Tragically Flawed Read online

  “Yeah.” She sat for a minute and listened to the music in the background. It brought back the memory of the time she and Shan had danced together at the club. She reached for his hand and asked, “Will you dance with me?”

  Shan smiled. “Yeah, as long as you promise not to turn me on.” He wanted to get her mind off Jasper.

  Riviera raised her brow at him and gave him a shaky laugh.

  “I’ll try, but what I really want right now is to feel your arms around me.”

  Shan stood up and offered her his hand. “At your service, my lady.”

  She smiled as she placed her hand in his.

  As they danced, Shan asked her, “Have I told you how gorgeous you look tonight?”

  After what Marsha Sue said to her, Riviera only wanted to tear the dress up into shreds. She smiled sadly and said, “I think you have.”

  “Riviera, look at me, sweetheart.” He took his thumb and lifted her chin so he could see her eyes. “I don’t care if a thousand women wore that dress before you. No one could possibly have done it justice the way you have tonight. You blow me away every time I look at you.” He kissed her. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

  Shan pulled Riviera’s arm toward the door. They drove home, hands clasped, filling the quiet space with the comfort of being together. Even though Riviera was exhausted, Shan was able to coax a couple of stupendous orgasms out of her weary body. She fell asleep with him still inside her and her head, tucked against the crook of his neck as she sniffed him.

  *****

  Shan woke to find Riviera’s back snuggled against his chest. He adored feeling her silken skin against him and loved the feel of her satiny strands as they tangled around his arms during the night.

  He eased out of bed, not wanting to wake her, and made his way to the bathroom. When he returned, he allowed himself to simply contemplate her beauty as she slept soundly. The gentle curve of her back as it narrowed to her waist beckoned to him, but he refrained from touching her. His eyes traveled to where her spine met her hips and to the place where her back dimpled right before the cheeks of her ass swelled to perfection. Shan loved to mold his hands around them as they made love, pulling her against him, feeling their softness. He felt himself spasm in response to his thoughts and looked down to see his engorged erection staring at him. He longed to slide himself along the separation of her perfect globes, until he could feel her wet opening.

  He began to stroke himself, eyes closed as his fantasy of loving Riviera took over his thoughts. His hand moved faster until he felt another hand on his. Opening his eyes, he watched as Riviera took over. Soon her mouth was on him and he was groaning her name. His climax soon followed and she smiled so sweetly that his heart gave his chest a nudge.

  “Well, good morning,” she said.

  “Hmm. Indeed it is,” he said as he pulled her against him.

  “So, what a fine sight I woke to. I love to watch you do that to yourself.”

  “I was staring at you and before I knew it, I was fantasizing about loving you.”

  “What kind of fantasy?”

  “You were on your stomach and I was inside you from behind.”

  “Hmm. That sounds nice. Care to share it with me in real time?”

  “Lie down, Riviera.” She loved the way his voice got all husky on her when he was sexed up. He moved over her. “Lift up a second,” he said, stuffing a couple of pillows under her hips. “That’s it.” Then she felt him as he slid up and down her slit. “Ah, Riv, I love the way your ass feels against me.” When he found her opening, he moved inside her and pressed in until she moaned.

  “Is this okay?”

  “Hmm. Ahh, yeah. You’re in so deep, it’s so nice this way.”

  He stretched one of her arms above her head and laced their fingers together. Then he slowly and tortuously thrust in and out, rotating his hips as he did so. Sliding his hand beneath her, he found her sweet spot and began massaging it the way she loved.

  “Oh yeah, that’s perfect. Don’t stop, Shan. Right there.”

  “I got you, baby,” he told her as he rocked her to an intense orgasm. “I can’t get enough of you, Riviera. You’re so fucking perfect.”

  She twisted her neck so she could kiss him. “Good, because I can’t get enough of you, either.”

  “You’ve managed to turn this shell of a man into one whose heart beats only for you. I just want you to know how much I love you, baby.”

  “Oh, Shan.” Riviera’s heart ached to tell him the same, but fear prevented her from saying the words.

  Kissing and running his tongue and teeth up and down her neck, she sighed and said, “Keep that up and you’ll have to do me all over again.”

  Still in bed, they heard the beep of the security system and then voices. Footsteps moved down the hall and to their horror, Patsy barged right into their room and announced, “Good morn … Oops! So sorry!” She ran out and slammed the door behind her.

  “Holy moly, Shan!”

  “I don’t fucking believe my mother just walked in on us!”

  “Holy moly, Shan!”

  “Oh shit. Jesus, help me.”

  “Holy moly, Shan!”

  “Okay, baby, let’s think about this logically. The only thing she saw was my ass.”

  “Your ... me ... you ... ”

  “I know, Riviera. Stop already. I’m trying to think.”

  “What the hell is there to think about? She just walked in on you fucking me.”

  “No, she didn’t. We were already done fucking.”

  “No, technically, your dick is deep inside me, so that still constitutes as intercourse.”

  “Oh my God! You didn’t flinch when you said the word dick.”

  “Shan! Now is not the time for you to focus on my vocabulary!”

  “Whatever.” Shan extracted himself and rolled her over. “Oh my God, Riv. I’ve never seen this shade of red before,” he laughed as he looked at her face. “Christ, your face is on fire too!” he exclaimed, placing his palm on her cheek.

  “Shut up, Shan. This isn’t funny.”

  “Yes, it is. Seriously, she only saw my ass. Well, my back too. You were completely hidden, except for your arms and hair. And maybe your toes. They were probably curled. Yeah, I’m pretty sure they were curled. They do that a lot when you come.”

  “Shan! Jeez, quit talking about my stupid toes! What the hell am I gonna say to her? I’ll never be able to look any of them in the eye.”

  “Well, we can’t stay in here all day.”

  “Shit, Shan, and don’t you dare say shine-ola.”

  “Okay. No worries there. Let’s get dressed. Just think of this. If she had come in ten minutes earlier, she’d have caught you giving me a bl—”

  “Okay! Okay! Jeez!”

  Shan laughed uncontrollably. Riviera watched him for a minute and then she started in too. They dressed and washed and brushed, laughing every time they’d make eye contact in the mirror. They walked into the living room, hand in hand, Riviera’s face flame red, both still laughing. The others looked at them sheepishly but soon laughed too.

  At last, Shan said to Patsy, “Mom, the next time you come over, would you mind staying out of my bedroom? Or at least knock first?”

  “Lesson learned, son, lesson learned.”

  Riviera was happy to see that Patsy’s face was as red as her own.

  During brunch, they discussed Riviera’s situation with Shan’s family. Gray suggested they go to the police, but in reality he said there wasn’t much they could do. If Riviera sought a restraining order or order of protection, Jasper would be notified and would then know of her whereabouts. They decided to inform the police about his history of domestic violence, and at least there would be a report on him. Then, if he did show up here, it would be easier to move forward.

  When they finished eating, Shan was able to find a moment to speak with Gray outside, privately. “I know I don't deserve it, but thanks for helping out here, Gray. This
Jasper guy sounds like an animal. I also want you to know that I ... um, well, I'm sorry for the shitass way I've acted the past couple of years. I know how destroyed you were when Colby and Sam died and it should've been a time when we pulled together, but I was a fuckface and ... well, I'm sorry for that.”

  Gray’s hands clenched the deck rail. “You really hurt me, you know. You totally shut me out of your life. Not only did I lose my best friend, I also lost my brother.”

  Shan rubbed the back of his neck “I know and I was so wrong. I don’t know what got into me, but it took Riviera to make me understand all that. She put me back together again. That doesn't excuse my shitty behavior, though, and I'm sorry as hell for that. I don’t expect you to just forgive me, but I wanted to apologize the way I hurt you.”

  Gray's eyes drilled into Shan's and he said, “It looks like someone's life is turning around.”

  “Yeah, you might say that.”

  Gray embraced Shan and said, “Then I'm happy for you, man.”

  “Thanks. I'm not sure I deserve her though.”

  “Sure you do.”

  The two men half smiled at each other and then Gray bumped his shoulder into Shan’s.

  Right before the Shandons left, Patsy pulled Riviera aside and told her that if there was anything she needed from any of them, she was to call her immediately. Patsy also whispered into her ear that she was elated Shan had finally found someone who loved him and that she couldn’t wait for them to give her grandchildren.

  Patsy, noticing Riviera’s stunned look, said to her, “Honey, let’s all be honest here. It’s written all over your faces. You two are head over heels for each other. I could not be happier. I’ve always wanted Shan to find someone. He’s never brought a girl home to meet us so when he told me about you, well, honey, I can’t tell you how excited I was. Now I just want you two to get married. When you find your true love, what use is there in waiting, right?”

  Riviera simply gaped at her.

  “I guess Shan didn’t warn you that I speak my mind, did he?”

  “No, ma’am.”

  “Call me Patsy, dear.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Patsy laughed and hugged her as hard as she could.

  After they left Shan wanted to know what his mother said. When Riviera told him, he rolled his eyes and laughed. “Yeah, I may have forgotten to tell you about that little trait of hers. She’s known for telling it like it is.”

  “I’ll say. I was speechless.”

  Shan laughed. “I can imagine.” He got very quiet for a moment.

  Riviera looked at him and their eyes caught and held.

  Her hand latched onto his. “Shan, please don’t ever leave me.”

  “Riviera, I won’t. If anything, I’m the one worried about you leaving. I’m the one who told you I was crazy in love with you.”

  “I’m scared.”

  “Don’t be. You already have my heart. I know this is way too early in the game for us, but if there’s anyone I want to be with forever, it’s you. After Colby’s death, I never thought I’d allow myself to get close to anyone ever again. You’ve been the biggest surprise to me … an exception to all my rules. You’ve been able to get past a lot of my barriers and I find myself wanting more of you in my life every day.”

  “Shan, you don’t owe me any explanations. I have more with you, right here and now, than I’ve ever had in my life.” She stepped up to him so their bodies were almost touching and grabbed his shirt in her fists. “I have everything I want with you right now.” Standing on her tiptoes, she kissed him hard on the mouth.

  His arms enclosed her, warm and protective. “You know what I’d really like to do?”

  “What?” she asked.

  “Thanksgiving is around the corner, so I’d like to go away somewhere for that. Maybe five or six days. Somewhere warm and relaxing. What do you think?”

  “Will we be able to?”

  “If you get your team set up, yeah.”

  “Okay, then, I’m in. Where will we go?”

  “I’m going to surprise you.”

  “Really?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Can I ask you something personal?”

  “Anything at all.”

  “Did you ever sleep with Marsha Sue?”

  “Never! Not that she didn’t try her best. But no. And I’m sorry she said all those things too. They were all lies.”

  “That’s what I thought, but I had to know for sure.”

  “I would have done the same, Riviera.”

  *****

  For the next two weeks, Riviera walked around with her head in the clouds, working her butt off, hiring a team for A Range of Color and painting at the same time. She’d hired Jenny Lynch as her lead technique expert and taught her everything she knew. Then she set Jenny up with her new hires to teach them what she taught Jenny. Soon, her team was doing all the base work to allow Riviera to go in behind them to do the murals and trompe l’oeils. Riviera also taught Jenny how to do the simple stenciling, such as scrolling and other basic things. It eased her up so she could really knock projects out left and right.

  Shan had hired two decorators, Geordie Watters and Sarah Griffith, who worked closely with Riviera. They were young and just starting out, eager for work and ready to learn. Geordie was flamboyantly gay, and Riviera loved him because he not only had extreme talent but he was laid-back and made work so much fun. She looked forward to the days when she got to work with him. He and Sarah made a great team. While Geordie had very eclectic taste, Sarah was more traditional, so their blends led to great designs and the finished products were unmatchable.

  They were working on the biggest home Shan had ever built. It was extreme in every sense of the word—two elevators, helicopter pad, two kitchens, and ten bedrooms. Riviera rolled her eyes at the thirty-million-dollar price tag.

  “Who builds homes like these?” she asked Shan.

  He laughed and said, “People with more money than they know what to do with.”

  “I suppose so. I wouldn’t know what to do with all this stuff.”

  “That’s because you’re grounded and you’ve lived without it. You know what it’s like not to have anything.”

  She laughed bitterly. “You can say that again.”

  “Come here.”

  She walked over to where he stood. “You’ll never have to worry about that ever again. Do you hear me?”

  “I suppose. But Shan, you never know what the future holds.”

  “Riv, I could stop working tomorrow and have enough money for us to live on until we’re a hundred. Understand me now. I don’t want you to worry about that.”

  Shan planned on talking with his brother about updating his will. He didn’t want to tell Riviera, though, because he knew it might alarm her.

  Riviera kissed him and tucked her head into his neck so she could inhale his scent.

  “Sniffing are you? You know, we’re at work. That’s an illegal move here.”

  Laughing, she said, “Sorry, I forgot.” In the back of her mind, a tiny doubt nagged her, though, wondering if she and Shan broke up, where it would leave her. Would she end up out on her own, unable to earn her own way, struggling to support herself again?

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Didn’t Forget A Thing

  Geordie and Sarah checked out the trompe l’oeil that Riviera was about to finish in the huge home they’d been working on for the past few weeks. She was telling them about her upcoming trip with Shan, and the girls laughed at Geordie when he told them he wished he could go in Riviera’s place.

  “Girl, that Shan is really something,” Geordie declared.

  “Don’t I know it. And stop trying to hit on my boyfriend, Geordie,” Riviera teased.

  Geordie muttered, “In my dreams.”

  Sarah joined in on the banter and said, “In mine too.”

  Riviera looked at them and huffed, “You two are awful.”

  “We know. We talk
about him all the time,” Sarah admitted. “Do you realize how jealous of you we are? Of course, we couldn’t be more excited for you, either.”

  “Well, I’m just glad Shan found you two. I feel like I’ve known you forever.”

  “Same here, darling.”

  “Geordie, you remind me of an old-time movie star when you call me darling. No one uses that word anymore.”

  “I know. But I’m bringing it back. I’m starting a new trend. That’s why I call everyone that.”

  “Oh gee, and all this time I thought I was special.”

  “You are special, darling.”

  They laughed.

  “Well, I’m about to wrap up this job. So I have your stamps of approval?”

  “It’s perfect,” they both said.

  “Great. I have one more thing to do in the other room, and then I’m finished until after Thanksgiving. Woo hoo!”

  “Just make sure you bring Shan the Man back in a good mood,” Geordie said.

  “No worries about that.” Riviera winked.

  “Well, then, we’re off for the night. Bye, darling.”

  They hugged and the designers traipsed out of the house. Riviera had gotten everything put away and was cleaning her brushes, swirling them in her mason jar, when she heard footsteps. Laughing, she said without looking up, “What’d you forget?”

  “Oh, don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten anything.”

  That voice made her blood chill and suddenly her flesh was pricked by dozens of tiny icicles. Every hair on her body stood on end and she knew when she looked up, her fear would hit Mach 1. But she never got that chance, because she felt something like a bee stinging her in the back of the neck, and then everything started to blur. Riviera tried to stand, but the dizziness became so fierce, the room tipped sideways and she lost her balance, right before everything went black.

  Marsha Sue rolled Riviera from her side to her back and stuck a strip of duct tape across her eyes and another across her mouth. Then she took a large cable tie and attached it to her ankles, pulling it as tight as it would go. Rolling her over onto her stomach, she grabbed Riviera’s arms and clamped her wrists together and tightened another cable tie. Pushing her on her side, she waited until her accomplice showed up. About ten minutes later, he walked in the house.