by Kaylea Cross
Sierra officially loved her.
Noah finally dragged her far enough away that she stopped shouting, and let her go, watching her warily. “I know this is hard. I know you’re upset,” he began.
Tiana straightened a few feet from her and Beckett, looking traumatized. “Oh, God,” she cried, her face twisting with grief. “I need to see Ella. I need to see my baby.”
Sierra rushed over and drew her into a hug, unable to stand it. “It’s okay. It’s okay, we’ll take you to see her.”
Noah shot her a grateful look. “I’m taking him into the station for questioning.” Then to Tiana, “You’ll need to bring your daughter over after that. I need to get her official statement.”
Sierra nodded as Tiana did the same, willing away the queasiness in the pit of her stomach.
“You stupid prick,” Brian was yelling at Beckett from inside the car, his bloody face twisted with anger. “I’ll ruin you for this! I’m pressing charges—gonna sue your ass for—”
“Charges for what? For exposing you as a pedophile?” Beckett shot back.
His eyes bulged. “For assault, asshole, and libel. My lawyer will crush you. He—”
“There was no witness during the assault,” Noah said. “For all I know, you tripped and fell on your face on the way to the door.”
Brian’s face twisted as he stared at Noah. “Fuck you. Fuck all of you. You can’t prove anything, it’s Ella’s word against mine. I’m a respected banker. No one’s gonna believe I would ever do anything like that. They’re not gonna take an eight-year-old’s word over mine.”
“That’s up to the judge when you go to trial,” Noah said, and turned his back on Brian. Taking a calming breath, he faced them. “I’ll contact a social worker, have them meet us at the station when you’re ready to bring Ella in,” he said to Tiana, who was still huddled in Sierra’s arms. She nodded once but didn’t look at him, her shoulders shaking with her quiet sobs.
“We’ll take her to my place so she can see Ella,” Beckett said.
Noah nodded. “I’ll call you later. You’ll both have to come down and give your official statements too.”
After he left, a resounding silence filled the yard, broken only by Tiana’s tears and the distant sigh of the sea. Sierra’s heart went out to her. To learn her daughter had been violated in this way was horrible. She just hoped it hadn’t gone any farther than Ella had told them.
Finally, Tiana drew in a shuddering breath and stepped away, wiping her face with her hands. “I didn’t know. I swear to God, I had no idea he would do something like that. If I had, I would never have had anything to do with him. I would never have let him near my daughter.”
“We know that,” Beckett said, his deep voice calm. “It sounds like we stopped this before any real damage was done. At least, I hope we did.”
“I need to see Ella. Right now.”
Beckett nodded and came over to slide an arm around Tiana’s shoulders, and Sierra got a good look at his right hand. Three of his knuckles were cracked and already swelling, though he didn’t seem to notice or care. “Come on, we’ll drive you up.”
They got into her car for the short drive up the lane. When they pulled up beside the house, Tiana jumped out and ran for the steps. “Ella? Ella, baby.”
Ella appeared on the front porch, her expression uncertain, Walter at her feet. “Mama?”
Tiana took the steps three at a time and engulfed her daughter in a big hug. “Oh, baby, I’m so sorry. I had no idea what was going on.” She hugged Ella for a long time, then knelt and took her daughter’s face in her hands. “God, sweetheart, I feel sick about everything. Why didn’t you tell me about Brian?”
Sierra leaned into Beckett, a faint shudder of relief wrapping around her when he slid a solid arm about her waist and drew her to him. She felt so incredibly safe with him holding her.
Oh, man, that was bad. If she’d thought she was in trouble with him before, now that she’d seen the extent of his protective streak, she was done for.
Ella peered around her mother’s shoulder to look at her and Beckett. “I…was scared.”
Tiana made a choked sound and hugged her tighter. “I’m sorry. Nobody will ever do anything like that to you again, I promise. He’s never going to see you again.”
“Is he still at our house?”
“No, baby. The sheriff came and took him away.”
Ella seemed to droop in relief. “So I won’t have to see him ever again?”
“Only if a judge wants you to tell your story in court.”
“Let’s go inside.” Beckett let them in the front door and got them settled at the kitchen table with some leftover cupcakes.
When Noah called to say Brian was being held overnight and asked Tiana to bring Ella down to talk to him and the social worker, Beckett stood. “I’ll drive you down. Sierra and I have to go in and give our official statements anyhow.”
“No.” Tiana put a hand on his forearm, her smile wobbly but with an underlying firmness to it. “You’ve done more than enough for us already. I’m okay now. I’m calm enough to drive us. But thank you. For everything.”
Beckett inclined his head.
Ella took her mother’s hand and walked with her to the door, pausing there to look back at Beckett. “Can I still come and visit Walter?”
He smiled and Sierra’s breath hitched at the softness on that hard face. “Of course you can. Anytime you want.”
The grateful smile on that little face hurt Sierra’s heart.
She stood on the porch with him as Tiana and Ella got into the car and drove away. Honeysuckle perfumed the air, a slight breeze wafting along the porch.
In the sudden quiet, she looked up at him. His profile looked hard enough to be carved out of granite. She studied it, following each line and wishing she could secretly take a picture.
“You okay?” she asked finally.
She’d never seen him lose control like that before. Beckett was always calm. Seeing him lose it had scared her a little. While she hadn’t actually seen the punch that had done so much damage to Brian’s lying face, it had obviously packed a lot of power. If she hadn’t called out to him when she had, if he hadn’t listened to her, he might be in a cell right now, facing charges for aggravated assault or worse.
Beckett nodded once, staring up the empty driveway toward the lane, the muscles in his jaw flexing beneath the heavy stubble there. “I couldn’t stand knowing that asshole defiled her that way. Or the thought of him getting away with it.”
“I get it.” The justice system was a sad joke a lot of the time. It seemed like the victims were punished instead of the criminals.
She stepped in front of him, drawing his full attention. The anger was gone from his gaze now, but there was something in his eyes that made him look…haunted. Even though she didn’t know what had caused them, she wanted to wipe those shadows away forever because she couldn’t stand to see him hurting.
Sensing he needed comfort too, she cradled the side of his face with her palm, his whiskers prickling her skin. Something flared in his eyes for a moment, then his face went carefully blank. She hated that he felt the need to hide from her in any way, even as it reminded her of all she risked emotionally by pining for a man who would probably never fully let her in.
There were so many things she wanted to say, beginning with what a good man he was, to protect Ella the way he had. How much she admired him. How much she cared about and wanted him. Except that would only make him retreat from her more, and she was afraid to voice the depth of her feelings aloud. So her only remaining option was action.
Her heart began to pound.
Before she could chicken out or give herself the chance to overthink it, she went on tiptoe and brushed her lips across his. A soft caress meant to soothe even as it lit her senses up. She’d wanted to kiss him for so damn long.
Beckett stiffened. It was subtle, but she felt it, heard the rumble of protest issuing from his throat.
Closing her eyes, she allowed herself only another moment to savor the feel of his mouth against hers before she eased back, sparing herself the formal rejection she was certain was coming. But as she turned to walk away he snagged her wrist, stopping her.
And what she saw when she looked up at him stole her breath.
Beckett’s dark eyes blazed with raw hunger, his entire face taut as he stared down at her.
Sierra’s pulse skittered in her throat. Had she been wrong? Her gaze dipped to his mouth once more, the tension crackling between them like live electricity as she anticipated feeling his lips on hers.
“Don’t,” he rasped out with a shake of his head, the warning in his voice clear.
She met his stare, unsure what to think. The mixed signals he was sending confused the hell out of her. “Why not?”
“Because.” A muscle bunched in his jaw, his eyes burning with suppressed need she would give anything to satisfy.
No. Because wasn’t an answer. She needed to know the reason why. “Because I’m still Noah’s little sister to you?”
He huffed out a bitter laugh. “Not even close.”
The tiny bubble of hope she’d been suppressing swelled in her chest. Sensing she could break through his defenses if she just pushed a little harder, she cocked her head to study him. “I’m a grown woman, Beckett.”
His gaze lingered on her mouth. “I noticed.”
The underlying heat in his tone, the way his eyes darkened, made that bubble expand. “Good. It’s about time.”
He didn’t answer.
She pushed again, the depth of her feelings throwing caution aside. “And since we’re being honest, I’ve wanted you for years.”
Shock flashed across his face. “What?”
Oh, please. She held back a snort. “No way you never noticed. None.” He was a Green Beret. He saw everything, details most people would miss. There was zero chance she had hidden everything well enough for him not to notice.
He shook his head, stepped back to run a hand through his hair in agitation. His knuckles were bloody, already turning color. “We can’t. You and I are a really bad idea.”
Maybe. Crossing the line was a huge risk for both of them. Still, she’d exposed too much to turn back now. She’d already laid herself bare. “Why not? Because you’re Noah’s best friend? Because I’m too young for you?”
“No.” He seemed to force himself to meet her gaze, and the look in his eyes made her heart thud. He wanted her, but refused to allow himself to go there.
Well, she refused to let this go. “Tell me why, Beckett.”
He made a frustrated sound and growled, “Because of this.” His hands locked around her upper arms as he spun them around and pinned her up against the side of the house with his powerful body.
Sierra gasped, her whole being going hot, then weak at the way he caged her in with his hands on either side of her head.
His dark eyes burned with a raging hunger as he towered over her, the muscles in his arms and shoulders taut, the unmistakable bulge of his erection shoved against her abdomen. His lips were inches above her own, his clean scent filling her lungs.
She shivered, paralyzed, every nerve ending coming to sudden, painful life, unfulfilled need making her ache inside. Oh, God, she needed him so badly, had no idea he’d wanted her this much…
And then his mouth was on hers, those big, strong hands diving into her hair, gripping tight. She moaned and automatically arched into him, her tingling breasts hitting the solid wall of his chest as she reached for his broad shoulders. She’d dreamed of this for so long, could hardly believe it was happening.
Beckett tightened his hold on her, asserting his dominance and control. Her lips parted beneath the demanding stroke of his tongue and then it slid between them, caressing hers with such skill it tore a whimper of longing from her. It was so much more than she’d imagined it would be. She’d sensed this in him, this forceful, slightly rough edge as a lover.
It turned her into a puddle of need.
Beckett didn’t just kiss her. He took possession of her with a masterful blend of dominance and seduction that made her tremble. Her insides liquefied beneath the white-hot tide of desire that swept through her, her entire body humming with need.
Far too soon he abruptly broke the kiss to stare down at her, breathing hard, his expression almost angry. Her legs were so weak they were barely keeping her upright, her lungs fighting for air. Holy God, what he could do to her with a single kiss.
He shook his head once, that haunted look back in his eyes. “You think you want me, but you don’t know what you’re asking for. You have no idea the things I want to do to you,” he rasped out. “The things I’ve wanted to do for years now, and don’t dare, because of what you and your family mean to me. I can’t risk wrecking that. Because if I ever crossed that line with you, I wouldn’t be able to hold back and I wouldn’t let you go. Understand?”
Holy hell. She fought off a moan of surrender, arched a taunting eyebrow instead. “Is that supposed to scare me off? Because you’re just turning me on more.”
A warning growl rumbled in his chest, his gaze all but singeing her face. “Don’t push me, sweetness. Not on this.”
Her belly did a tight, backward flip as a scorching wave of heat flooded her. Making her skin tingle, her tight nipples ache. Making her want to keep taunting him, find out what it would take to break the last link in his iron control. To see what would happen when it did, because every fiber in her being told her it would be amazing.
“I don’t want you to hold back,” she whispered, desperate for more, for the release only he could give her.
“Well you should. Because if I don’t it would ruin everything.”
There was a chance it might. But it was so damn hard to think straight with all the images his earlier words had brought to life in her head.
Erotic, vivid images of the two of them together, naked. Beckett’s brooding intensity transformed into the kind of rough-edged passion that made her heart thud and her knees go rubbery.
His hands in her hair, their mouths fused together, that big, powerful body stretching out on top of her. His weight pressing her down into his bed upstairs, or pinning her fully here against the wall as he kissed her again, but this time with his hands and mouth easing the ache in her breasts and between her thighs.
Before she could think of a good comeback or put her mouth on his again he backed off, his expression dark, as though pissed at himself. “Go home, Sierra. It’s been a hell of a night and I don’t trust myself right now.” He stalked past her to the door and walked through it without a backward glance, the screen door slamming against the frame.
Cold suffused her, dousing her arousal. For a moment she almost went after him, the frustration all but choking her. That look on his face, though. That disappointed look that bordered on self-disgust because of what he’d just done and said, made her hesitate.
If she pushed him now while he was at his limit, she could get him to give her what she wanted.
But not all of him. And when it was over, he would regret it and do everything in his power to avoid her from then on.
Nothing was worth that. She wouldn’t risk losing him now, when she’d finally managed to put some cracks in his formidable emotional armor. He meant too much to her. She wanted everything he had to give.
Drawing a deep, steadying breath, she ordered her racing heart to slow and made herself walk to her car. They both needed time to regroup. For now she had no choice but to honor his request and let him go.
But this powerful attraction between them was too strong to deny, and it wasn’t going away.
The shitty thing was, she had no idea what the hell she was supposed to do about that.
Chapter
Thirteen
“Did you hear about the incident last night?” the waitress said as she poured coffee into the mug, an excited gleam in her eyes.
Isabelle apparently had a load of fresh gossip and couldn’t wait to share it.
As usual, the diner seemed to be the hotbed of town chatter. If you wanted to know what was going on around here, newcomer or not, you found out pretty fast, even without asking. “No, what?”
“Beckett Hollister assaulted someone last night.”
No way. “What?”
She nodded, her eyes gleaming with excitement. “It’s true. I heard someone tell the story this morning. Beckett heard there was a pedophile living down the street from him. He went over there and punched the guy’s face in. Broke his nose, almost knocked a few teeth out.”
That didn’t sound like Hollister. The man was tightly controlled. He’d had to be to get where he’d wound up in the Special Forces community. “Was he arrested?”
“Who, Beckett?” She scoffed as though the mere idea was ridiculous. “No, but the sheriff came and arrested the pervert. I heard Beckett and Sierra are down there giving their statements this morning. Personally, I hope the creep rots in jail,” she added, her expression hard. “You got kids?”
“No.” It hurt to say it out loud. But I would have if Hollister hadn’t taken everything from me.
“Well I do, and the thought of someone like that living in our community just makes my skin crawl.”
That was something they could agree on.
“Everyone’s talking about what Beckett did. We think he should run for mayor.”
Mayor? What a fucking joke. “You’re kidding, right?”
Isabelle frowned in surprise. “No, why?”
“Nothing. Forget it. Have a nice day.”
Taking the hint, Isabelle moved on to the next table, where she immediately started talking about Hollister and what a hero he was to the new customers.
Jesus. It was sickening to know just how badly Hollister had duped the people in this community. It was like they were all brainwashed. Couldn’t anyone see what a coward he actually was? Did no one in this miserable fucking excuse for a town know what he hadn’t done, and what it had cost?
