by Susan Stoker
“Actually, it’s kinda crazy,” Alexis said. “After everything that happened, he decided he wanted to do something different with his life. He quit the firm and applied to work on a cruise ship.”
“What? Seriously?” Grace asked, her mouth hanging open.
“Yup.”
“But, he was one of the best architects in Colorado . . . maybe even in the United States,” Grace protested.
“I know. But he said his heart wasn’t in it anymore and he wanted to do something different. His ultimate goal is to be a cruise director, and he’s excited about the opportunity,” Alexis told Grace and the others.
“Jeez, I feel like it’s my fault,” Grace said, wringing her hands in front of her.
“No! Please don’t,” Alexis begged, almost sorry she’d said anything. “I haven’t seen him so excited about anything in a long time. It’ll be good for him to do something different . . . besides, he’s already told me he met someone . . . one of the dancers from the ship. Denver is so conservative; I think he gave up on finding the right guy for him around here who wasn’t after him only for his money. I can totally relate to that.”
“Will you give me his e-mail address so I can write him?” Grace asked.
“Of course,” Alexis told her, nodding enthusiastically. “He’d like that.”
“What I’d like is to get something to eat,” Nathan cut in. “I’m starving.”
Everyone laughed. “You’re always hungry,” Blake teased, hitting his brother in the arm lightly.
“I think we should try the new place that just opened up where my parents’ business used to be,” Grace said firmly, holding up a hand when Logan went to protest. “I know you think it’s too fast, and I’ll have some sort of flashback if I walk in there, but I’m fine. Seriously, Logan. I’ll be there with my husband, his brothers, and my newest friend. Nothing’s going to go wrong.” She sounded like she’d had the conversation with Logan in the recent past.
Logan wrapped his arm around his wife and squeezed her waist, putting his other hand on her belly. “All right, but if you start to feel weird, let me know, and we’ll go.”
Grace rolled her eyes and put her hand over her husband’s on her belly. “It’ll be fine. Come on, let’s feed your brother before he starts gnawing off his arm.”
Everyone chuckled again, and they headed out of the office and started down the sidewalk to the new restaurant. It was the Italian place, which had already gotten rave reviews by the Denver Chronicle, called Scarpetti’s.
Since it was a weekday, the place wasn’t crowded, and they were able to be seated right away. The evening was filled with laughter and teasing and a comfort level Alexis hadn’t felt in a long time. She felt as though she finally had a group of friends who were with her because of who she was, not because of who her parents were or what was in her bank account.
All had gone well with dinner, until after they’d had dessert and they were sitting around chatting, laughing, and drinking a final cup of coffee.
A group of men and women seated across the aisle a couple of tables down had obviously been enjoying a few glasses of wine with their dinner. Their voices had risen until they could easily be heard in the half-full restaurant.
“I can’t believe she has the nerve to eat here, especially after what her family did.”
“I have no idea why she’s sitting with Alexis Grant after she was in those pictures with her brother.”
“Right? It makes no sense. You’d think she wouldn’t want anything to do with her.”
“It looks like they both enjoy slumming it. The Anderson brothers must be good in bed; why else would they have anything do with those white-trash boys?”
“I don’t care how unattractive the women are; I’d do ’em if it meant getting my hands on their money.”
Alexis was about to turn around and let them know that Logan, Blake, and Nathan Anderson were ten times the people they were, but, surprisingly, it was Nathan who beat her to it. He pushed back his chair so hard it almost toppled behind him and stomped over to the other table.
Alexis looked at Blake in alarm. She hadn’t ever seen the youngest Anderson brother look quite so angry.
“Maybe you should—”
Blake interrupted Alexis before she could finish her thought. “Don’t worry. Nathan has this. I almost feel sorry for those people.” Blake leaned back completely relaxed and put his arm on the back of Alexis’s chair, not bothering to turn around and watch his brother lambast the patrons at the other table.
“You think Grace Anderson shouldn’t step foot into the building her parents forced her to work at?” Nathan’s voice rang out in the restaurant. The contempt easy to hear in his voice and easy to see in his stiff stance. “Grace and Alexis have more goodness in their little pinkies than you four have combined. You might look at them as if they’re money signs, but they’re beautiful women who I wish had found my brothers years ago. And you know what? If you must know, we are good in bed.”
“Look, man, I don’t think—” one of the men began, but Nathan cut him off.
“That’s right, you’re not thinking. You’re in a public restaurant gossiping loudly about people you don’t know. If you think we aren’t the kinds of men who will stand up for our women, you’re wrong. We’re all fully aware of what people around here think about us, but we came back here to try to help our community anyway. If you’ll excuse me, we’ve had all we can stomach of the atmosphere around here.” And with that final word, Nathan stomped toward the door of the restaurant, pulling it open and disappearing into the night.
“Come on,” Blake said, helping Alexis stand with a hand at her elbow.
Logan did the same with Grace, making a point to peel off a couple of hundred-dollar bills and drop them on the table before he left.
Alexis glared at the foursome as she walked by and was pretty sure Grace did the same. Logan had a word with the hostess, who nodded energetically and took the business card he held out to her.
When they exited the restaurant, Alexis was surprised when Grace giggled softly.
“Seriously, Logan, I love Nathan. I wish we could’ve gotten the looks on those people’s faces on tape when he lit into them.”
They slowly walked back toward Ace Security. “Does he do that a lot?” Alexis asked no one in particular.
“You have to understand something about my brother,” Logan told her. “He couldn’t care less if someone bad-mouths him. You could tease him all day long. Call him names, swear at him, whatever. It wouldn’t faze him. Growing up, me and Blake were in awe with the way he could ignore our mom’s rants against him. It was as if he didn’t even hear her. But the second someone says something bad about a person he deems more vulnerable than him, he turns into a completely different kind of man.”
Logan continued. “I remember one day at school he took on three fifth-grade boys, even though he was only in the second. They were taunting a third-grade girl, telling her she was stupid and ugly, and they’d knocked her books out of her hands. She was crying and trying to get around them, but they’d surrounded her and were poking at her. Nathan didn’t even hesitate. He calmly walked up to them and started to wail on them.”
“Holy crap, what happened?” Alexis asked, eyes wide.
Blake answered from her right side. “The girl ran away, perfectly unharmed. And Nathan got beat up pretty good . . . at least until we joined the fight.”
Logan laughed. “Yeah, we might’ve been three years younger than the other boys were, and smaller, but we’d had plenty of practice avoiding my mom’s fists by that time, so we were able to hold our own.”
“Did you guys get in trouble?” Grace asked, clearly not having heard this story before.
“Nope. The other boys were too ashamed to admit they’d been beaten by a bunch of second graders.”
“And the girl?” Alexis asked.
Blake shrugged. “She had a crush on Nathan until they were in high school, I think, but he didn
’t even seem to notice her. He hadn’t done it because he liked her; he’d done it because it was the right thing to do.” He brought the conversation back around to what had happened that night. “So he would’ve sat there all night and listened to those idiots talk smack about the three of us. He wouldn’t have cared, but the second they started in on you two, he was done.”
They’d reached the doors to Ace Security, and the lights were on inside. “Should we check on him?” Alexis asked.
Logan shook his head. “No, he’s fine. I promise. If you brought it up, you’d only embarrass him. Besides, he’s probably already neck-deep in whatever it was he was doing before dinner.”
“He’s trying to find Donovan’s ex-girlfriend,” Alexis told Logan and Blake. “He asked me to help because he’s better with numbers than with online searches.”
“I’ll set up a Google alert in the next few days and see if I can’t help him,” Blake told the others. “I know him; it’ll drive him crazy that he doesn’t really know how to go about finding her.” He then leaned over and brushed Alexis’s hair behind her ear. “You ready to go home?”
She turned into him and pressed her belly against his hips, feeling his solid length against her. “Yes.” Alexis looked over at Grace and Logan, but they weren’t listening to anything they were saying as they walked arm in arm toward the parking lot. So she stood on her tiptoes, looked Blake in the eye, and whispered, “I want you to make love to me in my bed.”
A huge smile burst forth across Blake’s face, and she could feel his erection hardening against her as he asked, “You’ve still got that vibrator you like to use?”
Blushing now, Alexis nodded shyly.
“Good. I want to watch you get yourself off, then I’ll show you how much better my cock can be.”
“I already know it’s better,” Alexis protested. “There’s no comparison.”
“Damn straight,” Blake said, turning her toward the parking lot. “The sooner we get out of here, the sooner we can get into your bed.”
Feeling the dampness between her legs, Alexis knew it was going to be a long ride back up to Denver. But at least she wasn’t going alone. Blake would be with her.
When they got to their cars, Alexis turned to Grace to say good-bye and was surprised when the other woman held out her arms and brought her into a hug. It was a bit awkward with Grace’s pregnant belly between them, but it’d been a long time since Alexis had felt such honest emotion from another woman.
“We need to do this again, soon,” Grace told her. “Maybe you’d like to come out with me and Felicity sometime?” Grace swung her hand in the air indicating the downtown area. “I know she’d love you.”
“Sure, that sounds great,” Alexis told her, smiling.
“Cool. I’ll text you.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
They hugged once more briefly, and Logan helped Grace settle into the passenger side of his truck and waved at his brother and Alexis as he got into the driver’s side and pulled out of the lot.
“You ready to go?” Blake asked.
Alexis nodded. They settled into his Mustang, and Alexis said, “I had a good time tonight. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. For what it’s worth, I love seeing you hang out with my family. It feels . . . comfortable.”
Alexis knew exactly what he meant. “It does.”
“That being said, it’s been way too long since I’ve seen you naked.”
Alexis burst out laughing. “Blake, it’s only been like five hours.”
“As I said, it’s been too long.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “I thought anticipation was good for the soul.”
“Nope. Not at all. Whoever said that didn’t have a woman he wanted more than he wanted to breathe,” Blake retorted with a smile.
Alexis loved their banter. She totally hadn’t pegged Blake as the kind of man who could so easily make her laugh, especially after how serious he’d been when they’d worked together for all those months, but she definitely liked this side of him.
“How are you feeling?” he asked seriously. “You okay after everything we went over today?”
“I’m okay, Blake. I won’t see them again, so I’m good.”
The sexy, flirty smile reappeared on his face. “And your pussy? Still tender?”
“Blake!” Alexis protested, punching him lightly in the arm.
“Well?” he returned, the glint of lust easy to see in his eyes. “I need to know how I’m gonna make love to you tonight. If you’re still sore, I’ll go nice and easy, like I did last night. But if you’re not, then maybe I’ll fuck you hard and fast, then make love to you tenderly and slowly.”
His words made Alexis squirm in her seat. Good Lord, the man was lethal. “I’m not sore,” she told him, knowing she was blushing but wanting to feel him lose control so badly.
“Good. Then a hard fucking before we make love it is.”
She licked her lips and glanced down at Blake’s crotch. Holy crap, it looked like he was as turned on as she was by their conversation.
“And if you keep licking your lips, we might not even make it to your apartment,” Blake told her. “It’s a mighty long elevator ride, after all.”
She giggled then. “I had no idea sex could be fun,” she told him seriously, but with the smile still on her face. “I like it.”
“Me too, sweetheart. I have a feeling it’ll be a long time before having you in my arms gets boring.”
“I hope so.”
“I know so,” he confirmed. “Now, how about we change the subject so my cock can calm down before I have to present myself to your doorman?”
Alexis wasn’t sure she really wanted to talk about something else, but took pity on Blake. She only had to worry about damp panties, so her arousal wasn’t literally sticking out there for everyone to see.
Alexis changed the subject, talking about her brother’s new job, what she’d found out about Donovan’s ex-girlfriend—which was nothing—and her favorites foods.
By the time Blake pulled up to her apartment, she’d almost forgotten his plans for her that night . . . almost.
Many hours later, after she’d masturbated with her vibrator for Blake, and after he’d shown her the difference between making love and getting fucked, Alexis lay boneless and replete in his arms, listening to him breathing deeply. She was almost afraid to think it, but her life was absolutely perfect.
Chapter Fifteen
The next three weeks were the best of Alexis’s life. She spent almost every waking hour with Blake, and they’d slept together every night. They didn’t always make love, but cuddling up with Blake’s arm holding her tight to his chest was almost just as good as having sex. Almost.
They spent most of their time in Castle Rock at his house, and working. She went with him to Colorado Springs for a few jobs, once again being the lookout for an abusive ex while Blake was inside the courthouse with the client.
She continued to do research for Ace Security. She managed to pop into the Rock Hard Gym and meet both Cole and Felicity. She liked them immediately. Felicity was outspoken, covered in tattoos, and obviously a staunch supporter of Grace’s. Cole was taller than Blake, but his smile made her feel at ease immediately.
Alexis had also exchanged quite a few texts with Grace. It felt good to have someone she could shoot a note off to about nothing in particular without feeling as if Grace were reciprocating simply because she wanted something.
Alexis was happier than she’d been in a long time. She’d found a group of people who enjoyed being around her, and who didn’t expect her to pay for everything. As much as it annoyed her that Blake and his bothers straight-up refused to let her pay her way, it secretly felt good.
Today she was headed back to her apartment. Blake was driving up later, after escorting a man to his attorney’s office for a court-ordered mediation session. His wife, who he was in the process of divorcing, wasn’t handling the separation well an
d had threatened him on more than one occasion.
Alexis was more than happy to let Blake handle that job on his own. Pissed-off men seemed less scary to her than out-of-control women. Maybe it was because she’d seen a side of Kelly that scared the hell out of her or because of stories Blake had told her about his mother and how she’d beat him when he was little. But whatever it was, Blake had obviously realized how she felt and hadn’t even asked her to tag along.
She needed to do some laundry and pick up a few more clothes. She hadn’t exactly moved into Blake’s house, but it was close. She had a second set of toiletries in his bathroom, his kitchen was stocked with food she liked to eat, and Blake had cleared part of his closet and his drawers for her to put some clothes away. He had a few things at her apartment, but since they spent most of their time in Castle Rock, it made more sense for her to stay at his place.
Tomorrow they were going back down to Castle Rock early in the morning. Blake had an appointment with a lawn guy. He wanted to replace the dead and weed-filled grass that he hadn’t had any luck in resurrecting with sod to try to start anew. His parents had never taken care of the lawn, and he’d admitted to her that he wanted his own kids to be able to play outside and not have to worry about noxious weeds.
Alexis was proud of herself that she hadn’t even flinched at his mention of kids, but the lusty look in his eye told her that he was thinking of the making of babies . . . with her. Grace might’ve gotten pregnant right away, but Alexis wasn’t anywhere near ready for that step. Eventually she wanted kids, but she was selfish enough to want to have Blake to herself for a long while. He’d have to be content with being an uncle for a few years.
Alexis drove her Mercedes up to the front of her apartment building and with a smile handed her keys over to the valet. She headed toward the revolving door, also smiling in greeting at Osman, but stopped in her tracks when she saw Kelly standing off to the side. She looked awful. She had a huge black eye and her blonde hair was in disarray. She wore a pair of black sweat pants and a T-shirt. It was a tight shirt, and Alexis could see that she still wasn’t wearing a bra, but the outfit wasn’t something she thought the other woman would be caught dead in.