And here I thought Gabriel had a way with words. Jesus Christ. Alex just blew my mind.
“I love you,” he says, looking straight into my eyes. “And in case you’re wondering… I plan on telling Gabriel the exact same thing.”
“That you love him?” I scoff.
He giggles. “I’ll leave that part out.”
“Thank God!” I proclaim, kissing him silly. My smile broadens against his. “If you tell Gabriel that you love him, you’ll never get rid of him.”
“Yeah, well… maybe I don’t want to after all.”
40
GABRIEL
ALEXANDER JARRELL, AMERICA’S SEXIEST FASHION MODEL—GAY—DATING BUSINESS MOGUL, ELIJAH GARCIA.
The bold headlineruns across my phone. It’s fromBoxed Out, an international entertainment company capturing the lives of the elite.
A picture accompanies the story—Alex and Elijah walking through a restaurant, Elijah with his arm around Alex’s shoulder. It’s captioned—“Love Triangle?”
Oh, for heaven’s sake.
Below that…“Supermodel, Alex Jarrell, spotted lunching with wealthy New York City business mogul, Elijah Garcia, owner of the popular upscale Bourbon Bar. Elijah, who is openly gay, is married to well-known Spanish artist and interior designer, Gabriel Garcia. They have a daughter, andhave oftentimes been referred to as New York City’s power couple.”
Ugh. I’ve always hated that title. But surprisingly, the media hasn’t caught wind of our divorce yet. Not that we’re keeping it a secret. We’d actually planned on releasing an official statement down the road, but now it looks like we’ll have to do some damage control sooner rather than later.
Frustrated, I get to my feet and go in search of Elijah. He’s going to flip when he reads this. On any other occasion, we’d brush it off. We’re used to the tabloids putting their gossipy spin on everything we do. I’m sure Alex is also. But this invades Alex’s privacy, and that’s not something Elijah takes lightly. Being gay by no means should hurt his career. Pretty sure more than half of the male modeling population is queer. But the fact that he hasn’t officially come out yet, and now has been stripped of that opportunity… well, that’s just not right.
I peek into Elijah’s office and find it empty, so I continue on to the bedroom. I push open the door and immediately jump back. Thankfully, Alex has his back to the door as he slips on a pair of swim shorts.
Fuck,he’s got a gorgeous ass.
In an attempt to become invisible, I press my back up against the wall. The last thing I need is for Alex to see me and whine to Elijah about boundaries again. Damn it! This was my bedroom too at one time, so he needs to relax.
Or maybe it’s me who needs to relax?
Actually, I am relaxed.
So much so that I glance down at my bare feet and quietly close the door.
I think I’ll go swimming.
41
ALEX
“Ahh yesss… so good.”
Ribbons of steam traverse through my lungs as I step into the hot tub and submerge myself underneath the water. Holding my breath for a few seconds, I finally exhale, releasing all of my built-up tension.
After speaking to Elijah, I feel like we’re in a much better place. Just seeing the relief on his face spoke volumes. I’ll never understand Meera’s thought process. Nor do I want to anymore. And I’m okay with that. She had her reasons, I guess. I just wish I could erase these tattoos from my skin so I wouldn’t have to see them anymore.
In the beginning, I didn’t mind having the tattoos. In a way, they were cool. Plus, the puzzle pieces are what first grabbed the attention of the modeling scouts; so, in that way, I’m grateful for her artistic mind. I’d been a walking showcase, brazenly displaying her art on my skin. But never would I have guessed that she had a motive behind it. And a sick one at that.
“About these shorts…” Elijah teases, dragging me in closer and skimming those thick fingers across the waistline of my swim trunks. He pulls lightly on the strings.
“These shorts happen to be your idea,” I remind him, lifting my hips enough for him to slide them over my thighs and down to my ankles. I kick them aside, watching them rise to the surface and bob between bubbles. The rippling water feels amazing on my balls.
