Fun-Filled Hell

EMMA

I blink awake, momentarily disoriented. The curtains are drawn back, revealing a moonlit night. It takes a moment for me to realize I’m in Dean’s apartment.

I can’t recall how I ended up in bed. Dean must have carried me here, even removed my boots.

I’ve been wanting to spend time with him, but the exhaustion from the past few weeks has been overwhelming. I can’t blame myself for dozing off in his truck.

I glance at the nightstand and spot my cell phone. I plug it in to charge and then head to the bathroom. God, I need a bath. My muscles are crying out for some relief.

When I return to the bedroom, my phone has charged enough to power on. I know it’s a bad idea—it’s going to be bombarded with messages.

I check the time—it’s four-thirty in the morning. My mailbox is overflowing and I have thirty-seven unread text messages.

Seventeen of them are from Diablo. I decide to skip those for now.

The rest are mostly from Carly and the boys, all expressing their miss for me and hoping I’m enjoying my trip. There’s even a single-word text from Luis: “Sorry.”

They’re all oblivious to the real reason I’m away.

Levi texted about looking forward to the cookout on Sunday and his excitement about getting back to work. The thought of seeing him again stirs up some excitement in me.

Then it hits me. He mentioned a “cookout.” What cookout? Am I missing something?

I decide to leave Diablo’s messages for after my bath.

Feeling fresh and relaxed after my bath, I feel ready to face Diablo’s messages. I can’t keep running from the reality of Diablo’s anger or his and Lauren’s ~sexcapades~. I towel dry my hair and decide to make myself a cup of coffee.

Assuming Dean is still asleep—it’s still early—I’m only wearing my bathrobe as I head to the kitchen. Not wanting to disturb Dean, I opt for instant coffee, even though I despise it.

Once the kettle boils, I pour the hot water into my cup. As I turn to head back to my room, I spot Dean leaning against the fridge, watching me.

He’s shirtless, his boxers hanging low on his hips, perfectly showcasing his v-line. I can’t help but gulp, my eyes drinking in his stunning physique. He’s a breathtaking specimen of a man.

Damn, I’m in trouble. I just want to tear off his boxers and have my way with him.

“Morning, Dean. Sleep well? I didn’t mean to wake you, I just needed some coffee.”

“You didn’t wake me, Ems. I just couldn’t sleep anymore. Let’s make a real cup of coffee.”

He takes the cup from my hand, dumps the contents into the sink, and turns to his Nespresso machine. He knows how much I hate instant coffee.

“What flavor do you want? I’m going for hazelnut.”

“Vanilla,” I whisper. He gets to work. I can’t tear my eyes away from his back, watching his muscles move as he prepares our coffee.

He’s a beautifully sculpted man and incredibly handsome. Our connection feels stronger than ever.

I need to get a grip on my hormones. I need to sort things out with Diablo so he can fuck my brains out because this is pure torture.

If I were wearing any panties, they’d be soaked. I feel a trickle of wetness from my pussy slide down my thigh. I use the robe to catch it, grateful that Dean still has his back to me.

I feel a pang of guilt. I’m supposed to be in love with Diablo, not fantasizing about Dean fucking me on his kitchen counter.

I ~am~ in love with Diablo. But I’m also furious with him for everything that happened and could have happened between him and Lauren while I’m away.

I clear my throat, catching Dean’s attention. He turns around, two cups of coffee in his hands, and walks over to me. I gulp again.

Twice in less than five minutes. I need some sort of release or I might just pounce on Dean.

“Um, Dean? I got a text from Levi about a cookout today. What’s he talking about?” I ask, trying to distract myself.

“Oh, yeah. I invited my team over for a cookout today since you had already scheduled that meeting with Levi. You fell asleep before I could tell you. Sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing? It’s your apartment, you can do what you want. But where are you planning to have this cookout? You live in an apartment.”

“On the roof, where else?” He looks at me as if I’m a child who needs to be taught how to tie her shoes. I’d completely forgotten about the roof.

Great job, Emma. Now he probably thinks you’re an idiot.

Before I can embarrass myself any further, I excuse myself and retreat to the safety of my room.

Once the door is closed, I pick up my phone and start reading Diablo’s messages.

He’s livid.

Every single text is filled with his anger and threats of punishment for turning off my phone.

All except the last one, sent just a few minutes ago.

“I miss you. Can’t you come home now instead of staying another week?”

I want to, but I need to send Levi there first. I need some information before I go back. I scroll through my contacts until I find Diablo’s name.

Before I lose my nerve, I press the call button. He answers after only three rings.

“Baby love, are you back?”

“Hi, Diablo. Why else would I be able to call you?” I retort.

“Listen, Emma, I’ve given you enough leeway and tolerated your sharp tongue.

“I’m going to punish you when you get back and trust me, you won’t be able to sit on that lovely ass of yours for at least a week.”

“Promises, promises, Diablo,” I say without thinking.

“Emma, I need you on the next flight to New York. I want you here, in my bed, as soon as you can be. Then we’ll see if this is just talk or something real.”

God, he’s so infuriating. I’m on the verge of saying yes. I miss him, I need him, and I want him inside me, making all thoughts of Dean vanish.

But before I can even agree, I hear Lauren’s voice in the background, asking who he’s talking to this early and reminding him of their breakfast date.

I’d forgotten about the three-hour time difference. It’s seven in the morning here in Cali, which makes it ten a.m. in New York. And he’s going on a breakfast date with Lauren.

This has to be some kind of sick joke. I must have misheard. I hope for his sake I did.

“Diablo, is that Lauren? Did she stay the night?”

The line goes quiet for a few seconds. I glance at my phone to make sure the call is still connected. It is.

“Diablo, answer me.”

“Yes, baby, it is and she did.”

I see red, and I completely lose it. “What the hell, Diablo? You told me you never let a woman sleep in your bed.

“Now, not only are you sleeping with another woman while I’m your girlfriend, but she stayed over!

“Are you ~kidding~ me, Diablo? You’re unbelievable.

“I hate you, Diablo. I really do. If it wasn’t for that damn contract, I’d leave you. You’re a miserable piece of shit.”

“Calm down, Emma. Don’t forget that you’re mine. I told you, you can’t be with another man.

“I did say I’d try not to sleep with other women, but as you can hear, I didn’t try very hard.

“Get to New York now,” he orders.

“You know what, Diablo? Go screw yourself. Hell, go screw Lauren again for all I care, but just so you know, I’m not the same naive girl that left your penthouse weeks ago.

“Remember the contract, Diablo? I’m the boss, you’re the pretty face that just happens to own the majority of the shares, but I’m the boss now. And I’m saying no.

“No, I won’t come back now. In fact, I think I’ll stay here until I feel like coming back. I have business to take care of.

“I’ve lined up a few potential clients, and while I’m traveling, I might as well scout locations for new clubs. I want to come home to see you, but you can go screw yourself.

“I’ll think about letting you know when I plan to return. Until then, keep screwing Lauren for all I care.”

Silence.

Then, “Emma, just remember who ~you~ belong to. You’re mine. What I do and who I do it with is none of your business if you’re not here, but don’t let me find out you’re sleeping with other men.”

“Remember who owns you.”

With that, the line goes dead, and so does my heart, again. I collapse on the bed, crying.

Dean must have heard me arguing with someone or heard me crying because he knocks softly on the door before coming in.

“Ems, what happened?”

When he sees my face, he quickly comes over to the bed, scoops me up in his arms and onto his lap. I cry and sob for what feels like hours.

I look up into Dean’s worried eyes and only then realize he’s still only wearing boxers—fresh boxers, and his hair is wet. He must have showered.

I bury my face in his neck, seeking comfort, wanting to be closer to him, loving his natural, woody scent. I love the way he smells, the way the heat radiates from his body.

I want to kiss him. I pull away a little, looking at his lips. He brings his lips closer to mine but stops as if he’s been hit with a bucket of ice. He breaks the spell I’m under.

Reality must have hit him that I’m not the woman he wants.

“Ems, are you going to tell me why you were crying and why you did what you did for the past eight weeks?”

“I need to get dressed first, Dean. I’ll be out in fifteen minutes.”

He walks to the door, turning to look at me with an expression I can’t quite figure out yet. It looks like he wants to say something, but he turns and leaves me alone in the bedroom.

Talk about being rejected. Twice in one day.

I drag myself off the bed, put on a strapless yellow sundress that ends mid-thigh. Seeing that Dean has arranged a cookout, I might as well dress for the occasion.

I put on my sandals and apply light makeup, finishing off my look with a nude lip gloss. I leave my long hair cascading down my back.

I feel a little better after my ordeal with Diablo earlier. Just thinking about him and Lauren together makes me want to throw up. I push all thoughts of them in his bed out of my mind as best I can and walk to the living room.

I see Dean sitting on the couch with his back toward me. Levi is also already here. Don’t these people ever sleep? It’s barely nine. Levi sees me first and stands up.

He’s wearing black tight-fitting jeans, black Converses, and a black shirt. Dean, being Dean, is wearing denim shorts, no shoes, and a white shirt. Both men look amazing.

I greet Levi, shaking his hand, and we all sit down. I realize both men are staring at me, waiting for me to speak.

Damn, I forgot the NDA for Levi in my room. I excuse myself to fetch it, taking my time by also printing one for Dean.

I’m going to tell him everything too, and I have to make sure Diablo and I are protected. Despite what he’s done to me emotionally, I still fully intend to honor our contract.

I didn’t go through hell these past eight weeks just to walk away. Hell no.

When I re-enter the living room, both men stop whispering and turn to face me again. They look like two little boys caught doing something naughty.

“What?” I snap at them, knowing it’s unfair to take my frustrations out on them.

“Nothing, Ems. I was just telling Levi you’ve had a rough time.”

I shoot daggers at Dean with my eyes, but I realize he’s only trying to look out for me.

Right now, it feels like the only two people I can trust not to hurt me are in this room. I feel awful for behaving the way I have.

Pushing my self-pity aside, I walk over to the dining room table with the two NDAs and sit down.

“Are you guys going to join me, or should I send a formal invite to your email addresses with a meeting request?” I joke.

Both men chuckle at my attempt at humor. Once they’re seated, I hand them each their own NDA to sign. Dean looks at me, shocked.

“What’s this, Ems? Why do I have to sign this if I’m not going to be working for you?”

“You want me to spill everything. To do that, I need to protect myself and my employer, who also happens to be my boyfriend.” He stares at me like I’ve lost my mind.

“Your boyfriend? You have a boyfriend who’s also your boss? Are you kidding me, Emma?”

I notice that whenever I argue with a man, any man who usually calls me by a pet name starts using my full name when they’re angry. I giggle at the thought.

Dean isn’t amused by my giggling and throws his hands up in the air. “What the hell, Emma? Spill it!”

“No, Dean Walker, not until you sign the NDA,” I say, grinning. “I’ll make some coffee while you boys read.” I giggle again.

Both men stare at me like I’ve lost it. Maybe I have. Levi starts reading his NDA, and I take that as my cue to leave.

When I come back with three steaming cups of coffee, both men have finished reading. Dean looks mad, and Levi seems amused at him.

I hand each of them their coffee, take my seat, and start explaining that Levi’s NDA is a bit more detailed since he’s my employee, while Dean’s is to ensure he keeps his mouth shut.

I see they’ve both already signed. I take the documents, suddenly at a loss for words and deep in thought.

“Ems?” Dean snaps me out of my daze. “Can you please start explaining this mess?”

I can’t hold it in anymore. I don’t know where to start, so I begin with my graduation day, rambling on and on, telling them everything.

I finally finish with the call I had with Diablo this morning. The silence in the room is deafening. Dean looks sad and disappointed. Levi has an expression I can’t read, but if I had to guess, I’d say sadness.

Levi, the tough-as-nails man with the lifeless eyes, looks sad. Sad for me? I sure hope not. I chose this life, didn’t I?

Dean is the first to break the silence.

“Ems, what have you gotten yourself into? Please tell me this is a joke.”

“No, Dean, this is my life now. The only thing I can change is Diablo not messing around and actually being faithful to me. I want this. You know I’ve always been a very driven person.”

“I want to make something of my life. I want to be more than the innocent little virgin everyone coddles and has to take care of. I want to be… this,” and I gesture up and down my body.

“I want to be self-confident and respected, even if I have to force people to respect me.”

“Well, at least I don’t have to worry about you not being able to take care of yourself. From what I understand from all the instructors, you’re at a level classified as lethal.”

“Hell, if you wanted to, you could take me out,” Dean says with a huge grin, while looking deep into my eyes as if searching for something.

We all burst out laughing, the tension broken after what I had disclosed to them.

“Lethal, you say? But I still love you, my Deany boy. I would never hurt you. You’re still my Deany,” I smile at him.

“You and I still have a few disturbing things you just told us to discuss, but we’ll do that once everyone leaves tonight after the cookout. I’m making a shopping run. Do either of you need something?”

“Can you please buy a bottle of whiskey for me and some chocolate? I’m craving both.”

“Since when do you drink whiskey, Ems?”

“Well, since I acquired a taste for it, Deany. Now go. Levi and I still have business to discuss.” With that, Dean leaves and I turn my attention to Levi.

His poker face is back in place and his eyes are lifeless again. I excuse myself to go to my room to hide the NDAs. When I enter the living room, Levi is sitting on the couch.

His next words surprise me a bit.

“He’s infatuated with you, you know?”

“No, I don’t, Levi, and frankly, that’s none of your business if he is.”

“Well, he’s my friend, remember?”

“Yes, but I’m your boss now and we have a lot of things to get done and finalized before this cookout. So let’s get started, shall we?”

I explain to him what I want him to do in New York for the next week: provide me with daily reports and photos of Diablo and Lauren. Everything he observes at the clubs and the staff.

We also spend some time on the code I’ve developed for the two of us, as well as practicing signals and lip-reading. After four hours, Dean finally returns.

He must have known that Levi and I needed some time together. It looks like he’s bought the entire store. His hands are filled with bags of food and alcohol.

Levi and I call it a day with the instructions, signals, and so on. I hand him his flight ticket to New York for the following day, and we both get up to help Dean with getting everything ready for the impending cookout.

I just hope that Dean didn’t invite the skank Stephanie. That would just be too much to handle, especially after today.