Page 65 of Callback
“Yes!” I dragged a hand down my face, shaking my head. “I mean, maybe. I don’t know…”
Marly stepped into me and I held a hand out, stopping her. “No. Marlena, I meant it when I said I can’t be with my co-stars anymore. Nothing good comes from it.”
Looking down at the tongue ring in her palm, she slowly raised her gaze. “Marlena” She asked innocently. “Who’s Marly? What have I told you about saying other women’s names in our bedroom, Leo?”
Alarm registered on my face and despite the moment of surprise, the tiniest smile twitched on my lips. “Marly, be serious—”
She struck me hard across the face with the palm of her hand. Nerves and heat slammed together in my chest and surged down to my stomach. My cheek stung, but fuck was that hot.
“What did I say?” She raised a brow, pinching my chin and forcing my gaze back to hers. Those blue eyes were sharper than the edge of a knife and could cut me just as deeply. Pierce into me and ruin me in one swift movement. She had that power. Layla had had that power too. And she had wielded it with reckless abandon. “I don’t want to hear another woman’s name in this room, you understand me?”
That small grin curved wider toward my eyes. “Of course.”
“Say my name,” she whispered.
“Marlena,”I said, running a hand across my stinging cheek. Then, anticipating her movement, I caught her wrist as she lifted her palm to strike me again. I didn’t squeeze her hard, but used that wrist to tug her flush against my body. Her breasts heaved, pushing against my crisp white shirt and if I closed my eyes, I could almost feel her tight, pebbled nipples through the thin layer of clothing. “I’m falling in love withyou. Not Holly.”
Her mouth formed a perfect o-shape and I sucked in a sharp breath. Most women would have gushed or cried. But not Marly. Not my Poppy. She snapped her mouth closed and lifted her chin. “Fine,” she said, then tilted her head and looked me directly in the eyes. “But, I need to say one thing first. And you’re not going to like it.”
“Try me,” I hissed.
“I’m not Layla,” she whispered.
Layla. Her name—it was a bitter, acidic reality check coming from sweet Marlena’s lips. Like shoving a dirty finger into a healing wound. I jerked back, retreating from her.
“I’m sorry I lied to you about Omar and me… but I’m also not sorry. He and I did what we both had to do to get ahead in an industry that marginalized us. And I won’t apologize for the act itself… we made a decision that protected us. But I’m sorry for deceiving you and not telling you sooner.”
I narrowed my eyes. “And what does any of that have to do with my ex-wife?” I couldn’t even say her name aloud. Not here. Not in this room.
“Because I know she hurt you. I know she lied to you too. And even though I don’t have all the facts about her… this situation is different. I didn’t lie to hurt you.”
She was right. It wasn’t the same. Not every lie was created equal. I circled my thumb over her skin. “I’m not mad at you. And I know you’re not Layla… to start with, she would have never apologized.”
“Okay,” Marly said, and curled her fingers over my jaw. My stubble scraped against her soft skin and I could smell the perfume clinging to the insides of her wrists. “So, you’re not mad. And we’ve established I’m not Layla. I’m falling in love with you and you’re falling for me…”
It was exactly what I’d been craving all week, but also exactly what I’d been dreading. “Come on, Jude,” she said. “We didn’t come this far to only come this far.” Then, pushing onto her toes, she kissed me.
*
Marly
I kissed himsoftly at first, Jude’s mouth warm and inviting as he dove his hands into my hair, wrapping my red curls around his fist, tugging my head back.
“Fuck, Marlena.” He dropped his forehead to mine and I put one hand to his cheek, stroking him with my thumb. His skin was unusually rough, his stubble poked into my hand.
“Jude, please,” I begged, my sex throbbing for him. “I haven’t been with a man in a year. Not since Jack—” he cut me off with his lips, swallowing my words.
“Marlena,” he said, his mouth peppering kisses across my jaw. “I don’t want to hear another man’s name in this room again.”
I grinned. He was thawing. I was chipping away at the ice. “Except Omar’s,” I said. “He will always be in my life.”
“Fine. But I still prefer not to hear his name if we’re kissing. And definitely not if I’m inside of you.”
“I can live with that.”
“And Marlena… if you hit me again, you’ll get three more from me for each strike. Got that?” He flashed me a playful smile as I nodded, grinning. The thought excited me. His palm on my ass. Bare flesh on bare flesh and I considered slapping him once more just to feel his punishment. But my need to please him won out over my desire for punishment.
“Yes, Sir.”
