Defying Gravity: Shattered Cove Series Book 3

by A. M. Kusi

  The man felt like he was meant to be inside her, like this was the piece of her heart she’d been missing all her life. His hands held her ever so gently, exploring every inch of her body and sending shivers and gooseflesh erupting over her nakedness. She’d never felt as alive as she did right now. They were no longer two people, but one soul, connected in the most intimate of ways. His thrusts, hard and savage, claimed her, branded her with a delicious burn. The pressure built. Flames licked and teased with each bated breath they shared.

  “You’re so fucking perfect. So sexy,” Bently whispered in her ear before kissing her, deep and long. Their bodies were lost in humanity’s most ancient dance. Tears spilled over her cheeks towards the bed as he reached between them and swirled her pulsing clit, making her cry out.

  “Bently!”

  “That’s it, baby. Come for me. Let me feel that pussy shudder.” His voice coaxed, pouring gasoline onto the raging inferno inside her. She came apart, and was put back together all at once. He pinched her nipple as another wave of pleasure crashed over her.

  He gripped her hips and flipped her over. She lay flat on her belly as he plunged harder inside her. His fingers dug into her hips as he leaned down, brushing the scruff of his beard over the sensitive skin of her shoulders, kissing gently as he pounded harder and deeper.

  “Fuck! Yes!” It was all she could say, over and over, as he grunted and drove her into oblivion again and again.

  “That’s it, baby. Come for me, Angel. So fucking perfect. So beautiful.”

  It was too much pleasure—she was drowning in it. Unable to draw breath, she surrendered, growing limp as she shattered again and again. He bit down hard on the back of her neck, sending a jolt of pain laced in surrendering lust shooting through her. He eclipsed her body and soul in euphoria.

  Bently roared a moment later, emptying inside her, filling her with his release. He wrapped his arms tighter around her, staying close, holding on to what they shared just a little longer, like he too never wanted it to end. Nothing but the sound of their heavy breaths mingled with the steady beat of rain pelting the roof.

  She was boneless and more satisfied than she’d ever thought possible. This man had given her one of the best gifts in the world. He’d shown her that she wasn’t broken. There wasn’t anything wrong with her—she’d just needed the right man in her life. A man whom she could trust. A man whom she loved.

  “I love you,” she said, before she could filter the words in her sex-hazed brain.

  Bently’s body stiffened before he slipped out of her and said, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  Chapter 34

  Bently

  Alarm bells blared in Bently’s head. A heavy weight settled over his chest. He’d just majorly fucked up. Panic squeezed his rib cage. For the first time in his life, he’d had sex with a woman and it was so much more than just a physical release. He’d made love to Belle.

  And everyone I love gets hurt because of me.

  He couldn’t let that happen to her. He should have kicked her out as soon as she came to his door. But . . . he’d been too weak. What if whoever was harassing him turned their sights on to Belle? Fuck! Once again, he’d messed up. She’d never forgive him for this.

  “What do you mean? I wanted this,” Belle said, sounding confused.

  She had every right to be. He was a selfish bastard and he’d used her like he’d sworn not to. Taken what he couldn’t give back, just like the thief he was.

  He’d never thought he’d be capable of loving a woman. What did I do? What if that demented prick was outside right now? What if . . .

  “I’m so sorry. I never meant . . .” . . . to put you in the middle of this. He found his sweatpants on the floor and pulled them on.

  “You never meant what?” she asked, her voice tinged with rising anger.

  His dick pulsed—the traitor wanted another round with this sweet angel. But that would never happen. Because he loved Belle, and that meant the best thing to do would be to let her go. She’d be safer without him in her life.

  “This. I never meant for it to get this far.” I never meant to fall in love with you too. He stood, searching in the darkness for his shirt. Thunder rumbled in the distance as the rain began to die down.

  She let out a choked sound. “Are you pushing me away again? I got too close and now you’re running scared like you have every other time?”

  “No!”

  “Bently?”

  “You need to leave. Right now.” So you’ll be safe.

  The lights flicked back on, and the look in her eyes shattered what was left of his damaged heart. Anger, pain, and finally resolve. She stood, every inch of her naked glory tense and rigid. She reached for her clothes.

  His heart ached. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and hold her until the morning. He wanted to take it all back and wipe that agonized look off her face. But instead he stood motionless as she held her chin high and got dressed like the warrior she was.

  She gazed back at him, opening her mouth and then snapping it shut. She shook her head. He was the biggest asshole.

  You’re nothing but a failure. You ruin everything you touch. You’re weak. His father’s voice played in his mind. He’d been right after all. But not anymore. He’d do the right thing and keep the woman he loved away from him so she’d be safe.

  Belle turned to leave, and he followed her downstairs in torturous silence. She unlocked the deadbolt and stopped, turning to face him with watery eyes. His heart lurched.

  “If I walk out this door, whatever this was between us is over. I won’t be treated this way again. So you need to think really hard if that’s what you truly want, or if this is just your trauma talking.”

  She staggered him. Couldn’t he just . . . The message written in blood and the dead pig flashed in his mind. He hadn’t told her about the picture they’d found in his truck.

  He shook his head. She wasn’t safe.

  “I don’t want you to come back.” The lie burned his throat.

  She blinked, those dark eyes flinching. If he told her why, she’d only try to stick by him. He couldn’t have her hurt because of him, or worse.

  “I trusted you. Guess I should have followed my first instincts after all.” She turned and ran out the door through the sprinkles of rain. Heartbreak and grief weighed heavily on the wet air.

  As soon as she was behind the wheel, he grabbed his gun and keys and slipped from the house. He tailed her from a distance, following her home. She had to be safe. Her car pulled into the drive. He texted TJ from a few houses down the street.

  Bently: Make sure your doors and windows stay locked.

  TJ: Why?

  Bently: Keep her safe.

  Because I can’t.

  He sat in his police truck as the rain dripped over the window. His personal vehicle was still being searched for any traces of the stalker. They’d gotten lucky with a fingerprint, but it wasn’t in the system. Unknown. So now, he’d wait here in the shadows until morning.

  He picked up his phone to call Vargas. Maybe she could trail Belle to work. But then what? He couldn’t find someone to watch her at every moment of every day. All it would take was one lapse in concentration, one opportunity, and she could be hurt. Or worse.

  His chest squeezed. His lungs constricted. He gasped. Oxygen, damn it! Where had it gone? Each damaged beat of his ragged heart shot vicious pain spiraling through him. He slapped his hand across his chest and bowed over.

  I’m having a heart attack.

  He sucked in air, squeezing his eyes closed as everything came crashing down on him. The weight of pain and guilt he’d carried for so long became more than he could bear.

  No, this is a panic attack.

  He forced himself back to sitting and started to count, slowing his breaths. Each shaky inhale was like filling his lun
gs with shards of glass. In and out. Over and over until the tightness in his chest relaxed. But his heart still ached like a herd of wild horses had just trampled over it. Or maybe, whatever was left of it had been ripped to shreds the moment he let her walk out that door for good.

  But it was too late now. He’d have to live with this loss.

  Chapter 35

  Belle

  Belle’s secret places no longer ached. His scent no longer invaded her bedroom. Two less reminders that Bently had been inside her less than two weeks ago. But her heart felt like someone had cut it into ribbons and left her to die from the internal bleeding. The hot water sloshed over her tired body. Her eyes felt like sandpaper. Why was she still crying over this man?

  Because you fell in love with him and he ripped your heart out.

  He’d made love to her, connected with her emotionally in a way she hadn’t known was possible. Bently had given her the best sexual experience of her life and then pushed her aside so cruelly. It felt as though he’d left her alone in an ocean, no longer helping her tread water. Nothing was left but the lead weights of her fears to drag her into the darkness. She’d given him everything, all that she had left, and he’d kicked her out as soon as it was over. Her stomach revolted at the memory. Bile rose up the back of her throat.

  “I don’t want to brag, but I know a thing or two about how to woo a woman.” His words came back to haunt her.

  Had this all just been a ploy to get her into his bed? No. It couldn’t have been. Could it? Was it all a lie?

  After she’d dried and gotten dressed for the day, she headed downstairs.

  TJ looked up from his book. “Hey, just made some coffee.”

  “Thanks.” She forced a smile.

  “Are you and Bently, uh . . . okay?” TJ asked cautiously.

  Belle turned to pour herself a cup, afraid he’d see the pain in her eyes.

  “I’m in this, Angel.” But he’d never clarified what “this” was. He’d always been vague. She was surprised TJ had waited this long to say something.

  “Why do you ask?”

  TJ sighed. “He won’t respond to my texts and he hasn’t shown up to the courts in weeks.”

  Right. TJ was losing a friend too. A man he looked up to.

  Anger boiled inside her. Bently had been just like the men of her past—using her brother to get to her. Rage curled in her belly as she grit her teeth. “I’ll talk to him and find out what’s going on. I know he was busy with work.”

  Even if he was a coward, TJ looked up to the man. Her brother deserved better.

  ***

  Belle waited until the evening. She pulled her car across the street from his house, glancing at the driveway. His truck was all clean of the blood. It had been erased, like the vandalism had never happened. Just like us. She inhaled long and deep, bolstering courage for what she needed to do. As she exited the car, she left it unlocked. If she was in a hurry to leave, it would make for a faster getaway.

  Her steps were determined, but her knees wobbled and her belly flipped with a mixture of anxiety and nerves. She held up one shaky hand to knock on Bently’s door. Feminine laughter drifted from behind it. Her stomach lurched as her chest squeezed tight. Was he with another woman? The blood drained from her face as she forced a cold breath into her lungs. Her heartbeat hammered against her chest as she forced herself to knock.

  The door opened, and warm green eyes met hers. Jasmine. “Hey, Belle. How are you?” she asked, smiling.

  “I told you not to answer the—oh. Belle.” Bently halted. He had dark circles under his eyes, and looked as if he hadn’t shaved since the last time she’d seen him. An unkempt beard only highlighted his perfect jawline. Her inner muscles clenched. That scruff had felt like heaven between her thighs . . .

  No. She was angry at this man.

  “I was hoping I could talk to you for a minute,” Belle pressed.

  “Good luck with this asshole. I was just heading out anyways. Remy has Zoey for the afternoon while I run some errands. Just wanted to make sure this guy was still alive. Now that you’re here, I’m sure he’ll get in a better mood.” She winked.

  Belle swallowed and shifted uncomfortably. He’d obviously not shared anything with his sister.

  “Bye, big brother. Don’t be a stranger. Zoey might forget what you look like.” Jasmine zipped up her coat and waved to Belle before she shut the door behind her, leaving them in deafening silence.

  Bently swiped the curtain over and peeked outside, watching his sister get into her car, no doubt. Ever the protector. Except when it comes to my heart.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked as though his throat was full of gravel. He turned to face her, still keeping his distance.

  “Are you okay?”

  “You came to check in on me? What a good friend.” His tone was sarcastic.

  She furrowed her brow. “Still trying to push everyone away I see. I’m not here because of us, Bently. If you want to live in fear and let your ghosts win, that’s your choice. I’ll move on.” I’ll survive you, because that’s what I do.

  His gaze darkened, blue fire blazing in those eyes locked on her. He was holding so much back. A prisoner in a jail of his own making. The irony was that he was the only one with the key. It wasn’t any good unless he chose to use it.

  “It was just sex.” He winced as though his words were assaulting him at the same time as thousands of tiny arrows pierced her already battered heart.

  “That’s all it ever is.” She shook her head. “Look, I came here to tell you that no matter what happened between us, my brother looks up to you. You need to man up and stop being a coward. Tell him to his face that you don’t want to hang out with him, that you were using him to get to me, or continue playing ball with him and responding to his texts like nothing is different. I don’t care which you pick. But don’t punish him to avoid me, or we will have a problem.”

  Bently’s shoulders slumped as his eyes shifted to the ground. He nodded.

  She opened the door, the burst of December air not even making her shiver—she was already numb inside. And nothing and no one would ever persuade her to open up to a man again. This time, she was surely broken for good.

  Bently had told the truth. He’d said he would destroy her, and that was one promise he didn’t break.

  Chapter 36

  Bently

  “You look like shit,” Mikel said, staring across Bently’s desk at him.

  “I feel like it too,” Bently confessed. He was too exhausted to put up a front. He was barely holding it together.

  “What did you do to mess things up with Belle?” Mikel asked, going right for his sore spot.

  “What I always do,” he deadpanned and scratched his overgrown beard.

  “You cheated on her!” Mikel growled, jolting forward.

  “No! I’ve never cheated on a woman in my life, asshole.” Bently frowned.

  “Because you’ve never been in a relationship before.” Mikel eased back into his seat.

  “We weren’t . . .” It was a lie. Fuck the label. Belle had been his, if only for a short time. And she would always have a piece of him.

  “So, what happened?” Mikel asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “I failed her . . .” He took a deep breath. Perhaps it was time to speak his truth. “Like I failed you and Jasmine.” The confession was like a gasp of fresh oxygen.

  Mikel’s brows drew together. “Come again?”

  The old Bently would have found some sort of sexual innuendo to retort with, but he was at the end of his rope. He was tired of carrying this burden and pretending that everything was okay. That he had everything under control when in truth, every single thing in his life was falling to pieces, including him. His fists clenched as he ground his teeth together hard enough to snap bone. “When I found you
in a pool of your own blood and that sick fucker was nowhere to be seen . . . I should have been there.”

  “Bent—”

  Bently held up his hands. “Then, when you told me what you’d seen. What he’d been doing to Jasmine. Why hadn’t I known? Why did I wait so long to get you guys out of there?”

  Mikel blew out a breath and shook his head.

  “I went there to kill him, you know.” Bently’s voice sounded dead, even to him.

  Mikel’s eyes widened before he looked around the small office, eyes narrowing on the closed door. “You did?”

  Bently nodded and stared at his brother. He knew what Mikel had done. Mikel shifted uneasily under his gaze.

  “I never got to thank you for doing what I’d been too weak to do before.”

  “Th—thank me?” Mikel asked, jaw ticcing.

  “I was there. I came in the back window with a fucking hammer. But he was already convulsing on the ground and you were standing over him with that needle in your hand.”

  Mikel swallowed and looked down at the desk. “You knew. All this time . . . I thought . . .”

  “I figured if you wanted me to know, you’d have told me. You saved my life that day. Because If I had followed through with my plan, I’d be in jail.”

  Mikel blinked and met his gaze. “I thought you’d turn me in. Always Mister Righteous, following the rules. You’re the fucking sheriff.” He lowered his voice and shook his head in disbelief.

  “Ironic, isn’t it?”

  “Someone needed to put that monster down,” Mikel agreed.

  “I wish I could have done it sooner, protected you both.” Bently rubbed his eyes.

  “It was never your job, you know? You took that upon yourself.”

  Bently sighed. “How could I not? Who else was going to do it? Mom abandoned us, leaving us with that horrible man. Maybe if I’d been better, stronger, she would still be alive.”

  Mikel shook his head and sat forward. “No. Don’t fucking take that on. That’s on her. She put us in that situation. But she was also sick and never got the help she needed. And Dad, what that bastard did is on him. You can’t fix everyone’s problems, Bently.”