“Here’s one thing you can take to the bank. I love you. And that’s not going to change. Ever.”
“Say it again,” I demanded.
Cupping the back of my head, he urged my face up until his earnest gaze was focused on nothing but mine. “I love you, Caroline. You’ve had me from the moment your brother carried you out of the bathroom in that run-down old trailer house. And no matter what happens, I’m going to keep on loving you.”
Sobs took me over. “I love you, too,” I admitted through my tears. “I just can’t help it. There were so many reasons to stay away, to hate you, but...it’s like you’re a part of me or something.”
“Yeah,” he murmured with a small smile. Then he kissed my eyelids. “I know exactly what you mean. And that’s why I really need to show you something.”
I sniffed, blinking at his serious tone. “W-what?” This didn’t sound good. At all.
“Do you remember Lake Tahoe?” he asked.
I sucked in a breath “You got the job?”
Oh God. He’d gotten the job and was going to leave. Against my will, more tears fell.
He wiped them away and shook his head. “Not that part. Do you remember when we got really drunk on the beach, and how Zwinn told us they had to stop us from going to that walk-in wedding chapel and getting married?”
I wrinkled my nose and frowned. “Yeah?”
“Well...I think we might’ve snuck back over there later...after they fell asleep.”
I blinked. “What?”
Oren lifted his hip and reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet and unfold it. With trembling hands, he pulled a sheet of paper free and handed it to me. “I found this in my luggage after we got home.”
He handed it to me and watched me from worried eyes as I unfolded it.
I stared at the document for a full minute before pointing at it. “This is a marriage license.”
Oren blew out a breath. “I know.”
Eyes widening, I stuttered a second before blurting, “This is our marriage license. Oh my God. Is this real?”
“Yes. I called around until I got a hold of someone in some courthouse in California. We were legally fucking married that night.” He slipped the license from my limp hand and carefully smoothed it open flat.
“Oh my God,” I uttered. “We’re married.”
He blew out a cheek full of air. “Yeah. Pretty much.”
Panic flooded me. He watched it fill my face. Grasping my shoulder, he silently urged me to look at him, even though I couldn’t focus too well.
“We were drunk,” he started in a calm voice. “We can annul it, no problem, if that’s what you want. This doesn’t have to impact you at all.”
“If it’s what I want?” I repeated incredulously, shaking my head. “But what about you? What about what you want?”
“I...” His gaze bored into mine. “I’ll respect whatever decision you make.”
Stunned speechless, I shook my head. “But what if I don’t want to annul it? Would you respect that?”
A slow grin stole across his face. “Hell, yeah.”
My mouth fell open. “Holy shit, you don’t want to annul it, do you? You...you want to stay married to me.”
“Kind of,” he answered with a shrug.
“Kind of?” I laughed outright. Oh my God. I was married, and it looked as if I might stay that way.
“Kind of...a lot,” Oren murmured into my ear, pressing his nose against my cheek.
Even though a giddy warmth stole through me, I shook my head. “But I’m only nineteen. I’m—”
He took both my hands. “We don’t have to be traditional. Fuck, the very word gives me hives. We can take this slow and any way we want to. We can keep on how we are now for a while if that’s what you want.”
“You mean with me living with Noel and you staying with Zwinn?”
He shrugged. “Sure. Whatever you want. I mean, I’m sure Gamble’s had enough of a shock for one day. We can keep this under wraps for a while until we’re ready to deal with it.”
“What about a ring?” I asked, starting to really get into the idea.
A grin split across his face. “Do you want a ring?”
“Kind of.” Then I smiled big. “A lot.”
He pulled me into him and kissed my hair. “Then I’ll get you the biggest damn ring I can afford.”
“Oh my God,” I gasped. “We’re really married. We’re—oh my God, wait. What about Lake Tahoe? Your interview. You—”
“I didn’t get the job,” he said immediately.
My shoulders fell because I didn’t already know this. “You didn’t? Why didn’t you tell me?”
He glanced away. “You weren’t exactly speaking to me at the time, so...”
I took his hand, feeling like an absolute bitch for staying away as long as I had. Sure, it had hurt to learn everything I’d learned, but I’d asked to hear it. I’d...I was just a total bitch. “I’m so sorry.”
He shook his head, unable to look me in the eye. “No, it’s fine. They, uh, they had someone else in mind, I guess.”
“Those fuckers,” I muttered, pissed as I was relieved that they hadn’t chosen my Oren. “And you said it went so well, too.”
“Well, I was still riding a high from that orgasm you’d given me right after I put my suit on, so...yeah. Everything felt pretty damn good that day.”
I slugged him in the shoulder. “Jesus, Oren,” I started, but my scolding didn’t last any longer than that. I hugged him and kissed his cheek. “I’m sorry you didn’t get it.”
“I’m not.” Turning to me, he kissed me full on the mouth and he showed me how sorry he wasn’t that he was going to stay around a while longer.
I had to silently admit, I wasn’t sorry to see my husband stay, either.
The week progressed. I kept seeing Caroline every night I could, except we didn’t bother to hide anything. I pulled into her driveway to pick her up now, and we actually went out to see a movie at the theater and then a restaurant the next night.
I didn’t see or talk to Gamble, and Caroline barely mentioned him. I asked her every day if everything was okay, but she merely smiled and said, “It’s fine. Don’t worry. He’ll come to his senses and get over it. He always does.”
I wasn’t so sure, but I let the issue drop.
But I wasn’t the only one worried. Pick yanked me into his office the next time I worked.
“You know how much it sucks to be your boss and friend at the same time, right? Am I going to be forced to pick sides between you and Gamble?”
I shook my head. “No, Gamble was right. I shouldn’t have kept it from him. He has every right to be pissed at me.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “I notice you’re saying you shouldn’t have kept it from him, not that you shouldn’t have touched his little sister.”
“Staying away from her wasn’t an option.”
Maybe I shouldn’t have ever touched her but it was too late for that, and I didn’t regret a minute of what had happened between us.
“Fuck,” Pick muttered, running his hand through his hair in frustration. “So I’m guessing he’s still more than pissed at you, and there’s going to be a lot of tension when you two work together.”
I nodded. “Yeah, pretty much.”
“Lovely.” He growled out another frustrated breath. “Okay, fine. I’ll try to rework schedules to keep that from happening as much as possible. But there will always be Thursday nights.”
“I know.” I started to shrug it off again when a new thought struck me. “Wait! You’re like every woman’s personal defender. Why aren’t you threatening me to stay away from Caroline the same way he his?”
“Because I’ve noticed how much you’ve changed lately. You’re faithful to her. And she’s happier than I’ve ever seen her before. I think you’re both good for each other.”
I snorted. “Mind mentioning that to Gamble? He’s obviously not spotted any of the shit you have.??
?
Pick smiled and patted my arm. “Just give him time.”
God, I hated time. It moved on, though, and Thursday came before I was ready for it. Ladies’ Night at the Forbidden Nightclub started, and Gamble worked the bar with Lowe, as he usually did.
For the most part, we avoided each other. I took my orders to Lowe, and it worked out just fine…for a while.
At one point, I saw Gamble talking to some scantily clad chick. He motioned toward me and she looked my way, but I didn’t think much of it, not until Gamble told me to go into the back and fetch another crate of Heineken. I still didn’t catch on, not until I was in the stockroom, cornered in the last row of shelves next to the wall with my arms lifted to drag down the necessary crate, when a pair of feminine hands wrapped around my waist from behind.
And that’s when I finally got it. He’d sent some skank back to set me up in some kind of compromising position.
The Ten of a year ago would’ve been all over that. Hell, the Ten of three months ago might’ve even fallen prey to her. But the Ten who’d discovered the woman of his dreams had secretly slipped into his room to be with him wanted nothing to do with this cheap imitation.
Jerking away, I threw up my hands, dislodging her hold on me. “What the fuck?!”
I should’ve known Noel was up to something awful the moment I approached the bar at Forbidden to make sure he and Oren hadn’t killed each other yet.
He sent me an evil little smirk.
“Looking for your boyfriend? He went back to the stockroom.” When he tipped his chin toward the back hall, encouraging me to go, I knew I’d find something I didn’t want to, something about Oren that should change my mind about him.
I told myself not to go, but damn it, I had to know.
I heard his voice even as I opened the door to the storage room. “Did you follow me back here? That’s messed up. I don’t even know you. And don’t ever touch me like that again.”
“But that bartender up front said you’d been watching me and talking about me all night. He said if I followed you back here, you’d make it worth my while.”
“Oh, he did, did he? Well, he was fucking wrong. I have a girlfriend, and I’ve never even seen you before just now. So, sorry to disappoint you, but you need to step off. Right now.”
The woman coming on to him reached out to caress his chest. “You absolutely sure about that, honey? I mean we’re already back here...all by ourselves. And I don’t see your girlfriend anywhere.”
“Then maybe you better turn around, bitch, because I’m right behind you. Get your fucking hands off him.”
Oren’s eyes went wide as he actually slapped the whore’s fingers off his chest.
“Caroline!” he gasped desperately, pushing past her to hurry down the row to reach me.
I wasn’t mad at him, but I was too mad for any kind of snuggling. So I jerked backward and lifted my hands to keep him back.
“Excuse me,” I said through gritted teeth, “while I go kill my brother.”
“Wait!” he called after me, but I was already on a rampage.
Noel looked so smug and full of himself when he saw my murderous expression as I marched toward the bar. The bastard actually thought I was this upset with Oren.
“Get a nice little show?” he asked.
“Yes, I did.” I climbed onto a stool so I could reach over the bar. Then I slapped him as hard as I could.
His head jerked back and he immediately lifted his hand to cradle his cheek. Eyes wide with surprise, he yelled, “What the hell?”
I pointed a threatening finger right between his eyes. “Next time you send someone in to seduce my boyfriend away from me, you should probably pick a better slut who actually interests him, because, sorry, he didn’t take your bait.”
I spun away, only to find Oren hurrying from the hallway toward me, his eyes lit with concern. I grabbed him by the face, yanked him into me and kissed him as hard as I could. He looked dazed when I pulled away. Glancing back at the bar, I called, “And that, you asshole, only made me fall in love with this man even more.”
I started away from the bar, but Oren caught my hand and tugged me back around to him. “What’re you doing? Where are you going?”
I touched his face, loving the concern in his eyes. “I’m not mad at you.”
He shook his head. “But you are mad. I don’t want you driving while you’re upset. You did drive here, didn’t you?”
“I borrowed Aspen’s car.” I doubted Quinn would let Zoey come back to the bar again until the baby was born, so I’d had to sneak Aspen’s keys out of the kitchen.
“Don’t drive mad.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “I have a bad feeling.”
“I’ll be fine.” Leaning up to kiss him lightly on the lips, I smiled, unable to stay as mad as I wanted to. “I promise.”
He didn’t look too sure about my claim, but he did kiss me back. “Text me when you get home.”
“I will. Now get back to work. I’ll see you later.”
When I tried to pull away, he didn’t let me go at first, but then he mouthed, “I love you,” and finally released my fingers.
For him, I bottled my feelings all the way home, paying closer attention to the road than I normally would, just so I could fulfill my promise. But I let it all back out as soon I as pulled into Aspen’s driveway.
My rage still fueled me as I stormed into the back door of my traitorous brother’s house. Aspen was at the kitchen table with Colton and Brandt, building something that looked like a mini volcano with red foamy stuff oozing over the sides. The boys were cheering it on, and Aspen looked just as into their experiment as they were until she glanced up and saw my face.
Smile instantly dropping, she popped out of her chair. “Are you okay? What happened? Did you and Ten—”
“Oren and I are fine!” I yelled, glaring at her. “How could anyone think he’d ever do anything to hurt me? He’s the most amazing boyfriend I’ve ever had. Does no one care that he actually makes me happy? That for the first time in a year, I look forward to each new day, or that I’ve been able to forgive myself for the things I’ve done? He healed me. He never hurt me.”
Storming past her and my shell-shocked-looking younger brothers, I hurried to my room and immediately knelt on the floor to yank my suitcase out from under the bed. Once it was flopped open, I yanked out the top drawer of my dresser. When I turned back to the suitcase with an armful of bras and panties, I found Aspen in the doorway, looking scared.
“I-I...” At a loss for words, she blinked at me and began to wring her hands at her waist. “I’m sorry, Caroline. You just looked so upset. I didn’t mean to automatically assume it was Ten’s fault.” She shifted to the end of my bed and motioned toward my rushed pack-job. “What exactly is going on here?”
I hissed out a breath, forcefully calming myself. Blowing up at my sister-in-law wasn’t going to help anything. It wasn’t her fault my brother had been a complete asshole tonight.
“I have to leave,” I said. “I can’t stay here a second longer with your fuck-face husband. He just... He...” I shuddered and my bottom lip trembled. I bit it hard before I could burst into tears over the way he’d betrayed me.
“Oh, great,” Aspen muttered, running her hand over her forehead. “I was worried he would do something ugly and irrational. He always does something ugly and irrational whenever he’s scared and upset.”
“Scared?” I spat the word out on a laugh. “What does he have to be scared about?”
She looked up at me, her eyes swimming with concern. “I think he’s scared he might lose both his best friend and his sister over this.”
“Yeah, well...he did just lose his sister.”
Aspen’s eyes filled with misery. “I probably don’t want to know what he did, do I? Fine. Let me help you pack. Then I’ll take you wherever you need to go.”
The shift ended, the club cleared out, and only us guys remained to clean the place up. I tried to hold
my tongue for as long as I could, but for me, “long” lasted about ten minutes. Everyone in the joint must’ve sensed our tension, because there wasn’t a lot of talking or bantering as we set to our duties. I was wiping down the stools in front of the bar when Noel began to clean the counter behind it. We were facing each other, the bar between us, and working in the same direction, though we avoided eye contact, when my patience shattered.
Slapping my washrag on the bar top, I looked over at him and burst. “You know, even if your fucking plan had worked tonight, the person who would’ve gotten hurt the most was your sister. Did that even occur to you, you prick bastard? Your only little sister. Oh, but don’t worry; if that was your goal, I think it worked anyway. It wasn’t me who caused her devastation, though, it was you. I cannot even believe you would...” Shaking my head as words failed me because I was vibrating with so much rage, I just wanted to leap over the bar and start pounding on his fucking face.
What he’d done to Caroline had been completely unacceptable.
Too close to the edge to trust myself, I glanced at Lowe, who’d stopped what he was doing to watch us openly. “I’m taking off.”
He nodded and made a dismissive gesture with his hand, excusing me. I swear I saw some pride glittering in his gaze as he sent me the hint of a smile.
Without even looking Gamble’s way, I turned and walked out of the club.
When I found my wife curled in my bed, fast asleep with her luggage sitting against the footboard, I wasn’t all that surprised.
Smiling softly, I stripped down to my boxers and crawled in with her.
I woke the next morning to the end of my bed dipping down as someone sat next to my feet. In my arms, Caroline stirred and her scent rustled up from her hair, filling my nose until I had wood. My arms were already wrapped around her as we spooned, and her ass was tucked into my lap with her back snuggled to my chest.
As someone who liked my space at night, it blew my mind that I enjoyed sleeping with her so much that I actually wanted her this close to me. But hell, I had no idea having her right there would feel quite this nice. My hips arched forward and I instinctively rubbed my hard cock through my boxer shorts until I found the crease in her ass.