Crossed: Greg & Dani (Oak Springs Book 6)

by Lucy Rinaldi

  I want to know who hurt Greg, and why he hasn't told me before now.

  But I can't force him to speak about something he's obviously not ready to talk about.

  He'll tell me his secrets in time, just as I'll tell him mine.

  I don't know what I'll say to Greg when he eventually catches up with me because I know he won't just walk away from me. Not without a good reason. I don't want to lose him, he's everything to me, my life is better because of him.

  But all these secrets I'm keeping from him are killing me.

  How are we supposed to have a relationship when he doesn't really know me?

  He knows the me he sees now, Danika Ashford.

  But I'm not really Danika Ashford, am I?

  No. I'm a poor girl from Tulum, Mexico. Daughter of a waitress who would do anything to survive. Including sleeping with a rich tourist businessman, my father, for money.

  Why would a rich man have to pay for sex?

  Don't most when they're stepping out on their wives?

  A nameless face they never have to see again.

  My mother ended up pregnant with me, but she never kept me from my father. Sure, she kept the card she took from his wallet with his number on it, but that was no doubt only to try and get more money out of him.

  He was very rich, after all.

  When she contacted him to let him know she was pregnant with his child, and that she needed his help, he went straight to her. He bought her a house and everything she needed to furnish it, paid all her medical bills. He was even there the day I was born.

  But I wasn't given his name. I was his dirty little secret that he hoped would never come out. Giving me his name meant there was a real chance of that.

  But secrets have a way of coming out, just like they did when my father's wife found about me, like they did when my ex-husband found out about my pregnancy, like they will when Greg finds out who I really am.

  How can he not find out if we're to have a life together?

  Because I want a life with Greg more than I want my next breath. I want a family with him, to be his wife. As crazy as all that sounds, I've fallen hard for him. But I don't know what to do right now. I want him to know everything about me. The truth. All of it. Not the story I've been forced to tell people, but the whole sordid story.

  But I know that I can't. I can't because it could put him in danger. I would never deliberately put him danger. And unless Joel finds me, there is no one to tell Greg the truth.

  But what if Daxton finds my son and returns him to me?

  What the hell will I tell Greg then?

  How would he ever understand why I kept it from him?

  I'd have to tell him everything in order for him to understand where Alejandro has been all of this time. If Alejandro comes back – when he comes back – and I lose Greg, I'll live. I will for my son because I have longed for my baby for two years. But it will hurt, for the rest of my life it will hurt like hell.

  Or maybe Greg would understand why I had to lie to him. He seems the understanding kind. He's the perfect kind of man women dream of when they're little girls. He's perfect in every way. He's the kindest, smartest, funniest, sweetest man I have ever met. I didn't know men like him existed outside of storybooks or films.

  Most women love a bad boy. You know, the strong, angry, brooding, not scared to fight, to fuck like a caveman kind. I've been there, done that, it wasn't for me. I don't want a man like that.

  That's why I'm so drawn to Greg. Maybe he's a bit of a rebel, but he's not like Joel, but then, no one is.

  Thank god.

  My Greg is everything a man should be. He really cares about me. He would do anything for me, and I know deep down he'd understand. I just know he would.

  That's how I know I can't let him go. As soon as he's home, I'll tell him what's been going on with everyone, why they aren't talking to me. I'll make it clear that I don't want him fighting my battles for me, I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself. I don't want him fighting with anyone because of me, I'm not worth the hassle it would bring him.

  Then, maybe I can tell him the truth about my son.

  I just need to shake myself out of this feeling of loneliness and stress. I'm not a bad person, I didn't do anything wrong. The only thing I'm guilty of is not making those who were my friends listen to the truth.

  I stand blow drying my hair after a long hot shower. I changed into my PJ's right after. I have no reason to get dressed. I have nowhere to go, no one to meet up with nor talk to. All I want to do is climb into my bed and sleep until tomorrow afternoon. Greg will be home tomorrow and I can't wait to see him. I can't wait to feel his arms around me. Everything disappears when I'm in his arms.

  If I'm a really lucky girl, he'll make love to me. God, he makes love to me like no one ever has or will again.

  I smile at my reflection, bringing my comb to my chest and dropping the hair dryer on the chair below the window. I can't help smiling. Every time I think about Greg, I smile. It's like my heart smiles for him. He makes my heart smile.

  Is it normal to smile this much over a guy?

  He's not just a guy, Dani, he's your man, and you're in love. Forget what might happen, live for the moment.

  I breathe deeply, smile still on my face, even though I feel like crying for what's been going on. I'm going to worry about tomorrow when it comes.

  Tonight, I'm going to sleep like a baby.

  Keep dreaming, Dani.

  I plan to.

  Greg

  I'm standing at her door, flowers in hand, bottle of wine I'm hoping we can share. Although standing here in sweats and a t-shirt, I feel underdressed.

  I imagine Dani in her pajamas by now. I just hope she's not too down about the way she's been treated of late.

  I'm a little annoyed by the fact she didn't clue me in on what's been going on. I would have come home to her. I would have set everyone straight.

  I'm angry that no one gave her the chance to tell them who was in that room with her. I know what my friends are like, I know how easy it is to get lost and want to give up when they're going on and on at you.

  Oh, you can try to put your point across, but you won't get a word in. you'd have to yell at the top of your lungs and shake them to make them listen. I doubt very much Dani wanted to yell anything in public for fear of someone hearing. She's quite the private person.

  My brothers, sisters, friends should think themselves lucky they kept this to themselves. If anyone else had found out, Dani would never have lived it down. It wouldn't matter what I said, they'd have pegged her as someone she's not. It's hard to recover from something like that.

  I know the only reason no one else knows is because they all wanted me to know first. Being the last to know would suck ass. And none of them are that cruel.

  I knock her door, worried about the state I'm going to find her in. She's a strong woman, I would never take that from her. But she's been dealing with this all alone with no one to lean on, and I hate that fact. But she's got me, I'm going nowhere.

  I knock again when she fails to answer.

  I know she's in, there's nowhere she'd go right now, maybe the park, but it's getting dark and she's not working tonight, surely she'd be home by now?

  Why the hell should she be, Greg? She thinks you're in Seattle until tomorrow.

  “Whoever you are, go away! I've had enough for one week. I don't want to see anyone!”

  I sigh at the sound of her voice. She sounds so defeated. “Not even me?”

  The door instantly flies open so quickly the wind rush it causes blows back my hair. “Greg.” My name rushes past her lips so fast, relieved that my heart aches with the emotion of it. “You weren't due back until tomorrow.”

  “I missed you.” I shrug and hand her the dozen red roses I bought for her.

  She takes them, bringing them to her nose and breathing in the scent.

  She won't look at me.

  Oh crap, she's crying.

 
; I walk over the threshold, she backs up letting me inside. I close the door behind me and set the wine bottle on the dresser she keeps by the door. I grab her hand and pull her into my arms. I feel her place the flowers next to the wine before her arms wrap around my back tightly.

  She sobs against my chest and my heart is breaking for her. “Shh.” I kiss her head while stroking her hair in a calming way. “I'm so sorry, baby. I'm so sorry.”

  Hearing her crying like this, I can feel the tears in my own eyes. It's killing me hearing her like this.

  I hold her close to me until her tears finally stop coming.

  She looks up at me, arms still around my waist, I stroke hers.

  God, her eyes are so red.

  “I'm sorry,” I tell her again.

  “For what?” She asks quietly.

  “For what you've been going through this past couple weeks because of me. I should have been here supporting you.”

  “They told you.” It wasn't a question. I nod anyway. She pulls away from me and grabs the flowers and walks away from me.

  I sigh and grab the wine and follow her to the kitchen. I watch her grab a vase from the cupboard beneath the sink. She's angry with me. She has every right to be angry.

  While she's sorting her flowers, I grab two glasses from the cabinet on the left wall and pour us both a glass of wine.

  She turns on the faucet and fills the vase a little with water before carrying the vase over to the kitchen table and placing it in the middle. “Thank you for the flowers, they're beautiful.”

  “You're welcome.”

  She still won't look at me. She just busies herself with disposing of the packaging her flowers came in. when she's done, I hand her a glass of wine. She takes a long gulp and places the glass on the table. Then she shocks me by asking, “Greg, are you going to leave me?”

  I narrow my eyes.

  Why the hell would she ask me something like that?

  I stand my glass next to hers on the table, I then lay my hand on her face, forcing her to look at me. “Baby, why would you ask me something like that?”

  “Because of everything that's been going on. I made you look stupid. I'm so sorry, Greg.”

  I take her beautiful face in my hands.

  Why is she blaming herself for this?

  “Dani, you have done nothing wrong. This is my fault. I was the man who snuck up on you in that room. I was the one who took you the way I did, and I'm angry that Callie and Paige jumped to the conclusions they did. They should have let you speak, to tell them what really happened.”

  I'm breathing heavily. I don't get angry like this as a rule. I know how to let things go and pass me by, but seeing her cry the way she did, knowing how badly they've hurt her, I could kill someone! It's gotten to me more than anything else ever has.

  “Please don't be angry. I'm sure you told them the truth. I just wish I could have gotten them to listen to me. They all hate me, Greg.”

  “They don't hate you, baby.”

  She nods her head at me. “They do. Enzo won't even look at me, he doesn't even want to work with me anymore. I don't know why I'm still here.”

  Fucking bastards! How could they make her feel this way?

  “Listen to me. You're still here because this is where you belong. With me. Trust me, they're all going to be groveling at your feet after I told them exactly what I think of them for treating you like this.”

  “They were just looking out for you.”

  “No, they were being assholes. They should have called me right away. If they believed you'd really cheated on me, they should have called me so I could have confronted you. Instead, they've been persecuting you for something you didn't do.”

  Her little hand comes up to my face, cupping my cheek and instantly calming me. “I have missed you so much. I was a little scared that I was going to lose you.”

  “Funny that. I thought I was going to lose you, too.”

  She laughs while shaking her head. “Never.” Then she's on her tiptoes kissing me.

  I grab her waist, pulling her against me.

  She moans when I deepen the kiss, my tongue dancing with hers. Fuck, I've missed kissing her. It's been too long. Two weeks is far too long a time to be without her. Hell, it's been longer than that if you don't count that day at the spa.

  I turn and lift her onto the counter. She groans when I break the kiss. I smirk and yank her PJ pants off, followed by her panties, then, I spread her legs and go to town on her sopping pussy.

  “Oh god, Greg!” She groans and rocks her hips into my face, hands clutching my hair, guiding my mouth to the exact place she wants to feel it.

  God, she tastes so good. I've never tasted anything so good in all my life!

  I tongue her tight hole, licking deep inside her. She cries out and I smile to myself. I replace my tongue with my finger and attack her clit with my tongue. “I'm coming, Greg! I'm coming so hard!”

  And she does, all over my fucking face.

  Damn, she came so damn hard she almost suffocated me with how tight her thighs went around my head, not to mention her whole body is shaking violently.

  I get to my feet as fast as I can, yanking my sweatpants down around my thighs and lining my solid as a rock cock with her entrance. I wrap one arm around her back, hold her thigh with my other hand and yank her forward and impale her in one hard thrust.

  Fuck, I'm balls deep!

  We both cry out in pleasure, this feels so fucking good! I don't move for a few seconds, she's already contracting and squeezing my cock so hard I'm forcing back my orgasm with all the willpower I possess. Which isn't very strong right now. My willpower is shit where this woman is concerned.

  Our eyes lock, neither of us can look away. Her arms are tight around my neck. There's something so special between us. Something I swear to God, I have never felt in my life before.

  My heart literally beats for her. She has no idea how she's saved me. I love her, this is no doubt in my mind or heart about that.

  I move slowly inside her, her head falls back with a groan, eyes closed.

  I grab the back of her head and bring it forward. “Look at me, baby.” She does, her glazed eyes opening slowly. I don't stop moving, my hips have a mind of their own. She's so wet, hot, and tight. And like a drug she's drawing me in. “I know how good this feels right now, but stay with me, Dani.”

  “Always.” She kisses me softly. “I will always be with you.”

  Fuck!

  I thrust harder and harder, losing myself in the only woman I have ever truly loved like this. I can feel my orgasm tightening my abs, my balls draw up. But I won't come without her.

  With her arms still locked around my neck, I grab her hips and fuck her with all that I am. “Greg! Oh fuck, please!”

  “Come for me, Dani. Fuck, baby, I'm gonna come!”

  “Yes!” She screams out her orgasm, body locked tight around mine, and I'm shooting my seed deep inside of her. My cock pulses deep inside her body as I completely empty myself inside.

  I stroke her face, her neck, her chest, those perfect lips I love to kiss so much. And I'm so fucking close to telling her that I love her, but I'm scared it's too soon. That's why I kiss her tenderly before pulling her into my arms and holding close to me.

  I just want to take care of her, love and cherish her for the rest of my life.

  “You are everything to me, Dani. I couldn't bear it if I lost you. You're the best thing in my life.”

  “You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Greg. You won't lose me because I don't want to lose you either.”

  I breathe deeply in relief, then gently pull out of her. “I think we both need a shower.”

  She giggles and tells me, “We do. Will you stay with me tonight? I don't want to sleep without you holding me, I've missed you so much.”

  I take her face in my hands and smile. “Of course, I'll stay with you. For as long as you want me, baby.” That is one thing she'll never have to worry abou
t.

  Dani

  After our talk last night, and the out of this world kitchen sex, I feel much lighter. Greg isn't mad with me, he's already clued everyone in on the truth of what happened.

  And even though everyone has treated me like crap these past couple weeks, I'm ready to move on from it all. I'm not the kind of girl to hold a grudge.

  I'd be a liar if I said I wanted to come into work today, though. I would have liked to spend the day in bed with Greg, but the chief called and asked me to come in as Jerry called in sick, then his partner did too.

  We all know why they did, they've been seeing each other and wanted to be alone together. I can't even be mad at them for it. They're in love and just want to be alone. They've spent long enough denying what they feel for each other.

  But that means Enzo has been called in on his day off too. I imagine he'll be as grumpy as ever because of that fact, and it's not like he's exactly been nice to me of late.

  I'm doing a stock take in the back of the ambulance when he suddenly appears in front of the open doors, catching my attention. I swallow hard and just stare at him.

  Enzo was the best friend I had here in this little town. He befriended me so easily, looked out for me, took me under his wing, into his home, allowed me to be a friend to his wife, an aunt to his daughters.

  But when all of this stuff happened, he turned his back on me so easily, him and his wife, like I had never meant anything to them, and that hurt me so much.

  From the sad look on his face, I know he's sorry for everything he's said to me and accused me of. He's here to talk, he wants to tell me that he's sorry, and the thought has a tear falling from my eye and down my cheek.

  I miss my best friend. If he's sorry, I'll forgive him. Whatever Greg has been through in the past, Enzo and the others know about and just wanted to protect him from more pain. They thought they were being loyal to him because they thought I'd wronged him. I don't blame them for that.

  How could they think any differently when I had sex with a man while we were supposed to be having a girls day?

  How were they to know it was Greg?