by Kristy Love
“No, I just don’t want you to be alone.”
“I’m not alone. I have you, my friends, a job, and a life. I’m good.”
“Random hookups aren’t friends.”
I couldn’t fight it anymore. I snorted and rolled my eyes. “My random hookups are none of your business, Cassie. I don’t want to argue.”
“I don’t want to either. I’m just worried about you. You can’t keep letting Robert impact your life. It’s been over six years. Let it go.”
“I don’t need a man to complete me, Cassie. I don’t need him to ride in on a fucking white horse and solve all my problems. I don’t have problems. I’m happy. Really.”
She sighed, her eyes swimming with tears. Great. Emotional Cassie was back. “I thought I was happy until I met Jax. He completes me in a way I didn’t know I was missing. I want that for you, Rox. I want you to be happy and loved.”
I leaned forward and laid my hand on top of hers. “I am happy and loved. I have you and your son—both of your kids soon. Plus I have Jax’s balls to bust and Harper moved to town a few months ago. I’m fine. I promise.”
“I love you, Roxie. I just want what’s best for you.”
“I love you, too. And I’m happy. I promise.”
She smiled, her eyes still a little teary. “Let’s talk about something happy. Jax and Ben are painting the nursery today.”
“I thought you guys were waiting until the baby was born. That Jax wanted to be surprised.”
She shrugged. “That’s still the plan, but he’s completely convinced we’re having a girl.”
“What happens if you have a boy?”
“He said he’ll either repaint or we’ll have a son who’s in touch with his feminine side.”
We laughed, all the tension that had built up with our earlier discussion fading away. As we ate, we talked, and I could tell Cassie’s anxiety level lowered. She’d been a single mother to an only child for so long, now that she was married and welcoming a second baby, she sometimes became overwhelmed.
When breakfast was over and I picked up my car, we went our separate ways. She went home to her boys and I went home to curl up on the couch. Some sleep would go well with the pancakes, eggs, and bacon still filling my stomach.
I WALKED THROUGH Mia’s new house with her and David, keeping my distance from David. Mia gushed constantly and seemed to love everything. She was laying out the entire house in her imagination, placing furniture I didn’t think she even had. She was nearly bouncing with excitement, I grinned. She held a paint swatch against a wall in the room that would be the baby’s.
“What do you think about this one? It’s neutral, right?” She cocked her head to the side.
“It’s perfect,” I said, smiling. It was a pale yellow and was perfect for either a little girl or a little boy.
In Gia’s room, she held up another swatch. Gia toddled up and slapped the wall. “See, David, she wants a bright, princess pink. Not bubblegum pink.”
“You’re right.” David smiled down at Gia. He picked her up and kissed her. I loved how much he held and loved on the little girl.
After we toured the house and it got the David and Mia stamp of approval, we went outside and I locked the house back up. Tomorrow they’d close and the house would officially be Mia’s. “Come to lunch with us to celebrate,” Mia invited. She was so excited and I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. I made the mistake of looking at David and he was staring me down. The intensity in his eyes convinced me to go with them. Well, that combined with Mia’s enthusiasm.
“Sure.” I grabbed my purse and followed them out. David climbed in his Mustang, Mia climbed into her SUV. Mia and I followed David until he parked outside of a restaurant. David, of course, unbuckled Gia and carried her inside the restaurant.
Once we were seated, we ordered lunch and I sat there as Mia gushed about the house.
“Thank you so much for all your help, Roxie.” She laughed. My gaze traveled between David and Mia, and I wondered how they were related when he had an accent and she most definitely didn’t. They also looked nothing alike. Mia had light blonde hair, clear blue eyes, and was petite as hell. Well, other than the baby bump. David had dark brown hair that looked almost black. He wasn’t a big guy, but his body was broader. The only thing they had in common was their eye color.
My eyes held David’s. “Of course. I’m so glad I could help out.” David smirked. My eyes cut to Mia. “I’m surprised you’re siblings.”
She scrunched up her nose. “You mean the accent? David grew up in England before his mom died. His dad moved here, met my mom, and the rest is history.” She smiled up at David. The affection she felt for David was clear.
“That’s interesting.” David tapped his fingers on the table, drawing my eyes to him. I raised my eyebrows.
“I’m sure Roxie doesn’t want to hear our family history, Mia.” David’s eyes were glued to me as his fingers drummed on the table.
“I find it interesting, David.” I turned my attention back to Mia and nodded for her to continue. She gave Gia a snack of some type from the diaper bag. It looked like a little puff. Gia’s little fingers pinched around it and she shoved it in her mouth, smiling big.
“David’s dad had a popular garage over in England and opened another branch of it here, so David took it over when his dad went back to England. His dad wasn’t as successful here as he was in England, but under David’s control, it’s become hugely successful.” Mia looked up at David again.
“That’s fascinating.” I rested my elbow on the table and stirred my drink with my straw, my eyes flitting between the two of them. “The garage certainly looks successful.” My eyes were trained on David, but his face was set in stone.
“It is,” Mia gushed. She leaned into his shoulder, resting her body against his. “He has celebrity clients and everything. The garage is featured in magazines and publications and has won awards for how good it is.”
I raised my eyebrows. “That’s amazing, David. Congratulations.”
“Thanks, love.” He smiled at me. Mia straightened in her chair, her eyes darting between David and me. I couldn’t tell what the expression on her face meant. “I love doing what I do.” He smirked.
Good lord, I felt like he was talking about more than cars. Our eyes stayed locked on each other. At least until Mia cleared her throat.
“Now that I’m at the garage as a secretary-slash-assistant, sometimes I see the celebrities who come into the garage to work with him.” She giggled.
“Anyone I’ve heard of?”
She feigned indifference, shrugging her shoulders. “Oh, you know, just George Clooney, Jay Leno, Chris Pratt . . . just to name a few.”
”I bet it was awesome to meet them.”
She leaned across the table. “They’re even hotter in person,” she whispered.
“Mia,” David admonished. “I’m sure Roxie would rather hear about just about anything other than this right now.” Mia sat back and scowled at him. She was easily the most emotive person I’d ever met.
“Hot men are always a topic I love discussing, David.” I smirked at him.
David’s beautiful blue eyes turned back to me. “How is the real estate business treating you, Roxie?”
“Really good. Selling here is different than Halifax.”
“You used to sell houses there?”
I tucked hair behind my ear, suddenly uncomfortable. “Yeah. I grew up there. I just moved here a little over a year ago.”
His eyes scanned my face. “That’s quite a change. A small town to Fairfax.”
“The housing market is different, for sure. It’s much more expensive to buy a house here than it is to buy a house in Halifax, but that doesn’t seem to stop anyone from dropping serious cash.”
“You have people with more money here. A lot of politicians settle their families here.”
“I definitely meet a lot of different people.”
“Have you ever met a celebrity
, Roxie?” Mia asked, bouncing in her seat.
“No. The most famous person I ever met was a politician.”
Mia deflated. “That’s no fun.”
“It’s no George Clooney or Chris Pratt, but it pays the bills.” I shrugged.
Mia giggled again and went back to talking about her house. I cast furtive glances at David, only to find his eyes boring into me. I was uncomfortable caught in his penetrating gaze, but I secretly relished in it. My body was hot and I wanted his hands on me. I shifted in my seat.
We ate and I listened to Mia. There was something endearing about her. She was sweet and wore every emotion and thought on her sleeve.
I needed to keep my mind off David. I needed to find someone to hook up with tonight. It’d been much too long. I mentally scrolled through names, contemplating what kind of mood I was in. The bill came and I reached for it. I’d pay for my portion at the very least. David snatched it first and handed his card to the server with a ready smile. I wanted to receive that smile.
Damn, he made me greedy.
We walked outside and Mia gave me a hug, thanking me again. I hugged her back and smiled. She bounced off to her car, carrying Gia on her hip. I was surprised that David didn’t help her to the car. Instead, he watched her until she was out of sight. Then he trained his intense blues on me and I felt trapped. A slow, sexy, confident, and delicious smile curled his lips.
“I’m surprised Brock wasn’t there,” I said. Something in his eyes unsettled me.
“He’s still away on business.”
“It’s been over a month that he’s been away.”
“He’s working for the first time in his adult life. It’s better this way.”
“Why?” The dynamic between Mia and Brock didn’t make sense to me. I’d never even talked to Brock on the phone. It was always David and Mia. Hell, Brock had never even seen the house he just purchased.
“If you don’t mind, love, I’d prefer not to talk about Brock right now.” He stalked me, moving closer. I backed up until I ran into the building. His eyes pinned me in place and he moved until a mere breath separated us. I was both turned on and ready to run.
That was a common feeling around David.
“What do you want to talk about?” My breaths came in quick bursts as his eyes dropped to my lips.
“I’d prefer not to talk at all.”
And with that, he pressed his lips to mine in a gentle kiss, as though he was testing the waters, gauging my interest.
I was only too interested.
I parted my lips and traced his lips with my tongue. They tasted faintly of sweet tea. That was all it took. His hands buried themselves in my hair and he pressed his hips into me as he deepened the kiss. He stole my breath with his lips again. I couldn’t seem to get enough oxygen or David or the way he felt against me.
I grabbed his shirt to help keep myself upright and firmly grounded in the moment. My knees trembled. He made me feel so weak and unbelievably strong at the same time.
I wondered if he’d be there to catch me if I fell.
He moved his lips to kiss down from my chin to my neck and I gasped, trying to get enough oxygen into my lungs to think or speak. His lips touched a spot just below my ear that made my eyes roll back in my head.
“I want you,” he said, though it came out as a raw grumble. I felt the vibrations of his words course though my body. I clenched my thighs together.
God, I wanted him too. I wanted him badly and had since I first saw him again. I wasn’t sure if I could say no this time.
“I want you, too,” I replied, trying like hell to make my voice sound strong. My body trembled with desire and I didn’t want him to know how much I wanted him.
“Come back to my place,” he said as he peppered kisses along my neck and lips.
“Okay.” As soon as the word left my lips, he pulled his body away from me and grabbed my hand, dragging me toward my car. Once I was inside, he strode to his car like a man on a mission. Doubts crept in as I followed him to his house. Was I making a mistake? Would this start something I wasn’t ready for?
No, I was in control. One time and he’d be out of my system. That’d be it. Surely, I could have David once more and be done.
I pulled into the driveway as he parked his car in the garage. I had barely put my car in park and grabbed my purse before he was opening my door and pulling me out. He pressed me against the side of the car and devoured my lips in a kiss that seared me. I was even more breathless and I needed him even more now than I did before.
“Come inside, love,” he said, pulling me away from the car. My heels clicked against the pavement as I tried to keep up with his long strides. We hurried through his garage and through a door that led to a laundry room, and from there into a spacious kitchen, where he grabbed my purse and threw it across the room.
I didn’t have time to protest or tell him that bag was expensive, because he turned to me and crashed our lips together. As he kissed me, he slid my suit jacket off my shoulders and dropped it to the floor. Then his fingers went to the buttons on my shirt as he methodically undid them. When he pushed the shirt off my shoulders, he broke away from my lips and looked down at my body. He slid the zipper of my skirt down slowly where it pooled on the floor around my feet.
“Fuck, you’re even more gorgeous than I remember.” He licked his lips as his eyes surveyed my body. “I’ve been thinking about seeing you like this since I walked into that house with Mia. Now that you’re here and I’m looking at you, I want to kick myself for waiting so long to have you.” His eyes met mine and my breath caught in my throat. There was so much desire and longing caught in them.
“I’ve wanted you, too.”
“Why have we been denying ourselves, love?” He moved back until his body was flush with mine. “I could have been kissing you.” He kissed me so passionately my knees buckled. He wrapped his arms around me to keep me from falling. “Holding you.” He picked me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He trailed kisses over the top of my breasts. “Tasting you.” He licked up my neck and sent shockwaves through my body.
He carried me to the island in the kitchen and sat me on it, fished a condom out of a drawer before undoing his pants and rolling it on. Without any preamble or warning, he thrust into me. I cried out and grabbed onto him to keep myself grounded. “Fucking you. I could have been inside you every day. Fuck, you feel perfect.” He set a rhythm that caused me to claw at his back. I was already so close and we only just started.
I made noises I would have been embarrassed about if I wasn’t so thoroughly enjoying everything he was doing. His eyes stayed trained on my face, watching my reaction to him. He shifted and that was all it took for me to tip over the edge. I cried out his name, which was apparently all he needed to come undone. As we both came down, he dropped his head to my shoulder, breathing heavily. He pulled away from me slowly and I winced at the loss of him.
Once his pants were back around his hips and the condom was thrown away, what just happened slammed into me. The desire to flee was so strong I felt I was choking on it. He walked back toward the bathroom and I hopped off the counter and rushed to put my clothes on. I slid my jacket on and grabbed my purse and heard him coming back. I ran out of the house and toward my car. I didn’t even pause to put my seatbelt on, just threw the car in reverse and backed out of his driveway. When I was out on the street, David walked out into the garage. He ran a hand through his hair and watched me pull away. I didn’t wave or even acknowledge him. I just drove off.
I raced away from him, the way he made me feel, and myself.
I RACED OUT of David’s as though my panties would catch on fire if I stayed. In a way, they would. The way he stared after me burnt my skin.
I got in my car and fled, not bothering to say goodbye or make any further plans. As far as I was concerned, whatever thing we had was over. He and his sister closed on the house, I got a kick ass car out of the deal, and a couple of orgasms. We were ev
en.
My phone rang and I accepted the call through the Bluetooth in my car. “Hello?”
“Hey, sis. How are you?” Cassie asked.
“I’m good. How are you doing? Any movement on that baby of yours?” Act casual was the mantra in my head the entire time. Act fucking casual. My sister didn’t need to know that I’d just had my brains fucked out on the kitchen island.
“Contractions started.” She sounded casual, as though she was telling me the weather was sunny.
“Holy fucking shit!” I swerved and pulled to the side of the road. “What do you need me to do? How far apart are they? When are you going to the hospital? How much pain are you in?”
Cassie chuckled. “Slow your roll, Rox. I’m not sure if it’s the real deal. They’re every seven minutes or so. I need a distraction from the pain.”
“How much do you hurt?”
“It’s not too bad except when a contraction starts.”
“Where’s Jax?”
“He and Ben are at a baseball game.”
“So, you’re home alone?”
“Yeah.”
“Let me come over.”
“No, please . . . please just stay on the phone with me.” Her voice got tighter. A low groan filled the line between us and I held my breath as she breathed through it. “That was only six minutes.”
“Did you call Jax?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want to interrupt their guy time.”
“Jesus, Cass. Don’t be a martyr. You know he’d want to know. They’ll both be disappointed if you go through this alone. Do you need me to stay with Ben while you’re in labor?”
She whimpered, her strong facade finally cracking. “I’m scared.”
“Cass . . .”
“What if I don’t love this baby as much as Ben? What if something happens to this baby? I can’t . . . I can’t lose this baby, Roxie.”
“You won’t lose the baby. Have there been any issues during your checkups?”
“No. None.”
“Then what makes you think something will happen?”
“Life’s too good right now. I have a man who loves me and my son. I have an amazing job. Something has to come along and mess it up, don’t you think?”