My heart broke for him, and I reached out to set my hand on his. I knew that pain; it was still fresh in my heart. “I’m sorry.” His free hand dropped the spoon on the counter at my touch, clearly surprised that I did so. The smile on his face when he turned to me showed that he liked my hand on his.
“It’s fine. I can’t imagine my life another way. My sister and I practically grew up here.”
Meredith came to stand beside us and knocked her hips against him, which made him topple over onto me. I instinctively grabbed onto his blue plaid button up to keep myself from falling. He reached out and pulled me to him. His long arms wrapped around me and we both paused for a moment. I took in the familiar scent of his cologne, musky and sexy, and felt his heart beating quickly in his chest. He mumbled a quick sorry and then stepped back from me. I saw the slight blush creep up into his cheeks and the devious smirk on Meredith’s face.
“I need to go use your bathroom,” she said and turned to leave the room.
She left us alone with awkward silence looming between us. We were alone in the kitchen, actually alone. Being there with him with no ghosts stalking me reminded me what it felt like to truly be alone. I hadn’t felt that way since moving into the house. I was never ever alone.
I tried to concentrate on the task at hand and forget about ghosts. I was alone with Ryder, something I had been dying to experience since the moment I laid eyes on him. Cade itched at the back of my mind, but there would be no reason not to see what things with Ryder could potentially be like. I had spent a lot more time with Cade anyway since he lived so close; maybe I wasn’t giving Ryder a fair chance.
As I reached over to the sprinkles he reached out at the same time and touched my hand. We both snatched our hands back.
“Sorry.” We both said it at the same time and then looked at each other.
Ryder looked down at me with some sort of indecision in his eyes. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair; the brown pieces flopped about his head. Then he reached for the sprinkles and handed them out to me without a word.
“Thanks,” I said and went back to decorating my ice cream with everything available. Meredith was taking a long time in the bathroom, and I suspected it was to give us some time alone. When I reached for the whipped cream, it happened again. Ryder’s fingers touched mine, and we both jerked back.
“You gotta stop touching me like that,” I whispered and looked up at him.
Ryder looked at me, eyes wide with shock at my words. “I, um, I didn’t.”
“Yes, yes you did,” I insisted and reached out to get the can of whipped cream. I tilted my head back and squirted the gooey substance into my mouth. I pulled my new lip ring into my mouth and raised my eyes. A lopsided grin was upon his face.
“Give me that.” He snatched it away from me and sprayed it into his mouth. He laughed as he pointed the end of the bottle at me. “Don’t move, Briar, or you’re going to get it.”
I feigned fear and stepped back, my back hitting the island in the center of the room. “What are you doing?”
He stepped toward me until he was directly in front of me and reached out to place his left hand on the counter behind me. I could feel the excitement growing in my stomach, surprised at the curiosity inside me. I wanted to know what it would be like to kiss him. He held the can out to my face and sprayed a line of it across my jaw.
“Damn,” he whispered and set the can on the counter. “I missed.”
“Did you?” I asked, my voice cracking as I spoke out of nervousness.
“Yeah, I think I did,” he said, his voice slightly lower than before as he lowered his face to mine. His lips trailed across my jaw, his tongue snaking out to capture the whipped cream. My hands reached out to curl into his shirt at the same time that his hands took a hold of my waist to pick me up and set me on the counter. When he looked back at me, there was a fire there I’d never seen before. It made me feel as if I was the only girl in the room.
I closed my eyes as he lowered his mouth, my fingers digging into his shirt as his lips brushed mine. My piercing ached as he closed the distance between us, but it was a welcomed pain.
“I found the alcohol!” Meredith’s voice rang out as she stepped into the room.
Ryder jumped back from me as if someone had jerked him away, and pink tint returned to his cheeks. My own were engulfed in redness as I hopped off the counter and sheepishly looked up at Meredith.
Her mouth was open in shock but curled into a smile; the bottle of vodka in her left hand teetered back and forth. “Oh, sorry to interrupt.”
“It’s fine,” I whispered.
“Time to party!” She ran over to us with the bottle in her hand.
Ryder shot an apologetic glance over to me and I nodded with acknowledgement. Our moment alone had quickly been replaced with Meredith’s party time spirit—and she had been the one to set us up.
Chapter Fourteen
When Ryder dropped me off at home that night, it was later than I’d anticipated, almost nine o’clock. Dillon was in bed and my dad was waiting on the couch by the door with that fatherly look on his face.
“Where have you been?”
“With Ryder,” I said. “Has Cade stopped by?” I was surprised at the small smile that tried to form on my face. I crossed my arms to try and hide it.
My dad sighed and rubbed his eyes with his hand. “No, that boy hasn’t been by. Look, I’m going to try and be supportive of you looking for a, um, a boyfriend. But that doesn’t mean you can run around with that boy all the time and late into the night. You’re still living in my house, and you will follow my rules until you move out.”
I nodded. That had been what he, my mom, and I had decided on before she died. “I know.”
He stepped closer to me, his hand going to my chin to tilt my face to look at him. “What is that?”
“A piercing, Dad,” I said sarcastically and pulled away.
He frowned. “Just don’t be going too crazy now, okay?”
“I, um, okay. No problem.” I wasn’t prepared for his acceptance.
“You must really like this Cade kid,” he said and paused to pat me on the back, “because you’re smiling for the first time in weeks. He has to be a lot better than whatever one has had you in this funk.”
Had I really been that down and out?
“He is, Dad. Cade is great.”
“You should invite him over when I’m around, so I can get to know him.”
That caught me off guard but I nodded. “Sure.”
“There is dinner in the refrigerator if you want some. I’m going to go lie down and watch a movie.”
“I think I am too,” I said and made my way to the bedroom.
I slipped into my night shorts and tank top, pulling my long black hair up into a messy ponytail. I put on one of my favorite scary movies, Halloween, and curled up on the bed. It wasn’t long before my door creaked open, and Cade stepped inside. He held his finger to his lips as if to ask me to be quiet.
“Hey,” I whispered as my breath suddenly left me. He was dressed in a tight white shirt and ripped jeans with his combat boots. My body betrayed me, and my heart flipped. I couldn’t take my eyes off him as he closed the door behind him.
He leaned against it and looked at me excitedly. “I’ve been waiting for the light in your room to come on.”
I hit pause on my movie. It didn’t matter that I had seen it a thousand times; I didn’t want to miss a second. “How long have you been waiting out there?”
“I can see your room from my window.”
“That’s kinda creepy.”
“Maybe.” He pushed off the wall and walked toward the bed. “What did you do for Halloween?”
“Hung out with Meredith and Ryder.”
His smile faltered and then faded. “Did he…did he kiss you?”
“Maybe.”
A cold chill flittered through the room and my television flickered. “Damn ghosts,” I growled. Raising my voice
, I demanded, “Do you have to do this shit today?”
“They don’t take days off. Especially on Halloween,” Cade said. There was no trace of humor in his voice. His eyes looked into mine as he frowned. “So, did he kiss you?”
My temper flared. “Listen, I don’t want to do this possessive crap tonight okay? I had a good time, ate a lot of ice cream, and got my new piercing. I don’t want any reminders of murderous ghosts in my house or this jealousy from you. So, if you will excuse me, I want to watch my movie in peace.”
“I can do that,” he relented as he sat down on the bed beside me. “But first…” He held out his closed hands and gave me a half smile.
“What’s that?” I asked, suddenly curious.
“I made something for you.”
“You didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I did.”
I reached out to take the paper. It was folded all fancy, like one of those notes girls passed around in class back in high school. I cocked an eyebrow at him, and he shrugged. I didn’t know boys knew how to do that. With a sigh, I opened the crisp white paper, using my palm to push out the sharp folded edges. I couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the edge of my lips as I read through the list of songs and artists. Some of them were my favorite and some of them I had never heard of. It was entitled, “My Briar Rose”.
“What’s this?” I asked.
“It’s a playlist.” His voice was excited, as if it was the best thing to happen all day.
“I can see that.”
“I made it just for you. It’s about us.”
As I read through the list, my heart fluttered. No one had ever put such thought into a gift for me before. I would have to make it into a playlist. It showed that he’d paid close attention to all the times we’d talked about music and what we each liked, all the times he rummaged through my phone and played ones he’d never heard before. As possessive and weird as he could act sometimes, he truly cared about me.
“Thank you. It means a lot,” I said. At that moment, I wondered why I had been trying to fool myself. Ryder was a good-looking guy, but my feelings for him were nowhere near what I felt for Cade. Never had I felt so comfortable around someone other than my family.
A big boyish grin took over his face as he slowly pulled me to him. “Happy Halloween, Briar.” He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me on the cheek. He lowered me to the bed and lay down beside me, propping himself up on his elbows, and pushing the hair from my face. When he pulled back from me, he smiled and motioned to the television. “You wanna finish your movie?”
“That would be great.” I hit the play button.
Cade reached out to run his thumb across my lips, brushing over the ring. “This is so hot by the way.”
My face burned as I turned back to watch the television. I hated how easily he was able to change my mood and make me forget about everything else in the world. It was as if I was out of control of my own body.
As we watched the movie, I felt him run his cold hand back and forth over my back. It was comforting and with each movement, I felt my heart flutter and my pulse speed up. He was absolutely charming, and his clothes hugged his body perfectly. I snuck a peek at him and let my eyes wander over his body. He was taller than me, just so that I had to stand on my tiptoes to kiss him, but not as tall as Ryder where he was almost a foot taller. It was nice; I felt like it brought us more on the same level. His shirt rode up his back, revealing pale skin. I could see each muscle defined perfectly; he was breathtaking and awakening feelings inside of me that had been dormant for a very long time.
“What?” he asked.
My head jerked up to see him smiling. He’d caught me staring.
“I was just, um…”
“Looking at my ass?”
“No….I hadn’t gotten that far.”
Cade laughed and turned onto his side, which caused that damned shirt of his to ride up even more and giving me a good view of his abs. I forced my eyes away from his body and to his face.
“I’m afraid I’ll hurt you if I kiss you…” He bit his lip.
“You won’t hurt me…”
He eyed me curiously for a moment, maybe to see if I would change my mind. I wanted him to kiss me, with or without the pain. When I didn’t say anything, he leaned into me and brushed his lips across mine. I closed my eyes and melted into him.
His hands trailed down my body and to my waist, pulling me closer to him. My hand moved around his neck to settle in his hair and play with it. He deepened the kiss and pressed himself to me; my breath hitched as a yelp of pain erupted from my mouth. With a growl, Cade gripped me tighter. The pain began to dull into something welcome and pleasurable. As if he knew my thoughts, he pushed me back onto the bed and dug his short nails into my skin.
My heart raced at every touch; my body yearned for him like it never had with anyone else before. But could I really follow through with it since I was so afraid of falling in love and yet so close?
“Maybe we shouldn’t…” I pulled back from him.
He paused. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
“It’s not that I don’t…I just don’t know what this is right now.”
“Let me love you, Briar, even if it’s just one night,” he whispered as he planted kisses along my hair.
“Love?”
“I love you; I thought it was obvious.”
It wasn’t obvious. Protective was more what I thought, and even overbearingly so for no reason.
“If we do this, it’s no promise that it means anything serious, okay? I’m not ready for that.” I saw the hurt in his eyes, but I also knew he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. We both wanted it badly, and I cared about him. It was even possible I was falling in love with him. No matter how much I tried to fight it.
“Whatever you want, Briar, I will give it to you.”
When his lips found mine again, they were more ferocious, more desperate as they moved against mine. Pain shot through my lips, but I didn’t stop him. I wanted more. His hands trailed down my body, fingers running under my shirt and setting on my stomach as he pushed me into the bed and crawled on top of me. I gave him entrance to my mouth again, reveling in the feel of him pushing my legs apart with his and making a spot for himself.
I moved my hands into his hair, twirling my fingers into the blonde locks as he moved his kisses down my neck and to my collarbone. His lips swept over my skin, sending shivers down my spine as he claimed me as his and encouraged me to give in to what my body begged me to do. Cade was cold against my hot, hard against my soft. He was everything I wanted but nothing I needed. Each touch of the cool metal in his tongue sent me railing.
He lifted my shirt over my head, trailing his fingers softly against my body as he did so. His hands moved down to my shorts to slip them off. Dark eyes moved hungrily over my body, but still he kept himself in check. Cade took my hands in his and put them to his shirt. I lifted it and tossed it off to the side, my breath catching at the sight of him. He was beautiful, so innocent looking, but all man at the same time. A steel hoop hung from each of his nipples, making me bite my lip in anticipation. It reminded me that he was an enigma. He knew all about me, and I barely knew a thing about him. Every time we got closer, something else surprised me.
As he kicked off his pants, showing off the other more fun thing that was pierced and making my face turn an embarrassing shade of red, he reached down to pull a piece of foil out of his pants. I was glad he was prepared, but my heart began to pound, almost out of my chest. I was suddenly terrified but ready at the same time.
“Are you sure?” he asked as he crawled back up onto the bed with me.
I nodded. “Yes, please, I need you.”
He obliged without saying a word, being softer and easier with me than I ever thought he would be, taking his time to continue to scatter wet, cold kisses along my mouth, my face, my hair, my neck. Taking over my senses, pulling me down under him and making me lose
myself in the sudden fog that rose over us and covered us in its darkness.
Chapter Fifteen
“Did you get some for Halloween?”
I thought about telling Meredith where to shove it, but I went for the shock factor instead. “Yep.”
Meredith’s mouth fell open in shock. “You’re kidding me. Really?”
“You’ll just have to spend the rest of the day wondering.”
“Oh, you suck so bad.” She shook her finger at me. “You know that I support you in whatever you want to do, but I thought that you and Ryder looked really cute last night.”
“Maybe so, but there’s something about Cade.”
“So, you have been spending time with him! You have to tell me all the details! You can’t keep all that to yourself. This is why we’re friends, so you’re not alone in this new town.”
“It’s not so new anymore.”
“Whatever, stop trying to change the subject. Do you love him?”
“That’s taking it a little far isn’t it?”
She grabbed me by the arm, stopping me in the hallway. “Listen, I know that you probably think I don’t have a reason to talk ‘cause I’m pretty boy crazy.” She had that right, so I nodded. “You can’t get attached if you don’t really know someone, so please distance yourself from him before you get hurt.”
“He’s not going to hurt me,” I insisted. “I will be fine.”
“When’s his birthday?”
I cocked an eyebrow. “April first.”
She giggled but then shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Briar. He’s an Aries. They are bad news, and with you being a Pisces…it just doesn’t match.”
As we rounded the corner, something slammed into my back and forced me up against the wall. I grunted as the cold, hard cement pressed against my face and fingers curled into my hair.
“Celeste!” Meredith’s voice called out. “What are you doing?”
My head was jerked back, and those golden eyes stared back at me in ager. “Seriously, Briar?”
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