The Wrong Brother (a perfect for you novel Book 1)

by Amanda Siegrist

  Bending his head, he kissed her neck, his lips lingering. “So beautiful.”

  She shifted under him. “Me, or this moment?”

  He met her eyes, the teasing light shining within in her depths. “Both. It’s always beautiful with you. You’ve ruined me for any other woman.”

  The surprise in her eyes at his candid words mirrored his own. Did he admit he loved her?

  Of course not.

  He was speaking of lust.

  “Let me get rid of this condom. Then some more food—being with you has increased my appetite.” He smiled, trying to clear the sudden awkwardness that shifted between them.

  Perhaps it only felt awkward to him. He couldn’t tell if it was disappointment in her eyes or not. Regardless, he needed a moment to himself—some space.

  He used the bathroom, taking his time. When enough time had passed, that would make her start to worry—which he didn’t want—he walked back into the room. He climbed back into bed and grabbed his food.

  Gabriella didn’t say a word, but she smiled. He could never resist her smiles. It almost made him want to set his food back down and pull her into his arms. Make sweet, sweet love to her once more.

  Although he couldn’t quite decipher what her smile meant. Happy and content? Confused and worried and hiding it by smiling? He should’ve never said what he had. You’ve ruined me for any other woman. The magic they shared would not be dampened by what he said afterward. He refused to allow that to happen. Yet, she still hadn’t said a word—only smiled.

  He needed to decipher what that smile meant. He wasn’t sure what to make of her silence.

  She shifted closer to him. He twirled his fork around some noodles and offered her a bite. She shook her head, and her smile disappeared. He almost dropped his fork by the sudden change in her expressions.

  “Mia killed her father…and I helped.”

  At that, he did drop his fork into the container.

  He wasn’t sure if he heard her correctly. His hand was frozen in the air as he tried to process what she said.

  “That’s the answer to your question.”

  His brows dipped low. “No. That just raises another slew of questions. I don’t understand.” He set his container to the nightstand. “Don’t leave me hanging here, Gabriella. Please explain.”

  Her eyes moved straight ahead, glaring at her closet as if it were the entrance to a mountain of treasure. “He was abusive. Beat her mom up until the day she died. Mia was sixteen when her mom died from cancer. He never hit Mia when her mom was around. But she wasn’t around anymore. So, he went to his next best target—Mia.”

  He watched as her face morphed into so many emotions; it was hard to keep track of what one she was experiencing at the moment. The urge was strong to pull her into his arms, but he knew she needed to finish.

  This had to be a sick joke. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Yet, by the stiffness in her posture and the fact she refused to look at him, told him this was no joke.

  “I never knew anything. She was very good at hiding it. At masking her bruises with makeup, even her mother’s when she was alive. It’s no wonder she works at the theater costuming people and applying their makeup. She’s perfected it from a young age. It’s sad when you think about it.”

  He watched as she fiddled with the end of the blanket. It took all his strength and control to wait for her to continue. If he interrupted, he feared she wouldn’t finish her story.

  “We were coming home from a movie when I found out the first time what was happening. It started raining on us, and it washed part of her makeup off. You should’ve seen the nasty bruise on her face. It didn’t take long for her to confess it was from her dad. I didn’t give her much choice. I demanded she call the police. She wouldn’t. But I wouldn’t give up. I made her go.”

  She sighed—a huge intake of breath followed by an equally large exhale; her entire body moved from the exertion.

  “They didn’t believe her.”

  “What?”

  At his shocked tone, she finally turned in his direction. “Her dad was a cop. I made the mistake of taking her to the precinct where he worked. I guess he had a habit of saying how mentally unstable Mia was—hurting herself after her mother died. I guess he needed an excuse if she was ever brave enough to rat him out. It worked. They wouldn’t believe her. Of course, that didn’t stop me. I raised the roof, spouting out things a sixteen-year-old shouldn’t say. I wrote letters to the captain about how horribly he ran his department, how filthy and despicable his officers were.”

  “I can picture that very well.” He smiled. She was a force to be reckoned with; he could only imagine what she had been at age sixteen. She didn’t magically turn out to be this strong, defiant woman in a day.

  A small grin tinged her lips. “Mia started to hide herself better after that from me. She insisted he backed off since I made a stink with the cops. I didn’t believe her. I knew she was lying. But there wasn’t anything I could do. The dumb cops wouldn’t believe her. Her dad even made her go to therapy as if she was the one who needed help.”

  She glanced back at the closet. “She called one night—crying, hysterical. I could hear yelling and banging in the background. She had locked herself in her room. He was in a drunken rage trying to get inside. All she kept saying to me was, ‘I need you, Gabby. Please help me.’ I can still hear those words sometimes when I close my eyes. I didn’t hesitate. I made it to her place as fast as I could. It didn’t even cross my mind to call the cops who probably wouldn’t have believed me anyway. The front door was unlocked. I ran up the stairs and started screaming at him to leave her alone. I didn’t know he had his gun, and neither did Mia. He turned to me and fired the weapon.”

  “What?” He grabbed her by the shoulders, turning her to look at him. “He shot you. Where?”

  A soft hand landed on his cheek. “He was drunk. He had horrible aim and only grazed my arm.” She pointed to a tiny scar on her right bicep. “I don’t know what came over me, but I charged at him. This two-hundred-fifty-pound man and I charged him like I could honestly kick his ass. I did manage to knock him to the ground, but that was about it. He got the upper hand and started hitting me. Mia rushed out of her room and joined in the fray. Two seventeen-year-old girls fighting a drunk bastard with a mean temper. When he knocked Mia out of the way, he lost the gun in the process. He started wailing into my face.”

  Dane slid his hand down her arms in a soothing caress when she stopped speaking. He finally understood why she didn’t want to answer what he thought was a simple question. Forcing her to continue was the last thing he wanted to do, but he could tell she needed to finish her story even though she had paused. The determination was in her eyes to keep going. She inhaled deeply. Then she slowly let it out.

  “Mia did the only thing she could think of. She picked up the gun on the floor and fired. I swear my heart stopped for a moment when his dead weight fell on me. That was almost worse than when he was beating me.”

  He squeezed her hands when a shiver rippled throughout her body.

  “The cops had no trouble believing us that time. My face was proof enough, as was the toxicology report that came back, indicating he was heavily under the influence. To my surprise, Mia kept very detailed documentation of every single time he hit her. The number of apologies we received was amazing.” Her face turned hard as granite. “Do you know what I told them they could do with those apologies?”

  He chuckled as he pictured his beautiful Gabriella giving those men a piece of her mind. “To go screw themselves. Because that’s exactly what’s going through my mind.”

  She laughed. “You do understand me.”

  “I’m beginning to understand so many things.” He couldn’t resist any longer. He kissed her softly. “I see why you don’t like to talk about it. But thank you.”

  “You asked why I would help Mia no matter what. Because every time she asks for the simplest of things, I don’t hear that si
mple request. I hear that terrified voice crying, whispering to me to come help her. It took a while for both of us to move on, but we managed together. Mia still has bad days. She’s so fragile.”

  “This is why you became a cop.” He was in awe of her. Her bravery. Her strength. Her ability to keep fighting when it’s not always easy to fight.

  She nodded. “I want to help people. I never want someone, like Mia and me, to ever feel like there isn’t help out there. I make sure to remind the cops that still work there that we dealt with back then how despicable they are. Needless to say, I’m not popular at that precinct.”

  He kissed her again. Oh, the beauty in his arms. Would he ever get enough of her?

  “You continue to amaze me. God, you’re beautiful. Every single part of you.”

  She brushed her fingers down his chest. “I like it when you say such sweet things.”

  It wasn’t something he normally did with women. Sure, he made them feel special and appreciated, but he didn’t express his feelings and say half of what he said to Gabriella. Because she was the most special woman of all.

  She was everything.

  “So, I think we’re both good with sharing our deep, dark secrets.”

  He could hear the strain in her voice even though she laughed as she said it. The confession took more out of her than she wanted to admit. Not that he’d make her admit it.

  He pulled her into his arms, then shifted until they were lying down. Rolling slightly, he hovered above her body, tracing his fingers lightly across her face. Smoothing out the worry. Letting her know with a simple touch, he’d erase the ugliness.

  “I’m okay with no more talking.” He replaced his finger with light kisses. From one cheek to the other. On top of her nose. Across her chin. Down her neck. Then he stopped.

  Sinking onto her soft body had him craving her to the point of madness. Kissing her delectable body wasn’t helping either.

  He needed her.

  He needed to replace the darkness she shared with something full of light and happiness.

  “I need you, Gabriella.”

  Her eyes dilated with distress, then settled with pleasure. He didn’t realize what he said at first, but then it dawned on him those had been the same words Mia had said when she called Gabriella in a panic.

  What an idiot.

  Yet, it didn’t erase the fact he did need her. Completely and wholeheartedly.

  “I want you,” he whispered, then kissed her on the lips.

  Her soft moan in response was all he needed to continue his pleasurable assault on her body.

  9

  Gabby wanted to shield her eyes from the blasted sun that poured through her bedroom window. Except she didn’t want to move and wake the handsome, devilish man sleeping next to her. It was nice to be able to take a moment and watch Dane unguarded, looking so peaceful for once. So relaxed.

  It didn’t matter how hard he tried to hide the tension or the stress in his life, she saw it. He masked it well, just not from her. She was trained to notice the slightest thing to pinpoint the tiny detail, especially when dealing with a suspect.

  Yet, she had failed in her latest undercover assignment. Failed so miserably not detecting Dane wasn’t who she had been looking for.

  As she watched his slow, even breathing, the way the sun enhanced his features, she knew why. He had distracted her. Just like he said, she distracted him. Well, he had distracted her with one simple look. She could still picture him sitting in his chair, the gorgeous view behind him, the determination and focus in his eyes. Despite the fact she found him attractive and wanted to jump his bones, she had wanted to get him to loosen up as well. He fought her tooth and nail. She swore it was a lost cause until he knocked on her door, looking for answers. She finally got him to have a bit of fun and focus on something other than work.

  She got him to focus on her.

  But for how long?

  He confused her. Excited her—made her ache for things she didn’t know she ached for. He also scared her.

  She opened herself up like she had never done with anyone, excluding Jaxson. He didn’t count.

  Her mind drifted to last night when she spilled her guts. No pity. No judgment. Nothing but sweet kindness and understanding.

  It had surprised her. She couldn’t figure out why it shocked her.

  Why wouldn’t he understand? He had a kind heart—once she managed to get past his hard exterior. It shouldn’t be so surprising.

  Maybe it surprised her because people rarely understood. They always judged and pitied. It was disappointing every single time.

  But he had seemed to understand her immediately. Saying the right things. Shifting her focus to something else. Telling her thank you for sharing, but let’s move on.

  That’s what she had wanted. Needed.

  She knew when he spoke about his brother, it hadn’t been easy. The words flowed out as if he were dictating to her. But she had seen the struggle in his eyes. Nothing about what he said had been easy—not one word.

  After the stunning joining between them, she knew she needed to share with him. It was only fair.

  Oh, and it was stunning. She wasn’t even sure that was the right word to describe it. She couldn’t even be sure what transpired between them. Love, maybe?

  “It’s always beautiful with you. You’ve ruined me for any other woman.”

  Her? Ruin him?

  Impossible.

  Yet, he said so.

  What exactly had that meant? She had no idea, especially when he walked away right after. She knew then, she needed to open herself up if she wanted to keep ruining him. She never wanted him to look at another woman again—only her.

  What did that say about her feelings? Jealous? Yep. Possessive? Oh, yeah. Loved him? Hmm…not quite sure.

  Confusion. That’s all she felt.

  “What is that beautiful mind of yours thinking? You’re looking at me, but not really seeing me,” Dane whispered in a groggy voice.

  Gabby blinked a few times, hoping to clear the turmoil going on in her head and smiled. “That I didn’t get much sleep last night and wish the sun hadn’t woken me up.”

  He lifted his head to rest on his elbow as a sexy smirk emerged. “You didn’t get any sleep last night? That’s strange. I slept like a baby.”

  She poked him in the chest. “You kept me up very, very late. But I slept pretty well after all the exertion we had. You make a very nice pillow.”

  “Yes, I do believe you drooled on me.” He chuckled as shock lit up her features.

  “I did no such thing. Snore, maybe. But drool? Never.”

  Another chuckle fell from his lips that had her heart skipping a beat. Aww, she could lay here all day listening to him laugh and displaying his sexy, sinful smiles. It seemed he kept easing out smile after smile, and she wanted to keep him delivering even more.

  She waited for him to respond to her teasing. His only response was to lean closer and kiss her.

  “Breakfast? Then what shall we do for the day?”

  She didn’t miss the flash of regret enter his eyes.

  Damn it. She was already losing him. He wanted to work today. She could feel it in her bones. Why would he want to end this wonderful weekend? That was the farthest thing from her mind.

  Or she was coming on too strong. This relationship—if that’s what they were calling it—was new. She shouldn’t expect him to spend the day with her.

  “You want to spend the day together? We spent yesterday together.”

  His words confirmed her fear.

  She was coming on too strong.

  Came on too strong, not strong enough. She was clueless when it came to guys and how she should act.

  “We spent the evening together, not the day. There’s a difference.” She smiled, hoping to show he hadn’t disappointed her. The last thing she needed was pity. If he wanted to leave and go to work, she wouldn’t stop him. She had no control over the man.

  Except,
she didn’t want him to leave. “It’s my last day of vacation, and I want to spend it with you. Are you going to deny me that?”

  He shifted under the covers as he sat up, running a tired hand through his hair. She wanted to know what he was thinking. Lucky for her, it didn’t take a genius to figure it out. It was written on his face. A deep pain expanded inside her chest.

  “There are a few things I need to get done today. Things I should’ve done yesterday, and I didn’t.”

  Was this how it would always be with him? Fighting for attention? Fighting with his work?

  “It’s Sunday. You shouldn’t work on a Sunday.”

  “I always work on Sundays.”

  He said it as if it were written in gold and couldn’t be changed.

  More pain exploded. Why was he doing this to them? Would it kill him to take one weekend off?

  “I want to spend the day with you, Dane, but I won’t beg. I will never beg you to spend time with me if it’s work you’d rather do.”

  “Damn it, Gabriella. I want to spend time with you. I do. I don’t want to fight with you already this morning. We just woke up.”

  “I’m not fighting.” Although her words hadn’t hidden the anger she was feeling spreading like wildfire in her veins.

  But she didn’t lie. She wasn’t fighting. If he wanted to work, then so be it. She had better things to do than fight with a man who would ultimately break her heart. They always did. Which was why it was easier to walk away first. No sense letting someone completely in just for them to destroy her.

  It already felt like he had broken her heart.

  She tossed the covers to the side and stretched as she stood up from the bed. The evil part of her wanted to make him drool a little, like his teasing comment he made. He didn’t want to spend the day with her. Fine.

  She stretched her arms high, moving her body in a sensual way. She bent down to the floor, bending slowly as she swayed her ass from side to side.

  Feeling rejuvenated from that small exercise, she grabbed her robe lying across the chair near her bedroom window and slipped it on.