Refusing to Fall (Dennison Series Book 3)

by Ferraro, W

  “Club soda? What the hell kind of pussy drink is that?” Mason’s voice rang out from behind him.

  Those non-watching seconds cost him.

  With a vulgar response waiting on his tongue, he had but a moment to reel himself in to gain control. He wasn’t foolish; he knew if Mason was there, then it wasn’t a great leap for the entire group to be there as well.

  Even in the overly crowded place, he easily picked up her unique scent, the scent that was so strong it signaled how close she was.

  From the moment she walked in here, he had been aware of her, yet he found himself wanting to know.

  Are you as affected by me as I am by you, Colby?

  Hoping his face didn’t betray him, Reed turned around and greeted their growing party. With a firm handshake to Mason and Jamie, Reed only smiled and nodded toward Colby and completely ignored Dustin. The latter was easy to do as he glimpsed her face momentarily showed signs of hurt when he vaguely acknowledged her.

  “You guys want something to drink?” Casey asked, obviously none the wiser.

  Colby’s angelic voice responded. “Yeah, I’ll have the same as Reed, a club soda. And it is a responsible drink, Mason, not a pussy drink.”

  Knowing he should retort with something witty or at least show his gratitude for her defense, Reed just couldn’t bring himself to do so. Regardless that he felt five very familiar pairs of eyes on him to do just that.

  “All right, one club soda, and how about you, Dustin?”

  “I’ll have a beer, but I have it, Case. I’ll walk over to the other side and get it from Brian. Colby, I’ll grab yours too.”

  “Thanks, Dustin,” Colby answered; she was so close that Reed felt the light breeze on his cheek as she spoke.

  The overwhelming scent of cinnamon surrounded him, making it difficult for Reed to think about anything other than how close she stood to him. He turned, and due to the growing crowd in the bar, he actually hit her hip with his knee. Due to space being at a premium, this action had Colby standing between his spread thighs—an intimate position Reed had no intention of altering. However, his fury built once more when he noticed her eyes were not on him but rather following Dustin on the other side of the bar.

  “Don’t worry, I’m sure your club soda is in good hands,” Reed snapped quietly so only she heard him, causing her head to whip around so her brown eyes stared into his blue ones.

  Any response from Colby’s went unspoken. “Come on, Colby. Let’s go grab a table and play a little nine ball, shall we?” Mason wrapped an arm around her shoulder and steered her toward the billiard’s area and away from Reed.

  Between Dustin and his brothers putting their paws all over her, Reed felt the need to roar in frustration.

  He was the only man in this place, in this town, who had the right to put his hands on her.

  Reed squeezed his eyes shut; the craving to follow her and ensure everyone’s hands remained off her had him practically leaping from his seat.

  “Leaving?” Hunter asked.

  The only way I’m leaving here is with Colby.

  Not willing to tear his gaze from the beautiful girl and her testosterone-filled followers, Reed began his trek while speaking over his shoulder. “Been a while since I shot some nine ball; no time like the present to rectify that.”

  “You know that sounds good. I’m always up for a good game of pool,” Gage said as he too stood up and followed Reed across the bar.

  By the time Reed had made his way through the crowd to the billiard’s area, he was barely keeping his fury in check. Right in front of him stood Colby’s delicious ass; primed for eyeing and just asking for a firm smack. Bent at the waist over the table, she had a cue in hand and was ready to break.

  Did she really have no inkling of the ramifications of seeing such a beautiful woman in such a suggestive position had on the male psyche?

  The fact that he knew just how she felt to slide into, to pull his cock into her warm heat in this position, did not help his own erotic thoughts nor did it lessen his desire to make sure no one with a dick dangling between their legs could even comprehend such thoughts starring her Grade-A ass.

  This need grew even stronger when he noticed Dustin obviously enjoying the same view as he sauntered over to her.

  The asshat walked up behind her; he stopped, leaned down as if her lover, and whispered in her ear as she slid her pool stick back and hit the cue ball with a resounding clink. He watched with annoyance as Colby stood up straight, then tipped her head back and laughed her beautiful laugh at whatever Poirier had said to her. The fact the other man remained standing there with her, enraptured by her joy, had Reed biting his tongue at the vicious retort that threatened to escape.

  As Dustin remained unmoving, Reed’s precious privacy was becoming less and less a priority with every millisecond that passed. The indescribable need to physically remove the younger man from his position threatened to overtake Reed.

  “So what brings you here tonight, Colby?” Hunter asked as he passed Reed’s frozen form and took an open seat beside the pool table, all the while completely unaware of his brother’s internal battle merely feet away.

  “Just waiting for Paige. She said something about wanting to shoot pool, but she needed to grab her stuff since her shift was starting in a couple of hours.”

  Reed found minimal solace when Colby removed herself from Dustin’s side and walked over to where Hunter sat. Reed glided by her, inhaling deeply as he passed, allowing her familiar scent to calm him as he leaned against the wall, giving him the best position to miss nothing.

  “Yeah, Gage, how come you have Paige doing all the overnights lately?” Mason asked as he took his shot, missing by a mile before standing straight and leaning the cue against his shoulder.

  Gage shook his head, refusing to say what undoubtedly all the Dennison brothers thought when it came to Mason and a certain female deputy. “All my deputies work the same amount of day and night shifts, Mason. It is a rotating schedule; this just happens to be Paige’s turn.”

  “Why so interested in Deputy Kinsella’s schedule, Mason?” Casey inquired with a humor-laced voice, as he bent over the table sending the cue ball into the two and sinking it in the far side pocket.

  Reading his brother like a book, Reed watched as Mason tried to talk his way out of whatever dance he was playing at tonight concerning a certain brunette deputy.

  “You are all damn lucky that Colby is standing here or else I would tell you what you could do with your curiosity,” Mason griped as he took up a position next to Reed and chewed on a cocktail straw.

  Colby rounded the table, leaned down—which just happened to be in front of Reed, once more giving him the same spectacular ass-appreciating view—and took her shot. She effectively sank the three in the corner pocket before standing to walk halfway around the table to take another shot before clearly saying, “Oh please, the amount of tension you two give off should come with an extremely flammable warning.”

  Jamie and Casey cackled, and Reed, Gage, and Hunter smiled but were able to refrain from allowing their laughter to pass their lips as they all watched as Mason gaped at her and stood speechless. All watched as Colby sunk one ball after another, bending into an erotic stance time after time, making some remarkable shots look quite easy. Reed hoped beyond measure that all the other male thoughts were far from the same train that his were currently riding.

  “She’s a bloody billiard’s shark!” Jamie announced, to no one in particular, as he continued to watch each ball fall into each pocket.

  “Oh, did I fail to mention that?” Paige answered, announcing her entrance as she walked to Colby and gave her a hug and kiss to her cheek before dropping her bag next to the vacant seat by Hunter and sitting down.

  Everyone but Reed transferred their attention to the tall female as she stripped out of her coat and signaled for one of the waitresses to bring her a bottle of water.

  No, Reed’s attention remained on the petite vix
en who was wiping the competition and looking sexy as hell at the same time.

  The games continued to pass, and partners changed every round, all vying to be Colby’s teammate before Gage and Hunter announced their departure after each losing against the small billiard’s powerhouse. Reed never moved from his position, opting to be the only spectator and constantly watching from his vantage point.

  Currently, he was eyeballing Colby as she racked the set and her constant blond shadow stood at her side. No one was asking for a rematch, probably due to not wanting to be pummeled again, so she leisurely placed each ball into the triangle as she ignored the current commotion. Every other person at their table and some at nearby tables were watching the umpteenth pointless argument Mason and Paige were presently involved in.

  “Listen, woman! I’m telling you, there is no way on God’s green earth that you can chug a beer faster than I can!” Mason demanded, holding his bottle in one hand as both arms spread wide to enforce his challenge and obvious disbelief in her argument.

  “Believe me, Dennison, I could drink you under the table.” Now, Paige was getting her back up. She cocked a hip out and crossed her arms over her ample chest before continuing. “This is all some pretty big talk from a man who knows for a fact I can’t prove him wrong tonight because I need to be at the station in twenty minutes.”

  He too tried to block the two bickering out. He spied Colby leaving the table, much to Dustin’s dismay. She walked over to where her bag was, pulled her phone out and checked it before tucking it back inside and rolling her eyes at the two who were still battling with creative insults now.

  I know what you are doing, Colby! Looking anywhere but at me. I know you are mad at me from earlier, but come on, baby, haven’t you made me suffer long enough? Look at me, dammit! You’ve ignored me for the last ninety minutes. Let me see those big brown eyes of yours. I’m slowly going mad, and I need an anchor to reel me back in. Seek me out Colby, come on!

  As if she was privy to his internal thoughts, she finally had mercy on him. The feeling of an electric current running between them filled every nerve ending in his body. For every ounce of joy Reed felt that they were finally sharing an explosive connection, even if only by gaze, an equal amount of lust sped through his bloodstream. He suddenly understood the phrase “dangerous as a downed live wire.” All Reed could think about was getting her out of here and finding the quickest and most convenient location to bury himself inside her.

  Fuck! Keep it together, man! If anyone looked close enough, he wouldn’t be able to hide the evidence of his reaction.

  “Ready to get out of here, Colby?” Dustin inquired, as he sidled up to her side once more, pissing Reed off instantly.

  The spell was broken, and Reed felt the sudden cold as those warm orbs no longer rested on him. Whether conscious or not, Reed moved his right hand to his chest and massaged at a tightness that was suddenly very relevant in the left side there.

  “I . . .” Colby began, as she smiled up at the blond before Paige interrupted.

  With her Cheshire cat grin in place, knowing exactly what she was interrupting, Paige ignored Mason’s current insult to turn to the other couple and said, “Weren’t you paying attention, Poirier? Cranky called out, so you are pulling the overnight with me. Boss said so right before he left.”

  Reed’s pain subsided instantly when the look of obvious disappointment overtook the younger man’s face. The other man closed his eyes in confirmation of what his co-worker said as being true.

  Dustin morphed his features quickly before turning his full attention back to Colby and said softer with what Reed assumed was meant to be a flirtatious smile, “Let me at least get you back home first.”

  Over my fucking dead body!

  “No need, Dustin. I was heading out anyway, so I will take her home,” Reed said, moving to her side. He casually maneuvered his body to instinctively curve into hers, causing Dustin to step back.

  Never more grateful for his well-practiced expression of impassiveness than right now, Reed informally rested his hands in his suit pant pockets, as the other man tried to school his features once more. For however relaxed Reed looked on the outside, he was feeling many levels of pleasure on the inside.

  Her comforting and signature scent filled his nose, bringing along the unusual, but becoming a more common, emotion within him. Fuck! It isn’t necessarily unwanted. Relishing in the bold statement of his presence next to hers, like any other male around their female, in public without scrutiny was so thrilling. More fulfilling than he ever thought possible. How he had the overwhelming need to just extend his arm slightly behind her and wrap it around her tiny waist to pull her into his side. He wanted to lay the claim that had been as poignant in his mind as of late right now in front of everyone.

  “Oh no, that isn’t necessary, Reed . . .” Colby began, having to look up to meet Reed’s eyes, in an almost coy fashion, before dropping them downward once more.

  As if he wasn’t already in enough physical discomfort, Reed felt himself harden even more when she avoided looking at him. This gave him the perfect chance to boldly stare at her from such an intimate angle, which allowed him to clearly see the way her mascara-covered lashes created the smallest of shadows on her porcelain cheeks that were splashed with the most beautiful blush. How he noticed her quickened pulse easily in her lovely exposed neck.

  You are trying to fight it too, I know it!

  Now, it was Reed’s turn to have the devilish smile plastered on his face. “No trouble at all. It’s on the way to my place.” He was completely gratified when she raised her eyes at his detached-sounding comment.

  Holding her gaze, he raised an eyebrow daring her to challenge his offer. To say he was enjoying her discomfort would be an understatement.

  “Reed, I’m sure Gage wouldn’t mind me a few minutes late to shift to ensure Colby got home safely,” Dustin said, severing the intimate connection Reed and Colby were entertaining, and again, tempting Reed for the hundredth time tonight to throw his close to the vest values out the window.

  However, once more tonight, Paige Kinsella was Reed’s heroine. She easily shot his competition down.

  About damn time, you’re finally admitting you see Dustin as a valid and substantial rival when it comes to Colby.

  “Boss may not mind, but you aren’t working with him tonight. So too bad so sad, Buddy-boy. You are working with me and shift starts at nine. So you will have your ass there at nine.”

  Oh Paige, if my brother weren’t so blindly obsessed with your ass, I wouldn’t fight this unbridled desire I have to send you an anonymous delivery of flowers tomorrow.

  “You’re going to make your own cousin walk? Really Paige, don’t be such a tight-ass bitch.”

  Reed was about to address Dustin’s choice of terms, but Mason beat him to it. Regardless of the fact that Mason was on the other side of the table, within a split second, he was now nose-to-nose with Dustin, quickly flanked by Casey and Jamie.

  “What did you say to her, Poirier?” Mason hissed, having no problem crowding Dustin with his own muscular self, trying to shove off Jamie’s restraining hand.

  Come on, Mason, keep it together; this suit is Armani, and I really don’t want to have to break you two up when you lose your cool.

  Come on, Reed, don’t lie; you’d enjoy getting a hit or two in yourself.

  So fucking sue me!

  Dustin’s retort died on his lips as Paige stepped between the two and addressed Mason directly. “Put your chauvinistic dick back in your pants, Dennison. He called me a bitch, so what? You call me that at least four times a week.” But then, she turned to face Dustin, and her demeanor softened yet remained authoritative. “As for you, she doesn’t need to walk; Reed just offered her a ride. So put your lap-wielding weapon away too. The problem is solved.” She stuck her tongue out toward the blond before removing herself from the testosterone sandwich and grabbing her bottled water from the table.

  Reed watched
as the obviously annoyed twin took the two strides to where the female deputy now stood, crossed his muscled arms over his equal defined chest, and snapped, “I say you are being bitchy, not that you are a bitch; big difference, hot lips.”

  Knowing this situation wasn’t going to get any better, Reed turned his attention back to Colby and with a sweeping arm, he said, “Shall we?”

  With good-byes to the group, Reed followed Colby through the bar and out the door.

  Once outside, Colby tried to put her coat on but Reed was quicker and held it out for her to put on.

  “Thank you,” Colby said but remained with her gaze elsewhere.

  “I’m just parked over here,” he said as he led the way around to the side of the building. Reed’s SUV was parked at the end. Like a true gentleman, Reed opened the passenger door for her, offered his hand to assist her getting in, a notion she didn’t acknowledge, before closing the door after she was seated. When he climbed in the driver’s seat, he tried to compose his rapidly forming plan and appear casual. Unfazed by her continued silence, he took a right out of the parking lot and headed off toward her place.

  When they were two blocks down the road, she finally spoke. “I never know what to say to you when other people are around since I know you want to keep our relationship quiet. You tell me it’s okay for us to be friendly toward each other, but every time I see you, you are anything but. I know this must seem juvenile to you, but I can’t help but think that I’m going to do something wrong, so I feel like doing nothing is better than doing something. Does that even make sense?”

  Wanting to tell her that she should never feel like she can’t or shouldn’t speak with him yet not blaming her for his inflicting confusion on her, he found himself doing something that he’d wanted to do all night. He extended his hand the mere inches from where it rested on the armrest and took her hand in his.

  She jumped at the initial contact, obviously caught off guard, yet once their palms connected, she didn’t let go.