“Taylor.” He whispered, leaning his forehead against hers.
“Hum.” She murmured as she stared into his blue eyes.
“You told me to give you space.” He sighed.
“I changed my mind.” She whispered and watched his blue eyes darken.
“How much? Are we talking we can be in the same room, or are you mine?” Chad’s intense gaze hypnotized her.
“Yours.” She breathed.
“Be sure, Taylor. I won’t back down again.” He growled, the hand on her back turning hard as he held her.
“I’ve never been more sure, as long as I get more of those kisses.” She smiled happily.
“Anytime, doll, anytime.” Chad promised, then kissed her again. “Are we good?” Chad asked when the kiss ended.
“Yeah, we still have a lot we need to know about each other, but we’re good.” Taylor said laying her head on his shoulder.
“Are you still mad at Tray?” Chad asked rubbing her back.
“Yes and no. It hurts that he shared a private conversation, but I understand why he did it.” Taylor said as she idly played with the collar of his shirt.
“I understand. I feel the same.” Chad said, the hand not rubbing her back was playing with her hair.
“But he didn’t say anything about you.” Taylor said confused.
“No, but I had to watch how badly it hurt you. I think he needed to do it, but it killed me to see how it affected you.” He placed a soft kiss to the top of her head. “Can you do me a favor?” He asked quietly.
“If I can.” She leaned back to look at him.
“If you are ever feeling insecure again, can you talk to me? I don’t like being shut out like that.” She could see the hurt in his eyes at the thought of being shut out again.
“Okay.” She leaned in and pressed her lips to his. “Do you need to get back to work?”
“I just finished before I was captured, how about you?” He frowned. She could just imagine someone trying to capture him. It had to be one of the guys.
“How did they get you?” She just had to know.
“Tray asked me to lunch, but when we got close to the diner Jacob and Luke walked up behind me and forced me this way.” Chad didn’t sound happy.
“Are you mad?” She asked rubbing her finger across the wrinkle in his eyebrows.
“I’m annoyed, you wanted distance. I was trying to respect your decision.” Chad pulled her head back down to his shoulder.
“No more distance.” She said softly.
“No. You never answered my question; do you have more work to do?” Chad’s voice rumbled.
“I need to call a few people for interviews.” She sighed not wanting to move.
“I can hang around with you.” Chad suggested.
“For now, you’re still stuck in here.” Taylor reminded him.
“Best place to be. There is one more thing we need to talk about.” Chad said softly.
“Okay.” She said cautiously. This didn’t sound good.
“I don’t know how to pull back with you, or if I even can.” Chad said sincerely.
“What do you mean? I thought you wanted this.” Taylor was confused. She wanted to see his face, but she was afraid to look in case it wasn’t good.
“As Tanner put it, with you, I’m a caveman.” Chad squeezed her close.
“I still don’t understand.” Taylor was lost.
“I would never hurt you, or force you. But I need to be close to you, to feel you, to reach out and touch you. I can wait for you to be comfortable with us, but until then there will be lots of touching and kissing. It’s like you are a magnet and I can’t fight then pull to be near you.” Chad leaned down and kissed the top of her head. Even that small gesture made her feel tingly all over.
“I can live with that.” She sighed.
“Good, now get back to work.” Chad sat back in the chair.
“But I want to stay like this.” Taylor looked up at him, and pouted. Chad’s eyes glazed as he stared at her.
“You have no idea how beautiful you are.” He whispered as he traced her lower lip with his thumb. “After you make your calls, it will be just us I promise.”
“It’s just us now.” Taylor pointed out.
“True, but at the moment there are people outside waiting for us to either burn this place down, or rip it apart.” Chad’s hand moved down to stroke the column of her throat.
“Burn it down, or rip it apart?” She repeated confused.
“Yeah, burn it down with our chemistry, or rip it apart to get away from each other.” Chad smiled, his blue eyes dancing.
“Oh, should we tell Jacob to have the fire department on standby then?” Taylor smiled. She loved his playful side and how it brought out in her.
“Nah, let’s make them wonder while you finish up.” Chad pulled her with him as he stood up. He gave her a quick kiss, then stepped away.
“You owe me a real kiss.” Taylor huffed, walking around the counter to her chair.
“I will pay up as soon as you’re done and we are out of here.” Chad promised. He beat her to the chair and pulled her down on his lap. “Hurry up, doll.” He whispered in her ear.
“How do you expect me to concentrate with you breathing in my ear?” Taylor melted back against him.
“I won’t do it while you are on the phone.” He squeezed her close, then pulled the phone closer to her.
Taylor spent the next thirty minutes on the phone scheduling interviews. In between calls, as she made notes of days and times, Chad kissed down her throat making it difficult to focus on what she was doing. She had five interviews scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, but after speaking to them on the phone, she was pretty sure it would come down to either Molly or Jessica. She would make her decision by Wednesday at the latest and maybe even start training by the end of the week.
“Are you finished, sweetheart?” Chad asked as she closed the notebook she had been making notes in.
“Yep, now how do we get out of here?” She had no idea what would convince her friends to let them out.
“A picture.” Chad shrugged.
“They didn’t let us out before.” Taylor pointed out.
“But we faked the picture last time. Your friends know the difference.” He said running his nose along her throat.
“They’re your friends too.” Taylor told him tilting her head to the side.
“That remains to be seen considering they captured me, and locked me up. Plus, the sheriff said he didn’t like me.” Chad murmured then kissed her neck.
“Cameron didn’t mean it and the others only wanted to help.” Taylor didn’t want him to hate all of her friends, that would make this virtually impossible.
“I know, but I’m still annoyed.” She felt Chad shrug.
“Don’t make me choose.” Taylor pleaded.
“Never, I’m just a little huffy. I’ll get over it.” Chad promised, squeezing her tighter. “Let’s take this picture so we can get out of here.”
Taylor grabbed her phone and pulled up the camera. Knowing Chad would cheat, she handed it to him. She would be too distracted to take a picture. She gave her usual smile, then felt Chad’s lips on her neck. Before she was ready, he pulled back and handed the phone to her to send the picture. He had taken several. She picked one of him kissing her neck as a soft smile ghosted across her lips, and sent it to Tray.
Tray: Looks legit, I have to let the others decide.
She could feel Chad’s chin on her shoulder and knew he was reading it too.
Taylor: Fine, but make sure to tell them if any of you ever try this again, I’m done with the group.
Tray: We were trying to help.
Taylor: I understand, but I won’t tolerate it happening again.
Tray: Understood, are we okay?
Taylor: You hurt me.
Tray: I was trying to help.
Taylor: I know, but it still feels like you betrayed me.
Tray: How can I
make this better? I don’t want to lose you.
Taylor: For now, nothing. You won’t lose me as long as you never do this again.
Tray: Understood.
“Are you okay?” Chad asked when she didn’t text back.
“Yeah, he needs to know there are boundaries, and they have crossed one.” Taylor leaned back against him.
“Okay, I get that.” Chad said as her phone dinged.
Tray: Y’all are free, we just wanted you both to be happy.
Taylor: I know. I love y’all for that, but this is the only pass you get.
Tray: Understood.
“What would you like to do now?” Chad asked her.
“I’m hungry. You want to go to the diner?” Taylor asked as she turned sideways to look at him.
“In a minute.” Chad husked looking at her lips.
“But I’m hungry.” Taylor pouted playfully.
“Yeah, so am I.” Chad whispered, then claimed her lips in a soul stealing kiss. Chad pulled away before she was ready. “Let’s go get food.”
“Or we could stay here a little longer.” Taylor suggested wanting more of those kissed.
“Dinner first.” Chad helped her off his lap.
“Fine.” Taylor huffed as she grabbed her purse and followed Chad to the door.
“What are your plans for the weekend?” Chad asked, after she locked the door. He took her hand as they strolled to the diner.
“I didn’t really have any. I was just going to relax at home.” Taylor shrugged.
“Want so company?” Chad gave her a boyish grin.
“Probably not a good idea.” She laughed.
“Why not?” Chad asked sullenly.
“It would probably scare you away.” Taylor promised.
“You couldn’t scare me away.” Chad turned her to face him outside the diner.
“Maybe you should come over. We could test out your ‘I can’t scare you away’ theory.” Taylor was sure he would run.
“What are you planning to do?” He asked raising an eyebrow.
“Nothing. No makeup, I’m not fixing my hair, I might even get a face mask.” She gave him a sly grin.
“Sounds good, I’ll get my pajamas and then we can pick out paint for me to paint your nails.” Chad grinned.
“Yeah, right.” Taylor rolled her eyes.
“I used to paint Sophia’s nails. She always wanted to watch marvel comic movies, but I’m good with whatever you want to watch.” Chad shrugged.
“You used to spend the night with Sophia?” Taylor asked not liking the jealousy she was feeling.
“Not like that. Usually it was when her mom was really mean to her. Other times, I fell asleep on the couch so she left me there instead of waking me up.” Chad looped his arms around her.
“I’m sorry, it’s really none of my business.” Taylor leaned into him.
“I wouldn’t want you always talking to someone you used to sleep with. I get it, but she is just my best friend.” Chad promised. “Now, let’s go eat.”
Chad held the door for her to go first. Susie’s smiling face was there to greet and seat them. She ushered them to a booth in the back corner and took their drink order. Taylor looked up and saw Kara waiting tables. She must have come in after they were released. Kara looked up and smile, but Susie took their order.
“Is everything okay?” Chad asked after Susie left.
“Kara always waits on us.” Taylor said confused.
“Maybe we are in Susie’s section today.” Chad smiled, taking her hand across the table.
“They don’t do section. Kara is the waitress, and Susie helps where she is needed.” Taylor frowned.
“Taylor, your texts with Tray said you weren’t happy. She is probably trying to give you some space.” Chad pointed out.
“Crap, they probably hate me.” Taylor sighed, feeling guilty.
“I’m sure they don’t. You had every right to be upset with them.” Chad said softly. “I’m going to the restroom, I’ll be right back.” He kissed the hand he was holding before he walked away. Taylor put her head in her hands trying to figure out how to fix this.
“Hi.” Kara said shyly beside her.
“Hey.” Taylor looked up and smiled.
“I’m sorry we upset you.” Kara said looking away.
“I understand why y’all did it, but it could have blown up in your faces. What is either of us had moved on?” Taylor asked her.
“Both of you were sulking and avoiding us, so we were trying to fix it. Please don’t hate us.” Kara’s eyes shined with the tears she was holding back.
“I could never hate any of you.” Taylor promised.
“Oh, thank God.” Kara said as she leaned over trying to hug Taylor.
“Is everything okay, ladies?” Chad asked sliding back in the booth.
“Yes, thanks for giving us a second.” Kara smiled at him.
“I thought you were going to the bathroom.” Taylor tilted her head looking at him.
“You were upset, I did what I could to fix it.” Chad shrugged.
“I gotta get back to work. I’ll see y’all later.” Kara said as she left them alone.
“Thank you.” Taylor was touched that he would do that for her.
“I will do everything in my power to keep you happy.” Chad promised as Susie brought their food out.
They talked as they ate. Taylor had forgot how comfortable she was around him when she stopped fighting. He told her stories of the trouble he got into with Sophia when they were younger. She told him about moving here, and how their group started as just Callie, Chasity, Lindy, Kara and her. After they finished, Chad paid, and walked her back to her car at the library with a promise he would be over soon.
Chapter 9
After Chad left her at her car, he went to the other end of the main street and got in his truck. She probably wasn’t going to let him stay, but he was going to be prepared just in case. He had been pissed off when they shoved him inside the library. He missed being with her, but he was giving her the space she’d asked for. When he got to his apartment, he rushed to get everything he might need together. He decided to call Sophia so she wouldn’t be calling all weekend.
“Hey.” She answered.
“Hey, don’t call this weekend. I will call you when I can.” Chad said as he put his toothbrush in the bag he had packed.
“Why not, is everything okay?” He could hear the concern in her voice.
“Everything is great. I am going over to Taylor’s.” Chad couldn’t stop the grin on his face.
“What did I miss?” Sophia huffed.
“We were locked in the library today until we worked things out. We weren’t very happy at first, but we got it all settled.” Chad shrugged even though Sophia couldn’t see him.
“Sounds like there is a story there.” Sophia coaxed.
“It is between Taylor and I.” Chad said firmly.
“Okay, but I’m not happy you are keeping secrets.” Sophia huffed.
“I know, but it’s not really a secret, more like something just for the two of us.” Chad reassured her.
“Fine, go have fun. Don’t screw it up again.” Sophia warned him.
“I will do my best not to.” Chad promised, then hung up.
He grabbed his bag, locked his door and went to his truck. On the way to her place, he stopped and picked up a bottle of wine, and a twelve pack of beer. He thought about grabbing ice cream, but he didn’t know what kind she preferred. It had taken him less than an hour to get his stuff and get back to her.
“Hey.” She said shyly, when she answered the door. She had changed into thin pajama pants, and a tank top. Her hair was still wet from a recent shower.
“Hey baby.” He smiled hoping to reassure her.
“Come in.” She said taking a step back so he could walk in.
“I brought beer and wine. I was going to get ice cream, but I don’t know what flavor you like.” Chad held up his hands showing his s
tash.
“I have plenty of ice cream. My favorite is cookies-n-cream. You can put that in the kitchen.” She said and motioned which way he should go. He put the beer and wine in the fridge then turned to find her leaning on the bar behind him biting her lip.
“Relax.” Chad took her hand, and lead her to the couch. “What do you want to watch?” He asked as he sat down.
“Um.” Taylor stood still, with her shoulders hunched to make herself smaller.
“Do you want me to go?” Chad sighed. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable.
“No, but I understand if you have better things to do.” Taylor shrugged.
“Come here.” Chad reached out and took her hand. He tugged her closer, then pulled her down on his lap. She was stiff for a second, then she leaned back against him. There is no where I would rather be than here with you. Grab the remote and find us something, or we can sit and talk.” He said placing a kiss on the back of her head.
Taylor leaned forward and wiggled as she reached for the remote. Chad gritted his teeth, but it was no use, she was getting a reaction out of him. His hands fisted in the tank top she had on. She looked at him over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow in question. He released his grip in her tank top, and smoothed it back out. He was mesmerized as he watched his hands slide over the soft material that molded to her plush body. He squeezed gently to watch how her luscious curves molded to his strong hands.
“Chad.” She said softly.
“Hum?” He murmured as he continued squeezing, like a cat fluffing a blanket.
“Chad.” She said a little louder, and put her hands over his to stop him.
“Yeah.” He husked looking up at her.
“I’m gonna grab a glass of wine. Do you want a beer?” She said biting her lower lip. He recognized it as a nervous gesture now.
“Sure, baby.” He smiled.
“You have to let me up.” She reminded him.
“If I must.” He pouted, but loosened his hold.
As she stood, Chad let his hands drift over her hips, and down her thighs. He felt the tremor that worked through her at his touch. Thank God she was affected by him. She had him tied in knots by simply breathing. She took a shaky breath, then walked away quickly. He used her absence to get himself back under control. He took a few deep breaths, and thought about software algorithms. When she walked back in the room all of his hard-won control went out the window. She handed him his beer, then sat beside him. She had left space between them, but that was fine for now.
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