Chapter 22

Keith should’ve known she’d be pissed when she found out. He wasn’t doing it because he wanted to be in control of her salon. That was the last thing he wanted her to think. She’d been so stressed from everything, and he just wanted to make things easier. Kim had appreciated it at least.

He lay on his back in the bed with Burlap curled up on Emily’s pillow. It seemed like the cat missed her too. Since she’d been at her parents, he’d found the ball of fur curled up in Emily’s slipper, her sweater and even sleeping on her pillow at night.

It was four in the morning, and sleep had become impossible without Emily. He glanced at the cat and pulled out his phone. He clicked a picture just as the cat popped up her head and attached it to a text.

Don’t be mad at Keith. He just wanted to help. I miss you, but Keith misses you more. Love Burlap.

Even if the text didn’t get him off the hook with her, she’d probably get a giggle out of it. Pathetic. Sending her texts from the fucking cat because he couldn’t just come out and tell her he loved her. It was why he wanted to make all her stress and pain disappear.

The next morning he’d spent catching up on email, paying bills, and sending invoices. In between, he frequently checked his phone to see if Emily had read his message. She hadn’t, but that was probably because they were up to their ears with preparations.

“Hey, you home, Rusty?” Smash’s voice echoed through the house.

“I’m in the office,” Keith shouted.

A few seconds later Smash walked in followed by Sandy. Both of them had the same urgent look on their face, but before he got a chance to ask what was going on. His phone rang. Keith glanced at the screen and was disappointed to see it wasn’t who he’d hoped.

“Hey, Uncle Kurt,” Keith answered as he held up his finger to Sandy and Smash.

“Ken Becker is dead.” Kurt sounded pissed.

“What? How?” Keith hit speaker on his phone, so he didn’t have to repeat what he was being told to Sandy and Smash.

“Nelson called the brothers into his office yesterday and confronted them about the money. I gave Gage the go ahead to tell Nel about what he’d found.” Kurt never called any of the guys by their nicknames.

“They denied it, but when Nel gave them the proof on paper, Ken was pissed and left. Nel said Elliot stayed a few seconds later and swore he had nothing to do with any of the missing money.” Kurt continued.

“How did Ken die?” Keith glanced up at Sandy. She had pulled out her phone and was typing something.

“It appears that he hung himself, and Elliot seems to be in the wind.” Keith could hear the sound of phones ringing. It meant Kurt was probably at the station.

“Why do I get the feeling you don’t think it’s suicide?” Smash asked.

“Just something the coroner said. There were two marks on his neck, but only one matched the rope he was hung with. The other mark was deeper and thinner. I’ll know more after the autopsy.” Kurt sounded rushed.

“You’re not telling me everything.” Keith knew his uncle well.

“There was a typed letter on the screen of his laptop. He admitted to everything about the money and….” Kurt stopped.

“And what?” Keith sighed.

“The letter apologized for hurting Lynn and damaging Emily’s salon,” Kurt said.

“You said it was typed?” Sandy asked.

“Yeah,” Kurt replied

“That seems legit.” Smash’s sarcasm wasn’t missed.

“We have an all points out for Elliot,” Kurt said. “Right now he’s a suspect.”

“I need to give Rex and Truck a heads up. If Elliot is behind this and he did kill his brother, he could be crazy enough to go after Emily.” Keith’s heart was pounding in his chest. For all they knew, Elliot could probably be at the Bradshaw estate.

“I’ve sent A.J. and Nick out there. I gotta run, but I’ll keep you in the loop and if they find out anything let me know.” Kurt hung up before Keith could respond.

“Well, this just took a complete U-turn.” Sandy flopped down in the chair.

“Have you found anything out about the guy Nelson’s father paid off,” Keith tossed his phone on the desk but not before he checked to see if Emily had read his text. She hadn’t.

Sandy handed him a folder and when he opened it he was confused. Inside was a picture of what could be a young Emily and another picture of a man with long dirty hair and an unkempt beard.

“Why do you have a young picture of Emily with this creepy guy?” Keith scanned through the papers under the pictures.

“That’s not Emily. That would be Nora Miller, Emily’s aunt. The only name they had for this guy was, Wooly. That is the accident report and the statements from Mr. Bradshaw, Mrs. Bradshaw, and that man.” Sandy said. “There’s nothing about the guy's name, but he took full responsibility. I’ve got his picture gone to a friend of mine out west. He’s going to do an age progression to see if that helps. If you ask me that guy looks nothing like either of the Beckers.” Sandy tapped the picture.

“Emily looks just like her aunt.” Keith held the picture up in front of him. “If this idiot has snapped, he could think Emily is Nora.”

Before he got a chance to send a text to Rex, he received one from Nick. His brother told him things at the Bradshaws were all good. His whole body was wound up tighter than a drum, and his leg was bouncing up and down. He needed to see her. She may be pissed at him, but he didn’t care. Keith needed to see with his own eyes that the woman he loved was safe.

As Keith jumped to his feet to go to SummerBrook his phone rang again. Her beautiful face flashed on his screen, and he sighed with relief.

“Emily,” He shouted into the phone as he waved Sandy and Smash out of his office.

“Don’t yell at me.” She snapped.

“Sorry, I’ve been worried.” He eased back in his chair and covered his forehead with his hand.

“I’m fine. Still pissed, but your brother is a pain in the ass and hounded me to call you.” She sounded less angry, but he was just happy to hear her voice.

“Thank him for me.” Keith chuckled.

“The hell I will, but when he told me what was going on, I had to call. I may want to kill you, but I don’t want you to worry.”

“Burlap misses you.” Keith wondered if she’d even looked at the text.

“That’s a pretty smart cat. She can take selfies and text.” Emily laughed, and it was the best sound he’d ever heard.

“She wanted me to get in the picture too, but I told her you wouldn’t want to see my ugly mug.” Keith didn’t have to see her to know she was rolling her eyes.

“Yes, because you’re so hideous.” They didn’t speak for a moment, and then he heard her grumble something under her breath.

“What was that, Princess?” Keith laughed.

“You aren’t forgiven for overstepping, but I do miss Burlap.”

“I’ll tell her.”

“I hate to admit this, but I miss you too.” She admitted.

“I guess I’ve got a lot of groveling to do when you come back to Hopedale.” It was odd for him to say those words, but he would beg her on his hands and knees to forgive him, as long as he didn’t lose her.

“Keith O’Connor groveling. That would be a pretty picture.” Emily laughed.

“Princess, just promise we can work this out. I didn’t mean to make you think I was taking over.”

“I know, but you can’t do things like this. If we’re going to be together, I need us to work together and not keep secrets.” Emily sniffed. “I’m in this situation because of things being swept under the rug.”

“I know, and again I’m sorry.”

“I need to go. Mom, Elaine and I are having a mani and pedi day.” She laughed, and Keith pulled the phone away from his ear to tap the FaceTime button. “What the ….”

Keith waited until her face appeared on the screen before he spoke.

“What are you doing?” She narrowed her eyes.

“I wanted to see that beautiful face.” He smiled.

Her expression softened, but she did roll her eyes. It was as if all Keith’s tension drained away when he saw her. That was until his brother’s face appeared over her shoulder.

“Hey, bro.” Aaron winked.

“I didn’t want to see that ugly ass,” Keith growled.

“Gee thanks, bro. Love you too.” Aaron laughed and stepped away.

“I’ll let you go, but call me later, okay?” Keith warned.

“If it gets too late I’ll text you.” Emily smiled. “I…. “ She stopped and glanced behind her. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

Her face disappeared from the screen, and he blew out a huge breath.

“I love you, Princess,” Keith said to the black screen. “I really love you.”

Keith stood off to the side of the huge tent in the Bradshaw’s yard. It was bad enough he had to be there without Emily, but Nelson invited his whole family. All Keith knew was, being dressed in a fucking monkey suit was not comfortable, and he wanted to make a run for it. The only saving grace was he wasn’t alone in his discomfort, his guys looked just as miserable.

Lynn had hired the band his brother’s played in. Rocking The Law was the name of the band that Aaron, Nick, Mike, and John put together with a couple of friends. The name came from the members either being lawyers or police officers. It was just a hobby for them, but they played at events to raise money for charity. They were also incredibly talented.

Bull had come back to help with security for the event, and with all his brothers close by as well, there were plenty of people to keep an eye on Emily. He scanned the room several times since he’d arrived, but he hadn’t spotted her. That bothered him.

For what seemed like the millionth time he tugged on the collar to try and loosen the snug neckline of his shirt. That’s when he saw Emily glide into the room wearing a strapless pale pink dress. It clung to each and every one of her ample curves. Suddenly the neckline of the tuxedo wasn’t the only part of the stupid suit that was uncomfortable. He was sure his trousers had suddenly become a size too small around the groin.

Keith didn’t typically agree with women wearing makeup because he always found the natural look much more attractive. Emily didn’t need anything to enhance her beauty. However, the lipstick she wore made him want to stalk over and kiss every last bit of it off. When his cock grew painfully hard, he cursed himself for even thinking about it.

“I thought she wasn’t supposed to be here tonight?” Bull whispered next to him.

Keith couldn’t take his eyes off her, and although he knew she’d be there, he had to act oblivious to her plan. Whatever it was. He still didn’t know how this big idea of hers was going to bring out this guy. He wasn’t comfortable with her putting herself out there, but she was stubborn.

“Haven’t you figured it out yet? Emily Bradshaw does what she wants and when she wants, regardless of her own safety.” It pissed him off that she never listened, but he’d agreed to this.

How stupid am I?

Emily now stood in a tent full of fake people pretending to care about the charity her mother had started all those years ago. The Sweet Heart Ball was Lynn Ann Bradshaw’s tribute to her daughter, but Keith was sure she never wanted to turn it into the snob fest it was today.

All the fake people fluttering around as if they cared about the cause. All most of them cared about was showing their snooty asses at one of the biggest parties of the year. To make it worse one of those people could be out to hurt the woman he loved. He sure as hell didn’t believe it was Elliot Becker or Ken for that matter.

Elliot still hadn’t been found, and something told Keith that they probably wouldn’t find him. At least not alive. Nothing pointed to either of the Becker brothers being the man they were looking for. Sandy was still waiting for her friend to get back to her with an age-progressed photo. So until then, they just had to wait.

“So who’s the suit that just put his hand on her ass?” Bull growled, but it was nothing compared to the roar that was building inside Keith.

The guy had his hand lower on her back than a gentleman should.  This couldn’t be Mitchell Palmer because if it was, there was no way the man was gay. If the fucker didn’t remove his hand from Emily’s ass, Keith would rip the guy's arm off and beat him to death with it.

“I think it’s time Ms. Bradshaw and I had a dance.” Keith stalked to the side of the room where Emily and the asshole with the hands chatted with another couple. Keith didn’t have any idea who they were, and he really didn’t give a shit. He was about three strides from her when she turned slowly and smiled.

“Hello, Mr. O’Connor.” She grinned, and Mr. Hands pulled her closer to him.

“Ms. Bradshaw, I believe you promised me a dance.” Keith held out his hand. He hoped the ass would say something just to give Keith an excuse to throat punch the guy.

“You don’t mind, do you, Mitchell?” Keith didn’t like the tone of her voice. It was one he’d heard spoiled little rich girls use to get what they wanted. His Emily wasn’t like that.

“Umm…. I guess…. it’ll be all right.” Mitchell said. Although, Keith just wanted to call him an asshole. Keith also didn’t like the way the other guy stared at Emily’s cleavage. Not that it wasn’t on his mind too, but this guy was creepy about it.

“I guess it’s time I paid my debt to you, Mr. O’Connor.” Emily put her hand in his, and he led her to the other side of the dance floor.

He wanted to get as far away from the assholes as possible. The song had just finished, and when he glanced at John on stage. His brother winked as the music started. You Had Me From Hello. How appropriate. The Kenny Chesney song said it all.

“Who’s the guy with the hands, Em?” Keith smiled down at her, but his voice was a growl.

“Mitchell. I’m sure I told you who’d be my escort.” Emily’s tongue darted out to moisten her lips. The action made his cock ache, and he had no doubt she did it on purpose.

“Don’t do that!” He snapped as he tried not to squeeze her body tighter against his.

“Do what?” She tipped her head to the side the way she always did when she gazed up at him.

“Just keep your tongue in your mouth. Why is Mitchell touching your ass, I thought he was gay?” Keith glanced over her shoulder. Mitchell had moved and was watching them.

“He is, but his family doesn't know.” She whispered. “Keep your voice down.”

“Emily, don’t play games. Is he gay or did you just tell me that so I wouldn’t worry?” Keith’s hand slid lower on her back just above her ass. Keith smirked when Emily gasped, and Mitchell narrowed his eyes.

“He’s gay, I promise you. It’s funny how you didn’t want Mitchell to put his hand on my ass, but you seem to think it’s fine for you. You also didn’t mind my tongue when I was licking your cock.” She whispered, but the sound of the word cock coming out of her mouth had him rock hard.

“That’s because you’re mine, Em.” Keith leaned down and whispered into her ear. “And you didn’t seem to mind licking it either.”  He saw the goosebumps rise on her skin and she shivered.

“I didn’t mind,” Emily’s voice came out breathy.

“Princess, I don’t like the way that guy is pawing at you.” Keith had to be honest, after all, he was still hired to keep her safe.

“For the love of God, he’s my friend and nothing more.” Emily snapped and tried to pull out of his arms, but he wasn’t having none of it. He’d missed her so much over the last few days that it was heaven to have her pressed against him.

“No way, Princess,” Keith growled.

He spun around with her still in his arms and stalked out of the tent pulling her with him. She tried to pull her hand from his grasp, but she couldn’t without causing a scene. Keith grinned as he weaved them through the mass of people. No matter how she acted anywhere else, she wasn’t about to cause a fuss in front of everyone.

“Let go of me,” Emily whispered through gritted teeth. Keith glanced back at her. She smiled at people as they squeezed by.

Keith didn’t let her go until they were on the other side of the estate. Nobody was permitted in the part of the house where all the bedrooms were. When he stopped, she slammed against his back. Keith had to grab her around the waist to keep her from toppling over on the stilettos she was wearing.

“You’re acting like an overbearing Neanderthal. Just because I’m less than half your size and weight, doesn’t mean you can push me around like a god damn rag doll.” Emily pressed her fists into his chest as she tried to push away from him.

“And you’re acting like I shouldn’t be pissed about someone else touching you.” She licked her lips again, and he wasn’t sure if she did it on purpose or because she was as turned on as he was.

“He didn’t yank me off like some people. Now let me go damn it.” She pushed at his chest. The next thing he knew she was pressed against the wall, and he had her head cradled in his hands.

“Why the fuck can’t I keep my hands off you?” He wasn’t really expecting an answer.

“I don’t know, but you may want to get that huge bulge in your pants checked out. It seems to be growing bigger by the minute.” Emily grinned.

“Fuck, woman.” Keith covered her plump lips with his, and she sighed. Strawberry. The fucking lipstick tasted like fucking strawberries, and that sent him completely out of control. He plunged his tongue into her mouth, as his hands moved down her back to the swell of her round ass. He pulled her against his erection and her arms snaked around his neck. Her fingers threaded into his hair and she tugged on it. She knew what that did to him.

“We can’t do this here.” She panted as he nipped his way down the side of her neck.

“Where?” He growled when she pulled his hair again.

She kissed him hard on the mouth and reached behind her to take his hand. As much as he wanted to take her right then and there, he really wanted to be somewhere they wouldn’t get interrupted. The sight of another man’s hand on her made him need to remind her who she belonged to. As bad as that seemed, he didn’t give a fuck. Nobody was going to touch her but him.

She led him up a set of stairs in the back of the house. He followed and enjoyed the view of her sweet ass sway in front of his eyes. The staircase seemed to go on forever.

“Where the fuck are you taking me?” Keith grumbled.

“We’re almost there, grumpy ass.” Emily giggled.

At the top of the longest staircase, he’d ever climbed was a door that led into a huge bedroom. It was clean and bright with windows completely around the room. In the center was a king-sized bed covered with a dark purple comforter.

“Are we in Rapunzel’s tower?” Keith walked into the room and turned around taking in the entire view.

“Well, you said I was a princess.” Emily smiled as she turned and locked the door, then slowly backed him towards the huge bed.

“This is your bedroom?” Keith didn’t stop her.

“Uh huh.” She nodded and licked her lips.

“And you live in that little apartment in Hopedale? Why?” Keith had to admit he wasn’t one for the finer things in life. He liked to keep things simple, but the room was fantastic and had a full view of the entire town of SummerBrook.

“Because there’s this hot guy who lives there and I like to seduce him.” She pushed him back until his legs hit the edge of the bed.

“Baby, he likes to be seduced.” Keith ran his index finger down the side of her neck. “He’s just not sure if he deserves you.”

“Keith, don’t say things like that. You deserve to be happy, and I don’t know if I’m the one to do that, but I want to try.” When she cupped his cheek in her hand, he covered it with his own and closed his eyes. Her touch calmed him like nobody else.

“Emily, I missed you so much.” He sat on the bed and pulled her between his legs as she helped him out of his jacket and tie. Her eyes never left his as he lowered the zipper at the back of her dress. He dragged the dress down her body and took his fill of the creamy, soft skin. She’d unbuttoned his shirt, and it actually hurt to stop touching her so she could remove the damn thing.

“Keith, stand up,” Emily whispered as she stepped back from him. For a moment, he took in the vision in front of him. With her dress pooled at her feet, she stood in front of him in nothing but a pink strapless bra and a sheer pair of pink panties. She was also wearing pink stilettos, and his cock felt like it was going to burst through the zipper at the sight of her.

“You can leave on the shoes, but as fucking sexy, as you look in that bra and panties I want them gone.” Keith stood up and reached for her, but she slapped his hands away.

“Hold on a second, Mr. Bossy Pants.” She smiled as she kicked the dress away from her feet and reached for the button on his pants. “I want to see if you go commando with everything you wear.” Keith grinned.

“I told you I always go commando.” Keith gasped when her hand slid inside his trousers and skimmed against the head of his cock.

“It’s just so damn sexy.” His pants fell down around his ankles, and her hand gripped his shaft. His eyes drifted closed as she slowly worked him. It was fucking heaven to have her hands on him. It hadn’t been more than a few days, but it felt like forever.

“Em, I really enjoy the way you do that, but I need to feel my cock inside you.” Keith pulled her into his arms and eased her down on the bed. While she made quick work of her bra, he yanked the panties from her. She was about to kick off the shoes, but he grabbed her foot. “No, leave them on.”

“Okay, but you are giving me a foot rub after this. These things hurt like a son of a bitch.” She smiled when he lowered his body on top of hers. He’d been smart enough to grab the condom out of his pocket and toss it on the bed before he’d lost his trousers.

“I’ll rub anything you want, Princess.” Keith grabbed the condom used his teeth to tear it open, then he rolled it on without tearing his eyes away from her.

He crawled over her and hovered above her as he lowered his head and ran his tongue across her lips.

“That lipstick tastes like strawberry.” He whispered just before he devoured her mouth. His cock was pressed against her warm heat, and he wanted to plunge inside her, but he wanted to go slow. This somehow felt different.

“Keith, I want you inside, now.” She gasped against his lips and reached between them and to guide him where she wanted.

“Easy, baby,” Keith whispered and ran his thumb across her hard nipple making her gasp when he pinched it.

“Damn it, Keith.” She groaned when he pulled the other nipple into his mouth and sucked it hard. Before he knew what happened, she had him right at the entrance of her wetness, and he started to push into her slowly.

“Fuck, you’re so damn hot.” Keith clenched his teeth together as she raised her hips driving him deeper inside her. “So. Fucking. Hot.”

“You feel so good.” The heel of her shoe was pressed against his ass, and it was sexy as hell. He pushed deep inside her and dropped his head into the crook of her neck and groaned.

“Fuck... Fuck…. Em, don’t move yet. If you do, I’m done.” Keith took a couple of deep breaths to ease the urge to come for just a few more minutes. “You feel so fucking good around me.” He whispered into her ear when he started to thrust again.

“God, Keith. Don’t stop.” She panted as he slowly pumped in and out of her.

The feeling of being so deep inside her was overwhelming, his life was never going to be the same. He’d never felt such a deep connection with anyone. Keith raised his head to gaze down into her eyes, but he was surprised to see them wet with tears.

“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” Keith stopped moving as he wiped the tear from her face.

“You didn’t hurt me, but you’ve got the power to break my heart because Keith….” She closed her eyes and swallowed.

“Em?” If she only knew the power she had over him.

“Keith, I’m in love with you, and I know it’s crazy fast but…” He stopped her with his finger against her lips.

“Princess, the truth is….” Keith looked deep into her eyes. “I fell in love with you the first time you told me to fuck off.”

She laughed, and the vibration made her squeeze around him, and he pushed in deeper.

“I love you, Emily. You’re mine. All mine.” With those words, he covered her mouth with his and pumped into her with everything he had. The heels of her shoes dug into his ass as she grabbed fists full of his hair and screamed into his mouth. She closed around him, and it was all he needed. His body vibrated as he poured inside her.

When her body went limp underneath him, he rolled her over on top of him. He was still inside her, and she wiggled for a moment, and he heard two thuds on the carpet.

“That’s almost like another orgasm.” She sighed and kissed his chest.

“Well if that was like an orgasm then I did everything wrong.” Keith chuckled. She raised her head and rested her chin on her hands that were folded.

“You did everything right, but you have no idea how good it is to take off shoes like that.”

“Then why wear them?” Keith wondered why women would wear something that gave them discomfort. She raised her eyebrow and grinned.

“I’m laying on top of you, naked, and you have to ask why women wear shoes like that. Do you not remember saying they were hot?” She smiled.

“I’m sorry they hurt, but they are hot as hell.” He rolled her onto her back and kissed her lips. When he raised his head, she smiled. “I meant what I said, Em, I love you.”

“I love you too, Keith. Just don’t break my heart, okay.” She looked so vulnerable at that moment.

“You’re mine, Princess, and if you want me, I’m all yours.” Keith touched her cheek.