Chapter Twenty-Five
Cuss stared at her long after she’d fallen asleep. Still despite his resolve, he couldn’t settle long enough to do the same. He couldn’t forget the image searing his mind, the image that made his body ache right down to his bones. He ached so much he felt it in his soul.
Releasing a breath, he shifted her until her head rested on the pillow instead of on his chest. He got out of bed and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. As he exited their room shutting the door lightly behind him, he dialed Blaze.
Blaze greeted him with a question. “How is she?”
“She’s fine. Fell asleep a bit ago.”
“The kid?”
“Good, too.”
“Good to hear. About to drop Trig off, but suppose since you’re up, you wanna talk.”
Cuss headed downstairs. “Yeah.”
“Be there in a few.”
The line went dead. Cuss turned off the alarm and stepped onto the porch. Soon, he spotted a pair of headlights coming down his drive. Trig and Blaze hopped off moments later and met him on the lawn.
“It’s been taken care of,” Trig said.
He knew this, knew he could depend on his brothers, his club for anything, for everything.
“Handed him over to Chip. He wasn’t too happy. You and Trig know little ‘bout them, except the bad shit they were involved in ’cause you guys joined after we cut ties, but they were never into hurting women. Chip’s been trying to mend fences with us for a while, keeps reaching out to Prez. Chip’s hinted they’re gettin’ outta dirty dealings. Suppose it’s beside the point, but either way this dickwad only fucked their chances. I’m thinking Chip’ll make a lesson outta him.”
He exhaled and dragged his hand through his hair, not knowing what he expected, not knowing how to feel.
On one end, turning the sick SOB over to his club was the right thing to do. Cuss had his revenge, beating him far past a certain point. He couldn’t remember how many punches he got in. He’d blacked out, but he did remember the damage he’d done, knew it’d been enough his brothers had been forced to yank him away.
Cuss was glad for it. Tiffany wouldn’t have wanted him killing, even though the bastard didn’t deserve to live.
Saying fucked shit to his woman was one thing. Attempting to rape her with his son inside her, no less, was the worst thing that could be done to a woman.
If Miracle hadn’t seen the SOB head into his house…
If he’d been a fraction of a second later…
“Chip’s gonna let us know what they do when it’s done.”
He nodded.
“Glad your girl and kid are okay. Heading out.” Blaze lifted his chin then strode away. Before he reached his SUV, he turned and added, “Don’t worry about what could’ve been, and enjoy your girl.”
Easier said than done.
Cuss watched him drive away.
“I’m gonna tell you the same shit Army told me after Allie was kidnapped.”
Cuss turned his head and locked gazes with Trig.
“You love her, you make the effort every second of every day so the shit that went down doesn’t fuck with your head. Know it’s hard, but you have to do it ’cause if you don’t, you’ll ruin what you’ve got with her.”
Losing Tiff, the girl who only got more beautiful, the girl he’d loved for so long, the girl who thought him a hero—one hell of a motivation.
****
Tiffany woke with a start and sat up, her gaze scanning the left side of their bed. Empty, Thomas was gone. Pulling her legs over the side, her feet hit the cold tile floor. She strode into their bathroom. When she found it empty, she walked out of their room, down the hallway then downstairs. The alarm was off, the door unlocked. She headed for it and opened it. As soon as she did, she caught sight of him sitting on the porch steps wearing only a pair of boxer shorts.
“Thomas?”
He turned and met her stare, his sapphire gaze boring into her, eyes faraway, distant. She knew with that one look his thoughts weighed him. It had been that way since it’d happened. She knew it would be. The question lingering, whether she could ever do anything to make him forget.
Offering him a soft smile, she closed the distance between them, squatted in front of him, and placed her hand on his chest. “It’s past bedtime.”
He didn’t even force a smile. Instead, he leaned into her and kissed her, deep. His fingers dug into her neck, his hand at her back pressing her chest to him, his tongue darting into her mouth, sudden, daunting, and brutal like he wanted to brand himself into her.
As suddenly as he began the kiss, he ended it. His hands went to her face. He pressed his forehead against hers and drew away.
“No…please…”
She always needed him, but tonight, she needed him to help her erase what happened.
Wrapping her arm around his waist, trailing the other up his side until she gripped the back of his neck, she pressed her lips to his. “I’ll try to make you forget, I promise.”
He slid a hand to the back of her neck and squeezed. “You do make me forget, Tiff… You make me forget everything, but you and him.” His hand drifted to her stomach.
Heart clenching, she released a breath a moment before he claimed her lips, kissing her so differently from any other time he’d ever kissed her. Deep, slow, and sensual, leaving her panting against him.
He pulled away, led them inside, locked the door, and set the alarm. Then he pressed his lips to hers, moving them into the living room, his mouth kissing down her neck as he did.
In seconds, he’d removed her nighty and set her on the couch with him kneeling in front of her. Each movement, each action, he took his time, loving her. The desperate need that she came to know as a part of him, gone. He spent what seemed like hours on her, kissing her, caressing every inch, taking her to climax twice. Finally, he buried himself inside, the entire time moving slowly and purposefully. He made love to her holding her gaze.
She watched the sheen of perspiration on his chest wanting so badly to lick it off yet unwilling to lose sight of the ravished look in his eyes. She then watched in sheer fascination as she’d done so many times before when his own release overwhelmed him.
After several moments, he repositioned himself beside her, clutching her against him, chest to chest. “Love you so much can’t picture my life without you, baby girl.”
She wiped the sweat from his forehead. “I love you, Thomas.”
****
Tiffany stirred. Her throat so dry she could barely swallow. She parted her eyes, still cuddled close to Thomas though he’d since moved them into their room. She angled her head up. With the little light filtering in from the moon outside, she saw he slept. A smile tugged at her lips.
She glanced at her nightstand. Beside the lamp, no water. She’d forgotten to get herself a glass. Actually, she always did. Thomas remembered, but he must’ve forgotten. Considering everything that happened, she couldn’t blame him.
Slowly, she began to extricate herself from his side. Nearly done, he tensed, shot up in bed then wrapped one arm around her waist, the other grasped her thigh.
“Tiff?”
Damn. She hated she’d woken him. “Go back to sleep. I—”
“You need water. I forgot to bring it.”
“It’s okay. I’ll get—”
“No.” He buried his face in the crook of her neck. “I got it.”
Before she could argue, he hopped out of bed and disappeared through the door. A moment later, he returned with a glass of water and handed it to her.
“Thank you.” She took a sip.
He climbed in bed and kissed her forehead then lay close beside her. Taking several sips, she placed the glass on the nightstand. He ran his hand over her lower back. She shifted, facing him, rested her head against his shoulder, and placed her hand on his chest. He planted his over hers. Moments later, his breaths evened out. He fell asleep easily. With that, she realized he hadn’t lied.
She made him forget.