by Dee J. Adams
Brendan immediately released her and put his hands up. “Sorry. Not my intention. I’m just trying to talk to you.”
Casey stood and wrapped her arms around her middle. “I’m mad because I’m so fucked up because of him. Because I want to have sex with you, but I’m scared. You were supposed to be the rebound guy, Bren. You were supposed to be in and out of my life in one day. I didn’t expect this. I didn’t expect to feel this much when we’re together.” She paused and met his gaze. “I thought I was going to get comfortable in my own skin before I met another guy. You kind of blindsided me.”
He laughed at that. “I blindsided you? How do you think I feel? You were so bold that first day. Turning breakfast into time at the pool. Then dinner. Then after dinner.” He smiled at the blush on her cheeks. “I’ll never forget that night as long as I live, Case. Never.” Brendan stood and faced her. He eased some hair behind her ear. “You and I found each other. I don’t care when or how it happened. I just know that we met and we click. I don’t care what we’ve been through. I care about where we’re going. Am I making sense so far?”
She nodded, her eyes still skeptical.
“Besides, Hawaii seems so long ago at this point, I don’t even know that it pertains to now. Let’s call ourselves old friends who’ve reconnected and go from there. How’s that sound?”
“Old friends?” That got a smile out of her and Brendan grinned.
“Yeah.” He leaned down and kissed her lips softly. “It so happens that this old friend owes this old friend an orgasm.”
The sound of her laugh went straight to Brendan’s heart.
“Funny, I don’t remember getting an IOU for that,” she said.
“No worries. All that matters is that I remember.” He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers, a soft caress that had her sighing into his mouth, but she pulled back a second later.
“Brendan, you don’t have to. Seriously, I just wanted—”
“Sh,” he whispered against her lips. Just as she’d done with him. “I know I don’t have to. I want to. Just like you wanted to for me.” He kissed her again, teased her with his lips and tongue. Since she seemed set on avoiding intercourse, Brendan decided to reciprocate by matching her seduction. He worked the button and zipper of her tight capri pants and eased his hand beneath her tiny lace thong. God, just thinking about that little piece of material started his blood pumping south again.
Casey wrapped her hands around his neck and dove into his kiss.
All aboard. This train wasn’t stopping until Casey’s engine ran out of gas.
Brendan took her down to the bed—ignoring the hot sting of pain in his shoulder. His technique was limited, but he still had his mouth and one good arm.
Shit. It only took a second to discover he needed his weight on his good arm, which put his injured arm to the test. Lifting her shirt, he pushed her bra cup beneath her breast and sucked on that sweet nipple begging for attention. She moaned, arched into his mouth and got rid of the top completely when she whipped it over her head. Hell yes. The sounds she made, the utter abandonment set his blood on fire. Next, he settled his hand on her stomach and eased it down to the opening of her pants. Damn, he wanted to see her. He pushed one side down and she helped him with the other side. Finding the small dark racing strip of hair between her legs was like finding the Holy Grail. Apparently she was a woman who experimented, since last time she’d been baby smooth.
“I love this little patch, Case. Very sexy. It’s like an X marking the treasure.” He adjusted, kissed her mouth as he pushed the tip of his finger inside her heat. She moaned again and lifted her hips to take more, but Brendan held back. “Easy there. I’ve got you.” He teased her more, stroking along the wet seam of her vagina and alternately dipping inside for more of her hot cream to ease his way. “I love that you’re so wet for me, Case. Also sexy.”
“Brendan, you’re killing me. Hurry. Please.” She squirmed under his touch and Brendan smiled against her ear.
“Patience is a virtue, remember?”
“It’s overrated,” she huffed, taking his head in her hands and guiding his mouth toward hers. She kicked her pants off the rest of the way. “If you don’t finger me in the next two seconds, I’ll do myself.”
Brendan froze, because picturing Casey taking the reins of her own pleasure nearly gave him a heart attack. It also sent a fresh surge of lust coursing through his veins. “That sounds like a show I could get into.”
“I’d rather you stick with your original plan because—” She gasped when he hooked his finger deep inside her and hit a bundle of nerves. “Oh, God, yes, please. Just like that.” Her hips moved, seeking more and he battled the urge to do more than use his hand.
Brendan circled her clit with his thumb while he pumped a couple of fingers into her tight heat. Casey arched, moaned, squirmed, bucked. “God, Brendan, yes, yes, yes.” She kissed him again as if her life depended on it and Brendan picked up the pace, mesmerized by her total abandonment, and loving her passion.
Casey palmed her breast, squeezed it. “Right there.” She cried out and Brendan felt the contractions of her climax pulse around his fingers. His dick was solid stone again just from watching her response. He would’ve moved over her if he thought his arm would support him, but his shoulder throbbed like a bitch.
When she finally came down, he pulled his fingers from between her legs, cupped that sweet, wet spot and whispered in her ear. “That would make us even.”
She shook her head, still breathing unsteady. “I don’t think so. I think after that, I probably owe you again.” She opened her eyes and met his gaze, a slow smile spreading across her lips. “That was pretty amazing. Who knew you were so talented one-handed?”
As he searched for a glib reply, squeaking sounded out front and Casey stiffened in his arms. Her eyes widened. Someone was coming through the front gate.
Shit. Brendan rolled off the bed and peeked out the window. His dad’s black Mustang eased up the drive. “Weird. It’s my parents. I thought—”
“Oh my God! They’re early!” She bolted upright and scrambled for her clothes. “This room totally smells like sex.” She waved her hands all over the place after getting her shirt on. Then she ran to his dresser and sprayed the cologne he’d left behind when he’d moved out.
Brendan was pretty sure nothing would fool his mother, but he eased the sling back over his shoulder to at least give the appearance that he hadn’t just had the best hand sex of his life. They heard the door open downstairs while Casey struggled to get her pants right side out.
“Oh, my God, Oh my God, your mother is going to hate me,” she whispered frantically, hopping on one foot as she yanked on the capris. Commando style. His dick perked up again.
“No, she’s not.” Brendan picked up his shirt from the floor and stuffed it under his pillow then eased the door open all the way.
Just as Casey slipped into her sandals, his mother walked in.
She looked up from her phone and glanced between them, her observant blue eyes soaking in everything. “Hi? How are you guys feeling? It was a long day. Everything okay?”
The blush crawling up Casey’s face might’ve been a dead giveaway, but his mother didn’t let on. “Yes, we’re good here. Did the show end early?” she asked.
“We never got there. The car battery died and we stalled. Had to call the auto club for a jump. By the time they showed up we’d have missed the first half, so we bailed and got a new battery before closing time.”
Brendan noticed Casey’s thong on the floor partially under the bed and stepped on it as he neared his mom. He kissed her cheek. “Wow. Sorry about that. Hey, thanks for the cake, Mom. Delicious as always.”
“You’re welcome.” She looked between them a second time and Brendan knew she knew. “Well, it was a long day so I’m going to bed. Just wanted to check on you two. See you in the morning.” She left and they heard the door close to his parents’ room.
He really
did have the coolest mom on the planet. One day he might even tell her.
“She totally knew,” Casey said, dropping her chin to her chest. “She’s going to hate me.”
Brendan grinned as he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. Maybe it meant something that she wanted his mom to like her. Maybe it was another crack in that wall she’d built between them. Hopefully that wall was about to topple for good. “Stop it. No one could ever hate you.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
He hated her.
Apparently he wasn’t the only one.
He couldn’t concentrate anymore and shoved the papers back as he swiveled the comfortable leather chair toward the windows. Cars zoomed by on the busy street.
So who wanted her dead besides him and how could he make it work to his advantage? Sitting in his office he replayed the attack in his head for the fiftieth time. It was all he could think about. In hindsight, he realized he should’ve gone after the man who’d sprayed the bullets. At least then he’d have a clue who to focus on.
Not that he worried. He had plenty of resources.
A grin slid across his lips as he thought about a bullet sailing into Casey’s new boyfriend. Brendan St. John deserved to die as much as she did. Anyone who got in his way deserved to die as far as he was concerned.
Maybe that was why he’d stuck around yesterday…to see how they survived. He’d been surprised when they’d both been wheeled out on gurneys. He’d been sure St. John had taken all the bullets and protected Casey, but clearly not.
He’d considered striding into her hospital treatment room for a half second just to see the look on her face when she saw him. But he obviously couldn’t have done that. Still, it had been fun to fantasize about.
How close were those two anyway? The show had the country believing they were a hot item, but it wasn’t as if they’d shared some kind of dramatic reunion when she’d opened the door. He’d seen tension in their body language, not attraction.
Flipping a pen through his fingers, he stared at the palm trees lining the street. It might be fun to cause Casey even more pain by way of hurting the people around her. He hadn’t really considered that idea before. After all, she was now shacking up with St. John. That much he knew.
So now what? For starters, he had to keep an eye out for the shooter. He couldn’t let him take all the fun. Although as long as the guy took the heat, everything would be fine. He just had to make sure that no matter what happened to Casey—or St. John—that the bozo with crappy timing took the fall.
He picked up his phone.
“Yes?” Stacy’s cool voice came over the line. She was a beauty just like Casey. She was hoping their one-night stand would turn into a permanent situation. Not in this lifetime. He might fuck the secretaries, but he never shacked up with them.
“Hey, it’s me. I’ll be taking off the rest of the day.” He had an appointment with a man. “I think I ate something bad at lunch, so I’m heading home. I’ll check in tomorrow morning. Later.” Hanging up, he grabbed his sunglasses off his desk and headed out.
Time to refill his stash… And find some information.
Casey ran a hand through her hair and the stitches tugged against her scalp. They itched as bad as the poison ivy she got as a kid during a hellish camping trip. The only good thing to come from that vacation with cousins was the bonding she’d done with her big sis, Zoe. Camping turned out to be their favorite thing to despise.
The four stooges—as she secretly referred to RJ, Leroy, Stubby and Dennis—had gone to lunch, leaving her alone in the studio. The quiet should’ve helped her come up with words to some type of tune, but so far she had nothing.
She’d convinced Brendan to drop her off and go home. Believing she was safe in a securely protected studio, he’d complied. She’d also convinced him that she needed her car so when he picked her up, he was going to drive to her apartment. Obviously the guy couldn’t be at her beck and call every day and she didn’t want him to be. It was tough enough being so close to him most of the day—and night. She needed space.
Her thoughts drifted to yesterday. To the few minutes they’d shared in Brendan’s bedroom. Jeff was in decent shape, but he didn’t hold a candle to Brendan. As far as making her hot…Jeff never took the time to please her the way Brendan did.
Yes, Brendan and Jeff were fundamentally different. So why was she putting the brakes on with Brendan? Why couldn’t she let go and see what might happen between them?
“Because you’re chicken-shit,” she mumbled aloud. Afraid to get back in the saddle and commit to another man…especially the man who was supposed to be strictly her rebound guy.
The door flew open and Casey jumped from the chair.
Miles bounded into room, his mouth a straight line across his hard face. “RJ said this whole morning was a bust. What’s the problem, Casey? We’re here to write songs, not twiddle our thumbs all day.”
“I tried to tell you yesterday that this isn’t my process. I need a quiet place. Maybe one instrument.” She gestured around the studio. “This is too much. I don’t work like this. If you want my music then I need some time. Quiet time,” she stressed.
The four guys picked that moment to enter the room, laughing, swearing, smacking each other and generally acting like junior high school delinquents. Casey lifted her brows in a see what I mean look.
“Fine,” Miles relented, shaking his head. “Go home. You have the weekend. Two days. But in two days you’re back here and we put whatever you have to music. Got it?” He stormed out of the room instead of waiting for an answer.
Casey pulled her stuff together and texted Brendan with the news. She hadn’t expected the early out and figured she’d have to wait twenty or so minutes for him to get there, but when he knocked on the glass door three minutes later, she realized he’d never gone home. “I told you not to wait for me,” she said, following him to the car. The sun blazed down with the same intensity as the day before. Brendan’s sweaty shirt stuck to his chest and outlined the contours of his muscles.
“I heard you.” He unlocked and opened her door. Something Jeff had never done.
“But you chose to do otherwise.” She closed the door before he could, not sure if she was angry that he didn’t listen to her or perturbed that she’d lost control of her life in general.
He opened his door and sat behind the wheel. “Look, Casey, if I left you alone and something happened to you, I wouldn’t forgive myself.” His deep blue eyes begged for understanding. “I’m sorry if I’m smothering you. I just need to know you’re safe and until we find more information on whoever wants to hurt you, then you’re mostly stuck with me.”
She didn’t see how that was possible. “What about Seger? Your job? Doesn’t that play a factor here?”
He cranked the engine and his truck roared to life. “Seger just came off a huge tour. He’s taking some down time, which means I have more leeway with my schedule. It’s the upside—or downside depending how you look at—with my job. If my arm worked, I’d probably be behind the bar for a month or two, but that’s not in the cards until my shoulder heals more.” He slipped his sunglasses on and backed out of the spot.
She sighed and shook her head, but he made it really hard to be angry with him. “I still need to pick up my car,” she said. “I’d rather have it in case I need wheels and you’re not around. Besides, if I don’t start it every few days the battery will crap out.”
“That’s fine. You can keep it at my parents’ place. There’s plenty of room.” He was so damn accommodating and it only made her feel shittier.
At the apartment, crime scene tape blocked her small patio and her boarded up front door sent a chill down her spine. It made Casey sick to think someone had camped out across the street and waited until they had a shot. Pushing the nasty thought aside, she headed to her car. Brendan scanned the area as he followed her.
“I doubt someone’s going to try shooting at us again so soon,” Casey sai
d.
Brendan grunted.
Casey ignored him and hit the unlock button on her key fob. The Chevrolet chirped, but made a different sound than normal. “That’s weird.” She opened the door.
“What?” Brendan stopped next to her.
“The alarm sounded funny. I wonder if the battery is already dying.” Her ass barely made contact with the driver’s seat when Brendan grabbed her arm and pulled her out, his focus on the ground. “Hey! What are you doing? I need to make sure—”
“Sh…run!” He bolted away from the car, dragging Casey along as she stumbled over the pavement. He shoved her behind the industrial sized trash bin sitting ten feet away, yanked her down and covered her with his body.
A whole lot of silence followed…along with the stink from the garbage next to them.
Breathing hard, her pulse racing, Casey resisted the urge to roll her eyes. What was he thinking? Yes, she appreciated his desire to protect her, but this was ridiculous. She pushed at his chest, but he only got far enough away to look into her eyes. Not a spec of humor in his gaze.
“Um…false alarm?” She made it a question to lessen the blow. “I think everything’s fine.” Except now her clean jeans were dirty. Nothing sounded but chirping birds in Magnolia trees lining the street.
He eased off her, his eyebrows slanted and his mouth a hard line. He stood and pulled her next to him before scanning the neighborhood. “I would’ve sworn—”
A giant explosion ripped through the air. The heat and force shoved the bin into both of them and knocked them back on their butts. Shrapnel and hot embers rained down and Brendan scrambled to cover Casey as another explosion rocked the ground beneath them.
Casey’s heart pumped a river of adrenaline. Tremors shook her from head to toe. Fire roared next to them and heat radiated from beneath the bin.
“It’s okay. It’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re okay.” Brendan kept up the chatter as he looked into her eyes and scanned her for any injury. “You okay? Did anything hit you?”