Milo knew he needed to talk to Piper. She could tell something was off, but how could he tell her Jessie had called him and was in town? He was going to go and speak with her at her hotel before she came to him. He had no clue what she wanted, or why she was even in Lucky. He could see the hurt in Piper’s eyes, but he had to end this before she found out that Jessie was here. Jessie could be ruthless and a bitch at times. That was what made her a good officer in the field. Piper was completely different from her. Piper was sweet, caring, and smart, and hell if he wasn’t falling for her. He had known her for years, but sometimes people were blind to what was right in front of them.
Getting in his truck, he was determined to end this with Jessie and ask Piper to move in with him. He liked her in his bed and the feeling he got when he came home and she was there. She was the light to his dark. One step at a time, he told himself. Jessie first, and then he would move forward to his future with Piper.
* * * *
Piper went about her day like she normally would and put steaks in the fridge to marinate when she heard a knock on the door. Piper opened the door to find a beautiful blonde-haired woman in a short minidress and killer heels standing there.
“Can I help you?” Piper asked. The blonde turned to her and smiled brightly. Her white teeth sparkled at her.
“Actually, you could. You see, I am here to see my fiancé, Milo Brown. He lives here, or so I have been told,” the blonde stated as she flipped her hair back off her shoulders.
Piper just felt like she got hit in the gut. What the hell? Milo had been acting weird today. Maybe this was why. She knew it was all too good to be true. He had mentioned Jessie at one point, and now this must be her. However, Milo had left out the fact that he had proposed to her. Damn him.
“Oh, your fiancé. I didn’t know. Yes, he does live here. I’m Piper. Why don’t you come on in,” Piper said as she opened the door. She wanted to get to the bottom of things. Looking at the woman made Piper feel nauseous. She was exactly what she always expected Milo to be with, tall, blonde, and extremely beautiful. Piper had believed that she and Milo could be. She guessed she was just a distraction until this woman came back. Just another rebound chick, she told herself mentally.
“I think he mentioned you. You are like his sister’s friend, right? Though I have to say he described you differently. You’re not short and fat, well, not that short and fat. But he had your hair right. It really is fire-engine red. Do you dye it like that on purpose? I have to say it’s sweet. Anyway, I’m Jessie. Jessie Sinclair. Do you know when Milo will be home? Are you helping him clean and cook? He was never handy in a kitchen, but I guess that I will have to learn,” the blonde said as she sat down at the table.
Piper finally understood how Milo had seen her and what she would be to him. Instead of insulting this blonde bitch, because to Piper she was, she kept her mouth shut. She had bitch written all over her with her mightier-than-thou attitude when she walked in the door. But Piper wasn’t going to sit by. She would move on. She could, or at least try.
“I guess you can say I help Milo out. So how long have you been engaged?” Piper tried to ask sweetly.
“Oh, that’s sweet of you. We have been engaged for about six months now. He proposed in Iraq, but I didn’t really answer him. I wasn’t sure he was the one. You know how it is. You want to make sure that you have every impulse gone before you tie yourself to someone. Anyway, I figured I would not get anyone like Milo, so why not, right? So do you know when he gets home? I want to freshen up before he comes, if you know what I mean.” Piper knew what she meant. She wanted to go and hit her as well.
“Well, he is out right now, but he said he’d come home for lunch. I have something in the oven you both can have. I need to go into town,” Piper said as she stood up, grabbed her purse, and headed to the door. She wanted to leave before Milo came home. She could not see him right now. Her whole world was crashing down around her, and there was nothing she could do about it. She would go to Sam’s then back to the city. She would figure it out on the way.
“Well, it was nice to meet you, Piper. Don’t be a stranger around here. I might need to know some cooking tips to please my man. Or maybe we can just continue to pay you to stay on,” Jessie said as she started to head down the hall to go upstairs.
Piper just smiled and got on her crutches and into her car that had been temporarily fixed and brought over by Sam the other night. Once the door was shut, she started the engine, pulling out of the drive to head down to Sam’s. She allowed the tears to flow on the drive, knowing that Sam would not be home, so she wouldn’t have to say anything to her. Piper watched as she saw Milo driving down the road home as she headed out. He was on his phone, so he didn’t see her as their cars passed. Soon she pulled into Sam’s and went to her room to pack. Once she started, she realized she left most of her belongings at Milo’s house. Crap, she needed her laptop. She could make do without the clothes, but she needed her laptop. Maybe she could convince Sam to get it and blame it on a quick meeting with the publisher in the city. Knowing it would be a bit, Piper allowed herself to grieve. She had written about broken hearts, but this hurt so much more. Pulling her pillow close to her, she sobbed herself asleep.
Chapter Eleven
Milo pulled into the hotel only to find that Jessie was not there. This was not good. Following instincts, he went home praying that Jessie had not shown up. He drove faster than necessary as he finally pulled into the drive and saw a black Mustang sitting there. Shit, he knew that was Jessie’s car, and he didn’t see Piper’s. Everything was going to hell in a handbasket now. Taking a deep breath, he headed into the house.
First thing he noticed was that Piper has left her laptop sitting on the table. That was good, right? Maybe she just went to the store. And second was that Jessie stood at in the hallway with just a towel wrapped around her. Fuck, now what? He looked at her, and for once in his life he was revolted in what he saw. Granted, any man would have found her extremely hot, but she was too slim for him now, and her blonde hair wasn’t natural, and she looked too much like a damn Barbie doll.
“Hey there, lover. I’ve been waiting for you. Did you miss me?” she asked as she sashayed her way to him in the kitchen.
“What the fuck are you doing here, Jessie? I told you on the phone that I didn’t want to see you. We are done. We have been done since Iraq, where you wanted to fuck every guy you could to make sure I was the right one. So what the hell happened?” He growled at her.
“Well, let’s just say I came to my senses. I made a mistake, and I accept your proposal. We don’t even have to have a big wedding. We can go off to Vegas if you want. Though I have to admit we would need to figure something out about the house. It’s a little small, but I am willing to compromise. I will even agree to have a kid with you,” she said as she ran her hands up and down his chest, trying to comfort him. Milo wanted to throw up. What the hell did he ever see in this woman? He pulled her hands off of him and stepped away before he spoke again.
“I don’t fuckin’ think so, Jessie. Hell, you were my world and you wanted to fuck the next guy because you liked the game. There isn’t going to be a damn wedding. I don’t want you. I don’t know what the hell I was thinking. Maybe I was just blind all these years, but this has to end. Now get dressed and get the fuck out of my house now,” he commanded.
Jessie took a step back like she had been slapped then glared at him. “Is it that fat chick that was here before? Yeah, had a nice conversation with her as well. She took off after hearing about our engagement. You really have been slumming it if that is what has been keeping you busy. Well, fine, I don’t need this shit. I can have any man I want. Hell, I don’t even want kids, but I figured I would if I married you. Forget that. You are nothing but a washed-up Marine who got stuck in Podunk town playing the big bad sheriff. Fuck you, Milo,” she yelled as she grabbed her clothes that were sitting on the couch and headed out the door. He breathed a sigh of relief, but now he
had to go fix things with Piper. So he picked up his phone to call her first before he went to get her.
* * * *
Piper heard her phone ringing and knew it was Milo. She figured she could deal with him better via phone versus in person.
“What the hell do you want, Milo?” she said when she picked up.
“Piper, I’m sorry. I didn’t know she was in town. I admit she called and I went to see her, but it’s over. Nothing happened,” he said, but Piper wasn’t having any of it. She had been honest with him from the beginning, and now here she was listening to him say he went to see his fucking fiancée.
“I don’t give a shit. Look, have fun, but don’t expect me to come to the wedding. I need to go. I’ll send Sam to get my stuff later.” She was about the hang up when Milo growled in the phone.
“I’m not fucking marrying her, Piper. I swear it. It was nothing. Just let me come and get you and we can talk, okay?” he asked.
“I don’t think so, Milo. I get it, okay? I’m the rebound chick. I’m used to it. I should change my name to Piper Rebound Andrews. It has a nice ring to it. But hey, thanks, it’s been fun.”
Milo yelled at her this time. “You are not a rebound chick. Hell, what we have its special, and I want more. Just let me come talk to you. We can work this out. You will listen to me, toy. Do you understand me?” Milo was going to try and use his Dom voice on her. He knew it sent shivers down her spine, and she seemed to obey every time he did. She knew what she had to do. She had to end this and end it for good, or she would never survive.
“Yes, sir, I understand, but I have one thing to say first. Twinkie.” And with that she hung up the phone and cried into her pillow before she called Sam to get her things from Milo’s.
* * * *
Milo felt like he had just been slapped. She safe-worded on him. He never saw that coming. She had always been willing to work with him, and now here he was dumbfounded and feeling like his heart had been ripped from his chest. It hurt when Jessie declined his proposal, but this hurt ten times more. He had to admit it. He honest to god loved Piper. There was no one else. He couldn’t sit by and let her slip away. He did that with Jessie, and now he was glad, but he would fight for her. With his mind made up, he picked up his keys and headed out the door.
The drive to Sam’s house was only about ten minutes, so he was pretty sure that he would be able to catch her, had she actually left already. But with her still on crutches and hopping around, he knew she couldn’t move fast.
Pulling into the front, he saw her car and slammed on the brakes, jumping out before he turned off the engine. He needed her more than he needed his next breath. He busted through the front door and went to where she would have been sleeping. From a distance, he could hear her sobbing uncontrollably. Not wanting to startle her, he opened the door quietly and saw her in a fetal position hugging a pillow. He eyes were red and swollen, her face splotchy and tear stained. It broke his heart even more. He had done this to her. He knew it, too. Piper had never had an easy life, and he’d just made things more complicated.
Sitting down beside her, he pulled her into his arms, and surprisingly, she went willingly. He just held her, rocking her back and forth until the crying stopped. She had fallen asleep in his arms. She still hiccupped in her sleep from the crying, but he continued to hold her. He couldn’t lose her. He was determined to follow her wherever she went. He couldn’t let her go. She started to stir and, with blinking eyes, looked up at him. That was when he saw how green her eyes were when she cried. They were so bright and showed the hurt.
“I’m so sorry, Red. Please don’t leave me. I need you. I love you so much. I thought I had loved Jessie, but to be honest, now I think it was because I didn’t want to be alone. I wanted a sense of home. I just didn’t know what real love was like until I met you. You have captured my heart, and I am not letting you go,” he said as he brushed the hair off her face, leaning down to kiss each tear that ran down her cheek. He kissed her forehead, her eyes, her cheeks, the corners of her mouth before brushing his lips along hers, asking for permission. She leaned up and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was slow and full of passion at the same time. Love, a kiss of love that he could finally feel between them. Breaking away from the kiss, he looked down at her, waiting for her to speak.
“I love you, too, Milo. I always have. I just can’t take it if something better comes along and I am tossed in the wayside,” she said.
Milo knew he had to prove it to her. “You are all I want, Red, all I will ever need. I can prove it. Marry me. I wanted to take things slow and have you move in first, but I don’t want you to just be my girlfriend. I want you to be my wife, the mother to my children, and my world. You are everything to me, Red, everything. Please marry me.” He was pouring his heart out and hoped she would not crush him. She gasped in surprised and stared up at him for a moment.
Piper couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Not only did Milo love her, but wanted to marry her. She wanted to shout yes from the rooftops, but could she? Was he just trying to make her feel better, or was he sincere? Looking at him, she could see the truth in his eyes. He really did want her. She would never know anything if she didn’t take a chance.
“Yes, I’ll marry you,” she said, expecting him to smile and that was it, but he did something unexpected and took her in a heated kiss. This kiss was earth-shattering. He took command and plundered her mouth, forcing his tongue over hers, and he moaned in response when she met him thrust for thrust.
“God I love you so much, Red,” was all he said as he pulled off her shirt before latching onto her nipple through her laced bra. Piper responded with a moan of her own as desire swarmed through her and down to her thumping sex. She needed him so much that she just gave up thinking and allowed sensation to envelope her. Milo had pulled off his shirt and her bra before she could even think of what to do next. He kissed his way down her body until he reached the button of her jeans and unfastened them before lowering the zipper. He pulled off her jeans off before climbing back on top of her. He moved up to her mouth and claimed her again with a kiss while he skillfully moved his finger into her aching pussy. He continued to kiss her while he pumped his fingers in and out of her body.
“I can’t wait anymore, Red. I need you so bad.” And with that he unzipped his pants and was filling her before she could respond. He hissed with pleasure as he pushed and ground his cock into her over and over again. Milo kept up, never stopping as he thrust repeatedly into her. Lost in sensation, she felt herself being pushed over as he continued surging forward until they both climaxed simultaneously, crying out together from their heated passion. Trying to calm down, Milo had his head resting on her chest as he slowly pulled out of her, then lifted her to lie on top of him. Now sated and calm, he went and headed into the bathroom only to return with a rag. That was when she realized they never used a condom. She wasn’t on birth control. What if she got pregnant?
“Umm,” she stammered as she started to clean her. “Milo, we didn’t use any protection,” she said before she looked up at him.
He smiled at her. “I know,” he said.
“Well what if I get pregnant?” she asked.
“If you get pregnant, Red, then I will be the happiest man in the world. I love you so much, and we are getting married anyway. Why not work on a family now?”
She gasped at his words. He really did want her. He wanted a family. How could she not be elated? That was something she longed for, as she had no one, and now here she was going to get a husband and kids, well, someday.
“I love you, Milo,” she said before she kissed him again.
“I know, Red. I love you, too. I say next weekend we drive to the city and just get married. I don’t want to wait too long for you to change your mind on me,” he joked.
“I’m fine with that, as long as Sam can be there. She is my only family, after all.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way, baby. Now, I say it has been a cra
zy day, so let’s head home, okay?”
Piper agreed as they both dressed, and Milo helped her to his truck and headed home for good. Home, Piper liked that a lot!
* * * *
One month later…
Milo’s nerves were shot. He didn’t know what to expect.
“Are you sure about this, Milo? I mean, I feel kinda exposed,” Piper stated as she walked out of the bathroom to show him the outfit he had picked out. His mouth dropped as he drank her in. Piper was wearing a plum corset that laced in the back but pushed her breasts up where only her nipples were covered. The black-lace trim covered a good part of it, so she didn’t fall out. Her tight little black leather skirt hugged her curves like it was made for her. She wore a pair of strappy, three-inch heels that accentuated her long, lean legs. Her hair was only pinned in the front so it didn’t fall in her face, creating a red halo around her face. She was a goddess if he had ever seen one.
“Oh, Red, you look, wow,” was all he could say until he could get his bearings. “I want you to turn for me, toy. I think you forgot something.” He held up a small box to her. She took the box from his hands and gasped as she took in what he had purchased her.
“Do you like it?” He wasn’t sure of her reaction. But she just proved him wrong when she flung her arms around him and kissed him hard.
“Are you kidding? I love it. Can you put it on me?”
Milo breathed out a sigh of relief. He lifted the gold chain that he had bought. He’d had a special collar made for her just for times like this. The chain was solid gold with a key attached with his name engraved on it. He smiled when he got the look at the jewelers.
“So what’s the key to?” she asked as she fingered the charm. Milo lifted his gold chain that replaced his dog tags that held a heart inscribed with her name.
Unlucky [Lucky, Montana 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 10
