Condemned

by Barbara Huffert

  “Then why are the four of you drooling?” Holly yanked out of Frank’s grasp and picked up the nearest photo. “Oh my!”

  “As far as I could tell, Tish seemed to be the prize every time someone won a hand. And tonight, everyone was a winner. I got the impression that there are no restrictions. Look at the variety. When the guests left, Craig used a cane on her. I’m surprised she’s able to wear the stuff you described, Jess. Some of that had to leave marks.”

  “That’s sick,” Holly concluded.

  “Hey, to each his own.” Wyatt shrugged. “If Brett weren’t their target, this would be none of our business.”

  “Are you saying you think this is okay?” She gaped at her brother.

  “Not for me personally but some people like it.” Wyatt turned his attention back to the computer.

  “And what the hell did you mean?” She turned on Dwayne. “You played poker when we were dating in college. Would you have offered me to your buddies like some kind of living token?”

  “Hell no!” Dwayne answered hotly. “I couldn’t stand watching you dance with anyone else and that was even before we were introduced.”

  “Yeah.” She grinned. “I remember.”

  “Tell,” Jesse pleaded. “Keep me occupied or I’m going over there.”

  “Haven’t you ever heard how we met?” Holly settled back against her husband. “I went to a fraternity dance just so I could meet Dwayne.”

  “With a complete asshole!”

  “The same asshole who was one of your poker buddies. It was formal and that was the only way I could get in. You looked right through me the other times I planted myself in front of you. And you’re the one I had coffee with after it was over.”

  “We left early.”

  “It could have been sooner if you hadn’t resisted me. Dwayne had some dumb idea about not poaching on someone else’s date, even though the guy was an asshole. It was the only time I went out with him but Dwayne didn’t believe me when I explained the reason. I had to wait until the jerk cornered someone else so I could prove to Dwayne that he wasn’t trespassing.”

  “I couldn’t believe why such a gorgeous woman would want me.” He smiled. “Still can’t but I’ve learned not to question it.”

  “How sweet,” Frank snorted as he headed for the kitchen. “Got anything to eat around here? All that steamy sex made me hungry.”

  “Help yourself. Andie and I stocked up.” Jesse groaned at his comment. “Having a vulnerable female friend sucks!”

  “Which is why I avoid it,” Wyatt added.

  “Oh please.” Holly rolled her eyes. “When have you ever voluntarily said more than two words to a female, let alone tried to get to know one?”

  “You’re female.”

  “I’m your sister. That hardly counts. Christ, Wyatt, I really do think you’re some sort of alien. Always have. You’re getting worse.”

  He stared for a moment before he shrugged, returning his attention to the screen.

  “And that, gentlemen, is the extent of my dear brother’s conversational abilities.”

  The teasing continued, mostly one-sided when Wyatt failed to respond. Holly forced herself to act normally. She may be urging Jesse to let Andie handle Brett on her own but Holly had begun to share some of his concern. Even if they were in the process of getting together, they still should have managed to call. It had been hours. Why hadn’t they heard anything? Surely, Brett believed her. And if not, they had plenty of proof. Andie knew that. Where were they?

  * * * * *

  Brett led Andie to the bed and urged her to stretch out. He was doing this right this time, with or without her cooperation. Lounging beside her, he caressed her with his eyes.

  “What are you doing?” Andie seemed uncomfortable with such intense scrutiny as if unsettle with his new mood.

  “Sh.” He smoothed the hair from her face. “Indulge me.”

  “Sure. What do you want me to do?”

  “Nothing.” He smiled. “Lie there and let me memorize you. I want to be able to see you ever time I close my eyes.”

  “But—”

  “Sh,” he repeated as he slid his hand over her. “You said anything. And right now, I want this.” She nodded and tried to relax. He left no area untouched. He was pleased when Andie started to respond to his caresses with soft sighs. Soon, his mouth brushed lightly after his hands. “You are beautiful. Perfect.”

  “Don’t,” Andie pleaded. “Not now.”

  “There is only now. Sh.” He silenced her with the sweetest kiss. All the others they’d shared were so demanding. This one was filled with incredible tenderness. “Stop fighting me, Andie. I can feel resistance radiating from you. Let your mind go and just feel. I need to have you this way too. Probably more than the others.”

  Again, he refused to let her respond. He was not going to let her ruin this experience for him. Since he was intent on taking from her, he would have this side of her too. He needed her pure joy when he returned to the reality of his life. Even men condemned to hell deserved a reprieve now and then. As soon as he had that thought, he felt guilty. Bad enough he was cheating on his fiancée but now he was being unjustly cruel in thinking about her. Everything really would be fine once they were married. It would just take some adjusting. Besides, Tish might prove to be every bit as passionate as Andie was.

  “Brett,” Andie whispered when his lips worshipped her nipples. This time, he kept his mouth soft, using gentle sensations instead of an all-out assault. He teased her until her peaks were as hard as ever. “Brett!”

  “No.” He blew a hot breath over her wet skin. “I won’t let you push me this time. Don’t even bother trying. Accept it. Give me what I want.”

  “Anything.” She shivered at the sensuous way his lips caressed her.

  “Good girl,” Brett praised as his drifted across her stomach. “Let me in, Andie,” he urged when he reached her curls. “I need another taste.”

  “Please,” Andie arched against him when he stroked her folds.

  “Not yet.” He traced her opening with his tongue. “You haven’t come enough yet. I want you to see how sweet it can be.”

  “Oh God,” Andie whimpered. “I can’t stand this.”

  “Hush.” Brett dipped his tongue deeper. “Is it my turn to get your definition of anything?” With her breathy sigh, Brett felt her resistance disappear. Andie was finally willing to let him make love to her the way he should have all night. The way he should for the rest of their lives. Whoa, wrong. Never again. Not with Andie.

  Brett raised his head so he could see her face. She had the most spectacular expression. Everything she was feeling showed. Brett was startled when he saw love in her eyes. No. Not love. Not for him. She may love the way he made her body sing but she couldn’t possibly feel anything remotely like that for the bastard she had to know he was. That’s all it was. Andie was so stimulated that her body was overruling the rest of her.

  Brett lowered his head and resumed his sensual teasing. He swabbed and swirled his tongue through every bit of her pussy. He nibbled gently, treating her tender flesh with care. His fingers touched with added pressure as her excitement grew. He coaxed her higher, needing to make this time everything he could for her. When Andie spiraled out of control, Brett slid up and held her. “Good girl,” he declared as he kissed her nose.

  “That was… I… How…” She was stunned.

  “Sh,” Brett framed her face again. “We’re not done.”

  Andie sank into his kiss as soon as his lips met hers. It seemed as if it went on forever, continually shifting from sweet to teasing to demanding and back again. When he finally covered himself and entered her, Andie welcomed his hardness.

  “Easy, Andie,” Brett urged when she tried to arch against him. “Let me,” he begged between kisses. When she gave in and moved at his pace, he smiled against her mouth. “That’s it. Perfect,” he whispered as he tormented them both with his tenderness. Endlessly, he joined her body with
his. When he felt her at the edge, he slowed, wanting to make it build into something more special than she had ever known. Andie was undulating beneath him, clearly lost in the feel of his body. Nothing existed but the two of them and the sensations they created together. Brett couldn’t draw it out any longer. He couldn’t keep postponing their satisfaction. It was time to take his own advice and let them both just feel all they could.

  “Andie,” he whispered as he reached between them and stroked her. “Come for me, Andie. I want to feel you caress my cock with your pussy. Make me come too. Please, Andie. Please,” his voice was softer with each plea. When he felt her release he knew he was with her. He captured her mouth, ending their joining with a breathtaking, heart filling kiss. “Andie,” he sighed as he pulled her against him and surrounded her with his embrace.

  “Brett, we haven’t talked,” Andie mumbled as she fought to stay awake.

  “Sh. Later. I’ll listen to whatever it is in the morning. Let me hold you now. Please.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Brett woke with a start. Fighting to control his breathing, he relived the incredible dream he’d just had. Once he married Tish, it just wouldn’t be acceptable to wake her, calling out another woman’s name. He pondered the dream again. Revising his first impression, he concluded that the ending had indeed been incredible. Why the beginning was so violent disturbed him. Probably just a side effect of last night’s excessive alcohol consumption. Funny thing, for the first time in months, Brett didn’t feel hung over. He glanced at the clock. It was only four-thirty. That explained it. He was still too drunk to be hung over. But he didn’t feel drunk either. Brett sighed and shifted against his pillow. When a hand landed on his chest, he was afraid to breathe. The soft body that snuggled against his side was most definitely not a dream.

  What had he done? Brett’s mind reeled as he recognized Andie’s scent. It was real, not a dream. Andie was still in his bed and he had treated her worse than he even knew he was capable of. It all crashed down on him. She had appeared shortly after Jesse left. Damn, why had he insisted that Jesse didn’t need to come back? Why had Jesse picked yesterday to believe him?

  Andie had kept trying to make him listen to something she’d maintained was important and he’d refused in every way possible. She had been so brave. The way she’d forced herself to go along with his demands. She must have given in to his brutal treatment to keep him from hurting her even more than he had. The last time, when he’d finally treated her decently, he remembered thinking he saw love in her eyes. Love! Yeah, right. Try relief that he’d stopped being rough with her. Poor thing. She must have fallen asleep, waiting for him to release her. Well, she may not have been able to make an escape but he could spare her from suffering more when she woke up. Easing away gently so he didn’t disturb her, Brett grabbed the first clothes he found and rushed from the room.

  In the kitchen, he saw her clothes. He really had shredded them when he’d ripped them from her body. He’d be damn lucky if she didn’t have him arrested. Guilt washed over him. Andie wouldn’t do that, no matter how much he deserved it. She’d suffer the effects of his criminal treatment on her own, without making him pay for his actions. How had he let this happen? All she’d wanted was to speak with him for a few minutes. His life may suck but that was no excuse for his atrocious behavior. She hadn’t asked for much of anything, but he was such a monster that he’d used her insignificant request to take horrific advantage of her.

  Brett held up her clothes again. The very least he could do was leave her something to wear. There were clean clothes in the dryer. He vaguely remembered a pair of sweats. There had to be a shirt of some variety too. He would slip back in the bedroom and leave them on the dresser where they’d be instantly obvious to her. Searching his mind, Brett tried to find a few words that might ease some of the terror she would feel when she woke up in his bed. He had to let her know that he was gone and she was safe from any additional abuse. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could say beyond that. Nothing could ever begin to make up for what he had done to her.

  * * * * *

  In a daze, Andie let herself into Jesse’s apartment. Her mind had stopped functioning when she’d read Brett’s note and realized that he was gone. He’d left without listening to her. He’d left before she had the chance to explain and show him that there was nothing wrong with what had transpired between them.

  “Andie,” Jesse grabbed her arms, “Where the hell have you been? Where’s Brett? Why didn’t you call last night?”

  “Jesse.” Holly tugged his shoulder. “Stop it,” she urged when she had his attention. Pulling Andie away from him, she asked softly, “What happened, honey? Are you okay?” Holly hugged her tightly when Andie’s sobs started.

  The four men stood by helplessly as Holly comforted her. They couldn’t fail to notice her attire.

  Wordlessly, Andie stepped away from Holly. She swiped her face, trying to clear the tears. After she handed Jesse a crumpled note from her pocket, she walked to the room she was using. Each step seemed to require almost more effort than she could make. When she was finally inside, she closed the door behind her with a resounding click.

  Andie,

  There are no words to excuse the way you suffered from my behavior. I went to the other house so you have nothing more to fear from me. I would beg your forgiveness but I know not to. How could you ever forgive me when I will never forgive myself? I regret every moment I terrorized you. Even more, my biggest regret is that I destroyed your trusting innocence. You have always treated me with nothing but friendship and kindness. I know it will never be enough but I must tell you anyway. I’m sorry.

  Brett.

  Jesse took a deep breath to steady himself before he followed Andie into her room. He paused in the doorway, his heart breaking at the sight of her. Andie was sitting on the side of the bed, her hands folded in her lap, staring blankly at nothing. Approaching slowly, Jesse stopped and knelt in front of her. He folded her hands in his and waited. When Andie finally raised her eyes to his, he could see the tremendous pain she was feeling. Why hadn’t he trusted his instincts and gone after her?

  “Hey.” He smiled. “You need to tell me about it.” When Andie’s face crumpled, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. Waiting for her tears to slow, Jesse stroked her back and whispered comforting words. “Andie, I know something happened to hurt you again but I can’t help unless you talk to me. I’m sorry. I am so sorry. I should have stayed last night. I wanted to come back but Holly insisted that you needed to be alone with him. I read the note. I don’t understand. Please, what can I do?”

  “He wouldn’t let me talk,” she sniffed. “When I got there he tried to chase me away but I knew it was too important so I refused to leave. We made a deal. He promised to listen this morning.”

  “What did he do to you?”

  “He,” she buried her face against his chest and said through her sobs, “he made love to me all night. And this morning he left me that.”

  “I’m sorry.” Jesse cursed himself again as he attempted to soothe her.

  “You don’t understand.” She forced the words. “I’m not crying because of what we did. That part was overwhelming and magical and I wouldn’t have denied either of us one bit of it. I never got to tell him that it was exactly what I wanted. Don’t you see? He thinks he forced me and ran away so he doesn’t have to face me. He must think I hate him. I love him so much and he thinks I hate him.” Andie was crying too hard to continue. “What if he elopes with Tish?” she managed to get out.

  “He won’t. I won’t let him. I’ll tell him why you were there and I’ll fix this.”

  “No,” Andie resisted. “I can’t let you do that. I need to do it myself.”

  “Brett won’t let you get out one word before he runs from you again,” he told her. “Think about it from his point of view. He’s about to be married out of some twisted sense of loyalty. He is convinced there is no other choice because
he made a foolish promise and he doesn’t have it in him to go back on his word. The girl who he just figured out is better than perfect shows up and refuses to leave. Right after I got done convincing him that she and I have no romantic ties, I might add. He spends the night, making love to her. I won’t ask for more details.

  “Andie, Brett has been torturing himself but underneath he’s still a good guy. He doesn’t take advantage of women, even if they want him to. From what I’ve seen he doesn’t fool around. His relationships may not last long but he’s devoted while they do. He was drinking long before I left last night. In his mind, I’m sure he does believe he forced you and used you. I’m sure he hates himself more than we can imagine right now. Not only for you but for betraying Tish.

  “I think he’s wrong for giving into to his desire for you. If I didn’t know you so well and how you feel about him, I’d probably think he forced you too. But I do know you. I also know how hard you are to resist. If I were positive my life was already ruined beyond repair and wasn’t thinking clearly, I might not have the strength to say no to you either. I’m plenty pissed at Brett at the moment but I’m still his friend. I’m still going to go find him and tell him everything he wouldn’t let you say. Frank got some very enlightening photos of that game last night. There’s more than enough to get Tish out of his life.”

  “I’m going with you.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea now. Let him get out of this mess first. He’ll know the truth as soon as he hears about Tish. Give him a chance to get over what he’s thinking right now.”

  “I am going with you. You can take me or I’m going alone but one way or another, I’m going. I have to make sure he knows I wanted him last night, even more than he wanted me. If anything, I forced the situation, not Brett.”

  “Andie.”

  “Don’t argue with me. I’ll wait outside until you tell him but then I have to see him.”

  “Okay. I think it’s a bad idea but okay. After you get some sleep, I’ll take you with me.”