Behind the Scandal

by M.A. Stacie

“I want to do it again. Preferably before my son gets home.” She grabbed his hand and dragged him onto the bed. He gave a small grunt as he shifted her until her body lay on top of his, her chin resting on his chest.

  Taylor cleared his throat. “We should probably talk about . . . about why you’re not concerned. About safety. Don’t you think?”

  Libby sighed. “I already said the lack of condom isn’t an issue, and I’m clean. So I’m not worried, unless you sleep around like a tomcat, and I don’t think that’s true, is it?”

  Taylor shook his head. “The drugs had an . . . effect on my libido. I was a charmer but not really able to follow through, if you get me?”

  Libby smiled, liking his honesty. “I thought that could be the case.”

  “I had blood tests and shit done in the hospital after I OD’d. I’m clean, too.” He grabbed her hand and squeezed. “So you’re on birth control?”

  Libby frowned and kissed his chest. “I’d prefer not to get into this, but I can see you won’t let it go. I can’t have any more children. Levi is all I have. Can we drop it, please?”

  Her chest tightened as she tried to push the dark memories from her head. Taylor stroked her hair, watching as the strands drifted through his fingers. His silence made her panic a little.

  Taylor licked his bottom lip. “I know you’d like me to move on after you drop the bomb, but I have questions.” His words rippled along her skin, causing the tiny hairs to stand on end.

  “Are your problems, your scars, all linked to the one person?” he asked.

  “Haven’t we confessed enough for now? I can’t deal with it.”

  He smoothed his hand along her back, dipping at the base of her spine before he rested it on her ass. “Can’t or won’t?”

  “Both. And how is that any different from you hiding from the cocaine? You did it to hide from your emotions. I chose to leave them hidden. It’s how I deal.”

  He turned his head and stared at the window. He flexed a muscle in his cheek and his jaw went rigid.

  “Is there more?” she asked. “Something you’re not telling me?”

  “Tit for tat, babe,” he said, his tone dismissive.

  Libby pushed herself up, slapping his chest hard as she straddled his hips. “Don’t be an asshole. That’s not you.” His gaze settled at her breasts, and when he licked his lips, she had to close her eyes for a moment to settle the dancing butterflies in her stomach. “I’m not going to badger you. That’s not how I work. What I am saying is I’ll tell you when I’m ready, just like you will about your skeleton.”

  “Are drugs not a big enough skeleton for you? You need more secrets in my closet?” He stroked his palms up her thighs, sending sparks of renewed arousal in the same direction. She smiled, trying to lighten the mood. The morning was not going as she’d hoped.

  Cocking her head, she asked, “Do you really want to have a deep and meaningful conversation about my inability to have more children? Or about the real reason you started snorting cocaine?” She rolled her hips, encouraged when Taylor hissed and gripped her thighs. “Or do you want to enjoy the time we have before my son descends.”

  “Are you trying to seduce me?” Taylor asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

  She laughed, and the tightness eased in her chest. “We had a good time last night. I’m asking for you to refresh my memory.”

  “Done,” he said as he gripped her waist and rolled her onto her back. Libby fought him, squealing as he tickled her legs and the back of her knees, working his way up to her waist. Her legs thrashed, and she rolled around the mattress trying to escape his teasing fingers. Her stomach clenched, and her sides ached from laughing.

  “Stop,” she gasped. “Please, stop.”

  Libby sagged onto her stomach, panting and no longer caring about her nakedness. Or her scars. She lifted her hips, glancing at Taylor over her shoulder. Taylor palmed her buttocks, his groan loud and deep. “I have a real thing for your ass, Blue.”

  She snorted.

  “It’s distracting. Well, that and your hair.” He massaged the muscles of her ass, and the sensation aroused her. She pushed her ass into his hands, silently demanding more.

  He pinched her butt cheeks, laughing when she yelped. He lowered his lips to the places he’d pinched and kissed the reddened flesh. Then he placed slow, tender kisses up along her spine, shifting her long hair over her shoulder and exposing her back.

  “I suppose we’re both entitled to our secrets. But it would be fucking awesome if you’d trust me with them one day.”

  Libby closed her eyes, guilt rolling in her gut. “Stop. I can’t discuss this now. You already know more than anyone else, and this isn’t even permanent.” She swallowed. “You’re not here to stay.”

  He kissed between her shoulder blades, working his way back down her spine. “I know it was hard for you to tell me. I promise I don’t want to make your life difficult.”

  He didn’t deny his leaving, and tears prickled behind her eyes. She was growing to care too much about him, and his leaving was going to hurt. It would hurt Levi, too. She wasn’t sure what Taylor thought he could resolve if he wasn’t sticking around. Chase was coming for her, and Taylor would be gone. She knew Chase. She knew he wouldn’t stop.

  A shiver of dread raced down her spine, but it quickly disappeared when Taylor nipped and kissed the base of it. His hands smoothed over the cheeks of her ass, and she wriggled her hips.

  “Blue, I want you again. I’m hard and I need you so bad.”

  His bluntness thrilled her and ramped up her arousal. She could feel just how hard he was—it pressed against her when she rolled her hips.

  “Hmm,” he drawled and kissed his way back up her spine. “Is that a yes?”

  A sharp gasp was her answer as Taylor pressed his front to her back and cupped her breasts. He circled her nipples and feasted on the crook of her neck. Libby’s head spun, her skin flaming with lust, and it grew worse when he nestled his erection in the crease of her buttocks. Each time she rocked against him, he hissed in response, and a new wave of pleasure washed over her.

  Thoughts of Chase, Taylor’s addiction, and worry about what happened next were forgotten. Taylor was giving her what she needed right then. He was loving her, being gentle with her, and treating her like his most cherished possession. He was a man without a dirty past, and she was a woman without a dark history. Both of them were bathed clean in each other’s arms.

  Libby kissed Taylor, but when he rolled her nipple between his fingers, she tore her mouth away and groaned.

  “Good, huh?” he whispered, stroking a hand along her spine before grasping her hips. “We can be better, babe.”

  Pleasure consumed her as he filled her body with his hardness. Her thighs quivered, and she pushed back against him, mumbling for more.

  “Always. Always more when it comes to you.” He thrust into her, and the room filled with the sound of skin slapping against skin. “Can never get enough.”

  “Shhhh,” she whispered.

  His fingernails bit into the skin on her hips as he hastened the speed of his bucking. Libby panted, continuing to whisper for more. He responded, grunting as each pump caused her to gasp. His hot breath floated across her skin, raising her temperature to boiling.

  In direct contrast to his aggressive thrusts, his lips kissed every one of the scars on her back with a gentleness that made her want to cry. His tongue traced the imperfect skin, lingering on the longer, deeper marks. He rested his cheek against her, hugging her close, and Libby fell into beautiful bliss. A tear slipped down her cheek and dropped onto a pillow.

  “You’re right,” she said quietly. “We are better. Better together.”

  Taylor’s orgasm had him uttering her name against her spine. His arms tightened, and his hips slowed before he eased himself onto the mattress alongside her. Libby watched the rapid rise and fall of his chest, enjoying the way his muscles bunched when he inhaled.

  He opened his arms. “Come here,
” he said, and she curled up and let herself be swallowed whole into his warmth.

  Chapter 15

  “Let me talk to Libby, and either I’ll call you back about the lessons or she will,” Taylor said into the phone. He jotted down the caller’s number, along with the details of the riding lessons she wanted. He had no idea what kinds of things Libby did with the kids. He’d only seen her when she taught Levi. Honestly, he had no clue what the caller had asked him either.

  He hung up and stared around the tack room. Libby’s riding hat wasn’t on the hook—she was out again, just as she had been every morning for the last week. Taylor had wanted to talk to her more about her past, about Chase. He’d wanted to explain that he would keep his promise—that he’d protect them, that he’d speak to his father about her legal rights regarding her son. Taylor meant it, no matter what it cost him emotionally, but Libby wasn’t willing to listen. Her stubbornness could rival his own.

  But Taylor couldn’t let her hide forever.

  Huffing, he shook his head. He should know more than anyone that he couldn’t force someone to speak. His secrets had been buried so deep, hidden under piles of new crap, that he was surprised he could recall the point it all went wrong, when his life had jumped from one fuckup to the next. Tori being the greatest one of all.

  From day one, he’d seen the signals she’d sent his way. It’d been hard to avoid them. Taylor had turned on the charm, like always, loving the way she blushed when he talked dirty or groped her. For the first time in years, he’d been happy.

  Until Kyran had dropped the bomb that Tori was someone totally different from the woman he thought he knew.

  Thinking about the situation now made his stomach churn.

  “Whatcha doing?”

  A smile spread across Taylor’s face as Levi bounced into the tack room. “Sorting out some stuff. You?”

  “Looking for you.” He grinned.

  “Yeah?”

  Levi nodded. “Got something to tell you.”

  The kid had Taylor smirking. He loved to withhold information so Taylor would tickle it out of him. Today, though, he wasn’t in the mood. He was worried about Libby and feeling utterly useless.

  “What do you have to tell me, brat?”

  Levi scrunched up his nose and looked to the ceiling. “Pops sent me.”

  “And now you’re here.” Taylor ruffled Levi’s blond curls. “Spill it, pest.”

  “Pops told me to tell you that you have company.” He turned toward the door of the tack room.

  “Whoa there. Who’s here?”

  A huge smile spread across the little boy’s face, flashing his wobbly front tooth. “Your brother, Pops said.”

  Taylor’s jaw fell open as he watched Levi disappear from view. For a second he wondered whether he’d heard the kid right, but then, who else could he have meant?

  He looked around the room, clenching his hands, his mind spinning as he tried to work out why Kyran was there. They hadn’t parted as friends, and the single phone call they’d shared had been stilted at best. There was no reason for him to be there, unless he was checking up on him for their father.

  He needed Libby. She was his comfort. He scratched his head, wondering when he’d become so fucking attached. Kyran wasn’t a monster, and Taylor had dealt with him for years before Libby had entered his life. He could do this. He would show his brother he was clean, that he’d stuck to the terms of his father’s contract. And then Kyran could fuck off.

  Taylor inhaled slow and deep, taking a few moments to calm down before he began the walk toward the house. His heart pounded hard against his chest, and each step felt like walking through quicksand. Hunter’s Hollow had been an island to him, a place where the reality of his life couldn’t touch him, but now that Kyran was there, that illusion had shattered. His past had caught up with him, and it was time to deal with it. His brother needed to see the changes Taylor had made.

  His boots thumped against the wooden porch steps as he walked to the front door. Before he entered, he turned to look out across the hills, hoping for a glimpse of Libby, but as he squinted against the low sunlight, he saw no sign of her. Taylor would have to face his brother alone.

  He opened the door, trying to ignore the way his hand trembled. He could do this. It was only Kyran, and his brother was just as messed up as he was.

  That thought vanished when he heard a woman’s light laughter echo off the walls. It wasn’t Libby’s, but it was certainly familiar.

  “You sure picked a feisty one, Kyran,” Josh said as Taylor walked into the kitchen. Josh, Kyran, and Dale turned to stare at him, the laughter dying out fast. Kyran wasn’t alone. “Taylor,” Josh said with a smile. “Isn’t this a wonderful surprise?”

  Taylor bristled. “I guess, although a phone call would have been nice.”

  Kyran smiled, but the twitch in his cheek told Taylor his brother wasn’t as calm as he appeared. “It was a last-minute decision.”

  “Oh? Did the office burn down, allowing you the luxury of a vacation?” He fought to keep the disdain from his voice but knew as soon as the words left his lips that he’d failed.

  Kyran grinned. “Dad’s covering. He’d be here himself but . . .”

  Taylor chuckled. “Can’t think of an excuse quick enough? You need to work on that.” He walked across the room, trying not to make eye contact with Dale. He’d been such an asshole to her that just looking at her caused his guts to tighten with regret.

  Kyran cleared his throat. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I should stop covering for him. Truth? I don’t know why he couldn’t make it. I told him I wanted to come and see how you were doing, and he never bothered to make up a reason.”

  Taylor pointed his finger at his brother. “That’s more like the man we know.” He opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water before turning back to Kyran, Dale, and Josh. “So why are you here?”

  “We came to see you,” Dale said. “We were both worried.”

  “A bit late for your concern, don’t you think? Neither one of you put a stop to my being sent here. In fact, I bet you helped him sort it all out.”

  Josh shot him a sharp warning glance, but Dale let go of Kyran’s hand and stepped toward him, craning her neck so her green eyes met his blue ones. “You know, I thought that once the shit was out of your system you’d be a little nicer.” She shrugged. “Guess I was wrong, because you’re still an asshole to everyone who cares about you.”

  Levi bounced over to Taylor and jumped up. Taylor lifted him and settled him on his hip as the little boy stuck his tongue out at Dale. “He’s not mean to me. So you’re wrong.”

  Dale laughed. “Cute. Are you paying your bodyguard in candy?”

  Taylor scowled at Kyran. “Looks like I’m not the only one with a bodyguard.”

  “Maybe I assumed I needed one.”

  Laughter burst from Taylor’s mouth, startling Levi so much he placed his hands over his ears. “Sorry, brat. My brother isn’t usually the comedian of the family, but that appears to have changed. He’s a real funny man now.”

  Josh came over and lifted Levi from Taylor’s arms and eased him to the floor. “I think I should take him to Libby. You three need to talk, and Levi shouldn’t be here for that.”

  Kyran nodded. “That would be wise. Thank you.”

  Taylor stared at Josh. “I don’t know where Libby is, but I’m pretty sure she took a horse out again.”

  “I bet I can amuse Levi until Libby comes back.”

  He led Levi toward the door when Dale shouted, “I’ll come with you! My presence will just annoy Taylor.” Dale faced him, raising a brow. “While you’re dishing out the hostility, remember that I helped you. And then you used me to get to your dealer. It should be me who’s pissed.” She didn’t stay to hear his response—not that he had one. Dale had been spot on and he couldn’t argue against her. Instead, he watched the three of them retreat, leaving him alone with his brother.

  The silence was awkwa
rd. Taylor wanted to fill it, but he didn’t know where to start. Whenever he looked at his brother, he felt shame. The mess he’d been back in Sea Pointe bore no resemblance to the person he was now. He wanted to explain it to Kyran but was struck dumb. There was still a part of him that felt abandoned. His father and Kyran had washed their hands of him, leaving Josh to pick up the pieces.

  He’d needed their support, their strength, as the drug left his system. Instead, he’d had to find his own way through the stomach cramps, mood swings, and nosebleeds. Libby had helped, but he’d needed his family.

  “You look well,” Kyran said, breaking the silence. The side of his mouth lifted as his gaze drifted down to Taylor’s boots. “Never pictured you as a cowboy.”

  “Don’t really have a choice. Either I rotted in bed or kept busy, and I couldn’t muck out the horses wearing a suit.”

  Kyran’s jaw dropped open. “You clean up horse shit?”

  “It gives me something to do. Keeps my mind off . . . well, off the drugs. It’s not so bad.” He shrugged.

  “The kid likes you.”

  Taylor smiled. “Levi and I have an understanding.”

  “Seems like the little guy has you wrapped around his finger. I always presumed you hated kids.”

  Taylor’s back stiffened. “Yeah, well, there’s a lot you don’t know about me. Maybe if you’d called more than once—”

  “Oh, here we go!” Kyran snapped. He held his arms out. “Come on, then. Hit me. Give me everything you’ve got.”

  “Hit you?” Taylor didn’t bother to hide his disgust. “Yeah, you’d fucking love that, you sadistic fuck. Nothing gets you off more than a bout in that boxing club of yours.”

  Kyran chuckled. “I meant spill your guts. Hit me with all the shit that’s eating away at you. I did not mean actually hit me. Moron.”

  “Not that you wouldn’t deserve it.”

  Kyran huffed and rubbed his palm against his sternum. “Look, we need to air our shit. Dale has made me open my eyes, and I didn’t like what I saw when it came to our relationship. I’m here because I want to set things right.”