Where I Found You (Heart's Compass Book 1)

by Brooke O'Brien

  Nodding my head, I look down at my phone to check the time. I silently groan when I see it’s not even lunchtime. This is going to be one hell of a long day.

  I’m ready to call it a day, head back to the hotel, and call Ellie. As much as it’s been a pain in the ass being away from her, I’ve enjoyed spending every night with her sweet voice on the other end of my phone. I can’t help but feel like the distance has brought us closer together. Clicking on my messages, I scroll through to Ellie’s name, pulling up our conversation from yesterday.

  Since the incident with Jeff, she has sent me pictures or videos of herself every day. Talking to her helped me get through being away, but seeing her beautiful face in the pictures she sends brings a grin to my face every damn time. Staring down at the last picture she sent me, she’s standing in the backroom at Hudson’s wearing a button up plaid shirt. Her hair is pulled up, away from her face, with a few strands left hanging down. Her lips shimmer from the stuff she likes to put on that smells like watermelon.

  “Okay.” I hear Elliott approaching as I close out of the message and turn toward him. “I just talked to Randy. I got good news and bad news. The good news is the order is in; it was just split into two separate shipments.” He is hesitating in the rest of it so I know where this is going.

  “What’s the bad news?” I spit, cutting to the chase.

  “The bad news is it won’t be in until Friday,” he says, inciting an immediate grumble from me as I know exactly what this will mean.

  “I’m sorry, man. I need to get back, we have the rehearsal dinner. I was on the phone with Trisha for two hours last night because she was hysterical over everything. Being away is putting a lot of stress on her right now,” he says, picking up on my frustration. It’s not his fault, there’s nothing he could’ve done to prevent it.

  We were only supposed to be in town through Wednesday, heading home tomorrow morning. Elliott is getting married this weekend, and while it is important for me to have him here on this job, I know it’s more important for him to get back home to his fiancée.

  However, now I’m likely not going to get done at the job site until late on Friday. I could probably make the drive back to Arbor Creek, but after a long day at work and seven hours on the road, it’ll make for a long fucking night.

  “Not your fault, man, I’m happy for you and Trisha. I’m just glad I’ll still be able to make it. I’m looking forward to getting back,” I say, knowing he understands what I mean. I hate this living out of a hotel shit. Like me, he wants nothing more than to get back home to his girl.

  “I feel ya, bro. You know I would stay back and cover for you if it were any other time,” he says, holding out his hand to me.

  “Of course, I do, man,” I say, shaking his hand. “Thanks for checking into the order for me, glad it isn’t going to set us back in our time line. We need this to run like a smooth fucking ship from here.”

  My phone vibrates in my hand. Glancing down, I hope it’s Ellie with another picture of her. As if the news we just received wasn’t bad enough, the notification popping up on my screen adds another layer of shit to the pile. Letting out a groan, I click on the message.

  Steven Reid: I’ll be in town a week from Saturday. I’d like it if we could meet for lunch.

  I still haven’t reached out to my father after the text I received at Ellie’s the other night. The way I see it, what else is there to talk about? Not to mention, the asshole doesn’t even ask if we can go to lunch, and instead just implies, like I would agree to his statement, makes me want to blow him off even more.

  Not bothering to respond, I slide it back in my pocket and focus my attention on work. I’ve got a lot to finish up before I can leave the job site. The quicker I get it all squared away, the sooner I can head back to the hotel and talk to Ellie.

  I pull up in front of the hotel a little while later. It’s a little after dinner time, and the wind has started to pick up. It looks like there’s a storm coming in. The warm breeze feels good against my face after the long day I’ve had. I’m ready to shower, call in room service, and spend the night talking to Ellie.

  And I end up doing just that.

  Pulling back the comforter on the bed, I take a second to situate the pillows against the headboard. Climbing under the sheets, I hit the call button as I use the remote to click through the channels trying to find something to watch.

  “Hi,” she answers. “I didn’t think you were ever going to call.”

  “Hi, sweetheart. You sound like you were asleep.”

  It’s still early but I know she just got off work not too long ago, texting me as soon as she got home. The silence on the other end of the line has me fearing she will want to call it an early night. After the shitty day I’ve had, the only way I want to end it is with the sound of her voice.

  “I was just resting my eyes waiting for you to call. I’m awake now though,” she murmurs, the raspy sound of her voice cracks as she clears her throat.

  “How was your day?”

  “Long! Kinsley drug me with her to go shopping in Everton and then I had to work. Shopping is not my favorite pastime, but thankfully Kinsley is like a pro. I was worn out when we were finished and was ready to go home. What about you?”

  “Mine was long, too. We had an issue with an order which delayed the materials we needed to finish up the job. I won’t be leaving to come back until Saturday morning. I’ll be back just in time to pick you up for the wedding.”

  “Oh,” she whispers. I can hear the sadness in her voice.

  “I know, baby. I’m not too pleased about it either. A lot happened today and all I wanted to do is come back to the hotel room to talk to you.”

  “I could tell something was bothering you. Do you want to talk about it?”

  “My father sent me a text again today.” After our conversation before we left, I know Ellie understands my feelings why. Having someone betray you once, you don’t want to let them get close enough again for fear that they’ll do it again.

  “I guess he’s going to be in town next weekend and wants to do lunch. I just…” I start, running my hand through my damp hair, feeling frustrated. “I wish I knew what the hell he wanted, you know?”

  “Well, what do you think it could be?”

  “The thing is, with him, you never know. I haven’t talked to him in over two years. The way we had left things, I thought I had made it pretty clear how I felt about the situation.”

  “Have you considered perhaps maybe he wants to talk to you because he wants to apologize?” she says with a pause, letting the words sink in. “Do you think you would be able to forgive him?”

  I’ve never thought about what it would take to forgive him. I’ve spent so much of my life being angry for everything he put us through. I never thought to think of it any other way.

  “Steven Reid is too much of a prideful man. I doubt I’ll ever see the day when he owns up to his mistakes, much less apologizes for them.”

  “I don’t know how I would feel if my mom tried coming around again. I guess I’d probably feel the same way you do.”

  When Ellie told me the story about what happened to her, I couldn’t suppress the anger I felt thinking about another man hurting someone I love. To hear about her Mom, the person who gave birth to her, who is supposed to love her and care for her, chose to walk away from her topped it all off.

  Stopping myself from where my thoughts are drifting, I focus on Ellie and the dejected tone of her voice. I don’t want to hang up the phone with this conversation on her mind, so I decide it’s time to change the subject.

  “I wish I was lying next to you. This bed is cold and hard, and the pillows don’t smell nearly as good as you do,” I say, rubbing my hand along my chest.

  “I know. I can’t wait until you’re back home with me. Having you next to me sounds perfect.” I close my eyes, taking in the sultry sound of her whispers floating through my ears.

  “What are you wearing to bed?�
� I ask, the words coming out more like a grunt as my mind is replaying the way she fell apart for me when we were together on the couch. The visual of her head thrown back as pleasure coursed through her body is burned into my memory.

  “I bet you’d like to know.” She laughs. “I’m wearing the t-shirt you left here. It still smells like you.”

  “Mmm,” I groan. “And…”

  “And, what? That’s it. What are you wearing?” she asks, quickly diverting the attention away from her and back to me.

  “Fuuuuck,” I say, sliding my hand down my chest and into the waistband of my boxer briefs. “Baby, that has to be the sweetest fucking picture,” I groan, wrapping my hand around my hard length.

  Closing my eyes, I imagine standing in front of Ellie as she lays on her bed in nothing but my t-shirt. Her hair splayed around her and her legs open before me with her hand sliding down her stomach, over her pelvis and between her legs. My cock is throbbing at the picture painted in my mind, begging for me to give it some relief.

  “Tell me,” she whispers with conviction.

  “Tell you what, sweetheart? You want to hear what I’m thinking about or what I’m wearing?” I ask, referring to her earlier question.

  “Both. Tell me both.” She demands, the edge of need in her voice matching my own.

  “Well, that kind of depends. My boxer briefs are about halfway down my legs with the direction this conversation is going.”

  Groaning, I jerk my hand up my cock feeling the rough skin of my palm over the sensitive tip of the head.

  “The thought of you lying in front of me in nothing but my shirt has me so hard. I’m picturing you tracing your fingertip around your soft nipple, circling it as it tightens in arousal. The same hand then travels down your tight stomach over your pelvis between your smooth legs.

  “If I was sitting in front of you, I would tell you to open your legs wide for me so I can see every fucking inch.” I groan, forcing a deep breath into my lungs.

  Hearing the hitch in her throat confirms she’s right there with me. I don’t stop.

  “I would watch your fingers slide over your wet clit, rubbing circles over the tight bud, tracing your finger down your soft lips. Spreading your pussy for me to show me how wet you are.”

  I can hear Ellie breathing heavily through the line, her sharp inhales reveal she is just as effected by this as I am.

  “I bet your pussy is wet for me, isn’t it, sweetheart?”

  “So wet.” She sighs, “Keep going,” she groans, urging me on as she’s waiting for my instruction.

  “If I were there, it would take everything in me not to crawl on the bed and put my face between those smooth legs. I would have you begging for it because when I’m finally between those legs, I will have you unraveling before me. I want you coming so hard your legs wrap around my head, holding me against you with need so deep.”

  “Yes, I’m close. Fuck, I’m so close.” Grunting in response to her cries, I thrust my hips up and fight off the urge to come. I want to ride this out with her and lose myself the moment she comes in my ear.

  “I want you to take two of your fingers, baby, and I want you to fuck that tight pussy.”

  “Your fingers feel so good, Callum. So so good! I’m about to come, tell me you’re with me. I’m about to come.” She cries again, begging me for release.

  “I’m with you, baby. Come for me. Come all over my fingers, I want to feel it.” I urge, stroking my cock with vigor. The roughness of my palm over the sensitive skin of the head feels so fucking good. I picture the soft skin of her hand squeezing me as I thrust upward again searching for release.

  “I’m right there, right there, right there,” she says, over and over. “Mmm,” she moans into my ear. “I’m coming, I’m coming!” she repeats. The mantra playing over and over in my mind urging me forward with a force so strong I can hardly control it.

  Following right behind her, I am catapulted forward as ribbons of cum shoot onto my chest. I can’t contain the feeling or the release; it’s as if it goes on and on forever. My oxygen leaves me in a quick breath, ragged as I struggle to calm my rapidly beating heart. That was unlike anything I’ve ever felt before.

  “You awake over there, sweetheart?” I ask, hearing her sigh deeply.

  “I’m here,” she mewls lazily. “Sleepy.”

  “Get some sleep, baby. I’ll call you in the morning,” I whisper, not wanting to hang up, yet loving the sated sound to her voice, knowing I put it there.

  “Night, Callum.”

  “Goodnight, sweetheart.”

  The sound of gravel crunches beneath my feet as I walk down the driveway. The sun is peeking out just slightly over the clouds, leaving streaks of light shooting across the sky.

  I stop at the end, opening the mailbox and grabbing the contents, quickly shuffling through them. When I moved to Arbor Creek, Hudson agreed to keep all the bills in his name and I would pay him monthly. Usually, I’m just stuck with leftover catalogs from when Kinsley lived here during college.

  The sound of honking behind me causes me to jump, scaring the shit out of me as my heart hammers damn near out of my chest. Turning around, I see a smiling Kolton pulling up behind me. As he rolls down the window, I can hear his laughter floating through the air.

  “You’re even more of a jerk today, I see,” I say, rolling my eyes at him over my shoulder. I swear sometimes he picks on me like he does Kinsley.

  I don’t tell him this because I know it would only encourage this behavior, but I enjoy it.

  “Good morning to you, too, Ellie. What, did you forget to drink your coffee this morning?” he asks with his arm resting on his steering wheel while leaning over onto the driver’s side door. The smug grin on his face has me fighting the urge to roll my eyes at him.

  “I’m just here to take care of your yard,” he says, pointing his thumb to the trailer behind his pick-up truck. Stepping off to the side, I sweep my hand in front of me, gesturing for him to enter as he revs the exhaust and pulls in.

  What is it with these guys and their frickin’ trucks?

  It’s been a long week with Callum out of town. I have one more night of him being away, and I feel like I’m counting down the minutes until he’ll be here.

  He called me again last night when he was back in his hotel room, and we spent two hours talking. Going from being someone who hated the idea of carrying a phone, it’s been easy for me having his voice on the other end of the line.

  The night before he left, he mentioned his co-worker Elliott was getting married. We hadn’t been introduced before, but Callum asked if I would attend the wedding with him as his date. It wasn’t until last night that he mentioned that both his Mom and Randy would also be there.

  The nerves have started to set in as butterflies take flight in my stomach. Up until this point we had only talked about his family, but now knowing I’m going to be meeting them, the idea of where this could be going with Callum hits home.

  The more I thought about it, the more nervous I was about what they would think of me, about wanting to make a good impression. Before I was even out of bed this morning, I shot off a text to Kinsley with a plea for help, already feeling a little over my head. A minutes later she replied telling me not to worry and that she would be over this afternoon.

  I knew she would have my back.

  As if right on cue, the sound of honking behind me has me turning again. My heart, once again, hammering nearly right out of my chest when I see Kinsley’s Jeep parked next to me. What in the hell is wrong with these two today?

  The top was off, which is why I can see her arms sticking straight up in the air waving at me.

  “Woohoo! Hey, girlfriend,” Kinsley cheers.

  Her exuberance once again has me shaking my head, as I lift my hand to return the gesture. Pulling forward, she parks next to Kolton’s truck as she jumps down from her seat.

  “Hey, chicky! Don’t you look happy this morning,” she smarts, taking in my ob
vious lack of excitement. Walking over to the back, she pulls a long lilac colored gown out of the back hatch, covered in a clear plastic bag. Turning around, she holds it in front of me with a big smile on her face.

  “Isn’t it beautiful?” she asks, lifting the dress for me to see.

  It’s breathtaking and, for a second, I find myself feeling self-conscious thinking of wearing anything with such a deep V plunging down the front. I picture the look on Callum’s face when he opens the door to see me wearing it and the hesitance I felt is gone.

  It’s perfect!

  I didn’t realize I had said the words out loud until I see Kinsley’s face light up.

  “Callum is going to shit when he sees you in this, you know that right?” she says with a laugh as she picks up another bag from her trunk, slinging it over her shoulder.

  The sound of the lawn mower starting interrupts our conversation as we turn our heads to see Kolton with a smile taking over his face. He’s really looking to push our buttons today and the way she rolls her eyes, huffing as she turns toward the front steps, shows she’s already over it.

  Stuffing the mail under my arm, I follow along behind Kinsley as we head into the house.

  “Ugh, I swear sometimes he can be such an ass.” She sighs, annoyance seeping into her tone.

  “Something tells me he would have something similar to say about you.” I laugh as I toss the mail on the counter. Kinsley walks in, setting her bag down on the table before hanging the dress from the doorway.

  “Do you want something to drink?” I ask, walking over to the fridge.

  “No, the only thing I want right now is wine but, apparently, it’s frowned upon this early in the day,” she grumbles as if considering it for a minute. It’s very unlike Kinsley to turn away wine, no matter the time of day.

  “What’s going on?” I ask, sensing something is on her mind.

  Letting out a deep sigh, she starts to unload the contents of the bag, setting two pairs of shoes down on the chair of the dining room table for me to choose from.

  “Nothing, just stuff going on with Wes.” I can sense there is more to it than what she is leading on.