Convincing Lina: A Bachelor of Shell Cove Novel (The Bachelors of Shell Cove Romance Book 2)

by Siera London

  Dozens of pulsations flooded her quaking sex muscles.

  “I feel you getting ready to come, Lina.”

  He bent her leg suspending it with his forearm opening her impossibly wide and plunged into her silken lining until he couldn’t distinguish her body from his.

  “Gideon,” her tone was unsure, almost panicked.

  “I’m with you, Lina. I love you.” Staring deep into her eyes, he watched, waiting to see her release. Witness her fly apart because of his lovemaking.

  All of a sudden, uncertainty flashed in her eyes.

  No. No. No. “Lina, don’t hold back,” he ground out. “Give me your love.” He slammed into her harder, driving her into the carpet. She surged up to meet him thrust for thrust. He wasn’t gentle, and neither was she. She curled her arms around his neck. Holding on to him as if her life depended on what only he could provide. He felt her tense beneath him.

  “I need to come, Gideon.” A low sob escaped her lips when he slowed his thrust.

  “You will. When I tell you.” She bucked against him and he ground his teeth to maintain his control. “I know sweetness.” He pulled out before she registered his action. “Roll over onto your stomach.”

  She hesitated.

  “Trust me, Lina. Stop thinking and feel.” Complying with his request she rolled, then moved to her knees. He pressed a hand to her lower back. “Stay down and open wide for me.”

  The warmth of her generous derriere seared his groin as he blanketed her with his body. He pushed into her welcoming heat with one smooth thrust. The air left her lungs. He felt her walls clamp down on his length working to unseat him.

  “Gideon,” she panted.

  “It’s okay. Relax, Lina.”

  “Good, so good.” She said in a low pant. “I need you to move, Gideon.” He smiled when she tilted her hips up in invitation.

  “We are in this together, sweetness. Just this first time, like this.” He placed soft kisses on her shoulder, not moving though buried in her sheath, giving her body the time to adjust to his girth at this angle.

  Breaths no longer coming in pants, her muscles relaxed underneath him. He reveled in the sensation of being enclosed in her heat. The tip of his glans brushed her womb. He slid deep inside her, slowly withdrawing and pushed into her body again.

  “Gideon, it’s too much. I can’t keep it together much longer.” He increased his speed and force with each push of his hips. Tunneling deep in tandem with her cries of pleasure.

  “That’s the point. Let go Lina. Don’t hold back on me.”

  “I’m trying not…” He cut her off.

  “You’re trying to control your response. Let it happen, sweetness. I’ll never hold back on you. Give me everything.”

  Her sex clenched tight around his rock hard erection, preventing his full entry. The feel of her, the pulsations coursing through him as he coaxed her body into surrender, nearly toppled his control.

  “Take all of me, Lina. You said you needed me. Were you telling me the truth?” She didn’t respond. A soft whimper met his ear.

  “I would have your words, sweetness.”

  “Yes,” she moaned. “I need…you. Only you Gideon.”

  “You have me Lina. I want to hear you say it.”

  “I have you,” she moaned, half screamed. She seemed semi-conscious of her responses. Her body writhed beneath his.

  “You are mine? Give me the words.” He demanded.

  “Yes, I’m yours.”

  “Then give me what is mine, Lina.” Her muscles relaxed and he seated himself deep inside her. Branding her with his body. Driving everything he felt, closer to the heart of her. Lina’s body surrendered, and she spread her legs wider, giving him full access and he took everything she had.

  “Yes, yes. That’s the spot, Gideon. Don’t stop,” she hissed out.

  “Come for me.” He said close to her ear. He pulled back, and then plunged deep into her quivering sex at the same time he thrummed her hooded nub. The smack of his hips against Lina’s prone body filled the room. The sucking sound of sex was loud between their moist bodies.

  “Gideon,” she screamed.

  Lina’s sex clamped down on him like an erotic vice grip. His body strained in response. The intensity almost painful as her release ricocheted through him triggering his own. Gideon plunged head first into ecstasy as his orgasm ripped from his body. His semen exploded forward like a rocket launch. As she climaxed he heard her scream and his roar spiral in his ears. He collapsed on Lina’s limp body, weak as a newborn colt trying to master its first steps.

  “Rest, sweetness.” he said kissing the top of her head.

  “Lina,” he spoke into her hair breathing in her scent, “You are amazing, perfect for me. I’m not letting you go.” He squeezed her middle overwhelmed with emotion. He had found his soulmate.

  She briefly raised her head to peer over her shoulder in his general direction. Exhaustion and sexual satisfaction etched in her features.

  “No more,” she croaked before collapsing back to the floor.

  He lightly spanked her hip, “There’s more, stop all the crazy talk woman.”

  He collapsed onto the floor beside her, pulling her into his arms.

  “Sleep. In a few hours, you will look me in the eye and give me your love.”

  “Whatever you say, Sir.” She snorted and he laughed.

  “You are going to need your rest for what I have planned.”

  Lina was asleep beside him. His chest puffed up more when she pressed herself against his warmth and threw her leg over both of his. He realized all he needed was in the bed beside him. Being quiet not to rouse Lina, he rolled to his side, reached for the handle on the bedside table and grabbed him phone. Pressing the power button, he waited for the screen to illuminate, and then he dialed Ian’s number.

  Hearing his brother’s sleep ladened voice was divine pay back for all the times Ian had awakened him in the wee hours of the morning. Gideon spoke before Ian could form a coherent word, “Give her the house.” The utter silence on the other end of the phone didn’t surprise him. After years of fighting for acceptance, Gideon had won the ultimate prize. The woman he loved was taking him home. Home wasn’t a house. His home was with Lina. He finally had a place to belong.

  Gideon felt like an insect under a microscope lens. Jacob had talked him into participating in an interview with the local newspaper down at Rice Campaign headquarters. The office was small, but well appointed. The front of the building was a standard glass storefront with a view of Main Street and downtown Waverly Falls. The main office space held eight press wood desks, each with a telephone line ringing. Jacob’s office was at the back of the general work force area behind a closed door. The interview would be conducted in the conference room to the far left.

  Though he dressed in business attire every day, this was the first time he could see people measuring the fabric of a man. Did he make the cut? Jacob led the way to the interview location. That was probably intentionally. The reporter was a lanky man, in his early thirties with pale skin and medal rimmed glasses. His lips were thin and severe. Thin lipped with glasses walked in front of Phoenix while Gideon brought on the rear.

  Once they entered the conference room, Jacob gestured for him to take a seat next to Phoenix at the table.

  “These are my sons, Gideon and Phoenix,” Jacob said, “they will be with me for the duration of the interview.” Jacob smiled at him and Phoenix. And Gideon felt a small ping of pride that after ten years Jacob seamlessly welcomed him back into the fold. Maybe, there was some validity to Lina’s argument. Did the possibility exist for him to be a part of the Rice family, and still have enough love to give his own children? He didn’t want to misuse the love he had before he was blessed with children.

  He wanted to love his children so deeply that they would never have to worry about him giving them up. He would cut off his right arm to keep Lina and any children they had together. Gideon heard his name and it drew h
im back to the present.

  “Gideon, I knew Mrs. Emma. And she talked about you all the time.” Gideon smiled at the memory of his adoptive mother. She always had fresh baked cookies on the stove.

  “She was a special woman,” Gideon replied.

  “Yes, she was special, the whole town mourned her death.” Ouch. A shiver snaked up Gideon’s spine. Phoenix glanced from Jacob to the reporter, and then back at Gideon.

  “I don’t recall seeing you at her funeral,” the reporter said casually.

  “I don’t live in Waverly Falls,” Gideon replied through clenched teeth.

  “Gideon is a psychiatrist in Florida. He instituted a behavioral health project aimed at helping combat veterans healing from post traumatic stress disorder,” Jacob chimed in. His smile was broad, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

  “I recall hearing something about that recently,” the man replied. No doubt, listening to Mrs. Nedstetter’s gossip.

  “So, what happened in the Rice household to make you abandon the family?” Gideon saw red. Where the heck had he heard that? Gideon never walked out on anyone in his life.

  “Have you lost your mind?” Jacob roared, coming to his feet. “He’s my son. If he didn’t set a foot in this town in a hundred years, it doesn’t change the fact that he’s my child. And I love him. This interview is over. Get your crap and get out of my office.” Jacob jeopardized the interview for him?

  “I meant no disrespect, Mr. Rice.” The reporter offered with a shaky voice.

  “You disrespected my son. I take that personally.” Phoenix held the conference door open, in silence.

  “You wanted a story. Write this down,” Jacob said pointing at the reporter who now resembled a chastised child. “Nobody messes with my family. Do you understand?” Gideon was speechless. Jacob hadn’t hesitated to toss the reporter out on his ear. His brother, Phoenix, had given his support, by opening the door. Would Gideon be this type of father to his own children? How could he have been so blind?

  “Yes, Sir,” the reporter replied, beating a hasty retreat out of the office.

  “I expect to see that headline in print,” Jacob called out.

  Jacob approached him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You okay, son?” Gideon looked in the eyes of the man who had raised him. Kept him safe as he grew. Helped him complete his first job application. And what he saw reflected in Jacob’s eyes floored him. Love and acceptance. Had it been there all his life, but he refused to see it?

  “I’m better than I’ve been in a long time.” Jacob smiled up at him, giving his shoulder a hard squeeze.

  “That’s good, son. Real good. Keep working at it. You’ll get there?” Would he be too late?

  One week in Waverly Falls and Lina never wanted to leave. The cabin that had overwhelmed her upon arrival felt like home. Lina turned to face her guest. Ian had stopped by to discuss some business with Gideon, but he’d joined Phoenix and Jacob at the campaign headquarters. She poured a mug of fresh brewed coffee and placed it in front of him.

  She grabbed another mug and poured a cup for herself.

  “You don’t enjoy politics?” Lina questioned as she added a teaspoon of sugar to her mug. She lifted the sugar and cream holders to eye level in offering. Ian shook his head in the negative.

  “I enjoy debate, as well as any man. I don’t like mud slinging.” Lina crinkled her nose in understanding. Dissecting a person’s life, in search of leverage for political gain held no appeal for her. She valued her privacy too much to consider a career as a public servant.

  “I’m not sure how long Gideon will be gone. You can leave his documents with me. I’ll make sure he gets them.”

  Ian regarded her quizzically.

  “You and Gideon seem to get along well.” Where was he going with this?

  “Yep,” she replied.

  “You plan on sticking around?” Lina placed her mug on the countertop, giving Ian a don’t go there with me look.

  “Why did you really stop by, Ian?” Lina crossed her arms over her chest and waited.

  “Gideon is my brother and I love him.”

  “But,” she prompted.

  “He had a lot of scars. Some you can see, most you can’t.”

  “I know about his nightmares, Ian. I’m not afraid of Gideon.” He looked surprised.

  “There’s more. I can see that he cares about you, but Gideon prefers to live in the present.” Lina was getting upset.

  “Most people prefer to focus on the present and the future. I don’t see that as a character flaw, Ian.”

  “Please don’t be angry. What I’m saying is none of us are exempt from our past. We can’t put our pasts in a time capsule and start over like it never existed.”

  “I know that,” she hissed.

  “You do, but Gideon does not. You should know what you’re getting–” The front door to the cabin banged against the rear wall. Gideon’s hulking frame filled the door way.

  “What are you doing here, Ian?” He growled. Gideon turned hard eyes on her. Lina nearly shrank away, even though he hadn’t taken a step towards her. Why was Gideon so pissed?

  The banging at the door woke Gideon from the best sleep of his life. It was the door opening that had him out of the bed and on his feet. He was sure the bad guy was back in Shell Cove, but his brothers knew to keep clear of the cabin, so it had to be Jacob.

  “I’m coming out.”

  “I was not coming in, trust me. After all the racket you two were making up at the house.”

  Gideon closed the door behind him.

  “Enough said, what brought you all the way out here at eight o’clock in the morning.”

  “A little spitfire named Bernadean James called. She said, she’d better hear her daughter’s voice in the next twenty minutes or a group of triple OG’s are rolling in on us. She promised that I wouldn’t like it.” His father who was usually reserved, laughed-deep and hearty. Gideon heard Lina’s movements in the bedroom. Lina opened the door and his heart pounded in his chest. His woman was gorgeous in the morning after a night of love making.

  “I heard everything, get me to a phone. If she said twenty minutes, you are on a timer and her luggage is in the car. You will be sorry if mom rounds up her Ocean Girls book club and starts heading this way.”

  “A book club?” Both he and his father looked at Lina incredulously.

  “Don’t underestimate a group of avid readers. Those women read everything from romance to urban fiction and they know a thousand ways to make you bleed.” Laughter boomed in the room.

  “An all-women gangster book reading club.” An image of three, sixty something year old women, decked out in urban gear with their book club logo embroidered on matching t-shirts, bouncing on twenty-four inch rims flashed in his mind. He laughed harder and his father must have had a similar vision. Gideon shook his head to rid himself of the mental image.

  “Both our phones were powered off, safely tucked away in the bedside table.” Lina looked at him with wide eyes.

  Gideon shrugged his shoulders, non-apologetically, “We had an important decision to make.”

  “I noticed Lina is wearing your ring. When’s the big day?” Gideon saw the shock register on Lina’s face before she thrusted her hand in the air staring at his ring. The chain around his neck was empty, his mother’s ring, now graced Lina’s finger.

  “As soon as she says yes.”

  Chapter 17

  His pulse pounded in his ears. Careful to obey the speed limit, he cruised down the block of the residential neighborhood. He used the heel of his left hand to deliver repeating blows to his temple. The sound of Lina’s screams that night had quieted in his head. He hated not hearing her voice. This was his twelfth time driving by the doctor’s house. Where had he taken Lina? His Lina. Her car remained in the same parking spot for five days. He’d given up on visiting the condo. It was stupid to attack when she was with him. He should have waited until she was alone, but everyone kept coming between them. T
he foolish woman had interfered. He didn’t like hitting women. They never fought back hard enough.

  When he threw the brick, the doctor moved like a trained soldier. He didn’t hesitate, he didn’t flinch at the sound of breaking glass. It was too dark for him to see Lina, but the man he’d seen clearly. He had been naked. He could hear his own breathing, fast and erratic. His Lina was in bed with another man. Whore. She’d let the doctor shield her body with his bare flesh. Rage blazed hot in his veins.

  Damn barking dog and floodlights almost got him caught. By the time the sirens sounded in the distance he was safely hidden in the Range Rover five blocks away. But he’d waited too long to double back. The Cadillac the doctor drove was gone when he jumped the neighboring fence. Now he couldn’t find Lina. Exiting the neighborhood he took the entrance ramp to I-95 South.

  He needed to think. Taking several deep breaths he slowed his heart rate. The soldier masquerading as a doctor would pay for taking her away. A soldier was a respectable opponent for him. Though he lacked formal combat training, the criminal underworld had trained him as a killer. He was good at killing, enjoyed it most days.

  A familiar tune by Boys II Men droned on the radio and he reached to change the station, then the chorus rang out. You know I love you mama, the balladeer crooned. He knew how to bring Lina out of hiding. Crossing two lanes of traffic he took the Roosevelt Boulevard exit headed west. He parked his car and waited. He would bring his Lina home.

  Her mother had been attacked. The call from Bishop had rocked Lina to her core. Lina and Gideon were in the car eating up the miles headed south. A masked man accosted Bernadean in the parking lot after work. After throwing her to the ground, he proceeded to pour blood on her. Too distraught following the attack, Bernadean was at Willa’s house for tonight. When Lina called, Willa informed her that Bernadean had taken a sedative and had finally gone to sleep. They still didn’t have the answers they needed to stop the attacks. Because of her, the best mother she could have hoped for had been attacked. Guilt and regret sat like lead weights to Lina’s chest. If she had stayed in Shell Cove the attention would’ve remained on her, rather than involve her family.