by Mia Pride
“Monica?” I stepped into the house and looked around. Her kitchen, dining, and living areas were all empty. I heard the dog bark again, this time accompanied by a growl, and I went rigid. Something was wrong.
Following the dog’s sounds, I reached her closed bedroom door, and Charlie scratched wildly at it, looking back at me, alerting me to danger. Shaking the doorknob, I cursed when it resisted. Why was the door locked, and why was her dog going nuts? Had she hit her head or fainted? “Monica!” I shouted and rattled the doorknob again. Charlie scratched at the door by my feet, but I swore I heard muffled voices on the other side. There was someone in there with her, and my gut told me this was no welcomed guest.
Running down the hall, I charged toward the door and rammed my shoulder into the wood with all my might, feeling pain tear through my shoulder as the wood splintered and gave way. Kicking the rest of it down, I balled my fists and stopped in my tracks when I saw Steve holding her down with a hand over her mouth. Dress pulled up to her thighs, Monica squirmed beneath him as her brown eyes implored me to help her.
“Chris Farrington?” The man asked, letting go of Monica and standing from the bed. “Chris is the father?” Steve glared at me with his light blue eyes, his blond hair disheveled from the struggle. I met Steve a time or two in passing during family events but always got a bad vibe from the guy. Assuming it was simply jealousy, I did my best to avoid him, but now I knew my gut instinct was beyond my superficial need to dislike the man. Steve was a troubled, violent man, and Monica had been pinned beneath him.
With Steve distracted, Monica managed to shove him away before scrambling off the bed and running toward me. Grabbing her arm, I pulled her behind me. “Why is he here?” I barked. “Are you all right?”
“Y-yeah... I’m okay.”
My brows shot up, but I didn’t take my hot gaze off his. “Did he hurt you?” I hissed through clenched teeth.
“No... I mean, a little, but he didn’t... you know.”
“A little is a little too much,” I growled. “You need to leave, Steve. Now.”
“You know nothing about Monica! Nothing!” The man shouted and dared to take a step closer. His sharp blue eyes were like laser beams pointed at me. He was at least a head shorter than me and a bit stocky, but I would kick his ass if he came one step closer.
“Leave now, or I will knock your teeth out,” I warned.
“I was with her first! You can’t have her! How’d you get her to have your baby?” he croaked, his gaze shifting from me to her and back. “I was with her for years, and she refused to get off the pill! You come along, and suddenly you’re a family?” Steve balled his fists and stepped forward. “She just wants your money! It’s obvious! But we have a history, and you can do your best to buy her love, but she will always come back to me. Accept it now, Chris.”
“You will be accepting a black eye and a call to the police if you make one more move,” I spoke slowly, my mind whirling and my ears ringing. Shit, I hadn’t been in a fight since college, and never one over a woman, unless you counted my argument with Brent, but I didn’t. Steve may have been a cop, but by all appearances, he was out of shape, and time had been hard on him. Man to man, fists to fists, I could destroy him. But that’s not what I wanted. I just wanted to keep Monica and my baby safe from this man’s jealous rage. Whatever issues they had were in the past and not my business. But he still had a key to the house where the mother of my child slept. That was my business.
I saw his gaze dart toward the door before he looked back at me. The man was panicking and considering an escape, but he wasn’t getting past me that easily. I wasn’t going to allow this pathetic excuse for a man to just walk away after violating Monica. At best, he was going to jail. At worst, he was going to the hospital before the slammer.
“Monica, reach into my back pocket and call the police.” I felt her pull out my phone, but I also felt the air shift as Steve tried to make a run for it. Charging toward me, Steve took the first swing. I dodged and stepped back, ramming my right hook into the side of his face.
Monica gasped and stepped back just as Steve crumpled to the ground like a sack of rice. Her voice quivered as she spoke to the dispatcher and answered their questions. Taking her hand, I led her to the bed and sat beside her, allowing her to lean on me when she hung up the phone.
Her body shook against mine, and I pulled her closer. “Are you all right?”
She nodded and stared at Steve’s prone body. “He just walked right in like he lived here,” she murmured and shivered.
“Did he ever live here?” I asked and continued to grip her hand.
“No. He stayed a lot and obviously had a key. I asked for it back many times. I tried to fight him off me, Chris. I tried to protect our baby...”
“Did he hurt you?” My voice darkened with rage. I would kill the man where he lay if he attempted to hurt my child or Monica.
“No, he didn’t. He was just so angry... and drunk. I can tell. I just... I failed.”
“Failed? How so?”
“A man just walked into my home, and I couldn’t defend myself or my unborn baby.” I heard the pain in her voice, saw the quiver of her bottom lip, and battled my hatred for him and my need to remain calm for her.
“Hush now, Mon.” I kissed the top of her head. “We don’t need to talk about this now.”
“This isn’t me,” she said weakly. “I’m strong. I’m independent. I’ve never needed a man to come to my rescue ever in my life, yet twice now, you’ve had to comfort me. I’m sorry, Chris. I don’t want to be some damsel in distress or worse, some woman you accidentally knocked up that you now have to protect all the time.”
“I have never known a stronger woman than you, Monica Stevenson, and I mean that. Our relationship goes well beyond the last few months. I know who you are and who you are not. I am glad that both times you needed some help, I was there. But I know, had I not come either time, you would have figured it out. You would have been all right. Sometimes, it’s okay to need a little help, Monica. That doesn’t make you weak or a failure.”
Just as Steve began to stir at our feet, two police officers entered the room with weapons drawn, looked at Steve, then lowered them. “Officer Forrester?” The female officer asked as she strapped her gun back into her holster before looking back at me. “I’ve heard rumors he’s gone off the deep end but never thought to see him like this. I think I remember him talking about you once.” The officer looked at Chris and nodded in understanding. “Jealous ex-boyfriend situation?”
“Something like that,” Monica mumbled.
Monica
SHIVERS CONTINUED TO roll up my spine even as the officers left with Steve handcuffed in tow. I had been scared, more than I wanted to admit to myself. All dressed and excited for my date, I didn’t notice him enter my home as I finished my makeup in my bedroom. It wasn’t until he shut and locked my door that I noticed him.
Never had Steve hurt me or attempted to force me, yet this felt different. He was piss-drunk and apparently angry with his trashy girlfriend for some reason. His intentions, though misguided and inappropriate, were to surprise me and try to have a fling. Once he realized I was getting ready for a date, his mood changed from hopeful to jealous like a flipped switch. And when he noticed the subtle rounding of my belly, he spat every foul word for a woman that he could think of. Our shouting match and my demand that he leave ended up with him pushing me onto the bed and sliding a hand up my leg. Fortunately, Chris showed up before Steve got any further. I will never know if he would have hurt or forced me, but the racing of my heart and raised hackles on my neck told me that my instinct to fight him was correct. He likely would have done much more had Chris not arrived, and my stomach churned just thinking about what could have been.
“Are you all right?” Chris stepped up behind me, gently placing a hesitant hand on my shoulder. I knew he was a good man, but now I saw he was also perceptive and sympathetic to a woman’s emotions. He knew I f
elt violated, and he was unsure about touching me.
Turning around, I wrapped my arms around my shivering torso and nodded. “I am. Thank you... again.
“No need to thank me, Mon. I’m just glad I got here in time. I’m sorry this happened.”
“Me too.” Noticing Chris’s suit, I frowned. “Shit. We missed our reservation.”
“Don’t worry about that. It just means I get to take you out another time. You look stunning, by the way... I don’t mean to say that creepily after what happened. But you truly look beautiful.”
I smiled and lowered my arms. “Thank you. You look pretty hot yourself if I’m being honest. And, you never have to worry about my ‘feminine sensibilities.’ You should know by now that I have few scruples. I’m not easily offended, and I’m not afraid of being touched by you right now. But, I do have the creeps and want to get out of here.”
“Let’s go back to my place. I will order us takeout. Sound good? Better yet, I think you should stay at my place tonight, maybe even longer. I don’t like you being alone here.”
“Chris... I’m fine.”
“You were just attacked!” he groused before taking a deep breath and placing his hands on his hips. “Let’s just take it day by day. For tonight, please stay over. I will sleep in the guest suite and change your locks in the morning before work.”
I sighed, knowing he meant well, and honestly, I didn’t want to be alone tonight. I was still shaken. “I can’t leave Charlie alone.”
“Bring him,” Chris shrugged. “I love pugs.”
“You do? I wouldn’t have guessed a sophisticated member of the upper crust was a fan of chunky, snorty dogs who shed all over the furniture.”
“They shed?” he said with surprise, but just when I frowned, he laughed. “I know they shed, like... a lot. I grew up with pugs. Come on, let’s grab him and get out of here so we can feed you and our baby.”
Swallowing hard, I felt my pulse kick up a notch when he said those words. It still hit me like a punch to the gut every time I tried to consider this enormous reality. We were having a baby together, and our relationship wavered somewhere between friends and lovers. I wanted the latter more every day. But, that reality scared me, still. It made me more vulnerable to this man than I wanted to be—more than I already was.
“All right,” I sighed, looking around my room. I just wanted to get out of here. “I will just grab a toothbrush and some food for Charlie.”
Within minutes, I headed toward the door, feeling my heart race when I saw Steve’s keys on my dining table. I knew he would be coming back for them. Chris saw my expression and grabbed the keys. “I will mail them to him... without your key and with a firm warning to stay away from you. Let’s go.” He grabbed the key and ushered me out of my condo and to his car. I felt safe beside him, but I didn’t like that I needed a man to make me feel safe. Now I understood why women who had experienced trauma had a hard time trusting men. But with Chris, I knew he would never hurt me, at least physically. As for hurting me emotionally, that was another matter entirely.
Arriving at his place, I carried Charlie into the house and put him down, my black dress covered in hair as he spun circles and wagged his tail in the enormous entryway. “He likes it here,” I said with a smile.
“Good. He’s always welcome. It’s been too long since I had a dog in my home, and much too long since I had you here, also.”
I quirked a brow and a smile. “It’s been less than a week.”
“Exactly. Too long.” His eyes told the truth, as did his serious expression. He meant it. Hope fluttered in my belly, and heat pooled between my thighs. He inspired a mix of lust and longing in me that I had never known before, one that frightened yet excited me all at once.
Looking down at myself, I cringed. I looked like a dumpster fire that had been tarred and feathered. “Shit, I’m a mess, and I didn’t bring a change of clothes. I was in such a rush to get out of there.”
Stepping closer to me, Chris put his hands on my shoulders and looked down into my eyes. “You could never look anything but beautiful, so stop it. Have you no idea how gorgeous you are, even covered in pug hair?”
“You mean especially covered in pug hair,” I added, trying to lighten the heavy mood. If he kept talking to me this way and looking at me with half-mast eyes, I was going to tear my clothes off in his entryway and make a fool of myself.
“Yes, especially,” he added with a wry grin, flashing that dimple that always made my stomach dip. “How about you change in my room. You can wear a shirt of mine. Even boxers or sweats if you can find a pair to fit your small body.”
Nodding, I followed Chris to his room, thinking it felt rather intimate for me to wear his clothing already, but I felt silly in this fur-covered black dress and really did want to change now that it also smelled like Steve’s familiar cologne.
Walking into his massive master suite, Chris pointed to his closet and drawers. “Those two lower drawers have my sweats and boxers. I promise they are clean,” he said with a cute grin. “Shirts are in my closet. Help yourself while I head downstairs to order dinner.”
“Thank you, Chris... again,” I sighed and looked around, wondering what it would feel like to wake up completely naked in his large bed with its pristine, fluffy white sheets. Did he wonder the same thing? He was hard to read at times. One minute it looked like he imagined me naked, and the next, I felt like I was just his best friend’s sister who needed help. That thought made me fight back a flare of my nostrils, especially because I wanted to be so much more than that, which only further frustrated me.
Slipping off my dress, I opened his drawer and immediately knew I would never fit into his sweat pants, even with the string drawn as tightly as possible. Looking into his boxer drawer, I grabbed the first pair I saw and picked them up. This felt too intimate, yet I had few choices. I didn’t want to stay in this dress all night and certainly couldn’t sleep in it. The blue and red plaid boxers looked like they would fit me if I rolled them up once or twice.
Pulling the boxers on and rolling them over two times, I walked over to his closet and selected a white collared shirt, quickly buttoning it up and feeling a slight bit of relief when I saw that it covered to my mid-thigh. It was basically like a breezy summer dress with shorts beneath it, I reassured myself. Hell, that’s more modest than most women dressed here during the hot California summers.
When I left his bedroom, I slowly walked down the long hallway, looking into the many side rooms and wondering why the hell he ever bought a mansion if he never planned on having kids. At least our child would have plenty of space. My little condo would be nothing compared to this.
Going down the stairs and around the corner, I entered his living room, smelling something that made my stomach rumble with anticipation. “Wow... whatever you ordered smells delicious,” I said, rubbing my belly like a hungry toddler. I ate very little today, anticipating a fancy meal hours ago, so I was ready to tear into whatever was wafting from the kitchen.
“It’s pizza,” Chris said with a chuckle, coming around the corner with a sideways grin. “I owe you a fancy dinner very soon, but tonight is a greasy, cheesy, movie night, and—”
When his eyes landed on me, Chris’s mouth dropped, and his gaze skimmed my body, making me tingle all over. “Virgin,” he murmured.
“Virgin?” I repeated, cocking a brow. I had no idea what he was talking about, but there was one thing we both knew well. I was no virgin.
Clearing his throat, Chris ran a hand through his hair and averted his gaze. “Pizza, movie, and virgin cocktails night,” Chris finally managed to say, acting unaffected by my appearance.
“Well, for a man who’s famous for his inability to be flexible when plans change, I’d say you’ve done well. My favorite kind of night.” I walked past him and followed the smell of pizza toward the kitchen, feeling his burning gaze following my every step. My core thrummed with need. It had been so long since I’d had sex, and my body prac
tically wept to feel him on me... inside me.
Dammit! Get your shit together, Mon. It wasn’t just hormones. I knew this. I could pretend it was, but then I would be lying to myself. I wanted Chris—and only Chris. Not just now, but forever. Forever? “Fuck.”
“Excuse me?” Chris murmured unexpectedly from directly behind me, making me squeal and jump, spinning on my heels. “Whoa, there. Sorry.” His low voice sent a tingle up my neck and his warm hands steadying my shoulders made goosebumps rush down my arms.
“Sorry, I...” My eyes sought his, and I watched as his pupils dilated with need. My nipples tingled, their stiff peaks rubbing against the cotton fabric of Chris’s borrowed shirt. “I didn’t know you were right behind me,” I whispered.
Squeezing my shoulders, Chris kept a straight face, but his eyes roamed my features. “Fuck.”
“Well, sure we can, but you don’t need to demand it like a caveman. Are you going to club me over the head next?” I bit the inside of my cheek to prevent myself from laughing when he narrowed his eyes. I was deflecting, not wanting to discuss why I blurted out a curse word, and he knew it.
“I was referring to your dirty mouth, and I think you know that,” he said with a quirked brow and smoldering eyes. Slowly, his hands moved down my arms and settled on my waist. His grip tightened, and he closed his eyes just before releasing me, almost regrettably.
The sexual tension vibrated in the air between us, intensifying with every hitched breath. Chris wanted this, wanted me, but something held him back.
Sliding my arms around his waist, I licked my lips and looked up at him. “What are you thinking about?”
