After an intense bout of sex, a ride on his bike and a picnic at the beach, the last thing he wanted was an interruption to the day—especially by answering phone calls from past lovers. He had his best friend-turned-wife with him, and he was happier than he’d been in a long time. All of his goals were within his reach, and he didn’t want anything to dampen his mood.
He’d promised Tori he’d be faithful, and he wasn’t going back on his word. Never before had he promised to be exclusive, something he made sure his lovers knew up front, but with Tori warming his bed, he didn’t mind at all. He kept waiting for that feeling of being trapped to overtake him, but so far he’d not felt anything but complete and utter happiness.
“They’ll leave a message,” he told her, not really caring if they did or not.
Victoria leaned her hands back in the sand, shook her head and allowed her hair to fall past her shoulders and cascade down her back. As her gaze settled on the emerald waters before them, he smiled. It wasn’t every man who could say he married his best friend...a hot, sexy, centerfold-material friend. Damn, he’d lucked out. An open-ended marriage was absolutely the way to go. Once the crown was his in a few months, he’d seriously have everything: title of king and Victoria in his bed with no major commitment to marriage.
And hopefully he could also convince her brothers to work with him on a documentary to clear his father’s name.
“I’m not jealous, you know,” she said, her eyes still on the orange horizon as the sun set.
He eased closer to her, drawing his knees up and resting his arms on them. “Jealous of what?”
“The women calling you. I’m sure that’s why your phone vibrates and rings every half hour.”
Stefan laughed. Victoria had never been one to mince words or back away from any uncomfortable topic. She was also very confident, like most American women were. He found that quality extremely sexy. What had that jerk Alex been thinking? Stefan only hoped they didn’t run into the guy once they were back in L.A. Or if they did, he hoped the media wasn’t around. The last thing he needed was a picture of him popping the other guy in his pretty-boy face.
“Go ahead and laugh,” she went on. “But I know that’s your entourage calling.”
“And how do you know this?” He chuckled again, now at her description.
“Because if it had been your brother, one of your staff or anyone else important, you would’ve answered it.”
He shook his head. “Possibly.”
With a wide, sinful smile, she turned to face him. “So you admit your harem has been calling?”
“Maybe, but with the way you can’t keep your hands off my body, I don’t have time for others.”
Victoria’s laugh washed over him. “Your ego is even bigger than your bank accounts. I think we both know who initiated the sex this afternoon.”
“You were the one who insisted on changing clothes. In a man’s mind, that’s code for ‘I’m getting naked and you should join me.’”
“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes, still smiling. “If a woman says ‘I’m going to the grocery store,’ a man thinks that’s a code for ‘let’s get naked.’”
Stefan didn’t want to feel guilty about the women calling him. He couldn’t help it. The fact he was married wasn’t exactly a secret; it had been televised for the entire world to see. But a few of the women from his past knew him too well and had convinced themselves this marriage was a lie.
“Are you just a little jealous?” he asked, throwing her another smile.
Part of him wanted her to be, but the other part of him hoped she kept their relationship light and carefree.
Yes, he’d wanted Victoria on an intimate level for years, but now he had her where he wanted her. He didn’t need emotions or anything too deep to creep into this new relationship they had discovered.
“I’m not jealous.” She looked him dead in the eye, no smile, no glimmer of amusement. “But I won’t be the other woman or played to look like a fool ever again.”
Stefan turned, grabbed her by the shoulders and met her eyes. “There’s no way in hell I’d ever treat you that way, Tori. And I’m not that jerk you were engaged to. Remember that.”
He’d be damned if he’d let that bastard play the third wheel in their relationship, no matter their carefree set-up.
On a sigh, her head drooped. “I’m sorry. I don’t have trust issues with you, Stefan. My mind just instantly ventured in the wrong direction.”