by Kaci Rose
"I love her and have since high school," I admit for the first time out loud. It feels wrong that Landon is the first one to hear it, but it needs to be said. I'm putting all my cards on the table.
He just stares at me. There’s no emotion on his face, so I say what I had planned.
"Yeah, I slept around, but I was always honest with them, and I didn't want commitment. I didn't want it if it wasn't with Austin. I had it in my head she would never want me. I want you to know I haven't slept with her. She's different, and she’s more important."
"You haven't slept with her?" He looks shocked.
"I haven't. This time with her has only made me fall in love with her even more, and I realized I can't live without her."
I pause and let that sink in.
Landon studies my face, while his is still blank of emotion.
"I hate to lose you. You’re my best friend, but I can't live without her. So, don't make me choose, because there’s no contest, it will always be her."
He sighs and runs his hands over his face.
"I remembered what yesterday was, and I canceled my trip and got back as fast as I could," he says. He's talking about the anniversary of my mom's death.
"I had Austin. We talked, and I told her everything, even how I used to spend the day. You always said I hadn't dealt with it, and I think you were right. There was a part of it I couldn't talk to even you about, because during that time, I needed her. When I was with her, it was the only time I felt happy, and the dark cloud over me lifted. She and I talked a lot yesterday. We talked about the good times, the bad ones, and everything we didn't get a chance to say to each other back then."
I pause and smile, remembering our time sitting on her bed, talking about anything and everything.
"I needed that more than I realized. I needed her. Yesterday, I laughed, I smiled, I and remembered the good times with my mom, not that horrible time, after she was gone."
"What couldn't you talk to me about?" He asks, looking hurt.
"Well, did you know, when it storms Austin crawls into bed with me at night? She has for years." He looks shocked, but not angry. "Do you know why?" I ask him.
"Why?" He asks quietly.
"That night my mom died I couldn't sleep. It started storming really bad, and she woke up. I needed someone. She was there for me and held me all night. We didn't make the connection, until yesterday, but it started then. Storms make me think of my mom, and when Austin is there, she chases those thoughts away. She’s never liked storms, since your parents died, so I’ve been there for her, too."
"She's been climbing into bed with you for years, and you expect me to believe you never touched her? Damnit, you were her prom date. I know what happens on prom night!"
I just laugh. I don't know what else to do.
"Until today, have I ever given you a reason not to trust me? Did I want to put my hands on Austin? Yes, I wanted her so bad it hurt. I would hold her, and she would cuddle up to me, but that was it. And again, I didn't touch her at prom either. After the dance, we went and lay in the field on a blanket and talked. She was upset about her ex and needed someone to talk, too. I just wanted to soak up time with her. If you don't believe me, ask her yourself." I say.
"She was so much younger back then, and it didn't seem right you liking her." He says.
"She's barely two years younger than me. Your dad was five years older than your mom, and they dated in college." I remind him. "You know you have to let her lead her own life and not try to control her, right? The harder you try to hold on to her, the more you’ll lose her. You’ll put yourself in a no win situation. Even if I stepped away from her, which I won't, don't you think she will blame you? You know what heartache is like. Do you really want to be the one responsible for causing your sister that kind of pain?" I ask him.
He cringes but says nothing, as my phone rings. I breathe a sigh of relief that it's Austin. I look at Landon, before stepping out of the room and answering it.
"Baby girl, are you okay?" I ask.
"Yes, I'm more than okay. I'm sorry I walked out and left you to deal with him alone. Are you okay?" She asks, and I just laugh.
"I can handle him, so don't you worry about me."
She’s quiet for a moment, and I don't want to push her.
"I want our bubble back." She says.
"Me too," I admit.
"Good, I'm going to text you an address. Pack a bag for each of us for five days. Actual clothes, Dallas and bathroom items, and I’ll meet you there."
I smirk. She knows me well. My first thought was to pack as few clothes as possible. Who needs clothes in our bubble? I plan to keep her clothes off her as much as possible.
"Meet me where?"
"At the address I'm going to text you. I kind of took your car, so bring mine, or have Mason bring you, if you want."
"I'll be there. You’re safe, right?"
She laughs a carefree laugh that wraps around my heart.
"I'm better than I’ve been in a long time. See you soon."
I don't bother going back in to the kitchen to talk to Landon. I just head upstairs and find one of her bags in her closet and start grabbing clothes. Shorts, jeans, some of my favorite tops, and everything else she will need. I get her phone cord, tablet, and laptop too just in case.
Once her stuff is packed, I go to my room and do the same. I pull up the address she has texted me, and I see it's about an hour away.
I head downstairs with both bags over my shoulders to find Landon still in the same place. He looks over, but I don't offer any information.
"You're leaving?" He sighs.
"Austin called. She asked me to pack a bag for a few days. She said she wants our bubble back, and so do I. You both need to cool down and think this out, you especially. We’ll be back, and if you don't want to lose her, you need to talk not yell."
I grab her car keys and look him over one more time. He looks deep in thought, so I just shake my head and head out to the garage.
"I want you both to be happy, I do." He says and stops me in my tracks. "It's hard having been lied to for so long."
"We tried to tell you our intentions, but you made it impossible to talk to you. Maybe, you need to ask yourself why?" I tell him, before I close the door behind me.
Landon has always been my biggest cheerleader, but it seems like the last few years he's changed, and I can't put my finger on it. From not believing that I was changing, to putting down Austin and me, when we tried to talk to him. He just seems off. I need to talk to Austin about it, because she knows him just as well.
I plug the address into the navigation and take a deep breath. The car smells like her, and it's comforting but also makes me hard at the same time. I head towards the highway, ignoring my cock that is trying to find her, find our home. Because above all else, that is what Austin is for me. She's my home.
On the drive, I send up a silent prayer that we are okay, and this doesn't break us. She sounded happy on the phone, and like things are going good, and I just hope it stays that way.
I decide it's time to give her all of me, and the last piece I have been holding back. If she still wants me, I plan to make love to her and show her how much she means to me. I want to feel her around me, when she comes and hold her in my arms, when we’re one. I want that connection, a connection I never wanted with anyone else.
The further I head out of Nashville, the better I start to feel. This isn't how I wanted Landon to find out, but I'm glad he knows. Hopefully, he will get his thoughts together over the next few days, and we can come back and talk like adults, like family.
I have this overwhelming need to make sure things are okay for Austin's sake. I will do whatever it takes to make that happen, except let her go.
No more hiding, and no more sneaking around. I won't hold back anymore.
Chapter 29
Austin
This cabin is perfect. Right at the base of a mountain; it’s close to hiking trails, a
lake, and the cute, small, little town. This is the perfect place for Dallas and me to get back into our bubble and figure out our next steps together.
Because we’re moving forward together; I made that choice at the overlook. I'm going to fight to be that happy couple. That starts here.
The billboard for Mountain View Cabin rentals was just the sign I needed. I stopped in and asked for the one with the best view, and I have to admit this cabin is amazing. I'm not sure how someone else hasn't rented it.
I also stopped at the grocery store in town and got us food, and a few other things to last us over the next few days. Everyone here is so friendly, and it's just the kind of place I would move to, if I was looking to relocate.
I check on our late lunch or early dinner, depending on how you look at it, and see that Dallas should be here any minute. I light a few candles and set the table, as he knocks on the door.
Butterflies take flight in my stomach. I know I shouldn't have left like I did, and while he sounded fine on the phone, he has every right to be mad at me, and I wouldn't blame him if he is.
I open the door to see my handsome man, but that light and carefree look he had this morning is gone. I make myself a promise to get it back, before we head home.
I stand aside and let him in, as he sets our bags down and takes a look around.
"What’s this?" He asks, as his eyes run over the large open concept cabin. The front door opens right into the living room with a massive fireplace. The dining room is to the side with the kitchen just beyond that. It all leads to the massive picture windows with the breathtaking mountain views you can see from just about any place in the cabin.
"I rented this cabin for us for the next five days. You and me. We figure out what our next steps are, and then we go back and talk to Landon, together. We can go public to everyone or not at all. I'm done hiding us."
He answers without hesitation, "We go public. I want all of you, and I want to tell everyone you’re mine."
"My brother?" I ask. I almost don't want to know what happened after I left.
"We talked, and I made it clear I’ll pick you and asked him not to make me choose. He hasn't, and I don't think he will."
A sudden thrill goes through me that he really did mean what he said this morning. A part of me still can't believe we’re doing this. He’s after all the unattainable guy I had a crush on in high school. The one thousands of girls have pinned to their walls, and yet, he wants me.
"Then, you have to give me all of you. No more holding back for either of us." I tell him.
"I'm scared." He whispers, as he reaches for me.
"I am too, but we’re in this together." I wrap my arms around his waist, soaking in his warmth. This is what I needed to just reconnect.
We stand there locked in each other’s arms for a few minutes, before I pull back and place a hand over his chest. Even with his shirt on, I can feel his heat, as if we are skin to skin. The sparks between us are undeniable, but it still takes my breath away, leaving me unable to speak.
"I have something for you." He says, his voice gruff. He pulls a piece of paper from his pocket and hands it to me.
"I got it done the week I asked you to wait for me on tour. I just didn't know when to give it to you, but now seems like the right time.”
It takes me a minute to understand what I’m looking at. It's a clean bill of health from his doctor. He's STD free.
When I look up at him, there’s a light blush on his face, and he looks a little shy. I can't remember the last time I've seen him blush. He can be vulnerable and open around me, yes, this blush isn't something I've seen, since he was that shy teenage boy, who I had the biggest crush on all those years ago.
I lean in and kiss him, because words fail me. Without words, I try to show him what this means to me, and he seems to understand. I pull back and rest my forehead to his.
"I don't have one for you," I say.
He shakes his head, "You don't need one. You have nothing to prove."
"You have nothing to prove either, Dallas. But this is perfect." I tell him and kiss him again. Just a short, sweet kiss, before pulling away to check on the food.
"What can I do to help?" He asks.
"Why don't you get us some drinks, but otherwise, we’re ready."
I set the food on the table, and he pulls me into his lap and slides my plate over in front of us next to his.
"Let me feed you, baby girl." He whispers next to my ear. The heat from his breath sending tingles to my core.
He feeds me each bite of food, and then himself in-between feeding me. One hand remains on my waist the whole time, holding me close to him, like he's afraid I'm going to try to get up and run. Not a chance.
He's constantly nuzzling my neck or placing kisses all over my face, while I eat. It's an easy going time, while I tell him about my drive up here, and the couple I saw at the overlook. I want him to know I'm in this.
"Dinner was amazing, baby girl. I want many more days like this. Dinner and just conversation. This was perfect."
"It was perfect, and I agree. I want many more nights like this, too." I rest my head on his shoulder and enjoy the moment.
"There’s a hot tub on the back porch. Want to go for a soak?" I ask.
"I didn’t bring swimsuits." He admits.
I shrug, "Do we need them?"
He just stares at me, heat in his eyes, "No we don't." He admits.
I stand up and leave the food on the table and make my way to the back door. I stop and look over my shoulder. Dallas is standing with his eyes on me, but he hasn't moved.
I turn back to the door, and before I open it, I whip my shirt off and let it fall to the floor. I leave the door open and shed my shorts next followed by my bra. I'm standing in front of the hot tub, turning on the jets in just my black lace panties, when I feel his body heat come up behind me. He pins me with his hips to the side of the hot tub. His shirt and pants are gone, and he's in just his boxers.
"You are so damn beautiful." He whispers, as he slowly pulls my panties off, his hands trailing down my legs. "Get in." He whispers into my ear.
I do as he says, and then turn my eyes back to him, watching him strip his boxers off and follow me into the hot tub. He sits across from me, and I slide my feet up his legs, until they’re in his lap. His arms are stretched out along the side of the hot tub, but his eyes stay on me the whole time.
So, I settle in and sink down, until the water covers my shoulders. The hot water is easing my tense muscles from the fight with my brother today, but that’s the last thing I want to talk about. We both stare each other down, waiting for the other to make the first move. It's almost a battle of wills, before he breaks a second, before I do. He leans in and pulls me into his lap.
I'm straddling him and feel his cock against my core. With my eyes on his, I grind, and we both groan. His hands roam over my hips up to just below my breasts and to my back.
"You’re so beautiful, baby girl." He whispers, before his lips land on mine. He takes control of the kiss, as he moves my hips over his cock, the tip hitting my clit with each slow pass.
I throw my head back and moan. "More, Dallas."
"Cum for me. Then, I'm taking you inside and making love to you." He says, as he lowers his head to suck one nipple into his mouth.
I shove my chest into his face, needing more, and he sucks harder. He picks up the slow place just enough that it makes me shatter, like the tension cord was just cut. My orgasm over takes me, as I scream his name. Thankfully, there are no neighbors to hear.
Before my body has even relaxed, Dallas is wrapping my arms around his neck and standing up from the hot water with his hands under my ass.
"Wrap your legs around my waist." I do as he says, and he carries me inside.
"Which way?" He asks, since I never got to give him a tour.
"Bedroom behind the kitchen," I mumble into his neck. He chuckles and heads to our bathroom and bypasses the bedroom.
&
nbsp; Before I can even ask what he's doing, there’s a towel being wrapped around me. He sits me on the counter and takes his time drying me off, before drying himself off. His eyes roam over me, and I let my eyes look over him as well.
His muscles seem even more defined, standing in front of me in the bathroom light, and the tattoos on his chest catch my eye. I trace my fingers over the Texas one again, and he places his hand over mine.
"Austin, Texas." He says.
"For me?" I ask, and he just nods.
"You've held my heart longer than you know. I got this one done in Austin, Texas. Every time someone said Austin, or I saw Austin, I would miss you.”
Without thinking, I lean forward and place a kiss on the tattoo right over his heart.
"You've held my heart for longer than you know, too." I pull his hand to the tattoo of their band. "Everyone assumes this tattoo is pride for my brother, but it's not. It was pride for you. Even if you and Landon hadn't demanded I stop wearing bikinis, I would have, because I wasn't ready for either of you to see it yet. Landon still hasn't." I smirk.
He runs his fingers over the guitar tattoo, before his eyes meet mine again. This time his arms go around my waist, and I barely have enough time to hang on, before he swoops me up and carries me back into the bedroom. He lays me on the bed, like I'm the most precious thing in the world, before standing back to look at me.
I can feel every place his eyes land, because they send little heat waves.
"Don't move." He says and disappears out the bedroom door and is back, before I can even think of sitting up. He tosses a box of condoms on the nightstand, before he falls to his knees beside the bed. When he pulls me to the edge, I spread my legs. His warm breath ghosts over my pussy, and I can feel how wet I am.
He leans in slowly and gives me one slow, firm lick from slit to clit, before latching on to my clit and doing that thing with his tongue he knows drives me wild. He's learned my body and knows just the right amount of pressure to put on my clit and just the spot to hit. When he slides two fingers into me, as he stretches me, it pushes me over the edge. My hand pulls at his hair, keeping him close, as I scream out his name.
