Caught Up in You

by Colee Firman

  “That’s why I didn’t tell you.” She tipped her head and spoke softly. “I wanted it to be that night and I wanted it to be with you.” She grabbed a piece of toast and casually took a bite. “It was perfect—probably the best night of my life.”

  “What the fuck am I supposed to say to that?” She just sat there finishing her food as if we were just chatting about the weather. I moved my foot under the table until I felt hers and gave it a little nudge. “Hey?”

  Her eyes shifted from her plate to meet mine. “Don’t ruin the memory by second guessing how it happened—just be glad it did.”

  “I am…” I raked my hand through my hair, trying to find the right words. She was making things so fucking hard. “That night—it meant everything to me.”

  “I’m glad.” Brantley put down her fork and pushed her plate away. “I need to go—I have shopping to finish up.”

  Before I could get my wallet out of my pocket to leave money for the bill, she was standing up and slipping her arms into her coat sleeves. She was already weaving through the waiting customers to get to the door when I grabbed my jacket and took off after her.

  Enough snow had fallen while we were inside to make the walkway slippery. At least that slowed her speedy little ass down so I could catch up. I stepped up next to her just as she reached into her purse for her keys. “You’re not even gonna say bye to me?”

  “Sorry. I thought I did,” she said, glancing up at me. “Bye…”

  I’d been trying to keep cool but the damn girl was driving me mad. I wasn’t done with her—not by a long shot. She wasn’t done with me either—no matter how indifferent she was pretending to be. I moved between her and the car, leaning against the driver’s door. “Look at me…”

  “What?” She crossed her arms and shook her head. “I told you I have to go.”

  “Brant, I don’t know when I’ll see you again.” The truth behind the words wounded me. “Just let me say good-bye this time….please.”

  My first thought was that she was going to tell me to fuck off. It’s not like I didn’t deserve it. The irritated expression she’d been wearing faded though. Slowly she inched forward until she was within my reach.

  Brantley’s arms stayed crossed over her chest as I wrapped mine around her and pulled her against me. She felt so small—like I’d crush her if I held her too tight. Even through her coat I could feel her heart hammering in her chest. No matter what she wanted me to believe, this was killing her too.

  Right then I decided I wasn’t letting her leave until shit was straightened out between us. I tipped my head down near her ear. “Put your arms around me…”

  “Myles, I…” She unfolded her arms and slipped them through the inside of my jacket, pulling herself into me. “I’ve missed this,” she whispered.

  “So have I...” It was incredible having her close after being away from her for so long. “Brant, I never meant to hurt you. What I’m doing over there now—it was planned before I ever met you. If I didn’t owe Pete—if he wasn’t in it neck deep with me, I would’ve walked away from it all to stay with you. I just couldn’t.”

  “I understand…” She exhaled, letting her body wilt against mine. “I need to go before—”

  “Before you can’t keep up this act anymore,” I whispered, kissing her ear softly between words. “Before you have to admit things between us aren’t over—that they’ll never be over.”

  Brantley tipped her head up and looked into my eyes. Her face was flushed and her breaths were quick. “Before someone gets hurt…”

  “I won’t fuck up again,” I whispered, searching for something in her expression—anything that would say she believed me. “I’ll be back in May—maybe sooner. Just hang on until then. I swear I’ll make up for all the shit I put you through.”

  Brantley’s hand moved up, trailing along my chest and neck until she reached my cheek. She breathed out my name as she began dragging her thumb along my jaw. I sighed and closed my eyes—soaking in the soft touch I’d been lost without.

  I’d finally gotten through to her—I could feel it. I didn’t have much time before I had to leave again. Every second of it was going to be used fixing what I’d broken with her. I needed to put our relationship back together enough to make it hold until I could get back to her for good. Then we could start over.

  “Myles…” She pushed up and very lightly brushed her lips to mine. “I wish things had turned out differently. We can’t go back. I have someone else now.”

  My eyes flew open at her words. “What the hell did you just say?”

  “You heard me,” she said, pulling away.

  My chest felt like a truck slammed into it. She had to be bullshitting me. If she had someone serious, Livvy would’ve rubbed it in my face the second she saw me. “You’re hanging out with some guy—going out on dates with him?”

  “It’s more than that.” Brantley looked into her purse as she dug around for her keys. “We’re in love—he’s exactly what I want.”

  Everything stopped at that moment. I got out of her way and watched her open her car door. She was still talking—saying bye or some shit. I wasn’t hearing any of it over the pounding of hot blood in my ears. I stood in a daze with snowflakes falling around me as she drove off. The girl I loved was in love with someone else—it was really over.

  Twenty-Eight

  Brantley

  “You’re early,” Jonah said, stepping off the treadmill he kept parked in the middle of his living room. He grabbed a towel and gave me a strange look. “It’s not even one o’clock yet, honey.”

  “I’m sorry. You don’t have to stop,” I said, taking a look at his lean, sweat covered body. Jonah was a distance runner. He was getting ready for an upcoming marathon and was spending a ridiculous amount of time training. I felt exhausted just looking at him. “I just couldn’t wait to see you.”

  “That’s what I like to hear.” He wiped his face and then walked over to me, looking down at his sweat soaked shirt. “I’m probably a little sweaty for a—”

  “It doesn’t matter…” I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his damp shoulder. I didn’t care if he was soaked with sweat—I just needed to be close to him. I had to shake the uncertainty Myles caused and regain my focus on what was real—my life with Jonah. “I missed you like crazy…”

  “That’s why you should move in,” he said, slipping his arms around me. “You’ll never have to be alone.”

  I sighed and nuzzled into his neck. I’d made the right choice—I was certain of it. Between Myles and Jonah—the safe bet for my future was Jonah. He may not have sent the same kind of fire through me Myles did, but a stable, secure relationship was more important than all the sparks and butterflies in the world.

  Even if my past wasn’t the reason Myles left without telling me, he’d already proven I couldn’t trust him once. If I gave up Jonah to try again with Myles and it didn’t work, I’d end up alone. I couldn’t afford to take that risk.

  “Sweetheart, you’re shivering.” Jonah took my hand, leading me toward the couch. “I’m going to get cleaned up and then we’ll figure out what to do today.”

  “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to spend the day in,” I said, dropping onto the couch. I patted the spot next to me and smiled. “With you right here…”

  “Then I guess we’re staying home.” He covered me with the fluffy blanket he always kept on his couch for me and then held his hand out. “Cell phone?”

  When Jonah said he was going to do something, he did it. Good or bad, I could always count on that. I dug into my back pocket and pulled out my phone, placing it in his hand. I’d already sent Liv a text saying I wasn’t coming home and turned it off. “As promised…”

  “That’s my girl,” he said, leaning down and kissing along the side of my neck. “You should come into the shower. Between the hot water and me, you won’t be cold long.”

  “I have a better idea,” I whispered, running my hands u
p his chest. “Go get cleaned up and then come warm me up yourself. We can see if all that training is doing any good.”

  Jonah stood up and winked at me. “You just love making me wait…”

  I watched as he walked off and disappeared down the hallway. I laid back and closed my eyes, trying not to think about my morning. Even though I was right where I belonged, it was impossible not to think about where I’d been.

  Myles hadn’t changed at all. He was still the most attractive guy I’d ever been in the same room with. He was easy to talk to and made me smile. Real smiles—not forced for his benefit. His touch was soft and sweet—without trying, he always knew how to make me melt.

  His genuine interest when he asked about my dad made the decision to let him go so much harder—he’d almost changed my mind. I hated to admit it, but Jonah couldn’t care less about that part of my life. I could deal with that though. What he lacked in some areas, he more than made up for in others. As long as I stuck by him, I’d always have security—I’d never be alone or rejected.

  Getting over Myles was just going to take some time. He saw right through my act. No matter how hard I tried to pretend, he could tell I still wanted him. I knew once he figured it out he wouldn’t give up on us. That’s why I had to drop the news I had a boyfriend on him.

  Hurting Myles ripped me apart inside. It was cruel—I was a horrible person for crushing someone who just wanted to love me. He’d given me no other choice—that’s what it took to drain the last bit of hope he had for us.

  If he would’ve kept pushing me there was no way I could’ve held him off. I’d probably be at his place instead of Jonah’s, wrapped in his arms after incredible sex. My insides fluttered at the thought of being with Myles again.

  It couldn’t have been for long, but apparently I’d dozed off. I woke up to Jonah on top of me, kissing on my collarbone with his hand planted in its usual spot on my boob.

  I’d been up for most of the night—I spent a lot of it crying. It was over everything—the visit with my dad, Myles, my overall uncertainty over where my life was headed.

  Now I felt like I could sleep for days. I was pretty sure the aroused male on top of me wasn’t going to let that happen.

  “I wasn’t sure what I was going to have to do to wake you up,” he whispered, sucking on my neck.

  I turned my head to make him peel his lips off my skin before he left a mark. “Looks like you figured it out…”

  Heat was still radiating off him from the shower. When I wrapped my arms around his neck and trailed my fingers down his spine, I discovered he hadn’t even bothered getting dressed. He was already rock hard and pressed between my legs with only my jeans blocking his way—sex was a foregone conclusion.

  Jonah wasn’t much for foreplay. When he was ready, there was no slowing him down. That was evident by the way he had my pants unbuttoned and was working them down my legs before he could even be bothered to kiss me.

  His chest was already heaving as he got on his knees and tugged my jeans off the rest of the way. I smiled as I ran my eyes along his naked body. “A little anxious…”

  “Baby, it’s been two weeks,” he said, running his hands up my sides and catching my shirt with his fingers. He tugged it over my head and then reached around and unfastened my bra. “It took all I had just to make it through the shower…”

  Once my bra was gone that was it. His hips pushed forward eagerly. I quickly put my knee against his chest and stopped him just as I felt his tip press into me. “Forget something?”

  Jonah grumbled under his breath as he reached over to the coffee table. He hated condoms. Right after the first time he almost ‘forgot’ to put one on, I headed to the doctor and went on the pill. I didn’t tell him since I knew he’d see it as a green light to just stop using them all together. There was no way I was taking any chances—an unplanned pregnancy wasn’t happening.

  Once he reluctantly suited up, Jonah grabbed my hips and pulled my body toward his, slipping inside me in one hard thrust. He leaned his head down and latched his lips on to one of my nipples as he gripped my shoulders, keeping me in place as he began pounding into me.

  My head tipped back and my fingers pressed into the lean muscles along his shoulders. I hoped feeling him inside me would force away any remaining doubts I had about my decision. He wanted me—he loved me. I was his now. Dwelling on the past was pointless.

  Jonah’s hips settled into their predictable fast pace. One speed—that’s all he had. He grunted against my breast, sucking it like his mother forgot to breast feed him. Tiny tremors were already working through his body—I knew he wouldn’t last much longer.

  I understood the difference between making love and being fucked after just one time in bed with Jonah. Sex was a race to him. Not slow and paced like his distance running—it was a sprint. He couldn’t be bothered with the small details along the way—he just needed to get to the finish line. He was always the winner—I was just his means to an end. It wasn’t horrible, just anticlimactic—at least for me.

  I’d already had a taste of what sex could really be like. Myles had given me the best night of my life. If I was forever stuck being jack hammered on relentlessly without so much as a kiss, at least I’d always have that.

  Myles

  After Brantley left the restaurant I knew I had to go straight home. If I didn’t, I was bound to do something stupid—something even worse than getting involved with her in the first fucking place. If I’d had any clue in the beginning just how completely she was capable of wrecking me, I never would’ve gotten in her path. The girl was a walking fucking disaster.

  When I was in Tokyo, I’d spent most of my free time at the small gym in my apartment building. It was my outlet for blowing off steam and clearing my head. I usually felt better after exhausting myself—my mind calmed and I could focus.

  For the last three hours I’d been doing nothing but switching off between lifting weights and pacing around my apartment while bitching out loud about Brantley. It wasn’t helping me relax—I was just getting more pissed off at the situation.

  Brantley had to be dating Kyle. The minute I left he was probably tripping over his dick to get to her. I should’ve knocked him out the night I saw him ogling her ass at Puck’s. He wasn’t good enough for her. No one was—especially me.

  For the sixth time in the last hour I was torn away from brooding by my phone ringing. I glanced at the screen and sent it to voicemail. The same number I didn’t recognize was calling again. I wasn’t picking it up. I was in no mood to talk to anyone—especially some persistent fucker who couldn’t take a hint.

  Less than a minute later my doorbell started ringing. I checked the window and saw Tom Dempsey’s car in my driveway. My first thought was Brantley. Maybe something was wrong and I’d been ignoring calls about her.

  I pulled my shirt on as I headed for the door. When I opened it up, Tom was standing there alone looking back at me.

  “A bruise?” He rolled his eyes and shook his head. “That’s all Tucker managed to do with all the swinging he was doing last night?”

  “He can’t aim for shit,” I said, looking down at the bruises on my knuckles. “Was that you blowing up my phone?”

  “Yeah.” Without waiting for an invitation, he shouldered in past me and headed straight to my apartment.

  I followed him inside and closed my door, trying to figure out when the fuck we became friends. “I’m not up for company, man.”

  He completely ignored me and opened my refrigerator, placing the beer he brought with him inside. “You see Brant today?”

  “Yeah.” My eyes stayed glued to him as he grabbed two beers and slammed the fridge. “This morning. Why?”

  “She was supposed to go shopping with Livvy today,” he said, tossing a can in my direction.

  I grabbed the beer out of the air and swore under my breath. Brant was the last thing I needed to be talking about. “Maybe she decided to go out with Kyle instead.”


  Tom gave me a weird look as he cracked open his beer. “Kyle and Brantley don’t hang out.”

  “Oh.” If she wasn’t seeing Kyle, then it was someone else—someone new. At least Kyle was someone I’d known forever. The idea of some stranger with her added a new level to my pain.

  “She sent a text blowing off her plans with Liv.” He walked over to my recliner and dropped into it. “She said she won’t be coming home until tomorrow.”

  “What she does isn’t my fucking problem.” Staying out all night probably meant she’d be in another guy’s bed later. The thought of someone else touching her had my blood boiling. I should’ve listened to Pete and stayed the fuck away from her. I was more torn up over her now than when I left.

  “Livvy’s been trying to call her,” he said, “but she’s got her phone turned off.”

  “So?” I tapped the top of my can before opening it. “I don’t care what she does.”

  “Right…” Tom cut his eyes at me with a shit eating grin. “What happened when you saw her today?”

  “We talked...” I sucked down half my beer while I decided how much to say. “She told me it was over and left the diner.”

  “That’s all?”

  Fuck. I couldn’t believe I was stuck in a conversation about Brantley with him. Unless Pete dragged it out of me, I didn’t talk about personal shit with anyone. “I explained why I left Baylor Grove without telling her. I asked for a chance to fix things.”

  He stared like he was waiting for me to say something. “And?”

  “And her answer was that she has a fucking boyfriend.” Just saying the words made me want to slam my fist into something. “You could’ve mentioned that shit yesterday before I went groveling at her feet.”

  “He’s not worth mentioning.” Tom took a drink and leaned forward, resting his beer on his knee. “That douche is a rebound—she started dating him less than a week after you left.”

  The can I was holding crushed instantly at his words, spilling over the top of my hand. A trail of beer splattered on the floor as I walked over to the kitchen.