Best Friend's Sister (Slade Brothers Book 5)

by Alexis Winter

  I fight against this person, not even caring who it is. Nobody is going to stop me from killing him, not after what he’s done.

  “Hudson! Stop, man. It’s me!” Brad yells as I fight to get him off of me.

  Finally, my vision, blurred from rage, begins to focus again and I see Brad on top of me. I stop trying to fight against him.

  “What the fuck is going on?” he asks, getting up off of me.

  I make my way to my feet and see Deven still on the bed, wrapped in the sheet as tears stream down her face.

  “What the fuck does it look like?” I ask, moving to her and wrapping her in my arms. “Shhh, you’re fine. He won’t ever touch you again,” I promise her.

  Brad looks from us to Marco, who’s passed out on the floor, and back. A woman walks into the room and takes us all in. She gasps when she sees her boyfriend unconscious on the floor. “What happened?” she asks, rushing to him. She tries to sit him up, but all he can do is moan.

  “Mom,” Brad says, bending down to her level. “I think Marco was trying to force himself on Deven,” he says softly so Deven doesn’t overhear, not wanting to cause her any more grief than what she’s already going through.

  “What? No, that isn’t possible,” the woman argues.

  They whisper back and forth while I tend to Deven, but the old lady won’t listen to what’s right in front of her face. I finally lose my temper and turn to face her. “Look around! Deven didn’t come on to him all those months ago. He tried coming on to her, and when she pushed him away, his pride was hurt. He lied to you, and you believed him over your own daughter. And what’s even better is you brought her attacker to her doorstep today. Then you left him alone with her. When I walked in, he was seconds away from taking something from her that she could never have back. Is that something you think you can believe? If not, get the fuck out. Deven doesn’t need you anyway. She has everything she needs right here. Her real family.” I turn back to Deven after leaving the lady speechless. “Come on. Let’s get you home.” I pick her up against me with her clothes in my hand. “Brad, call the police. We’re pressing charges on that asshole.” I walk out of the room, carrying her to the bathroom to help her get dressed.

  I set her on the sink and wet a rag to wash her face, which is covered in tears and smeared makeup. I cup her face with both my hands, leveling her eyes on mine. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Do you need to see a doctor?”

  She shakes her head. “He was so close,” she cries out.

  “I know,” I reply, pulling her to my chest and hugging her hard. “I’m sorry it took me so long to get here.” I can taste the acid in my mouth that’s bubbled up from my anger. It makes my chest tighten and every muscle harden.

  “It’s not your fault, Hudson. You can’t be with me every minute of every day,” she replies, holding her hand out for her shorts.

  I give them to her and then tug my T-shirt over my head and hand it over. She shrugs out of the ripped shirt and replaces it with mine.

  I place my hand under her chin. “I need you to trust me. You know I’d never hurt you.”

  She nods and presses her lips to mine, kissing me deeply, passionately. I get lost in her time and time again and I never care to find my way back out. I’d live in her if I could.

  “I love you, Hudson,” she whispers against my lips.

  “I love you too, baby.” I kiss her again and again, afraid to take my lips off her. This is the only thing that holds my anger at bay

  The rest of the day is spent talking to the police, giving our statements, and watching as Marco is walked out in handcuffs. Deven’s mom is beside herself, but part of me wonders if she’s upset because she lost her money train or if she’s mad at herself for not believing Deven and for not being able to protect her. Either way, I don’t stick around to ask. As soon as we’re free to go, I take Deven back to our room and lock the door.

  I draw us a hot bubble bath and I hold her closer as we sit quietly, relaxing and trying to forget our day. I can tell that she’s doing nothing but sitting there, reliving her day, and I want to distract her from the pain that memory brings on.

  “I’m thinking a winter wedding,” I say, kissing her shoulder.

  “What?” she asks, looking over at me.

  “A winter wedding. We could get married in the snow and have a horse-drawn carriage. What do you think of that?”

  She giggles. “You want to plan our wedding now? You haven’t even asked me to marry you yet.”

  “Good point,” I say, placing my hands on her hips beneath the water and spinning her around to face me. “Deven Danielle Oslen,” I start and she giggles. “I’ve spent my life living one day at a time, accomplishing one goal at a time. I never looked to the future and I never saw myself settling down…until I met you. What was supposed to be a one-night thing turned into me wishing for you every single night until I couldn’t resist you any longer. I’ve never had anything in my life that I couldn’t turn away or walk away from until you. You came into my life like a shooting star. You were bright and captured my attention from the first time my eyes landed on you. Your beauty overshadowed everything, and before I knew it, you were gone and leaving me wondering how I could live without you. And that’s when I realized that I couldn’t. I don’t ever want to spend a day when you’re not in my life. Will you please marry me?”

  Tears fill her eyes and slowly fall down her cheeks. Her bottom lip quivers, but she keeps her mouth clamped shut, trying to control it. Without a word, she nods her head up and down. “I would love to,” she finally whispers, making her way into my lap.

  My hands pull her closer as my lips find hers, kissing her hard like she’s everything I need to survive. My hands make their way over her hips and up her back. Her back arches, causing her chest to press against mine. Her hard nipples graze my chest, tickling and teasing. My hand travel further, up to her damp hair, where they tangle into the silky smooth locks, keeping her mouth against mine like she’s the air I need to breathe.

  I want to carry her to bed and bury myself in her all night long, but after the day she’s had, I’m afraid to. I’m not sure if she’s ready for that.

  She breaks our kiss and looks deep into my eyes. “Take me to bed, Hudson,” she whispers, answering me unasked question.

  I place my hands under her ass to support her weight and then stand with her against me. The water drips off both our bodies as I step out of the tub and carry her to bed. We fall down to the mattress, and the sheets stick to our wet bodies, but that doesn’t stop us. My girl knows exactly what she wants as she rolls us over so she’s on top. Within seconds, she’s sliding down my hard cock with her hands on my chest and her lips on mine. She rises up, then slides back down, grinding against me. My hand finds its way between us, and as she rides me, I rub tight little circles around her clit. She’s memorizing to watch as she rides out her release on top of me, her plump lips parted with her heavy breathing, her eyes closed, dark lashes fanned out across her cheeks. Her brows are pulled together in concentration, the way my name falls from her lips again and again. Before I know it, I’m rolling us over and giving her everything I have. I don’t have a choice. Watching her made me lose myself. All I can feel is my all-consuming love for her.

  I grind against her for what feels like two seconds before I’m seeing stars of my own. I pull out and thrust back inside her with enough force to move her up the bed, and she lets out a moan that sends a shock straight to my dick.

  “Oh, fuck, Deven,” I moan as I’m pushing back into her body.

  Her hand moves up and lands on my jaw, and my eyes open, locking on hers. I get lost in her eyes and have no choice but to empty myself inside her. After I ride out every last wave of my orgasm, I rest my head against her chest. Her hands wrap around me, holding me to her. I listen to the way her lungs work to pump oxygen in and out. I listen to the way her heart races. All of it grounds me, and I know as long as I have her, I won’t need anything else.

&
nbsp; In the morning, I wake early and get dressed quietly as to not wake her. I quickly write out a note that I leave on my pillow, telling her that I’ll be right back and not to worry. I step out of our room and lock the door behind me, heading for the truck.

  I spend my morning ring shopping. I stop at every jewelry store in the area before venturing out into the city. I don’t find the perfect one until it’s pushing ten a.m., four hours after I left the room. I wonder if she’s awake yet, but I hope that she’s not. I’d like to surprise her. The ring I end up getting is a three-carat princess-cut diamond on a thick silver band. I know it will probably look huge on her tiny little finger, but my girl deserves the best, and that’s exactly what I’m going to give her. The man wraps the box up and I set it on the passenger seat of the truck before driving home.

  On the drive, I can’t keep my eyes off that box. Excitement courses though me at the thought of sliding it onto her finger and making her mine forever. I can’t help but dream about how our lives could be. I see myself building a house out on my family’s property, something big enough to support our growing family, but not too big that it feels empty when the kids grow up and move out. I can see the kids running and playing in the backyard while I work on an old engine in the garage and Deven works in the garden out back. I see us celebrating holidays and family birthdays there. I see the kids growing up and one by one leaving for college or to start their own lives. I see us growing old together. I know I made the right decision. There’s not a doubt in my mind.

  I swing by the bakery and get a box of muffins and two coffees before heading back to our room. Before going in, I grab my phone and make an appointment for us later today before taking everything inside. Walking in and closing the door causes her to wake up. I thought she’d be up by now, so I made no attempts at being quiet.

  Her dark eyes lock on mine, and I offer up a nervous smile. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were still asleep.”

  She gives me a sleepy smile as she sits up, holding the sheet to her naked chest. “It’s fine. I’ve slept too long as it is. I guess you really wore me out last night.”

  That makes me smile as I place everything down on the table. “I got us muffins and coffee for breakfast.”

  “Mmmm, that sounds amazing. I’ve starving.” She goes to get up, but I fall to my knee beside the bed. She looks down at me, confused, until I show her the box I’m hiding behind my back.

  Her mouth drops open. “You didn’t have to do this, Hudson.”

  “I didn’t have to buy my fiancée an engagement ring?”

  “No. I mean, as long as we know what we are, why do I need a ring?”

  I open the box and pick up the ring, showing it to her. She gasps at the beauty. “Because you’re mine and you deserve the best of everything,” I tell her, sliding the ring onto her finger.

  She holds her hand out, watching as she moves her hand from side to side. “This is perfect,” she whispers. “Thank you.” Her eyes fill with tears as she looks over at me and wraps her arms around my neck.

  “Thank you,” I reply, hugging her tightly. “I actually have another surprise for you this afternoon.”

  She pulls back slightly, just enough so she can look me in the eye. “Another surprise? Hudson, this is enough. Seriously. I don’t need diamonds and money. I’ve gone my whole life without that stuff. I just need you.”

  “I know you don’t need anything I can give you, but that’s not going to stop me. You deserve the world, and I’m going to give you any damn thing I want. Understand?”

  She smiles but rolls her eyes and nods.

  “Now, come on. Out of bed. Let’s eat breakfast then you can get ready and we’ll head out for our appointment.”

  “Appointment?” she asks, standing up and moving to the table beside the bed. “What kind of appointment?”

  I laugh. “Nice try. It’s a surprise, remember?”

  Her eyes start to roll, but they stop the moment I respond. “If you don’t stop rolling those eyes, I’m going to have to teach you a lesson.” My voice is deep and stern, but my lips give me away when they form into a smile.

  The corners of her mouth lift slightly in a challenge. “Oh, really? And how are you going to punish me? I have a feeling I may like it.”

  I shake my head. “Eat your muffin. If you don’t watch yourself, the next time you walk out of here, you’ll be pregnant.”

  “Ha!” She laughs out, stuffing her mouth full of muffin.

  The two of us eat our muffins and drink our coffee while making wedding plans that aren’t set in stone. They’re more like suggestions or ideas of what we could do, where we could have it, and where we can go on our honeymoon. It’s a few minutes spent together planning our future and just knowing that I’ll have her in my life forever makes my heart race and my excitement soar.

  I never had my life planned out. I never wanted to think about what the future held, preferring to see where life took me. But now, there’s so many things I’m already planning that my mind is an endless circle of the steps I need to take to make sure we end up there. Everything from the wedding, to where we’ll live, to having kids, to how we’ll look as we grow old together—it’s all on an endless loop playing in the back of my mind.

  After we eat, I clean up while she goes for a shower to get ready to head out. She doesn’t step out of the bathroom for an hour, but when she does, I get one look at her and I’m ready to undo all her hard work. She’s wearing a pair of skimpy jean shorts with the brown leather sandals she seems to love so much. Her long, tanned legs tease me as she bends over and rubs lotion up and down them, making them glisten. Her white T-shirt is cropped short, cutting off just above her teardrop-shaped belly button. Her long, black hair is straight and shiny as it hangs to the round ass I love so much. Her face has minimal makeup, only some shiny lip gloss and some mascara, making her long, dark lashes that much more striking as they surround her chocolate-colored eyes.

  I stand from my spot at the table and march toward her. She senses where this is going, and she raises her lotion-covered hand up between us, stopping me in my tracks. She knows how much I hate the feeling of having anything slippery or greasy on my skin. I hate the stuff on my body, but I love it on hers.

  “Oh, no. If we’re going to get out of here, we don’t have time for this.” She’s wearing a wide smile, her eyes shimmering. Her tone is serious, but I can tell she would totally be done to say fuck it and spend the rest of the day locked in this room with me.

  “If you don’t want me attacking you like this, then you need to be more careful of how you look.”

  She laughs. “I’m wearing a ratty T-shirt and shorts. I don’t look great. You’re just insatiable.”

  I grin and send her a wink. “Only when it comes to you,” I say, reaching out and grabbing her by the wrist as I pull her to my chest. My lips land on hers, and after a whole five seconds, I’m lost in her.

  She pushes me away. “Come on. Give me my surprise.”

  I growl but go chasing out the door after her.

  14

  Deven

  We load up into Hudson’s old, beat-up truck, and he starts driving us out through the country. I have no idea where we’re going and I know better than to ask. He won’t tell me anyway. Instead of trying to guess his surprise, mostly because there’s no way I could possibly ever guess what in the world could be way out here, I sit back and watch the land as we speed down the old dirt road.

  The windows are open, and the fresh air is blowing through the cab of the truck, picking up strands of my hair and whipping them around me and Hudson both. I hear him spit and I laugh, knowing that the wind blew my hair right into his mouth. I gather it all up in one hand and pull it over my shoulder where I hold it down. It’s going to be impossible to tear a brush through it later.

  The sun is high in the sky, shining down on the field full of yellow wildflowers around us. When I breathe in, all I smell is the sweet scent of the flowers, the dry earth, and
the pine trees surrounding the field. I close my eyes and enjoy the feeling of the sunshine warming my skin, the wind on my face, and the sweet smell surrounding us. Hudson reaches over and takes my hand in his. My eyes pop open and take him in. He really is breathtaking. Everything from his messy dark hair, to his striking blue eyes, his sharp jaw, strong chin, and thick lips that can work magic. His hand is on the top of the wheel, and his bicep is bulging from his T-shirt sleeve. I know if he wasn’t wearing that shirt right now, I’d have full view of toned pecs and a nice set of abs. My mouth waters just from thinking about his body on mine.

  “Stop it,” he says, tearing me from my thoughts.

  “Stop what?” I ask, confused as to what I am doing.

  “You’re checking me out and you’re getting all flustered. I will pull this truck to the side of the road, you know,” he threatens.

  “Don’t threaten me with a good time,” I throw back, hoping he does exactly as he says.

  “Just wait,” he says, driving forward just a little more before slowing down. He pulls into an empty field and shifts into park before shutting off the truck.

  Oh, yippie! I unfasten my seatbelt and within a second, I’m in his lap, straddling him. I press my lips to his and kiss him like I haven’t seen him in years. Already, I’m breathless from this kiss, and my hips start grinding against his. He lets out a moan as his hands tighten on my hips, stilling them.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask, pulling away slightly, giving him room to talk.

  One second later, another truck is pulling up behind us.

  “That’s what’s wrong,” he says, playfully smacking me on the ass.

  I take his hint and slide myself off of him and onto the middle of the bench seat. He opens his door and climbs out, holding out his hand for me. I take it, and he helps me out. I’m closing the door as a man approaches.