by Katee Robert
She hit the ground with bruising force, but that was nothing compared to the embarrassment making her wish the dirt would just part and suck her under. Stupid rookie mistake. You know better than to run around over uneven ground. But then, her common sense had always had the nasty habit of taking a backseat when Daniel was around.
Strong hands grabbed her under her armpits and pulled her to her feet. “Christ, Hope, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Daniel patted her down, brushing the dirt from her shoulders and sides and chest. He froze when his hands touched her breasts, and the heat of her blush from her embarrassment turned into something else entirely. She swallowed hard, taking a deep breath that pressed her against his palms more firmly. The fabric of her shirt was thin enough that she could feel the calluses on his palms, and her nipples budded from the contact, her body going soft and warm as if she was some twisted sort of Pavlov’s dog and Daniel was her bell.
When he spoke again, his voice was deeper. “Are you hurt?”
Not in the way you mean. “I don’t think so.” Her knee throbbed like the dickens, but she wasn’t about to admit that to him. And, to be fair, it hurt the majority of the time to one degree or another. But admitting that meant he might stop touching her. She leaned into him and licked her lips, her gaze dropping to his mouth. “Danny…”
“When you look at me like that, I forget all the reasons I promised to leave you alone.”
Why the hell would he promise to leave her alone? That was the stupidest thing she’d ever heard. She clenched her teeth together to keep from telling him so and ruining the moment. There would be plenty of time to rip Daniel a new one…later. “Then don’t.” She grabbed the front of his T-shirt and pulled him against her, stretching up to kiss him. He resisted for a grand total of one second.
And then he took control.
Daniel brought his hand up to yank her ponytail holder out and tangle in her hair, simultaneously picking her up and backing them up against the house. And then he was there, his body pinning her in place, his thigh wedging between her legs, providing a delicious pressure against where she felt most empty. He took possession of her mouth, his tongue teasing her lips open and stroking against hers in a way that had to be designed to make the top of her head explode.
He used his grip on her hair to tilt her head back and kiss down her neck. “If I was a better man, I’d leave you alone.”
She didn’t have words to respond, not with him tracing her nipple through her shirt with his thumb. Hope moaned and pulled him closer, trying to think clearly enough to know what to say—or not to say—that would ensure this didn’t stop. Then his free hand slid beneath her shirt and she forgot about talking at all.
“No goddamn bra.” He cupped her breast, his calluses creating delicious friction against her nipple. “What the hell were you thinking, showing up here with no bra?”
This, at least, she knew how to deal with, even if she was out of practice. Hope lifted her chin and met his gaze, half sure she was imagining the possessive look she found there. “I’m not wearing panties, either.”
“What. The. Fuck?” Immediately, he fisted the fabric of her skirt, lifting it high against her thighs and sliding his hand between her legs. “Christ, darling, you really know how to send a man to his knees.” He cupped her, his fingers sliding through her wetness but not penetrating her. It felt so good, but not nearly good enough, all at the same time. “But then, you always did.”
At their feet, Ollie yipped, breaking the spell. Daniel exhaled a harsh breath. “This is a mistake.”
It was. She knew that, and she didn’t care. This would never happen again, and knowing that made her feel totally and completely out of control. Here in this moment, nothing seemed real but them, and she wasn’t ready for it to end. Not yet. She covered his hand with her own, holding him in place. “Danny, please.” She licked her lips. “Please don’t stop.”
…
Daniel couldn’t deny her if he wanted to—and he sure as fuck didn’t want to. He ignored the pup at his feet and pushed a finger into her, watching her face. She clenched around him, her inhaled breath the sweetest thing he’d ever heard. He pumped gently, feeling anything but, trying to remember to take it slow. She was hot and tight and already drenched, her breasts rising and falling with each exhale.
“Danny…” She cupped him through his jeans. “Now.”
This was so damn wrong. It had never been like this with them. Hot beyond belief, yes. But not quick, not rushed, not harsh in any way. But harsh was the only thing Daniel knew anymore.
He kept pumping, spreading her with his fingers while he used his free hand to undo his jeans. His cock sprang free, and it took everything he had to pause. “Hold on, darling.” He grabbed his wallet out of his back pocket, riffling through it for the condom he’d put there…at some point. He hesitated. “Damn, it’s been—”
“I don’t care. Put it on.” She kissed him, reaching between them to stroke him once, twice, a third time, until he had to get the fucking condom on or he was going to come in her hand. If he was going to get one more shot at being inside Hope Moore, he wasn’t going to ruin it.
He tore open the condom wrapper with his teeth, refusing to stop touching her, though he had to let go for a second to roll the damn thing on. It took too long, but he had both hands free when he was done, and she’d kept her skirt lifted for him. Good girl. He stepped into her, pressing her against the wall. It struck him again that this was twelve different kinds of wrong to be doing her against the wall of his best friend’s house, but he was too far gone to care.
Hope kissed him, hopping up and putting her legs around his waist, and that was that. He adjusted his angle and pushed into her, his entire body shaking at the feeling of her pussy clamped so tightly around him. “Jesus, darling. I’d convinced myself I’d imagined how good you feel.” He cupped her ass, lifting her up and slamming her down onto his cock.
I missed this. I missed you.
Even in the throes, he couldn’t say it aloud. She wasn’t staying, and he had no business throwing their past in her face. Stop thinking and just enjoy this, damn it. He kissed her, giving himself over to the feel of her thighs squeezing his hips, her nails digging into the back of his neck, the breathy little moans that she made in the back of her throat. All too soon, her body tightened around him, her pussy milking him as she came with a soft cry. Daniel tried to hold on, to prolong it, to keep going, but it was too good. He pinned her against the wall and pounded into her, urged on by the building pressure in his balls. He came with a curse that damn near buckled his knees and caught himself against the rough wood.
Long seconds ticked past, their breathing slowly returning to something resembling normal. He ran a hand over her ass and down her thigh, pausing when the skin changed just above her knee, becoming rough and almost twisted.
Hope jumped like he’d electrocuted her. “Oh, God.” She shimmied until he set her on her feet, quickly stepping away from him and adjusting her clothing.
He hated that, though he didn’t blame her. He couldn’t get the feeling of that scarred skin out of his head, and the knowledge that he’d been the one responsible sat heavy in his chest. He took a step back and went to get rid of the condom.
Daniel knew something was wrong the second he touched his cock. He pulled the condom off—the ripped condom. “Oh, shit.”
Chapter Four
What the hell did I just do?
Hope stared at the broken condom and suddenly the night was closing in on her and she couldn’t catch a full breath. Oh, no. Oh my God. She tried to think past the rushing in her ears, but the panic cresting inside her made it all but impossible. “I’m on birth control.” Sort of. The truth was that she’d just gotten a prescription last week and started them today—well, technically yesterday. It shouldn’t have happened like this.
It shouldn’t have happened at all.
There was no excuse for the stupidity of what she’d just done. She
looked around wildly, half expecting a brilliant solution to materialize in front of her. There was nothing but the stars and the field around the house, both so painfully familiar and yet completely different. It was all different. All wrong.
She never should have followed Daniel through the backyard, but she’d been so blind, so sure she could fix everything like she always did. “I have to go.”
“Hope…” Daniel sighed. “Yeah, you should. Let me give you a ride.”
That was the last thing she needed. Even with all evidence pointing to her having no common sense when it came to this man, it was like she was eighteen again, rushing headfirst into every situation, heedless of the danger. She’d just more than proven that she couldn’t trust herself to keep control, which meant she needed to stay away from him in situations like this.
Situations like what? We’re at a party at his cousin’s house and ten feet from half a dozen other people. It’s not like I followed him home.
Ollie chose that moment to start barking, and they both spun around as Adam walked around the side of the house. He stopped short when he caught sight of them, and even in the shadows, Hope could see the way his gaze jumped between them, his eyes widening for half a second before he got control of himself. “You two okay out here?”
“Fine.”
Adam and Daniel stared at each other in a way she’d never seen before, almost calculating. Like there was a line they were on opposite sides of. Hope didn’t like that. She didn’t like that one bit. They were best friends—had been since they were kids. She refused to be something that came between them. She smoothed back her hair, belatedly realizing her hair tie had disappeared into the darkness. Damn. “We’re good. I was just coming back inside to find Jules. I’m kind of tired and I want to head to the bed-and-breakfast.”
“Hope—”
Adam stepped forward, angling so he stood between her and Daniel. “I’ll give you a ride. I’ve got the keys to Jules’s truck.”
“Perfect.” She honestly didn’t care who was behind the wheel as long as she was putting some distance between herself and Daniel. She needed to think, and it was impossible to do that with her body still beating in time with the pleasure he’d brought her and his presence overwhelming her while he was just standing there.
She wasn’t back for good. It wasn’t fair to get tangled up with him. No matter how she could rationalize it, she’d never be able to have no-strings-attached sex with Daniel. She just wasn’t capable of it.
So she ran.
Like a scared kid.
Hope took a few careful steps back. “I’ll see you around, Danny.” Then she hightailed it for Jules’s truck. She didn’t stop to think that it might be yet another stupid idea until Adam got behind the wheel and cranked the engine on.
He barely waited until they were off the dirt drive to start on her. “Why are you back in town, Hope?”
“What?” She jerked back, stung. “I’m here for the scholarship in John’s memory.”
“That’s all well and good—if it were true. But you could set that shit up down in Dallas without ever setting foot back in Devil’s Falls, and you damn well know it.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “I have half a dozen meetings set up tomorrow alone and—”
“Meetings you could hold over the phone.” He didn’t look at her, but the judgment in his voice hurt. A lot.
It was a fight not to hunch down in the seat. “If you didn’t want to see me, you didn’t have to offer to drive me.”
“Fuck, that’s not it.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I’m happy to see you, kid. Really, I am. I’ve missed you like crazy—we all have—but this isn’t about John. This is about Daniel.” He didn’t give her a chance to jump in, not that she knew what she was supposed to say. Things with Daniel were complicated, and not in a good way.
Adam turned onto the highway leading into Devil’s Falls. “I don’t judge you for not coming back. Fuck, I left, too, and I had every intention of staying gone. I’m sure it’s hard being back here and seeing John everywhere.”
She knew exactly what he meant. She might have been the kid sister, but she’d tagged along through most of their grade school adventures, and then again once she hit sixteen and Daniel finally woke up and realized she was totally in love with him. Daniel. Seeing him and Quinn and Adam together only brought into relief the missing piece, but there was comfort in knowing that those three were here in Devil’s Falls, still friends despite everything. Still living and loving and maybe occasionally getting into trouble for old times’ sake.
“Then what’s the problem?”
“You goddamn well know what the problem is. You’ve moved on with your life, left the past where it belongs. Daniel hasn’t.” He finally looked at her, the lights of an oncoming car illuminating his face. “Despite not having seen you in a hell of a long time, I still love you like a sister, Hope. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stand by and watch you grind what’s left of Daniel into the ground when you leave again.”
“That’s not fair.” She couldn’t dredge up any anger. Adam could be a dick, but that’s not what this was. He was worried about Daniel. It seemed everyone was worried about Daniel. “I didn’t come back here to mess with him.”
“Maybe not, but you being back is going to do exactly that.” He headed into town, pulling to a stop right next to her car in front of Cups and Kittens. “If you care about him even a little after all this time, stay the hell away from him, Hope. I mean it.”
She stared at the dashboard, wondering when it had all gone wrong. Oh, yeah, right around the time my skirt hit my waist. “I came back to help.”
“You won’t help Daniel. You’re only going to make it worse.”
Her throat tried to close, but she managed to speak past it. “Some things don’t change. You can be so damn mean sometimes, Adam.”
“Yeah, I know.” He sat back. “But it’s the truth. You’ve been doing well. Don’t look at me like that, of course I’ve followed up on you over the years—you’re the little sister I never had by blood. Hell, Hope, you’re doing better than well. I’m fucking proud of you.”
Her eyes burned, and she blinked a few times, trying to tell herself that it was because of the heat and not because she was actually tearing up. She’d always considered him and Quinn brothers while they were growing up, though she’d thought those relationships had broken at the same time as hers and Daniel’s. Adam had disappeared off to do the rodeo circuit, and the most she’d heard from Quinn was a snarky Christmas card every year. “I didn’t know.”
“I didn’t exactly announce it. That’s on me.”
Those things went both ways. She’d followed his rodeo career, but she’d never seen him ride live. The thought of seeing one of the men she cared about getting thrown from the back of a furious bull…she couldn’t handle it. “I promise I didn’t come back here to cause problems.”
“I know, kid. Trust me, I know. And if you were planning on staying, I wouldn’t be warning you off him—you two were always good together.”
Yeah, they had been. Right up until he stopped returning her calls and forced her to move on with her life without him. Hope took a shuddering breath. “Things change.”
“Some things. Not this.” He got out of the truck and walked around to open her door. She hopped down and squeaked when he pulled her into a hug. “I missed you, Hope. We all did.”
She recovered quickly and hugged him back. “I missed you guys, too.”
He let her go and ruffled her hair, the move one he’d repeated thousands of times before. “I’ll follow you to the B&B and carry your bags up.”
“It’s fine.” She was already heading around the car for the tailgate. “I’ve got it.”
“There’s no shame in asking for help.”
She went ramrod straight and turned to glare at him. She didn’t want anyone’s pity, let alone that of a man she respected and loved like a brother. “I am not helpless, a
nd I’m more than capable of wrestling a stupid suitcase into my room. Leave it alone.”
“If you say so.” Adam held up his hands. “Kid, I don’t know how they do things down in Dallas, but you’re back in Devil’s Falls—around here, we help each other out, and it’s not seen as a criticism.”
She knew that—just like she knew that she was being rude for snapping at him. She was just so damn used to people looking at her screwed-up knee and seeing someone less than whole. And, truth be told, her leg was hurting her something fierce right now, the pain radiating all the way to her hip. All she wanted to do was go up to her room and lie down for a little while and just process everything that had happened.
But that didn’t mean she should be taking it out on Adam. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” He gently nudged her aside and grabbed her suitcase. “It’s weird being back in town, huh?”
“The weirdest.”
Fifteen minutes later, she was all checked in and Adam was gone, leaving her in peace. At least in theory. In reality, she kept replaying the last few hours and wondering when her well-intentioned plan had jumped the rails. The goal had always been to come back here, get some closure, and go back to her life in Dallas, feeling better about everything. About putting that nagging what-if question to rest, once and for all.
Instead, here she was, having just had a quickie with her ex against the side of a house, getting ripped a new one by a man she considered a brother, and going to bed wondering what the hell she’d been thinking.
Coming back to Devil’s Falls had been a horrible mistake.
…
Daniel spent the next few days half sure that Hope would randomly show up on his doorstep. By the time he realized she had no intention of doing that, almost a week had passed. I don’t even know how long she’s in town for. He should just let it go. It was no wonder she didn’t want to see him. Their past aside, she’d barely been back in town an hour and he’d been fucking her against the wall like she was…well, anyone other than Hope Moore.