Liam: Branded Brothers

by Raen Smith

  Jerry chugged the rest of his beer and placed the empty glass back on the counter with a clank. Then he stood up, grasped Liam’s bicep, and added, “Sleep on it.”

  “I will.” Liam nodded his head and held up the envelope before tucking it in the back of his pants. “If it was anybody else, you know I wouldn’t.”

  “I know, kid.” Jerry turned to Charla. “Nice meeting you. You take care of this kid, would ya?”

  “After the conversation you just had, I think it’s the other way around,” Charla replied, twirling her fork in the air. Jerry laughed and gave a small wave before disappearing into the sea of people. A few moments later, the door opened and closed.

  “It’s a little crowded in here. You want to head upstairs?” Liam asked, sliding onto the stool next to her. She raised her eyebrows at him and took a bite of her fried pickle.

  “I take it that you like the food since you’ve been inhaling it since I set it down.” He laughed and stood up, nodding his head toward the back door. “Let’s go upstairs.”

  “I don’t know…” she started as she picked up her plate and wine glass. “After that conversation, you sound more dangerous than I thought. Drug smugglers?”

  “That’s nothing,” he said over his shoulder as he led his way through the crowd. He nodded and said hi to at least a dozen people by the time they got to the back door. Charla smiled politely at the bitchy stares from other women. She was waiting for the plate of food to be flipped into her chest or to catch a nasty remark from one of them, but they made it safely to the back unscathed. Liam dug in his pocket and pulled out a key.

  “What the hell was that all about?” Charla asked.

  “What?” Liam asked innocently.

  “The women,” she replied. “I thought I’d get my eyes scratched out for a second.”

  He laughed as he held the door open for her. “It’s all your imagination. Welcome to my lovely home. After you.”

  “Somehow I doubt that,” she replied as she ducked under his arm and made her way up the stairs. The women in the bar were jealous of her. A small ounce of satisfaction crept onto her face, and then she did something she didn’t intend to do. She let her hips shake a little more than they usually would. With each step forward, she wondered if Liam’s eyes were ogling her from behind.

  He let out a low whistle, letting her know he approved.

  Chapter 7

  “So this is it?” Charla said as they walked into the open space of Liam’s loft apartment. He flicked on the lights, illuminating high ceilings and arched doorways. The whole space was neatly organized and tidy without a single item out of place. The living room furniture was a clean and modern grey herringbone pattern with colorful artwork displayed above it. “Not bad for a bachelor pad above a bar.”

  “I’m glad I could meet your low stamp of approval,” he replied, pointing through the living room. “Table’s through here.”

  “I’m kidding, please don’t tell me you did it yourself,” she said, turning to him. “I’m leaving if you do.”

  “I didn’t.” He laughed, holding up his hand. She tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Honest. I didn’t do it. It was Gina downstairs. She’s going to school to be an interior decorator. She was disgusted with my leather couches. She held a design intervention with me.”

  “Thank God.” She followed him to the table in the kitchen. She set down her plate and glass and sat down in the chair Liam pulled out of her. “I don’t know how much more I could handle.”

  “You’re not used to people doing things for you, are you?” he asked, sitting down next to her. He pulled the envelope from the back of his pants and threw it on the table.

  “Not at all,” she replied, taking a bite into the wrap. She closed her eyes and chewed slowly. She wasn’t sure if it was the best wrap she’d ever had because Liam had made it or because she was so hungry. Either way, she wanted to savor the taste. She finally swallowed and opened her eyes. “You going to open that envelope?”

  He stared at her with curled lips. “You like the wrap?”

  “Amazing,” she replied, taking another drink of wine. She set down the glass and realized it was almost empty. How did that happen? She was taking only sips. Liam popped up and opened the cupboard, looking through bottles of wine. “No, I’m good. I still have to drive home tonight.”

  He ignored her and took down a bottle of wine and another glass. He was already turning the corkscrew before she could protest again. Her eyes caught the yellow envelope on the table in front of her.

  “No, I’m not going to open that envelope tonight,” Liam answered her question before she could ask. He pulled the cork out of the bottle. “No work tonight, just play.”

  “Play?”

  “You know what I mean,” he said as he walked over with the bottle.

  She shook her head.

  “Just another drink. I don’t know if I want you driving home alone tonight anyway. The thought of you staying at the cottage by yourself…” he started.

  “It’s fine,” she replied, waving her hand. “I’m comfortable there, plus I’ve stayed there by myself since Jack died.”

  “It has to be lonely out in the middle of nowhere like that,” he replied, studying her with a burn in his eyes. She put her hand over her glass so he couldn’t fill it. He paused, holding the bottle upright. “It’s a bottle from my parent’s restaurant, aged to perfection. We have to drink it.”

  “Well, if that’s not a guilt trip…” She moved her hand and let him pour a glass. He moved to his glass, grinning the entire time. “I guess you do always get what you want.”

  “I do.” Liam took a bite of his wrap and chewed between smiles. She couldn’t believe she was wrapping herself around his finger. Don’t fall for him, she reminded herself. You’re not ready for this.

  “And I didn’t mean for the bottle of wine to be a guilt trip,” he added. “I’ve just been waiting for the right moment to open it.”

  “And this is it? Me, shoving my mouth full of this delicious food?” Charla replied, putting her napkin in her lap. She hardly considered this a “right moment” by any stretch.

  “I think our first dinner together is cause for celebration,” he replied, chewing thoughtfully. “Plus, we found Ronan, and it’s only a matter of time before we find Brody. The last twenty-four hours have been mind-blowing. I never guessed a beautiful woman sitting at my bar with an envelope could change my life like you have. But you did.”

  “Like a hot bed of trouble,” Charla replied, taking another drink. The wine was going down easy, and she could feel herself beginning to lose the wall she was trying to keep up all day. She slid her empty plate into the middle of the table and placed her napkin on it. “That’s what I am. Trouble.”

  “I like trouble if you haven’t noticed. I’ve got a case full of guns in my bedroom if you need more proof.”

  Charla’s head fogged and her cheeks flushed at the mention of his bedroom. All she could think about was his soft lips and his hand on her ass. She wanted him to do much more than that. She wanted him to explore every inch of her body.

  Damn it.

  They’d only known each other for twenty-four hours. She was the last person to be hopping into bed with a new man. It had taken her six months to sleep with Rex. One-night stands weren’t in the Charla Taylor vocabulary, especially ones with Irish gunslingers. She could hear Jill’s voice in her head, it’s not a one-night stand if you do it again, Charla.

  He took a drink of wine and then swirled his glass around before setting it down. “Mom was right. This was worth waiting for.” He cleared his throat and continued, “So, tell me about your family. We’ve spent all day looking for and talking about mine. What’s your family like?”

  “Well,” she stuttered. She hated talking about her family, if she could call it that. She never really considered Dotti to be a mom. She was her biological mother, but Charla couldn’t find it in her heart to think of her as mom. Real moms didn’
t abandon their kids. Real moms didn’t put their kids into a situation like Charla had to endure with her stepfather. “I wish I would have been adopted like you.”

  “That bad?” He stopped chewing and looked up.

  “That bad. Alcoholic mother. Never knew my father. Abusive step-father died when I was fifteen, thank God for that small victory.” She put her hand on her wine glass but didn’t pick it up. She felt a strange sudden urge to divulge her secret to Liam. She hadn’t felt this sudden need to purge in years. Every time she did, no matter if there was a foot of snow on the ground, she’d go hiking at Lake Woods and scream into the empty forest “I LET HIM DIE.” The scream would disappear into the woods, just like her urge to release her secret.

  Liam stared at her with sympathetic eyes as he reached his hand toward hers. “What is it?”

  “Nothing,” she replied, clearing her throat and choking back the wave of emotion threatening to spill over. Keep it together. The last thing she wanted to do was turn into a weeping mess in front of this gorgeous man who, for some strange reason, was incredibly interested in her.

  “Your mom still drink?”

  “Yeah, she’s been in and out of rehab, but nothing seems to help. She can’t seem to get her act together,” she replied. “I was more responsible at the age of ten than she’s been her entire life.”

  “You still talk to her?”

  “I try not to,” she said.

  “Well, I might just know the person she could talk to,” he said. “My friend is amazing. She works at a free center downtown. You want her card?”

  “I don’t know if anything will help her at this point.”

  “I’ll give you her card, in case,” he said. “If you ever find the right moment.”

  She nodded her head and replied softly. “Sure.”

  “I know you’ve been through a lot in the last few days,” he said in a soothing voice. “I’m sure it wasn’t easy watching Jack die.”

  She closed her eyes, trying to push the nightmare out of her head. “Yeah, it was harder than I thought it would be.” She opened her eyes to see Liam moving toward her. “But he warned me the day I met him that I’d have to watch him die. I guess I signed up for it.”

  “Thank you for taking care of Jack,” he said, squeezing her hand and leaning in closer. His voice was low and sexy. “And thank you for bringing me his letter. You’ve changed my life in more ways than you could imagine.”

  “It was just paper,” she whispered, feeling the last bit of resistance she’d been clinging onto fall to her feet. Although she was dressed, she felt completely and utterly exposed. She felt naked, right in front of him.

  “It’s more than that.” He ran a finger across her lips, making her body quiver. “I’m cashing in my rain check now because I get what I want. And what I want is you, Charla Taylor.”

  Her breath caught in her throat as he ran his finger along her jaw and down her neck. The mere touch of his finger sent her body into a frenzy. This was going to happen. Liam was going to get what he wanted. But she didn’t care. She wanted it, too. She needed to feel his lips on hers. She tilted her head, cradling to his touch. Then he leaned in and met her lips with a sweet and fiery kiss her body craved. Their lips worked against each other, fast, as he placed his hand on the back of her head. He held it there only for a second and then traced his fingers lightly down her back, moving them toward the straps of her tank top. His touch was sweet and soft, sending shivers through her.

  She let out a soft moan as she leaned in and grabbed his arm, his bicep harder than she anticipated. She broke her lips away from his and whispered, “I want this, Liam.”

  “I know you do,” he murmured back. Then he pressed his lips against hers, igniting another passionate kiss between them. He moved his hand to her lower back and then gently nudged her toward him until she was at the edge of her chair, their legs interlocked. She pulled away for a second to crawl onto his lap, wrapping her legs around his waist and chair.

  “That’s more like it,” he said, finding her lips again. They explored each other, their kisses wet and warm against each other. Her chest swelled as she gasped for air, her body flooding with heat. “I want all of you, in my bedroom.”

  He lifted her off of him and stood up. Then he grabbed her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers as he guided her into his bedroom. He stopped at the edge of the bed and pulled her onto him, falling together softly on the bed.

  She laid on top of him as he played with the straps of her tank top again, tugging and twisting them between his fingers. Then he grabbed the bottom of the tank top and gently tugged it. Charla obliged and sat up, raising her arms as he lifted it over her head.

  “You’re gorgeous,” he whispered as he sat up to plant a kiss on the top of her lace bra. She silently thanked Jill for convincing her to wear it. He explored her chest, running his lips along the lace, making her nipples hard beneath her bra. Then she grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it gently over his head, exposing the patterns of ink on his chest. She ran her fingers along the tattoos, feeling the heat of his skin beneath her fingertips.

  He paused and let her study his chest. She traced her fingers along the interlocking lines on his heart. “It’s beautiful.”

  He flexed his pectoral muscles, making her breath catch. His lips curled into a smile. “All those hours in the gym are worth it for that.”

  “I bet,” she murmured. “Does every tattoo have a story behind it?”

  “They do,” he replied. “I don’t get a tattoo unless it has meaning.”

  “Tell me about this one.” She bent down and kissed the tilted army helmet on the other side of his chest.

  “You sure you want to hear about it? It’s going to be hard to keep my lips off you,” he said, running his fingers along her back.

  “I do,” she said as she lightly kissed another tattoo. “I’ll keep kissing, you talk.”

  “Okay,” he breathed. “I’ll agree to one. That’s all I can hold out for.”

  Charla let out a small laugh before she kissed the wings near the top of his chest.

  “The helmet is for my buddy. We were on night patrol in a shitty town in Afghanistan five years ago, just the two of us. It was like any of the other patrol nights. We’d done it at least two dozen times before. We were joking around like we always did when my buddy saw a movement behind this fence. He motioned me toward him when the gunfire started. I remember seeing the flashes light up the sky and the popping noises ring in my ears. Then I felt a sear through my right arm.” He touched the small scar on his right bicep. She leaned against her elbow, sitting up lightly. “It was only a graze, but John dove and knocked me down to the ground. I called for back-up while he got in position to fire back. He got off a few rounds before he was hit. I got a couple more shots in before they stopped. Back-up came a few minutes later, but the shot had hit him in the neck.”

  “Liam,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry…”

  “It’s okay,” he said, leaning down so he was looking into her eyes. “It’s a part of me. I want you to know who I am, just like I want to know you. I want to know all of you.” He pressed his lips softly against hers. “This isn’t a one-time shot. I’m not that kind of guy.”

  “Well, I’m not that kind of girl,” she said, kissing him back. “I’ve never done anything like this before.”

  “Neither have I,” he said, running a finger along her lips.

  “I find that hard to believe with all those women throwing themselves at you.” She cocked her head.

  “It’s true,” he said, holding up his arms. “I’m the guy who marries his high school sweetheart at eighteen even though everyone told me I was crazy. I’ve been single for only two years of my adult life and since then, there have been very few women that have even interested me.”

  “So you’re interested?” she asked.

  “More than interested,” he replied, putting his hand on her lower back again. “Call me intrigued.”
/>
  “Ah, I’m glad I could be bumped up to intrigue,” she teased.

  “I have to warn you though,” he said softly, sticking his hand into her back pocket. “When I fall for someone, I fall hard and fast.”

  “Noted,” she whispered. “Since we’re putting out warnings already, I should tell you that it might take me awhile.”

  “I have nowhere to be but here.” He kissed her lightly. “And all I have is time to convince you that I’m not like any of the other guys.”

  “Oh yeah?” she said. “How are you going to do that?”

  “I’ll show you that I’m a gentleman and not take advantage of you,” he said as he ran his hands along her back again. “I’ll let you have my bed, and I’ll sleep on the couch.”

  “Really?” She furrowed her eyebrows at him, not convinced.

  “Sure, why not. I’m in it for the long game, Ms. Taylor.” His fingers stopped at the back of her bra as he held the clasp.

  “So, you’re not going to unhook my bra?” she breathed, wanting nothing else than to feel her bra unfasten.

  “I’ll do whatever you want me to do. You know, the whole gentleman thing,” he replied, still holding the clasp in his hands.

  “Take it off,” she whispered, planting a kiss on his lips as she felt the bra release between his fingers. “I want this, Liam. I want you. There’s no way I’m sleeping in this bed alone tonight.”

  “Are you -”

  “Shhh.” She held her finger to his lips. “I want this.”

  Then she pulled her finger from his lips and sat up, letting Liam take the bra off her shoulders. He brushed his fingers along her breasts, cupping them lightly in his hands. He grazed her nipples, rubbing them lightly as a sound of pleasure escaped her lips. He massaged and caressed her, running his hands down to her navel. He circled it once before popping the button of her shorts and pulling the zipper down. Lace peeked through her shorts, teasing him as she worked on his jeans.