Less Broken

by Eve R. Hart

  “I wish he’d let me do more for him.”

  I let out a bark of a laugh.

  “He thinks you do too much. Oh,” I paused because I knew this last part would hit him hard, “and he hates it here.”

  I saw the emotions play out on his face one at a time.

  “Shit,” he breathed out once he’d processed it all. “He’s staying because he thinks it will make me happy?”

  “More like he doesn’t want you to see him as a waste. In fact, he said that exact thing to me.”

  “This is all my fault,” he said looking somber again. “If I hadn’t pushed it on him, then he wouldn’t be here.”

  “Stop right there,” I cut in. “He knows you only had the best intentions when you offered. He took you up on it for many reasons. He’s trying to figure things out.”

  “But he doesn’t like it here? Is it the place or college in general?”

  “You should ask him,” I said trying to bridge this gap they had between them. Sure, I could fix it, and I wanted to. But in the end, I knew it would be better if they worked it out between the two of them. “Not right now, though. He’s naked in my bed and I’m not having you take that away from me again.”

  He laughed and shook his head.

  “Fair enough. I get it. Are you going to stick around once everything is in the clear?” His brow went up telling me that there was only one right answer to that question.

  Good thing I was ready and willing to give him that one answer.

  “Yep. Don’t know how it’s all going to work out or where we will end up, but he’s mine. I plan to give him the life he deserves.”

  “Good,” Reed said with a nod.

  “Now,” I said, my tone turning serious. “Let’s get down to it so that I can get started on that plan.”

  24

  Theon

  The bed shifted, and then I felt Cade’s arms around me. I rolled over and snuggled into his body. I was about to drift off again when I realized that there was light on the other side of my lids. I shot up, wide awake instantly.

  “Class,” I shouted as I jumped out of the bed. “I’m going to be late. What time is it? Oh, God! I have to get home and shower. Clothes, I need clothes.”

  I was naked.

  So very naked and jumping around as I freaked out.

  I bet that made for an awkward picture.

  “Cade, stop laughing and help me!” I scolded, which only made him laugh harder. “Cade!”

  “I’m sorry,” he said but the fact that his hand was on his stomach and there were nearly tears coming out of his eyes because he found this so amusing did not make me believe him. “Baby, calm down.”

  He stood and I wished he hadn’t.

  I was hypnotized by that massive anaconda between his legs, which was currently pointing up at the ceiling.

  “Put it away, Cade. I have to get to class,” I snapped but couldn’t manage to break the laser focus I had on the sight in front of me.

  He chuckled as he slowly dragged his pants up his legs like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  Now, where did my clothes end up?

  I searched the room with a frantically swiveling head. A second later, things were flying at my face. I managed to catch my shirt. Hey, that was something.

  “We have enough time to get you home and dressed,” Cade said with a coolness that I couldn’t comprehend right now. I was still in panic mode and didn’t really hear his words. “We should even have enough time to grab you a cup of coffee before your class starts.”

  The thought of coffee had me moving faster.

  “Reed wanted me to tell you bye and he’ll call you later,” Cade said as we drove to my apartment.

  “What?! He left already?”

  “Yeah, he had to get back this morning.”

  Well, now I felt bad about not spending more time with him. I was hoping we could catch a late lunch after my last class today.

  Back at my apartment, I took the world’s fastest shower and remembered to fix my hair right before we flew out the door. Cade was right, I did have enough time to get ready. I guess I freaked out a little too quickly this morning.

  “Don’t you need your laptop?” he asked as I headed for the door.

  It was still broken and I hadn’t even called about getting it fixed.

  “It broke. I’ll get to it later,” I replied and ushered him out the door.

  I expected him to get into his car and leave while I headed on my way. But he surprised me greatly when he kept walking past it.

  “You don’t have to go with me. I’m going to be in class for the next few hours… so…”

  “I’m not leaving you. What if something happens and I’m not there?”

  Oh, right. Bodyguard Cade. How could I forget?

  There was a small line at the coffee shop and Cade took my back as we stepped into place. I was trying to think of something to say but came up blank.

  Then Cade’s arm snaked around my waist and with a firm hand on my stomach, he pulled me back against his chest. There was a smile on my face and after we took a step forward as one, I craned my neck to look at him. There was something in his eyes that flashed with intensity. Then he crashed his mouth onto mine. Right there in the middle of the freaking coffee shop! This was no I need to kiss you kind of kiss. This was a he’s mine kind of kiss. He pulled away with a smirk and I was left feeling dizzy with weak knees. His gaze went forward and I tried to shake myself out of the fog that overtook my head.

  “Decaf with hazelnut. And a regular coffee. Please.”

  I turned as he spoke to see Marci’s eyes wide and on us. Her cheeks went red instantly and she opened up her mouth but nothing came out for a few long beats.

  “Oh, right. Anything else?” she said to Cade, stumbling over her words.

  “A blueberry bran muffin and I’ll take a banana. Thanks.”

  Marci quickly turned her back and got our coffee ready.

  “That wasn’t very nice,” I scolded quietly. Though, to be honest, I was screaming like a fangirl at a boy band concert on the inside.

  I liked Caveman Cade. Even though he had nothing to worry about.

  I might have liked this one better than Sexy Mystery Man Cade.

  Yeah, I definitely did.

  “Just making a point,” he said casually. “To you and her.”

  Now I was the one who was blushing.

  “Thanks,” he said to Marci after he’d paid. Then he picked up my coffee and handed it over before grabbing up everything else.

  “I think the banana was a bit much,” I told him as we walked over to where the creamer sat.

  “Maybe,” he mumbled around a bite of that banana. How had he carried his coffee and opened the banana peel at the same time? Cade was a magically talented man, that was for sure.

  He walked me to class, holding my coffee so I could scarf down the muffin.

  “I’ll be waiting out here,” he said before he gave me a kiss and sent me on my way.

  I felt bad that he’d be sitting there and I wanted to tell him he didn’t have to stay, but the look in his eyes told me he wasn’t going anywhere. Who was I to argue?

  The rest of the week went on like this.

  He would take me for coffee and get me something to eat before walking me to class. And in the afternoons, he would give me time to study. Then once he couldn’t wait any longer, he’d strip me down and do all kinds of dirty, sexy things to my body. He always made sure to feed me and then we’d fall asleep in each other’s arms.

  There had been moments when we’d talk.

  Mostly it was about nothing. But I got little glimpses here and there of who Cade was. Of how he grew up. Of his time served, though he didn’t talk much about that. And of course, he filled me in on how he and Reed became friends.

  Sometimes we would watch TV if we were in his motel room. That was nice too because I could enjoy being in his arms without making it awkward with what I said or did.

&
nbsp; I was falling hard for Cade. I’d never felt like this before and if I was being honest, I was scared that it would end.

  For once, I wanted to be brave. I told myself that if I was going to have a chance with Cade, then I had to step up and take it. I had to let him know that I was in this. It shouldn’t have been hard, but I’d always stood by and let things happen to me. Most of the time those hadn’t been good things. However, I knew in my heart that this was something I had to hold on to.

  So, despite the fear that gripped my insides really tightly, I was going to reach out and grab on. Even if he tried to push me away, I would show him how this was something more. That I was worth the risk. The chance. Because right now, that was exactly how Cade made me feel. And for someone like me that had felt pretty much nonexistent and worthless most of his life, that feeling was everything.

  “Your sister’s calling,” Cade said. His voice pulled me from my thoughts and as I blinked into focus, I could see my vibrating phone cradled in his outstretched hand as if he was waiting for me to take it. His brows pinched together as he looked at me. “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah,” I breathed out sounding a little jumpy and panicked. “Thanks.”

  I took the phone and answered quickly.

  “Hey, Silvie! How is everything?” I asked with a smile on my face.

  “Theon. You’ll never guess what happened today.” There was excitement in her voice. I let my lids fall closed so I could picture her in my mind. I just knew she had a smile on her face and she was probably sitting there on the edge of her bed bouncing like she was ready to bust.

  “Tell me!” I shot back quickly like I couldn’t wait to hear what she had to say.

  “So, Tommy put glue in my seat today, right?” Oddly, she didn’t sound all that upset about it. But I was. Someone was picking on my little sister and I wasn’t going to put up with it.

  “He did what?!”

  “No, listen. Yes, Tommy sucks, but wait until you hear the rest.”

  “Go on,” I told her and tried to stuff my anger down.

  “He’s dumb. He used a glue stick so all it did was get on my skirt. But it didn’t stay stuck to the seat like he thought would happen. I knew what he’d done and so I just stood right on up. I just looked at him with a giant smile ‘cause I wasn’t gonna let him ruin my day. Well, he really didn’t like that. His face got so red and I was a little scared he was going to do something super mean.”

  “Okay,” I said to let her know I was following along. Well, I sort of was.

  “Mountain saw what happened and he got mad at Tommy.”

  “Mountain?” I cut in. Was that someone’s name? Poor kid.

  “Yeah, his parents are hippies or something.” She sighed like she was a bit irritated she had to stop her story to fill me in. “He said his parents made him on top of a mountain and that’s how he got his name. I think it fits him because he has this hair that looks white. It also looks like his parents might cut it themselves ‘cause it’s kinda shaggy. But it reminds me of snow on top of a mountain the way it hangs around his head.”

  I wasn’t sure how comfortable I was with him telling this story to my little sister. She was seven. She didn’t need to think about how she or anyone else was made. It was too close to uncomfortable territory. And I wasn’t even going to touch the way my sister talked about this guy. Nope, I didn’t like him already.

  “Anyway. Are you listening, Theon?!”

  “Yes, go on.”

  “Mountain yelled at Tommy to leave me alone. But then the teacher gave Mountain a warning, even though I tried to tell her what happened. But then you know what happened?”

  “I’m dying here, girlie. Tell me,” I said like I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting with anticipation.

  She giggled and I pictured her rolling her eyes at me.

  “At lunch when Tommy went to sit down, Mountain put his tray right on the seat. And do you know what today was? Spaghetti and meatballs day. I know I shouldn’t laugh, but he got what was coming to him.”

  Maybe this Mountain kid wasn’t so bad after all. That said, I still was going to keep an eye on this kid and watch out for Silvie.

  “Tommy’s face turned red and he ran out of the cafeteria,” she went on. “I shared my spaghetti with Mountain and even let him eat both of my balls.”

  I laughed at that. It was the way she said it and the fact that it had been completely innocent. I pushed away the fact that my sister shared her food with this kid and let her enjoy this moment. Growing up, I wished that I’d had someone to stick up for me. I hated that I couldn’t be there to shield her against all the crappy people in the world, but it made me happy that she had someone in her corner.

  Even if it was some stupid kid named Mountain.

  And, yes, I knew I wasn’t being fair to him, but she was my little sister.

  We continued to talk for a little while. I asked her what else was going on and tried to subtly make sure things at home were okay. She didn’t say anything, but that didn’t tell me much. I didn’t trust Carl one single bit. I still hated that I’d left her behind. I had a choice, but I felt like we both would have ended up suffering if I’d stayed. Besides, I was here so I could build us a better future. Something I felt like I was constantly having to remind myself of every time I talked to her.

  “Okay. I gotta go. I have to do this project on butterflies. Love you!”

  “Love you, too!” I called out and then she was gone.

  I set the phone down and turned my attention to Cade.

  He was smiling at me and it caused my heart to warm and speed up at the same time.

  “Mountain, huh?” His brow raised as he spoke.

  I busted out laughing. I wouldn’t doubt that he’d not only heard most of the conversation, but had also been able to see my emotions playing out on my face the whole time.

  “You’re a good big brother,” he told me and all I could do was shrug in return. “You are. And I can tell that from one conversation.”

  “I wish I could give her more.”

  “You give her what she needs the most,” he said as his finger came to tilt my head until I was looking into his beautiful eyes. “You may not be around right now, but you’re there for her. And that’s what counts.”

  I sniffed as the tears leaked out of my eyes.

  “Can you just, like, stop saying all the right things, please?” I tried to joke. “You make it so hard to resist you.”

  “Good,” he replied with a smirk. “I don’t want you to resist me.”

  Then he was kissing me tenderly.

  And I gave in willingly.

  God, I was falling so hard for him.

  25

  Cade

  I couldn’t keep my hands off of him.

  At some point, I just quit trying to.

  We’d come back to my motel room after his last class. He told me he wanted to take a nap as he stripped down to his boxer briefs and crawled onto the bed. He looked exhausted and I felt a little guilty about it. So I let him sleep.

  But it had been three hours and I couldn’t resist any longer.

  Since he was on his stomach and the sheet had slipped down to his waist, his back was exposed for the taking.

  I shucked all my clothing except for my boxer briefs, my eyes on his sleeping form the entire time.

  I made my way up the bed, my lips kissing up the line of his spine.

  “Mmm,” he hummed. His voice was thick with sleep, making it sexier. “Keep doing that.”

  I had no intention of stopping.

  Big Tony had already called him asking if he still had the splint on his finger. Since he did, Big Tony told him to take the weekend off. I could see it in his eyes that he wanted to argue with his boss. He felt guilty but he also knew he’d be useless. So he’d agreed.

  I, on the other hand, was thrilled. That meant I got Theon all to myself for the whole weekend. We sure as hell weren’t leaving the bed. Well, maybe to shower and f
uel up. He was damn hungry after each round and I had to take care of him so he’d be ready for more. Not that I minded at all.

  My body covered his, my hard cock threatening to rip right through my underwear. His arms slid closer to his body, forcing his back to bow as his shoulder blades pinched together. His head hung down, exposing the back of his slender neck. All mine. Every single inch of it.

  There were no words to describe how sexy he was giving himself over to me like this. So beautiful.

  “Cade.” My name fell from his mouth sounding like a desperate plea.

  Over and over, I worshiped his creamy skin. My lips. My tongue. My teeth. I used them all. There was this little spot at the base of his neck that caused his whole body to shiver. It happened every single time my mouth tenderly skimmed over his skin there. It only left me smiling against his skin too many times to count.

  And as my lips brushed over his scars, I didn’t hesitate to love them at all. They were part of him. Not a good part. Not something I wished was there. But if I was going to show him that he was beautiful to me just as he was, I had to let him feel how perfect he was to me.

  “God, Cade,” he moaned out.

  As my arm moved to wrap around his chest, my hips worked against his crease. The barrier of our underwear kept me from feeling his heat like I wanted to. From gliding the head of my weeping cock over his sensitive hole. It was probably the only thing saving me from taking him just like this. Fuck working him up with lube-coated fingers. Fuck getting protection. Just us and nothing else.

  Those thoughts were insane and I’d never had them with anyone else before. It wasn’t something that had ever crossed my mind. But the more I worked myself against him while I laid kisses all over his back, the more the need grew to have him full of my cum.

  I felt his heartbeat against my palm. My hips rocked to the fast rhythm and even though I wasn’t inside him, I felt so connected to him.

  “Cade, you need to stop. I’m going to…”