Page 142 of Secret Shifters Next Door

Her head nodded. “Yes. Oh, shit, yes.”

Several seconds later, I was fully seated inside her. She was so tight, and all I wanted was to start thrusting, but I held off, letting her relax and get used to the feeling. April started moving her hips back against me, using her body to beg me to fuck her. I rested my hands on the bed and began to move my hips, sliding in and out of her. Slow at first, but quickly picking up speed as her moans let me know she liked it. Before I knew it, I was fucking her brains out, slamming in and out of her ass. Her gasps of delight spurred me on, faster and faster.

“Pull my hair,” she gasped out.

I wound my fingers into the thick red curls of her hair and tugged, fucking her faster than ever. She whimpered in pleasure, and I was sure I wasn’t hurting her. All I wanted was to make her feel amazing. Knowing that I was pushed me over the edge.

I was about to come when April’s body shuddered and a groan escaped her mouth, rising in volume until she was screaming in ecstasy as she came a second time. The explosion of pleasure in my balls and cock took me by surprise. I came so hard that I couldn’t breathe as I emptied myself inside her.

We collapsed together, exhausted and spent. I untied her limbs and removed her blindfold. “Did I do good?” I asked, still breathing heavily.

April’s mascara had run down her cheeks, and her face was red, but she smiled. She pulled me to her and kissed me long and hard. “So good. The best I’ve ever had. Steff… thank you for not judging me.”

I caressed her cheek with my thumb. “There’s nothing to judge. Whatever gives you enjoyment gives me enjoyment.”

She cried tears of happiness as we took a shower before bed. I held her under the hot water for a long time. I wanted her to know that she was loved, that I would do anything for her. I let Bently out to pee and then crashed in bed with April. We fell asleep tangled in each other’s arms.

TWENTY-THREE

APRIL

The reports about my scandal had begun to fade away in typical Hollywood fashion. There was always a new dirty scandal. Once the news of it erupted, the old scandal was forgotten. My face hadn’t been splashed all over a newspaper or magazine in a week, and it had been longer than that since I’d seen the scandal being talked about on any of the entertainment channels.

It hadn’t been quite three months since Luca turned my life into a disaster, and though I missed my penthouse and the jets and cars, I wasn’t ready to jump back into the public eye yet. I knew that as soon as I reappeared, the stories would pick back up. It wouldn’t be as intense and would fade fairly quickly. Still, it didn’t seem worth it. At least not yet. Larry called me on Sunday to try to cajole me to come back.

“April, it’s time. The media has moved on. That billionaire’s daughter’s sex tape just leaked, and they’re all over that. Plus, there’s word that a certain power couple in the music industry may have an open marriage. There’s all kinds of stuff juicier than whatever Luca can leak. I think it’s safe for you to come back to LA.”

“Larry, I’m not ready. No matter what happens, I’m staying in Lilly Valley until August.”

“August?” Larry sounded like he was choking. “Why? I thought you’d be itching to get back to work. I can have jobs lined up in no time.”

I sighed and flopped onto the couch. “I’m not hard up for money, Larry. You know that. If I wanted to, I could retire right now and live comfortably for the rest of my days.”

“Whoa. Hang on a minute. I don’t like the sound of that. You can’t be talking about retirement. You’ve got a decade at least until that should start to be an option.”

“Larry, I’m not getting younger, and this is a young woman’s game. Even before I went into hiding, the jobs I was getting weren’t exactly premiere. I can’t even remember the last time I was asked to do a big-time runway show. The last commercial I did was for a makeup brand that, as you well know, is marketed toward soccer moms. I may still look twenty-five, but I’m in my thirties. I’ve been modeling since I was eighteen. Most models end up turning to acting or music at this stage of their careers. I can’t act for shit. I tried a couple of times, remember? And the best I could do was cameos ashot girl number two. And if anyone heard me sing, they’d stab themselves in the ears.”

“But, April, this isn’t something to decide on the spur of the moment.” I could hear the desperation in Larry’s voice.

“I haven’t decided anything, Larry. I’m only saying I’ve given it some thought. Being back home, where it’s quiet, has given me some time to analyze my life. Maybe retirement is the best option. Go out on top, you know?”

“Okay, hang on. I’m… ugh, I’m going to give you some time to think about this. In the meantime, let me see what kind of interest there is out there. If I find something big, will you reconsider? Maybe a huge new marketing push? Get you back out there front and center.”

I gazed up at the ceiling and decided not to crush all his hopes. “Okay. I’ll talk to you later. Maybe at the end of this week. You can tell me what you’ve been able to find.”

“Now we’re talking. That’s my girl. All right, I won’t let you down. Stay safe. Talk to you soon.”

“Goodbye, Larry.”

I hung up the phone and sat, thinking. I’d never actually verbalized the idea of retirement, but it had been bouncing around in my head for a couple of weeks now. Being able to see my nephew whenever I wanted, hanging out with my brothers almost every day, getting back with Steff? It was all so… normal. Normal and amazing. I’d lived a life millions of people would kill for. Having all those eyes on you, traveling and seeing everything I could imagine seeing was fantastic. With that in mind, I still kept asking myself if it was as amazing as what I had here.

Before I could even think about it, I was calling my mother. Sometimes you simply needed to talk to your mom.

“April? What’s wrong?”

I laughed. “Nothing’s wrong, Mom. I only called to talk.”

“Oh.” She sounded relieved. “Well, I’m always up for a talk. What’s going on with you? How’s it going back home?”

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