CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

BRYAN

Standing shirtless in front of the bathroom mirror, his waist wrapped in a towel, he couldn’t get his fucking body to relax. He had just taken a long, hot shower, and nothing. Tension rolled and crashed, wave after wave at his shoulders and neck. His cell had been silenced the moment he had stepped into the house the night before, but he knew. He knew in the back of his mind that it was still going off.

Courtney might have always been a little crazy, but it was official. She had lost her ever-loving mind. And he had no idea why he was the lucky winner of her attention.

Blowing up his cell with text messages and voicemails. Each one worse than the last. Escalating in nature. He had no fucking clue what the best way to take care of it or stop her would be.

Sexual texts, inappropriate photos, voice rants about their past and how their future would be if he only gave her a chance.

Bryan’s hands clenched along the counter and he rested his chin on his chest, breathing in deeply. Letting the lingering scent of Val’s body wash and perfume in the air soothe him. She had taken a shower before him, and her scent made him feel slightly better.

Cool, strong fingers touched his back, and he felt the soft curves of her body pressed tightly to his back “You okay?” she asked carefully, and he nodded. Looking at the mirror, he saw her head peek from his side, her gaze warm but worried.

“You sure?” she asked, never wavering from their eye contact.

“I had twelve voice messages and twenty-three texts.” He wasn’t going to mention the number of missed calls or photos.

“Since she started calling?”

“Since I got home last night and silenced my phone.” He swallowed hard wondering if Courtney’s shit was going to be the thing that had Val tell him ‘peace out’. Though if he was honest, he was surprised what his grandmother had pulled hadn’t already done it.

“Have you answered any of her calls?” she asked logically, and he sighed.

“Not since the first one yesterday.”

“Maybe talk to her? Or report it to the…” She pressed her lips together, and he watched the amusement in her eyes.

“The police? You want me to report this shit to my department?” he asked, a smirk of his own on his face.

“I know,” she sighed, then he lost sight of her as she leaned her head on his back, her soft, delicate hands moving up and down his torso. “Maybe she’ll get tired of trying to get your attention and leave you alone.”

“Maybe,” he repeated, not believing that Courtney would give up so damn easily. The only thing that would get her to give up was if some unsuspecting male fell into her web and caught her attention.

“Either way, we have the entire day to be together tomorrow.” Her hands wrapped around his waist, and he held them as her lips touched the center of his back and let her kiss relax him.

“Yeah. You’re probably right,” he lied again. He knew Courtney; she could be like a dog with a bone, persistent when she had something stuck in her head.

“Oh, shoot.”

“What?” He turned, his own arms wrapping around her soft body.

“I forgot that I’m meeting Tania in the morning tomorrow, and then I have an errand to run.”

“You are?” he asked, his hand stroking her hair, smiling at the way her eyes fluttered shut, so much trust in the gesture.

“Is that okay with you?” she asked softly, her eyes still closed, her light eyelashes fanned over her cheeks as his fingers stroked her scalp.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Her eyes fluttered open when he spoke, and she leaned further into his touch.

“I just wanted to make sure…”

“Baby, I’m happy you are making new friends. Tania’s great. So is Grace, if you—“ She covered his mouth, and his ears filled with the sound of her laughter, making his heart warm over.

“I don’t need you to set up play dates for me.” She giggled.

“I know, but you know if—“

“I know, and I thank you,” she cut him off. He got lost in her emerald pools. “Turn around,” she whispered, and his eyes narrowed.

“Why?”

“Just do it.” Her lips twitched sexily in her attempt to boss him around.

“Fine,” he groaned playfully.

Giving her his back, he immediately felt her body shift closer but not completely flushed up against him. Her hands were warm and splayed open as they moved up and down his muscles, and he couldn’t help but groan in pleasure.

“Fuck,” he grunted, “You have magic hands.” His head leaned forward and he stilled when her hands came off him. “What are you—“

“Shhh…. Relax,” she whispered. “You’re so tense.” She kissed his shoulder before reaching around him.

He watched from the mirror as her talented hands grabbed a bottle of lotion. She’s so damn beautiful. She bit her bottom lip as she pumped out creamy lotion onto her open palm, and he smiled inwardly when she spread it on her hands before touching him. Warming it up for him. Something so damn simple but just like that, he fell further, deeper in love with her. It was more than just her grabbing lotion and warming it up. It was how she cared for him. Every action showed it.

She worked his back, and he couldn’t help but close his eyes. With a delicate strength that surprised him, the palms of her hands glided up and down then across the broadness of his back. She stroked and kneaded his flesh. Untying knots he didn’t even know he had. His little goddess rubbed him in all the right spots, loosening the tension his body had been holding on to throughout his shoulders and neck. Slowly, she moved her hands downward, sliding down his lower back, the sensation making him groan loudly.

The minutes slipped by, and even though they both had to get to work, she didn’t seem to be in a hurry and he couldn’t get himself to ask her to stop; her hands felt like fucking heaven. Through heavily hooded eyes, he watched the mirror in front of him. Catching glimpses of her face on his body, taking in the way her sage-green eyes heated and her cheeks turned pink. Her tongue licked her lower lip, and his body was more than relaxed. He started to get hard and cleared his throat, trying to somehow get control of his body.

“That feel good?” she asked in a throaty tone he recognized. A tone that made him swallow hard, because he knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

“Yeah,” he groaned when she hit a spot that made him relax and all the blood in his body flow south.

“Hmm…” Her hands dipped to the edge of the towel that was around his waist, and she quickly undid it, letting it fall at his feet.

“Val.”

“Hmm?” Her hands moved to his ass and she squeezed. He groaned. Had anyone ever squeezed his ass?

“What are you doing, Blondie?” he asked as her hands glided over his hips, her body pressing flush up against his back, her hands moving to the V of his abs.

“Trying to get you to relax,” she whispered against his back. Her lips peppered kisses just as one of her hands splayed open, flat on his abs, the other gripping his hardened shaft tightly.

“Val—“

“Shhh…” she hummed, and his eyes moved to his front, looking at her dainty hand on his abs stroking his flesh up and down as she stroked his stiff cock. Her touch was just right as she worked her silky hand up and down. Her lips touched his neck, and his balls tightened.

“Val—“ he groaned.

“Shh… Let me touch. Let me do this…”

“A hand job?” he asked, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down.

“I want to help you relax. I want to help you start your day with a pep in your step, handsome.”

“Fuck, baby, you keep doing that, you’re going to have a mess in your hand,” he warned, feeling her lips on his shoulder, then up to his ear.

“Hmm, I like that.”

“You want a mess?” he croaked, shutting his eyes as her breath sent sinfully delicious shivers down his spine. Hell, he could swear he could even feel her smile.

“I want to make you cum so hard, you make that sound.”

“Sound?” He licked his lips, his eyes on her hand working him, her touch so fucking perfect it was like—

“Hmm,” she moaned into his ear. His body tightened. “You sound so sexy when you cum,” she shared, and he shook his head.

“I’m sure you sound better. Let me—“

“No. I love touching you,” she whispered. “Remember that back rub I gave you when you first moved in?” she asked him, and he was so damn delirious with everything she was making him feel all he could do was grunt.

“Fuck!” he moaned, his head falling back slightly. “I remember. You made me so fucking hard I was afraid I was going to shoot my load in my damn shorts.”

“I was so wet, so turned on,” she kept sharing, and Bryan knew if she kept up the dirty talk, he was going to be a goner. “No one has ever turned me on like you do, handsome.”

“Baby,” he panted.

“I want you all the time. I’m probably getting off on this more than you, Bryan.”

“I fucking doubt that, Blondie.” He gritted his teeth, trying to catch his breath as her hand tightened around his girth as she kept working his shaft.

“I love this. I’m so wet for you,” she mewled, panting softly, her lips on his bicep.

“Valerie…”

“I am. You make me like this. Please, Bryan,” she pleaded, and he was so fucking far gone he would give her the damn moon if he could. “This okay?” Her grip tightened and he moaned in return, his hand covering hers on his stomach. “I want you to feel good, baby.”

“Fuck, Val!” he panted closing his eyes. Enjoying every stroke and sensation she brought out in him. From the way her breath tickled his skin softly to the way her luscious curves and softness molded to his body.

“Let go,” she softly pleaded and didn’t stop.

She whispered all the naughty things she wanted to do on their days off, and as much as his jaw clenched and his fist tightened, there was no way he could stop his body. His balls tightened, a tingle shot down his spine mere seconds before he shot his load, groaning her name, his release spilling out of him in ribbons onto her hand as she slowed her speed, milking every damn drop out of him.

“I love you,” she whispered against his arm as he caught his breath. She kept stroking him with featherlight and barely-there touches until he couldn’t stand it. Covering her hand with his, he pulled it away and turned around, leaning into her, placing his head at her neck, and breathing in the scent of her hair and body.

“Fuck,” he sighed, and she held him tighter. “I love you, too, Blondie,” he rasped, breathing in deeply. “Can I return the favor?” he asked into her hair. She pulled away, and he was gifted with her dazzling smile.

“Tonight?”

“You wanna wait till tonight?”

“I don’t want to, but I should,” she pouted, and all he could think about was how damn adorable she was and she was his. His. Fuck, if that didn’t make him a lucky SOB.

“Hmm.” He nuzzled his nose against hers. “You want to wait because of work?” he asked.

“You know it’s because of work.”

“What if we call in?” he suggested, the idea of spending an entire day in bed more than enticing even if he knew neither one of them could just call in.

“I wish.” She smiled brighter.

“Okay. I’ll make it up to you tonight, with interest,” he promised warmly.

“With interest?” Her eyebrows rose, her green eyes glittering with amusement. “I like that.” She kissed him while his hands stroked the end of her hair. “Talking seriously, you know you have nothing to pay back? I wanted to do that for you.”

“I know. But I wanna get in between those sexy legs, Val.” His lips moved from hers, trailing down to the sensitive spot on her neck that made her...

“Mmm.” Right there, he thought to himself, smiling against her neck.

“I have a list of dirty things I wanna do tonight, Val.”

“You do?” she asked in a sexy purr.

“Fuck, yeah,” he roughly answered and felt her body quiver in his arms.

“Damn it!” she exclaimed, stepping back from him. “You are trouble.” She pointed at him, making him smile. “I need to get going,” she shared, her eyes on his chest traveling down to the semi hard-on he was sporting. Though just being around her, hell, the thought of her made him a perpetual walking erection.

“You should go before I take you against that very wall behind you. Especially if you keep looking at me like that,” he threatened. Her head popped up to meet his gaze. He had kissed and touched every inch, every nook and cranny of her body, yet he’d made her blush with his dirty promise.

She held his gaze, her eyes burning with lust and desire and so much fucking love he felt the warmth like a salve. She rolled her eyes playfully at him, and he grinned at her.

“Tonight,” he repeated, watching her rush out before he picked up the towel and got ready for his day.

***

“Fuck, that was a mess.” Tyler shook his head, running his fingers through his dark hair, and Bryan silently agreed as they walked back to his SUV. “Can you believe the shit she said?” Domestics were always hard on Ty. Hell, they were hard on him, but they affected Ty deeply.

“I know, man.” He patted his partner’s shoulder before getting in the driver’s seat, starting up the car as Tyler got in and settled. They sat there staring at the house, neither of them in any particular hurry to leave.

“You think she will ever get out?

“Maybe.” He hoped but didn’t really believe the woman inside that home would. Bryan had seen too much shit on the force. He turned to look at Tyler.

“Hungry?”

“Yeah, but how about we get coffee first?” Ty suggested, and Bryan held in his laugh wondering who the hell his partner had a hard-on over.

“Sure.” He pulled his Explorer out and started driving

“So, what’s going on with your ex? She stop blowing up your phone yet?” Tyler inquired.

“I wish, but it’s been about three hours since I got a damn text from her, so there’s hope.” There was no hiding what was going on from his partner. Courtney had been that fucking persistent the day before.

“Yeah.” Ty chuckled and breathed in, coughing so loud it made Bryan glance over at him. “Hey, you smell that, man?”

“Man, if you laid one out—“

“No, man,” Ty groaned, breathing in, sniffing the air. “Perfume.”

“What?” Bryan asked before taking a deep breath and it him. “What the fuck is that?” he asked at a light, Tyler and he turned, both looking into his back seat. The usually empty seat had what looked like a navy-blue sweater in the center seat.

“Hey, that sweater yours?” Tyler asked, and Bryan clenched his jaw.

“No. Why the fuck would I need a sweater in the middle of the fucking summer?” he gritted, pulling over in front of the coffee shop Ty was obsessed with. They both slipped out and opened the back doors.

He reached for it, the material drenched in strong feminine perfume. When he unfolded it, his jaw clenched as he took in the logo on the front of the hooded sweater.

“What is it, B?” Tyler asked, but he couldn’t get himself to answer.

Staring at his high school water polo sweater, the one he had given to Courtney all those years ago, the thing drenched in what he could now make out as her ‘signature’ perfume, he knew Courtney was far from done with her shit.

His eye twitched wondering what the fuck else she was going to pull.

VALERIE

The day had been long and tedious, one of the few where we hadn’t had severe accidents or crazy patients. It had only been made longer by the promise of Bryan and tonight. Pulling my bike up the drive, I scowled, looking at two boxes on the patio, wondering if maybe Bryan had done some online shopping.

Reaching the boxes, I noticed there were no shipping labels or return addresses. One box had B+C Wedding written all over it with red hearts. The other box, slightly larger, had Happy Times, B+C 4-Ever written on it, the same angry red hearts all over.

With a frown, I dug for my cell from my backpack and called Bryan.

“Hey, baby,” his voice rumbled. I couldn’t take my eyes off the boxes.

“Hey,” I mumbled, obviously distracted.

“What’s wrong?” he immediately asked, and I wanted to say nothing, but looking at the boxes, fear of what could possibly be inside freaked me out. My imagination was probably worse than reality.

“I… Umm… I just got home and…” I didn’t know how to say it. Telling him would ruin his day.

“And what?” he asked. “Valerie? Baby, you there?”

“I just got home and, umm… Bryan, I don’t think she’s done messing with you.”

“Talk to me.”

“I’m home and, well, there are two boxes at the front door.”

“Okay, I ordered some shit for Garret’s birthday. It could be—“

“It says B and C Wedding,” I told him gently and heard the whoosh of breath he exhaled.

“What the fuck?”

“What is it, man?” Tyler’s voice asked in the background, and I winced.

“Umm, well, one says that. Umm, the other says B and C Happy Times. They both…”

“What?”

“They have, umm, hearts all over them. Red ones.”

“They heavy?” he asked sternly.

“I haven’t exactly tried to pick them up, handsome. I saw them and called you.”

“Good girl.” I smiled and shook my head. “Leave them there and make sure you lock up behind you.”

“I can bring them in.”

“I know you can, baby, but a little bit ago, I was working a case, and when we got back, my old high school sweater was in my car.”

“It’s eighty-five today, why would need a sweater and… Wait, from high school? It still fits?”

“Babe. I haven’t seen that shit since I left for my freshman year at college and I gave it to her to keep for me.”

“What?” My body completely stilled, my eyes pinned to the boxes at my feet.

“I gave it to Courtney. I don’t even remember it from when we were married. But when we got in the car, there it was in the back seat reeking of perfume.”

“Oh.” Chills slid down my spine at how obsessed she was with him. The hairs on my neck standing on end, I looked toward the street. No one was around, not even my nosey neighbor, Mrs. Cortez, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching me.

“Val? Baby, you there?”

“Yeah, sorry.”

“Go inside, lock up. I’ll be there soon, okay?” His voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

“Okay,” I agreed softly, opening the front door and walking around the bulky boxes.

“You inside?”

“Yeah.”

“The house okay?” he asked weirdly, and I looked around.

“Do you think she came in here?”

“Babe, does it look okay?”

“Yeah.” It looked the same as it did before I left for work. “It’s all clear, Detective,” I sassed stepping into the kitchen.

“That’s Detective Handsome to you, doll face.” I laughed at his stupid comment.

“How gumshoe of you,” I joked trying to get him to relax.

“You going to stay in?” he asked, not easily distracted.

“Yes, sir.” I couldn’t help answering like a smartass.

“I can call Garrett see if he can stop—“

“Babe, I’m okay. I don’t think you need to—“

“I’ll call him.”

“Bryan,” I sighed. “I’m tired, honey, my week was a little crazy and all I want to do is soak in the tub, maybe sit outside on the hammock with a good book and a glass of—”

“How about you take a shower tonight? I’ll pick up some bath shit, and you can take a long bath tomorrow, and I can sneak in there after?”

“Bath shit?”

“Bubbles or a bath bomb.”

“I don’t know if I should be happy that a guy like you knows about bath shit or if I should be worried.”

“Babe, right now isn’t the best time for you to bust my balls.”

“You love me,” I remind him.

“I do, and because I do, I’m asking you to wait until Garrett or someone can get there for you to go outside.”

“You really think she’s, you know…that cracked?”

“You are who you are to me, so that means I’m not about to take any fucking chances. Not after just meeting you and sure as shit not years after having you.” Wow, that’s incredibly sweet.

“Okay,” I whispered, walking to the coffee maker to get a pot going before I started something to eat for dinner.

“Ty reached Garrett. He’s a little far, but I’ll get someone—“

“Bryan, babe, I’ll be okay.”

“Just amuse me, will you, Blondie? Please? I don’t know how long I’m going to be here, and I’ll probably take longer if I’m distracted worrying about you.”

“You don’t have to worry about me, Bryan. I am a big girl and—”

“Are you mine?” he asked, and my stomach had butterflies. I liked being his.

“Yes.”

“Then give me this. Please?”

“Fine.” I couldn’t say no. He wanted to make sure I was safe. It had been longer than I cared to admit that anyone could have cared about my safety.

“I’ll be home as soon as possible.”

***

“You need to stop this crap, Court.” His growl was loud and clear from where I was blatantly eavesdropping. Is it eavesdropping if he knows I’m sitting here?

He was in the kitchen, his eyes glancing to me and then looking away as he heard whatever she was saying to him, while I sat on the couch in the living room. “I don’t give a shit if you think that shit was you being cute or…”

“Would you like something to drink?”

“I’m good, Valerie. I should probably get out of here.” Donnie stood from the far end of the couch. I stood, too.

Donnie had been sent, since Bryan’s buddy from the academy had been out of town. There was something about Don Bosco that was interesting, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. The guy was in a suit. Even in the heat of the summer, he hadn’t rolled up the sleeves of his wrinkleless dress shirt.

“Thank you for coming by,” I told him, smiling politely

“No worries. I just hope Courtney calms her ass and tamps down the crazy shit.” He shrugged. “Maybe that ass chewing he’s giving her will get her to cool off.”

Bryan had only arrived fifteen minutes earlier. Stepping into the house, he came straight to me, kissed me hard, asked if I was okay, and when he heard my confirmation, he nodded before stepping back out to the front patio. Donnie and Bryan brought the boxes into the kitchen, chucking them onto the dining table.

“I’m telling you, Court, this shit needs to stop. If it doesn’t…” His voice quieted down then picked up. “No, that’s not a threat, Courtney, it’s a damn promise.” The angry tone in Bryan’s voice carried, and Donnie hesitated before leaving.

“You okay?” Donnie asked softly, and I met his gaze.

“I’m fine.“

“You want me to stay, make sure he’s cooled down?” Donnie offered, and I frowned.

“What?”

“Bryan can be a little bit of a hothead—“ Donnie started to insinuate, but I stopped him from saying anything else.

“He would never hurt me,” I answered confidently. Donnie nodded.

“He wouldn’t. He’d cut his right arm off before raising it to a woman. But a man yelling like that can make a woman a little nervous.”

“I’m not just any woman.” I rolled my eyes and then winked, smiling when he chuckled.

“I can see that. Alright, tell him if he needs me, I’m a call away.”

I nodded and watched as he moved through the front yard. Locking the door behind him, I turned only to find Bryan staring at me.

“I’d never hurt you. No matter how pissed I am.

“Bryan, I know that. I told him—“

“Never.”

“I know,” I repeated walking over to him and right into his arms. He held me close, and I breathed him in. “So?” I asked into his strong chest. “What was in the boxes?”

“Pictures and shit.”

“Pictures?” I leaned back so I could look at him and met his stare head-on.

“Pictures. Things. Stuff that…”

“That made up your time together?” I guessed, thankful my imagination had been worse than reality and she hadn’t pulled a Fatal Attraction boiled bunny or something.

“Yeah.”

“Right,” I whispered, stepping away from him. I kept staring at him and didn’t like that I couldn’t read him. Though, who the hell am I kidding? I wasn’t a Bryan expert. We’d only known one another a couple of weeks. Did he look like that because he was remembering all the great times with his ex?

“Stop,” he rumbled.

“Stop what?” I scowled trying to take a step back from him. I needed to gain some kind of mental clarity, because God knew I was a hazy mess in his sexy arms. But he didn’t let me back away. His fingertips pressed into the small of my back.

“Stop imagining something that isn’t there. Court and I—“

“Were together for a very long time,” I stupidly pointed out. I really shouldn’t remind him. What if he changed his mind on me? I looked away from him.

“We were, Blondie.” His finger tipped my head up, so that I could meet his eyes.

“And looking at all those things”—I pointed toward the kitchen—“probably stirred…”

“Stirred what?” he coaxed, and if I weren’t so worried about the fact that I had let myself fall completely for him, I would have seen the glint of amusement in his eyes. But I was worried. Sheer panic was working its way from my toes to the top of my head. Everyone leaves, a voice reminded me.

“Stirred emotions,” I answered looking at the boxes in the kitchen, my mind running wild with images of Bryan in a tuxedo gazing lovingly into Courtney’s flawless face as she stands in bridal perfection.

“Babe.” His lips twitched and I could tell that he was trying to hold back.

“I’m serious.”

“Val, listen to me, and baby, when I say listen to me, I’m being serious. Really listen to me.” I frowned looking at him and my heart clenched a little. “Courtney and I, that happened. But that happened a long time ago. You and I…”

“Are new.”

“Blondie, we might be new, but this is solid. You and me, we’re solid, baby.”

“Are we?” I asked as he suddenly turned blurry.

“Valerie, I love you. I fucking love you so much, you are all I can think about. When I think about the future, all I see is you and me,” he shared sincerely. My nose tingled and I sniffled.

“I don’t cry. Ughh…” I buried my face into his front, hiding the tears from him.

“Hey…. shh… but, baby, if you’re going to cry, I’m going to be the man holding you, wiping away your tears.” I shook my head and laughed through the tears, while he held on to me tighter.

Once I calmed down, I looked up into his grey-blue eyes filled with so much love. And what he did next made my heart melt further. This was because his hands held on to the sides of my face, his fingers at my temples in my hair just as his thumbs wiped away the tears on my face.

“I love you, Blondie,” he repeated. I nodded.

“I love you, too, handsome,” I found the courage to say out loud, letting myself believe his words, because I felt the same way. We might be new, but we were solid.

We were long-term solid, and I was done letting doubt win.

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

VALERIE

“You left me,” he grumbled sleepily into my ear.

“I didn’t leave you.” My lips twitched at his words and how grumpy he sounded.

“You did. You’re not here.” His voice was raspy, obviously still slightly sleepy.

“I told you yesterday that I was meeting Tania for breakfast and then I had to run to the pharmacy.”

“Pharmacy?”

“I need the refill for my pills,” I informed him.

“Pills?”

“Birth control, Bryan,” I cleared up for him, picking my purse off the floorboard of my compact Honda Civic.

“Oh.” The line went weirdly silent and I blamed it on him being only half-awake.

“What time did you get to bed last night?” I asked.

“What?”

“Handsome, I felt you leave after you and I…” My cheeks turned a stupidly pink shade at the memory of how we had decided to go out to eat after the mess with the boxes, and when we stepped back into the house, he had taken me straight to his room.

There he had made love to me.

Real, soul shattering love unlike anything I had even read about in romance novels.

Slow and intimate. Sweet, soft touches and long, passionate kisses. Not one dirty word uttered. It wasn’t until the end that we picked up the speed, both of us racing to jumping over the edge of pleasure together, simultaneously. We were nothing but a heap of boneless bodies, breathing hard with sweat-slicked skin.

“I wanted to get the boxes out, so you didn’t have to see them.” he mentioned, and I smiled.

“Figured that out when I walked into the kitchen and they weren’t there. Why don’t you get some sleep, and I’ll see you in a couple of hours?”

“Okay,” he finally answered.

“I’ll bring you breakfast.”

“You don’t have to do—“

“I know. I want to. How does eggs, bacon, and pancakes sound?””

“Great. Thanks, Blondie.”

“Rest, and I’ll see you in a little bit.” I ended the call and threw my phone into my purse as I folded myself out of the car.

Walking in, I didn’t see Tania, but I went ahead and took the table for two that the hostess offered in the patio area. Sitting there, guessing she might be a little late, I took my phone out, pulled up my kindle app, and dove into a book I had been dying to read.

A hand touched my shoulder, making me jump out of the story that engrossed me. “Tania,” I said but couldn’t say another word when I realized it wasn’t her. It was the last person I would want to deal with, ever.

“You don’t mind if I join you, right?” She smiled brightly. Too brightly. I could feel my face scowl.

“What do you think you are doing?” I asked Courtney as the woman rounded the table and sat down across from me.

“Having breakfast,” she filled me in, and my stare narrowed on her.

“Look, I am meeting a friend, so you should—“

“Tania, right?” She scrunched her face and shook her head. “She’s going to cancel.”

“Why?” The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end when Courtney grinned, her perfect white teeth shining bright as I took in her hair was lighter. No longer a dark brunette but more of a light brown, much like Tania’s hair color.

“What did you do to her, Courtney?” I asked her, trying to stay calm as knots tied themselves up in my gut.

“Stay away from Bryan. He’s not yours,” she started to spout, ignoring my question about Tania.

“Courtney—“ My phone rang, an unfamiliar number on my screen.

“That will be her. You should answer. Don’t worry, I can wait.” I watched as she picked up the menu, then I looked around the patio area of the small restaurant. No one was paying us any attention. If anyone looked at us, they’d think we were there together.

“Hello?” I said into the phone, not looking away from the nutcase in front on me.

“Val, I am so sorry! Listen, I have a flat and somehow my spare is flat, too. You okay if we reschedule?” Tania asked. Relief washed over me.

“Sure.”

“I called you, but your phone didn’t ring, so I called Bryan.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, look, he mentioned something weird was going on with his ex—“

“Right. Look, I should go,” I cut her off, only thinking how I wanted to be anywhere but there.

“Are you okay?”

“Mmm, totes.”

“Totes?” Tania repeated, sounding amused. “Val, did you start on mimosas already.”

“I wish.”

“Wait, is she there?” Tania hit it on the nose.

“Mhmm.”

“What the fuck?” Tania whispered. “Don’t get in a car with her.”

“Never. I better go.”

“Okay.” I ended the call and set my phone down.

“She figured it out?” Courtney asked, placing the menu down, her golden-brown eyes on me.

“Look, I don’t know why you are here or why—“

“I was his perfect girl,” she shared, her voice calm and steady, but it was her eyes that didn’t leave me feeling warm and fuzzy.

“Can I get you two something to drink?” the waiter asked, and I opened my mouth to say no, because I was getting my ass out of there, but she beat me to it.

“Coffee for her, water for me,” she told the waiter. “But we are going to need a couple of minutes for our order,” she added, freaking me the hell out.

“Of course.” The waiter smiled at us and walked away.

“Courtney—“

“You should really watch how much caffeine you drink. It dehydrates and is not very good for your skin,” she shared as if we were girlfriends. “Though, being in the medical field, you probably know that, right?”

“I don’t know what you are doing right now—“

“He’s mine. He’s been mine since we were sixteen,” Courtney informed casually. “Now, I get what he did with you and the women before you. Because, come on, we both know there were women,” she commented, throwing her arm in the air as if talking with her hands.

“Court—“

“I’m as close to perfect as you can get,” she snapped slightly, shook her head, and smiled at me almost maniacally. “I did everything right, and he left.” Her eyes blazed. Something was obviously not right with her. “He left me.”

“We both know that isn’t true. You lied to him. You lied and cheated—“

“What do you think he’s doing with you?” she cut me off, ignoring my points. Without letting me answer, she smirked. It annoyed me.

I’ve met women like her before. Spoiled daddy’s girls who turn into mean girls who never outgrow it and just morph into bitches who don’t act their age but their shoe size. Especially when they didn’t get what they wanted when they wanted it. But the maniacal stare told me it was more than that.

“I think it’s obvious what he’s doing with you.”

“It is, huh?” I couldn’t help asking.

“It is. I mean, God, Valerie, you’re nothing like me.” She laughed, and she wasn’t wrong.

I’m not.

Where she was brunette and fair skinned, I was tan and blond. Her angles and thin lines were opposites to my curves.

“I’m as close to perfect as you can get. And you—” she kept, going, but I was done.

“I think I’ve heard enough—”

“I know about you,” she blurted out. I tilted my head.

“I’m sure Victor was more than happy to enlighten you.”

“Do you know what kind of family I come from?”

“I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”

“I come from good and clean.”

“I bet you do.”

“And you... God....” She shook her head, an evil smile pasted on her face “Your mom’s a junkie and—”

“And she turned tricks to get her fix. Sweetheart, you’re not telling me anything I don’t remember.”

“Your dad’s dead,” she dropped, and I stilled. Without looking away, I schooled my expression to indifferent.

“You didn’t know.” She smiled manically. “Victor thought you might not, but wow! Your mom is on her way to the same place, too. One too many lines.” She tapped her nose, and I swallowed the bile that came up.

“I don’t have time for this.”

“Stay away from Bryan.”

“What made you snap? You’ve been married to someone else for how long? What happened?

“He’s not right for you,” she hissed in a whisper, ignoring my question. “He’s too good for you. You and I both know that, and once he gets tired of…well, getting what you have given so easily, he will see it, too.” She stood up. “But I guess you’re okay with people leaving you, right?” she asked, but she wasn’t done. I was too shocked to move. “Stay away from my husband!” She slapped her hand on the table and then finally turned to leave before I could find my footing.

The waiter approached with my coffee and her water. I simply asked for the bill.

***

“Where have you been?” he asked, and I turned to look at him.

Tania must have called him and told him that Courtney joined me for breakfast, because about a minute after Courtney had disappeared in a Nissan Z, he had called.

But I’d ignored it.

Not because I was playing games, but because I just needed time to think. Time to get my thoughts together.

Standing in the backyard in jeans and a white tee, not only did he look good, but he was clearly pissed.

“Here,” I muttered.

“What?”

“You asked me: Where have you been?” I repeated in a deep tone trying to impersonate him. “I’ve been here.”

“You didn’t answer your phone,” he pointed out. I was starting to get agitated.

“Sorry about that,” I answered sarcastically before looking away and toward the yard, and even though I was outside, the air changed as he approached.

“Sorry about that?” he asked in a daring tone.

“Are you going to repeat and question everything I say today? Because that’s going to get annoying fast,” I clipped, standing up from the hammock, not knowing why but doing it anyhow.

“What did she do?” he asked, and I rolled my eyes.

“Look Bryan—“ His arms wrapped around me, his embrace tight. I shouldn’t like it, but I did. I love how he holds me. Will he get tired of me? I wondered.

“Talk to me, Blondie.”

“You used to call her your perfect girl?” I asked, not really caring, but couldn’t get myself to sharing.

“What?”

“You know that no one can live up to that?” I scoffed, my hands on my hips.

“I was sixteen and didn’t know any better, Val.” I turned in his arms to look up at him.

“Did you keep calling her that after you got married?”

“What is this about?”

“I’m nothing like her!” I shout, so many emotions floating within me.

“I know.”

“I’m not perfect. Not even close and—“ My eyes were pinned to his strong, broad shoulder. God! He had beautiful shoulders, even covered in soft, white cotton I could make out the definition of their sculpted beauty, and I wanted to lay my mess on them.

“Shh… what’s going on, baby?” His voice warmed, and I cracked.

“He’s dead,” I shared, my voice showing my emotional upheaval. His hands gripped my arms tightly, and it felt good to feel them holding on to me. Because, emotionally, I had no idea what I felt.

“Who?”

“My dad.” I looked up at him. He scowled. “My dad’s dead.” Saying it out loud for a second time, I still wasn’t able to get myself to care. I didn’t feel anything but this anger.

“She told you this?”

“He died in prison.”

“Baby, she might be lying…” But I shook my head, and his words silenced.

“I called the prison. She wasn’t. He’s gone. He died a year ago,” I shared.

“Are you—“

“I’m fine.” I laughed. “How horrible is that? He’s gone, and I don’t care.”

“You care.”

“Not even a little bit. Not for me. Not like a daughter should about her dad. I care, because that asshole isn’t draining taxpayer’s money and my uncle finally has justice.” My voice finally cracked, the image of Ron’s bloodied body too clear in my mind’s eye. I attempted to pull away from his hold, but I should have known better. He didn’t let me.

“Baby—“

“She’s the one who messed up Tania’s tires,” I shared in a futile attempt at changing the subject.

“I know. We figured that out.” But I ignored him and kept talking, the idea of him walking away killing something inside of me.

“She knew Tania was going to cancel. It was creepy how timed everything was. She isn’t right in the head, Bryan.”

“I know, Val.”

“She changed her hair, too.” I didn’t know why I felt the need to tell him.

“Val.”

“It’s lighter. Almost like Tania’s shade. Light brown with some dirty blond in it.”

“Okay, baby.”

“But she wasn’t wrong.” He blinked, and I watched his strong jaw clench. My hand caressed his face to try to get him to relax his jaw. “She’s not wrong about me. I don’t come from people like yours. Or hers and—“

“Enough of this shit,” he growled. lifting me up, my legs wrapping around his waist.

“It’s true.” My hands went to his neck. Trying to focus my attention on the feel of his muscular skin, I let them rub. “She wasn’t wrong about me, and we both know it.”

“Considering I have no idea what the bitch said but I know her and know what a bitch she can be, I am pretty sure I don’t agree with you.”

“Where I come from and—“ He stopped me from talking by covering my lips with his.

A deep, sensuous kiss that made my legs tighten around his waist. I was half aware when he sat us down on the couch in the living room.

“Bryan,” I moaned when I felt his length at my aching center.

“I am so damn happy that you are who you are,” he whispered against my lips. I looked at him. “Where we come from doesn’t define us.”

“Handsome, we both know that—”

“That I’m right?” He lifted an eyebrow, challenging me to try to argue with him, giving me a boyish smile that only made my heart flip-flop. “I know I am.” He made me want to laugh with the way he answered before kissing the tip of my nose.

“It’s not that easy.” I sighed, wanting to give in, but I couldn’t find it in me to do it.

“It’s not? Because from where I’m looking at things, it is. Two people fucked up. They made their choices in life and in doing so, they didn’t see the beauty you brought into it just by fucking breathing.” My nose stung and he was a blurry vision in front of me. “You’re like a damn lotus flower that bloomed out of the most unexpected place, Val.”

“Bryan,” I whispered, and he ran his fingers through my hair then bringing them back to my face, tracing the sides and my lips, making shivers run down my body, covering my skin with goose bumps.

“I hate you had to live what you had to live through, with people who were too selfish and didn’t give a shit about you. But I gotta tell you, sitting here, with you on my lap, I feel like the most blessed man in the world that our roads paired up when they did.”

“Handsome—”

“Days of selfish, uncaring people in your life are over,” he spoke like a vow, my eyes stinging with unshed tears and so much emotion I was surprised I didn’t burst. “You have me now, and I mean that in a stable, reliable, you-can-count-on-me-for-anything kind of way. Saying that, I think you’ve noticed the people who come with me. You will never be alone or unloved. Not as long as I’m breathing, and even then, babe.”

I had no words.

Nothing.

I couldn’t figure out a way to tell him what all his words meant to me. How they touched me. How they instantly fed my soul’s farthest depths. So, I did the only thing I could do. I showed him. Tears were streaming down my face just as my lips met his and we breathed each other in. The kiss, like it usually did with us, went from patient and sweet to smoldering, white-hot flames.

Clothes disappeared. Both our hands roamed and touched as we memorized one another. Our moans went from hushed whispers to louder guttural moans as dirty words floated from our lips.

I found myself mid-air, being held like a bride on her wedding day in his arms, our lips still locked as he walked us to my bedroom, letting me fall onto my bed. I only bounced once before his body covered mine. His face was buried at my neck, and I wrapped all of myself around him, legs around his waist, heels of my feet digging into his lower back, my arms wrapped tightly around his neck, enjoying the sensation of his lips and five-o’clock shadow against my sensitive flesh. My skin burned and ached for more.

Suddenly, he rolled off me, and I looked at him, his blue-grey eyes burning.

“Flip over. Ass in the air,” he ordered roughly. I got wetter and followed his order like a good girl.

BRYAN

His eyes were pinned to her as he tried his hardest not to lose his shit and just take her and rut into her. He needed to sink into her wet heat like he needed his next breath, have her take every inch of him, but he would cut his right nut before he ever hurt her.

She moved slowly, the sight of her rolling over completely nude in front of him only teased and heightened his desire. His hand moved and gripped his pulsating shaft, trying to get some damn control. He didn’t want this to end before they even got started. Something about her, just the sight of her, made him on edge, ready to pop his lid early like a teenaged boy watching his first porn video.

She flipped over onto her belly, and it felt like he was watching her move in slow motion. Her beautiful, lush ass curving upward, giving him a peek of her silky pink folds. Biting his lower lip, he heard a deep growl emanate from his chest, but he held himself still. Her ass popped up, her back angled downward, the line of her sun-kissed skin so fucking beautiful he knew he would never forget it. She moved her head toward him, her green eyes darker than he had ever seen them, and he swallowed hard.

Without a word exchanged between them, he scooted closer. Still lying on his side, he let himself touch her. His hand glided over her shoulder and downward. He felt like a lion about to pounce on a gazelle at the sounds that escaped from her and the way her body reacted to his touch. He stroked her back up and down as she purred, and with each sound he felt like a motherfucking king. His touch was light at first, increasing the pressure slowly, stoking his own need, until he was kneading her skin deeply, done with foreplay.

Sitting up, he moved closer. Kneeling on his hunches, he sat between her legs, and without having to ask, she spread her thick, sexy thighs.

The sight of her pretty, glistening pussy, pink and wet, made his mouth water. With every deep breath he took, her feminine scent enveloped him, filling his lungs completely. Bryan let his fingers trace her, taking in her dewy wetness. When she turned back, he winked at her.

“Watch me taste you,” he demanded. Her lips opened in a pretty ‘O’ as he brought his coated fingers to his mouth and closed his eyes in sheer delight at her taste.

Opening them, he caught the way she squirmed, trying to get more of his touch. The sight and smell of her drove him to the brink and he couldn’t wait any longer.

He couldn’t help himself. Lining himself up perfectly with her entrance, he traced the crown of his angry-looking cock against her. His free hand clenched at the sensation of her tightness. Taking a deep breath, he knew exactly how tight she was going to be, how good she was going to feel, and he needed to get as much self-control as he could, so that he wouldn’t lose it too quickly and let them both down. She tilted back against him, the crown of his shaft went in deeper, and his hand came up and slapped down on her supple flesh.

“Be a good girl for me, Val. Stay still,” he growled a command and slipped out of her. His lips twitched in satisfaction at her soft little whine, his eyes not missing the way her hands clenched the bed sheets.

Glancing down, he lined his cock back up, but this time, he didn’t tease. He slammed his full length into her, leaning his own body over hers, his balls tightening at the feel and sound of her below him.

“Yes!” she hissed, and he kissed her shoulder as he started to work his dick in and out of her tight channel.

The sight of her ass in front of him, of his length working in and out of her body, was fucking beautiful. The ice-thin control he had held on to broke and he slammed into her. And before he could check with her to see if she was okay, she fucked him back. Both of them rutting back and forth. It wasn’t romantic; it was hard and brutal, both demanding more with every thrust. He wanted her to feel him the next day. To remind her he had been there. More than just inside of her body, but in her life.

He was hers and she was his.

His spine tingled as her wetness seeped and coated the front of his thighs. He buried his face into the crook of her neck. Kissing and licking her skin as they both sped up.

“Keep going, baby girl.”

“Bryan.” Her sexy fucking pants made his cock ache and grow harder. His body fully covered hers as he rode her with one hand wrapped around her neck. Gently holding her. And she let him. If he was right, she grew wetter at the move. He enjoyed her erratic pulse point under his fingers, while his other hand clenched the sheets beside her face.

“Blondie,” he growled as he felt her start to tighten, but he was determined to get them both off at the same time. He wanted, no, he fucking needed to feel that intimacy with her. He needed to give them both that.

Her hand covered his that was gripping the sheets, and he looked at her. Her eyes on him undid him.

“Don’t stop, Bryan,” she pleaded, and he kissed her. Pressing his lips to hers, he kissed her as he raced to get them there. Pulling away, he slammed balls deep into her, and she took his entire length.

“Come for me. Come with me, baby,” he gruffed, out of breath but nowhere near done with her.

Once, twice, and then finally on the third, he felt her sweet heat contract around him, the hold so tight he felt as if he went cross-eyed as his balls tightened and he shot his seed deep into her. The idea of marking her inside out drove him to a whole other level of orgasmic bliss. Her name muffled by the way he bit down on her shoulder as they both felt the waves of pleasure.

Aftershocks of sensations made it hard for him to keep his body up over hers.

“Hold me,” she gasped softly, both of them breathing hard. He let his body fall over her. His arms wrapped around her, his face in her neck nuzzling her softly.

“Thank you,” he mumbled deeply, his nose skimming her skin, and he didn’t miss her little sigh before she giggled softly.

“For what?”

“For giving me you.”

“Is that what I did?” she asked, giving him more space to nuzzle and kiss softly.

“Yes.” He smiled, and the hand that was covering his tightened.

“How are you so sure?” she asked him, showing him just how vulnerable she felt.

“Because it’s what I did. I’m yours, Val. Just like you’re mine,” he reminded her and he knew she got it when he heard her breathe in deeply, then exhaling a soft sigh.

“I like that.”

“No more worrying about the difference between your people and mine,” he whispered, and she nodded.

He hated that Court had told her about her dad. Not that the asshole deserved a minute of Val’s time, but he wished it would have been something she found out gently. Shaking away any thoughts of Court and her crazy, he let his lips move from her face to her neck, then to her shoulder before he gained enough energy to pull his body up and off hers. He slid out and watched how he dripped out of her. The sight alone made him want to take her again. He wanted to mark her over and over, inside and out. Before his body stirred again, he got up and out of bed, and she looked at him over her shoulder questioningly.

“Stay there,” he ordered with a wink and a smile, going to the bathroom, where he ran warm water and wet a wash cloth.

Returning, he cleaned her up gently and got them into bed, snuggling them up closely as they spoke in hushed tones. Darkness surrounded them, but he had never felt the fires of his soul burn brighter. Minutes washed away into hours and they quickly found themselves falling asleep the way they had came.

Together.