Page 25 of One Last Time

“Yeah,” I reply as I hold out my hand. “It’s nice to meet you…”

“Caston, although most people call me Cas, and let me just say, it’s real good to finally meet you, Payton. Hopefully, now, this love-sick fool will stop talking about you.”

My cheeks flame at his words, Silas talks about me?

“Oh my,” Bianca gasps. “Pay, is this Silas?”

I spin around to face her and see that she’s got tears in her eyes. “Yes,” I murmur, and she smiles. “Are you okay?”

She nods, “Yeah, as long as he stays away from me.” She nods in Tate’s direction. “Our car will be here soon.”

“Babe, what’s that?” Silas asks softly. “You have a car?”

I laugh, it sounds ludicrous, but yes, I do. “We have a car service for whenever we need to go somewhere. Our agent insists on it.”

He nods in approval. “I’m liking your agent already.”

“Jerald is a good man, he’s protective of us. Our apartment has top security, and whenever we’re on photoshoots or jobs, he makes sure that we have guards watching us. As much as it can get tedious, we actually appreciate it.”

“Pay, the cars here,” Bee says, as if I can’t see it rolling to a stop ahead of us. “Are the guys coming?”

Silas answers before I’m able too. “Yes, I want to make sure she gets home in one piece.”

Bianca smiles widely at him, “Okay, I’m guessing the jerk will be coming with you too?”

Silas and Cas glance at Tate, I’m wondering how they know him. “I do apologize for our friend, he’s not usually this much of an asshole,” Caston says with an easy smile.

Bianca shrugs, “Let’s go home, Pay, we’ve a flight to catch in the morning.”

Crap, I forgot about that. I glance at Silas, who’s staring at me with a raised brow.

Bianca laughs, “You forgot, didn’t you?” She shakes her head, “Damn, you were right, he really does turn your brain to mush.” She climbs into the back of the car, Tate’s instantly behind her.

“You said that, baby?” I blush at Silas’ words. It’s not a thing I want him knowing, he’s got a big head already. “How long will you be gone?” he asks as he helps me into the back of the car.

Once the driver pulls away, I turn to Silas and try to figure out when we can see each other again. “This shoot is for three weeks, I’ll be back in time to have Christmas with Dahlia and my family.” I can see the agony in his eyes, we’re going to be away from each other for a while. “I have four days off over Christmas, I could swing by yours for a few days?”

He winces, “I’ve an away game.”

Shit. “After my time off, I am booked solid for three months. I’m in Milan in March, and then I finally have some time off.” I had asked Jerald to not book anything else for a month. I’ve been working hard since I was seventeen, and I need time to recuperate. I still have to do the shoots that are in my contracts for Serafini, Tiger, and Isabella, but no more.

“Jesus, babe.” He groans, and I understand, we’re going to be apart for a long time. “It’s fine, Pay, we’ve gone three years, we can do three months.”

I’m loving his optimism, but I have a feeling in the pit of my stomach that it’s not going to be as smooth sailing as he thinks.

“Hey,” he says quietly, his hand on my chin pulling my face to look at him. “It’s going to be fine. We’ll talk all the time. I’ve just got you back, I’m not going to lose you again.”

I rest my head against his shoulder, breathing in his scent. Just being back in his arms has settled something inside of me, I don’t think I’ve felt this peaceful in a long time.

“What time is your flight?” Tate asks and Bianca glares at him. “Please.”

She sighs, “It’s at nine.”

“Where are you flying to, baby?” Silas asks, with a kiss to my head.

“London.” I smile, I hate long distance flights, but thankfully we’re working with Isabella, and she’s letting us use her jet.

The guys are silent as our driver heads toward the hotel where we’re spending the night. We had interviews this morning; it’s one of the many stipulations in our contract to be a Tiger, we have to do interviews and social gatherings. I don’t mind doing them as long as they’re spread out.

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