Closer Than A Brother

by Hadley Raydeen

  “You are going to stay with us for a couple of days, right? I could use the help.”

  Danielle turned to look at Jason to make sure he was okay with the extra houseguest.

  “Mom gets what Mom wants,” he said, putting his hands up in surrender.

  “I’ll stay for a couple of days, Brandi. I promise.” She couldn’t help but laugh at her friend’s triumphant grin.

  “I will see you tomorrow,” she said, escaping the room without a good-bye to Shane or his friend. She knew it was childish, but she didn’t care.

  Chapter Seventeen

  She threw the last of her clothing into her bag and smoothed a hand over her sleek ponytail.

  “Are you headed to the hospital, baby?” her mother asked, nudging open her bedroom door.

  “Yes, I promised Brandi I’d be there today. I think she should be out shortly after noon. I’m going to stay there a couple of days to help out with the baby before I head back to New York. I’ll stop back through before I go.”

  “Okay, honey.” Her mother leaned against the door frame. “You didn’t say much when you came home last night.”

  “I was just tired, Mama,” she said.

  “Did you happen to see Shane at the hospital?”

  She turned to look at her mom. “I—I…yes he was there,” she said quickly.

  “You saw his new girlfriend?”

  “Yes,” she grumbled.

  Her mother chuckled. Danielle cleared her throat trying to seem disinterested as she zipped her bag. “So how serious is that little relationship?”

  “They’ve been seeing each other about six months now. Mary says he’s brought her over for dinner a couple of times.”

  “A couple times, huh?” She could feel the heat coming to her face.

  “Yes as in more than once.” She heard the amusement in her mother’s voice.

  “Well isn’t that—special,” she said hefting the bag up on her shoulder.

  “Special indeed.” Her mother watched her.

  “Well I’m going to head to the hospital and help my good friends.”

  “Did you ever think another good friend may be there to help his friends?”

  “I don’t know why he would be,” she snapped. “It doesn’t take two of us to help out!”

  Her mother put her hands up in surrender. “It was just a thought.”

  “Thanks, Mama,” she said, trying to get out the room.

  “Danielle,” she said softly.

  She stopped a minute to look at her mother not realizing the tears brimming in her eyes until she stopped to focus. A lone tear spilled over and ran quickly down her cheek.

  “Oh, baby, what is it?”

  “I think I may have made a mistake,” she choked on the words. “I—I really care about him. I do. I just thought—damn it. I don’t know what I was thinking. I let him go. Now he is with—her and they look happy, you know. Like the perfect, little made-for-freaking-TV movie couple.”

  “Well things aren’t always what they seem, my dear.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I think maybe you should talk to Mr. Shane. See how he really feels.”

  “He doesn’t want to talk to me. You should have seen the way he looked at me yesterday. He is really hating me right now. I don’t want to make things worse. I did this to us. It is better for both of us to just leave things go. I will go back to New York and bury myself in work.” She let a bitter smile spread across her face.

  “I think that stinks,” her mother said. “I didn’t raise you to give up.”

  “I’m not giving up I’m—I…”

  Her mother raised a brow.

  “Okay, I thought that he would be better off with someone closer to his age. He found her, right? They look cute together.”

  “You’re four years older than him, Danielle. It’s not forty years,” her mother exclaimed. “Brandi is older than Jason and they are a beautiful couple. Will you stop this craziness right now and make sure you talk to Shane again before you leave South Carolina.” She turned and left the room before Danielle could protest.

  * * * *

  Nothing had been more difficult than walking in that room and seeing her standing there. He knew Jason tried to soften the blow by giving her a hug—which gave him a few minutes to pick his jaw off the ground. She looked great. Danielle had always been his picture of perfection and seeing her yesterday had put a hitch in his gate. He couldn’t tell if what he was feeling for her was reciprocated, until she looked at Ellen. She was not happy to see the blonde on his arm. He did notice that. It was a bittersweet moment after she shoved his heart back in his face, for the second time. When she left the room it took everything in him not to follow her down the hall. He wanted to speak to her and hold her again. That wasn’t the time or the place especially with Ellen there. He couldn’t get out of that room fast enough. After he held his goddaughter and cooed and made over how beautiful she was he needed to be by himself. He needed to drop Ellen off and think.

  Jason took his shuffling from one foot to the next as a sign. “So it’s getting late. Visiting hours will be over soon. Will you two mind terribly if I asked for some alone time with my two ladies?”

  Shane could have hugged his best friend. “No man, not at all he piped up.” Brandi watched the two suspiciously. “Ellen told me she has an early class anyway. I’m sure she would like to get home.”

  * * * *

  “You weren’t really serious about taking me home, Shaney?”

  He winced. He hated when she called him that. “Yes, El. I need to check in at the club, and then I’m going home to get some sleep.”

  “I could come home and help you with that.” She moved her hand up his thigh.

  He dropped a hand off the steering wheel to stop her advances. “No, I’m fine,” he said driving down her street, breaking the speed limit to get her home. The only one that could help him with anything in the bedroom was Danielle. He had to see her again before she went back to New York.

  “This is about Danielle isn’t it? I swear to God, Shane, you have had such a thing for her since we were kids. It’s almost pathetic. She didn’t want you then she doesn’t want you now. Get over it.”

  He stopped in front of her house turning to look at her. “I guess I could say the same thing about you and me. Good-bye, Ellen.”

  Her eyes narrowed to slits. She huffed and climbed outta his car. He waited until she stomped up her front walk and unlocked her front door before he peeled off down the street.

  * * * *

  He arrived at the hospital shortly before noon, when Jason informed him Brandi would be released with the baby. When he rounded the corner of the maternity ward, he immediately saw her. Danielle stood in front of the large window that showcased the newborns lined in a perfect row in their bassinets.

  She hadn’t noticed him yet so he took the stolen moment to drink in the sight of her. Her dark hair was straightened from its usual curls and pulled back into a ponytail showcasing her smooth caramel skin and high cheekbones. A slight smile graced her glossed lips. His eyes lingered there for a minute. The thought of her lips on his sent a jolt of desire straight through him. His gaze continued their journey over her well-curved body filling out every inch of those jeans. He wanted to wrap his arms around her body and press into her. His cock jerked at the thought of being home inside of her warmth. He closed his eyes for a second trying to regain his composure.

  He took the few steps toward her. He cleared his throat, catching her attention. “Is my goddaughter still in there?” he asked, grasping for a conversation topic.

  “Your goddaughter?” she asked, turning to look at him. He locked eyes with her light chocolate gaze. The lump in his throat was forming and his heart began to beat so hard he knew she had to be able to hear it. Her gaze dropped to his lips and then shot back to his eyes. She has to feel this sexual tension. His skin grew hot, and he thought he may spontaneously combust from it. The passion between the
m had been so hot a year ago. There was no way that wasn’t still there.

  “They are prepping my godchild to go home. Mom and Dad are talking to the pediatrician now. I told them I would come down to check on her.” He turned to look through the glass as they dressed her in the going home outfit Brandi had provided.

  “You know, as godparents, we are going to have to share the responsibility of spoiling the hell out of her.”

  “Absolutely.” She smiled, looking at him briefly before her attention moved back to the baby. They were quite for a minute before they both spoke at the same time.

  “We need to talk—” he said, as she asked, “So where is Ellen?”

  “What?” he asked, taken back that they had spoken at the same time.

  “Ellen”

  “She had a class this morning.”

  “Oh.”

  “We broke up anyway.” He made sure she had her facts straight.

  She turned to look at him. “Oh?”

  “Yeah, it wasn’t working out.”

  “Could have fooled me,” she said sarcastically. “Six months wasn’t it?”

  Six months of being with the wrong person. “Yes, it was a long time coming though. We just weren’t right for each other.” He didn’t want to talk about the disaster otherwise known as Ellen. “There is someone else that has my heart. She always will”

  “Don’t, Shane. Not here,” she pleaded, her voice a whimper.

  “Well then, you tell me when. Because we are going to have this conversation, Danielle.” He was ready to lay his cards on the table. He didn’t care. “I’m in love with you. There is no one else I want to be with.”

  She closed her eyes at his words. The emotion was written all over her face.

  “Hey, you two!” Jason said coming into the hall.

  “Damn it, Jas, worst timing in the world, man.” He moved so that only his friend could see his face, shooting him a look.

  Jason stopped dead in his tracks. “I just came out to see if they have my little button close to being ready, and we are going to head out. Will you two meet us at the house?”

  “Yes,” Danielle said, stepping away from Shane.

  “Jason, if you could give us a few minutes. Danielle and I have to talk.”

  “No really, Shane, this can wait.”

  “I’m going to let you two work this out. I’m going to get out of here,” Jason said turning to hurry in the nursery.

  “This is about our best friends and their baby. You and I can talk later.” She turned to walk away from him. He reached out and grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him. His lips landed on hers hard and fast. She was resistant at first, but he could feel her body soften as he deepened the kiss. His tongue worked at the corner of her lips finding a way in as his tongue found hers soft and responsive. As his body found its home close to hers, he moaned a sigh of desire. Her hands came up to rest on his shoulders. He moved against her body, knowing it was not the most appropriate place to be grinding with his stiff erection begging to break free from the restricting material of his jeans.

  She broke the kiss, her hand coming to her lips. She looked at him. She tried to move, but he kept hold around her waist. He was sure they were quite the spectacle for anyone walking up and down that hall way. He didn’t give a damn. He had Danielle in his arms again, where, as far as he was concerned, she belonged.

  “Shane—”

  He stopped her before she could say anything to diminish the moment. “No. I don’t want to hear the bull shit—the why and the why not—the yes, the no and the maybes. We belong together, Danielle. You know when we are apart we are miserable. I love you. Don’t deny it. So just…for once, baby, shut up. Enjoy this…enjoy us. Stop trying to rationalize and make sense of it.

  She slowly shook her head in agreement.

  “Come back to my place with me.”

  “When?” she asked, her eyes wide.

  “Now.”

  “What about Jason and Brandi? We promised we would come over.”

  “They will be there when we come over later tonight. They also understand we have things we need to work out.” He dropped his hands from her waist taking her hand in one fluid motion.

  “We should tell them.”

  He led her over to the nurse’s station where a few nurses stood smiling, acting like they hadn’t been nosing at the scene that just went on.

  “Can I have a piece of paper and a pen please,” he asked of no particular nurse.

  “What are you doing?” Danielle asked.

  He squeezed her hand tighter so she couldn’t get away from him. He wrote a quick note and handed it to the nurse. “Could you please give this to the Stovers in room two ten? Thanks so much,” he said, dropping his hand to the small of Danielle’s back, and leading her to the elevators.

  “What did your note say?” She asked as the doors closed behind them.

  “We’ll be over later tonight,” he said capturing her lips with his again.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Her eyes were still closed, but she smiled against his pillow when she felt his warm hand slide down her naked back. She lay in his bed after a first round of mind-numbing sex. “What are you doing, Shane?” she asked mumbling. She felt herself dozing, her body well relaxed.

  “Loving you,” he whispered against her right shoulder, before leaving a trail of butterfly kisses up her neck and next to her ear. She giggled at the tickle of his warm voice against her skin.

  “I’m ready for round two, sweetheart,” he said positioning his body over hers. His erection nestled against her butt. She elevated her body only slightly so he could slip his hands under her. He slid his fingers over her responsive breasts. Her nipples stiffened against his palms.

  “You know I can’t resist this position,” she moaned her pleasure as he continued to work her nipples. She felt her center moistened as his cock jerked against her ass. “I think you like it too.” She chuckled softly.

  “I like everything about you, baby.” He lowered his head over her shoulder to take her lips in a hot kiss. “I want you, Danielle,” he breathed against her lips.

  “Take me, Shane.” The words barely escaped her mouth before he entered her from behind. His cock hard and long found her pussy without hesitation. Her forehead fell against the pillow as he worked her to orgasm, doggy-style. Pumping in and out of her his hands between her breasts and the bed, she cried her satisfaction. She lifted her hips slightly to allow him better access. She felt him go deeper inside of her. He slid a hand from her breast down her stomach to her clit. Fondling her from this position made her pant at the sensation. “Yes! Shane, just like that!” The blinding orgasm hit her hard and fast. Her stomach hit the bed trapping his hands, one still on her breast the other on her sensitive bud. He worked at her until she couldn’t come any more. When she lost control under his skillful hand she heard him groan his release before he collapsed on top of her. She welcomed the weight of him on her body. He rolled to the side of her collecting her naked body in his arms. “Are you okay?” he asked, spreading his fingers over her stomach pressing her toward him.

  He kissed the back of her neck and she smiled. “Mm-hmm. Why do you ask?”

  “You’re shaking,” he commented against her skin. She barely noticed it, but he was right. She was experiencing light tremors throughout her body. She sighed.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked. She heard the concern in his voice.

  “It’s nothing—just…aftershocks.”

  She snoozed in the crook of his arm and whined when he moved. “Where are you going?” she asked when he moved away from her.

  “I need to use the restroom.”

  She opened one eye and noted it was dark out. “Damn it, Shane, what time is it?” She sat up in bed.

  They’d made love three times since they’d come back to his house. They napped in between, but she hadn’t expected to be here this late. She could just imagine the story she would have to come up with to tell
Brandi and Jason. She glanced at the clock on his side table. “It’s eight o’clock!” She threw the sheets back from her body. “We have to go!”

  “Whoa, wait,” he said dropping back onto the bed with her. “Jason and Brandi aren’t expecting us over there until tomorrow.”

  “You told them…” She stopped and watched the slow grin slide across his face. “What did that note really say?”

  He laughed getting back up from the bed. “It said don’t expect us tonight,” he said shutting the bathroom door before the pillow she whipped across the room could get him.

  * * * *

  “Are you hungry?” she asked lazily after their fourth round.

  “Absolutely,” he growled against her neck.

  “Stop it.” She giggled. “I’m completely sore. I cannot go another time. I’m too old for all this sexing.” She swatted at his hand tickling the inside of her leg.

  “I could go get Chinese if you’d like?”

  “No,” she said more quickly than she wanted.

  He lifted his head to look at her. The small bedside table light did little to light the room. “I thought you liked Chinese?”

  “Could you order in?” she said, not wanting to give the real reason.

  “I most certainly can.” He teased her. “Tell me why you don’t want me to go out and get something.” She rolled her eyes at him. He kissed at her jaw finding her lips. “Tell me,” he said, his voice dropping to an octave she knew to be dangerous.

  “I don’t want you to leave,” she admitted against his torturous lips.

  “Trust me, I don’t ever want to leave you, Danielle.” He kissed at her passionately and she moaned her pleasure.

  She put a hand to his chest. “No. Hey stop that—distracting me with kisses and sweet words. My stomach is still rumbling. You must feed me, Shane. I need my strength.”

  “You’re right. We have a long night ahead of us.”

  “Oh no.” She laughed swatting at his naked rear. As he left the bed she fell back on soft sheets staring at his ceiling. Her body satisfied, her heart full. I’m in love. Like it or not. She couldn’t hide from this anymore. And I don’t want to.