Stay With Me (The Montgomery Brothers)

by Chase, Samantha

  He gave a mirthless laugh. “I didn’t think that it was but thanks for the ego boost.” Mac turned his head toward her. “Seriously, what happened?”

  Why wouldn’t he just leave? She thought to herself. Why did he have to now be lying beside her, his shirt unbuttoned and open and revealing a very well muscled chest that she wanted to lay her head down on until her world was okay again? “My mother called. We argued. I drank more than I should on an empty stomach. End of story.”

  Mac stared at her and although she still wouldn’t meet his eyes, he knew she was lying; there was more to it than that simple explanation. “Really?” he asked sarcastically.

  Gina finally faced him, her face full of defiance. “Yes, really. Now you’ve done your good deed for the day and you can leave.”

  His expression instantly hardened at her dismissal and although he wanted to lash out, he knew that wasn’t what Gina needed right now, and she was all that mattered. “I saw your paintings; you’ve been busy.”

  She paled. “So…what, you came over, let yourself in and then snooped around?”

  “The door was unlocked, the music was playing, there was a movie on the television, every light in the place was on and the paintings are right out there in the middle of the room. That’s hardly snooping.”

  “Don’t you have someplace to be?” she whined. “I mean really, aren’t you a workaholic or something?” She just wanted him to go. This was too much for her overly emotional state.

  “I’m taking the morning off.”

  She eyed him suspiciously. “Your father found out that you were working late and that’s why you came over and why you can’t go into work this morning. That’s it, isn’t it?”

  He smiled sheepishly. “That’s part of it but that doesn’t change the fact that I want to be here.”

  “Why?” she asked with a dramatic sigh. “Is it entertaining for you to watch a train wreck?”

  “You’re not a train wreck, Gina; you’re someone who is going through a tough time right now. We’re friends, right? I just wanted to make sure that you’re okay.”

  Friends. Fabulous. Just freakin’ fabulous.

  One look at Gina’s face and Mac knew that he’d said something wrong. Why didn’t women come with a manual? He thought he was being a good guy and it pissed her off. He thought he was being a good son by working hard and it pissed his father off. Hell, it seemed like no matter what he did, someone was pissed at him! He was just about to rant about it but noticed a single tear slowly making its way down Gina’s cheek.

  At thirty-five, Mac had thought that he was immune to a woman’s tears. At this stage in his life, he thought that he was okay with being alone. Somehow, over the last week, his time with Gina had changed him. Back when they were growing up, he really hadn’t paid any attention to her; she was the very young daughter to his father’s friend. But now? Her parentage hadn’t changed but he couldn’t seem to make himself stop paying attention to her.

  Mac turned on his side and reached out to cup Gina’s face so that she was forced to look at him. His dark gaze met hers and he wiped that single tear away with the pad of his thumb. “I hate to see you cry,” he said, his voice a deep whisper. “I hate to think of anyone upsetting you and more than anything, I hate to think that I can’t make it better.”

  Gina was taken back by his words. Never in her life had anyone wanted to defend her or even seem to care about the things that had hurt her. She leaned her cheek into his large hand as she closed her eyes and sighed. It was a good feeling. The skin of his palm was rough and although she knew he worked in an office, he had the hands of a man who wasn’t afraid to do a hard day’s work.

  “If you really want me to leave, I’ll go,” he said softly, leaning toward her. “But I’d really like to stay.”

  She didn’t need to open her eyes to know that he was about to kiss her but that didn’t stop her from holding her breath in anticipation. Mac’s lips were soft and gentle on hers; taking the time to simply place tiny kisses on her lips, her jaw and her cheek. He rested his cheek against hers and simply let the skin on skin sensation wash over him. His breath was hot on her ear as he said, “I never should have left the other night; I thought I was doing the right thing but the truth is, I wanted to stay then just like I want to stay now.” He pulled back and waited until Gina opened her eyes. “Ask me to stay.”

  A shy smile crossed her lips and she blushed. “Stay with me.”

  No three words had ever had a more powerful effect.

  What had been gentle before was now heated; what was sweet was now frantic. They reached for one another at the same time and Mac rolled Gina under him and growled with the feel of her curvy body underneath his. Her scantily-clad curvy body. How had he managed to lie beside her when she wore little more than her underwear? How had he been able to sit and have casual conversation when there was more of her golden skin bared to him than was hidden?

  As close as they were, he wanted to be closer. It was torture to take his mouth from hers but he straddled her hips and sat up to take his shirt off and then dove back down over her. The feel of her breasts pressed up against his was sexy as hell and he was just settling back in with a kiss so hot that his skin felt scorched, when he felt Gina push at his shoulders.

  “Mac,” she sighed, tearing her mouth from his. He pulled back and looked at her, his breathing ragged. Gina could see the heat and the uncertainty in his gaze, like he was afraid that she was going to tell him to stop. Without breaking eye contact, Gina sat up and slowly crossed her arms in front of herself before lifting the tank top over her head. She didn’t think Mac’s gaze could get any darker but the sight of her bared for him did just that.

  She offered him another shy smile and reached out and raked her fingers through his hair. Leaning forward until her mouth was a breath away from his she simply said, “Stay with me.”

  ****

  The feeling of Gina’s breath on his chest and her head on his shoulder was something that Mac knew he could become addicted to. Hours had gone by and in that span of time he had explored every inch of her body. She was wrapped around him now, both of them near exhaustion and yet as her hand gently explored his chest, Mac knew he’d be more than willing to go another round.

  He pulled her closer and sighed with contentment as he placed a kiss on top of her head. “Why did you come here last night?” Gina asked quietly. “Was it only because your father asked you to?”

  Mac chuckled lightly. “That was what I was telling myself but the truth was that I couldn’t stay away. I didn’t want to. Ever since I left here that night, I’ve been making myself crazy in trying to stay away.”

  She pulled back and looked at him. “You didn’t have to stay away, Mac. I told you that.”

  He trailed a finger down her cheek to her chin. “I didn’t want to feel like I was taking advantage of you. You’re dealing with so much now and I didn’t want you to feel like I was…I don’t know…using that to my advantage.”

  Gina laughed. “But that’s crazy! You weren’t taking advantage of me; I wanted you just as much as you wanted me.” Her gaze darkened as a sexy smile played at her mouth. “I still want you.” She bent down and kissed her way across his chest, enjoying his sharp intake of breath. “I’ve always wanted you.” That wasn’t an admission she had ever planned on making and when Mac rolled her over and pinned her not only with his body but with his gaze, she knew that it didn’t do anything but turn him on.

  There were a million thoughts racing through Mac’s head; things that he wanted to say and yet the sight of her beautiful face simply staggered him. He hadn’t realized that he had said the words out loud until she reached up and caressed his face. “No one’s ever told me that I’m beautiful.”

  “You are. When I saw you in the airport I was mesmerized by you. I had no idea who you were but I couldn’t take my eyes off of you.” He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. “I still can’t.”

  Gina began to shi
ft underneath him to better align their bodies. “I don’t want you to take your eyes, or anything else for that matter, off of me.”

  And then she kissed him.

  Chapter Seven

  “Are you sure they aren’t going to mind?” Gina asked, fidgeting with her skirt, her hair, her necklace…anything she could get her hands on to keep her from focusing on the fact that she was spending the day with the entire Montgomery family.

  “The whole family is going to be here and you were invited. Of course they aren’t going to mind.”

  “But it’s a family thing, Mac,” she said, feeling a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of intruding on such an important event.

  Reaching for her hand, Mac gave it a gentle squeeze. “Gina, relax. You are like family to us. Lucas is excited to see you and Emma can’t wait to meet you. It’s all okay.”

  She wasn’t sure if she believed him but just then the door opened and there stood Lucas with a big grin on his face. He pulled Gina into his embrace and lifted her off of her feet and spun her around.

  Mac wanted to punch his brother in the face.

  “It is so good to see you!” Lucas said. “I’m sorry for the circumstances that brought you here but Emma and I are thrilled that you’re here with all of us today.”

  He put her down and gave Mac a quick hug before ushering Gina inside to meet the rest of the family. Mac stood in the doorway unsure of what he was supposed to do. It had been three days since he and Gina had first made love and no one knew of the change in their relationship. As far as everyone was concerned, he just offered to drive her over for the family barbecue. He wasn’t ashamed of their relationship but he wasn’t sure he was ready to let everyone know, either. What he and Gina shared was private.

  And incredible.

  Just thinking about the last couple of nights was almost enough to make him blush. Gina was his every fantasy as well as being a kind and considerate friend. He loved talking with her and hearing about her day. They spent a lot of time talking about her relationship with her parents and he found that he never knew what to expect when he showed up at the guest house.

  Music was always playing and her taste was quite eclectic; one time she’d be listening to seventies rock, the next night it was Motown. The Jackson Five were her personal favorite but then he’d find her with head-banging metal on five minutes later. She wore cowboy hats and yet hated country music. He smiled at the image of her wearing nothing but that cowboy hat last night while they made love in the hot tub.

  “Mac? Are you going to join us?” he heard Emma call from the next room. He loved his family and spending time with them but right now he’d rather have Gina all to himself instead of sitting through an afternoon with everyone.

  In the kitchen , Mac found his parents with his mother holding Lily, Jason and Maggie and then he saw Lucas and Emma talking with Gina. Lucas had his arm around Gina and even though Mac knew it didn’t mean anything, he still wanted to go and push his brother aside and be the one holding her. The thought of any man with his hands on Gina filled him with a rage that he didn’t think he possessed.

  “What are you scowling about? Surely you aren’t mad that your brother invited Gina over, are you?” Mac turned his head and saw his father standing beside him.

  “What? No. What made you think that?”

  “Well the way you’re looking at them for starters.”

  “No, it’s not that; I was distracted, that’s all.”

  “If you tell me you’re thinking about work I’m not going to be happy. You know that, right?”

  Mac nodded. “So how was your trip?”

  “Nice change of subject,” his father chuckled. “Listen I was thinking, I hate for Gina to spend so much of her time at the hospital and then home alone. I know that she’s only here for a short time but I’m thinking of setting her up with…”

  “I told you not to play matchmaker with us, Dad,” Mac growled lowly so that only his father could hear.

  William looked at his son with annoyance. “And I already told you that I wouldn’t do that. No, I was thinking of asking Todd from Operations to take her out. I think he’s a great guy and I trust him and maybe I’ll set them up with tickets to a show or something. You’ve spent some time with Gina; do you think she’d be open to something like that?”

  Mac stared at his father with disbelief. Was he crazy? Setting Gina up with a total stranger? What was the matter with him? “Don’t you think you’re being a little presumptuous? I mean, wouldn’t it make more sense for you to maybe get Emma or Maggie to go out with her for one of those ‘girls night’ things?”

  William wasn’t fooled for a minute but he kept his game-face on as he considered Mac’s suggestion. “I suppose I could plant the idea with the girls and see what happens but I think Gina would appreciate a night out with a nice guy; I think Arthur would approve.”

  Unable to speak freely in the middle of the kitchen, Mac pulled his father into the living room before responding. When they were alone, however, he let it all out. “Don’t you think it’s a little rude to be pimping Gina out? I mean, who put you in charge of her social life? If she wanted to go out on a date, she is more than capable of doing that on her own! She’s had her mother making all of her decisions for her and her father sitting back letting it happen, she certainly doesn’t need you joining in on it!” His tone was low but harsh and by the look on his father’s face, Mac knew he sounded a bit unreasonable.

  “First of all, I don’t think I’m ‘pimping’ Gina out. Secondly, I was just trying to make sure that she didn’t spend all of her time sitting vigil by her father’s bed. I know that her mother is a control freak; I didn’t think that what I was doing was the same thing.”

  “Well it is,” Mac snapped. “Let Gina be the one to decide when and where and who she wants to go out with. She doesn’t need any more people controlling her social life.”

  Interesting, William thought to himself. It wasn’t that Mac was being defensive as much as the fact that he was defending Gina. He wanted to smile and pat his son on the back because for the first time in what seemed like forever, Mac was putting someone else’s feeling s ahead of his own and standing up for them. While he couldn’t be sure that something had happened between Mac and Gina, it was certainly starting to.

  “I still think that Todd would be a good choice,” he said flippantly, enjoying watching the play of emotions that crossed his son’s face.

  “Todd is a kiss-ass and a complete tech-geek; Gina would have nothing in common with him.”

  “Opposites attract,” William countered. “I’ll talk to her about it but leave the decision completely up to her.” And with that he turned and strode away to rejoin his family, leaving Mac fuming.

  When Mac joined them several minutes later, his anger had simmered down to a low-boil. Everyone was laughing and smiling and Lucas was taking a platter piled with steaks out to the barbecue and Jason was following. Rather than get sucked into another awkward conversation with his father, who was now cooing at Lily, he decided to join his brothers out on the deck.

  “Everything okay?” Lucas asked as he opened the massive grill and began placing the steaks on it. “You and dad looked pretty intense in there.”

  Mac took the beer Jason was holding out to him. “Yeah, sure; everything’s fine. He wants to set Gina up with Todd in Operations.” Lucas and Jason exchanged looks and then smiled. “What? What was that about?” he asked, gesturing between the two of them.

  “What’s it to you if he sets Gina up with Todd? He seems to be a decent guy,” Jason said.

  Lucas nodded in agreement. “Plus I’m sure it might be nice for her to go out a bit while she’s here. It can’t be easy being away from home and spending all of her time at the hospital watching her father’s health deteriorate.”

  Mac huffed impatiently. “She doesn’t spend all of her time at the hospital,” he said with exasperation. “She’s painting and playing guitar and learning about photogra
phy!” He explained to his brothers about the room that Arthur had set up for his daughter. “So you see, she’s not sitting around bored; there’s no reason for dad to be setting her up on dates.”

  Jason took a long pull from his beer and then, with a straight face, turned to Mac. “You look real pretty when you pout like that. Anyone ever tell you that?” Lucas burst out laughing and Jason took a step back as Mac lunged for him. “What?” Jason said, leaping just out of Mac’s grip. “It was a compliment!”

  “Screw you,” Mac muttered as he turned and pulled out a chair from the large redwood set on the deck.

  “What is your problem?” Jason asked.

  “Right now? You!”

  Jason turned to Lucas and shrugged. Lucas lowered the flame on the grill and picked up his beer and joined his brother at the table. “Clearly something is bugging you. Now, you can simply tell us what it is or I can guarantee that we’re going to spend the entire day ragging on you. It’s your choice, bro.”

  Mac threw his head back and sighed. “Look, I’ve spent some time with Gina at dad’s insistence and I just know that having people setting her up or making decisions for her is a real sore point.”

  “So you’re concerned about Gina,” Jason said diplomatically and Mac nodded.

  “Or,” Lucas said, dragging the word out, “are you concerned that dad is playing matchmaker again and you don’t approve of who he’s setting her up with?”

  For a moment Mac considered his answer. “Look, I’m not saying that Todd’s not a nice guy; I’m sure he is. I’m just saying that it’s not dad’s place to set Gina up. Hell, Gina doesn’t need to be set up!”

  “Because she has you,” Jason said quickly.

  “Exactly,” Mac said without thinking and then cursed. His brothers high-fived each other before returning their expectant gazes toward him. “This is none of your business.”

  “Oh, really?” Lucas said with a smirk. “And why not?”

  “Did I get involved when you were on-again and off-again with Emma?” he sneered before turning to his other brother. “Or how about with you and Maggie?”