Chapter 221 - Rise And Shine

"Looks like I won," he said, his voice gravelly. He kissed her forcefully, making her sit up and wrap hr arms around him, tugging at his hair. His hands too were tugging at her clothes. Like magic, he got them off without a problem. 

Katherine could see that he was happy that she wore nothing underneath.

"You can take me," she promised, hearing his thoughts. "But only after you admit that I won."

"So competitive," he commented with a grin. The banter continued as they wrapped around each other, moving without abandon. Mid-s.e.x, a thought crossed Cage's mind.

'At least I covered dinner.'

- - - - - 

Early the next morning, Cage's cell phone rang and he startled awake. He pressed the pillow to his face so that he could ignore it. When he felt Katherine shifting beside him, sounding distressed, he moved over and pulled the phone to his ears. 

"Hello?" he answered groggily. 

"Rise and shine, my little flower," Stephen sang into the cellphone. 

'What the f.u.c.k,' Cage thought. His manager was in a wonderful mood. Something he had not been in for a very long period of time. 

"Tell me," Cage grumbled. 

"Sorry about yesterday. I was in the middle of something," Stephen chuckled. "Did you know Angelina has no gag reflex?" he said, his voice going a few octaves higher than usual. 

"Dude, I don't need to know," Cage groaned, scrubbing his face with his free hand. "Did you find anything from CoG?" he asked, quickly wanting the call to end. He didn't need too much information about Stephen's romantic life. 

"I looked through the email first thing yesterday and realized that you had gotten an invitation from them, too. Not as a player but as the brand ambassador," he started. "Guessing from your message, Katherine got an invite as a player. If she accepts, it won't look good on you to accept the offer. It may lead to complications. Furthermore, the compensation is not great, at least for you." Cage listened carefully and hummed, encouraging him to go on. 

"It's legit, that is for sure. I have a list of the people they have offered and it is an impressive list. They are expecting about five million people to actively watch the competition. I think it's going to be great exposure for Katherine if this is something she wants to do."

"That sounds great!" he exclaimed before turning towards Katherine in fear that he had woken her up. "What's the catch?" he whispered. 

"It is a lot of attention. Apart from two other participants, it's basically an all-man competition. The audience will be harsh on her and if she doesn't perform well..." he trailed off. 

"Is it important for her to?" Cage asked suspiciously. 

"Depends on if she plays well," Stephen commented. 

"She does." Cage's tone was firm. 

"Then you will have no issue. Make her practice a lot, though." Stephen stopped. "She will also need to participate in the promotion and the like. It's some heavy work."

"I'll talk to her. Email me any information you have." Cage thought about it for a moment. "I'll talk to you later."

- - - - -

Katherine finished packing everything and made her way downstairs to where Cage was standing, looking lost in thought. 

"What's up?" she asked as she placed her bag next to his. They were all packed, the cabin was cleaned and neither of them wanted to leave. 

Cage wrapped his hands around her shoulder and she snuggled close to him, breathing in his scent.

"Just wondering how this place feels like it's ours," he hummed. Katherine agreed with him. This place felt like a safe haven where they could be by themselves and no one would bother them. No one could touch them. 

Cage's fingers were under her chin, pulling her face up so that she was looking at him. "Should I just buy it for us?" he said with a small smile. As much as Katherine wanted to say that he was joking, he wasn't. If she said yes, he would buy this place for them. 

But that was a long stretch. Cage was the sweetest man on the planet, of that she was sure. She had to laugh despite the moisture in her eyes threatening to fall. 

"I'll miss being with you like this, but please don't buy the cabin," she suggested softly. 

Cage hastily brushed her tears away and felt his throat constrict. "I wish we didn't have to go back to the real world either. It's just a few weeks. I'll fly you out to where I am filming. Everything will be great," he reassured. But he sounded like he was trying to convince himself. 

Katherine appreciated his efforts, though. 

She gave him a small smile. He needed to see her okay as much as she needed to feel it. "I can't wait."

His lips brushed against hers. "I can't buy this place but I want a place for us. Somewhere we can escape and shut the world away. At least once a year, okay?" he asked. 

"You should start earning more money, then. Taking time off is difficult," she said with a snicker. 

"Where do you want it to be? Mountains? Beach? Woods?" He sounded too excited. 

She giggled and shook her head. "You can drop me in the middle of the desert and as long as you are by my side, I'll happily stay. I'll go to the ends of the world with you," she added cheekily. Cage pinched her cheek, his eyes looking delighted at her confession. 

"I won't survive in a desert, but thank you for loving me enough." He patted her head affectionately and made a note to search for quaint properties where no one would bother them. 

She squeezed his waist, giving him another bout of warmth. The man had no selfish bone in his body, which didn't bode well for him in the ruthless world. As long as they were together and she was selfish on his behalf, they would be okay. 

"I'll be selfish, then," she said. "I'll keep you away from the world and your fangirls." She pouted. 

"I would be okay with just one fangirl," Cage winked suggestively. "That's all I can handle."

She felt lucky. Beyond lucky. They were interrupted by the laughter and chatter of the others. They sighed, happy that everyone was finally happy.