The unEXpected Plan

by Harper, Leddy

  I swear, I couldn’t get enough of him.

  “If you keep that up, we’ll have to go again,” he murmured and rolled me onto my side so that I was nuzzled next to him.

  I wanted to lay here all day with him inside me.

  Just like this.

  * * *

  I woke up with something between my legs. It took me a moment to realize it wasn’t something but someone.

  However, I wasn’t at all scared or shocked. If it’s possible to wake up fully aroused, that’s how I’d describe it. Corbin’s body was between my thighs, his tongue thrust deep within me. I arched my body to meet his mouth, until he switched tactics and began to suck on my clit. He went between swirling his tongue over my lips to flicking it between them.

  I had his hair clenched in my fist as I tried to dictate what to do next. But Corbin wouldn’t allow me to control his movements. He knew exactly what he wanted to do to me. He brought me to the brink of an orgasm, over and over again, but just as I got to the proverbial cliff, he moved on to do something completely different, stopping me short of reaching my goal every damn time.

  I groaned in frustration and tried to move my legs away from him, but he held on tight. I reached between my thighs to give myself a good flick, but he blocked every effort I made to take matters into my own hands. After several failed attempts, he growled, “You said you don’t want the control, so I’m taking it from you. Stop fighting it.”

  And with that, I gave in and let him dominate me with his face between my legs.

  Finally, he pushed two fingers inside me, ensuring that each thrust and “come hither” motion hit the spot I needed to come apart. I’d gone my entire life without experiencing something so powerful. It was the orgasm of all orgasms. And then I came so hard I saw stars for the second time in one week.

  Chapter 19

  Corbin

  It’d been less than thirty-six hours since I’d last seen Bridge.

  And I couldn’t wait to see her again.

  She’d gone back to work this morning after taking the last two days off. I thought it was silly to return to work on a Friday rather than just take the rest of the week off, but she claimed she needed to be there since the school was closed all next week for spring break. I kind of understood that, but her returning to work meant she had to return to her house, too. Which meant our sleepovers had come to an end.

  Ultimately, that was where my problem was—my bed felt empty without her.

  But at least it was Friday, and she had all of next week off, so I had every intention of making the most of the time I was given with her. Now that I knew for certain she wasn’t back with Chase, I’d made it my mission to not only figure out if we truly did have something great, but to also make her realize the same thing. I refused to drag my feet with this.

  The closer I drove to her house, the more impatient I became, which was ridiculous since we’d only been “seeing” each other for less than a week. But I guess I’d gotten used to having her around, so when she wasn’t there, my days seemed longer and my nights lonelier.

  When I’d dropped her off yesterday morning before heading to the office, she’d offered to take an Uber, but I refused to let her go home alone. It was bad enough that she didn’t have her own transportation due to her car still not running. I hated thinking that she couldn’t leave the house to run a simple errand, especially considering she was supposed to be helping Phyllis by taking her places. So as soon as I got to the office yesterday, I’d made a few calls, and before noon, I’d gotten a buddy of mine to tow her car to his shop and fix it. I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of that earlier.

  Maybe because she’d kept me occupied for a couple of days.

  I left work a little early tonight so I could take her to pick up her car. I’d been assured that it was in proper working order, which made me feel marginally better. If she weren’t at my place with me, where I knew she was safe, at least I didn’t have to worry about her being stranded on the side of the road somewhere. Still, I would’ve preferred her to stay with me, but that was something we’d have to wait to discuss—until we were both confident that our connection went beyond the honeymoon stage.

  Every time I pulled up to the curb in front of the house Brooke was staying at, my heart broke a little more. It was sad that she had to live in something so rundown, but even more sad that there were people out there, like Phyllis, who didn’t have any other option. Between dropping Brooke off yesterday morning and now, the outside had seemingly fallen apart even more. Aside from the overgrown weeds that littered the front lawn and dilapidated shutters on the front windows that had been like that since my first visit, the soffit had begun to fall, drooping from the eaves along the front of the house.

  I could only imagine what kind of shape the back yard was in.

  Before I could take note of any other damage, Brooke came bounding down the driveway, practically skipping toward me. Her excitement to see me put an instant smile on my face. Or maybe it was already there. Maybe I’d been wearing it since leaving the office, knowing I was on my way to see her.

  “Is there no one to do any work on this house for her?” I asked after giving her a quick kiss when she got in the car. “She can’t let it keep falling apart or it’ll be condemned.”

  Brooke glanced out her window at the house. “No, unfortunately not. She has relatives, but they aren’t local. They visit every year or so and keep the inside updated and in working order, but there’s never any time left to address the outside issues.”

  “You did an entire renovation on your school, and you’re telling me there’s no way to help this woman with her home?” I pointed past her to the house, the low-hanging sun only serving to highlight the peeling paint, showcasing just how rundown it was. “A few nails, a couple screws, a lawnmower, and some paint is all it’ll need.”

  That was a total lie.

  It needed so much more than that. But I figured if I approached it like it wasn’t a big deal, then maybe she wouldn’t fight me on this as hard as she had the car situation. Then again, her main issue with that was I’d paid someone to fix her car. I doubted she’d object to letting me help her with the house. I’d seen the insane amount of work that had gone into the school beautification day and then witnessed the amazing transformation. I didn’t see why the same couldn’t happen here.

  Did I seriously just volunteer for another manual labor project?

  The things I did to create excuses to be around her.

  “You’re sweet, Corbin, but trust me, it’s bigger than a two-man job. Plus, I don’t know the first thing about fixing any of that.” She hitched her thumb over her shoulder toward the house while keeping her pistachio-colored eyes on me. “Just my luck, I’d start to rehang a shutter and the roof will fall off.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh. This was a woman who approached the world like there was nothing she couldn’t handle, yet here she was, scared of a minor cosmetic project. “Bridge, you were raised by a single mother. I’m willing to bet she had to climb on a roof once or twice to clean out the gutters, crawl beneath the sink to fix a leak, and learn how to patch drywall in the house. And she would’ve had to do all of that without the help of YouTube videos.”

  “And your point is…?” She narrowed her gaze on me. “It’s not like I can call her up and ask her how to do any of this. She can’t help me. She’s dead.”

  I hated seeing the shimmer of tears in her eyes. Even though it’d been years since her mom passed away, there were times when Brooke reacted like it’d happened yesterday. I couldn’t fault her for that. I imagined losing a parent wasn’t something you got over. Ever. I only wished I could make it better for her, or at least make it hurt less. Anything to stop the pain that seemed to strangle her without a moment’s notice.

  Taking her hand in mine, I waited to speak until I had her attention. Once her eyes met mine, I softly said, “All I was trying to say is…you were raised by one of the strongest women who has ever
lived. There’s nothing you can’t do, because there was nothing she couldn’t do. You had the best role model anyone could’ve asked for, so if anyone is beyond capable of fixing this place up, it’s you.”

  She blinked, and a single tear slipped free.

  Lifting our joined hands, I swiped the soft skin on her cheek with my knuckle. “Lucky for you, though, I’m not suggesting you do it alone. Not that you couldn’t, but at least you don’t have to. I’ll get the supplies, and possibly a few extra hands, and we’ll tackle it together next weekend. How does that sound?”

  Brooke sniffled and then ran her finger beneath her eyes, making sure there weren’t any more evidence of her pain. “You’d really do that?”

  “For you? Of course I would.”

  “But you hate manual labor. And it’s not even for me; it’s Phyllis’s house.”

  I adjusted myself in my seat and shifted the car into gear to pull away from the curb. “Except you live there, so really, it is for you. The place is falling apart, and I’d feel much better about you staying there if I knew it wouldn’t collapse on you while you’re asleep.”

  Barking laughter broke free and filled the car with her contagious amusement. “See? I knew it wasn’t for me. You’re doing it for yourself, to feel better about where I live so you can sleep better at night.”

  “Bridge, I sleep so much better when you’re next to me. So if my motivations were truly that selfish, I’d let her house continue to fall apart just so I’d have an excuse to keep you in my bed every night. In fact, I’d probably find ways to speed up the deterioration process.”

  She was quiet for a moment, and when I chanced a glance to my right, I found her staring at her hands in her lap with her lips twisted to the side. Over the last several weeks, anytime I’d caught her doing that exact thing, she’d been in deep contemplation, usually regarding something serious. I tried to replay my words in my head, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what I’d said that made her retreat behind her walls.

  “Bridge? Everything okay?”

  It was like I’d snapped my fingers, freeing her from a trance she’d been under. Her shoulders rolled back, she removed her hands from her lap, and her wide, surprised eyes landed on me. “Huh? Yeah, I’m fine.”

  Even if this was the first time meeting her, I would’ve been able to tell she was lying. The biggest red flag was that she never questioned why I’d asked if she was all right. If there truly wasn’t anything wrong, my worry should’ve confused her, causing her to wonder what had led me to ask in the first place. But she never did.

  If I’d learned anything from her silence last week, it was that pushing got me nowhere. Abduction did, but I figured it was best to save that tactic for emergency situations. So far, this didn’t seem to be an emergency. So, I let it go and hoped that if something truly was bothering her, she’d open up about it when she was ready.

  In the meantime, I prayed like hell it wasn’t anything serious.

  * * *

  I had a massive smile plastered on my face as I walked to work this morning.

  Normally, I spent my journey running over my schedule and the pitches I’d studied for our team meetings. But this time, I blocked all that out and only thought of Bridge. Of falling asleep with her in my arms last night and waking up next to her this morning—her in my T-shirt lying across my bed, one leg peeking out from beneath the covers.

  Fuck!

  It nearly did me in. If I hadn’t already been late, I would’ve totally ripped that shirt off her and taken her once again. Technically, I was right on time, but considering I’d spent my entire career at AdCorp arriving a solid hour before everyone else, this was as good as a tardy. And the worst part was, this was the second time this week.

  That wouldn’t be too bad if it weren’t Tuesday.

  But as long as my day started with Brooklyn in my bed, I wouldn’t be at the office before eight. The same went for the evenings as well—if I had plans to see her, I was on my way out no later than five.

  For the first time in my life, work didn’t come first.

  “Morning, Em!” I greeted my assistant as I rounded her desk.

  “Good morning.” Skepticism filled her tone.

  Ignoring Emily’s scrutinizing stare, I walked past her and headed into my office. I set my briefcase on my desk and went through the motions of my morning routine. It was something I went through every day, every single morning, without fail. And it was boring as fuck.

  I chuckled to myself as I thought of the ways Bridge seemed to be changing me.

  Yet I had not one complaint, because for the first time in my life, I felt like I was doing more than merely existing. I felt like I was living. The scariest part of it all was the thought of this thing between us not working out. Not that I didn’t think it would, but it wasn’t like we’d discussed our feelings since the night of the parade when we’d decided to see if we had something.

  “You look weird.”

  I glanced down at myself and then back to Emily, who stood in the doorway with her legal pad clutched to her chest and pencil behind her ear. “Do I? How so?”

  “You look happy. I mean, it’s not a bad look on you…just weird.”

  Ignoring the smile that remained on my face, I rolled my eyes and ignored her.

  “Anyway, the team is already in the conference room. Want me to tell them you’re on your way?” Now the legal pad against her chest and the pencil behind her ear made more sense.

  Shit. While I was mentally prepared for this meeting, I didn’t have the actual presentation put together. Luckily, I was the team leader, so I didn’t have to worry about being called out for my disorganization. Unfortunately, walking into a meeting unprepared didn’t do much to convince the rest of the team to trust me.

  Oh well. At least I knew what I wanted to say. So be it if they didn’t have my notes projected onto a wall. Maybe this time they’d actually have to listen to what I had to say rather than relying on a PowerPoint presentation to save their asses.

  “No need, I’ll follow you in.” I grabbed my briefcase off my desk, not even having opened it since setting it down, and walked with Emily down the hall to the large conference room. She attended every team meeting and took notes from the back of the room.

  “Good morning, everyone,” I greeted the room as I made my way to the head of the table. “I’ll keep it short and sweet this morning; we all have lots to do before the end of the quarter.” I set my briefcase on top of the table and popped it open, then immediately shut it, glancing around the room to see if anyone had seen what was inside. When I felt safe that no one had, I cleared my throat and took a step toward the door. “I, uh…I actually left the details report in my office. I’ll be right back.”

  Emily stood and waved me off. “I’ll grab it for you.”

  “As much as I appreciate that, it’ll be much faster if I get it. I know exactly where it is.”

  The truth was, I hadn’t forgotten the report. It was right inside my briefcase, along with the summary report and contract logs for the entire team. But papers weren’t all I had in there. It seemed Bridge had left me a surprise, something I wished I had known prior to opening my briefcase in the meeting.

  When I made it back to my desk, I quickly pulled out the pair of panties she’d had on last night, balled them up in my fist, smiled at the memory of taking them off with my teeth, and then shoved them into my top drawer.

  I was a goner.

  Everything she did intoxicated me and left me yearning for more. Just the thought of her made me hard. Over the last couple of days, I’d found myself walking around with an erection most of the time. It was like I’d become a born-again teenager. I’d always had a healthy sex drive, but this last week, I couldn’t get enough. Of her.

  And it seemed she couldn’t get enough of me, either.

  I grabbed my cell from my pocket and quickly typed out a message.

  Me: You’re a bad girl, Bridge.

  H
er response came just before I’d made it back to the conference room.

  Bridge: Who? Me? I have no idea what you’re talking about.

  The purple devil emoji she added at the end begged to differ.

  Chapter 20

  Brooke

  “You’ll never guess what I saw in my brother’s office yesterday.”

  By the look on Nellie’s face, I would’ve guessed heroin, possibly an orgy. But I knew neither of those could be true—I’d spent enough time exploring Corbin’s body, so if he’d had track marks, I would’ve seen them. And I knew the orgy was out of the question because…well, if he had time to play with a group of people, then I clearly wasn’t doing my job. Not to brag or anything, but I was definitely doing my job.

  “If I’ll never guess, then why do you always make me try?”

  “Because it’s no fun if I just tell you.” She shrugged and put the linen napkin in her lap.

  Since I was off work for the week, and she wasn’t, she thought it was necessary to have lunch dates every day. I didn’t mind, because at least it gave me a chance to see her without feeling guilty for all the time I’d been spending with her brother…behind her back.

  “For heaven’s sake, Nellie, just spit it out already. What did you see in Corbin’s office?”

  She leaned forward, cupped her hands to the sides of her mouth, and whispered, “Women’s panties in his desk.” A smug smile curved her lips as she sat back, but I couldn’t move from the hunched position I was in. “Gross, right? I wonder whose they are. I bet they’re dirty.”

  Feeling like I could choke on my tongue any second now, I reached for the glass of ice water and began to gulp it down. When I was ready to speak, I asked, “So you have no idea who they belong to? Like, no clue?”