Swerve: Boosted Hearts (Volume 1)

by Sherilee Gray

  “Don’t do this,” he gritted out.

  “Travis…”

  He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and smashed her chest into his, then his mouth came down on hers before she had a chance to draw breath and tell him to let her the hell go. She shoved at his chest.

  “Shay?” A deep voice sounded from behind her.

  Travis lifted his head, and she used the opportunity to step away from him. Adam stepped forward. Hugh’s friend watched her with narrowed eyes, a gorgeous, barely dressed blonde wrapped around him. He’d obviously been there for the band, because he was holding a beer tightly in his fist, but she’d missed him in the crowd.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  She swallowed and took another step back. “Yes, I’m fine. Travis was just leaving, weren’t you?”

  “Shay…” Travis reached for her again.

  She shook her head. “I have to get back to work.” Then she rushed away, face hot with humiliation. Would Adam tell Hugh what he’d seen? It wasn’t as if she’d had much choice; she’d had to talk to him. And she sure as hell hadn’t initiated that kiss. Would Hugh believe her, would he care, or had he just said those things in the heat of the moment?

  Not wanting to think about it right then, she got back to work, clearing and wiping down tables. She spotted Adam the moment he walked out of the bathroom. His hair was messy, lips darker, and the top three buttons of his shirt were undone. The blonde followed, hair wild, lipstick completely gone and a small smile playing on her puffy lips. He didn’t spare her a backward glance as he headed for the door. The woman didn’t seem worried about him, either, and strode to a group of women across the bar.

  Her stomach twisted in a tight knot. She didn’t know what was between her and Hugh, but she did know things had changed, and she could admit to herself, she wanted to know where they might go. Before she could think better of it, she chased after Adam, grabbing his arm before he opened the door.

  “Please, I need to talk to you.”

  He stared at her, no outward sign of emotion on his handsome face. He definitely didn’t look like a guy who’d just gotten his rocks off with a hot babe in a bathroom stall.

  He speared his fingers through his mussed hair, a bored expression now front and center. “What is it?”

  Shay started to feel a little panicked. Would he believe her? “What you saw, there’s an explanation…”

  “There always is, honey.” He crossed his arms. “Don’t tell me… It’s not what it looked like?”

  Her spine stiffened. “It’s not.”

  “Look, I’m the last person to pass judgment. Who you screw’s your business.”

  She took a startled step back. “I wasn’t going to…”

  “Like I said, not my business.”

  He looked in a hurry to leave, gaze darting to the door.

  “Please, just don’t tell Hugh.”

  His eyes narrowed again.

  She grabbed his arm. “Please, Adam.”

  He let out a rough breath. “I have no plans to rain on his parade. The man’s been fucked over enough in his life.” He did a sweep of her body, from head to toe. “Can’t say I’m not surprised, though. Thought you might be good for him. But then I’ve never been a very good judge of character.” Then he pulled his arm free of her hold and walked out the door.

  Before she could fully explain.

  She barely knew the man, but she hated that he thought badly of her, that he thought she was the kind of woman who would carelessly hurt someone else without a second thought.

  The man’s been fucked over enough in his life.

  She pushed Adam’s words from her mind. The main thing was that Hugh wouldn’t find out.

  The last thing she wanted was to destroy his trust before she fully had it—before she fully had him.

  * * *

  Shay pulled up outside her trailer and glanced at the clock. 1:15 a.m. Another long shift. It had been exactly a week since the incident with Travis in the hallway. Since she’d begged Adam to keep what he saw to himself. Hugh had come to her every night, still arriving and leaving when it was dark. She hadn’t been back to his place; he hadn’t asked, and she hadn’t mentioned it. She didn’t know why that was and tried not to think too much about it.

  At least Adam had been true to his word and hadn’t told Hugh what Adam thought he’d seen.

  They’d grown closer, spending all their night hours together, enjoying each other, talking quietly in the dark. She’d been disappointed she wouldn’t see him tonight because she was working so late. The last thing she expected to see was light glowing from behind the curtains in her living room when she got home, the car Hugh had been using while his truck was getting work done parked outside her place.

  Happy flutters started up in her belly, a smile curling the corners of her mouth automatically.

  Shutting off the engine, she climbed out, opened the door to her trailer and went inside. She didn’t see him, but she could hear the shower running. Stripping in her bedroom, she headed to her small bathroom, excitement curling in her belly, and eased open the door.

  Hugh filled the small stall, big, wide shoulders nearly reaching right across. He had his head down, rinsing his hair. Her mouth went dry when he slicked it back, his biceps bulging.

  She stepped closer, and he caught her movement. He twisted his head toward her, looking at her through the glass. Her breath seized in her throat as his gaze dropped, doing a sweep of her naked body. She had no urge to cover herself, felt no shame over the way her body looked. Not anymore. Her abundant curves no longer made her feel unattractive. How could she feel that way when he looked at her like that? Even through the steam, she could see the way his eyes darkened, the way he licked his lips as if he could already taste her skin.

  Pulling open the door, she stepped in behind him. “Hey.” She wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her breasts against his muscled back.

  He groaned, and his abs tightened under her palms, the ridges bunching hard. He felt amazing. Euphoria buzzed through her, and it caused equal parts excitement and terror to pump through her veins. This feeling, when she was with Hugh, it was uncharted territory. She’d never felt anything like it before. She thought she’d loved Travis at one point, but she never felt for him even a quarter of what she did for Hugh.

  It scared her half to death.

  But she couldn’t back off, couldn’t push him away. She had no choice now but to ride this out and see where it led. If it led anywhere.

  He wrapped his thick fingers around her wrists and held her there. “Hey, princess.”

  His deep, rough voice moved through her, over her. She pushed the fear away and kissed the smooth skin of his back, licking a trail up his spine. The man was like candy, and she couldn’t get enough.

  “This is a surprise. I wasn’t expecting to find a big, wet, naked guy in my shower when I got home.” She trailed her lips over his warm skin. “But I like it.”

  He chuckled, and the sound vibrated through her, teasing her hard nipples. “I was over this way, decided to save time and come straight here instead of showering at my place. I’ll make sure I do it more often if this is what I get when I do.”

  She slid her hands lower, finding him already incredibly hard. She took his thick erection in her hand, sliding her palm along his soapy length. He throbbed and pulsed under her fingers.

  “I like that idea. Getting all sudsy with you is one of my new favorite things to do.”

  “Yeah?” He tugged her around to his front, which meant she was pressed tight against him in the small space.

  His heavy cock was trapped between them, and she shivered at the feel of how hard he was for her.

  “And what else do you like?” He slid his hands down to her butt and gave her a squeeze.

  She reached between their bodies and massaged his thick, heated flesh. “I like this.”

  His eyes blazed, burned into her. “Tell me what you like about it?”

/>   Her heart started to pound harder. When she was with him like this, she felt a million miles away from the woman she’d been that first night he came home with her. He made her feel safe—to say what she felt, what she wanted. “I like how hard it gets. That sometimes I have to struggle to take it all. I like how full it makes me.” She pushed closer, making him groan. “How when it’s moving inside me, I can’t think straight. All I can do is take it. Lose myself to how good you feel.”

  He hissed out a breath, and his cock jumped under her fingers. “What else?”

  His hands moved restlessly over her wet skin.

  “I like the way it feels sliding into my mouth, against my tongue… I love the way you taste.”

  His nostrils flared, and a rough growl escaped his lips. “You wanna taste now, princess?”

  “Yes.”

  He placed his hands on the wall, arms outstretched, supporting himself, and widened his stance. “Show me.”

  Her mouth went dry, her skin flushing hot with hunger. There was something so empowering about making this huge man tremble and groan. It turned her on, excited her. Made her feel beautiful. Dipping her head, she did what she’d wanted to do since she first saw it and traced the cross on his ribs with her tongue. His fingers tangled in her hair, and she felt his chest expand on a sharp, indrawn breath when she sucked and licked.

  “I love this tattoo.”

  Finally, trailing her hands down his sides, she dropped to her knees in front of him, between those spread, muscled thighs, and looked up. He stood with his wide back to the spray, blocking it with his body. Rivulets cascaded down his sides and long legs. He looked magnificent.

  But it was the dark hunger in his gaze that had her squeezing her thighs together. That she could do that to this man made her hotter than she’d ever been in her life.

  His hand dropped to the side of her face, cupping her so tenderly her heart squeezed. He was huge and powerful, all muscled strength. Strong enough he could lift her, carry her, move her body any way he wanted. He had full command over his body, could take her hard, seemingly without restraint. He could also be extremely gentle, treating her as if she was a delicate piece of china, as if she could break if he wasn’t careful.

  But she knew he’d never fully let loose with her. He always made sure to hold a little back. She didn’t want that; she wanted to watch him let go, to release all that desire she saw burning in his eyes now.

  He slid his thumb over her jaw, across her bottom lip, tracking the movement with his predator’s stare. She reached up and held his hand there, taking his thumb into her mouth and sucking, nipping. That gaze got darker still, his cock, only a few inches in front of her face, jumped. He was so hard now it stood straight up, resting against his tight abs.

  He bared his teeth like a hungry lion and hissed out a breath. “Shay…”

  She nipped the tip of his thumb then let him drag it free. “Hmm?”

  She ran her hands up his thighs, one hand moving to his tight ass, the other skimming close to his achingly hard cock, but not close enough. It pulsed and jumped again, liquid leaking from the tiny slit in that broad head.

  “I can’t wait to taste you,” she whispered.

  She’d never said things like that to anyone before, but watching the way it affected him, the way his wide chest pumped rapidly, the way his abs and thighs were so hard he looked carved from marble, gave her the confidence to keep going.

  “Do you want me to suck you now?”

  Another hiss then his hand moved to the back of her head, fingers spiking through the wet strands of her hair. “Yeah, I want you to suck me.”

  She leaned in, tongue darting out, tasting the salty pre-come now leaking steadily down his thick length. “Mmm, delicious.”

  His growl echoed around the small space.

  She tilted back her head, eyes locking with his. “More?”

  “More.”

  His voice rumbled so low she felt it in every shaky limb.

  Instead of taking him into her hand, her mouth, she held on to his hips and leaned in, kissing the underside, nipping and lapping the thick, pulsing vein there. His fingers tightened in her hair, almost painfully. She loved it.

  “More,” he growled again.

  Still not giving him what he wanted, she dragged her lips along his shaft, sucking gently as she went, all the way to the base, nuzzling and kissing, dizzy from his musky scent. The muscles under her hands somehow got harder still, a rough moan filling her ears and turning her on even more. He was shaking, close to losing it, to unleashing all that heat on her. She wanted it…more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life.

  He grazed his thumb across her temple, then cupping her chin, tilted up her face to him. “Princess…”

  She lapped at the head again, and his pupils dilated. His expression grew fierce, so intense it burned right through her.

  “Princess…I need you.”

  Oh, God.

  She shivered all over.

  Another swipe of his thumb…across her cheek this time. “Please, baby, I’m hurting,” he rasped.

  His words destroyed her. The look on his face even more so. There was a vulnerability in his stark expression that she didn’t understand—and need—so much need.

  Her already swollen breasts grew heavier, her nipples so sensitive one scrape against the hairs on his legs had her shuddering—but that plea, it almost had her coming without him even touching her. She took him in her hands and squeezed, sliding upward, milking more liquid from the tip. His groan was low and long, almost pained. She leaned in and sucked the fat head into her mouth, not wasting time, done teasing. She rubbed her tongue along the underside and took him as deeply as she could.

  He jerked forward, cock pulsing, and started coming instantly. His shout, followed by his uninhibited moans, filled her ears. His hands went to the wall behind her, holding himself up. Hot come filling her mouth, while he shuddered and pumped his hips uncontrollably.

  All control completely gone.

  He pulled out, and she stared up at him.

  He was still hard as steel.

  Before she had a chance to take a breath, he dragged her to her feet. She was up, lifted against the wall. A second after that, he was inside her, thrusting like a man possessed. Mouth attached to her throat, sucking and biting her skin.

  “Fuck,” he rasped. “Look what you’ve done to me. Dammit, Shay.” Then his fingers dug harder into her hips, and he started slamming her down onto his cock, meeting each thrust with jarring force. Filling her, each slide of his incredibly hard flesh over her inner walls taking her higher and higher until that was all she was, that point where they were joined—and the dirty, sweet things he was growling in her ear.

  “So tight, baby. Always so wet and ready for me. Mine. All mine. Isn’t that right, princess?”

  “Yes,” she cried, then on a wanton moan, threw back her head and screamed as her orgasm tore through her. Her body tightened around him, spasming, clenching rhythmically, milking him.

  She felt him stiffen, felt the heat of his come pulse inside her, filling her, and all she could think was that she’d made a mistake. She’d pushed, and now she’d gotten what she’d wanted.

  Hugh had lost control, and it was—it was glorious.

  She’d tried to tell herself she could handle it if he walked away. That she didn’t want anything more from him. That what they were doing was just sex.

  But tonight confirmed what she already knew deep down. What they’d just done, what they were doing—it wasn’t just sex. It wasn’t just physical.

  It was so much more.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Hugh lay in the dark, Shay curled into his side. He couldn’t sleep. Shit, he could barely fucking breathe. The walls in her tiny trailer felt as if they were closing in, and he was slowly suffocating.

  An image of Shay, curled around him, tongue darting out, worshipping the ink on his ribs, flashed through his mind. He gritted his teeth. He�
��d gotten the tattoo after he’d stolen his first car, his Catholic-raised soul racked with guilt. As if it would somehow bring him closer to God, to forgiveness for his sins. He didn’t believe that anymore. Fuck that. There was no higher power in the driver’s seat of your destiny. Shit happened, then you dealt with it the best you could.

  The cross just made him feel like a hypocrite these days.

  He curled his fingers into a fist. He didn’t know what was causing it, the unease, the twisting, gripping feeling in his gut. He couldn’t work out what put it there, what had him in knots. He was still seeing Shay, and he’d managed to keep her a secret, out of the line of fire.

  They were one car from meeting their deadline in two days. Four more cars to deliver the following month and they were free. But something had him lying there, studying the dark ceiling. Had him clinging to the woman at his side as if she would be torn away from him at any moment.

  He squeezed his eyes shut as that tight feeling started to unfurl, uncoiling faster and faster until he struggled to draw a breath, on the verge of a goddamn panic attack. In that moment, it all became clear.

  He couldn’t let Shay go.

  He’d been lying to himself. Lying to her. She meant something to him—fuck, she meant everything. He’d been too afraid to admit it, even to himself. The risk of losing her, of having to let her go if things didn’t go to plan, was still a very real possibility.

  But tonight, after the way she’d gone to her knees in front of him, how she’d driven him past the last shred of his control—the wall had dropped. He couldn’t pretend anymore. Shay was his. He didn’t want casual, didn’t want an end date. He wanted it all.

  And as soon as Al was in his rear-view mirror, Hugh was making her his, and he was never letting her go.

  He’d tried desperately to ignore the way he felt about her. To deny he’d claimed her as his almost from the moment he’d seen her standing in that parking lot dressed in that barely there costume and looking adorable as hell. He’d been determined to keep her at arm’s length until he could come to her without the constant risk hanging over his head. Sneaking into her place and leaving again under the cover of darkness. Too afraid to have her at his place again because he knew, he fucking knew, if he had her there again, in his bed, among his things, he wouldn’t be able to do it any longer.