“I am in love with you,” he said again, “and I would give up any amount of money for you. I would protect you a million times if necessary. All those horrible things your brother said, none of it was true. None of it. All I want to do is prove that to you. That you are worthy of love.”
He returned to bed and covered her body with his. “Just let me in, Gretchen. Let me show you how I feel.”
So she did.
She let him show her what love was like. She let his hands and his mouth and his body teach her what it meant to be cherished.
They were quiet, swallowing each other’s moans with their mouths, muffling their passion with faces pressed into necks.
They fell asleep in a tangle of exhausted limbs and hearts.
And woke up when the phone rang.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
There were very few reasons why his manager would call in the wee hours of the morning, none of them good.
Colton ground at his eyes, fumbled for his phone, and answered sleepily. “Jesus, Buck, What’s—”
“Did you get in a fight with Evan Winthrop last night?”
Shit. Colton glanced at Gretchen, who was miraculously still asleep. “How did you hear about that?”
“There’s a video.”
Colton slid out of bed as quietly as he could and padded to the bathroom to speak in private. “It’s a long story,” he said, closing the door and turning on the light.
“Well, start practicing your right to remain silent about it.”
Adrenaline turned his muscles to Jell-O. “What’s going on?”
“The cops are on their way to your house. Winthrop is pressing charges.”
“That sonofabitch.” Colton clenched the phone so hard it was a wonder the thing didn’t break.
“I called Desiree, and she’s on her way to your house too.” Desiree Childs was one of the attorneys that Buck kept on retainer. Colton had never dreamed he’d ever need her services, though. She specialized in criminal law.
“With any luck, we’ll beat the cops there,” Buck said. “Do not say anything until we get there. We’ll deal with this, I promise.”
The roar of blood in his ears nearly drowned out Buck’s last reassuring words. Colton ended the call and yanked the faucet on. Hands shaking, he splashed water on his face, the sting of cold like a slap of reality. He’d never even had a goddamn detention in school. Now he was being arrested for assault. By tomorrow morning, the news would be all over celebrity gossip sites, his mug shot circulating faster than a joint at a Jimmy Buffett concert.
Colton sucked in several deep breaths. He had to be calm when he told Gretchen. But when he walked out of the bathroom, she was already sitting up in bed, staring in anguish at her own phone. She met his gaze, and the pain he saw in her eyes made him momentarily forget that he was the one about to get in trouble.
“Colton, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“This isn’t your fault.” He went to his dresser. “We need to get dressed. The cops are on the way here.”
She scrambled out of bed, and he handed her a pair of his sweatpants and some socks. He slipped into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. “I’ll be right back. I need to go wake up my parents.”
“Colton—” Her voice shook.
He gripped her face and kissed her. Hard. “It’s going to be okay.”
But he wasn’t sure if he believed his own words. He left the room, and before he could even knock on the door of the guest room where his parents were sleeping, the door opened. His father was there, a worried crease along his forehead. “There’s a video of the fight.”
“I know. The cops are on their way here.”
“You’re being arrested?”
“It looks that way.” His voice conveyed greater calm than he felt. His mother appeared in the doorway next. “I need you to take care of Gretchen,” he said. “She’s freaking out like this is her fault.”
“I’ll get dressed,” his father said, moving back into the room. “If they take you in, I’m following.”
Another door opened, and his brother walked out. “What’s going on?”
And then a third door opened, and this time his sister walked out, sleepy, her arms crossed over her torso. “What’s wrong?”
“Don’t let the kids wake up,” Colton said quietly. “I don’t want them to see this.”
“See what?” His sister’s voice rose, so Colton took her elbow and pulled her away from the room. As he explained to Jordan and Cooper what was happening, her eyes widened and filled with tears as his brother’s became enraged.