Marly's Choice

by Lora Leigh

  “Are you okay?” His gaze went over her face quizzically, as though he expected bruises.

  Marly rolled her eyes as she closed her door quickly.

  “I’m fine. Cade has never laid a hand on me and he never would.” Well, at least not to hurt her, she thought with a shiver.

  “Then what’s up?” Greg shook his head as he sat down in the large chair by her bed. “He was really pissed, Marly. You shouldn’t play with him like that.”

  Greg’s earnest face matched his warning tone. Marly breathed out roughly.

  “I can handle, Cade.” She shook her head, almost laughing at herself. Yeah. Right. She could sure handle him. She had him right where she wanted him and she ran.

  “I’m glad one of us can.” Greg rubbed the back of his neck with a grimace. “I’m still thinking I should go home.”

  “No. You can’t leave.” Marly spoke before stemming the desperation that bled into her tone.

  Greg glanced up at her, his eyes narrowed speculatively on her face.

  “What are you up to, Marly?” He asked her slowly, his gaze suspicious.

  “I’m not up to anything.” But something had been up on Cade. Marly knew she was going to burn herself alive just thinking about it.

  “You’re not convincing me,” Greg sighed roughly. “Marly, you aren’t going to try to use me to make Cade jealous, are you?”

  Marly blinked at him. She hadn’t thought about that.

  “Uh oh, your mind’s working.” Greg shook his head, fear shadowing his eyes. “Stop Marly, you know how that always scares me.”

  “Wimp.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “And besides, you have no idea what I’m thinking.”

  Greg grunted. “I’m not stupid Marly, I saw the look on your face after Cade nearly killed me. You enjoyed that too much, if you ask me.”

  “He was interested.” Satisfaction seeped through her, shivering over her skin.

  “I know he was, Greg.”

  Greg blinked at her in amazement. “You wanted him to be interested?” he asked her as though she had lost her mind. “You’ve lost your mind Marly.”

  “You just don’t know Cade yet. You’ll love him once you get to know him.” She waved her hand dismissively at his comment. “But now I have to figure out how to make him realize he’s interested.”

  Greg shook his head as though he feared he was imagining this conversation.

  “Trust me, Marly, he would know if he were,” he assured her a bit mockingly as he watched her.

  Marly frowned.

  “Maybe not,” she mused with a grimace. “He still sees me as a baby. The little girl he raised.”

  This was the part that Marly couldn’t figure out how to get past. Cade insisted on treating her like she was still twelve years old. There had to be a way to make him realize she wanted to be treated like a woman, not a child.

  “Marly, what if he doesn’t want that with you?” Greg asked her gently. “Men react sometimes, even when it’s not the woman they really want. What if that’s all there was to it?”

  Marly looked at him, her stomach protesting the idea with a wave of pain. She had waited too long, that couldn’t be it. Cade would want her, the same way she wanted him. If he didn’t, she didn’t know if she could survive the pain.

  “He will,” she told him quietly. “He has to, Greg.”

  Greg sighed roughly. He watched her with his quiet eyes, his face somber as she tried to convince him how much this meant to her.

  “Honestly, Marly, I don’t know how he could resist you.” He stood to his feet, and walked to her, hugging her gently, briefly. “Now, what about that swim you promised me. I even brought shorts. But don’t you dare tell anyone I wore them. All right?”

  He smiled down at her, and Marly glimpsed the sadness in his eyes.

  “You’re next Greg,” she told him softly. “You watch. We’re gonna find you a wonderful girl to love you.”

  He laughed as he moved back from her.

  “Find someone who doesn’t mind a string bean then.” His smile was more a grimace as he shook his head. “My dad was built just like me, only older. He cried over it all the time before he died.”

  “Well, I think you’re wonderful,” she assured him brightly, and she knew he was. He was the best friend she had ever had. “Now, go get those shorts on and I’ll meet you in the pool.”

  And hopefully, Marly thought, Cade was still in the study, and he would get the full effect of her new thong bikini if he still happened to be watching. She breathed out roughly. Seducing him wasn’t going to be as easy as she had hoped it would be.

  * * * * *

  That wasn’t a bathing suit; it was a walking excuse for sex. Cade watched Marly dip her foot into the heated pool, then glance back at the kid following her to say something. She wore a dark blue bikini, with thong bottoms. He closed his eyes tightly, praying he wasn’t really seeing her bare ass cheeks with that slender piece of material running between them. But there they were when he opened his eyes again. The pale, perfect globes of flesh glistened in the weak afternoon sun and sent his body to throbbing heatedly.

  He wanted her. His erection throbbed, hot and hard, making him crazy with need. He knew if he didn’t have a woman soon, then he wouldn’t be able to keep himself from taking Marly.

  “Damn if she ain’t getting prettier every day,” Brock remarked softly as he moved behind him to look into the pool area. “I bet she has that boy so damned hot he’s ready to explode.”

  “Not if he knows what’s good for him,” Cade growled, fighting his anger.

  Damn, this wasn’t going to work.

  “She’s a grown woman, Cade. You can’t keep her a baby all her life,” Brock told him quietly. “And the way she looks, if that boy ain’t having sex with her now, he will be soon.”

  “How can you talk about her like that?” Cade turned on his brother wrathfully.

  “We raised her, Brock.”

  Brock was silent for long moments, then Cade heard the deep breath he drew into his lungs.

  “Yeah, we raised her, but she’s no blood of ours, Cade. If I didn’t know how hard you got every time you looked at her, then I’d have already tried to get her into my bed.”

  Cade turned on him slowly, anger eating him alive.

  “Are you fucking crazy?” Cade asked him hoarsely. “She’s our niece—”

  “No niece of mine.” Brock glanced down, and Cade knew there was no hiding the raging hard-on that ridged his jeans. “And not yours either by the looks of it.”

  “The way she’s dressed, a saint would get a hard-on,” Cade bit out, gritting his teeth as she faced the French doors. Her breasts were practically spilling out of that damned bikini top.

  Full and firm, the cold hardening her nipples until they poked against the cloth in a way that had Cade’s mouth watering. He could almost feel them in his hands, in his mouth. He fought the desire, knowing it was useless.

  “I need to get laid,” he sighed harshly, moving away from the doors. “It’s been too long since I’ve been with a woman.”

  “Bout a year or so.” Brock nodded.

  “How the hell do you know?” Cade bit out. “And when did you start keeping tabs?”

  “The night you rushed Marge Cline outta the house after Marly ran from your study crying after catching you two on the couch. The next day, you burned the couch and bought a new one. You haven’t had a woman since.”

  He was right. Cade cursed silently, remembering that night. He had just fucked Marge into a screaming climax when Marly walked into the room, her hairbrush in her hand, tears tracking her cheeks from another nightmare. She had walked into a living one.

  Cade remembered the look on her face, the way her eyes had settled on his erection when he jumped to his feet, the fury that stole across her face.

  “How could you?” She had thrown her hairbrush at him, aiming at his jutting arousal, and barely missing. “How could you do that with her? Don’t you kn
ow she tells everyone?” And she had run from the room, her sobs echoing through the house.

  Marge had been amused by the display, quietly informing him, as she dressed, of her sister’s claim that Marly believed herself in love with Cade. Cade had denied it, forcefully.

  But he had seen the look in Marly’s eyes. He had seen her pain, and her possessive fury. He had seen the want in her gaze as her eyes widened at the sight of his steel hard flesh.

  “She was shocked—”

  “Shit. She was jealous as hell.” Brock laughed in genuine, affectionate amusement. “Come on, Cade. The girl’s been trying to get your attention for four years now. Why not just give into it?”

  “What are you, her pimp?” Cade snarled. “Since when were you so eager to get her fucked?”

  “Since you turned into a snarling bear every time she’s around,” he grunted. “Dammit, a person can’t get along with you anymore, Cade. If Marly’s around, it’s even worse. And she’s no better. She eats you with her eyes every time you turn your head, and you do the same to her. Fuck her already, and get over it.”

  The whisky glass Cade held shattered against the wall as the last syllable left Brock’s mouth. Cade turned on his brother, seeing red as anger, white hot and barely controlled, surged through his body.

  “Shut up,” he snarled, realizing it as the rumble of words left his mouth. “Shut the hell up, Brock. And if I catch you touching her, I’ll kill you.”

  Brock’s lips kicked up in a grin, small though it was, the amused look had Cade forcefully restraining himself from kicking his brother’s ass.

  “Well, I see you’re going to be just as easy to get along with as you always are when she’s home,” Brock sighed with exaggerated tolerance. “And damned stingy for a change, too. You’re getting greedy in your old age, Cade.”

  Cade wanted to growl. He contented himself with pouring another shot of whisky and downing it quickly. He wasn’t getting as greedy as Brock thought he was. That was the problem. God help him, and Marly, if he didn’t get a handle on this.

  “Well, I’m outta here. I have a hottie waitin’ in town. After watching Marly’s little show out there for you, I’m primed and ready for her.” Brock chuckled at his own humor as he sauntered out of the room. “Have a nice evening bro. I’ll catch you tomorrow.”

  Cade turned back to the French doors, his eyes narrowing as Marly stepped up to the diving board. As her lithe body poised to begin her jump, her gaze met his in the glass. He watched her cheeks flush, her nipples harden. His gaze went back to her face, and her pink little tongue ran over her pouty lower lip slowly. Then she jumped. Her body cleaved smoothly through the water, and Cade felt his stomach drop. He was a goner.

  He lowered his head, somber, saddened. His past was ugly, the results of it even darker. He was an animal, a craven bastard that would shred her innocence, and her purity with the demands he would make on her. Brock knew, as did Sam, and he knew they were eagerly waiting the day Cade would give into his own dark desires. He loved her, he always had. But he also knew there was no way Marly would see his love as the tender, gentle emotion she needed. She would come to see it for what it was. A ravenous, decadent emotion that would feed from her desires, increase them, darken them. He was damned to hell, Cade knew, for what he would eventually do to the love she offered him.

  Chapter Six

  Torn, restless and discouraged, Marly went to bed early that night. Cade was indulgent, treating her gently, seemingly amused by her attempts to be close to him. He had foiled her at every turn, making her feel like an obtuse teenager rather than a beautiful woman.

  She finally had enough, retired to her room and showered, then crawled into bed. Sleep wasn’t long in coming, but if she had known the nightmare would hit her that night, she would have stayed up longer.

  It washed over her, the leering gaze of her stepfather, the demonic look in his eye as he jerked her over his lap. Her buttocks were bare, and he enjoyed spanking her as he described in graphic detail what he would do to her when she was older. She screamed, fighting him, knowing he was drunk, praying she could get away from him.

  “You’re mine, Marly.” His evil whisper didn’t sound drunk. Intent, cruel, but not drunk. “I’ll have you girl. I’ll have you soon.”

  She fought to get away from him. She kicked out, her foot connecting with flesh. She scratched at hard arms, fought to scream. She wanted to beg, plead, but knew it wouldn’t help.

  “Cade!” she screamed out in desperation, her throat finally unlocking as she felt hard fingers pushing at the tender lips between her thighs.

  Marly awoke when she fell from the bed, scratching and clawing as she fought for balance to reach Cade’s room. The bedroom was cold, or she was. So cold, she shivered and cried, nearly paralyzed from the instant chill that hit her body.

  “Son of a bitch. Marly.” Cade was there. His big warm body was suddenly close to her, jerking her into his arms, holding her against his bare chest as she cried out his name, trying to convince herself that the demon was gone, and the nightmare was over.

  “What the hell have you done to yourself?” He wrapped her with a blanket, leaving her for a moment on the floor as something slammed. “Dammit, you went to sleep with the balcony doors open, Marly.”

  She had? She looked around wildly as he picked her up in his arms, carrying her quickly to his warmer, safer room. But she hadn’t had the doors open.

  “You’re soaking wet.” His voice was gentle, soothing as he sat her on his bed. “Sit here, baby. Let me get a towel.”

  He moved away from her, and Marly knew he was watching her closely. She was shaking. Shaking so hard her teeth chattered. Her body hurt, and the echo of remembered pain could be felt on her bottom. She tried to clench her teeth closed as Cade knelt in front of her, wiping her face with the towel, then her hair.

  “What have you done to yourself, Marly?” He sounded agonized, and his expression in the harsh light of the room was worried, inexpressibly concerned.

  She could only shake her head. Trying to speak only caused her teeth to chatter harder.

  “You’re still freezing.” He moved up beside her, wrapping her in his arms, pulling her close to him.

  The warmth of his big body seeped through the blankets and into her skin.

  “Jesus, Marly, that was a bad one.” His fingers were moving through her hair, combing through the tangled curls as he tried to calm her.

  Terror still strummed through her body, making her blood rush and her body shake. She couldn’t seem to get totally warm, no matter how hard she tried. She kept shaking, shivering harshly.

  “I’m scared,” she finally whispered tearfully, shaking in his arms. “Oh God, Cade. It’s like he was right there this time. Like I couldn’t escape.” Tears ran from her eyes as his arms tightened around her.

  “It’s okay, Marly.” He rocked her gently, like he used to when she was young and screaming, unable to separate reality from nightmare. “Look what you’re doing to yourself, baby. You have to stop this.”

  “I didn’t do this,” she cried out, trying to burrow closer to him, to steal as much of his warmth as she could.

  “Didn’t you, Marly?” he asked her gently, tipping her head back as he looked down at her. “Think about it, baby. You’re pushing yourself into believing you want me, but you don’t. Are you scared I’m going to throw you out if you don’t sleep with me? What’s gotten into your head?”

  Shock of another kind held her immobile now. She shook her head slowly, her body now shuddering with misery. He thought she was having nightmares because she wanted him? It made no sense. Why would he use this against her?

  “How can you use that?” she whispered painfully, a harsh sob tearing from her chest. “Are you so desperate to deny what you want yourself, that you would use my nightmares against me, Cade? That wasn’t about you.”

  “But it was the worse. You’re shaking like a leaf, and damned near froze to death. You aren’t thinking st
raight,” he accused her harshly, though his grip was still gentle.

  “Evidently I’m not thinking at all.” Dammit, why couldn’t she stop crying? “I’m throwing myself at a man who doesn’t even want me. I think its time to find someone who does. Would that suit you better, Cade? Would you feel better if another man were in my bed?”

  “I’d kill him.” The words sounded torn from his chest.

  “Listen to you,” she accused him harshly. “You don’t want to touch me, but no one else can either. Dammit it, Cade, I’m twenty years old and I’ve never had sex. Not even oral sex. I can’t save myself for you forever.”

  He was suddenly breathing harshly. His hands were on her arms, his fingers firm on her flesh.

  “Never?” he growled, as though it seemed inconceivable to him. “Nothing?”

  “Nothing,” she bit out, more angry than frightened now. “And I’m sick as hell of waking up to nothing but empty dreams. I won’t be a nun for you, so you can hide from this.”

  “I’m not hiding from it.” He shook his head harshly. “Dammit, Marly. I’m not one of your teenaged boys. The things I want to do would send you into hysterics. The things I want you to do would destroy you and any love you have for me.”

  He didn’t want that. He couldn’t have that. He needed Marly. Needed her love and her laughter more than she would ever know.

  “Try me,” she challenged him harshly. “Don’t keep turning me away Cade. I need you. Please, I need you.”

  His lips swallowed the last of her words as they covered hers. Swift and sure, making no concessions for innocence or nightmare as he jerked her to him, one hand holding her head securely, the other thrusting the comforter away harshly as his arm went around her waist.

  He kissed her like a man possessed. His lips eating at her, his tongue staking his claim on the moist interior of her mouth. She moaned against the invasion, allowing her tongue to tangle with his, her hands to clutch desperately at his shoulders.

  “You’ll kill me,” he whispered as he tore his mouth away, his lips running over her neck.

  “Touch me,” she panted, shuddering as his teeth nipped at the skin of her neck. “Cade. Please, please touch me.”