He wasn’t the only one who could be passionate about something. “Writing this story will give me the chance at a byline. I’ve worked extremely hard for this, and I’m not going to let you stop me from achieving it.” The same way she hadn’t let his marriage proposal deter her from going after her goals. It just wasn’t in her to back down, even though watching him look at her with disdain in his eyes was breaking something deep inside her.
He closed the space between them quickly, and she momentarily considered stepping back. But no, if RJ wanted to go toe-to-toe with her that’s what they’d do. She had just as much to lose here as he thought he did.
“That feud has been blown out of proportion for years and it’s none of anybody’s business how or why it started.”
“It’s everyone’s business if it became a blueprint for their success. Don’t you see that? What Ron and Tobias have done is historic and without that feud propelling the competitive edge that’s formed two fashion empires, it might never have happened. You can’t deny that.”
“I can’t condone anyone profiting from it and I’ll never consent to my family’s name being dragged through the mud.” He clamped his lips down tight and gave her a stony expression. “How can you do this? You know my family. I thought you cared about them. You were so close to them at one time.”
Oh no, he was not going to guilt her. Becoming part of his family back then had been easy and heartwarming. Knowing she’d been leaving them the night she walked away from RJ had been crushing. “Don’t insult me like that. I did care about your family, and you—although now I’m wondering why, considering you’re acting like a domineering brute right now.”
He looked at her incredulously. “I’m acting like a man who’s been blindsided. Again.”
This was turning out to be more difficult than she’d thought. She knew reuniting here and under these circumstances wasn’t going to be simple for either of them, but she had hoped for cordial and with the least amount of emotional impact as possible. That may have been too optimistic.
“You’re acting like a guy not used to getting his way.” And that wasn’t as easy to say as it should’ve been. She didn’t want this to be about their past, but there really was no way of doing this without walking that path. “If you’re still angry with me about the proposal, that’s one thing. But don’t try to stand in the way of my career as retaliation.”
He came even closer, his gaze following the strands of hair resting on her shoulder. Her body was a traitorous trickster, immediately forgetting the anger and instead letting the sneaky tendrils of need ease down her spine. She didn’t want to yearn for RJ again, not for one second. But there was no denying the attraction was still there between them, as strong as ever. How was she supposed to get this job done if all he had to do was look at her and her mind filled with memories of how great things had been with him?
When his eyes moved from her hair to her lips, she sucked in a breath. Her breasts ached with need for him to touch them and her fingers tightened around the vibrator she still held. The memory of how she’d planned to use it was still fresh in her mind.
“You shouldn’t have based your climb to success on my family.” His gaze dropped and he stepped away before her mind could register that he was no longer near her. Unfortunately, her body had gotten the message and protested the loss of warmth with a shiver that made her teeth chatter. Before he turned to leave, he said, “You’d better come up with a plan B for your career, Grace, because I’m going to kill this story.”
CHAPTER THREE
WELP,THEVIBRATORwas done.
She dropped it—along with her optimism about a polite reunion with RJ—into the trash can the moment she returned to her room. The base where the batteries were inserted was cracked—maybe from RJ stepping on it—so that the batteries wouldn’t stay in. After closing the patio doors with a thud, she moved through the space, yanking off her clothes and tossing them into the bag she’d designated for her dirty laundry. It wasn’t the patio’s fault. It was Eddie’s fault for calling her with that nonsense about her ability to write an unbiased story. Of course she could—that’s precisely what she’d been doing her entire career. The audacity of him to think that just because she’d slept with RJ ten years ago...
Damn, even the thought of that man being inside her induced a reaction from her body. A flush of warmth spread throughout her as she recalled watching his eyes go dark while staring at the vibrator in her hand. She’d tried to convince herself it was the obvious erotic mood created by the presence of a sex toy, but the moment he’d stepped close to her, she’d known that was just an excuse. There’d never been another man who sparked the intense and immediate physical response in her that RJ did. It had been foolish to believe that the years they were separated might’ve proved that statement false.
Just as foolish as thinking that because she’d convinced herself she’d done the right thing by refusing to marry him, the deep emotion she’d felt for him would somehow vanish, the way she had from his life. She didn’t call it love anymore; she couldn’t. It wouldn’t make sense for her to still be in love with the man she knew she couldn’t have. Her career had to come first. She’d needed to become Grace Hopkins the journalist before she could ever accept being Grace Hopkins Gold, a member of the fabulous Gold family. RJ was an all-in kind of guy, and family was extremely important to him. She knew not only from witnessing him with his parents and siblings, but also because of the talks they’d had in the wee hours of the morning about the future home and family they’d create. Things Grace knew she wanted at some point in her life, just not when RJ had proposed. His proposal wasn’t a total surprise to her, and it hadn’t been totally unwanted. The timing had just been off. But she’d been sure that wasn’t what RJ wanted to hear. His career had been decided and approved by his family; there was never any struggle to find his place. For her, it was the opposite, and he wouldn’t have understood if she’d tried to offer her explanation. Now they were here.
The odds of RJ being out for a walk at the same time she was were phenomenally low, yet that scenario had played out like an episode of one of her favorite old shows,Sex and the City. Shaking her head, she entered the bathroom and immediately turned on the shower, then adjusted the water to lukewarm. For a brief moment earlier, when he’d moved closer to her, she’d thought RJ was going to kiss her. Would she have let him? After all this time? The mere thought had her sighing with pent-up need. What was it about his lips that used to make kissing him feel like she was being turned inside out? Was it the thickness of them, the way they could be soft and gentle one moment, hungry and persistent the next? No, it had to be a combination of skill and intention. RJ was intentionally sexy as hell, smooth in a dominating sort of way, and mouthwateringly handsome.
And she was out of her everlasting mind for thinking of him along these lines again. They were never getting back together. Ever. She’d made sure of that when she’d left him and tried her best to forget about him over the years. Of course, forgetting him completely hadn’t worked, but she’d finally gotten to a point where she was at least comfortable with knowing he’d always have a place in her heart. As for RJ, he wasn’t a man who moved backward—he’d surely locked her and the life they once had firmly in his past.
