Nicola threw her bag by the couch. “Hey, Brandy.”
Her roommate glared. “Nic. Cash.”
“Leave him alone.” After the phone call about Mira from earlier, Brandy was on the warpath.
“Maybe.”
Cash followed Nic down the hall to her room. Once they were both inside, she shut the door and leaned against it.
“Hey. Hi. I’ve…” She shook her head.
He stepped close, hard body leaning into hers. “Brandy’s pissed at me.”
Nicola shrugged. “Every day it’s someone new. Just your turn.”
“She thinks she saw something she didn’t see.”
“What was that?” she asked, even though she’d already heard a full report from Brandy.
“Mira hanging on me.”
At least Cash was honest. “The girl’s a skank.”
He tilted his head. “Mira’s not thrilled things have changed. But change is what I’ve been after, so noticeable is good.” He kissed her, soft lips making her melt against him. “So what happened at work that made you freak out?”
Yeah, her phone call to him had to have been illogical. Meet me at home. My mind’s hearing things when there’s nothing to see. The conversation had earned her nothing but a Ghostbusters joke, but he’d taken her seriously enough to get to her place before she was even home.
“Nicola?”
“I think I heard something that—” Was she losing her mind? What did she think she’d heard? A gunshot? That was ridiculous. “I’m stressed out. My job is making me a little Looney Tunes.”
Brandy banged on her door, and she jumped. She wasn’t sure if she was still on edge from the weird bam or if it was the door jumping while she leaned against it, but it made her crawl out of her skin. Again. She needed to seriously calm down.
“Nicola?” Brandy called through the door.
“What?”
Cash took that moment to kiss her neck, sliding her hair back and letting his hands drift over her shirt. “She’s going to think it’s odd we’re in here.”
“Probably not.” Nicola sucked a breath when he bit her skin. “She knows.”
Cash stilled. “What?”
“She figured it out. And I didn’t deny it.”
He stood upright. “So we’re good, and we’re telling Roman?”
She couldn’t tell if he was happy to stop hiding or annoyed that his big plan to brainwash Roman’s lifetime of man-whore memories hadn’t happened yet.
“I can hear you two talking,” Brandy said through the door.
“Better than hearing something else.” Cash laughed.
Nic smacked him in the chest. “You’re awful.”
“Ew. All right. Hannah and I want to know if we’re still on for dinner at your folks’ this Sunday.”
Cash walked over to her bed and sat on the edge.
Nicola opened the door. “Yeah. Cash, you want to come?”
Brandy walked in, giving Cash the evil eye, but then plopped next to him on the bed.
“When has anyone not wanted to have dinner at your parents’ place?” he said.
“Wait.” Nicola groaned and leaned against the wall. “I can’t go. I’m studying all weekend for an exam. But Roman will still head that way. Go with him.”
“Maybe.” Brandy shrugged. “So anyway…”
“I’ll let them know.” Nicola felt an inquisition coming from Brandy. She opened her door wider, giving her roomie the signal to go. But Brandy didn’t go. Nope, she turned to Cash, evil eye still rocking, and made some kind of humming noise.
Cash smiled. “You okay over there?”
“I know,” she said.
An instant blush took over Nicola’s whole body. She felt it flash under her skin. “Alright already, Brandy.”
“I know you know.” Cash’s smile grew. He was getting a kick out of this. Fabulous.
“Okay.” Nicola opened the door as wide as it would go. “Everyone knows something. Out please.”
Brandy didn’t budge. “If you hurt my friend, I will hurt you, Cash.”
Nic cringed. “Brandy!”
“I’m serious.” She shrugged.
Cash crossed his arms over his chest. “Hey, sweet girl, give me a second with Brandy.”
Brandy scowled.
Hell, this was a bad idea. “Cash…”
“Just one minute.”
Now was her turn to cross her arms over her chest. “One minute. Brandy, don’t be awful.”
“No promises.”
Nicola walked into the hallway, sighing.
“Can you shut the door?” Cash asked.
Popping her head back in, Nic felt her eyes narrow. “Neither one of you gets to be nasty to the other.”
Cash shook his head. “No worries.”
“Fine.”
Nicola shut the door and went into the kitchen. She grabbed a glass and filled it with OJ, downing it before she’d put the juice back in the fridge. It helped her think. What were they saying? She heard the door open down the hall, and she put the empty glass in the sink. Rounding the corner, she almost bumped into a shell-shocked Brandy. The evil scowl was gone. No smirk. And was that… a smile?
“What was that all about?” Nicola asked, completely caught off guard.
Brandy looked back toward where she’d come and cocked her head. “He’s a good guy.”
What? “I know that.” Nic’s eyebrows pinched. “You were the one who didn’t.”
“And now I do.”
What?
Brandy’s phone rang, and Nicola headed back into her room, confused, curious, and concerned that Cash had somehow brainwashed her friend. He was sprawled on her bed, looking like it was no big deal.
“What did you say to her? She’s all… nice.”
“Not too much.” He kicked his shoes off and tucked a pillow under his head.
“You had to have said something.”
“Shut the door.”
She did. “Open the door. Shut the door. Kinda getting bossy.”
A lopsided grin teased her. He patted the bed. “Sit down.”
Again, she did as requested. “Bossy.”
“Beautiful.”
Her stomach flipped. “Tell me what you told her.”
Cash watched. His blue eyes shone, and he tugged her closer to him. “I told her all of the sudden every song on the radio was about you, that some things are meant to be.”
“Wow.” She curled into the crook of his arm. “You said all that to knock down her bitch level from raging to nonexistent?”
“I said all that because it’s true. She’s your friend, and I like that you’ve got her. I like that she wants to protect you.”
“You’re a really good guy.”
“You already knew that.”
“No, I’m serious, Cash. You’re… you’ve always been. But this? Us? You’re a good man.”
“Nah. Far from it. I’ve done stupid stuff. I’ve said the wrong thing, avoided the wrong moments, and I’ll probably make you want to scream and tear your hair out.”
She kissed his cheek.
“What was that for?”
She kissed his lips. “You’re perfect.”
He chuckled. “You know what?”
“Hmm?”
“I’ll never forget the exact moment I realized I loved you.”
Tunnel vision. Shocked tunnel vision that made her dizzy. “You love me?”
“Of course, sweet girl. Are you crazy?”
Her heart beat one loud, long thump at a time. “Crazy enough to love you too.”
Did she just say that out loud? Did he? She’d been in love with him forever. And ever and ever. But could she pinpoint the moment? Probably not. Just like she didn’t have to remember to breathe, loving him was a part of living.
He wrapped his arms around her. “Good. Glad we cleared that up.”
Tucked close to his chest, hugged deep in his embrace, everything made sense.
“You remember m
y senior Homecoming?” His voice rumbled, low and quiet.
Nicola smiled. “Talk about a night I couldn’t ever forget.” Strings of lights had sparkled overhead, glittering like stars. Cash had been announced as Homecoming king, and the queen had all but thrown herself into his arms. He’d smiled, danced one spin around, stopped, spun again. And turned.
It had all happened in slow motion. His sapphire blue eyes had found Nicola’s across the room, and the slow thump-thump of her heart had catapulted, exploding in her chest. Blood rushed up her neck, her cheeks blushed hot, and her stomach had dropped all the way down to the heels she was trying not to pass out in. Because with an audible, collective gasp from their classmates, Cash had abandoned the Homecoming queen and was walking toward her, hand extended and a half-lazy, half-cocky grin that only Cash could manage hanging on his perfect face.
Every pair of eyes in the room had shot from him to her. Whispers swirled, but she hadn’t cared. His eyes held her in place. His lips made her almost cave in on herself. And then his hand touched hers. A jolt of electricity had sparked at his touch and traveled up her arms, leaving a path of pinpricked skin. He clasped her hands in his, and not a word passed between them. He’d simply pulled her with him onto the center of the ballroom floor.
She sighed into his embrace. Somewhere on the sidelines, there had been a Homecoming queen plotting Nic’s death. But she hadn’t cared. That was one of those moments she’d remember for the rest of her life. But years later, why was Cash talking about it?
Nicola closed her eyes, remembering how real that moment had felt. How she convinced herself that it hadn’t been all pretend, that the angst and desire hadn’t been just one-sided and all in her mind. Cash’s hands had slid down the silk of her dress, and she remembered holding her breath.
“I think you’re dancing with the wrong girl, Cash.”
His lazy grin hitched on the side. “Nah. She’s got the crown. That’s all she cares about.”
Nic had taken a good look at the Homecoming queen. “She wanted a little more than that crown, I think.”
“Too bad I don’t care.” He’d pulled back, just long enough that she noticed her heartbeat. His eyes were piercing, locked to hers, and if she hadn’t known better… He’d pulled her closer, whispering, “The only one I wanted to dance with was you.”
With another squeeze, she had melted against his chest and let the twinkle of the lights surround her. Yes, that night, she’d been in love with him. No questions.
Coming back to the moment with the warm, fuzzy memory, she nodded against his chest. “What about Homecoming?”
“That was the night I knew I loved you,” he said softly, but she’d never heard anything more solid and strong. “You were in my arms, and the world faded away.”
Her head spun… That night. Those feelings… “All I could think of was fairy tales, what I wished and wanted and was so scared to go after.”
“What was that?”
“You.”
He let his lips drag slowly across her cheek, not kissing. More like grazing, like he couldn’t stand not to touch her. “Me. So now you have me. Now what?”
There were a million ways she could take that. Now what? Kiss me? Now what? What’s in our future? “One day, we get to happily ever after.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
God help him, Nicola was so damn cute. She’d never been shy. If anything, she had a tough girl edge. She’d almost had to have had it, running with him and Roman her whole life. But when the sweet side came out? Those were the moments when he could see her walking toward him in their hometown church. “Happily ever after, huh?”
Her cheeks pinked, and a quiet smile grew on her face. “Maybe.”
“No backtracking now. You’ve already said it. It’s out there.”
“Stop.” She nudged him.
“Nah.” Turning, he loomed over her, pinning her to the bed. Blonde hair spread out around her head. Brown eyes looked away but came back again. “So you’re saying I’m a keeper?”
Wiggling under him, she kissed him and tried to escape. “Maybe.”
“Goddamn, you’re gorgeous.” That stopped all her wiggling, all her playing, just locked her to him, and he stared at everything right in his world. “Tell me you love me.”
“I’m in love with you, Cash Garrison. Have been my whole life.”
His chest warmed as he watched her full lips promise each word. She smelled like flowers, and he nuzzled her neck, feeling her body arch underneath and loving that breathy sigh that always came when his mouth touched that spot.
Her lips parted, and when he pressed his to hers, their tongues danced. Something possessive clicked deep in his heart. His soul. Her presence was intrinsic to his existence. He loved her, couldn’t stand to be without her for a minute.
It was that real. That deep.
The room felt warm, felt like desire. He was turned on and not giving a damn that Brandy could knock at any moment. “Whole life?”
She nodded, and he leaned up enough to snag her shirt off. A pretty, pink lace bra held full breasts, showing her nipples. His mouth found their tips, and Nicola made a tiny noise that he wanted to hear again and again. The lace scratched his tongue, but her softness made him hungry. Unclasping her bra, he slipped it from her, dropping it on the floor.
“Your turn.” She tugged at his t-shirt. “No clothes for you.”
“Getting me naked, huh?”
She nodded, smiling, biting her bottom lip. “Please.”
God, she killed him. He yanked off his shirt and watched her stare at his chest, at his stomach, at the bulge in his jeans. Arousal made her eyes dark. Innocence made her eyelashes flutter.
Cash leaned over and unsnapped the buttons on her black pants. They were her standard go-to when she went to work. He bet she thought they looked responsible, cute, professional. Whatever. She had no clue how much he loved them, how they clung to her ass and melted onto her hips. She’d throw on high heels, and he’d have a hard-on for hours. His fingers trailed the cool fabric down her hip bone, over her thigh, knee… slowing down to a crawl, he took her calf, lifted her ankle to his mouth, and kissed.
“These are some sexy shoes.” He slipped the heel off her foot, laid it down, then freed her other foot. “One day, you’re going to have to keep them on.”
Her mouth formed an O, and he worked his way back to her zipper, sliding it down. Then he toyed with the top of her pants. Hooking his fingers on each side, he slid them over her hips, leaving her in a pink lace thong.
“My heels on?”
He could see the thought play in her head. “Maybe later.”
The lace was too much—too tempting—or maybe it was what was underneath. He tossed her pants and stared at the lingerie-clad beauty in front of him. Shoes were for fantasy fucking, hot and creative, rough and wild. None of that was right now. This was about loving her, about showing her everything he felt, needed, wanted, now and later, connecting them in a way they could never forget.
He kissed her lips, her face. He buried himself in her breasts, memorizing their swell and the way she moved when he ran his tongue over the rigid tips, the way she murmured when he squeezed and nipped.
His tongue trailed down her stomach. His hand cupped her sex, rubbing the lace and enjoying how wet and aroused she was. Cash traced his tongue along the waistband and tugged the scrap of fabric off, sliding it so slowly. The inside of her thigh was soft. His palm smoothed over her skin, and he moved between her legs, ready to kiss her until she screamed.
“Cash…”
He hovered over her sex, his fingers teasing her folds. “Yeah?”
And when he parted her, her head fell to the side. “I…”
He slid a finger into her, her wetness making the intrusion slide. One finger and two. His thumb circled her clit, and his ear ached to hear each heady sigh. Slowly, he pumped into her, loving how her knees pressed against his shoulders, and when he ran his tongue along her seam, her back
arched, legs squeezing.
He looked at her as she opened her eyes. “This is…” Her breaths panted. “All new to me.”
He kissed her, savoring how she tasted, and ran his tongue around her clit. “That’s new?”
“Yes.”
He sucked her and delved with his fingers. She squirmed, and he held her in place with his arm and his mouth, working his way to her opening and kissing her.
“Oh, God.” Her fingers threaded into his hair. “Please.”
As he alternated, fingers and tongue, her body tensed, and he pushed her to come for him. Then she bucked and pulsed and moaned his name like this was the greatest thing he’d ever done. And maybe it was.
She dragged him up her body. The girl was on fire; he did that to her. God, he loved that. As quick as he could, pants were off, condom on, and he leaned over her.
Her hands were on his cheeks. “Let me…”
Whatever she wanted, she could have. Done. No questions asked. “Anything. Just tell me.”
She took a deep breath and rolled her bottom lip into her mouth. “Be on top.”
For the second that it took his mind to process, his brain to picture, all he could do was grin like a fucking idiot. Then carefully, he rolled them over, and Nicola was naked, resting on his thighs, with a nervous, so-sweet-it-might-kill-him look.
“You okay?”
She looked at his cock, then looked at him. “I…”
He put his hands on her hips and she rose above him, using a hand to position him. Then, holy hell, she lowered down. Down and tight and inching him to his death. “Fuck, Nic. Just—” He sucked a deep breath, unable to think. His eyes pinched closed in goddamn ecstasy.
“Okay?” She used his constant question and turned it on him.
Where to even begin? “Yes. Good. Great. Goddamn.” He opened his eyes. She stole his heart. “Amazing.”
He moved his hands. She rocked her hips, her breasts swaying. Her eyelids closed, and she found herself. Confidence and excitement building, Nicola mesmerized him. His hands ran everywhere he could touch. Her heavy breaths matched his until he couldn’t take it anymore, wrapping his arms around her back, thrusting into her, and climaxing as she did, as her muscles squeezed him tight, rippling around his cock.
Sweet Girl (Titan) Page 14