Sweet Affection (Truth Book 3)

by Henderson, Grace

  “So it’s serious with Hayley then?” I ask after a few beats.

  “Yes.” He says simply. He’s still hesitant, trying to gauge my reaction.

  I breathe in sharply, then blow it out with all the negative thoughts.

  “In that case, I’m pleased for you, old man. Let’s go.” I get up and mask everything completely. I’ve become good at that since learning about Judy’s cancer.

  “Hey, less of the old please. I’m in my prime.”

  I chuckle and lead out through the door. “Whatever you say, old man.”

  He slaps me on the back of the head, “Show some respect.”

  We walk into the kitchen still laughing, and my gaze goes straight to Laurel standing against the counter sipping on a glass of wine. She beams at me, eyes flicking across my face trying to read whether I’m really okay.

  “Everything good?” She asks, slipping her hand up to my hold onto my arm. Any cares fall away the moment she squeezes my bicep, and my mind goes straight to the gutter. It’s getting used to being there.

  “Perfect.” I say against her forehead before placing a small kiss to her skin and rubbing my hand down her back, curling it round her waist. She leans in to my chest and rests against me.

  “So, how was your flight?” I ask, determined to make a real effort, for my dad at least.

  Hayley notices my dad’s pause. I think she gets he’s giving her the chance to bond through conversation.

  “Great. I forgot how close Spain is to the UK. It just feels like a whole other world when you’re there. Have you been to Spain?” She asks, looking up at me over her glass.

  “When I was a kid. I don’t really remember it.”

  That’s a lie. I remember every single second. It was my last holiday with my mum. She and my dad were so happy. Obviously I can’t say that.

  “So, what do you do-”

  I’m cut off by the loud roar of an engine outside. It’s nearly midnight but some asshole is revving his bike with no consideration for anyone other than himself, the douche bag. When it only gets louder, seemingly closer, I stalk out the room, vaguely hearing my dad shout my name but I ignore it until I can tell the inconsiderate prick to shut the hell up. Clearly the frustrating need to rip into something is there tonight. If it can’t be my dad or Hayley, it’s going to be this guy.

  As I reach for the door handle, the doorbell goes. Oh maybe he’s here to try and sell me something. At midnight. Fan-fucking-tastic.

  “Yeah?” I growl out as I open the door. The idiot in front of me, is surprisingly around my age. I would have bet he’d be a little eighteen year old trying to compensate for having a small-

  “Darling, you made it.” Hayley’s soft voice cuts through the anger from behind me, and I frown wondering what she’s talking about. The guy is one of those biker dudes, tatted up, leather, lip ring, the works. She knows him?

  “Mum,” he smiles arrogantly, and raises an eyebrow in my direction. Looks like he’s taken a dislike to me too. Well this should be interesting. Wait, mum? Hayley’s son?

  Well fucking hell, could tonight get any worse?

  “So this is the stepbrother, huh? What’s stuck up his ass?”

  The guy barges through the door, jolting me out the way and my back straightens instantly. Laurel’s hand comes out to my arm, she can tell I’m pissed.

  “Dad, what does he mean by stepbrother?” I bite out.

  “Oh shit, you haven’t told him?” The guy chuckles loudly and reaches down to kiss Hayley on the cheek. Then he shakes my dad’s hand, and my whole body tightens in response. Looks like they’re fucking cosy.

  “Language, Tyler.” Hayley admonishes, but she’s holding back a smile.

  My dad clears his throat, and shifts awkwardly between his feet. “We were going to tell you in the morning, but obviously it’s out now.” He looks over at Hayley and grins, reaching out to pull her in close.

  “Hayley and I are getting married in a couple of months. I asked, she said yes.”

  Oh God, girlfriend I was coming to terms with. But wife? Stepmother? Asshole of a stepbrother? No shitting way.

  Said asshole steps forward looking past me to Laurel, and the look in his eyes is one I vowed I’d wipe off a guy’s face if I ever actually saw it.

  “Abuela, I don’t think we’ve officially met. Tyler Reid.”

  He winks.

  Fucking winks at her.

  And stretches out his hand.

  Does he not see me standing right here?

  Her body tightens against mine. He spoke Spanish. Laurel’s been on at me to learn since she knew my dad moved to Spain. She said she loved how sexy it sounds.

  Hell. No.

  “You, back the fuck away. Now.” I snarl at Tyler.

  “Whoa, dude. I’m just being polite. Sorry, abuela, but I think you need to put a leash on your boyfriend.”

  I’m going to smash his face in.

  Laurel’s hand grips mine tighter.

  “Nice to meet you, Tyler. We were just having a drink in the kitchen. Why don’t you three go on in and we’ll be there in a second.” Ever the peace maker, Laurel’s hand stays enclosed around mine as Tyler walks past laughing, and it does nothing to calm me down.

  “James, are you okay?” She eyes me carefully, and I want to laugh at that ridiculous question.

  “No, I’m not fucking okay. Did you see the way he was looking at you? Like you were his.”

  I slam the front door shut and don’t bother wincing at the huge shudder round the frame.

  “You’re not his.” I say out loud, as though I’ve got someone to convince. I actually get pretty jealous. Who would have thought that?

  “He’s an idiot anyway. He took the piss out of me earlier for driving slowly on the road into Stamford. Of course I’m going to go slow there, we always do-”

  She carries on her little tirade but I’m still stuck on earlier. She’s met him before? She talked to him earlier.

  Un-fucking-believable.

  “You spoke to him earlier?” She stops and looks at me with caution.

  “Y-yes.” She says slowly and I really feel like I need to hit something. Before I make a dent in my house, I back away.

  “I’m going to bed. Stay up with him if you want. I’m-”

  “James, please…” She sighs and I shake my head to try and clear it.

  “It’s fine babe. Just need some time.”

  It’s either this or say something I’ll regret in the morning. I need to calm down, and I can’t do it with all of them there, just watching for my reaction. Birthdays have been shit since I was fifteen, and this one is no different.

  Chapter Nine

  Laurel

  “Was that really necessary?” I stand with my arms crossed squarely on my chest, directly in front of Mr Asshole, who is leaning against the kitchen island holding a beer. I know he said his name was Tyler, but I much prefer my name for him.

  Suits him better.

  “Yeah actually it was.”

  Our eyes are locked in a stare-off again. He doesn’t say any more than that although I can tell he has more that he’s holding back.

  “Where is he?” Graham asks, and I break my glare to look over at him. This is supposed to be a happy time for him, but his eyes look so defeated. Hayley’s aren’t much better. She has her hand protectively on his arm.

  “He’s gone to bed.”

  Tyler sniggers. My eyes swing back round to pin him again.

  “Something to say?” I raise my eyebrows and gesture for him to go for it.

  “Nah. I said what I needed to say. He needs taking down a peg or two. And I would relish the opportunity in knocking the pampered prince off his throne.”

  Wow, he’s already made him mind up about James. In about five minutes. Both of them clearly didn’t make the best first impression, but even that is way too judgemental. He knows nothing about him other than what he’s probably heard from Graham, who’s surprisingly quiet. Maybe he wants to s
tay out of it.

  “Huh, you really are an asshole.”

  Hayley clears her throat. I feel like such a bitch for saying that about her son. Once again my filter isn’t working properly. But I’m not apologising in front of Tyler. ‘Cause I actually meant it.

  “Let’s all go to bed. Everything looks better after a good night’s sleep.” Hayley gets up and Graham follows.

  “We’ll see ourselves to a guest room. Night honey. Tyler.”

  They leave the room, and I don’t know how I feel about being up with Tyler alone. He doesn’t look uncomfortable though, just amused. And every word I speak just feeds the permanent smirk attached to his face.

  “So, is the little prince crying into his pillow upstairs?”

  “Can’t you just let it go? He’s just found out he’s going to be related to you! Maybe I should check to make sure he’s not going to jump out the window!”

  “Oh, please. Talk about Little Miss Dramatic. He needs to man-up. Plenty of people have been through shit worse than this.” He rolls his eyes.

  “God, your legs must be ready to give out soon.” I pause for effect, then clarify, “from that enormous chip on your shoulder.”

  His eyes darken immediately.

  I’ve bypassed the nerve and hit a major artery.

  “Look if you can’t handle me telling it like it is, abuela, then don’t speak to me. I really don’t care. I’m here because my mum asked me to be. That’s it.” He throws his bottle in the box of empties on the floor and walks stiffly out the door. For a first family meeting, I’d say this couldn’t have gone much worse.

  Amazing birthday present, Laurel. You’ve outdone yourself this time.

  I walk inside our bedroom warily. I don’t know how James is going to react. Usually if he’s mad, it’s wise to give him time to cool off. It doesn’t happen very often which is why when it does, it’s a rollercoaster ride for the both of us. I hear the shower running in our bathroom so I get my things and get ready for bed in the main bathroom.

  As I get back in the bedroom I see him perched on the edge of the bed. His back is bent over and he’s got nothing but a towel wrapped round his waist. He doesn’t look up when I shut the door and walk over to him, so I know he’s still going through something in his head. I drop my things on the chair and climb onto the bed so I’m kneeling behind him. My eyes drop to his muscled back, and little drops of water still clinging to him. He doesn’t have to say anything, I know what he needs. My hands reach out to smooth over his shoulders and I feel the tension in his neck as I move them up through his hair. I run them back down to his shoulders and start massaging at the knots in his back. I feel him gradually relax under my touch and a loud groan escapes from his throat when I kiss the side of his neck. It isn’t what I originally intended to do but when he’s shirtless and there’s only a towel in between us, you can’t blame a girl for getting a little turned on.

  He leans back into me and tilts his head back with his eyes closed, and I place a kiss on his forehead. His hands reach round and grip my thighs, while I carry on kneading the muscles and rubbing my hands all over his back. He sighs heavily and rests the back of his head against my stomach. I stroke my hands down his chest and place another small kiss under his ear.

  “Do you want to talk about it?” I whisper, needing him to know that I’m the one person who won’t judge him for how he feels. Everyone deals with things differently.

  He shakes his head then sighs again. “Not now. I think, maybe later. But not now.”

  “What can I do?” I ask, threading my fingers through his hair and massaging his scalp.

  His eyes snap open and upside down they meet mine with a familiar heat and passion that excites and relieves me.

  The side of his mouth tips up in a smirk. “Get naked.”

  My stomach clenches at the thought and of course I’m going to do exactly what he says. No girl in their right mind would turn down James Dawson doing naughty things to them. I bite my lip from the possibilities of how it’s going to be tonight. And however he wants it is more than fine by me.

  I punctuate my response with kisses, “Your wish. Is my. Command.” I kiss him again and make my way across his jaw and when he moans loudly I giggle and put my finger over his lips.

  “Shhh, we have to be quiet. They might hear.”

  He turns in my arms and pushes me back against the bed so he’s hovering over me.

  “I don’t give a shit. I want everyone to hear babe. Then they’ll know you’re mine.”

  I shake my head incredulously. I’m guessing he’s not talking about his parents.

  “He knows. You threatened him earlier.” I run my hands down over his shoulders as

  he scoffs back a laugh.

  “That wasn’t a threat babe. That was a first warning. If he tries anything else, he’ll get a hell of a lot more than that.”

  I roll my eyes at his attitude. He’s acting ridiculous.

  “So, if we weren’t together, and you heard me mid-orgasm what would you think? What would you do?”

  “Fuck, you’re so sexy I’d be instantly hard and have to get myself off, obviously.”

  I stare at him for a couple of seconds, and he still hasn’t realised. “So,” I press further, “What do you think Tyler might do if he heard a girl mid-orgasm?” Shit, for someone who went to Cambridge he’s a little bit slow. His eyes eventually widen as the realisation crashes into him.

  “Shit, he’s only next door. You’re gonna have to be quiet. He can’t hear you, babe. I won’t have another guy jacking himself off to my girlfriend. That’s it. We’re not doing it now.” He shakes his head quickly and starts to move off me but I wrap my legs round his waist before he can leave.

  “Hey, I like you on top of me. Don’t go.” I pout childishly and he reaches down to pull my bottom lip between his teeth.

  “Okay, that you know I can’t resist. But you’re going to have to be quiet.”

  “Oh please.” I giggle, “If I’m remembering Tuesday correctly, you were the loud one. You were shouting, ‘Oh Laurel. Oh baby. Don’t stop.’” His eyes narrow, and I’m laughing so hard I need to push him off so I can breathe properly. The look on his face turns to one of amusement as I’m still bent over laughing.

  My legs dangle over the side of the bed and he brushes my hair away from my shoulder, kissing my cheek. “I love it when you laugh. And especially when I’m the reason behind it. Even if you are laughing at me.” I smile back and lean into his touch, enjoying the contact of his skin against mine.

  I heat up all over when he moves forward and puts his mouth on mine. It’s soft at first, gentle, probing, teasing, and when I press back and climb onto his lap, he lets out a long deep groan and pulls me even closer against his body.

  “Let me make you feel good.” I whisper as I pull away from him and strip my top over my head, pulling my shorts off so I’m just standing in my thong. His eyes move over me slowly, my heart beats frantically in my chest.

  This is just about him tonight.

  I push him gently back on the bed so he’s lying down and drag my lips across his chest. He’s still half-covered with the towel and I’m going to leave it like that. Make this last as long as I can to take his mind off everything else but me and what I’m doing to him. His hand glides over my ass, and he props his head up with his arm behind it.

  “Your ass is amazing. So perfect.” He slaps it hard, and it’s unexpected so I let out a little yelp and smile against his abs. He’s always been visual, so I move to the side and let him take in his fill of me.

  He pulls my thong to the side with his free hand, and gently swipes his finger right through my centre.

  “Shit, I can see it all. It’s perfect. You’re so wet.”

  His finger continues exploring. How did this happen? This is supposed to be just for him. I need to up my game. He can still think too much.

  I knock the towel away, glide my tongue down over his abs, and further to his hard cock, st
anding to attention just above his stomach. I take it all in and just as I feel the tip hit the back of my throat he pulls me by my hips onto his mouth, his tongue buried deep inside me.

  I moan out loud, and swirl my tongue over the tip of his cock, sucking gently on the head and rubbing my hand up and down the length of him.

  “Fuck, you have the most angelic face, but outrageously sinful mouth.”

  I take him all in my mouth again and he groans against my clit, the vibrations making my hips go crazy against him. I’m too lost in what I’m doing and how he’s making me feel to worry about how I’m trying to fuck his face.

  “You taste so good.”

  He laps into me over and over again, while I duck my head faster over his cock and I’m amazed I hadn’t thought to do this with him before.

  He spreads me wide open, and squeezes my ass and hips while his tongue dips into me again.

  “Oh God.” I moan and when his fingers move to my clit, I’m done for. My whole body clenches and I quickly move my hand to that spot just under his balls. I feel them tighten against me and suddenly he’s coming into my mouth and I’m coming on his tongue, both of us shuddering around each other as we fly off the ledge together.

  I collapse into a heap on top of him, I don’t have the energy to move off of him gracefully. He pulls be back round so I’m lying next to him, and gently moves the hair off my face.

  James

  I allow her soft, sweet body to mould against every hard inch of mine. The easy silence that infuses the air around us clears my mind of everything but how much I need this connection with her. Her palm opens and she lays it gently over my chest, lips twitching slightly when my heart jumps out desperately trying to meet it.

  “It’s yours.” I whisper, as I run my hands through her long, blonde curls. “It’ll always be yours.”

  I need her like I need air. Not just to be a distraction, or to take my mind off shit that happens. But to be by my side, laughing with me, experiencing new things with me, loving me.

  Whatever happens, she’s going to be the one to make my life complete. That, I know for damn sure.