I laughed at that which earned me an irritated look. I quickly grabbed the spoon and took a taste of the sauce. “Wow, that’s good,” I said.
Ronan nodded knowingly. “Can you get the garlic bread out of the oven?”
And so it went. It was dinner, plain and simple. I had no idea if we were friends, lovers, family…and in that moment, I didn’t care. Whatever we were, we just enjoyed each other’s company. I still did most of the talking but it was a role I was happy to take on for as long as Ronan was willing to listen.
I did the dishes as Ronan cleared the table. Once everything was done, I tried to garner the courage to ask him to sit with me and watch a movie but I didn’t want to press my luck. “I think I’ll go read,” I said quietly. “Thanks for dinner.”
But Ronan grabbed my arm just as I turned away and my whole body drew up tight with excited anticipation. Shockwaves went up my arm and filtered out to all my limbs but it was my cock that reacted the most violently to his touch. God, I needed him again. I didn’t care what it would cost me in the long run. I just wanted to feel his body pinning mine down, his flesh buried deep inside of me.
“I thought maybe we could hang out a bit,” Ronan said as he released me. I couldn’t help but notice that he didn’t seem to be as strongly affected as I was. Shit, did that mean his attraction to me had already started to wane? Had my weakness today turned him off?
“Um, sure, we could watch a movie,” I said awkwardly. Suddenly I just wanted to get away from him as my self-doubt increased.
“I have something else in mind,” he said and I had no choice but to follow him. We ended up in the TV room but I didn’t realize what Ronan was doing until he picked up the remote for the video game machine and turned it and the big screen TV on.
“This is your favorite, right?” Ronan asked as he motioned to the game that was booting up. I only managed a nod because I hadn’t actually played any video games after my parents and Trace had died, because it was another link to them that I couldn’t bear to deal with.
I dropped down onto the couch next to Ronan as the game started up. It was a racing game that Trace and I had spent countless hours playing whenever he was home and on a few occasions, Ronan and I had played as well, though being in Ronan’s presence had always made me too nervous to really focus on the game.
I was beyond rusty but luckily, so was Ronan. And while I was still nervous around him, I still managed to kick his ass on the first game. He returned the favor on the second and by the third, we were in an all-out death race to the finish line. We played for more than an hour before switching to Tetris, another one of my favorites.
“Trace loved this game,” Ronan suddenly announced as we started up a new round. It was so strange to have Ronan initiate a conversation about Trace that I actually held my breath in hopes that he would continue. He didn’t.
“He used to let me win,” I ventured.
“Yeah, early on. But then you got good.” Ronan glanced at me and smiled. “He used to practice as much as he could on his downtime so he could beat you. It drove him crazy that his kid brother kept kicking his ass.”
I chuckled. “He did like to win at everything.”
“He did,” Ronan mused.
“What about you?” I asked.
“What? Did I like to win?” Ronan asked.
I nodded.
Ronan thought about it for a moment. “I liked being the best at things like school and work. But I liked not having to worry about it with him. He liked to win but he knew how to have fun doing it. I needed that in my life.”
I knew we were treading on dangerous ground so I considered my next words carefully. “You didn’t get enough of that growing up? Fun, I mean?”
I saw Ronan’s thumb start rubbing the edge of the game controller and I couldn’t help but wonder if he weren’t holding it, would he be tapping his fingers together instead? As his silence went on, I didn’t expect him to answer me and I reached for the button that would start the next game.
“I didn’t have what you guys had, Seth,” Ronan murmured as his eyes fell to the controller in his hand. “I didn’t even know what I was missing until I met him…till he brought me home to meet you guys.”
I forced back the lump of emotion in my throat. “What did you have?”
Another lengthy silence, then, “Hate, anger, guilt.”
I wanted desperately to touch him but I remained perfectly still. “Your parents?”
“My father.”
I swallowed hard at hearing the same two words he’d said to me earlier. “What about your mother?”
“She died giving birth to me,” Ronan said. “The way he talked about her…I knew they were happy. He used to tell me stories about how they met in high school and he asked her to marry him when they were both fifteen. He gave her a promise ring and they got married the day after they graduated.”
The story should have been a happy one but I could tell from his tone that it hadn’t been told that way to him. But I held my tongue.
“He used to say it should have been me instead of her…he said the doctors should have let him decide which one of us to save.”
Anger surged through me but I managed to keep quiet. But I instinctively moved closer to him before I realized what I was doing, but Ronan was too lost in himself to notice. “She wanted to be a doctor,” Ronan whispered.
I stilled. “Your mom?” I asked gently.
He nodded. “She’d been accepted to medical school when she found out she was pregnant. I was born a few weeks before she was supposed to start. She and my dad had it all planned out...how they were going to take care of me but still make it so she could go.”
I ached to touch Ronan, but I settled for carefully removing the controller from his grip because his hold on it had turned brutal. The move allowed me to get closer to him but he didn’t seem to notice because he began tapping his fingers together. His eyes were on the paused game on the screen but I could tell he wasn’t seeing it anymore.
“I…I actually thought he’d forgive me if I followed in her footsteps.”
“By becoming a doctor, you mean?”
A curt nod. “It didn’t matter. None of it mattered.”
“Is your dad still alive?”
“No. He had a stroke. I was still in my first year of med school. He was still alive when I got to the hospital.” Ronan’s voice cracked as he said, “I told him I’d take care of him. He…he told me to go to hell.” Ronan sucked in a deep breath as if trying to get control of himself. “His brain started swelling the next day. There wasn’t anything anyone could do for him.”
“I’m sorry, Ronan,” I whispered, and I took the risk and placed my hand on his arm. He immediately flinched and pulled away. The move hurt but I didn’t recoil in on myself the way I wanted.
“Sorry,” Ronan murmured as he realized what he’d done.
“It’s okay,” I said. “I’m glad you got to be a part of our family, Ronan. Even if my crazy mom did threaten you and force feed you pie.”
I was thrilled when Ronan smiled a little bit. “That really was a bad pie,” he finally said.
“You have no idea,” I said as I grabbed the controller and handed it back to him. I hit the start button on the game and then leaned back against the couch cushions and began telling him all about how bad a cook my mother had truly been.
Chapter Nineteen
Ronan
I couldn’t focus on the email on the screen in front of me as I listened to yet another person chew Seth out over the phone. I couldn’t make out the actual words from where I was sitting at the table in the corner of Seth’s office, but the raised voice was obvious even coming through the handset that Seth was holding to his ear. It had been two days since the employees had found out about Seth’s meeting in New York the following week and the anger and resentment hadn’t let up in the least. I suspected if I hadn’t been sitting in Seth’s office, many of the employees who’d barged in would have b
een even more disrespectful than they already were. But as rude as some of the clearly anxious workers had been, Seth had handled himself well and he’d never lost his patience or raised his voice in anger despite some of the barbs comparing him to his father and finding him lacking.
I’d struggled with the turn of events that had happened the night Seth and I had played video games. I’d ended up revealing much more than I had intended and in fact, it was more than I’d ever told Trace about my tumultuous relationship with my father. Maybe it was because of everything Seth had so openly shared with me, I wasn’t sure. Maybe, like Seth, I needed to lance the wounds that had been festering inside of me for so long. And while I hadn’t expected to miraculously feel better, I also hadn’t felt the need to escape Seth’s presence either. But I hadn’t been able to accept his touch. I had no doubt that my actions had hurt him but he’d let me off the hook without question. There’d been a few brief awkward moments as we both tried to get our bearings but they’d passed quickly and we’d ended up playing video games for another three hours before Seth had actually dosed off and fallen asleep on my shoulder. If he hadn’t had to work the next day, I would have been content to enjoy the feel of his body pressed against mine all night.
Because he wasn’t dangerous to me when he was asleep.
While Seth worked, I focused on the updates I’d gotten from Mav and Daisy. I was pleased to discover that Mav had made a lot of progress in destroying Barry Fields’s life. Not only had the multiple restraining orders issued against the piece of shit therapist been leaked online via the man’s own social media accounts and website, Mav had emptied his bank accounts, fucked up his credit and made every accrediting and licensing agency in the country aware of a criminal history that didn’t actually exist.
Since Seth had no longer felt the need to make the daily run to the Mercer Island house, he’d ordered us a couple of sandwiches at lunchtime. Afterwards, I’d started looking through the bids a few security firms had submitted for taking over security of both the garage and the office building.
Seth hadn’t balked at the surveillance system I’d suggested despite the high price tag and when Stan had called the measures extreme, Seth had simply reminded him that as majority partner, it was his call to make. It turned out that despite Stan’s position as Chief Executive Officer, he had very little legal control over the company. His share of Nichols Shipping came out to less than fifteen percent, a high enough number to make him a wealthy man but nowhere near what Seth was making from the company. I had my reservations about the older man because he had a tendency to talk down to Seth, but Seth was clearly grateful for the insight Stan provided so I held my tongue.
I heard Seth hang up the phone and I glanced over my shoulder to see him hanging his head and running his fingers through his hair. I was about to ask him how he was doing when the office door flew open so hard that it slammed into the wall. A red faced, portly guy surged through it, a folder in his hand.
“I’ve left you three messages, Nichols!” the man bellowed. He threw the folder at Seth. “If you even think of trying to pull a fast one on us, we’ll hit you with everything we’ve got. Our lawyers will have your ass wrapped up so tight, you won’t be able to shit for weeks!”
“Mr. Abernathy-”
The man, who I now realized was the union president for some of the men and women who worked for Seth, slapped his hands on the desk and got in Seth’s face as he grabbed him by the shirt. “Listen here, you little shit-”
I didn’t even listen to the rest of what the fucker had to say as I got up and strode across the office. I grabbed him by the back of his collar and yanked him upright. “I think you’re the one who needs to listen, you fat little fuck,” I bit out as I used my free hand to propel the guy backwards until he hit the wall next to the office door. I ignored the startled look Seth’s assistant gave me from her desk just outside the office.
“Ronan-” I heard Seth call, but I ignored him.
“If you ever speak to him that way again or lay even one fucking finger on him, I will kick your fat ass until you’re the one who can’t take a shit without crying. Get the fuck out!” I snarled before shoving the guy so hard that he stumbled to his knees outside the office door. I grabbed the door and slammed it shut, then flipped the lock. I turned to find Seth just feet behind me, his face drawn up tight with anger.
“Damn it, Ronan, I was handling it.”
“That fucker-”
“Is an important part of this company,” Seth interrupted. “Like it or not, I need to be able to work with him! You can’t just-”
“I can and I will,” I nearly yelled. My anger was still simmering as I closed the distance between us. “No one touches you like that. No one!”
The rage at seeing the man put his hands on Seth was still pouring through me and I knew I needed to get control of myself, but my whole body was aching to go back and find the guy and beat on him just because I could. I was seriously thinking of doing just that when Seth suddenly reached up and grabbed me by the back of the neck. His hold was firm and strong. I expected him to argue with me some more but instead, he yanked me forward and then his mouth was closing over mine.
He used my shock against me and stole into my mouth in one swift move. But my recovery was quick and I dragged him forward as my hands searched out his ass and my tongue dove into his mouth. I showed him no mercy as I consumed his mouth, but I couldn’t stop him from jerking backwards when someone knocked loudly on the office door.
“Seth!” I heard Stan call. “Are you all right in there?”
Seth was breathing hard and we were staring hungrily at each other. “I’m fine, Stan,” Seth called but he didn’t move otherwise. I could see the indecision in his gaze as he looked me up and down and then his eyes settled on my dick and I nearly groaned out loud.
“Seth, open this door, please! Mr. Abernathy said he was assaulted.”
I didn’t give a shit about that but Seth straightened and then moved past me. He ran his fingers through his hair and then straightened his tie before unlocking and opening the door.
“Tell Mr. Abernathy that I will call him later once he calms down,” Seth said firmly. “Also tell him that if he ever lays a hand on me again, his pride won’t be the only thing that’ll be hurting.”
I saw Stan’s stunned expression at Seth’s words but the man kept sucking in air without actually saying anything.
“Nancy, I don’t want to be disturbed for the rest of the afternoon,” Seth ordered and then he was slamming the door and locking it. My cock twitched hungrily as he turned to face me. I had no idea where the hell we stood, but I was painfully aroused and I wanted nothing more than to finish what we started, friendship be damned.
Seth reached his fingers up to loosen his tie. But he did more than just loosen it. He took it off all together and then he was striding towards me with singular determination. I held my breath as he stopped in front of me and handed me the tie. Then he was grabbing my hand and leading me to the bathroom at the far end of the office. As soon as he closed the door behind us, he was on me, his mouth searching mine out. My lust exploded as my brain finally caught up and I wrapped my hands around Seth’s neck to hold him in place as I kissed him. If I expected any shyness on Seth’s part, I was completely mistaken because as I was desperately sucking on his tongue, his hand was snaking into my pants and closing around my dick. I groaned against his lips as he stroked up and down my length. His hold wasn’t tight enough so I quickly reached down to undo my pants. I closed my hand around his and showed him how much pressure to exert. The friction of his palm against my flesh was exquisite, but my need was so intense that I couldn’t just stand there and enjoy it, so I ripped my shirt off before working on the buttons of his.
Once the shirt was gone, I got his pants open and began playing with the crown of his dick which was peeking out from just under the waistband of his underwear. Seth moaned and I nearly came when he squeezed my cock hard. I saw Seth’s
eyes fix on my aching dick and I realized why when I looked down at myself. A bead of pre-come had formed at my slit. It began to drip down over the head when Seth suddenly slid his hand up and collected it with his finger. I held my breath as I watched him carry his finger to his lips and then he was sucking it inside.
“Christ,” I muttered as my blood began to simmer beneath my skin. I ignored the look of wonder on Seth’s face as he processed my taste and knelt so I could get Seth’s shoes off. I basically ripped his pants and underwear off of him and then I was searching out the discarded tie which had fallen to the floor during our tussle. Seth already had his hands together in front of him by the time I rose and I wanted to kiss him all over again for his unquestioning understanding of what I needed. I wrapped the tie around his wrists and knotted it and then turned Seth and pressed his back against the door. I lifted his tied hands above his head and pressed the coat hook on the back of the door between the folds of the knot. I was glad it was long enough that it would hold Seth in place if he started squirming. Because between the last few days of being around Seth and not being able to touch him and this moment, I was way too vulnerable and needy to handle it if he did unwittingly touch me. Worse, I was coming to fear that I actually wanted his touch…no matter the consequences.
Seth’s eyes were glazed over with lust as he watched me pull the lube from my wallet. I could already feel my orgasm threatening to overtake me so I quickly reached between Seth’s legs and slathered some lube over his quivering hole. I covered my dick with the rest, making sure to use an extra generous amount since I knew I couldn’t last long enough to prep Seth as thoroughly as I should. I used my arms to lift Seth’s legs and he quickly caught on and wrapped them around my waist. I spread my hand under his ass to support his weight and used my other hand to guide my cock to his opening. My whole body was shaking with excitement and I could feel that Seth wasn’t faring much better.
“God, I can’t fucking slow down,” I muttered as I began to press inside of him.
Salvation (The Protectors, Book 2) Page 15