Goddess of Vengeance - Jackie Collins [61]
Now why did I say such a stupid thing? I don’t care if he has any money or not.
‘Gotta pay my agent, manager, PR, accountant, business manager, and the tax man. It’s not as much as everyone thinks,’ Billy said. ‘At least I don’t hav’ta pay Venus alimony, an’ I want nothin’ from her. Our only fight is over a couple of properties.’
Once again Max wished he would stop mentioning Venus. Every time he did, it brought her back to reality with a nasty jolt.
‘Wanna talk about what happened last night?’ Billy asked, startling her.
No! She did not want to talk about last night. Too embarrassing. Did he honestly think they were going to have a casual chat about him taking her virginity. No thank you!
She wished she’d never told him it was her first time going all the way. After all, it wasn’t as if she was inexperienced with guys. She’d gotten down and dirty with a few of them. Oral sex was nothing new – although Billy hadn’t asked her to do that. She and Ace had definitely taken it to the brink on many occasions, stopping just in time.
Anyway, it was no big deal. She was glad she’d waited. And she was thrilled that Billy had turned out to be The One.
When and if she ever confided in Cookie, her friend would say – ‘What the hell were you waitin’ for, girl? It’s not just the boys who can have fun!’
‘Uh . . . last night was great,’ she mumbled. ‘What time’s the pizza coming?’
He arched an amused eyebrow. ‘Starving hungry or in a hurry?’
‘Both,’ she answered in a rush.
‘Didn’t you say you had time to go to dinner?’ he said, crinkling his blue eyes.
‘Well, we’re not doing that, are we?’ she said, a touch truculently.
‘Disappointed?’
‘Why would I be?’
He shrugged, somewhat perplexed that she seemed to be veering toward a bad mood. Had he said something? Done something?
Females. Mercurial creatures, always changing. They were all the same whether they were seventeen or forty.
‘I’ll call back an’ put a rush on it,’ he volunteered.
‘You don’t have to do that.’
‘Hey, if you’re in a hurry—’
‘I’m not,’ she said, feeling like an idiot. Why was she giving him a hard time? It wasn’t as if she meant to.
‘Then whyn’t we go outside, sit by the pool, put on some sounds an’ relax,’ he suggested.
And just when she was thinking how perfect that would be, his doorbell rang.
* * *
It was past midnight and finally back in L.A. Bobby used the stealth move to get into Denver’s apartment. He made his way in very quietly, but Amy Winehouse heard him at the door and came bounding out of the bedroom, tail wagging.
Hurriedly he quieted the dog, then began stripping off his clothes before heading for the bedroom.
Just as he thought, Denver was asleep, au naturel as usual, with only a sheet covering her.
He slid into bed beside her, edging up against her smooth body. Man, she had skin like satin.
Screw Annabelle Maestro for daring to call her a mutt. What a jealous bitch, because not only was Denver gorgeous, she was smart, thoughtful and dedicated to her job, but most of all she was real in every way. Every one of her qualities added up to one hell of a lethal combination. Annabelle Maestro should be so lucky.
‘I’m home,’ he whispered in Denver’s ear, feeling a familiar stirring.
‘Mmmm . . .’ she murmured, slowly turning over so that she faced him. ‘It’s about time. Why’d it take you so long?’
‘Didn’t mean to wake you, sleepyhead.’
‘That’s okay,’ she said softly, all thoughts of being pissed at him vanishing as she reached down under the sheet and began caressing his burgeoning hard-on.
‘I really didn’t want you to wake up,’ he repeated.
‘Sure you didn’t,’ she drawled, still caressing him. ‘This fine upstanding member of society wouldn’t wake me at all.’
‘I’ve been saving up,’ he quipped, loving the feel of her hands on him.
‘How very thoughtful of you,’ she replied, experiencing a fervent rush of desire. Her man was home, and that was all she cared about.
‘Missed you,’ he said, moving even closer. ‘Really missed you.’
‘You did?’
‘Of course I did.’