“This is lovely.”
I sit, and Chase opens a compartment and pulls out a blanket. Sitting next to me, he drapes it across us both and puts his arm around me.
“In the daylight, this is one of my favorite spots. I like to sit here and take in the view. Tonight, with you, it’s all the better.”
Looking up into his eyes, I’m mesmerized. Chase grazes his lips across mine, but this time, I’m ready. Reaching up, I hold him to me and deepen the kiss. Chase responds by dragging me across his lap so I end up straddling him. His hands go to my ass, then travel up my spine.
I’m lost in his kiss.
I’m lost in him.
Chase Kelly is Chicago’s most eligible bachelor, and he wants me.
“Isabelle, we need to stop.” His forehead is resting against mine, and his voice sounds strained. I press my lips to his and dip my tongue into his mouth.
Chase’s hands go under my jacket and t-shirt, and I gasp as his icy hands rest on my waist. Then he pulls back from me, his large hands flatten themselves on my ribcage, and he holds me back. “We need to stop, or I’m not going to be able to. Do you understand?”
I nod, but I want him. My body wants him.
His fingertips trace patterns on my skin, his mouth opens, and I lower my mouth to his. With a growl, he digs his nails into me, then crushes me to him. Roughly, one of his hands moves to my breast, and he squeezes, tweaking my nipple, causing me to yelp.
Chase mistakes my cry of pain for one of pleasure. “I need to fuck you.”
His comment, along with my sore breast, is like a bucket of cold water. I pull back from him, but his hands go to my jeans to undo them.
“Wait.”
Chase smiles. “I told you if we went any further, I wouldn’t be able to stop.”
“We’re outside, and it’s cold.”
“That didn’t seem to bother you a moment ago.”
Chase moves swiftly, laying me on the bench as he tugs at my jeans.
“Chase, someone could see us.” My hands go to his, and he stops trying to undress me.
Chase looks around, a smile on his lips, then he gazes down at me. “We’re all alone out here.” He grabs his cock. “I’m so hard for you right now. Come on, Isabelle, let’s have some fun. I’ll make this good for you, I promise.”
Someone clears their throat, and Chase turns his head.
“I’m sorry to disturb you, Mr. Kelly, but the captain wants to know if you’d like to head back?”
Chase sits back on his heels and smiles down at me. “Saved by the bell.” He winks, then stands. “Yes, tell him to head back.”
With his back to me, I pull up my jeans, stand, and turn around to do them up. I can’t see the other person, but I’m fairly certain it’s Celeste.
Chase’s arms surround me. “Are you okay?”
“Would you have kept going?”
“No, absolutely not.” Chase turns me around. “I’m as hard as fuck right now, but I’d never do anything you didn’t want to do.” He kisses my forehead. “Come on, let’s go eat dessert.”
Chase was the perfect gentleman for the rest of the evening—attentive, polite, and charming.
The yacht has just docked, and he’s chatting with the captain while I stand outside waiting for the crew to tie off the Mary-Lou.
Celeste comes out and smiles at me.
“Thank you for a wonderful dinner.”
Celeste nods. “It was my pleasure.” She glances over her shoulder, then looks back at me. “Did I interrupt something outside?”
My face flushes red. “No.” I look down at the deck, then shake my head. “No. It’s early days for us. I got a little carried away.”
“You got a little carried away?”
I nod and shrug. “Yeah.”
Thankfully, Chase comes out and wraps an arm around my waist. “Are you ready to go?” he asks.
I move out of his embrace and hold my hand out to Celeste. “Thank you again. It was a lovely night.”
Celeste puts her hand in mine and smiles. “Our pleasure, Miss Jones. We hope to see you again soon.”
Chase puts his arm around me and guides me toward the dock. Together, we walk back to my car as the wind whips my hair around.
“Thank you for tonight. It was interesting.”
Chase fakes a heart attack and clutches his chest, and I burst out laughing.
“Interesting?”
“It was nice.”
“Geez, this isn’t getting any better. Here I was thinking the yacht and dinner would impress you.”
“Chase, I don’t need a boat or dinner. I like you. You’re impressive. I don’t need all the trimmings.”
Chase puts a hand on either side of me on my car.
“You’re impressive. I’ve never met anyone quite like you.”
Chase lowers his head and his lips brush mine. “Night, Isabelle. I’ll be calling you.” He backs away from me, hands in his pockets, looking like a chaste schoolboy.
Unlocking my car, I open the door and get in. “Night, Chase.”
“I’ll be calling.” He smiles at me and nods.
I wink at him, put the car in reverse, then drive away.
If I’d been smarter, I would never have seen Chase Kelly again.
Isabelle
I’ve been seeing Chase for three months. It’s like a fairytale. Tonight, there’s a big party at his parents’ estate, and I’m going as his guest. I haven’t met any of his family yet. Chase is big on telling me he’s a self-made man, but a part of me thinks it must be easy with a wealthy family to fall back on.
The dress I’m wearing came in a box with a card from Chase.
‘For the Belle of the ball.’
It’s red, floor-length, figure-hugging with spaghetti straps and a deep ‘V’ in the back. He even sent me a pair of matching red six-inch heels. My cell phone rings, and I pick it up. It’s my sister, Charlotte.
“Hey, gorgeous girl, what’s up?”
There’s an intake of breath and then sobbing.
“Charlotte, honey, what’s wrong?”
“I-Isabelle, T-Tommy was mean to me.”
“I’m coming. Okay, honey. I’m coming.”
“D-Don’t hang up.”
“I won’t, honey.” Picking up my clutch and keys, I head for the door. “Tell me what happened.”
Tommy is in charge of the group home where Charlotte lives. It’s an apartment building donated to the city for the express use as a home for those with disabilities or intellectually impaired. The residents are taught how to live alone, get jobs, and be self-sufficient. The rent they pay is minimal, and I cover Charlotte’s for her. Not that she knows that. The money she thinks she’s paying for rent goes into a fund so that one day, she’ll have enough money not to worry. Well, that’s the plan for her.
“He yelled at me!”
Unlocking my car, I climb in and start it. “Why, honey?”
“Are you coming?”
“Tell me why Tommy yelled at you.”
Charlotte sniffles. “He’s mean.”
“Lottie, I’m on my way. I’ll be there soon, but you need to tell me the why.”
Charlotte sniffles. “I-I had a friend over.”
“Okay. Well, Tommy doesn’t normally get mad if you have friends over.”
She sniffles some more and whispers, “His name is Brandon. He’s nice and lives down the block.”
Charlotte might look and sound like an adult, but she has the mental age of a teenager. Over the years, she’s gotten pretty good at faking it, but the longer you speak to her, the more the real her slips through, and you can tell she has a learning disability.
Without realizing it, I press down on the accelerator.
“Lottie, why haven’t you told me about your new friend?”
“Brandon wanted to keep us a secret for a little while.”
“What?”
“Don’t be mad. Why is everyone mad? He’s nice! He’s my friend.”
/>
“I’m not mad.” Taking in a deep breath, I let it out slowly. “But, honey, friends don’t want to be secret. They want to know your friends and family.”
“Then why haven’t I met your new boyfriend? I’ve seen pictures of you in the paper that Mr. Cross gets.”
Mr. Cross is an army vet who lost his leg in a bombing in Iraq. He keeps to himself, mostly, although he’s always nice to Charlotte.
“Oh, Lottie. I was going to tell you. We’ve been dating for three months. I wanted to wait before you met him to make sure he was a good guy.”
“So, it’s okay for you to have a secret, but not me?”
Jesus, when did she get so smart?
“Lottie, I wasn’t keeping him a secret.”
“Well, why haven’t I met him?”
I pull up in front of her building, grab my clutch, and get out. Someone wolf whistles, but I ignore it as I jog inside. Charlotte’s apartment is on the second floor, and instead of waiting for the elevator, I take the stairs.
“Honey, I’m here. Open the door.”
Her tear-stained face peeks through the small opening, then she closes it, and I hear her undoing the chain. Charlotte throws open the door, then wraps her arms around me.
“I’m s-sorry!”
With my arms around her tightly, I whisper, “You scared me, honey. You’re the most important person in this world to me, and I should’ve told you about Chase.”
Charlotte pulls back from me. “I’m sorry too.”
Cupping her face, I shake my head. “You’re allowed to have friends. But you have to listen to Tommy. He only wants what’s best for you.”
Charlotte’s face infuses with red, and she bursts into tears. “I’m sorry.”
Putting my arm around her, I close the door and guide her to the couch. “Tell me about Brandon.” Charlotte pouts and shakes her head. I rub her arm. “Lottie, I need a hot drink. Do you want one too?” I stand and walk into her small kitchen.
Charlotte doesn’t own a kettle, but she does have a microwave, so I put two mugs of water into it and press start.
“You look beautiful,” says Charlotte softly.
Turning around, she’s staring at me with her mouth open. I do a twirl and hold out my hands.
“Chase’s family is having a party tonight at their home, and they invited me.”
Charlotte moves over and touches the fabric of my dress. “So pretty.”
“Chase bought it for me.”
“Brandon bought me a Coke.”
“Did he now? And how did you two meet?”
Charlotte smiles, tilting her head to the side. “He followed me home one day.”
“He followed you home?”
Charlotte nods. “Yeah, he walked me home, and he told the boys on the corner to leave me alone. He’s nice to me.”
“And he’s been in here?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Does Brandon stay over?”
Charlotte might be older than me, and I know one day she’s going to have sex, but I’d hoped I’d at least meet him first. We’ve had many, many talks about what’s appropriate and inappropriate touching. The last thing I want to do is make her think sex is bad or something she shouldn’t do, but I also don’t want her taken advantage of.
“No! Tommy got it wrong!” Tears stream down her face.
The microwave dings.
“Okay, honey, let’s have a coffee and talk.”
“You don’t believe me!”
Dramatically, Charlotte runs to the couch and throws herself on it. I let her cry as I make us both a coffee, then go back and sit on the couch and hold out a mug to her. My cell phone rings, and I glance at my clutch.
“Are you going to answer it?”
Charlotte is sitting up, her cheeks are red, and she’s sniffling.
“Nope. You are more important.”
She reaches for the mug and takes a sip. “Could be Chase.”
“Could be,” I agree.
Charlotte pushes her hair out of her face. “Won’t he be mad if you don’t answer it?”
I shrug. “I don’t care. You are more important. Family first, always.”
Charlotte smiles, and I pass her the tissue box on her coffee table. She takes a handful and blows her nose. I take a sip of my coffee and wait for her to calm down.
“Tell me about Brandon and why Tommy was so mad.”
“Tommy wouldn’t let me explain.” Tears form in her eyes.
“I’m not mad, honey.” I reach out and touch her leg. “Tell me what happened, and I’ll talk to Tommy.”
Charlotte nods repeatedly. “Brandon was here early this morning. Tommy came to ask me what I was doing today as I didn’t have a shift at the bookstore.”
Charlotte works part-time at a bookstore and a doggy daycare. Tommy often takes her to and from her jobs if he can. He does it for a lot of the residents here in the building. Part of his job is to make sure they are safe, and he’ll often call into where they work to make sure there are no problems or to ensure they get to and from their jobs.
“And Brandon was here?”
“Yes, I invited him for breakfast. We were having Pop-Tarts.”
“Your favorite.”
“Yes! Anyway, Tommy yelled at me and Brandon and said he’d have him put up on charges. But Isabelle, Brandon didn’t do anything.”
Her face is flushed and twisted in pain as she explains.
Smiling at her, I reach out and touch her again to reassure her. “Charlotte, have you and Brandon kissed?”
She shakes her head, smiles, and looks down at her hands. “No. Brandon says it wouldn’t be right.” Charlotte locks eyes with me. “But he says he likes me.”
Moving closer, I take her hand in mine and squeeze it. “Okay, honey. You know what we need to do, don’t you?” Charlotte shakes her head. “Two things. The first one is, I need to meet Brandon, and the second is for me to talk to Tommy.”
“I could call Brandon? You could see him now?” Charlotte eagerly suggests.
I point at my dress. “Maybe not right now.”
Charlotte beams at me. “You look nice. Should you go?”
“Soon. First, I want to talk to Tommy. So, you wait here, drink your coffee and I’ll go have a chat with him.”
Charlotte nods. “Tommy was mean.”
“Yeah, he was, but he was scared for you.” Charlotte nods. “And honey, this happened this morning. So what set you off this afternoon?”
She frowns, and a blush creeps its way up her neck. “I-I…” Charlotte shakes her head. “I saw Tommy talking to Brandon just before I rang you, and they were arguing. Tommy yelled and said he was going to ring you and tell you everything.”
“So, you thought you’d get in first?”
A tear slides down her face, and she nods. “I didn’t want you to believe all the mean stuff Tommy was saying.”
It’s hard dealing with someone who’s older than me but mentally so much younger. I’m surprised Charlotte even thought to talk to me first, proving she can be manipulative when she needs to be.
“Honey, I’m always on your side. Even if you’ve done something wrong.”
“But I haven’t,” Charlotte whispers.
Winking at her, I stand. “I know, honey. Now, wait here, and I’ll be right back.”
Tommy’s apartment is on the ground floor. Walking down the stairs, I make my way to his door and rap my knuckles on the hard wood. After a moment, the door opens. Tommy takes one look at me, and his mouth drops open. “Isabelle?”
“Hello, Tommy. I think we need to talk.”
He steps to one side, and I walk past him into his apartment. Tommy is in his early thirties and reminds me of a mountain man. It’s a rare day that you don’t find him in jeans, a t-shirt, and a flannel shirt. He also always sports a three-day beard, neatly trimmed.
“You look amazing.”
Embarrassed, I look down at myself, shrug, then look at him. “You shouldn’t have yelled
at Charlotte.”
“I know.”
His admission surprises me, and I flop down onto one of his kitchen chairs.
With his hands up, Tommy sits opposite me. “Seeing a man in her apartment, I overreacted. He seems like a good guy, but…” he pauses and steeples his fingers together. “What kind of man hangs out with a girl like Charlotte?”
Raising my eyebrows, I copy his hand movements. “And what does that mean?”
Tommy puts his hands under the table. “It’s obvious when you spend time with Charlotte that she might look like an adult, but she’s not.” His lips turn down, and he tilts his head. “I was only looking out for her.”
“That’s my job, Tommy. I appreciate you looking out for her, but you should’ve called me or waited until I came to visit. Charlotte is my responsibility, not yours.”
“I look out for her and all of the residents in this apartment building. Did you even know she was seeing this guy?”
“No, I didn’t, but you should’ve called me.”
His lips go into a thin hard line. He nods once, sucks in a breath, and lets it out slowly. “You’re right.”
I sit back in the chair, placing my hands on my lap. “You spoke to this Brandon?”
“Yeah.”
“Is he after something, or does he genuinely like Charlotte?”
“Both, I think.” I frown at him. “I think he sees her as an easy mark, but along the way, I believe he came to like her. Brandon told me he means her no harm.”
“That’s not very reassuring.”
“No, it’s not. I could be wrong. What are you going to do?”
Fixing Tommy with my best stare, I say, “Don’t ever yell at Charlotte again. As for Brandon, I’ll try to arrange a meeting with him and Charlotte. I’ll either put the fear of God into him, or I’ll make it clear he’s to keep away from my sister.”
I stand, as does Tommy.
“I’ll apologize to Charlotte.”
“Thank you. She was very upset.”
Turning, I walk toward the door.
“That’s a hell of a dress.”
Tommy reaches around me and opens his door.
“I’m going to a party tonight.”
“At the Kellys?”
Frowning slightly, I tilt my head to the side and nod. “How’d you know?”
Spark of Time: MacKenny Brothers Series Book 5: an MC/Band of Brothers Romance Page 3