“Okay,” he says. “Let’s do it.”
“What?” New Year’s is three months away, and we’ve already been together for a month. Has Braxton ever had a relationship last that long? I try to ignore the sick feeling in my tummy when I think about that. “Are you serious?”
“Of course I’m serious,” he says. “This year, it’s happening. New Year’s Eve in London. You and me.”
I laugh. “Are you for real?”
He meets my eyes. “It’s all real, baby girl. All of it.”
My phone rings, and I reach to the coffee table to pick it up. It’s my dad.
“Hey, Dad,” I say.
“Hi, Kylie,” he says. “How are you?”
“I’m great,” I say, winking at Braxton. “How are you feeling today?”
“I’m all right,” he says.
I can’t tell he isn’t. His voice sounds strained.
“Let’s bring him dinner later,” Braxton says quietly.
I hesitate for a beat. I’ve seen my dad once since Braxton and I got together, but I didn’t tell him about us. I was still so overwhelmed that I wasn’t sure what to say. And since we haven’t told Selene, I’ve felt like we need to hide it from the world.
But I know Dad is calling me because he’s lonely, and probably in pain. I should absolutely go see him, and this could be a good time to tell him what’s going on. I just don’t know what he’s going to think.
“Do you want to have dinner tonight?” I ask. “I’m, um … I’m with Brax, and he and I could come over.”
“That would be great,” he says. “I’d like that very much.”
I meet Braxton’s eyes and nod. “Great. We’ll bring food with us. What sounds good?”
“Whatever you want is fine,” he says. He always says that.
“Okay, we’ll see you later today,” I say. “Love you.”
“Love you too, Kylie.”
I hang up and put the phone down. “So, I guess we’re going to visit my dad together?”
Braxton smiles like it’s the best idea in the world. “Yes, we are.”
***
Braxton keeps his hand on the small of my back as we walk into the assisted living facility. It feels so odd for him to touch me like this in public—so familiar and intimate. Like we’re a couple. Which, we are, I guess, although I feel like I’m still not sure what’s happening between us. I want to believe he and I have something solid, but I have to remind myself who he is.
The woman at the front desk looks up and smiles. “Hi, Kylie,” she says. “Braxton, I haven’t seen you in a while. How have you been?”
“I’ve been absolutely fantastic, Chelsea,” he says. He grabs the pen and signs in. “How about you?”
She gives him a shy smile. “Oh, I’ve been fine. Henry should be upstairs in his apartment. You two have a nice visit.”
I look up at Braxton as we walk to the elevator. “How does she know you?”
“She’s usually here when I come by,” he says.
I stop in my tracks. He can’t be serious. “You visit my dad?”
“Yeah, I try to visit once every week or two,” he says. “I thought you knew that.”
I stare at him, my mouth open. “No, I didn’t. I guess, sometimes Dad says he’s seen you, but I didn’t know you visit him regularly.”
“Of course I do,” he says.
This man. I thought I knew Braxton, but I’m learning things I never would have guessed.
I follow him into the elevator, clutching a paper bag with Greek takeout. A tingle of adrenaline runs through my limbs. We get to the door and I pull out my key—I always let myself in so he doesn’t have to come to the door—and take a deep breath.
I knock before opening the door. “Hi, Dad,” I say as we walk in.
Dad is already at the table, a water bottle with a straw on his tray. My chest constricts. His once-dark hair is peppered with gray and, although lines crease his eyes and forehead, he doesn’t look old. But he slumps forward, and his hands are twisted. He smiles, but I can see the pain in his eyes.
“Hi, Kylie,” he says. “Hi, Braxton. Thanks for coming.”
“Of course, Mr. Winters,” Braxton says.
Dad looks back and forth between us. Braxton is still touching me on the back, but I’m not sure if Dad can see. What do I do now? Make an announcement?
Braxton drops his hand and takes the food. “Here, I’ll get plates.”
Dad watches us pass, and I follow Braxton into the kitchen. He starts dishing up the food. The scents of dill, paprika and lemon fill the air. He keeps his eyes on what he’s doing, and something about his body language makes me anxious. He glances up, his brow furrowed, his eyes tight. He looks so tense.
Holy shit. He’s nervous. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Braxton nervous before.
I keep my voice low. “You okay?”
“Yeah, of course,” he says. For a second, the tension is gone from his face and I’m sure I imagined it. But he looks out through the kitchen doorway, and I see it flash across his features again.
We take our food to the table and I set Dad’s plate in front of him. Am I imagining things, or does he keep looking between me and Braxton? We all dig into our meals. Braxton’s leg brushing up against mine does nothing to alleviate my nervousness.
We make small talk for a few minutes before lapsing into silence while we eat. I finish about half of my dinner and start pushing the rest around my plate. I need to say something, but the longer the silence goes on the harder it is to speak up.
“You two are awfully quiet,” Dad says. “What were you up to this morning?”
“When you called?” Braxton asks. “We were having breakfast.”
I cough and almost drop my fork. “Sorry, tickle in my throat.” I take a drink of water to cover.
“Breakfast together?” Dad asks. My dad isn’t stupid. He stares at Braxton with one eyebrow raised.
Oh, no. He’s about to unleash the lawyer.
Braxton looks at me, and a wide smile crosses his face. He tucks my hair behind my ear, then picks up my hand and kisses the backs of my fingers.
My eyes widen. I stare at Braxton, afraid to look at my dad, my heart racing.
I can see Dad in the corner of my vision. He watches us for a long moment. “Is this new?”
“Yeah, Dad it is,” I say. I take my hand back from Braxton, suddenly self-conscious.
Dad’s eyes move back and forth between us a few more times. “I wasn’t sure I was going to live to see the day.”
“What?” I ask.
“Okay, Braxton,” Dad says, his lawyer voice coming back. He sets down his fork. “I thought I would have had this talk with you a long time ago, but there are a few things you need to know if you’re going to date my daughter.”
Braxton shifts slightly away from me.
“Dad, you don’t have to—”
“Kylie,” Dad says, cutting me off. “First, there’s a place over in Lake City that makes her favorite blueberry pancakes.”
“The Breakfast Club,” Braxton says.
“Exactly,” Dad says. “Good. Second, she gets grouchy if she doesn’t get enough sleep, so don’t keep her out too late. She’s been like that since she was little.”
“Dad!”
“Plenty of sleep,” Braxton says, nodding. “Got it.”
“Third, she might not have followed my lead in going to law school, but she learned to argue from the best. Pick your battles. Sometimes you need to let her win.”
“Dad!” I say again.
Braxton smiles. I can tell he’s enjoying this.
“Finally…” Dad pauses, holding Braxton’s gaze. “Be good to my girl. You’re like a son to me, Braxton, but if you hurt my Kylie, remember, I know all the best lawyers.”
“I won’t, Mr. Winters,” Braxton says. He glances at me and my heart flutters. “Never.”
After lunch, we go back to Braxton’s place. I made it through the rest of the visit wit
hout crying, but it wasn’t easy. My dad looked so happy. We said we haven’t told Selene yet, and he said he’d keep it to himself if he talked to her. His eyes shone when he said goodbye to us. I haven’t seen him look so relaxed in a long time.
Braxton goes into the kitchen and I sit on a stool on the other side of the counter. It’s so hard seeing my dad these days, and this visit was emotionally exhausting.
“What do you need?” Braxton asks. “More pancakes?”
I laugh. “No.”
“Beer?” he asks.
“Yes,” I say. “Definitely beer.”
He pulls two bottles out of the fridge and opens them, then hands one to me.
I take a sip. I had no idea what my dad would think of Braxton and I being together, but I certainly didn’t anticipate his reaction. He said he was surprised it took us this long. How did he know? What has he been seeing all these years? And why have I been so blind to it?
And the fact that Braxton visits my dad regularly—I’m blown away. Braxton never told me, and my dad never made it clear. I stare at Brax as he pokes around in the kitchen. He turns his back to me and reaches into a cupboard to get something. There’s so much about him I didn’t know.
I set down my beer. “Braxton, I love you.”
He freezes, his back still to me.
Oh my god. I can’t believe I just said that. I blurted it out without even thinking. I’m going to freak him out. This is too much. It’s too soon. Braxton doesn’t go there. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him say it, even to Selene, and I know he loves his sister. I panic, my mouth half-open. I want to backtrack, make a joke, tell him I’m not serious.
I don’t want to scare him away.
In an instant, his strong arms are around me, enveloping me. He buries his face in my neck, his breath hot against my skin. I put my arms around him, and he holds me so tight it’s almost hard to breathe.
He takes a shuddering breath. I wrap my arms tighter, matching the fierceness with which he clutches onto me. It’s like he’s drowning, and I’m the only thing keeping him above water. I caress the back of his head, running my fingers through his hair.
He pulls away just enough to look at me. “I love you so much,” he says, his voice low. He presses a hand against my face. “I have wanted to say that to you for so long. I was afraid you wouldn’t be able to say it back to me.”
This side of him is so disarming. I never knew it existed. Tears spring to my eyes.
“Of course I love you,” I say. “I’ve always loved you. I just didn’t admit it until recently.”
His lips come to mine and he kisses me, deep and slow. He’s so warm and strong. My heart feels like it’s swelling, like the Grinch’s in that Christmas movie. It keeps growing, and I wonder if it will burst through my ribs.
He pulls back again, a sly smirk on his face. His voice is gravelly. “Now I better fuck the shit out of you so you don’t question my manliness.”
He picks me up and carries me to his room.
I’m caught between laughing and crying. He loves me. He feels what I feel, and what I feel is so huge I almost can’t believe it. No one will ever compare to my Braxton. His skin is on mine, our bodies close. He pushes himself in deep, and I realize the truth.
I’ll never want anyone else.
I wake up early on a Sunday morning. A ray of sun peaks through the blinds, falling on Kylie’s hair spread out over my pillow. God, I love this woman. I wake up to her every morning and I can’t imagine anything better.
She looks so peaceful I decide not to wake her. I quietly head for the bathroom and turn on the shower. Selene has been back for a while, and we still haven’t seen her—not together, at least. Kylie went to a movie with her last week, but I had a client request a late appointment, so I couldn’t join them. A few days later, I went to Selene’s house to help her move some furniture around, but Kylie was at work. We have plans to see her tonight and hang out, just the three of us. It’s going to be such a relief to have this out in the open. I hate lying to her. She’s going to be mad, but I figure I’ll get a couple drinks in her before Kylie and I drop our bombshell.
The hot water flows over me as I step into the shower. I turn my face into the spray and hear the door open.
“Morning,” Kylie says.
I glance through the glass door. She’s naked.
Fuck, yes.
How many times have I jacked off in the shower, imagining this very thing? Seeing Kylie through the steam, all creamy skin and dark hair, her pink nipples erect. She has perfect curves—beautiful round tits, hips that swell from her narrow waist. My cock is instantly hard, just looking at her.
“Come here, baby girl,” I say, opening the shower door.
She steps in and eyes my cock. “He’s happy to see me.”
“He’s always happy to see you,” I say. I slip my hands around her waist and kiss her wet lips.
She sucks water off my neck, her hands caressing down my abs, toward my very eager dick. Her teeth graze across my chest. I want to pick her up and fuck her against the shower wall, but she goes lower, her mouth working its way down.
There’s no way I’m stopping this.
She gets to my lower abdomen, kissing and nibbling. I’m already breathing hard, the anticipation of her taking my cock in her mouth driving me crazy. I reach up and adjust the shower head so the spray doesn’t drown her.
Kylie looks up at me, those blue-gray eyes wicked and playful. She takes the shaft in one hand and puts her lips around the crown, her eyes locked with mine.
There’s nothing quite like watching a woman suck my cock, and watching Kylie do it is fucking fantastic. She holds my gaze and slowly draws me in, her mouth slick and warm. She holds the shaft, squeezing just right, and starts plunging down on me in a steady rhythm. Her head bobs up and down, taking in as much as she can. She’s so good, careful with her teeth. She pulls out and sucks on the tip, then takes me in again.
I fist my hand through her wet hair and guide her. Her mouth opens wide for me, taking my girth. It’s hard to hold back and I push harder. She moans into me and I move faster. She grabs the base with one hand and my ass with the other. I thrust in and out, moving my hips into her. I don’t want to hurt her, but she takes it, never pulling away. In and out, her mouth hot and so wet. I hit the back of her throat, but she doesn’t even flinch.
God, she feels amazing. I run my fingers through her hair with both hands, pushing my cock into her mouth, over and over, picking up the pace. I feel the first pulses and look down, meeting her eyes. I’m fucking her mouth hard, and I need to know she’s okay. I loosen my grip on her hair and slow down, my dick throbbing. She looks up at me, giving me a little nod.
Her tongue swirls around the tip and she plunges down on my cock again. She sucks it like she wants it, wants me to come inside her, spill myself down her throat. I lean my head back, thrusting my hips, my body stiffening.
“Fuck, yes, Kylie. Fuck, fuck, yes.”
I keep pounding into her mouth. My dick throbs, and suddenly I’m coming, pulse after pulse, unleashing into her. My body goes rigid, my legs almost buckling. Holy shit. I’m overcome, the orgasm hitting me like a fucking truck.
When I finish, Kylie stands up, licking her lips, and wipes her chin.
I wrap my arms around her and softly, carefully, kiss her mouth.
“I didn’t hurt you, did I?” I ask.
“No,” she says. She drags my lower lip between her teeth and takes my hand, putting it between her legs. “But now I’m so hot, you better fuck me good.”
“Baby girl, I’ll fuck you so good, no one else will ever compare,” I say.
She meets my eyes. “I don’t want anyone else, Braxton. Not ever.”
“I love you so much.” I grab the back of her neck and bring her mouth to mine. I kiss her hard and push two fingers into her pussy. She wasn’t kidding. She’s hot as fuck, ready for me. Even after that epic orgasm, my dick gets hard again, almost instantly.
<
br /> Maybe I do get to fuck her against the shower wall.
I grab her ass, ready to hoist her up. “Do you want it here, baby girl? Or should we get out?”
“Here. Now.”
I pick her up and she wraps her legs around my waist. I press her back into the wall, suddenly very glad I put in an extra-wide shower. I sink my cock into her, and she leans her head back.
“I need you so bad, Braxton,” she says, her voice tinged with urgency.
I thrust into her, again and again, giving her what she needs. She holds on to me, her arms around my neck, her pussy so hot and tight I’m close to coming again.
“Yes, baby,” she says. “Yes, fuck yes.”
I love making her lose control. I hold onto her, plunging my cock in deep. She heats up, her pussy tightening around me. I almost have her.
I turn her hips up a little so her clit grinds harder against me. Her eyes widen, and she moves her face close to mine, our foreheads touching. I keep going, plunging in and out, loving her with every inch of me.
Her pussy clenches and we pause, hovering on the brink of ecstasy.
“I love you,” she says.
I thrust in again and we both tumble—pulsing, hot madness overtaking us. She calls my name and I empty inside her, losing myself completely.
We finish and I help her get her feet on the floor. The water’s gone cold, so I turn up the heat.
“Fuck, Kylie, I’m undone.” I wrap one hand around her waist, the other behind her head. I look deep into her eyes. “No one has ever done this to me.”
She smiles and lifts up onto her toes to kiss my mouth. “No one else ever will.”
I know, with every ounce of my being, that she’s right.
***
We show up together at Brody’s, and I have to remind myself not to touch her. She looks hot as hell in a snug blue t-shirt and tight jeans. Her ass is ridiculous. I want to grab it, but I see my sister in a booth and keep it under control.
As soon as I see Selene’s face, I know something is wrong. She doesn’t meet my eyes and she’s fiddling with her bracelet, chewing on her lower lip. There’s a tightness around her eyes.
Always Have: (Bad Boy Romance) Page 13