by Cora Bell
She was right. Her eyes were shadowed, and I could tell she was barely keeping it together. I softened completely, only wanting the very best for her.
“Please,” I said softly. “Come home with me and I’ll explain everything. I’ll make sure you get sleep and I promise, this will all make sense.”
She looked skeptical, so I added, “If you still want to go to Liam’s after that, I’ll take you myself.”
After one long moment, she inclined her head. “Okay.”
I waited while she talked to Liam briefly, knowing her friend wasn’t going to be very happy. But I wasn’t lying. I was going to fix this, and I was going to let Sky know how I really felt about her so she wouldn’t have any doubt that I wanted her with me.
I had to hold back and force myself not to touch her as we walked to my truck. She kept her arms folded across her chest as we drove home in silence. I waited until we were upstairs before I tried to explain to her.
“I know what you heard Hale say,” I started.
“He doesn’t think I should stay here with you and he’s right.”
“The hell he is,” I snapped.
“Ransom.”
My name was soft on her lips. Fuck. I shoved a hand through my hair and tried again. “I’m sorry. But I thought we were starting something here.”
“You don’t have to do anything for me just because you’re my boss. That doesn’t make you obligated to—”
“Obligated?” I said, incredulous. “Are you serious? You think I felt obligated to lose myself to you? Obligated to bring you here and kiss you? Hold you? It’s…”
I hated the vulnerability in my tone because it had been there once before. When my last girlfriend had cheated on me and I had no idea. When I’d confronted her and it nearly killed me.
“Maybe it’ll be easier if I go,” Sky said quietly. She didn’t wait for me to answer, just walked to the couch and started putting her things in her bag.
I forced myself to pull in a slow breath and release it. It was going to take more than what I was giving to show her how I felt and to get her to see how much I wanted her here with me.
I stepped over and took her hand, stopping her from packing more. “I have some things to tell you and I hope you’ll listen. I think it’ll explain everything.”
She looked up at me, weary. “Ransom…”
“Come on.” I started to pull her to my bedroom, but she balked.
“In your room?”
“So you can lay down and relax. You’re dead on your feet. Please.”
She gave in, removing her jacket and shoes before she sat on the bed. She leaned back on my pillow, her hair spreading against the surface, and I laid next to her, propping my head on my hand. I kept my hands to myself even though I didn’t want to.
“So…” I sighed and just set it all out there. “Hale and I met because I figured out my girlfriend was cheating on me.”
Her eyes widened. I gave the ghost of a smile. It wasn’t a bad thing—even though it had felt like shit at the time. After the fact, I knew she’d spared me more pain down the road.
“Hale and I were both dating the same woman. He found out she was cheating on him—with me—and confronted me about it. Neither of us knew. And we both thought we were in love with the same person.”
“Oh, Ransom,” she said softly, touching my cheek.
I leaned into her palm, loving the smoothness of her hand. Loving that she was still showing compassion for me even though she thought I didn’t want her.
“He yelled at me, took a few swings, but then we figured it all out. By the end of the night, we were drinking together instead of trying to kill each other.”
I reached out to set my hand on her hip. She didn’t move away, so I considered it a good step.
“We bonded over that. But neither of us trusted women after that. Especially Hale. He sleeps with women, but he doesn’t get close. And I can’t blame him.”
I squeezed my fingers on her leg as I continued. “One night, Hale and I were drunk and pissed about how fucked up the world was. He said relationships were poison and—well, that seemed like a good name for a bar. We’d been talking about opening one and having a name for it felt like a sign.”
“Poison,” she whispered.
I nodded. “So we did it. Opened the bar. But Hale still doesn’t trust women. And until I met you, it was hard for me, too. He was trying to look out for me. That’s what you overheard when we were talking.”
Her face was shadowed in the dim room, but I could see her eyes softening. “I see where you’re coming from.”
“There’s more,” I said. “When you came in that first day, I knew you belonged at Poison. Like part of the family. But you didn’t feel like family to me—or not just family. It was more. I think… I think I fell in love with you that day.”
Her lips parted in a gasp.
I brushed my thumb against her cheek. “Don’t be scared.”
“I’m—I’m not…”
“Hale is just trying to take care of me. But I know you and I trust you.”
A tear slipped down her cheek. “I’m sorry, Ransom.”
“Don’t cry, sweetheart.” I pulled her against my side and wrapped my arms around her. “I just wanted you to know the truth.”
“He cares about you,” she said with a nod. “I can see that now.”
“Please tell me you’re not going to leave.”
She kissed me. “No. I’m not leaving. I need to call Liam, though, and let him know I’m staying. But after that…can I stay in here with you?”
My cock went rock hard. “Of course.”
I watched as she stood, my body raging with need, and then waited for her to return. And this time I wasn’t ever letting her go.
15
It was even darker when I walked back into the room, but I could tell Ransom was under the covers. His eyes were closed but I could tell by his breathing that he wasn’t sleeping. And his shoulders were bare.
“Are you…” I swallowed. “Naked?”
He smiled without opening his eyes. “Yes.”
My pussy clenched. Thank God. I didn’t think I could wait for him anymore. I’d only had a small taste and I wanted so much more.
I unbuttoned my jeans and tugged them down my legs. Then I pulled off my shirt. And when I looked back at Ransom again, his eyes were open. And on me.
My cheeks heated. “You’re watching me,” I murmured.
“You’re so beautiful. I can’t help it.”
“I’m not… This is new to me.”
He only smiled and closed his eyes again, giving me the privacy I was suddenly surprised I wanted. If I was going to be with Ransom, I wanted it to be in every way.
“Hold on,” I whispered. “Open your eyes.”
He did, and then let his gaze sweep my body. Every inch it touched caught on fire. I took off my bra and then wiggled out of my panties. And the entire time, he watched, eyes growing hungrier and hungrier.
When I was naked, Ransom sat up and held out a hand. “You’re so fucking beautiful. Come here.”
The sheer longing and sharp command in the word made my pussy wet. I wasn’t entirely sure what was coming but I knew it was going to be good. Amazing.
I took his hand and climbed onto the bed with him. He pulled back the covers and I slid underneath, my legs brushing his and making me shiver.
Then his hands were on me, moving everywhere, warm and strong. He kissed me with abandon, like a man starved from human contact.
I ran my hand over his chest and then moved to his magnificent cock. I wanted to feel and watch him come again. It was everything knowing I could make him feel that good.
Squeezing his shaft, I felt him groan into my mouth. His cock pulsed in my hand, growing larger and larger. He was so big. I could only imagine how amazing it was going to feel having him inside of me, stroking me with his manhood and making me come again.
“Fuck,” Ransom said on a breath of
air. “That feels so good. Everything you do, Sky, feels so good.”
His words boosted my courage. I moved to straddle him, and the friction of his body against my clit almost made me come.
“I can already feel how wet you are,” Ransom murmured.
I was. And every movement either of us made just got me even hotter. His hips moved, his cock brushing my opening and making me gasp.
“Not yet, baby,” he said. “We have to make sure you’re completely ready.”
I leaned down and kissed his chest. I flicked my tongue over his nipple and felt a shiver of pleasure when his hand fisted in my hair.
Ransom growled and then gripped my waist. He flipped me over so I was on my back, my hair fanned out across his pillow. It smelled like him, warm and safe.
I looked up into his eyes as my body throbbed, the pulse between my legs nearly unbearable.
“Ransom, please.”
“Almost there, baby.”
He slid his tongue across my bottom lip as his hand squeezed my breast. My nipple was rock hard, and he brushed his thumb over the peak. “That’s right,” he murmured. “You’re almost there.”
Then he squeezed the same nipple. I whimpered in sheer ecstasy, my hips rising off the bed. His cock slid between my legs and he groaned.
“Sky, you’re going to kill me,” he said quietly.
But he didn’t speed up. Instead he rained kissed down my stomach. My belly quivered when he reached the apex of my thighs. His hands gently pushed them open. I felt his breath touch my wet pussy and shuddered. Oh, fuck. No one had ever done this to me before.
Ransom’s finger slid through my folds, which were already slick with my arousal for him. “Good,” he murmured.
I felt his breath again before his tongue moved against me. It circled my clit, making me groan. Then flicked across it once, twice, so I was squirming beneath him.
He pinned me to the bed with his hands before moving his tongue down the seam of my pussy. I could feel how swollen it was, waiting for something I knew was almost here. Waiting for his giant cock to fill me full.
When he shifted so he could part my folds with a few fingers, I gasped, then moaned again when his tongue pressed inside of me. Oh, God, his tongue was in me and it felt so good. Warm and perfect. But not enough.
“Ransom,” I whimpered.
In response, he shoved two fingers inside of me. Ah…that was better. He curled them slightly, hitting a whole new spot.
“That, oh, Ransom—”
I broke off when his tongue circled my clit again. Then he was moving his tongue and his fingers at the same time, stroking in and out and lashing my clit. Over and over again until heat built inside of me. Until my body exploded against his mouth.
My breath caught as my body shook. I was blinded by the pleasure of it for a moment, lost to the wonder that he’d done that to me with his mouth. That he’d made me come alive like that.
“I think you’re ready,” Ransom said, shifting over the top of me again.
He pressed a kiss to my lips and then guided his shaft between my legs. He rubbed the head of his cock over my swollen entrance and almost made me come again when he touched my clit.
“Please, Ransom. I need you.”
His cock was huge when he entered me. He went slow, pressing inside inch by inch while his hand fondled my breast, plucking the sensitive nipple.
“Are you okay?’ he asked, meeting my eyes.
Breathless, I nodded. “Keep going.”
He stretched me wide, filling me so completely it was like we were one person.
“Fuck, you’re tight,” he said, voice low. “That feels so good.”
He shoved in the rest of the way, making me gasp. How had he actually fit that inside of me? Every single inch of his huge cock was inside of me, pulsing and raging for release.
“I want to feel you come,” I told him.
His eyes flashed with heat. He’d been patient with me and now it was his turn. I pushed my hips against his, making his eyes close briefly at the feel of it. Then he was moving. He thrust his hips, his shaft sliding inside and out of my wet entrance. I automatically bucked my hips against his, merging our bodies fully each time we met.
“Fuck, yes,” I hissed. “You’re so hot. You feel so good.”
The words made him move faster, his body like a machine as he drove in and out of me. The friction was making me crazy and my body was already heating up again, my pussy clenching around him and preparing for release.
Ransom’s body tensed but he continued to spear me with his cock, over and over again until his breath hitched in. He growled as the orgasm hit him but plunged one more time for my benefit. We both shot over the edge at the same time, bodies coming together with sharp breaths and sweaty skin.
“Fuck,” Ransom choked out as he squeezed me tight against his body. “Sky.”
I sank into his embrace, feeling our hearts racing together for a long moment before they finally slowed down. A moment later, he pulled out of me and laid by my side.
I made a noise of protest, and Ransom chuckled.
“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “There will be time for more.”
The delicious promise of more made me shiver. Ransom reached out for me and pulled me against his side. I set my cheek on his chest.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I feel amazing. That was better than okay.” I looked up at his face with trepidation. “Was it okay for you?”
He choked on a laugh. “Are you serious? That was the best I’ve ever felt. You’re amazing and you make me feel so good.”
“Really?”
He kissed my nose. “Really. I’m just storing my energy so I can take you in the shower again. And because I know you’re tired.”
The shower. That sounded promising. But he was right, my body was fading. My eyes were already drooping. It felt so perfect being here in his arms. I’d never felt so safe, and I never wanted to leave.
“Thank you for taking care of me,” I told him, meaning it in more ways than one.
“I can’t help it,” he said. “I want to be here for you.”
I nodded and met his eyes again. “I understand. I want to be here for you, too. It’s natural to want to take care of the one you love.”
He gripped my chin and stared into my eyes. “What are you saying?”
I swallowed. “I’m saying I love you.”
He wrapped both arms around me, holding me close enough I could barely breathe. “Damn, it’s good to hear you say that. You have no idea how happy it makes me. I love you too, Sky, and I will for the rest of my life.”
16
One month later
I was going to lose it if I had to wait here any longer. It was a mistake letting Sky go back to her dad’s house alone. She wanted to do it by herself, to prove she was once and for all free of her father. She was going to tell him that she wasn’t coming back and that if he didn’t change, she didn’t want him in her life.
But dammit, she could have at least let me wait outside. I didn’t like the idea of her being alone with him. It was too dangerous.
I paced in the manager’s office, alternating between putting myself to work to distract myself and following Sky to her house to make sure she was okay. My phone buzzed with a message in my pocket and I yanked it out, but it wasn’t Sky.
“Fuck,” I murmured under my breath, shoving my phone back in my pocket.
“She’s still not back yet?” Hale asked, appearing in the doorway.
I glanced over. “No.”
“It’s killing you, isn’t it?”
I frowned. Yes. And I didn’t need a reminder from Hale.
Hale strolled into the office and sat at one of the chairs by the desk. “I get it. You want to be sure she’s safe.”
“I should have gone with her—then I’d be sure she was safe.”
Hale didn’t respond.
“I wish you’d be happy for me,” I told him.
“I am happy for you.” He nodded when I glanced at him. “Really. I’m… Look, I know I made things hard for you guys when you first got together but I just wanted what was best for you. Now, I see that it’s Sky. I’m happy for you.”
This time I grinned. “You jealous?”
He stood and snorted. “Hell no. I’m not built for love.”
“That’s what I thought, too, then look what happened.”
Hale’s eyes narrowed on me. It was going to happen. One day, he’d find someone, and he’d be blindsided just like I was.
My phone buzzed again, and I yanked it out of my pocket. It was Sky. Everything’s okay. I’m coming back now.
I released a relieved breath. “She’s coming back now.”
Hale smiled. “See? It’s all right. So, is she going to keep staying with you?”
“Yes. I said I’d support whatever she wants to do, but we both want to be together.” She said she didn’t want to live anywhere else, and that was a good thing because I didn’t think I could stand being apart from her that much. “We’re right for each other.”
Hale nodded. “So it’s the real deal then? Till death do you part and all that.”
I nodded seriously. “Absolutely.”
I already pictured it. Asking her to marry me, moving into a house together and having kids. It was all so tangible.
Hale walked to the door. He glanced back and said, “I agree. You and Sky are right for each other.”
“Thanks.”
A few minutes later, Sky arrived. When she appeared in the doorway, I grabbed her and held her tight in my arms.
“I’m glad that’s over,” she said, voice muffled against my shoulder.
I pulled back to see her face, concerned by the tone of her voice. “What happened? Are you okay?” I searched for wounds, for any sign that her asshole father had hurt her.
“I’m fine,” she assured me. “Really. He was upset. Really upset at first, and then he just…didn’t even want to listen. But I said what I had to say and I’m happy with the direction of my life.”
“I’m happy with it, too,” I told her, hugging her again, then kissing her lingeringly. “I’m glad you’re here, safe, with me.”