As soon as I’d stopped, she was yanking on the handle and jumping out of the truck. I dragged both hands over my face, taking a deep breath. Now would be a great time for God to answer at least one of my prayers and give me some damn patience. I was gonna need it with this woman.
With one final plea to God, I flung my door open. I marched toward where she’d stopped a few feet in front of the truck, my headlights shining on her back.
“Get back in the truck, Doc. You aren’t walking home.”
“I know,” she declared, pulling her phone out of her purse.
I closed the distance between us as she searched for a signal. I snatched the phone from her hand, holding it over my head. She leapt for it, pointlessly. All she was managing to do was wear herself out. Which was fine by me.
“Ugh,” she growled after her fifth failed attempt. “Give me my phone back.”
“No. Get in the truck.”
“I’ll knee you in the balls again,” she threatened. “And this time I won’t even feel bad about it.”
“I lived through it once. I can handle it. Now get in the damn truck.”
She stared back at me, her eyes black with heat. “I hate you.”
“Join the club.”
“Fine. You win. Keep the damn phone,” she said, turning in the opposite direction of the truck to walk toward town.
I stuffed her phone in my back pocket and snatched her wrist, spinning her into me. Her body slammed against mine and a surprised gasp escaped her lips. She stared up at me as I pressed closer, until I could feel the erratic heart beat in her chest. My own heart started to play the same rhythm.
She was so damn gorgeous, especially when she was this worked up. She smelled like sunshine and felt like heaven in my arms. It infuriated the hell out of me.
I lowered my head, snaking one hand up the side of her neck until my fingers were weaving through her hair and palming the back of her head. Her breaths became more rapid and heavy the closer we got. “I’m done playing games, brown eyes,” I rasped.
Her mouth opened to speak, but I didn’t give her the chance. I smashed my lips to hers, swallowing her words, knowing all bets were off. It was almost instant, the way she succumbed to my intrusion. There was only a slight tug of war before she was giving in, moaning into the kiss, her nails digging into my chest as she clung to my shirt. She relented, sliding her hands up and around my neck, opening her mouth farther. I dove in, our tongues battling it out the same way we had been since the day we met.
This was one battle I was happy to fight. It wasn’t enough, though. I needed more.
This woman was like an organ I couldn’t live without. She was vital. That realization nearly had me breaking away, putting a stop to it all. But when she whimpered at the loss of pressure, I surged deeper.
I gripped her ass, lifting her into my arms as she wrapped her legs around my waist, our mouths barely parting. Taking the few steps to my truck, I pressed her into the hood. When she gasped at the contact, my name a breathy plea on her lips, my brain shut down and my dick took over. I moved from her lips to her neck, my hand slipping under the hem of her shirt and gliding over her hot skin. I was ready to rip off her clothes in the middle of the damn road and take her on the hood. Had it not been for the flashing lights coming up behind my truck, I might have done just that.
13
DEVIN
“Shit,” Wes growled, pulling away.
I was tempted to beg, convince, force him not to stop, until I realized why he had. Red and blue lights flashed across his face as he stared behind me like a deer in headlights. I wiggled in his arms, needing him to release me. The last thing I wanted was someone to see me in a compromising position in the middle of the freaking highway with Wes Monroe locked between my legs.
That hadn’t occurred to me moments ago, though. I was too wrapped up in his kiss, his touch. The way he claimed me like I belonged to him. My cheeks burned as he looked back down at me, his hold slowly loosening as I slid onto my own two feet.
“Let me handle this,” he said, his voice full of grit.
I nodded. I wasn’t in any state to speak to an officer anyway.
“Wes?” a voice hollered from the squad car, a door shutting in the process. I’d hoped to hear Deputy Roger’s voice, but it wasn’t.
I watched Wes for any sign. The slack of relief in the set of his shoulders told me he recognized the man.
“Yeah,” he responded, then looked back at me. “Stay here,” he ordered, stepping away.
I nodded once again, biting down on my lip. I wasn’t worried about going to jail or getting a ticket. Wes would take care of getting rid of the sheriff. And that’s exactly what worried me. We’d almost gone too far until we were interrupted.
A cold breeze picked up as Wes walked toward the car. Shivering and rubbing my hands down my arms, I strained to hear the muted conversation of their deep voices, with little success. There were few words exchanged. A small chuckle from the officer and a bro shake and clap on the back before the flashing lights were off and the car was pulling away.
Wes strolled back over, his hardened exterior in place once again. His eyes did a quick inspection of me from head to toe before they were fixed back on mine. “Get in the truck, Doc.” His voice was firm, leaving no room for argument. Turning his back to me, he climbed into his truck, slamming the door.
I let out a resigned sigh, doing the same.
* * *
If I thought the tension before our kiss couldn’t have been more suffocating, I was proven wrong on the remainder of the drive to my house. The bite in the air was no match for the frigid shoulder Wes was giving me.
He hadn’t spoken a word to me since we got back in the truck, hadn’t spared me a single glance. He drove as if I wasn’t sitting a few feet away, silently falling apart. I’d been so wrapped up in my internal destruction, I hadn’t even noticed we’d stopped in front of my house.
It wasn’t until I heard his heavy sigh and his head falling back on the headrest that I was snapped out of my own head. The awkward silence continued. I told myself I needed to just get the hell out and inside before any more damage was done. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t walk away without clearing the air.
“Wes,” I pleaded.
“Stop overthinking it, Doc.”
“I can’t.”
He lifted his head. “I’m not a puzzle you need to figure out. I say what I mean, and I mean what I say. I’m done playing games. I don’t do relationships. And being just friends is off the table. It’s your choice. You know where I stand.”
“I’m not sure I can do that.” My gut twisted, spurring tears to well in my eyes.
“I understand. And I’d never ask you to do something you’re not comfortable with. If you change your mind, you have my number.”
Ripping his eyes from mine, he stared out the windshield, his hands firmly on the wheel. He was done. Done with this conversation. Done with me, unless I wanted to give him more than friendship. But he wasn’t willing to give me more than just friends with benefits. It was bullshit. Whatever guilt or sadness I’d felt moments ago was gone with that understanding.
“Don’t hold your breath,” I hissed, flinging the door open and slamming it in his face. I ran up the porch steps and barreled through the front door, slamming it for good measure. After twisting the lock, I pressed my back against it, tears of anger now falling. I waited for the sound of his truck to leave.
For the briefest moment, I wondered if he’d come after me. I hated that I wanted him to, and hated that I knew for sure he wasn’t, finally confirmed by the sound of his tires squealing as he peeled off.
14
WES
“Damn it!” I smacked an open palm against the steering wheel when Devin’s front door slammed shut.
I’d messed up.
Royally.
I never should’ve fucking kissed her. But I was tired of fighting it, tired of pretending there was nothing there between us. I
took one final glance at her dark house, then tore off before I did something else stupid. Like pound on the door and beg her to forgive me.
* * *
I sniffed at the carton of old food, my face twisting up at the smell. I shoved it back in and slammed the fridge door shut.
A smack came to the back of my head.
What the…?
I jerked around to look behind me, rubbing my hand where the sting radiated from. Hannah stood there looking more pissed than I’d ever seen before.
“I’m not in the mood, City,” I warned her. I was starving and tired. Tired of every woman in my life right now feeling the need to hit and lecture me. I was a grown-ass man. I’d make my own damn decisions.
“Good. Because neither am I.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to smack some sense into you. Did it work?”
“Nope.” I planted my hands on my hips. “Feel free to go now.”
She tossed a greasy, brown paper bag onto the counter beside me. My mouth watered. “What’s in the bag?”
“A burger from Kathy’s. Billy said Grams cut you off.”
For once I was glad Billy couldn’t keep his big mouth shut. It’d been two weeks since I’d had a home-cooked meal. Grams had turned me away from her door when I showed up for lunch with Billy the Monday after the shit show of a Sunday dinner. And worse than cutting me off from her cooking, she was giving me the silent treatment. I’d much rather her yell and smack me around like the rest of them. At least then I wouldn’t be hungry.
She’d never gone this long without forgiving me. I didn’t understand her hang up on Devin, or why she was pushing so hard for me to pursue things with her. She’d never much cared what I did in my personal life before. Sure, she’d given me a hard time about my philandering. But that’s all it ever was.
I reached for the bag.
“Nope.” Hannah snatched it away just before I got to it, holding it behind her back.
Normally, I’d go after it, knowing I could easily overpower her. But she was pregnant, and I wasn’t going to risk even accidentally hurting her or the baby.
Folding my arms across my chest, I sighed, a headache pushing its way to the front. “Fine. Let’s get this over with. Say what you came to say and then leave.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“Noted.”
“And the most stubborn, annoying man I’ve ever met. And that’s saying a lot, considering how many I’ve met.”
I nodded. She wasn’t saying anything she hadn’t told me before. Though, most of the time she hadn’t delivered the words with so much genuine anger and disappointment behind them. “You done?”
When I gave her little emotion, her body deflated like a balloon. “Yes. But we aren’t. Now sit down and start talking.” She pointed to a stool at my breakfast bar.
“I’m gonna take a pass.”
“No, you aren’t. Not if you want this burger. I can hear your stomach growling from here. So, what’s it gonna be?”
I dropped my arms, taking a seat on one of the barstools. Hannah moved to join me. She tossed the bag on the counter in front of me and then proceeded to hoist herself up onto a stool. As she struggled, I found myself cracking a smile for the first time in weeks. The memory of our initial meeting came rushing to the forefront of my mind.
“Need some help?” I asked, with a full-blown grin now.
“Shut up,” she scowled, nearly out of breath, finally settling her butt into the seat next to me.
I opened the bag and pulled out the burger. I took a big-ass bite, taking little time to chew before swallowing. I’d been too busy to get groceries or even head into town for a lunch break. I’d been eating whatever scraps of food I could find for the last few weeks, which wasn’t much.
“You look like shit, by the way,” she announced.
I shrugged. She could insult me all she wanted if she promised to keep bringing me food.
She stopped my wrists as I lifted to take another bite. “We had a deal.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Why you’re acting like an epic jackass. I mean, more so than usual. You like Devin.”
“Never said I didn’t.”
“Then why does she look like someone kicked one of her sick puppies these last few weeks. She’ll barely hang out with Lottie and me. She turned us down on our last girls’ night.”
“How should I know? Maybe she doesn’t like hanging out with you.”
She smacked me again.
“Woman. Will you stop that?”
“Stop making me feel the need to.”
I dropped the burger, suddenly losing my appetite. “Look. I don’t know why Devin’s upset or avoiding you guys,” I lied. “And frankly, I don’t care.”
I did care. And that was the damn problem. Two weeks of staying away from her had only made my life more miserable. I’d even forced myself to go out and pick up another woman in a bar. But by the time I got there, the last thing I wanted to do was talk to or touch another woman who wasn’t Devin. She’d ruined me with one damn kiss.
“You’re lying.”
“How would you know?”
“Because we’re besties, remember?”
“Well, at least you finally admit it,” I grumbled, sitting back.
She sighed, twisting in her seat to face me, her belly nearly knocking me out of my chair.
“Watch it with that thing, will ya?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Tell me why you’re set on not giving this thing a chance.”
“Who says it’s me? I offered her more. She’s the one who said no.”
“Did you offer her more, or just your dick?”
“We both know that’s all I’m good for.”
“I don’t know the size of your dick and don’t care to.” She raised a hand to silence me when I opened my mouth. “But I do know you have a big heart, Wes. You just refuse to share it with most.”
I picked at my burger, refusing to respond. She exhaled, nudging me in the shoulder. “Do you remember what you told me that night at Tucker and Lottie’s? The night I was leaving for Seattle and was set on ignoring Billy.”
I kept quiet.
“You’re repeating history.”
“We aren’t you and Billy.”
“I didn’t mean our history. I meant yours. Your advice came from your past. You never told me what it was, but I can put the pieces together and guess.”
“And what do you think happened?”
“You let someone you cared about get away.”
I nodded.
“Don’t do it again.”
“It’s not that easy, City.”
“It is.”
“That someone was Devin’s cousin.”
Her mouth opened in a giant “O” as she sat back in her chair, resting her hands on her belly, letting this new revelation soak in. “Do you—”
“No,” I answered immediately.
I knew what she was thinking: that I still had feelings for Jenna. I didn’t. I hadn’t for years. I’d figured out a long time ago we weren’t meant to be. It took me awhile to understand that, and maybe part of me always wondered whether I’d just convinced myself of it. But as soon as I met and spent some time with Devin, I knew I’d never felt this way before.
With Jenna, I never had a problem being with other girls while I waited for our chance. With Devin, I could barely look at another woman, much less touch one.
“Then what’s holding you back?” she asked, her voice softening.
“You know I don’t do relationships.”
The rest of my reason I kept to myself. Devin deserved more than just a few nights in my bed. I’m not capable of giving her that. She made the right choice walking away from me the other night. I knew that. She knew that. That was why it fucking hurt so much.
“That’s bullshit, and I refuse to believe it.”
“Doesn’t matter what you believe.”
“Say I
feed into this crap…then why? Give me one reason why you refuse to do relationships.”
The reason was easy. With the exception of Grams, every damn woman I’d ever cared for, I’d lost. My mother and sister both died. Jenna, though mostly by my doing, was no longer in my life, either. But I wasn’t about to say any of that out loud.
I stood from my seat, wrapping up the burger and tossing it back in the bag.
“Where are you going?”
“Back to work.”
“We aren’t done.”
“We are. I don’t need you to fix me, Han. I’m fine the way I am.”
“That’s not what I’m trying to do. I’m just trying to understand your side of things.”
I walked to the trash, dropping the bag inside. “I gotta go. We’re behind schedule as it is.” Another lie. But it was the only way to get her off my back.
“Fine.” She stood from her seat. As she reached for her purse, she doubled over, clutching her stomach with a hiss.
“Han?” I ran to her side. “What’s wrong? Is it the baby?”
“I’m fine.” She took a few deep breaths, trying to right herself. “It’s just Braxton Hicks or something like that.”
“I’ll drive you to the hospital.”
“No. I said I’m good.”
“I’m driving you home then. I’ll call Billy to meet us at the house.”
“I said I was fine, Wes,” she gritted through her teeth as she bit through more pain.
“Yeah, well I’m not taking any chances. If something happened to you, I’d never forgive myself and Billy would kick my ass.” Not that he’d need to. “Let’s go, City.” I put my hand on her back, taking her purse as I helped her to my truck. For once, she allowed me the privilege.
* * *
After calling Billy and dropping Hannah at their house, I headed to Dudley’s. The rest of the work day was shot, and I needed a drink after my conversation with Hannah.
Taming Wes: BOOK THREE|BILLINGSLEY SERIES Page 12