by T L Swan
I screw up my face. “No, but he was going to. The stupid woman was bribing all these businessmen, and she obviously pissed off the wrong one somewhere along the line. She was found dead on the docklands.”
“What did they tell you at the time?”
“Who?”
“Your brother-in-law and his fucking bodyguard.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention, and I point at him. “Eric…” I say calmly. “Say all you want about Ben, but do not dare speak a bad word about Joshua. He’s my family.”
“I don’t trust him,” he snaps.
“Who?”
“Joshua fucking Stanton.”
“What?” I begin to look for my clothes in a hurry. I’m getting out of here. He is seriously pissing me off.
I flick my shirt in a huff to get the wrinkles out of it. “For your information, Joshua is like a brother to me—and you will not say one bad thing about him. They had nothing to do with this.”
“Bull-fucking-shit. They had everything to do with this. Ben would have knocked her off to protect his precious boss.”
“You’ve got a fucking hide. How dare you?”
“Oh, I dare.”
I fling my shirt on around my shoulders.
“Where are you going?” he growls.
“Home!” I yell.
“I forbid you to go anywhere near Joshua Stanton or his house.”
I raise my eyebrows in surprise. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t want you anywhere near Ben. He’s a fucking criminal. I don’t trust any of them.”
“He is not a criminal,” I cry out. “And they’re my family. So, what are you saying? I’m not allowed to go to my sister’s house now?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Don’t even think about going there.”
“Screw you.” I shake my head. “That’s it. I’m leaving. If you think you can tell me where I’m allowed to go, you’ve got another think coming. My sister and her husband are not up for discussion.”
“I’m bringing them in for questioning. What does your brother know about this?”
“Leave Brock out of this.” I shake my head in disbelief. “I think this cold case promotion you’ve got has gone to your stupid head. Why don’t you spend some time on a case that actually has some truth to it?” I snap.
“I went through all the evidence last night. He was fucking there, at her house, and I can prove it.”
I grab my bag as my heart begins to race. “Get some sleep. You’re delusional.”
“I’m going back to work. Don’t you dare go near your sister’s house today.”
I shake my head and storm toward the door. “Don’t tell me what to do, Eric. You don’t get to tell me where I’m allowed to go.”
“The hell I don’t,” he calls after me.
I slam the door and take the stairs two at a time. Oh my God, oh my God.
I’ve got to tell Joshua.
I pull up outside the front of Natasha and Joshua’s house. The street is wide, with big old trees lining the road, and a huge, rendered white concrete security fence surrounds the property. In the middle of a fence is a sandstone gate. I open the door with my key and am greeted by a security guard.
“Hello, Bridget.” Marcus smiles happily.
“Hi, Marcus.” Marcus is one of Natasha’s security guards. I know him well. I glance at my watch—it’s 8:30 a.m.—and I know they will all be awake because the kids get up before it’s even light.
“You’re up and about early.” He smiles.
“Yes.” I smile as I make a beeline for the house. That’s because I’m dealing with a fucking disaster here.
“They are around the back,” he tells me.
“Thank you.” I walk through the house and am greeted by breathtaking floor-to-ceiling views of Sydney Harbour. Everything is white and grey timber, and the furnishings have a distinct Hamptons feel to them. They bought this place about three years ago because Natasha wanted a base in Sydney. It’s so nice to have them close. I can hear children’s laughter coming from the back yard, and I walk out onto the deck to find Jordana and Blake squealing and jumping on the trampoline. Joshua is holding Ellie and they are watching on.
Jordan is four and a little hellcat. She’s a handful just like her dad. Ellie is three and sweet as pie, and happens to have her father wrapped around her little finger. And me, actually. I could eat her up. Brock is just about to turn two, and he is as wild as wild can be.
“Hi, guys,” I call as I walk down the steps to them.
“Look how high I can jump, Didge,” Jordana calls as she begins to show off her jumping skills. She starts to do exaggerated star jumps.
“Wow.” I smile as she jumps higher and higher.
Joshua is holding Blake as he tries to jump, too.
“Where’s Tash?” I ask as I look around.
“She’s in the shower,” Josh replies, concentrating on Blake. “You’re up early.” He smirks.
“Yeah, I know,” I mutter, distracted. “Wow,” I call out to Blake as he starts to jump higher, not to be outdone by his sister. “That’s so high.”
“I can jump higher,” Jordana says, annoyed that Blake has my attention.
Joshua rolls his eyes. These two are so competitive with each other. “Jordana, let Blake jump high for a moment. It’s not all about you,” he reminds her.
Jordana gets annoyed and pushes Blake mid-jump, forcing him to lose his balance. He falls and then jumps up, swinging punches at his sister. “Don’t!” he yells.
“Hey,” Joshua calls. “Cut it out.”
I giggle. God, they’ve got their hands full with these kids. Maniacs is an understatement.
“I’m going to find Tash.”
“Yeah, okay,” Joshua mutters, distracted as he pulls his son and daughter apart.
I take off back inside and make my way upstairs to Joshua and Natasha’s bedroom. I find Tash getting dressed in her large walk-in dressing room. “Hey, babe.” She smiles as she pulls her bra on. “Did you wet the bed?”
“No. Oh, my God, Tash, Eric reopened the cold case on Ben.”
She frowns. “What?”
“He told me to stay away from Ben and…” I stop myself. I don’t want to tell her that he said he doesn’t trust Joshua, either.
“What cold case?” she mutters as she pulls on her jeans.
“TC.”
She frowns. “Why?”
“Because he’s a fucking idiot, that’s why,” I whisper angrily.
“Fucking hell.” She thinks for a moment. “Well, he won’t find anything.”
“We kind of had a fight.”
“I thought you might.”
“Ben was a real dickhead last night.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“And Joshua and Brock didn’t help the situation,” I add.
She nods, and sits on the bed to put on her shoes. “I did think that maybe Eric would be pissed with them, too.”
“What happens if he wants to question Ben? What happens then, huh?” I whisper in panic.
“Well, just tell Ben everything you know. That way he’ll be ready and expecting it.”
“I don’t even know where he’s staying,” I reply.
“He’s here.”
“What?” I frown. “What do you mean?”
“He’s in the guest wing, and he’s staying here until he finds an apartment.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I whisper. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You know he would stay with us. He’s going to look at apartments this morning with Joshua. As if Josh would let him stay anywhere else but here.”
I frown as I stare at her. “So, he’s serious about staying here in Australia?”
“Yes.” She shrugs. “Apparently so. I don’t think he’s going anywhere anytime soon.”
“Fuck,” I whisper. “He needs to go to back to wherever the hell he came from. This is a disaster.”
She smiles a
s she starts to brush her hair.
“This isn’t funny, Natasha.”
“Seems pretty funny to me.” She smiles sarcastically.
“Unbelievable.” I leave the room in a rush, moving to the end of the hall and up another set of stairs. The guest wing is a self-contained guest bedroom above the four-car garage. I stand outside the closed door for a moment as I steel myself to see him. I knock quietly, but there’s no answer.
I knock again and still no answer.
I swallow my fear and slowly open the door.
He’s fast asleep and spread-eagled on the bed.
Completely naked.
My stomach drops.
Holy fuck. He’s beautiful.
5
Bridget
I stand at the foot of the bed and watch his chest rise and fall as he breathes. His large body is rippled with muscles, and his skin is dark against the white sheets. His legs are spread, and one arm is raised and tucked under his head. His eyes are closed.
He has a scattering of dark hair across his chest and an eight-pack of stomach muscles. My eyes drop lower and my mouth goes dry.
He was never a small man, but holy hell. The word ‘Adonis’ comes to mind.
My stomach flutters and I swallow the lump in my throat.
I glance back at the door. I shouldn’t be in here ogling him without him knowing.
Shit. I drop down to sit on the bed, unsure of what I should do next.
My eyes drop to between his legs. Fuck, he’s beautiful.
He rustles, his eyes open, and he looks at me blankly for a moment before he gives me a slow, sexy smile. “Now, that’s a beautiful face to wake up to,” he whispers sleepily.
I stare at him, unsure what to say at being caught spying. Not that he seems to mind. He always was very sexually confident. It looks like nothing has changed.
“Good morning, angel,” he whispers.
I frown when he calls me ‘angel’. Does he remember that he used to call me that?
“Can you put some clothes on, please?” I whisper.
He smiles sleepily. “What’s wrong, baby? You don’t like me naked?”
I shake my head, unable to force the lie through my lips. He slowly strokes his dick as he wakes fully, and I have to tear my eyes away. “Ben,” I snap. “Stop it.”
He smirks, pulls the blankets over to cover himself, and then puts both hands behind his head as he lays on his back. His eyes have a boyish charm to them, and they glow cheekily.
“We’ve got a problem…” I murmur.
He raises his eyebrow and smirks harder.
“Not that.”
“Not what?”
“Your dick.”
He chuckles. “My dick is not a problem for me. Is it a problem for you?”
For God’s sake... too right it’s a problem for me. “Don’t be ridiculous,” I whisper, annoyed. “This isn’t a joke.”
“What isn’t a joke?”
“Eric looked into the TC case last night. He came home from work this morning, demanding that I stay away from you and telling me that he has evidence that you did it.”
He frowns. “And yet, here you are.”
My eyes hold his as I sit on the side of his bed. He smells good, like soap and man and sex on legs, all mixed into one hell of a cologne. “Ben, be serious,” I whisper. “This isn’t a joke.”
He nods, and pats the bed next to him. “Lie down and tell me everything he said, exactly.”
“Oh God, it was a disaster. He said he has evidence that you did it. Does he have any evidence, Ben? Did you do it?” I whisper.
“Of course, I didn’t; you know that.”
“He just seemed really convinced, and he said as soon as he knew who the other two fingerprints belonged to, he could make an arrest.” I sigh.
He shakes his head, and for the first time he seems interested.
I glance over at him. “This is really bad, Ben. I’m nervous about this.”
Ben goes up onto his elbow, and suddenly I am aware that I am lying on my back in his bed, and he is completely naked beneath the blankets. His eyes drop to my lips, as if having the same epiphany.
“I don’t want to talk about Eric right now,” he murmurs.
I feel the blood start to pump through my body as I look up at him. I get an image of his lips on mine, and I swallow the lump in my throat and look away.
“I’ve been thinking about what you said…” he continues.
I frown.
“Let’s try it,” he whispers.
I glance back at him. “Try what?”
“This friend thing.”
“You want to be friends now?” I ask, surprised.
“Well, I don’t want to fight with you.”
My eyes hold his, and for some stupid reason I feel a bit let down that he has given up on me so easily. “Did you go out last night?” I ask. I wonder if he and Cameron did their usual picking-up-women thing.
“Yeah, I did,” he whispers as the energy starts to swirl between us. He leans over, so he is right above me, and my heart starts to thump at his proximity.
“Did you have a fun night?” I breathe, distracted.
“It was okay, but it could have been a lot better.”
“Why is that?” I whisper.
His eyes drop to my lips and I have to physically clamp my legs together.
He’s so big and strong and leaning over me in a bed… Hell, this is the worst kind of torture.
“How could your night have been better?” I breathe.
Damn, I’m asking for trouble here, I just know it, but I can’t make myself stop.
His tongue darts out to lick his bottom lip. “Do you want the friend version or the true version?”
I watch his tongue slide across his lip, and my sex clenches.
I want the fuck version.
“Give me the friend version,” I whisper.
He smiles. “I was tired, and clubs aren’t really my scene anymore.”
His eyes drop down my torso and over my legs.
“And the true version?” I whisper. Why the hell am I playing this game with him?
He puts his hand onto my stomach and my breath catches. “The truth is I was thinking about you all night.”
Our eyes are locked.
“What were you thinking?”
“I was thinking about having you in this bed.” He slides his hand down lower, resting it on top of my sex before he pats it. “Naked and beneath me.”
The air leaves my lungs.
He leans over and I look up at him. Time seems to stop as his lips hover over mine.
Knock, knock!
The door bursts open and we jump back from each other.
Joshua is standing at the end of the bed.
“Fuck, Stanton,” Ben growls.
Joshua’s eyes widen in shock before he holds his hands up. “Sorry to interrupt. Bad timing.” He winces.
Ben shakes his head, annoyed. I sit up, embarrassed. God, I’m a skanky hoe. What the hell was I doing?
“We’ve got a problem,” Joshua says.
“You think?” Ben asks, preoccupied.
“Eric’s here.”
My eyes widen. “What? Here?” I jump off the bed. “Where?”
“Downstairs with another cop. They’re here to see you, Ben.”
I start to flap my arms around in a panic. “Oh, my God. He’ll have seen my car in front of the house, and he told me not to come near either of you.”
“He did what?” Joshua snaps. “He told you not to come near me?” He points to Ben. “You, I understand!” he snaps. “But, why can’t you come near me?”
“Why do you understand about me?” Ben growls in a whisper as he gets out of bed.
Joshua gestures to him. “You’re kind of naked in bed with Bridget. I wouldn’t be too happy if she were my girlfriend.”
“Before I was rudely interrupted…” He shakes his head at Joshua as he looks for some clothes to put on.
/>
I put both my hands on my head as I begin to perspire.
“This is so bad,” I whisper. “And he was not kind of naked with me. We were just talking,” I whisper in a panic. “What does Eric want?”
Joshua holds his hands out sarcastically. “I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure you being in Ben’s bed isn’t high up on his list.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Ben growls as he pulls his jeans up. “We’re just friends.”
“Yeah, that’s what it looks like,” Joshua replies dryly
“Does he know I’m here?” I ask.
“I don’t know. If he saw your car, he didn’t say anything.”
“Just get back into bed, Bridget, and wait for me here,” Ben mutters as he throws on a T-shirt.
“You would just love that, wouldn’t you? Are you going to bring him up here to catch me out?” I whisper angrily.
Ben rolls his eyes.
“I’ll leave you two platonic conversationalists to bicker in peace.” Joshua smirks.
“Fuck off, Joshua. We’re just friends!” I snap.
“Okay.” He leaves the room. “Whatever you say,” he calls from the landing.
I pick up a T-shirt from Ben’s floor and whip him with it. “What are you going to say?”
“Fuck off, I’m busy.” He smirks.
My eyes widen. “You’re not going to tell him that I’m here, are you? Oh no, please don’t tell him.”
He narrows his eyes at me and puts his hands on his hips. “You’re starting to piss me off right now, Bridget.”
“I’m pissing you off? Well, you’re pissing me off!” I whisper angrily.
“How so?”
“Oh, just lying around, being all fucking sexy. I’m not falling for it, Ben.”
“I was in fucking bed, minding my own business,” he replies.
“And, of course, you had to be naked and pulling on your dick, didn’t you?” I whisper as I start to push him to the door. “Super convenient.”
He chuckles, and I start to hyperventilate. “Go down there and get rid of him, but don’t tell him I’m here,” I whisper.
“What if he wants to search my room?”
My eyes widen. “What?” I shriek. “Oh, my fucking God.”
“I’m joking.” He laughs.
“Oh, my God, Ben, this is serious. Can you be serious for a moment, please?”