by Milly Taiden
“Kass, let go of him and let’s go.” Karla tried to hold on to her patience. Seeing her sister continue to try to grab Nate was really pissing her off.
“But I was just having some fun.” She tried to close the distance between her and Nate, but he managed to keep her at bay even though she was clutching his shirt.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” The growl left her throat before she could stop it. Not that she would. “You don’t know him? Do you even care if he’s in a relationship?”
The people surrounding them stopped to watch her, but she didn’t care.
“Geez, Karli. What bug crawled up your ass?”
“This is just like you, Kass,” she threw back. “You are so self-involved you don’t stop to consider anyone else but yourself. What the hell are you doing here anyway?”
“Oh, come on, Karli.” She grinned yanking on the material of Nate’s shirt. “You’re such a baby. Live a little.”
“I said let him go!” She growled, tired of Kass touching her wolf. “Let him go. Now!”
There. It finally happened. As much as she’d tried for it not to, she finally lost her temper. It wasn’t something that happened often, but when it did, watch it. A smile spread over Nate’s face.
She glared at him. “What are you smiling at?”
He moved to her side, curling an arm around her to lead her off the dance floor. “I think we should get out of here now. You and I have to talk.”
Kass giggled behind her. “Always selfish, Karli. We could have shared.”
Yeah, right. She’d rather tie Nate up and hide him from the world before she let Kass lay another hand on him. He was hers. Don’t ask where she got this whole need to claim him when he was the shifter, but Nate was the only man she’d ever felt strongly for. There was no way she’d let her player sister mess with what they had going.
SHE RODE BACK to her house in Nate’s truck. Kass chose to ride with Jordan, Ellie, Nicole and Barbara, leaving them alone during the ride. She’d found it hard to say much since anger still fired her veins. Her temper simmered, ready to explode on her sister. Kass truly had no shame. It was a sad state to see Kass throw herself at Nate without a second’s hesitation.
“I’m going back to the bar, but first I need to know something.” He twined their fingers together. Brought them up to his lips and kissed the back of her hand. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a sister?”
She shrugged, worried her lip and watched the others enter the house, leaving them alone in quiet coolness of his truck. “I don’t like talking about my family much. As far as I’m concerned Kel is the only person who cares about me.”
His brows curved down in a concerned frown. She felt more comfortable talking to him when he didn’t laugh off her frustration with Kass. After being used to always holding things inside, it was great to speak to someone about her sister and not be told she was being mean as some friends had in her youth. Right at that moment something opened up and told her to trust him. She’d been lying to herself for a long time now. Knew she had deeper feelings for Nate than she’d been unwilling to admit even to herself. But it was seeing Kass near him, seeing her touching the only man Karla had ever truly wanted with more than just lust that sealed it.
“I care about you too. More than you realize.” He squeezed her hand. “Stop fighting it. You know deep inside what I’m saying is true.”
“I…”
He leaned forward, cupping her cheek with his other hand. “Sometimes, we need to take chances in life. I won’t make any promises. You’ll see for yourself what I mean. I won’t let you down.”
She had trouble finding the words to speak. He had truly been doing a great job at talking to her more. There was unending patience from him when he dealt with her. But fear, God how she hated feeling vulnerable with him, kept her from opening up some more. Time would tell.
Lips met in a kiss. A tender meeting of more than mouths. It was an awakening of feelings she’d been desperately trying to fight. Each brush unlocked a new hidden area in her heart. Until her entire body felt overcome with more than lust. A deeper urge. Past the wanting of flesh on flesh. Past the sizzle of arousal. The feeling, much stronger than anything she’d ever felt before, unlocked doorways and poked at an area she’d not given much use to. The area she’d hidden away love in order not to get hurt. Nate, with his kisses and sexy words, had coaxed that tenuous feeling to the surface.
KARLA WAVED HER friends goodbye. It had taken everyone a single back and forth look between the sisters to know an argument was brewing. Jordan and Ellie suggested they head home and call it a night on account of Emma and Nicole needing to sleep off all the wine they’d drunk. Her friends were a bit tipsy and would be dropped off since they hadn’t driven their own cars. Braced with as much patience as she could muster, she turned to Kass, who sat on a sofa with her feet curled under her.
“So…”
Kass lifted a dark brow. “If it bothers you to have me here, I can go.”
“No, you don’t have to go. I’m just surprised you’re here. I mean you and I never talk. You talk to Kel more than me. I’m not really sure what it is you want from me.”
Her sister’s features, which mirrored her own, were set in sad lines. “Mom has been going through a rough time.”
“Oh?” Karla really didn’t want to hear her mother’s latest problems, but didn’t want to sound rude either.
“She’s been sick, and her boyfriend left with the money she’d gotten from Kel.”
Her brother had always been soft when it came to their mother. He’d been sending her small amounts of money to help her get by. Even though he knew she used it on men, he still sent her money for her bills and expenses. He was a good son. Karla was better at ignoring than him. Though their mother had gotten to her a few times, she’d been good about keeping a distance and not letting her pressure Karla into sending money she’d only use to buy off men.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” She sat down across from Kass, crossing her arms over her chest.
The last time she’d spoken to her mother, she’d been sick with guilt over not sending her money for a full week. It went against her nature not to help. But all her mom had ever done was emotionally drag her down until she felt so low she gave in. Reminding her of how much she’d done for her as a child. Things most parents had to do for their children were things her mother considered privileges. She’d hated having kids and wished she’d aborted them. That was a conversation she’d never forget.
Kass sighed dramatically. “Yes, and I lost the job I had.”
Now that was a first. Kass had never worked from what she knew. “You had a job?”
She smiled, leaned forward, and winked. “Well, it was more of a past time. I was between boyfriends, and they were giving me money to do what I wanted.”
Figured. “And what happened?”
She shrugged. “One caught me with the other and didn’t like it.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder. “I don’t understand why men get possessive. It’s not like I promised either one I’d marry him.”
She could feel herself getting angry at the insensitive way Kass treated people. “Maybe they didn’t want to be played with.”
“Whatever. It wasn’t that big of a deal. Men play with women all the time. It’s about time someone showed them we’re not toys.”
Karla bit her tongue to keep from tossing out a couple of choice words. “Not all men are the same.”
She stopped. Not all men were the same. Nate wasn’t like the men she’d grown up around. She’d seen that. Yet she continued to fight what she knew was the truth. Instinct told her to give the man a chance. God dammit! Her heart told her to give him a break. To trust him and allow their relationship to flourish. But insecurity pushed her to close her eyes to what was obvious and ignore it. With Kass there now, a relationship with Nate sounded like a farfetched idea.
“Anyway,” Kass stopped and guzzled a glass of wine before finishing her
request, “I need some money.”
“Okay?” She didn’t understand. Surely Kass knew Karla wasn’t rich and didn’t have money like that.
“Well, Dad left all of us some money in his estate. Kel told me he’s been managing yours and that it’s doubled in the time he’s been investing.”
Again, she didn’t understand where Kass was going. “So?”
“So, dear sister, I need you to loan me some money. Though to be honest it may take a long while before you see it back. You should just gift it to me instead.” She grinned as if she weren’t actually telling her to give her money. They’d never been close to begin with, far from, so for her to act like asking Karla for money wasn’t a big deal really ticked her off.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” Karla jumped to her feet. Hands curled into fists. “What makes you think I’d give you money?”
“No need to get all angry. I really need it. I’m your sister. How could you just ignore the fact I need you?”
The anger she’d been tamping down flared out of control. She moved away from Kass before she punched the slick smile off her face and started pacing around her sofa, mentally counting to ten and back. “You’re my sister and haven’t taken a moment to care about anyone but yourself in as long as I can remember. Kel and I have lived here for years, and you have ignored us both. Unless it’s something that benefits you, you don’t bother.”
Kass’s face twisted in rage. She jerked forward on the sofa, back arrow straight and nails curled into her knees. “Can you blame me? You two left me behind like a bag of day’s old garbage. I wasn’t good enough to be with the two of you.”
“That’s not true! You chose to stay with Laura.”
“She’s your mother!”
“She’s never acted like it! She’s never acted like family!” She hurled back. Pain and disappointment for the mother and sister she would never be close to loosened her tongue. “For that fact, neither have you.”
“So you deserted me?” Her bottom lip trembled as if she were getting ready to cry, but the fire in her eyes spoke of the anger she was trying for Karla not to see. “You leave me behind and take Kel, the only other sibling I have and get angry when I come here because I need you. No seas asi manita.”
“What do you mean don’t be like that?” She ground her teeth hard, waiting to hear the sound of her jaw breaking.
“I need you. Stop being such a bitch.”
“Dios mio!” She threw her hands up before slapping them down on the back of the sofa in front her. She clawed at the material to keep from launching herself at Kass and punching her in the face. She was not a violent person dammit! “You have some nerve. I’ve never asked you for shit. I’ve sent you Christmas cards. I’ve sent you birthday presents every year, hoping that you’d take a step to come closer to us. I’ve called you enough times through the years Kel thought you’d surely call me back at some point. You never did. I gave up trying. You say this now, but you never wanted to be with us. A part of us. It was what Kass wanted or nothing.”
“I’ve been busy. I have a life.” Her lips twisted in an angry pout, and her eyes shimmered with cool detachment.
“I don’t care. For too many years I was hanging on to every email I sent you. Every letter or card, hoping that you’d come or call or return my messages.” Fury bubbled up inside Karla. Her voice grew louder. Angrier. Rage threatened to make her say things she’d later regret. “But you didn’t. You have been very clear in what is important. And I am not it.”
“It doesn’t matter. The past is the past.” Kass lifted a shoulder with little care. “I need you now.”
“It matters to me. I don’t care how much you need money.” She hated that she sounded heartless, but she was through being treated like a convenience by Kass and Laura. “I don’t have money. And if I do have money, then it will go to my children.”
Kass opened her angry brown eyes wide. “What about me?”
“What about you?” Karla paced behind the sofa she’d been sitting on.
“What will I do?”
She turned to meet Kass’s angry glare with her own. “What most normal people to do earn money. Get a job!”
Stomping away from Kass and the conversation that had brought her blood pressure through the roof, she tried to ignore the pain pinching at her heart. She’d known that Kass wanted something. But it hurt, oh yes, it hurt to know that her sister cared so little. That she truly had only Kel when it came to family. She slammed her bedroom door closed and wrapped her arms around her waist. It was okay. Her babies would be able to depend on her. From the looks of it, Nate wanted to be a full time dad too. She hoped she could spare her children the past experiences she’d lived.
“You can stay in the guest room down the hall, but don’t expect any money from me,” she yelled and threw the bedroom door shut.
After a long shower, she found herself sitting at the edge of her bed, thinking about the future. About Nate. It was time to stop letting her insecurities control her. She needed to talk to him. He’d been considerate and nice toward her. And the reality was she had feelings, deep feelings for the shifter that went to the most scarred areas of her heart. His mother and family had been wonderful toward her. She couldn’t deny that Nate would not only make a great father, but a great mate. Not that he’d said that, but she hoped if things went that way they could make it work. If they didn’t, God help both of them.
KARLA SIGHED AS she opened her front door. She’d let the others talk her into hot yoga again. She didn’t think she’d ever become a fan of the stuff. It was great for bonding between her friends, but she had trouble with a lot of the poses. Some of those moves showed her just how inflexible she was. Last night, she’d argued with Kass, and Nate had been back in the helping Caleb role, so she’d been left alone. Again.
But she wasn’t going to dwell on that. She was going to go take a nice bath in some of the unscented bubble bath Ellie had gifted her and sleep for at least ten hours or God help her, she’d be Godzilla in the morning.
She took three steps into the living room and stopped dead at the sight in front of her. It was a naked couple having sex on her sofa. Her sofa.
“Kass?”
Her sister stopped riding the guy under her like she wanted to win best time at the rodeo and shifted enough to glance at her over her shoulder. Karla got a look at the man taking part in the molestation of her couch.
“Charlie?”
She couldn’t believe her co-worker was being ridden like a pony by her sister.
“Karla?” His eyes went saucer-wide with shock as he swung back and forth between her and Kass. “Who are you?”
Kass grinned. “I told you I was your dirtiest dream come true.”
“Get off my sofa!” Karla ordered and headed for her bedroom, slamming the door shut behind her. She waited until she heard Charlie rush out the front door and start his car before heading back into the living room.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing, having sex with my co-worker in my living room?” She shouted. “On my sofa!”
Kass had wrapped a short silk robe around her as she threw cushions back on the sofa. “Boy, you really are uptight, aren’t you? I was having a little fun. He’s cute, and he enjoyed it too. He came over, and I was filled with the need to play a little.”
“So you pretended to be me?” She gasped in disgust.
Kass rolled her eyes. “It was only for a little bit. Stop acting like it’s a big deal. It’s not your body I was using.”
Karla made a mental note to get the sofa removed the next day. She dug her nails into the back of the love seat and growled. “Listen up. You can stay here until tomorrow. After that, I want you gone. Go stay with Kel. I won’t tolerate that kind of crap in my house.”
“Figures. I knew I couldn’t count on you,” Kass flung back and stomped toward the guest room.
Karla eyed the sex sofa. “Sorry, perv couch, but you gotta go too.”
She s
ent a text to Emma and asked her to get someone from the furniture store in town to bring her a new sofa and remove the old one. As expected, Emma’s instant reply was an affirmative with an early time for action. The good thing about Emma was that she got shit done. Even if she pissed off people in the process.
Another text came in. Charlie apologized for his behavior and asked her to please give him a chance to explain. He asked if he could see her for dinner or a cup of coffee in a day or two. She knew it wasn’t his fault Kass had played a trick on him. He’d promised to drop off some lesson plans for her workshop, so she’d assumed he’d leave them in her mailbox. Kass must have gotten a hold of him and decided to play her sick games. A shudder of revulsion rocked her at the memory of her sister and Charlie. She replied to Charlie’s text by telling him she would think about it. She eyed the sofa again. Definitely had to go.
NATE GROANED WITH exhaustion. The last thing he wanted was to wake up Karla. It was late. He’d taken longer than he’d expected talking to his staff and closing shop. He’d debated for all of a second on whether he should come back to her house, but realized her sister stressed her, and he needed to be there for her.
Dim lighting filled the living room. He dropped his keys in the ceramic bowl by the door next to Karla’s car keys. And headed straight to the kitchen to grab a drink of water before hitting the shower.
“Hey there, stranger.”
The voice caught him unaware. He turned to the sound. Kass sat on one of the sofas in a dark corner. Dressed in skimpy shorts and a tiny top, he knew what she was doing. As if the arousal coming from her hadn’t been an indicator, she licked her lips and gave him a bold once over. Annoyance raised his animal to the surface. If it were up to him, he’d pay for a hotel for her to leave Karla’s home, but she was Karla’s sister, and his mate had given her permission to stay the night.