One Last Time: A Second Chance Romance

by Ted Evans

  “Have you come to a decision yet?” I asked.

  “Not yet,” she murmured.

  Brooklyn stood facing the rows and rows of berry trees, and I stood behind her and to the side. I tilted my head to see the side of her face and saw that she was frowning and looking upset and troubled. I didn’t care about that man, Paul, but because he’d bothered Brooklyn, I suddenly wanted to go and look for him and punch him out. I didn’t get that good a look at him, though, and I didn’t think seeing him would make Brooklyn better, so I kept that thought to myself.

  “Do you still want to stay for the event?” I asked after a few moments of silence.

  She looked over her shoulder at me. “Didn’t you have something to do here?”

  I arched my eyebrows. “Excuse me?”

  “I mean, you probably had some business objective attached to this, maybe? Don’t tell me you didn’t. I was so sure…”

  My lips quirked in a little smile. “Well, it wasn’t anything that important. I wouldn’t have come at all if you’d said you didn’t want to, but I figured I might as well, while we were here. I can figure out something else for work so don’t worry.”

  It would mean more work once I got back to New York. I would have let go of this deal already. The guy wasn’t someone easy to persuade, and even if I met him personally, there was no guarantee I would get the deal. The only reason I was still on it after a month was because the board wouldn’t easily let it go, and were putting in more resources into this than I thought was wise, but even though I was the CEO, I still had to listen to them. I had failed today, so someone else would try or I would get a chance at another meeting later.

  “Then, why don’t we do this? I don’t want to meet up with that bastard again, because I’m sure I’m going to embarrass you, so why don’t we go back to the inn?”

  I smiled, feeling pleased, but still said, “You don’t have to worry too much about me. I’ll go along with whatever you want, no problem, as long as it’s actually what you want. I can even beat the guy up for you.”

  She smiled wryly at me. “Mr. big CEO beating someone up, wouldn’t that get you into trouble?”

  I shrugged. “It’s not like there’s a lot of people here that know who I am, and the ones that do aren’t people that want to go against my family. Besides, if we get him somewhere alone…”

  She huffed a quiet laugh and lightly slapped my arms. She wasn’t completely out of her funk, but at least she looked a little better. Then she took my arm and led us back to the event.

  “It’s fine if we just leave. Honestly, a guy like that isn’t worth so much trouble. I don’t mind going back early if you don’t.”

  Of course I wouldn’t mind, I thought, smirking. Going back to the inn meant it was just me and Brooklyn in a room, alone together. I was looking forward to it as we made our way back to the car and sat down, then waited as Brooklyn put on her seatbelt. When she was ready, I started up the car, headed for the inn. It was only about fifteen minutes away and we got back in no time.

  My thoughts swirled around in my mind as we made our way to the room. I was looking for a way to ask the question that was burning inside me. I was sure already, but I needed the confirmation from her, or there was no way I could relax.

  We made it back to the room, and I sat down on the couch I’d spent the night on, and she sat on the other side from me. She took off her shoes so she could fold her legs under her, and I watched the edge of her dress as it lifted up to flash a bit more thigh.

  “There is one consolation,” I said, forcing my eyes up to her face.

  She frowned at me. “What kind of consolation could there possibly be in this?”

  I grinned. “At least he’s not one of the men you’re marrying,” I teased.

  I watched as her expression stilled, then got overtaken with guilt. Once again, I felt relieved, because I hadn't been a hundred percent sure it was a lie. She could have been seeing someone, whether or not a wedding was about to happen. When her expression turned to confusion, I felt my heart freeze in my chest.

  “I… don’t really get what you mean? One of the guys I’m marrying?”

  “You don’t even realize it, do you,” I murmured. “Every time you’ve mentioned this soon to be husband of yours, you’ve used different names. I think there was John, Kevin and back last night, I heard a Richard.”

  “Oh,” she murmured, frowning thoughtfully. “I… guess I wasn’t that great at keeping it a secret, huh?” She sighed. “I’m not used to doing this sort of thing so you can't blame me, though.”

  “Why would I blame you?” I said, leaning back in couch, feeling relieved again. “I like that you’re not good at lying, and I like that you’re not actually seeing someone.” I paused. “You’re not actually seeing someone, are you?”

  She paused, and I narrowed my eyes at her, because her expression made me think she was thinking of lying to me again. But eventually she sighed and slumped into the couch, giving me a defeated look.

  “All right,” she admitted. “A wedding really is in the works, but it’s not mine. Nora is the one that’s supposed to be getting married. That day when you showed up at the shop, I was trying on dresses for her so she could get the best view. I’m actually just the bridesmaid.” Then she frowned. “Well, I’m not one anymore, since Paul is obviously two-timing.”

  “I figured that much out already,” I said. I checked the time on my watch. “Now, there’s a while to go before we can have dinner. Is there anything you would like to do?”

  “Not really,” she said, shrugging. “Do you have work to do?”

  “I have some documents I could be looking over,” I admitted.

  “Then you can do that and I’ll read something.”

  She pulled her cell out, and in moments, she was engrossed in something on the screen. I watched her for a bit, before taking up work again. I kept an eye on her the whole time. When it was time for dinner, I ordered the food brought over to us. We had it on the couch, and the entire time, we were both silent. I’d had some wine brought with the meal, and as I called for the dishes to be taken back, we both had a couple glasses of red wine, until Brooklyn looked ready to go to sleep.

  I watched as she got up, left her glass on the table, and headed for the bedroom.

  “Can I move from the sofa to the bed?” I asked, making her freeze.

  There wasn’t a door between the living area and the bedroom area, but there was a wall and I couldn’t see around it to the bed. The door to the only bathroom was in the bedroom area, so aside from going to the bathroom, she would be out of my sight the whole time.

  We spent last night that way, but I wanted something different for tonight.

  Slowly, Brooklyn turned around to look at me with a guarded expression on her face. I got up from the couch, set my own glass on the table after emptying it, and moved closer to her. I stepped close enough to touch, but didn’t reach for her.

  “Why do you want to move to the bed?” she murmured, blinking up at me.

  “You know why,” I said simply.

  I saw a shudder go through her body, and her next breath was shaky.

  “I don’t want to get hurt again,” she admitted in a whisper.

  I stepped closer, giving into my temptation to touch her, raising a hand to brush my fingers delicately over her cheek.

  “Brooklyn,” I murmured, leaning closer. “I have no intention of hurting you. Not to night, not ever. I only want to make love to you.”

  Her body shuddered once more, and the next blink of her eyes came slower.

  Chapter Twelve

  Brooklyn

  Why can't I move?

  Abe was standing too close. Close enough for me to feel his breath and the warmth coming off his body. So, naturally, I should have tried to back away and get some space between us. But my body just wouldn’t move.

  The proximity was playing havoc with my body, too, my breath coming quicker, my heart beating faster in my chest.
My body warmed up at the thought of Abe making love to me, and I wanted to sway into his hold. Only my will still held me back, but it wasn’t enough to get me to retreat.

  “Brooklyn,” Abe whispered my name.

  His voice was low and oh so alluring. My eyelids fluttered shut and I held my breath. Abe, taking my silence as a cue, closed the small space between us, and his lips pressed against mine in a kiss.

  It was different from that night at the bar. He kept the kiss chaste at first, only sliding his lips gently over mine. My body shivered and swayed closer as he did it again and again, my breathing coming out raggedly. I parted my lips, inviting him to deepen the kiss, only he didn’t. Instead, he sucked and nipped my lips, then kissed me softly.

  “More,” I murmured against his lips when he didn’t do what I wanted, my hands rising to press against his chest.

  I sighed against his mouth when I felt his tongue brush over my lips, my hands sliding up his chest to wrap around his shoulders. My fingers found their way into his thick, dark hair and I tugged lightly on it as I stuck my own tongue out to meet his.

  Abe let out a groan, his hands moving to my waist, touching me carefully as he slid his tongue inside my mouth. We moved closer and closer, until our arms were tight around each other as Abe deepened the kiss. Our fronts were pressed together, and I suddenly thought how much I wanted to have all our clothes off.

  There was still a voice in the back of my mind telling me not to do this. It would be so much harder to walk away from this, it would be a lot easier to just part with him with my lie out in the open. Abe was nice enough about it that I didn’t feel humiliated, and that would have been a good ending to the whole thing. But, there was no turning back for me now.

  Abe didn’t break off the kiss until I felt like I would pass out for lack of breath, and I practically hung off him as I panted for breath. I blinked my eyes open and looked up. When my eyes met his, my breath hitched in my throat. The heat in his gaze made my body shudder and my legs felt more like jelly.

  “Let’s move to the bed?” he asked huskily.

  I nodded as I took in a deep breath.

  Abe grinned at me and ducked down, and with an arm around my back and under my knees, he picked me up, making me yelp and tighten my arms around his shoulders.

  “Abe!”

  He chuckled, his arms squeezing around me. He circled the wall into the bedroom area, and set me down gently on the bed. He knelt on the edge and crawled on top of it, bracing above me on his hands and knees as he grinned down at me.

  “I’ve wanted to do this since I first saw you at the bridal shop,” he admitted in a low whisper. “But then I saw you in a wedding dress and I got worried you’d moved on. Did you?”

  The question was gentle, and as he asked it, he leaned down and kissed down the side of my neck, occasionally leaving a nibble.

  I moaned and tilted my head to the side, carding my fingers through his hair. “I never did,” I said in a whisper. “For the past six years, I haven’t been with anyone else.”

  Abe stopped and pulled back to look at me. His expression was serious, with a touch of eagerness in his gaze. “Really?” he asked tightly.

  I smiled wryly up at him. “Yeah, really. Getting over you wasn’t so easy, Abe Sanchez.”

  His eyes went half lidded as a smirk spread on his lips. “Good,” he said. And nothing else.

  I would have complained at that. After I admitted to something so embarrassing, the least he could do was tell me if it was the same for him. That he didn’t say it made me wonder if he’d had other women over the past six years. I expected it, no matter my own decisions, but I wasn’t sure if I would be okay with it.

  Before I could say a thing, though, he ducked his head and pressed his lips to mine in a rough kiss. He lowered his body over mine, his knee spreading my thighs apart so he could fit his hips in the space between, my dress hiking up as he did. I wrapped my legs around his waist, and we both hissed as his crotch pressed against me. I flexed my thighs around him, rubbing against him, and he groaned.

  “Brooklyn,” he growled.

  I nibbled on his chin in response, and he rocked his hips against me, making me gasp as his erection pressed against my sex through my panties.

  “Clothes off,” he commanded.

  I paused, then pushed at his shoulders so he would move back. He did so reluctantly, his hands roaming my back for the zipper, then tugging it down as soon as he found it. He tugged it up and off my body, leaving me in my underwear, then stopped to look at me. I was feeling a bit impatient myself, and I reached for the buttons of his shirt. He didn’t help, instead running his hands all over my body, making both my breath and my hands stutter in their movements. Once I had all the buttons off, he stopped touching me to shrug it off his shoulders, then I reached for his belt. He ducked down and pressed his lips against mine as his hands joined mine in undoing his belt.

  The air between us heated up as our clothes all went off the side of the bed, and once we were both naked, Abe pushed me back down, gently, pressing me down with his body. I gasped when I felt his cock rub against my sex, and I rocked my hips against his, trying to get him inside me.

  “Abe,” I moaned. “Don’t make me wait. I want you in me already.”

  Abe chuckled, the sound coming out strained.

  “Why don’t you ask nicely and I’ll do whatever you want?” he teased, nipping my chin.

  “Please,” I said readily, the word coming out a little high pitched as the head of his cock rubbed against my clit. “Please, Abe.”

  With a growl, Abe positioned his hips, the head of his cock slipping down to tease at my entrance. I flexed my thighs around him and rocked my hips into his, taking the head of him into me, letting out a gasp as my walls squeezed around him.

  “Brooklyn,” Abe groaned, dropping his face into my shoulder and holding very still. He pecked a kiss on my neck, then soothed it with a lick, and sucked on it. I shuddered under him, and both of us breathed a little shakily. “I don’t want to hurt you right now, so try not to move, okay?”

  We were both still for a moment, then he moved his hips, just a little. I was incredibly sensitive, though, and that tiny movement made me tremble and my insides flutter.

  “Behave,” Abe muttered.

  I bit down on his shoulder because I didn’t think I could say that I couldn’t help my actions. It made Abe groaned some more, but at least he stopped treating me like glass, thrusting all the way inside me, until his hips were pressed snug against mine. I gasped, the sound wasn’t entirely a happy one and Abe went still again.

  “You okay?” he asked, sounding anxious.

  My face was screwed up a little, and I hugged him close to me so he wouldn’t pull away and see the look on my face. It didn’t hurt, so much as it felt a bit achy. I’d had my own fingers inside myself just the night before yesterday, but this was so much different. Abe’s girth was thick, a lot wider than three of my fingers, and he certainly reached a lot deeper inside me than I could have gone with my own fingers. Frankly, this reminded me a little of our first time, only there was much more pain and blood then.

  Abe wrapped his arms around me, holding me close to him as he placed kisses all over my shoulder, then climbing up the side of my neck to kiss me on the lips. My breasts were pressed up against his chest, and as we both breathed, my nipples rubbed against his chest, sending little sparks of electricity through my body. I sighed into his mouth as my body relaxed, the kiss slowly winding down, and Abe’s lips went back to my neck.

  “Move,” I murmured, my lips pressed against his ear.

  I felt his body go taut, then his hips pulled back, his cock sliding out of me, until only the head was still inside me. I took in deep breaths, trying not to squeeze around him, biting down on his shoulder again as he slipped back inside. He paced his thrusts at first, but with every slide of his cock in and out of me, I could feel my body growing increasingly excited.

  My nails dug into Abe�
��s back when his hips gave a particularly hard thrust, hitting all the right spots inside me and making me gasp and shudder in his arms. My body started following his movements, my hips rocking against his, wanting him deeper inside my body.

  He groaned, burying his face in my shoulder as he moved faster and harder against me, fucking me into the mattress and making me cry out and cling to him. I dragged my nails down his back, and his body arched with a growl, the sound of his skin slapping against mine getting so loud it almost drowned the sounds coming out of bother of us, my low gasps, high wines and occasional moans, Abe’s groaning and hissing as he moved inside me.

  I could feel the pleasure build and build, my voice growing louder the closer I moved to climax, my body tightening up so much I thought I would snap. And then, I did, letting out a sort of scream as my back bowed upward, pleasure rocking through my body as I orgasmed, my walls convulsing hard around Abe. He let out a growl, his hips jerking erratically against mine, and then he was filling me up as he joined me over the edge.

  We both slumped into the bed as our bodies calmed down, and even though Abe was practically crashing down on me with his weight, I didn’t hold onto him and didn’t let him move, though my limbs felt weak, my thighs were trembling. Actually, I didn’t think I could move my legs at all. Little aftershocks left my body trembling as we both tried to catch our breath.

  After a long, silent moment filled with our heavy breathing, Abe let out a groan as he rolled over with me still in his arms. His softening cock and warm come spilled out of me, making my nose wrinkle even as my body trembled a little, feeling over sensitive.

  Abe held me to his chest, and as drowsy as I felt, I closed my eyes, my breathing slowed down, and I fell asleep.