Roses & Thorns: Women

by Bry Ann

  “You love me?”

  Thump. Thump. Thump. My heart feels like it’s going to beat out of my chest.

  He kisses my lips, effectively answering me. Actions speak louder than words anyway. And that’s the way Adam communicates best. His words meant nothing when his actions didn’t back them up.

  “I think I'm falling for you too,” I whisper. “Is something really wrong with me?”

  He smirks. “Think so little dove.”

  I smile. He kisses me again. His hands tug at my sweatshirt.

  “This needs to come off. That was a courtesy because you’re upset, but you aren’t wearing sweatshirts in our bed.”

  Our bed.

  “Get it off me then.”

  He smirks. His hands come behind my back. He gently lifts me before easily slipping the sweatshirt off. I think he forgot I didn’t put anything on underneath because when my breasts hit the cold bedroom air and he sees them, his eyes go dark and full of need. He hisses out a breath before running a hand through his hair, making it all shaggy like I like it.

  “Fuck. I didn’t mean naked.”’

  I giggle. When he hears it some of the darkness in his eyes dissolves. He looks at me softly.

  “I love that sound.”

  “I love your hair like that.”

  His head falls back and he lets out a deep laugh. My fingers itch to touch him, but I'm scared. He’s so perfect. Too perfect. He’s everything. My safety. The key to my destruction. Perfectly built. A weapon. He’s a living, breathing contradiction.

  “Lacey, you are going to have to put a shirt on. I can’t… my self-control is good, but…”

  I slowly reach up and touch a tattoo on his chest.

  “What’s this mean?” I whisper.

  “Essentially it means brotherhood first. My men above all else.”

  I nod.

  “And this one?” I say, sliding my hand a little lower.

  “For my mom,” he says quietly. I look at him gently.

  I slide my hand down to the one by his hip. He hisses out a breath. I feel his abs clench beneath my fingers.

  “And this one?”

  “It just looks cool,” he breathes.

  I smile.

  “Touch me, Adam. It’s okay.”

  He doesn’t hesitate at all. I love that about him. He’s cautious, careful, aware of my issues, but he doesn’t treat me like I’m made of glass. His hands find my breasts, slowly rolling my nipple between his fingers.

  He finds my eyes.

  “You okay?”

  Define that. I feel all sorts of things I can’t explain.

  “What’s happening?” I whimper.

  His hand slides to my hip and his other hand rests over my heart.

  “Your heart is beating out of your chest.”

  “I went from angry to guilty and I don’t even know what this feeling is,” I suck in a deep breath, “I'm overwhelmed.”

  “I got you. Hear me?”

  “I hear you,” I whisper.

  I may be a fool. I may be forgiving him too easily. Forgiving, not forgetting, but I believe him. His words sound so sincere. I can’t find one red flag, except the past.

  Adam makes love to me that night. Gently. Slow. Conscious of what my experiences with sex have been.

  I’ve never met someone capable of such cruelty and such kindness.

  But I do know one thing. No matter what happens, if he hurts me, I’ve sealed my fate. I’ll never be able to recover.

  But if he loves me, forever like he promised, I may just start to learn what it means to be loved unconditionally. And protected because of that love.

  Chapter 19:

  Sven:

  “I need you to focus!” Boss snaps, eyes dark. “I get it. You are worried about Rose, but I promised we’d handle it and I keep my word. I’ve talked to her. You’ve talked to her. This place is heavily guarded. And after we get this shipment out we will continue to deal with her father and his men.”

  “Alright. I hear you. Okay? I fucking hear you!”

  “You better Sven. You are walking a careful line. You’re smart enough to know what you did is not forgotten.”

  “I'm aware.”

  Fuck. I am, but I did think it was more forgotten than his eyes are letting on right now. Didn’t he get the girl? He sure doesn’t skip a fucking beat.

  “I’ll get it done. I’ll head out in the morning.”

  “Good. Sven, this sale better be successful. Or you’re out.”

  Out. As in dead. There is no out in this life.

  “Understood.”

  “Good. You’re smart. It’d be a shame to have to lose you.”

  “Yeah, I'm sure it would be.”

  He smirks. “Get it done, and we can come back and deal with your girl.”

  With that he walks out, rattling off a series of texts on his way. Always working. Always busy. And somehow always looking like the Goddamn most powerful man in the room. I respect him, but he pisses me off.

  I walk out to the deck. Rose is there in a red floral bikini top and jean shorts. She’s pacing the backyard mumbling to herself like a psycho. I raise my eyebrows.

  “Rose?”

  She jumps, swirling around to face me. It takes all of two seconds for her shock to morph into anger.

  “Asshole! Don’t just sneak up on me. Announce yourself.”

  See, things are back to normal between us.

  “I thought me saying Rose was announcing myself, darling.”

  “Oh fuck you,” she laughs. But it dies quickly. Far too quickly for Rose.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing,” she gets out hurriedly.

  “Just out here casually mumbling to yourself.”

  “Well, that makes me sound crazy.”

  “I mean I'm simply restating what you were doing, so however you want to take that.”

  She looks over her shoulder to glare at me. I barely notice past her long lean legs.

  “Stop staring at me like that!”

  “Like what? You’re hot.”

  That cracks her armour a bit. A small smile slips out.

  “What do you want Sven?”

  She sounds tired. Something’s been bothering her for a while now, but I’ve been waiting for her to come to me with it. I’ve made it clear that I’ll be there for her. I'm tired of feeling like I'm pulling teeth trying to get shit out of her when she clearly wants to express it. Rose is anything but stoic. However, very recently something’s changed. She seems truly disturbed. And it’s time to talk. I throw my coat off.

  “Sit.”

  “Want me to roll over too?”

  I smile. “Only if I'm on top babe.”

  She rolls her eyes and moves to sit by the edge of the pool. I follow her, taking in the way her legs kick effortlessly in the water.

  “What’s going on?”

  She physically jolts. “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t play coy.”

  Her eyes flicker across the pool, deep in thought.

  “Stop planning lies and say the truth, Rose.”

  “I miss working. I miss my job. It fulfilled me.”

  Her white blonde hair covers her face.

  “I don’t want this to end, but I miss my job too.”

  She turns to look at me.

  “It’s a part of me, Sven. You have to understand.”

  I do. I really, really do. Just like being a criminal is in my blood, helping addicts is in hers.

  “So that’s what’s bothering you,” I confirm.

  “Well, yeah.”

  “I’ll take care of it.”

  “What?”

  “Look, even though I own it,” I laugh, “I don’t want you working at Fallen Ridge. It’s too far from me.”

  “But how? How is it possible for me to work when I’m with you?”

  I'm so fucking happy I’ve thought this through prior. I shift in my seat so I'm facing her. I should grab her hands and be
all romantic, but well, I grab her perfect ass and pull her legs up over my lap, stroking her silky thighs.

  “I want to pay for you to get a college education. You’re so much better than a simple tech. Get your degree, focus on that, then you can work anywhere. Hell, I'd help you find a job in the area, but I think you’ll want to do that yourself. More than that. You are perfectly capable of finding one yourself.”

  She stares at me blankly for so long I think maybe she didn’t hear me, or a maybe I fucked up somehow. Finally, she shakes her head and blinks several times.

  “You thought about this,” she asks, sounding out of breath, her small breasts heaving up and down as her heart rate increases.

  “Yes. Rose I told you, I have no intention of ruining your life. I want you. I want you happy. I just want you mine.”

  I can’t process anything before she leaps up to straddle me completely in her skimpy little shorts. I growl and grab her ass, pulling her closer to me.

  She kisses me roughly. It’s not sweet. It’s like she can’t get enough. Like she’s trying to convey one hundred messages in one fucking kiss. She pulls away just as aggressively and holds both sides of my face in her soft, manicured hands. My stubble must feel rough against her smooth skin.

  “I may just fall in love with you yet.”

  “Well, I tried to be a gentleman,” I growl.

  I throw her over my shoulder. She laughs.

  “You didn’t try that hard.”

  “Never.”

  “Maybe I like gentlemen,” she laughs.

  “You don’t.”

  “Maybe I do.”

  I throw her on the bed, caging her in with my arms.

  “I can prove you don’t.”

  She cocks an eyebrow, looking downright evil. She’s too tempting. Too perfect. Every inch of me is aware of her.

  “Whatever you find, I could have been turned on elsewhere.”

  That makes me throw my head back and laugh, eyes glistening.

  “Oh little Rose, there are no gentlemen around here.”

  I slide my finger inside her shorts and plunge a finger inside her. I smirk. Just like I suspected.

  “Pretty wet there. You know, for someone who prefers gentlemen.”

  She moans and thrusts her hips up trying to get friction. Laughing, I pull my hand away. Torturing her is too fun.

  “Sven…” she snaps.

  “Yes?”

  “Seriously!”

  I chuckle and slowly work my finger around her clit.

  “I'm not kidding Sven!”

  “Say it then.”

  “Say what?”

  “That you take back that bullshit about gentlemen. You know your just as sick as me when it comes to this shit,” I whisper seductively in her ear. She visibly shivers but pulls her head away.

  “Never.”

  “Okay.”

  I pull off her and head for the door, grinning once my back is turned to her. She is looking at me downright horrified.

  “Wait, you’re leaving?”

  I look over my shoulder.

  “I'm going to find you gentlemen. You know I how I love to make you happy.”

  She glares at me. “You fuck.”

  I chuckle and wink.

  “Fine you asshole. You ruined me, so now I don’t like gentlemen anymore. In bed only.”

  “Because our sex was just so awesome, I ruined you for everyone else.”

  “You seriously need that big of an ego stroke right now?”

  I head back to the bed and kiss her forehead. I'm not answering that question. I slide my hand down her flat stomach, while slowly unbuttoning her shorts with my free hand. She groans and shakily tugs at the waistband of my pants.

  “These need to come off.”

  I laugh. “Needy are we now?”

  “Yes. Seriously. Please.” She moans. “I’ve been thinking about you since we…”

  She’s got me so fucking hot. I plunge a finger inside her to shut her up. I can’t hear her say it. I can’t. If she’s toying with me…

  It’ll hurt.

  Can’t have that.

  She grabs my hair and yanks hard. I kiss her with everything I have. She shoves me off her and frantically unbuttons my pants, shoving them off my hips.

  “Off now,” she demands.

  I raise an eyebrow but do as she says. She’s hot as fuck like this. I throw my shirt off after, along with boxer briefs. I don’t waste a moment. She’s already stripped. Damn, when she finally gives in she’s eager.

  I pin her down with my body. She’s alive. Every inch of her. So different from the woman I met.

  I grind my hips into her before slowly sliding inside. I know what she’s expecting, but it’s not what she’s getting. I move slowly, claiming her, fucking loving her.

  “Sven…” her voice cracks. She’s vibrating beneath me. I move even slower.

  “Let go little Rose.”

  “I can’t. What are you doing?”

  I massage my hands into the side of her body. She moans and coils even tighter as if that’s possible.

  “Let go,” I grit out.

  “I can’t.”

  I kiss her, passionately.

  “Rose. Let go,” I whisper.

  I slide my hand between us and graze my fingers over her clit as I speak. She absolutely fucking shatters. I pull out and follow right behind her. I slide to the side beside her, breathing heavy, splaying my hand across her waist. I'm wrapped up in bliss when I hear choked sobs coming from beside. I practically leap up.

  Rose is next to me, hands over her face, crying so damn hard. I pull her into me. She wraps an arm around my waist. I don’t know what’s wrong, but for once I know it’s not my fault. I hold her a long time.

  “You’d pay for me to go to college? You believe in me like that?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  How could I not love a woman who values an education over a diamond?

  “Why are you doing this to me?”

  “You’re gonna have to clarify here, babe, because I'm really confused.”

  “Thank you.”

  She squeezes me tighter then releases me. She goes to the bathroom to clean up then comes back and places herself in the exact same position. She cries for a while longer, leaving me totally confused. I don’t fully understand what’s going on, but I have a feeling she just needs to cry it out. So I'm basically an oversized pillow until she feels better.

  “Rose,” I whisper before she falls asleep. “I have to leave for work tomorrow. I won’t be gone long.”

  She nods against my chest. “Good.”

  Then she falls asleep.

  Good? Good?

  I cock my head back and look at her, but she’s already gone. I want to wake her to understand, but I can’t. Not after the emotional roller coaster, she’s just been on. She’s so peaceful. I slowly climb away from her and get myself to the restroom. When I'm clean, showered, all that shit, I walk back in the bedroom. When I lay my eyes on her, I sigh. I'm fucked. I’d do anything to protect the fragile, sexy thing lying in my bed.

  Still frail, but gaining strength every day. She’s lying there, fully nude, wrapped up in the covers. Curled tight. Tears still drying on her cheeks. Cheeks rosy and sunken. I shake my head and crawl in next to her. I meant what I said about college. The second I laid eyes on her I knew she was better than she was settling for. The second I fell in love with her I knew I’d never hold her back from her dreams. College was the obvious answer. The clear next step.

  She naturally tucks herself into me, shivering in her sleep. Concern etched all over her face.

  Why is she so disturbed?

  Chapter 20:

  Boss:

  “You fucking asshole!”

  Rose bolts across the room and smacks Nix square across the face. All eyebrows in the room shoot up. Nix takes three very purposeful steps back. Oh, he knows what he did wrong. This should be interesting. Rose glares at him, hard. I smirk and stand ba
ck. As does Lacey, face slightly more impassive.

  “You tell me you’re my brother, drop a bomb like that on me, and then leave for work! You don’t even say goodbye! Seriously, fuck you Nix.”

  Nix leans back against the wall, casually. Not at all affected by Rose’s outburst. He’s an amusing guy.

  “You done?” he asks when Rose is completely out of breath. She glares but says nothing. He pushes off the wall.

  “Good. Now you’ll let me talk.”

  He starts to pace the room. As he does, I notice a hint of rug burn poking out of his sleeve. Curious, I lean in closer. His knuckles are bruised too. Why?

  “I mean first off Rose, you needed time to process everything. Alone. Without me hovering. I always planned on checking back, but I knew you’d be safe here while I was gone. Two, I had shit to take care of.”

  “Shit to take care of? Sage, right? Is she okay?”

  A flicker of emotion ripples through Nix’s body. He tenses but fights to appear confident for Rose’s sake.

  “She’ll be okay. I’ll get her out.”

  Nix’s jaw clenches. Not that I'm one to play hero, but after Lacey, I'm finding myself wanting to get this girl Nix cares about out of that psycho’s hands. Along with having to free Rose from whatever sick game he’s playing, for Sven. Nix glances around the room with a curious look on his face.

  “Where’s Sven?”

  “Working,” Rose says flatly.

  Nix nods. “All your favorite people are working it seems.”

  She glares at him, but the amount of compassion in her eyes drowns out the anger.

  “You’re delusional if you think you and Sven are my favorite people.”

  Nix smiles. “Good to see ya, sis.”

  She whirls around. “Yeah, and speaking of the sis thing! You seriously have been calling me sis this whole time. That’s cruel! What if I figured it out.”

  “I knew you wouldn’t.”

  Rose throws her hands on her hips.

  “How could you possibly know that?”

  Rose doesn’t get a chance to answer because Lacey’s soft giggling fills the room. Everyone turns to her.