She clings to me even tighter, shaking her head.
I stroke my hand over her hair, now noticing how short she cut it. “I love the hair.”
“Thanks,” she whispers.
My hand continues rubbing her back, waiting for her to continue.
Finally, she takes a deep breath. “When you were…on top of me, holding me so tight. For a second I couldn’t breathe and I panicked. That’s all. I’m so sorry.”
“Stop saying you’re sorry.”
“It’s not you, Liam. It’s me.”
I don’t know the right thing to say. It’s not her. It’s not me. It’s neither of us, but it’s both of us. If she’s mine for real, then we need to work through this together.
“I’m sorry I ruined everything.”
“Hey.” My hand brushes over her cheek. “You didn’t ruin anything.”
“But I did. Please don’t…”
“Don’t what?” I ask when she doesn’t finish her sentence.
“I don’t want you to see me…think of me any different.” Her mouth quirks. “Not when you’re finally falling in love with me.”
“Bree.” I slip my fingers under her chin, tipping her head back so she meets my eyes. “I’m not falling in love with you. I’m already there. Been there a long time.”
“Liam,” she breathes out.
“And I still think you’re the same sweet girl I’ve always known. Only difference is now you’re mine.”
“And you’re mine.” Her words come out somewhere between a question and a statement.
“Yes. I’m very much yours.” I wait a few seconds for her to absorb that. “Tell me, was that the only time we’ve…been together that you had those feelings?”
“Yes.” She shifts. “Only tonight. I think because I couldn’t see you and I was sleepy.” She hesitates and glances at the closed bedroom door “You stopped when I asked. That’s all I need.” She brushes her lips over my cheek. “Everything was so, so good before that,” she whispers against my ear, scraping her teeth over my earlobe. “I loved waking up with your hand in my panties.”
“Bree,” I warn.
“Liam,” she mimics. Another twist of her body and she’s straddling my lap. She reaches down and lifts her hips so she can fling the sheet away.
“Bree—”
She places her finger over my lips, asking for my silence. “This was particularly good the other day. Let’s try this.”
Her fear and anxiety seem to have lessened. Even though she’s playing naughty sex kitten, I’m having trouble catching up. “You need to give me a minute, sweetness. You scared me.”
“Hmm…” She trails kisses down my neck and over my shoulder. “How’s that?” she murmurs against my skin.
“Good.” My dick stirs back to life. “Tell me what you like. Be specific.”
Her eyes close as if she wants to call up the image in her head before sharing. “You. Behind me. Gripping my hips and pounding into me so hard.”
Ding!
I fit my hands over her hips, holding her tight. “Like this?”
She answers by slipping her hand between us and stroking my cock. “Almost, except I want to see your face when you make me come.”
My brain’s too foggy, my throat too tight. I reach down and circle her clit with my fingers, loving the jolt and jerk of her hips. “Come on, baby girl.” My ragged voice practically begs her to climb back on my cock.
She’s done teasing me. With another soft press of her lips to mine, she braces her hands on my shoulders and lifts herself. I guide her way, and groan as she takes me inside her. “Fuck, that’s good. Keep going.”
The way she takes me is all consuming. Not the fast, desperate fucking of before. This time I hold her tight and let her take what she needs. Keep her grounded with my voice and hands.
“So good, Bree.” I squeeze my eyes shut, trying not to succumb to the orgasm threatening to throw me over the edge. She gasps and grinds down harder.
“Liam.”
“Right here, sweetness.” I’ve never experienced this level of wanting. The intensity of needing to feel her come apart. Somehow I hold out until she’s spent and then I blow like a volcano. My teeth scrape her shoulder. “You’re mine, Bree. Mine.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Finally, Liam and I have a morning together. All week he’s been distracted with some case. I don’t ask a lot of questions, but I can see the toll it’s taking on him. That’s why I don’t want to dwell on last night.
I’m also embarrassed as hell.
“Are you okay?” he asks me first thing.
“I’m fine. Really happy you’re still here this morning.”
He presses a soft, slow kiss against my lips. “Me too.”
Kimber’s waiting by the back door with an eager expression.
“I think she’s happy to see you too,” I say as I clip on Kimber’s leash.
Liam takes my hand and leads us outside. “She was glued to the bedroom door last night when I came home.”
The backyard is small, but rests against a strip of woods that belong to the town, giving it a larger feeling. Knowing Kimber can’t walk far but still needs to stretch her legs, we take it easy. “Do you…can you tell me about the case you’ve been working on?”
“I have a few at the moment.”
“The one that’s keeping you up at night.”
His expression turns distant. “It’s a child abuse case.”
My hand flies to my mouth. “Oh.”
“It’s bad. We arrested the parents yesterday, but the whole thing’s a mess.”
“Boy or girl?”
“A little girl.”
“Where’d she go? I mean, if the parents were arrested.”
“Her grandmother’s.”
“That’s so sad. But at least she’s with someone she knows.”
He nods once. “True. The woman boards horses at her farm and I guess the little girl is pretty horse-crazy.”
“I think most little girls are. But that sounds promising.”
He lifts his shoulders and I figure there’s more to the story he can’t share with me.
“Chad’s brother hasn’t bothered you anymore, has he?”
“Well, uh.” I hesitate because I know Liam will be upset that I didn’t tell him this sooner.
“Bree?” He stops and faces me.
“I ran into him at the mall yesterday.”
“You what?” To Liam’s credit, he doesn’t yell, but he’s clearly frustrated. “Why didn’t you tell me right away?”
“He said it was an accident and I believed him. He was trying to hide from me when I caught up to him.” Who am I trying to convince? Liam or myself?
“Yeah, right,” he mutters, running his hands through his hair.
“He told me about the restraining order.”
He stops and stares me in the eye. “I told you I was going to do it.”
“I know. I’m not mad. He apologized, but it was pretty insincere.”
Liam snorts. “What else?”
“Nothing.” My lips curve as I remember how empowered I felt facing Chris head-on. “I think it shocked the hell out of him that I confronted him instead of cowering or running away. Heck, I surprised myself. Must have been left over adrenaline from Sully’s class.”
One corner of his mouth lifts, but I don’t think he’s ready to let me off the hook yet.
“Okay.” He hesitates. “I don’t want to encourage you to handle things alone, but I’m proud of you.”
“I was in a public place.”
His lips settle into a grim line. “That doesn’t always matter. If you run into him again you have to tell me. Even if you think it’s a coincidence.”
“I will. Honestly, I had fun with Aubrey and her sister afterwards, so I ended up forgetting about it.”
The tension in his face eases and his shoulders drop. “I’m glad you had a good time.” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “I like this a lot.”
r />
“Thank you.”
As we’re walking back inside, he casually asks about the carnations in the trash. “They were on my windshield last night when I went outside to take the selfie.”
“What?!” This time he raises his voice.
“Kimber pulled her Cujo thing. If it were Chris, he would’ve been crazy to stick around. I’m sure he didn’t expect me to have a dog, so I doubt he’ll be back.”
He stares at me for a long time, studying my face. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing.”
“I’ll decide if it’s nothing. Spill.”
I let out a sigh and fiddle with Kimber’s leash that’s still in my hands. “Chad used to give me pink carnations on our anniversary.”
He grits his teeth. “When was your anniversary?” His jaw’s so tight he can barely spit out the question.
“September.”
That seems to relieve him. “That fucker’s still in jail. I called down there yesterday to be sure. Obviously he needs his visits and phone calls monitored better,” he mutters as he grabs stuff out of the refrigerator to start breakfast.
“Wait? You called the jail?”
“God damn right I did. They’re supposed to give me the heads up if he makes bail.”
I blink a few times, not sure how to process that. “Thank you.”
Some of his irritation seems to drain out of him. “Can you think of anyone else who would’ve left the flowers?”
I consider his question, but come up blank. “No.”
He crosses his arms over his chest and leans against the counter. “I’ll look into it. If anything else shows up, you have to tell me immediately.”
“After our four-pawed menace made her presence known, he’d be stupid to come back.” I scratch behind Kimber’s ears and she lifts he head as if she agrees.
Uncertainty and exasperation still surround Liam. Maybe it’s better if I offer up the full truth. “Liam, I didn’t say anything, because we…you and I just…I don’t want to keep bringing up my ex all the time.”
“Hey,” he says, pushing off the counter and joining me at the table. “This isn’t a matter of not talking about our exes so we don’t hurt each other’s feelings. I’m secure enough to know how you feel about me.” He takes my hand, forcing me to look in his eyes. “This is about keeping you safe.” One corner of his mouth lifts. “If it makes it easier, why don’t you inform Deputy Hollister about anything pertaining to your case. That way you only talk about the fun stuff with your boyfriend.”
The distinction pulls a chuckle out of me, but in a way it also makes it easier for me to separate the multiple aspects of our relationship.
“Well, in that case, Deputy, I took some pictures.” I pull up the pictures on my cell phone to show him.
“Good job. Send those to me.”
At least I finally did something right.
“Are we good?” he asks, leaning over to place a kiss on my forehead.
“Yes.”
While we’re finishing breakfast, my phone buzzes, and I pull it out of my pocket.
I glance down at the text. “It’s Emily. She wants me to go out with her tonight.”
He focuses his penetrating gaze on me. “No.”
“Excuse me?”
He sighs and runs his hands through his hair. “I have to work tonight. I can’t go with you.”
“Who said you were invited, Officer Buzzkill?” I tease.
He huffs out a laugh. “This the one who wanted to go to the Lantern?”
“Yes.”
“Christ, that place is a shithole. We get complaints from there every weekend.”
“Liam,” I say softly. “I’m not asking your permission to go out with my friends. I’m sorry. But I’m done doing that.”
He reels back, staring at me for a few seconds before speaking. “Bree, it’s not because I’m trying to control you. I want you to go out and have fun with your friends. I don’t want you to get hurt. There’s a difference.”
I turn his words over in my head. He’s sincere. His concern comes from a good place. “I didn’t mean…I lived that way once. I won’t do it again. That’s all.”
“I understand that,” he says, using obvious restraint in his choice of words. “I don’t like that you ran into Chris, and this shit with the flowers. It’s creepy. I want you to be careful.”
“Right. You’re right.” I peek up at him. “So, maybe it’s better that I’m out with a group of friends instead of here like a sitting duck?”
Boy, I’m really pushing Liam’s buttons this morning.
“Okay,” he says slowly in a way that means it’s not okay at all. “Can I say something without you getting mad?”
“Maybe.” I cross my arms over my chest and nod at him to continue.
He sighs. “Remember what Sully said about not putting yourself in danger? I don’t want you taking unnecessary risks because you want to prove how independent you are.”
“It’s just a nightclub.”
“In a rough area of town.”
“I’ll be with a group of girls.”
His stares at the ceiling, probably asking the universe to send him extra patience. “Promise you’ll stick together?”
He really is only worried about my safety and I regret acting so prickly. I need to work on recognizing the difference between unhealthy control and acceptable concern. “Maybe you can meet us there when you’re done tonight?” I try to hide the pitiful hopefulness in my voice, but it creeps in anyway.
His hard cop face relaxes into a semi-smile. “Yeah, baby girl. I can do that.”
By mid-afternoon, I’ve persuaded Aubrey into joining us too. Liam chuckles when I call to tell him I’ll have one more girl with me who knows how to kick ass.
Emily arrives in my driveway before sunset and I hurry out to meet her, careful not to trip in my high-heeled sandals. She climbs out of the car to hug me and wolf-whistles when she steps back. “It’s unfair that you have such killer legs,” she says, eying my gold short-shorts with envy.
“I’m not sure I should show them off when I’m this pale, though.” I fiddle with the white, sparkly tank top. “Do you think this is too much?”
She runs her hands over her own short, red dress. “Nope.”
“Damn, I thought this place was casual?” I nod at the dress. “You look hot.”
Her lips curl into a satisfied smile and she gestures for me to climb into the car. A few of her friends are with her and she introduces us as I cram myself into the back seat and try not to flash my butt to the entire neighborhood.
“I need to look for my friend, Aubrey, when we get there,” I remind Emily.
“No problem.”
Liam wasn’t kidding about the neighborhood. It’s outside the town limits, so I probably haven’t been here since high school and even back then it wasn’t the safest area. The club itself isn’t much better and I cast a suspicious look at Emily as the doorman waves us inside.
Even though she’s a tiny, doll-eyed pixie, I manage to spot Aubrey right away. She runs over and hugs me like we haven’t seen each other in months instead of days. “Holy hell, I’m glad I have pepper spray in my purse,” she shouts into my ear.
I introduce her to Emily and even though they’re exact opposites, they seem to hit it off. While the location is questionable, it’s nice to be out, socializing with other women my age like a normal human being for a change.
“So, tall, dark, and deadly let you out of the house?” Emily asks after the other girls head off to the dance floor. “Do you have a curfew?”
“No, smartass, he’s meeting me later.”
Her eyes widen. “I was joking. Wow, you seem to be moving fast with him.”
Emily had heard plenty of details about my relationship with Chad during our group therapy sessions. She’d also heard the counselors caution us about getting into another relationship right away. Part of me wonders if I can trust her not to rat me out at our
next session.
“We’ve known each other since we were kids,” I explain, wanting her to understand what Liam and I have isn’t a rebound or a mistake.
“Oh, this is the one who was running hot and cold.” She nods knowingly. “If that was still going on, I was going to suggest you bring a guy home tonight to make him jealous.”
I blink and stare at her. Even if Liam and I hadn’t…gotten together, that’d be a level of childishness I’d never stoop to.
“Well, I’m going to sample the goods.”
I raise an eyebrow. She’d heard the same advice I had during group. “Not all of us have a knight in shining armor waiting for us at home,” she explains.
“Be careful.”
Emily assures me she’ll be fine and pushes her way into the crowd.
I scan the room, seeking a familiar face. Aubrey’s in the corner involved in what appears to be an intense discussion with an older guy whose features I can’t quite make out in the low lighting. A steady stream of people comes in through the front door, filling the place to capacity.
Emily’s in the center of the room now. I nudge and squeeze my way through a sea of grinding couples to reach her and her friends.
It’s fun to let loose, even if I can’t get quite as loose as Emily. Her enthusiasm for everything makes me happy we met, even if it was under crappy circumstances.
After a few songs, she drags a tall, lanky blond guy over to me. “This is my friend, Shane,” she shouts over the music.
We end up dancing in a large group, but eventually the others leave to grab drinks. Shane and I keep dancing. The guy has panty-melter written all over his face, but he keeps a respectful distance.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” he shouts over the music.
“I do.”
He nods even though I’m not sure he heard me. I’m wracking my brain trying to think of something else to say to keep the conversation moving, but his gaze is fixed on something over my shoulder.
Leaning down, he shouts, “There’s a guy watching us who looks like he wants to rip my arms off.”