Craving Forbidden (Craving Series Book 8)

by Crave Publishing

  After her shower, she pulled on her favorite jeans and a flannel shirt that she loved, going for comfort and warmth. She about fell over when her door rattled with a rapping that sounded like barbarians had come to invade her apartment. Kacey slyly checked out the side window, to find her huge oaf of a brother pounding his fists for the second time on her small door. She pulled the front door open, having to tug extra hard because the frame froze shut overnight. As she gave it a final tug, she fell backward, landing sprawled out on her ass in her foyer. Sam stood over her, laughing his ass off as Carter peeked out from behind him. It was amazing that Sam could dwarf Carter, who stood at 6’3”. Her brother was 6’5” and towered over her, making her feel like an ant. Carter strode past Sam and reached his gloved hand down to help Kacey up from the floor. Her heart stuttered as he practically pulled her into his arms; her traitorous body seemed all too willing.

  “Thanks,” she all but purred. She realized that her brother had stopped laughing and turned to find him watching them with a scowl on his face.

  “Sam, how did you guys get here? I thought you wouldn’t be able to get through all the snow.” Kacey turned away from Carter to hug and kiss her brother.

  “Yeah, well Carter’s SUV can get through just about anything, so here we are.” Sam was still mean mugging her and Carter, as if they had done something wrong.

  “Sam said your car battery needs to be replaced and that you could probably use a trip to the grocery store. I thought I could take you to the store while he worked on your car.” Kacey was afraid to say yes…hell, she wanted to shout her answer, but feared seeming overly anxious to spend time alone with Carter. He took off his hat, running his fingers through his short brown hair, causing her to smile at the way it stood on end. He smiled back at her until Sam broke their silence, exaggeratingly clearing his throat.

  “Sure, I’ll freeze my ass off while you two go shopping in a nice, warm store.” Sam seemed grumpier than usual today.

  “Everything all right, Sam? You seem out of sorts this morning.” Kacey went into her little kitchen to get a cup of coffee, still not quite over her hangover.

  Sam hesitated, “Yep, I’m fine. Emma was up a lot last night, with the baby kicking.” Kacey let out her pent-up breath. For a moment, she was sure that her brother had read her article.

  Her brother’s cell buzzed in his pocket, “Hey, everything all right?” Kacey could hear who she assumed was Emma, shouting into the other end of the phone. She looked over at Carter and he just shrugged, as if this happened all the time. “Yep, not a problem, babe. I’ll do that right now. Love you.” Sam ended the call and sighed.

  “Em’s craving chocolate cake and she may be in labor. I’m going to need to borrow your SUV and go check on her. I might be a while, since we may have to head to the hospital so she can be checked. I’ll drop you at your place first.” He motioned for Carter to follow, as he started to race out Kacey’s door.

  “I should hang out here, help Kacey with her car, and maybe we could walk to the store.” Carter had them both whipping around to face him.

  “Wait, what?” Kacey wasn’t sure if she liked Carter’s idea, that would mean they had to spend time together, alone. Although that was something that she always dreamed of, the possibility of it actually happening scared the shit out of her.

  “Yeah, what? I swear to God, Carter, I don’t have time to make you repeat the bro code about little sisters. You need to keep your hands, and all of your other body parts, away from Kacey, clear?” Sam was eyeing Carter suspiciously, causing Kacey even more panic at the thought of being completely alone with him. There was a bro code? How did she miss them talking about Carter not being allowed to touch her? Did she get a vote in this or was it strictly between the two Neanderthals standing next to her?

  “Yeah, yeah. We’ve talked about me not dating or touching or even thinking about your sister for years. I know the whole speech verbatim. But look at her, she’s not little anymore and we aren’t eighteen.” Sam didn’t seem happy about leaving them alone, but he had no choice. He shook his head at Carter and mouthed the words, ‘bro-code’ as he pulled Kacey in for a quick hug. He left, slamming her door on the way out. Suddenly, her little apartment felt even smaller and she was finding it hard to think or breathe for that matter. She felt a little woozy, and thank goodness Carter seemed to notice. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his side.

  “Whoa, Kace, you okay?” He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the sofa, setting her down as if she were fragile. The man just lifted her up, as if she didn’t eat four donuts yesterday, and carried her across the room, and damn it, she loved every second of it.

  “I haven’t had any breakfast yet, I must be hungry.” She liked the way he sat down next to her and pulled her into his body. She willingly climbed into his lap, still a little groggy from her dizzy spell.

  “How about you let me make you something to eat and then I’ll take a look at your car.” Carter leaned in to kiss her temple, and the sweet gesture had her even more confused. He had never even looked in her direction, and now she was practically sitting on his lap and he was butterfly kissing her forehead.

  “What the hell is going on here, Carter?” She tried to sit up from his hold, but he pulled her back down into his hard body.

  “Don’t, Kace. Don’t pretend that you didn’t write a whole damn column about me. Don’t pretend that you don’t want me touching you, holding you, kissing you. I can’t believe you never told me, Kacey. Why?” She shook her head, wanting to deny everything that he just said but knowing that she had no defense—she wrote that column. Honestly, she meant every word that poured out of her last night, every damn sappy, loving word. She would forever think of Carter as the one who might have been, but now he was sitting on her sofa, touching her and kissing her, making her want more from him—so much more. Did he really understand what she wanted? Would he be willing to give her everything that she craved from him, or would he hold true to his ‘bro code’ with her brother?

  Chapter 2

  Carter

  Carter couldn’t believe what he read in Kacey’s column earlier that morning. He always tried to read her articles, especially when he lived away, since she felt like a piece of his home. He’d been in love with Kacey Anders since he was in high school. That’s when Sam came up with his stupid bro code rules for not touching Kacey, and God help him, he wanted to touch her. He loved Sam like a brother, but he could never bring himself to feel the same way about Kace, he had such a crush on her, it would have been wrong to think of her as his sister. Especially when she became the main feature in his late-night fantasies. Having her in his arms now felt right—like he was finally home.

  He left town for college, trying to put some distance between the woman that he promised never to touch and himself. He tried for years to forget how her sexy blonde hair looked pulled back into a ponytail, just right for pulling from behind. His need to take Kacey, dominate her, was borderline dangerous. If he played his kinky games with her and lost, he would have to walk away from the two people he loved most in life. Losing his best friend would hurt, but never seeing Kacey again would gut him, so he stayed away for as long as he could. Finally, after seven long years, he decided to claim what he wanted—and he wanted Kacey. Finding out this morning that she wanted him too just made things easier.

  The way she was looking at him now, with both fear and desire, made him hot. They were going to need to establish a few rules, the first one being honesty. “Think carefully before you deny writing that article, Kace. I won’t let you lie to me, not ever. If we’re going to do this, rule one is that you have to always be honest with me.” Kacey’s brow furrowed, and he cupped her face with his hands, pulling her in for a hard kiss. His need consumed him, his tongue trying to find passage into her mouth. She hesitated, and then he could feel her surrender, parting her lips to let him in. She was everything that he ever dreamed and more, the way she took everything that he deman
ded and gave back so much, nearly undid him. He broke their kiss, leaving them both breathless.

  “I’m sorry, Carter. I didn’t know how to tell you, or even if you would want to know. You’re Sam’s best friend, I couldn’t risk hurting either of you, so I kept my feelings for you a secret. We can’t do this to Sam, he’ll kill us both.” Carter couldn’t help his chuckle at the thought of Sam taking the news that his best friend wanted to handcuff his little sister to her bed and fuck her until she couldn’t scream his name anymore.

  “I don’t find any of this funny, Carter. I don’t see how you can take this so casually. I’ve never had a relationship work with any other guy, and I’m pretty sure that has to do with how I feel about you. Geeze, at this point, I’m going to end up an old maid while you move on to find the perfect woman and have perfect babies.” She covered her face, hiding from him.

  He pulled her arms free, holding her hands in his. “Rule number two is that you won’t hide from me, baby. I need to know that you’re on board with everything that I want from you or this isn’t going to work out. And Kace, I really want us to work.” Kacey was staring back at him, her blue eyes full of unshed tears. God, he hated to see her cry, it tore him apart.

  “You have a lot of rules, Carter. What exactly do you want from me that we need rules?” Now it was Carter’s turn to feel unsure of himself. He knew that Kacey might balk at some of the things he wanted to do to her, with her, but he needed to lay all his cards on the table.

  “I like to be in charge in the bedroom, and well, just about everywhere else. I like to dominate women. And fuck—I want to watch you submit.” A part of him couldn’t believe he was saying all of this to Kacey, the same girl who used to follow him around like a little pest, now grown into the hottest fucking woman he knew. He wanted everything with her and he wasn’t sure how to tell her that.

  “Kacey, I don’t want just sex. I want a relationship, like what Sam and Em have. I want all of that—a family. I just need…”

  “Control?” Kacey finished his thought for him.

  “Yeah.” He held his breath, waiting for her to give some sign that she wasn’t going to balk at everything that he wanted. Kacey got up from the sofa, untangling herself from him, and damn, if he didn’t feel like that was a slap in the face.

  “I get it, you need time to think about all of this.” He stood and pulled back on his hat and gloves, turning to leave.

  “Where the hell are you going, Carter?” Kacey stood in her tiny kitchen, her hands on her hips.

  “You seem to need space, so I’m giving you some.”

  “You really need to pay more attention, Carter. I’m hungry, and I’m still a little hungover, so I need coffee. I don’t need space, and I don’t need to think about what you’re asking me to give you—it’s yours. I’m yours.” Carter strode across the room and lifted Kacey into his arms. She wrapped her legs around him as he took her mouth in a hot, passionate kiss. His tongue licked into her mouth to find hers. He nipped and licked her until she sighed, completely his.

  “First, I’m going to make you breakfast.” He nibbled at her bottom lip and she giggled.

  “And coffee,” she added.

  “And coffee,” he amended. “And then I’m going to take you into your bedroom, strip you bare, and tie you to your bed. We have a lot of wasted time to make up for, Kace.” He loved the way her eyes flared at the mention of tying her to the bed.

  “I have one rule of my own.” She looked a little hesitant at what she wanted to ask.

  “We can’t tell Sam about any of this. As far as he and Em are concerned, we’re just friends.” He wanted to tell her that there was no way in hell that he would keep their relationship from Sam. That she wasn’t a secret, but the woman that he was in love with. It was a little too soon to be making sweeping declarations of love, so he reluctantly nodded his agreement.

  Sooner or later, Sam would know the truth because Carter planned on marrying Kacey, she just didn’t know that yet.

  Kacey wanted to pinch herself, this was all so surreal. Carter Cavanaugh was making her scrambled eggs and toast while she sat and enjoyed his magnificent ass. He had stripped out of his winter gear and was down to a pair of boxer briefs and a t-shirt, since that was all he wore under his ski overalls. She was feeling slightly overdressed in her jeans and flannel, and way too hot. She decided they needed to make some small talk before she burst into flames.

  “So,” she choked out, “do you like being back in town? I mean, have you settled in?” He gifted her with his sexy half smile and set a plate in front of her. Her tummy grumbled, and she moaned her approval.

  “I have always loved the way you love your food, Kace. And that sexy little moan that you make just before you eat something yummy turns me on.” Okay, well, so much for small talk. She was doomed to remain in a constant state of smoldering while they ate breakfast. “To answer your question, yes. I have settled in, and yes, I like being back in town.” Kacey watched as he downed half his breakfast and she wondered if he was as nervous about what came after breakfast as she was. If he was, he wasn’t acting like it. “Eat up, Kacey. The protein will give you energy.” He bobbed his eyebrows at her and made her giggle. He always could make her laugh, even in the darkest of times. After her parents died, when she was just fifteen, he and Sam were there to make sure she wasn’t sent off to some foster home. Sam was nineteen at the time, and he took guardianship of her. She always felt bad that he didn’t get to follow Carter off to college, but he insisted that school wasn’t for him. He became an electrician, taking on an apprenticeship to stay in town with her. He finished raising her and became the overprotective father figure that she still fought with now. He never relinquished that title as her protector. Carter was almost as bad as Sam when it came to her dating. Between the two of them scaring off her dates, she was lucky she was asked to prom. Once Carter left town and she started at the local college, Sam met Emma and left Kacey alone. Although, she had a feeling that he still scared off more than a few of her boyfriends over the years.

  “You know I came back to town for you, Kacey. I ran away, trying to avoid my feelings for you. Wanting you all the time was driving a wedge between Sam and me. He knew that I wanted you and he knew that I liked to dominate in the bedroom. He made me swear that I wouldn’t touch you and I kept my promise. I thought that if I left town, I’d be able to move on and forget about you. But I couldn’t.” Kacey swallowed hard, forcing down the last of her breakfast, not knowing how to respond to Carter. Had Sam kept them apart all these years, knowing that Carter wanted her? Sam would have had to be blind and stupid not to have noticed the way she followed Carter around like a love-sick puppy. How could her brother deny them both happiness only to watch them both be miserable apart?

  Carter piled their dishes into the dishwasher and turned back to face Kacey. “Honey, I’ve already told Sam that I’m back in town to stay. I also let him know that I planned on pursuing you. I want you, Kacey, and I don’t care who knows, not even Sam. He’s just going to have to get over the fact that you aren’t a little girl anymore and I’m in love with you.” Kacey gasped, covering her mouth with her hands.

  “No, Carter, don’t say that.” She was shaking her head, and damn it, crying again. She wasn’t a crier, but just one morning with Carter had broken down her defenses and here she was, sobbing in her kitchen. Carter lifted her into his arms and cradled her against his body. She buried her face in his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck. It felt right being in his arms. Every good childhood memory came flooding back to her and the rightness of the moment made everything clear. She was in love with Carter Cavanaugh and he felt the same way about her.

  He carried her back to her bedroom and gently laid her across her bed. “Tell me you want this, Kacey, that you need me as much as I need you.” She nodded, not trusting her voice. “Say the words, Kace.” He looked so sexy standing over her, his stare intense.

  “Yes, Carter, I want you.” Her words
were almost incoherent, guttural and raw, but they seemed to be all Carter needed. He unzipped her jeans and slid them down her legs slowly, as if savoring every inch of her. She squirmed in anticipation and he stopped.