This is going to be fun.
We get off on Kat’s floor, and Mackenzie unlocks the door but stops, just as she twists the handle. She looks back at me, and something on her face gives me pause.
“Just let me do the talking, okay?”
She pushes inside, and I hear the voice of her friend. “Mack? Where did you go?” Kat’s feet pause when she enters the living room, her gaze drilling holes into me. Her eyes shoot between us, and it doesn’t take long for a disapproving glare to materialize on her face.
“What’s going on? Why are you here? Haven’t you done enough?”
I deserve that.
“We’re…we’re talking about working things out,” Mackenzie is quick to add.
Kat scoffs. “Please tell me you’re kidding. Please tell me you’re smarter than this. Are you forgetting what he’s done? Who he’s friends with?”
Mackenzie deflates at Kat’s words. I’m sure she’s been beating herself up over exactly all that, since making this deal with me, and having Kat tear her down isn’t helping.
“Kat…c’mon.”
“Mackenzie, please don’t do this. Forget him.”
Mackenzie’s eyes fill with tears. It’s the last straw for me. I walk farther into the room, catching Kat’s eye. She’s angry. I can see it in her gaze just how much she hates me. Just how much she doesn’t trust me.
“I own Mackenzie’s rights. I made her parents sign the conservatorship over to me. Everything is in my hands. We made a deal. I keep her name out of the media and stop them from dragging her through the mud, and she gets them reverted to the person of her choosing. That’s why she’s doing this.”
Kat’s eyes widen, shock written all over her face, and anger flashes behind her eyes. “How cruel can you be?”
I slip my hands into my pockets and shrug. “I’m happy to show you.”
Katherine huffs, planting her hands on her hips, and watches Mackenzie through a narrowed gaze. “Are you sure about this? The hate you’re getting won’t last forever, babe. We can get through this without his help.”
Mackenzie works a swallow and nods. “I’m sure.”
She heads into her room to change her clothes, leaving me with Kat. Her feisty friend doesn’t wait a single second. She comes toe to toe with me, glaring up at me. “If you hurt her again, I will kill you myself. Understand me? She’s had enough pain in her life to last a lifetime. Maybe try not to be at the center of it for once.”
She’s not wrong.
I nod my acquiesce as Mackenzie steps out of her room dressed in something more casual, but on her, it looks incredible. There’s something about Mackenzie. It’s inexplicable, but potent. It makes you want to stare at her, get to know her. When I look at her now, it’s almost like I’m staring at a new woman. The hair is a drastic change I’ll need to get used to, but now that I know it’s hers, the real her, I find myself loving it more than the black. She seems less like a vixen this way and much more vulnerable.This is the real Mackenzie Wright.
“Let’s get this over with,” she all but growls.
On our way out, she stops next to Kat, both of them whispering in hushed tones. Kat’s face looks oddly skeptical. She’s obviously not sure this is a smart decision. It probably isn’t.
Mackenzie stews on her anger the entire way down to the car. I settle into the seat next to her and wait for the driver to take off. We’re going to have a very public and purposeful lunch at Le Bernardin. No need to tip off the tabloids or the paparazzi. Mackenzie is such a pinnacle person in social media, at the moment, they’ll find her anyway, wanting to be the first to get the story. The first shot of us back together.
“Why did you do that back there? Why throw yourself under the bus for me?” she asks quietly. I can smell her sweet, intoxicating scent in the confined space. It’s distracting. I have the urge to reach out and drag her into my arms.
I look out the window, unable to look at her while I answer. “So you’ll stop lying to the people around you for once. At least now she knows the truth.”
That wasn’t why I did it. I did it for her. Even though I don’t want to, I care about her. Out of the corner of my eye, I see her flinch, my words hitting their intended mark. I want to reach out to her and soothe the ache my words have surely caused, but I can’t do that. That would show too much of my hand to her, and this time around, I need the upper hand. So instead of doing what feels right, I curl my hands into fists and keep my gaze fixed out the window, until we arrive at our destination.
I climb out, holding out my hand for her to take. When she does, I feel the tremor that works its way through her body. Or was that mine? I can no longer tell. Hand in hand, we walk through the entrance, shocked faces and conversations halting, as they pause to stare at us, recognizing us both immediately.
I feel Mackenzie stiffen next to me, obviously uncomfortable with all the attention. The whispers start immediately, and I can practically feel her shrink in on herself, so I squeeze her hand in mine, the only form of support I’m willing to give her at this point. It seems to help. She releases a deep breath and straightens her spine.
We bypass the long line of people waiting to be seated. When we’re shown to our table, she doesn’t waste any time. Obviously, the meek feelings she encountered earlier are over and done with, and in its place is the old Mackenzie I remember from all those months ago, the one who puts on a brave face.
A façade.
“Say what you came here for, so we can go our separate ways.”
I smile at her. I’m sure to everyone else it looks awfully romantic, the way I’m smiling and reaching across the table to take her hand in mine. But to her, she sees it for exactly what it is. A cold smile with no real warmth behind it.
“You’re coming back to Los Angeles with me, and you’ll be staying with me.”
“No, the hell I am!”
“If you want this to work, I need you close.”
“I’ll come back to LA, but you’re out of your damn mind if you think I’m staying with you.”
I shrug. “I guess I can remove Mia from her quarters, and you can stay there instead. She can come stay with me—”
“Fine!” she snaps a little too eagerly. “What other ridiculous rules do you have now?”
“I have another upcoming gala. You’ll need to attend all the events to keep up appearances. I’ve already released statements. Things should already be calming down on the article front of things.”
The tension in her shoulders loosens. “I can do that. What else?”
“You’ll be at my beck and call at all hours, of course.” I lean forward, enjoying the way her eyes light with a fire that’s stoked from deep within. “Whenever I want to fuck you, you come.”
Her lips part, and she works a swallow. After some time, she clamps her mouth shut and grits her teeth together, her jaw grinding back and forth. The slender muscles there and in her neck jump with the movement, taunting me, begging for my mouth on her skin.
“Now, if you’re finished, I have some rules of my own. If we do this, if I give you access to my body, then I have a say in what happens to it. And I say no kissing.”