“I’ve wanted it too.” There was nothing between them in this moment. Nothing pulling them apart. Nothing except for their shared desire to give each other everything.
Charity moved against Dev, bending her upper body back in a graceful arch that lifted her hips and then lowered her back onto his lap, taking him even deeper into her. That motion, so fluid and smooth, built into an erotic pressure that throbbed through him. “That’s it, baby. Just like that.” He still had her hands clasped tightly into his, and couldn’t resist rocking his hips under hers, joining her dance.
Charity’s breathless pants deepened into long moaning sighs, the sound alone tempting him to come. He watched her move, watched her breasts rise and fall as she rode him, watched her blond hair spill past her shoulders and down her back.
She watched him too, her lips parted, those pleading sighs joining with the unashamed need simmering in her eyes.
“You, Charity Stone, amaze me.” He let go of her hands and brought his arms around her, holding her against him while he thrust his hips to give her more—more friction, more heat, more intensity.
She kissed him, whimpering into his mouth. “You are so good, Dev. Such a good man.” Her breath caught and her eyes closed, but a tear slipped down her cheek. “It’s never been like this. I never want this to end.”
“It doesn’t have to end. I can promise you…we’ll do it again.” He shifted her in his lap, pumping into her at a higher angle, until her fingers dug into his skin like they had when he’d brought her to the edge before. The strain of holding himself back shuddered all the way in his lungs, but he would not give it up. He would not let go. Not yet.
“Hold me tighter.” Charity opened her eyes and searched his. The curtain hiding her emotions had come down. They were all there for him to see. Tears clung to her long eyelashes but something like hope brightened those blue depths.
“I’ll give you whatever you need.” He cinched her in tighter so that her breasts pressed into his chest, soft and perfect. Together, they rocked and moved, lifting their hips. “I can’t hold on,” Charity said breathlessly.
“Let go.” Dev thrust deeper, sliding out of her and crashing back in. “Let yourself go.”
Her body responded, clenching tightly around him, pulling him right to the brink.
“Oh, Dev. Oh yes.” Her gasping cries and enraptured shudders nudged him off the cliff and into a free fall. He was reeling, out of control, spilling out everything into her as he trembled under the power of his release.
Charity went limp against him, his arms holding her up, her forehead resting on his collarbone. Carefully, he eased his back to the mattress, still cradling her. For several silent minutes, Dev held her that way, his hand stroking her silky hair, breathing her in while they lay on his bed together. He would’ve been content to stay like that forever, but Charity rolled onto her side and peered over at him. “I never understood what was so great about it before.”
“About what?” He quickly got up and discarded the condom before lying back down next to her on the bed.
“Sex.” She said it with a straight face. “I never understood what was so great about sex.”
“Never?” He did his best not to widen his eyes, but…“Really?”
She solemnly shook her head. “Not until now. Not until you.”
Okay, he got that. They had something deeper than a physical attraction. Dev reached his hand over to her shoulder, sliding it down her back so he could feel her skin again. He couldn’t not touch her when she was lying next to him naked. “What’s so great about it with me?”
A devilish grin quirked her lips. “You mean other than the blinding rush?”
“There’s more to it than that?” he teased.
“Ha.” She was quiet for minute. “I guess it’s how much I felt. Not your body, though I have to say, it is quite sexy.” Her fingers traced circles around his pecs. “But there’s way more. I felt you protecting me, caring for me, like no one else ever has.”
“You’re worth protecting, Charity.” He swept her hair over her shoulder. “I know you’re strong, but you don’t have to take on everything alone. I promise not to butt in without your permission anymore, but I hope you’ll ask me to be there when you need me.”
“I’ll do my best.” She kissed him lightly. “It’s new for me. Having someone to ask. So you’ll have to be patient—”
A song blared from somewhere on the floor. Must be Charity’s phone.
“I came in like a wrecking ball…”
“Who is it?” Dev asked, getting up to help her look for it.
Charity gave him a sheepish smile as she dug through the pile of their clothes next to the bed. “My mom.”
He laughed. “Nice ringtone.”
“Wait until you meet her.” She finally found her jeans and dug her phone out of the back pocket.
Dev sat on the bed, watching her. He couldn’t not watch her. She was exquisite. Long-limbed and curvy and strong and graceful. Beautiful, free-spirited, tough, honest, real. And she liked him…
“Hello?” When Charity brought the phone to her ear, her expression noticeably darkened. There was a long pause. “I don’t keep wine in the house, Mom. I hardly ever drink.”
The muscles in her back tensed, so Dev pushed off the bed and came up behind her, smoothing his hands over her shoulders and down the length of her spine. She sighed, her body caving in to his touch.
“No, I’m not stopping to get wine.” Charity shoved her hand up into her hair, pushing it back from her forehead. “Bodie’s what? No. He’s not going out tonight. Why would you tell him that?”
Dev could hear Tammi’s voice but he couldn’t make out what she was saying.
“Forget it.” Charity’s jaw had tensed too. “I’ll be home in a few minutes. You tell him to stay put. Understand?” She clicked the phone off and threw it on the bed. “I have to go.”
“I know.” Dev wrapped his arms around her, savoring the silkiness of her skin against his. “Just remember…I’m here when you need me.”
Chapter Nineteen
Charity turned the truck onto her street and pulled up in front of her house, where she hit the brakes hard. Bodie was walking down the driveway wearing a backpack. “Where are you going?” She cut the engine and hopped out before he made it to the sidewalk.
“Grandma said I could go hang out with my friends.” He kept right on walking.
Charity marched over and blocked his path. “Which friends?”
Her nephew’s jaw suddenly went on lockdown.
That was all she needed to see. “You’re not hanging out with Jett. There’s no way I’m letting you go over to his house again.”
“But Grandma said—”
“Grandma is not in charge.” The irritation that had already started to simmer rolled into a full-on boil. “So you can go ahead and march yourself right back inside. You’re not leaving to go anywhere right now. It’s almost nine o’clock.”
“Fine.” He bit off the word like it had a bitter taste. “Geez. What’re you so pissed about anyway?”
Before she could answer that loaded question, her mother traipsed out the front door. “What’s all the ruckus out here?” She spotted Charity. “Oh, hi honey. I’m glad you’re back. Did you happen to change your mind about picking up the wine? I need a nightcap.”
The threads of anger pulled tighter, and there was no way around it. She was going to snap. “Go inside, Bodie,” Charity ordered, so he wouldn’t bear witness to the confrontation she’d waited years to have.
“Inside?” Her mother looked confused. “But I told him he could go to his friend’s house.”
“His friend’s house.” Charity marched up to her mother. “Just over a week ago I had to drag him out of this friend’s house because he was so drunk he could hardly walk.”
“Bodie,” Tammi scolded like she was talking to a puppy. “You didn’t tell me that.”
“Of course he didn’t tell you that,” Ch
arity nearly shouted. “You have to ask questions. You have to actually pay attention.”
“God, it’s no big deal,” her nephew muttered, trudging up the porch steps. “I’ll be in my room.” He slammed the front door behind him.
Tammi turned to Charity. “How would a child get their hands on alcohol anyway?”
Seriously? Melody had started drinking in their house when she was twelve years old. But that wasn’t the point. “You know nothing about what’s happened since Melody abandoned her son on my doorstep.” She hadn’t seen the pain he’d tried to hide. The confusion, the depression, the fear. Charity had. She’d seen it all, and it was like looking into a mirror.
“I know. I know, honey,” her mother purred. “But I’m here now. I want to help.”
“Why now? Why are you here now? You’ve never helped me with anything.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Tammi demanded, looking wounded.
“I spent years fending off your boyfriends. Years. And I’ve been fending men off ever since.” The words flew out like punches—fierce and calculated, intended to wound. “Which wasn’t always a bad thing before. But now there’s a good man. A man I like very much. A man who likes me, and I don’t even know how to have a healthy relationship.”
Tammi shook her head in a blatant denial. “You’re blaming me for that?”
“It’s not about blame.” She wasn’t blaming anyone. She was simply telling the truth. For the first time. “You knew what was happening when we were kids. You knew those men were hitting on me. On Melody too. She got the worst of it, being older.” There were times her sister would tie a rope from their bedroom doorknob to the closet so no one could come into their room. “I used to wish I had an ugly face so they wouldn’t look at me. I wore baggy shirts so they wouldn’t make comments about my body. After we went to bed at night, we worried they’d come in our room, so Melody tied the door shut.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Her mother’s trembling lips refuted the statement. “I know I dated some jerks, but they never would’ve hurt you.”
“They did hurt me.” And now she had no idea what a healthy functioning relationship should look like. No idea how to build one, how to hold on to one. “They made me feel small and powerless.” So she’d done everything she could to become independent and powerful and unaffected by all of it.
“Charity…sweetie…” Her mother reached for her hand. “I had no idea you felt that way. I made some mistakes. I know that. I was young. I didn’t realize—”
“You were our mom.” She withdrew her hand and cut off the excuses. She couldn’t stomach them anymore. Tammi might’ve been young, but she didn’t have to put men over her daughters. “It was your job to protect us.” Despite her best efforts to hold on to anger, tears heated her eyes. “It was your job to fend people off. You let it happen. You looked the other way.” Her jaw ached, but she couldn’t stop herself. “And now you don’t get another chance. Bodie is my responsibility. I’m going to do what’s best for him. Even if he hates me for it. I’m going to protect him and make sure he knows that there is someone in the world who’ll fight for him. So he never has to fight for himself the way I did.”
“Okay.” A mixture of tears and shock glazed Tammi’s eyes. “Okay,” she half-whispered. Then she turned around and crept back into the house.
Dev was smart enough to recognize a trap when he saw one. He’d walked into the Farm Café and headed for his usual table just before seven, exactly like he did most days, but today he had a whole crowd of women waiting for him.
Jessa, Naomi, Everly, and Darla all sat at his table, sipping from fancy teacups. They immediately quieted when they saw him, which couldn’t be a good sign. An even worse sign was that Ty, Mateo, Levi, Lucas, and Lance sat all the way on the other side of the room looking guilty. Here we go…
“We saved a seat for you over here,” Darla called.
“And your breakfast is already cooking,” Everly added sweetly.
“Great.” He took the long way around so he could swing by the guys. “Which one of you ratted me out about last night? That’s what this is about, right? The scene with Charity?”
“Well, we all know it wasn’t me,” Ty said smugly. “I’m not married to any of them.” Levi raised his hands. “My wife is working in Denver this week, so don’t look at me.”
Dev eyed the other three.
“You can’t blame us,” Mateo said. “It’s that women’s intuition thing.”
“Yes.” Lance pointed at Dev. “It’s not our fault. They always just know whenever something goes down.”
“After I got home Naomi gave me the third degree about why we’d quit on poker so early,” Lucas added. “I never hold up well under questioning. Actually, you might want to think about hiring her down at the station. She’s got some serious interrogation skills.”
Ha. Dev shook his head at them to show what he thought of their excuses.
“Hey, Dev, your breakfast is up,” Jessa announced, beckoning him over. In other words, get your butt over here so we can start the inquisition.
“Good luck, man.” Ty gave him a salute.
“Don’t look directly into Naomi’s eyes,” Lucas advised. “She reads minds.”
“Thanks for the tip,” he muttered, leaving them to their black coffee and talk about prize-winning bulls. If the women weren’t holding his breakfast for ransom, he’d gladly take a place at the table with the cowboys.
“I haven’t had to deal with an ambush since our last active shooter drill,” he said when he approached the table.
“Ambush?” Everly waved him off. “We only wanted to chat. See how things are going.”
“And what happened with Charity last night.” Darla had never been one to mince words. “Since we haven’t been able to get a hold of her, we thought we’d join you for breakfast.”
Naomi set down her teacup. “So what’s the deal? Why’d she show up at your house all upset?”
That didn’t even matter anymore. Dev took the seat they’d saved for him at the head of the table. “I called her mom to see if she’d heard from Melody, and then Tammi made a surprise appearance at Charity’s house last night.”
The words were met with gasps and groans.
“Her mom? Seriously?” Jessa rolled her eyes. “She can’t stand her mom.”
“Yeah. She was upset at first but then we talked things through…” Those scenes from his bed flashed again, fully engulfing him in the same sensual blaze that had claimed them both last night…
“Oh my god.” Naomi leaned in like she wanted a better look at him. “You had sex with her!”
Whoa. The woman really did read minds.
More gasps came at him, but this time they were interspersed with happy squeals. At least, he was pretty sure they were happy.
“I knew there was something between you two!” Everly clapped her hands.
“Thanks to my advice,” Darla put in.
“So tell us everything.” Jessa scooted her chair closer to the table. “I mean, this is huge news. I don’t think Charity’s ever really dated anyone.”
Well, technically they hadn’t exactly defined their relationship. They hadn’t had much time to talk before she’d had to run out, and he sure wasn’t going to talk through the details with these four before he and Charity had even figured things out themselves. He wasn’t that stupid. “I’m not saying another word.” He stood and picked up his plate. “If she wants to talk about it, that’s fine by me, but I’m—”
His phone buzzed from his pocket, and he rushed to put down the plate and answer it on the off chance it was Charity.
“Hello?”
“Deputy Jenkins? This is Detective Barry.”
His contact in Oklahoma. Dread snaked through him, coiling around his throat. “Yeah, hi.” He walked swiftly away from the table and stepped outside, where no one would be able to overhear. A phone call before eight in the morning was never good. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m assuming your friend still hasn’t heard from her sister?” the detective asked.
“No. She definitely hasn’t.” Charity would’ve told him.
“Well, I wanted to let you know that there’s a warrant out for Melody Stone’s arrest. We apprehended Cody Billings, who confessed to his role in the robbery. During the questioning he named Ms. Stone as the accomplice.”
“Okay. Thanks for letting me know.” That was it, then. All the evidence they needed. It would be an open-and-shut case. The news didn’t surprise him, but it still made his heart hurt. For Bodie, and for Charity too.
“If you happen to see her, or if she comes to see her sister for any reason, you’ll have to bring her in.” The detective said it in a cautionary tone, as though he knew it wouldn’t be easy.
It wouldn’t, but Dev wasn’t too worried. Melody already knew she was in trouble. He doubted she’d come back. “Of course. I’ll keep in touch, let you know if I hear anything.”
After a brisk thank-you and goodbye, the detective disconnected.
Dev stood there for a while, wishing he didn’t have to tell Charity, that he didn’t have to break her and Bodie’s hearts. But he’d made her a promise and he wouldn’t keep something else from her. She deserved to know. Maybe he’d call her and ask her to meet him at the café when she got up.
That would give them some time to figure out how to tell the boy that his mom wasn’t coming back.
Chapter Twenty
Something was burning.
Charity pulled on jeans and a sweatshirt and dashed out of her bedroom, ready to evacuate the house and call the fire department. Only there was no smoke, just an acrid haze in the air coming from the kitchen.
She hurried in that direction and walked in just in time to see her mother dump a whole skillet full of charred pancakes into the sink.
“Hey, Grandma makes pancakes exactly like you,” Bodie said from his seat at the kitchen table.
Her heart continued to race because (a) she’d thought the house was burning down, and (b) it seemed she’d overslept. “Why didn’t you two wake me up?” she demanded, looking at the clock. She never slept in.
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