“I wanted more. But I’m not sure if I’m ready to be a YouTube sensation,” I whisper in his ear, laughing.
“I don’t care if the whole world sees this moment.” He lifts me up into his arms easily like I’m a feather and screams, “I fucking love you, Presley!”
The whistles and cheers don’t stop and I’m waiting for airport security to break up the chaos. Instead they are standing on the sidelines with amused looks on their faces.
Suddenly, it dawns on me that we still have a major problem.
“There’s just one thing,” I remind him. “You’re still technically married.”
He moves his lips onto mine, not answering. He pulls back and the corners of his lips rise slowly in a half smile, partly showing his teeth. There’s a gleam in his eyes and I know he is holding something back. A secret that I’m not in on…yet. Slowly, he moves his hands inside his jacket and like a magician, pulls out two tickets.
“First class tickets to the Dominican Republic. Flight leaves in two hours.”
Huh? The Dominican Republic? How would that solve this problem? My silly, lovesick brain needs a couple of moments to catch up as he waits ever so patiently for the ball to drop.
“OH!” I exclaim. “But my bags and Masen’s stuff are going to L.A. The car is picking us up and—”
Gently, he places his index finger on my mouth. “Sometimes, Presley, life doesn’t go according to plan.”
“You’re telling me. I can’t believe I’m going to get on a plane to fly to the Dominican Republic with a man who got married three hours ago. You’re still a jerk, you know.”
“You still love me for being one.”
Unable to control my joy, I smile back at him. “I wouldn’t change it for the entire world.”
And there, in front of the crowd of strangers, my jerk has followed his heart and mine skips along right beside him.
The trip to the Dominican Republic opened my eyes to a whole new world and a new life I would embark on.
Haden’s mission was to get that divorce. In fact, he made sure it was the first thing on the agenda the moment we landed. Okay, maybe not the very first thing, and I’m sorry Kitty for dismissing you like that. Haden surprised me by flying Gemma and Melissa over. Seeing them at the airport was a huge shock but it didn’t take me long to figure this puzzle out. Masen needed a sitter because apparently we weren’t leaving the room unless absolutely necessary.
I could go on and on about that, but Kitty is delirious and hasn’t been about to talk…or walk. In fact, for the first time in my life, she’s blissfully enjoying life on cloud nine. I mean, how did I not know about all the positions one could have sex in? The former Presley was such a prude, and holy fuck, Haden had a nice way of bringing the kink out of me. I could go on about his piercing and how every orgasm tore through me like a tornado, but what happens in the Dominican Republic, stays in the Dominican Republic.
Of course I knew Haden was far from perfect. Mr. Stubborn and Annoying turned into some jealous alpha during our divorce getaway. He was adamant that every busboy was trying to hit on me and he speculated that maybe I didn’t look ‘freshly fucked’ enough by my man (his crass words, not mine). We scrapped the idea of having lunch by the pool because he needed his fix. Let’s face it, I didn’t complain…ever.
But I learned a valuable lesson. Life isn’t about everyone or everything being perfect. It’s about the misadventures, the unplanned madness of losing your luggage and being forced to spend travel insurance money and going on the best shopping spree ever.
It’s about sitting at the fanciest restaurant and seeing a rat run past the table, only to end up at the closest McDonald’s in your formal wear.
It’s called life.
Perfection is open for interpretation. Society makes us believe that when you find the perfect man, it’s love at first sight and you say “I do” and buy that dream house. Then you have your two or three kids and live happily ever after.
And guess what? We did the opposite.
Screw a stranger in the alley of a club, fall pregnant, run away with a newly-divorced man to live in a rundown bungalow out of wedlock. This is our perfect.
And from the moment Haden promised to give me more, I finally understood the meaning of living life to the fullest. I understood what it’s like to have no plan and just live for the moment. I didn’t have to become an adrenaline junkie like Haden. I just let fate do its thing. I savored every experience, good and bad, with the man who gave me more.
The man, Haden Cooper, otherwise known as my #Jerk.
He’s got that stare.
Those dirty eyes.
Licking his lips in anticipation.
And he’s watching my girl.
She’s oblivious. She always is. Standing across the room, my gaze is steadily on her while she’s talking animatedly with some friends. That dress isn’t helping, and I’m so fucking torn between wanting to see her beautiful body showcased and wanting to belt every fucker who’s looking at her. It’s that fucking slit, the one that rides so far up her thigh, it doesn’t leave much to the imagination.
And I know what every single fucker in here is thinking. I can read their minds. They are thinking the exact same thing as me. They are imagining how perfect her legs would be wrapped around their face. How her huge tits would bounce around as she rode them fast till they blew their load.
But she’s mine. My head starts to throb, slowly forming into a migraine as I struggle to ignore the sadistic thoughts running through my mind. Blame the dress. This ridiculous dress that caused a massive argument between us earlier. Stubborn woman wouldn’t back down, calling me a caveman or some bullshit like that. I just knew what every jerk would be thinking. After all, that used to be me.
The room is dark and slowly morphing into a lions’ den. The beasts are hungry, waiting for their prey to make a move, a wink, even a sly smile. A gesture that will have the beasts moving in leaps and bounds, thirsty for some meat. My eyes dart back and forth. One on the prey, the other watching the beasts. The one on my left…I’m certain it’ll be him. He’s covering his mouth with a bottle but his eyes have never left her. Then, he does the unthinkable. He moves his hand to his crotch and adjusts his cock.
Muthafucker has a hard-on already!
“You alright?”
Lex Edwards is beside me, having just stopped the waiter for a drink. I lose my focus, but only for a second. If it wasn’t for him buying a share in Lantern Publishing, this stupid party wouldn’t be happening.
“Yeah...it’s just….. Never mind.”
He chuckles as if he’s in on some joke. “You’ve got to let it go. Otherwise you’ll drive yourself insane. Trust me, I know. And you should know since you so eagerly tried the same move on my wife last year.”
“Yeah, sorry about that, man,” I apologize.
“So the tables have turned and you’re about to smash every guy in this room for looking at your woman.”
“I can take them out easily. Especially that fucker on the left,” I grit.
“You’ll spend a lifetime fighting it off. You need to find a way to control the jealousy. It’s a balancing act. Let her think you’re cool but never—and I repeat never—take your eyes off the prize.”
I don’t know how Lex is so calm about all of this. His wife is standing next to my girl. The beasts are probably thinking of how to bag the both of them in one go. The waiter returns but not quickly enough. I grab the scotch and down it in almost one gulp. It burns my throat and follows up with a numbing sensation. It doesn’t stop me from seeing red.
“If that’s what I gotta do, then I’ll spend my life fighting every fucker that thinks they can go near her.”