Brad leaves to go to bed for a few hours and I sit in the kitchen, enjoying my time alone in the quiet apartment since Deven has left for work. I eat breakfast and finish off the pot of coffee before going to the bathroom to shower and shave for this date. Deep down, I know it won’t work out. I’m not over Deven yet. But I owe it to myself and Brad to try. Plus, this woman lives in Georgia. Even if we did hit it off, it couldn’t go anywhere with us living in two completely different states.
No, tonight will be more of a trial run for me. See if I’m ready to get back out there. If I can honestly sit back and have a good time with another woman, then it’s time I try the whole serious dating thing. If I can’t stop comparing her to Deven, or if I’m thinking about Deven the whole time, then I’ll know that I need more time before attempting to move on. Either way, this date will give me an answer I need.
Brad wakes up around the time Deven is getting home. I hear them talking from my room, but I don’t go out to greet him. Instead, I start getting ready for this date. I pull on a pair of dark wash jeans that hang from my hips just the way I like. They don’t hang much, but just enough to give the slightest peek. Plus, girls seem to like them. I pull on a black T-shirt that hugs my biceps and chest, figuring that we’re probably not going anywhere fancy in this little town. I grab a jacket just in case, though, and toss it onto my bed. I pull on a pair of worn work boots. They’re name brand but have been used and abused for far too long, so they look dirty and worn. I add some product to my hair and style it in the messy way that I like now that it’s starting to grow out from my military-issued buzz cut. I finish off with just a splash of cologne. I check my reflection in the mirror and decide that I don’t look my best, but it’s better than nothing and it looks as though I’ve tried, which will make Brad happy.
I grab my jacket, wallet, and keys and head to the living room. Deven’s eyes lock on mine, and she freezes the moment she sees me. Her mouth drops, and her dark eyes fill with enough lust that I literally get hard. Fuck. All I can picture is throwing her up against the wall and ravishing her body while she begs me to fuck her the way I used to.
Brad comes out of the kitchen. He looks at me, then at her quickly. He laughs. “You look nice, man. I think Virginia will love you.”
That’s enough to break her gaze on me. She looks at Brad with disgust. “Who in the hell is Virginia, and who names a baby that?”
He laughs but takes on a serious edge. “She’s from Georgia. We don’t know the norm down there. Don’t fuck this date up for me with your smart mouth. When they get here, you make yourself scarce, okay?”
“So, whose date is this?” she asks, looking between the two of us.
“It’s a double,” he answers, walking back into the kitchen.
I offer Deven a sympathetic look and shrug one shoulder, but she looks like me like she’s ready to claw someone’s face off with her nails.
“He asked me to do it,” I whisper for reasons I don’t understand.
She snorts. “If he asked you to jump off a cliff, would you?” She flops down onto the couch and picks up the remote.
I let out a long breath, wondering why she’s so upset by this. She’s the one that’s been ignoring me. She’s the one that left me! With a shake of my head, I push forward, meeting Brad in the kitchen.
10
Deven
I hate myself. I literally fucking hate myself. Two weeks ago, I freaked out and pushed away the one person I never wanted to leave me. But he didn’t have a choice because I didn’t give him one. I gave him an ultimatum: tell my brother, or we’re done. Why the fuck did I do that? Why didn’t I just enjoy being with him? Why didn’t I just enjoy the time I had? I’d wasted nights upon nights praying for one more night alone with him and I was getting my wish. Until I ruined it anyway.
Now I have to sit back and watch as he gets himself sexy as fuck, only to walk out of here with another woman on his arm. A woman who will probably be smart enough to not push him away. A woman who will probably be able to openly flirt with him, touch him, kiss him. She’s probably a whore who will seduce him into her bed tonight. And my stupid brother will enjoy hearing every last detail while I listen from the sidelines, slowly dying inside.
I fucking hate myself.
Someone knocks on the door, and my back goes stiff with anger. It’s like my body is preparing for a fight as I sit and watch Brad open the door. Two women stand behind it. And of course, the women are drop-dead fucking gorgeous.
“Ladies, this is my sister, Deven. Deven, this is my date, Abby,” Brad introduces the less pretty one. “And this is Hudson’s date for the night, Virginia.”
I don’t know what I was expecting. Yes, I do. I heard that name, Virginia, and I was expecting a tiny little mouse of a thing. Someone who had no curves and flat, brown hair that was long and stringy and didn’t really have a cut or style to it. Maybe even some thick, plastic-framed glasses. A woman who wore a long skirt down to her ankles—not this drop-dead sexy woman that’s standing before me in sky high heels with more skin showing than any stripper I’ve ever seen. Okay, maybe she isn’t that bad, but her black dress is short and skintight, showing off all her curves. She has a big chest and her dress is strapless, only held up by said chest. Her hair is a mix of dark and light shades of brown with a little red thrown in. This isn’t an at-home color job. This is hours in the chair. Her makeup, while beautiful, is overly done and her nails, brows, and lashes are all professionally touched up. This is the exact type of woman that Hudson should be with, not some young troublemaker who always sabotages herself.
I force a smile and wave. “Nice to meet you.” I know by saying any of my usual smart-ass shit, I will only get chewed out by Brad later.
“You too,” Virginia says while Abby just smiles and offers up a wave. Automatically, that tells me that Virginia is the outgoing friendly type where Abby, my brother’s date, is more shy, quiet, and reserved. Figures Hudson would get the one with the killer personality and body.
Hudson comes out of the kitchen, and Brad introduces him to his date. They stand around chit-chatting while I force my eyes to stay on the TV. I don’t know if I can handle seeing Hudson take her in. His eyes should be on me, not her. And if it wasn’t for my weird freak-out, they would be. I hate myself—have I said that yet?
They all say goodbye as they move out the door, and the second the door closes, my fake smile falls. What is wrong with me? I grab my phone off the table and call Destiny.
“Hey, what’s up?” she says when she picks up.
I let out a long breath. “I can’t do this, Des.”
“Yes, you can. Just stay strong. Why the sudden change?” Destiny knows about my freak-out, and while she was surprised, she agreed that it was for the best in the long run. She’s been keeping me strong, but now, I’m falling apart.
“He and my brother just left on a double date. And you should have seen the woman he set him up with. She’s gorgeous!”
She scoffs. “I bet she’s nothing compared to you, Dev.”
“Ha! She’s tall and thin and has all these curves. She was wearing this short, tight dress that hugged every one of those curves that Hudson loved on me,” I mumble.
“Hudson?” she yells. It occurs to me that all this time, I never mentioned his name. “Hudson Slade? The Hudson Slade that is my brother-in-law?”
“That’s the one,” I admit, mentally cussing myself out for letting it slip. At first, I didn’t tell her because it was a secret. But then, it just went on so long that I felt awkward bringing it up. It feels even more awkward now.
“All this time you’ve been banging my brother-in-law? Why didn’t you tell me?”
I let out a long breath. “I don’t know. It was a secret, and I know you wouldn’t have said anything, it’s just…I don’t know. I don’t know. Can you forgive me for keeping this secret?”
I can almost hear her eyes roll. “I can’t believe this. We’re going to be sister-in-laws!”
I giggle. “Hardly. Didn’t you just hear what I said? He’s going out with the most beautiful woman alive!”
She laughs. “No way. Hudson wouldn’t go for an over-the-top girl like that. He likes you!”
“Yeah, how do you know? Last I checked, you barely knew him since he’s been in the army most of the time you and Wyatt have been together.”
“True, but apparently the night you two called things off, he went over to Drake’s hammered. Drake and Colton had to carry him into the house to sleep it off, and the whole time he just talked about how much he loved you and couldn’t believe he fucked everything up.”
“What? How do you know all this?”
“Drake and Colton told Wyatt. Well, mostly Colton told Wyatt because he couldn’t stop laughing his ass off.”
A surge of hope fills me. If all of this is true, it means the cold way he’s been acting toward me was just because he’s heartbroken. Is it possible that Hudson Slade is actually in love with me?
“So what now? What do I say or do to right everything I’ve fucked up?”
“Girl, you know what to do,” she assures me. “Hey, Wyatt just walked in. Call me later and let me know how everything turns out. I can’t wait to tell Wyatt that you’re the girl of Hudson’s dreams.” She giggles, then hangs up the phone.
I let the phone fall from my hands as I daze off watching TV. Hope flows through me like a dam has been busted, but at the same time, so does my old pal, doubt. Even if what Destiny said is true, it still doesn’t change our predicament. It would still have to be a secret. It could still cost me my brother, the only family I have left. And yes, even though I love and need Hudson, my brother means more to me than anything else in the world. Always has and always will. I have no idea how to get my heart out of the vice it’s in when it comes to Hudson Slade.
Hours later, I’m on the couch half-asleep when the door opens and in walks Hudson. Excitement courses through my body. He’s alone. He didn’t bring his date home, and Brad isn’t with him.
“How was the date?” I ask, sitting up on the couch so he can sit down.
He sits at the opposite end and drops his keys onto the table. “It was fine. Virginia was nice. We had a lot in common, a lot of the same interests.”
I press my lips together and grind my teeth. “Well, that’s nice. Brad must have done a great job at setting you up.”
“I don’t think I’m going to see her again,” he confesses.
“What? Why?” I ask, turning to study his face. His icy blue eyes lock on mine, and I can feel the pull he has on me. It’s drawing me closer without even me realizing it.
“Because she’s not you.”
The next thing I know, I’m flying through the air, launching myself at him. He somehow manages to catch me as our lips touch. His lips demand that I open my mouth and let him in, and that’s exactly what I do. His tongue finds mine, and they dance and swirl together as tingles and passion flood my body.
“I’m so sorry, Hudson,” I say against his lips, but he shakes his head.
“Don’t be. All I need is you. I don’t give a fuck about anything else.” His lips close in on mine again, and my hands tangle into his hair, pulling him closer. My hips have a mind of their own, and they start grinding against his length, which is already hardening against me. A moan escapes and he lets out a growl.
“Fuck, you don’t know what that sound does to me,” he says, picking me up against him and carrying me to his room. He slams my back up against the door, and it knocks the air from my lungs, but that only fuels my body more. I grab his shirt and as much as I like it, I want it off. I want to rip it off. I pull and tug, and the sound of the material ripping cuts through the silence. It doesn’t stop him though. He just pushes it off his arms before his hands find my shirt. He pulls it off in the same fashion, ripping it down the center until my breasts are spilling out. His greedy hands move upward, cupping each one, his thumbs grazing over my nipples, causing an electric current to shoot from my chest straight to the needy junction between my thighs. He breaks our kiss, and his eyes look down at my chest where he’s touching me.
“Mmmm, fuck, I’ve missed you.” His head dips forward, and his mouth closes in around my nipple, sucking it into his hot mouth as his tongue flicks against it. I see stars. I can’t do anything but lean my head back against the door while his mouth takes everything it wants from me.
“Fuck me, Hudson,” I plead.
He releases my nipple with a pop. “You know how I like you to beg,” he says, setting me on my feet and dropping down to his knees. He looks up at me, and he’s wearing a sinful grin as his hands push my cloth shorts down my legs, exposing all of me to him.
“Please, Hudson. I need you. Please, fuck me.” I have no problem begging. My body has missed his touch for weeks.
“That’s better,” he says, picking up one leg and setting it on his shoulder. His hand trails up my inner thigh, tickling and teasing until he gets to the place that needs him the most. Without warning, he inserts two fingers into me, making me call out. His eyes stay locked on mine, watching the pleasure as it crosses my face.
“Look at me,” he demands when my eyes flutter closed.
They pop open again, locking on his.
His tongue comes out, gliding across his bottom lip. “You have no idea how much I missed tasting you. Do you want me to taste you?”
I nod.
“Say it.”
“Yes, please,” I beg.
The moment the words leave my mouth, his mouth is on me, tongue sliding between my folds while his fingers push up into me. A loud moan escapes and my knee goes weak. Before I can collapse, he catches me with his left hand on my hip.
His tongue flicks and swirls and sucks at my bundle of nerves until I’m panting and seeing stars and calling out his name like the lovesick woman I am. God, I never want to live another day without his touch. I’ll be his dirty little secret for this. Who cares if I never get marriage or kids or the pleasure of introducing him as my boyfriend? This is worth it. I’ll take what little I can get because that’s what Hudson Slade does to me.
After I come undone, he stands and wipes my juices from his glistening lips, his hands finding the button on his jeans. I watch his hands hungrily, waiting for the moment he has them off. All I can think about is sliding him to the back of my throat. I want my jaw to hurt. I want my throat sore, and I’ll take every bit of it with a smile because he’s all I need, and if I can have him this way, I know I’ll be okay.
He pushes his jeans down his thighs, and I fall to my knees before him. He looks down at me with a clenched jaw and hungry eyes. I swear I can see flames dancing in them.
With my eyes on his, I wrap one hand around his shaft as I place the tip between my lips, causing a hissing sound to escape his mouth. He watches me like I’m the most captivating thing he’s ever seen. The deeper I take him, the shakier his legs become. When my lips hit the base, he moves one hand out, placing it against the door to support him. The other tangles into my hair, moving my head forward and back at the pace that pleases him the most.
“You better never fucking leave me again. You hear me?”
I nod as best I can. I can’t respond at all; he takes up all of my mouth with his large girth.
He lets out a powerful moan before pulling away completely. “I can’t take another moment of this shit. I need to fuck you right now,” he says, picking me up against him as we fall onto the bed with me beneath him.
One roll of his hips has him sliding into me. We both let out a relieved moan as he pushes deeper, harder. The headboard knocks against the wall hard, and I hear the sound of the plaster peppering the hardwood floor, but he doesn’t stop or pause. He just pulls out and thrusts so hard into me that it feels like I’m being ripped in half. Pain ripples through my body and I call out, but he silences me with a hard kiss. Instead of pulling back out right away, he grinds into me, rubbing that perfect spot and my clit at the same time. Without warni
ng, a building orgasm rips through me, and I can’t do anything but moan and whimper into his mouth.
“Fuck,” he mumbles against my lips. “So good,” he says, quickly pulling out just to push into me again. The headboard rattles loudly, and the neighbor bangs on the wall.
I jump from the loud shout coming from the other side. “We should quiet down,” I whisper.
“Fuck that,” he grinds out between clenched teeth as he keeps going, harder, faster. I can’t hear anything but the headboard hitting the wall, the sounds of our skin smacking together, the squeak of the mattress beneath us, and the sounds that escape both our mouths. We both finish with a loud groan that I know the neighbors will hear.
He collapses on top of me, panting and breathing heavily. His heart is pounding so damn hard I can feel it against my own chest. His skin is littered with beads of sweat ready to roll down his skin. And as happy as I am right now, all I can do is hold him against me as tears slide out the corner of my eyes.
I suck in a large gulp of air, hoping that he doesn’t notice the tears, but he lifts his head and wipes them away.
“Talk to me.”
I shake my head and giggle. “I’m just being stupid.”
“Did I hurt you? I know it was rough, but I thought you liked it that way. Fuck, baby, I’m sorry if I did something—”
“No, you didn’t do anything. It was perfect. I’m just…”
“What?” he asks, pulling out of me and settling at my side.
“I’m just so happy and relieved. I thought I’d lost you forever. I wouldn’t have blamed you. I was being my crazy, stupid self, the girl who has to ruin everything. Please forgive me.” I place my hand on his jaw and look into his blue eyes.
“There’s nothing to forgive, Deven. You were right.”
“What?” That catches me off guard.
“You were right. We can’t be ourselves like this. We have to tell Brad.”
Best Friend's Sister (Slade Brothers Book 5) Page 12