He stepped closer, and her heart skipped a beat. “I don’t want time to myself.”
“Then…then what’s wrong?” she asked softly and then wanted to kick herself. The last thing she wanted was to pressure him—he did that enough to himself.
When he didn’t answer right away—when he turned his head and looked toward the window—Brooke was fairly certain she had been right. He was just trying to be polite because that’s who he was. Slowly, she pulled out of his grasp and turned to pick up her purse. “I’ll meet you back here in the lobby around five so we can maybe grab a bite to eat before we have to head to the airport.”
Owen didn’t say a word.
Exhaling slowly, Brooke picked up her suitcase and looked at him one more time before walking to the door. It shouldn’t have surprised her—after all, Owen was a shy and quiet man, and last night he had been anything but. So rather than push him further, she knew the right thing to do was leave. For now. Even though it was the last thing she wanted to do.
Reaching for the doorknob, she jumped when Owen’s hand slammed on the door just above her shoulder. Her heart beat madly, and every inch of her tingled with awareness. It was like this every time he was close to her.
But she didn’t turn around.
And she didn’t say a word.
She waited.
Slowly Owen moved in closer until they were barely touching from head to toe. He nuzzled her hair and breathed in deeply. “Don’t go.”
She was torn. The last thing she wanted was for Owen to ask her to stay out of some sense of obligation. But when she shifted slightly and felt his body behind her—so hard and strong and warm—she did her best to stifle a smile.
Dipping his head, Owen placed his mouth on her throat where her pulse was thundering, and the contact made her tremble. She whispered his name.
Hands moved from her shoulders down her arms, until he had her dropping her purse and suitcase on the floor. Then they traveled back up and held her firmly against him. His mouth kept moving against her—each kiss, each nip hungrier than the last.
“Owen—”
“I’m a selfish bastard,” he said gruffly. “I told myself last night was enough. That I would keep my hands to myself today, but I can’t. God help me, Brooke, I can’t.”
His hold on her was almost brutal, and she wanted to turn in his arms, to kiss him like she was aching to, but he didn’t let her. “I don’t want you to keep your hands to yourself,” she sighed, moving against him. “I… I thought you were having regrets…that you were sorry that we—”
He spun her around and silenced her words as he kissed her. Her arms instantly went around him, and she wanted to climb him like a tree. The transformation of this man from quiet scientist to lover was breathtaking, and she loved it. He fascinated her, intrigued her, and turned her on so much she thought she’d combust.
Wordlessly, he lifted her up and carried her over to the bed. She felt boneless, completely awash in the sensations his hands and mouth were creating, and when he lowered himself onto her, Brooke realized maybe this was the man he was always meant to be.
* * *
“I wish we could have timed it better to see the fountain show at night,” Brooke said as they walked up to the entrance of the Bellagio hotel. “I’ve seen it in movies, but it would have been very cool to see it live and in person.”
Owen wasn’t all that impressed with the whole fountain ballet concept, but he would have watched it with Brooke. They held hands, fingers entwined, as they walked. Honestly, he could have used about ten hours of sleep, but the thought of missing out on any time with her was beyond unappealing. He wanted to stay awake and talk with her, be with her, and sleeping would mean he was missing out.
So now he was stuck touring a hotel and casino.
His mind wandered to the past few hours. After he’d carried Brooke to bed, he’d felt like a completely different person. And if he were honest, it had been the same last night. Owen prided himself on being level-headed and in control at all times. He didn’t do emotional, and he’d never understood people who claimed to get carried away by their emotions.
Except now he did.
Completely.
It was more than a little scary to him—this feeling of being out of control. And the sex? He had a sneaking suspicion he was some sort of perv or closet sex fiend because never had he been so…aggressive during the act. There were times when he’d almost apologized because he thought he’d hurt her with his…enthusiasm. His only saving grace was that Brooke seemed to enjoy it.
Imagine that!
And he felt completely ridiculous because one of his first thoughts this morning was how he needed to call Riley and make sure he was…normal. Not Riley but himself. Was sex like this for other people, or was he some sort of freak? Like that would be anything new. He almost snorted at the thought. He was already a freak in just about every aspect of his life, and he’d kind of hoped to limit his weirdness. If he had to add sex to the list, Owen wasn’t sure what he’d do.
“Look at this,” Brooke said with awe as they stepped into the lobby. “It’s magnificent, isn’t it?”
He nodded, but his mind was still back on the whole freak thing.
Brooke must not have noticed because they kept walking and she kept talking. He looked at her—her long hair flowing, her curvy body clad in a pair of black capris and a white tank top. It was the most basic attire, and yet on her it made her look like a model.
He had it bad.
They wandered around for almost an hour—taking in the artwork and the architecture and people-watching—when Brooke stopped them in the casino. “What do you say, Owen? We have to play the slots at least once.” Her entire face was flush with excitement.
“Why?”
She rolled her eyes and playfully swatted at his arm. “We’ve been in Vegas for a couple of days. We have to gamble at least once.”
“But we said we didn’t like to gamble,” he argued gently.
“Have you ever gambled?” she countered.
“No.”
“Neither have I. So how do we know for certain we don’t like it?”
Owen considered her question for a moment and realized he had no comeback. She was watching him anxiously, and he knew if it would make her happy, he’d do it. “Okay, let’s give it a shot.” As they made their way farther into the casino, his rational brain kicked in.
“You know,” he began, “Every spin has identical chances as the previous spin. Like a coin flip. The computer program picks a random symbol on the first reel, then the next, and so on. The probability of lining up the winning combinations, combined with the payout for those combos, is what determines the payback of the machine. Nothing influences the outcome of the symbols, not how long it’s been since the last jackpot hit, not whether your slot card is inserted, not whether the machine has been running hot or cold. Are we sure that’s the way we want to gamble our money?”
Brooke stopped in her tracks and faced him. “Owen?”
“Yes?”
“Sometimes it’s not about winning the money; it’s just for the fun of it. I’m not suggesting we gamble with large sums of money. I’m thinking the nickel or quarter slots. Nothing major.” She studied him. “Okay?”
He supposed losing a dollar or two wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
An hour and fifty dollars later, Brooke was gently pulling him away from the machine. “Okay, okay…I think we’ve lost enough,” she said with a laugh. “Boy, they really suck you in, don’t they?”
Raking a hand through his hair, Owen agreed. “It was slightly addictive. I just kept…waiting! I was so sure I was going to hit that winning spin!”
The next thing he knew, she was hugging him—completely wrapped around him. He put his arms around her and held her close, unsure of why she was having this re
action but certainly glad that she was.
“Thank you,” she said, and he loved the feel of her warm breath on his skin.
“For what?”
“That was a lot of fun! It was pointless and a little bit silly, but now I can officially say that I’ve gambled.”
“But we lost.”
She shrugged. “So? It wasn’t about winning!” She pulled back and looked around. “Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty hungry. Maybe we can have an early dinner here and then go back to the hotel to get our bags. What do you think?”
He was about to answer, but there was a ruckus on the other side of the slot machines. The raised voices were loud enough to be heard over the noise level of the casino and the music that was piped in.
“Well, that doesn’t sound good,” Brooke murmured. “And to do it in the middle of a casino? That’s embarrassing.”
And yet neither of them moved.
The voices grew louder. “I don’t see what the big deal is, babe! Why are you so bent out of shape over this?” the male voice yelled.
Owen looked at Brooke. “Bent out of shape?” he whispered. “Do people still say that?”
She giggled but then hushed them both when the female voice started to yell again.
“Why? Why do you think?” she screamed. “I catch you with another woman, and you honestly can’t understand why I’m upset? What is wrong with you?”
“I would think it was obvious,” Owen whispered, unable to believe they were both still standing here listening to this faceless couple arguing. “Maybe we should—”
“Darcy!” the male yelled. “What the hell? It’s not a big deal. She didn’t mean anything!”
Darcy? Owen thought. It wasn’t a particularly common name, but still…what were the odds of it being his sister?
“And neither do you!” the female yelled back, and Owen couldn’t help but notice the similarities between this Darcy’s loud voice and his sister’s.
Acoustics. That’s what he was attributing it to. All of the noises combined together were making this random woman sound like…
“I have five brothers who would love to kick your ass!” she screamed. “We’re through!”
“Oh thank God,” Brooke murmured. “That poor girl. I can’t imagine having to deal with such an awful situation with an audience. Come on. Let’s go get something to eat.”
They turned and Owen was nearly plowed down by someone coming from the opposite direction.
“Darcy?”
“Owen?”
Well…crap.
* * *
Brooke looked between the two of them, and it took a minute for everything to start to make sense. “Um…Owen?”
He turned and looked at Brooke, quickly schooling his expression to go neutral. “Brooke…this is my sister, Darcy. Darcy, this is Brooke.”
The young woman turned and looked at Brooke as if she were an alien and muttered a distracted “hi” before turning back to Owen. “What are you doing in Vegas? And in a casino? Isn’t there a planetarium somewhere around here you should be at?”
It took a lot of self-control for Brooke not to step between them and tell Darcy how rude she was being!
“Amazingly enough,” Owen said smoothly, his focus back on his sister, “they let me get out and socialize with you mere mortals once in a while. Lucky that you got to witness it.”
Darcy stared at him in wide-eyed disbelief for a moment before she broke out in laughter and launched herself into his arms. “I knew you had a sense of humor in there somewhere, brainiac!” She squeezed him tight before stepping back. “But, seriously, what are you doing here?”
Owen explained about the project in Red Rock and then about Brooke’s painting and how they decided to take the impromptu trip. Which had Darcy’s dark eyes going wide again right before she looked at Brooke.
“Wow! I can’t believe you got my brother out of the lab! And to Vegas, no less! Yeah, you!” Then she stepped closer and sort of pushed Owen out of the way. “What did you say your name was again?”
Brooke nervously looked at Owen before focusing on Darcy again. “Um…Brooke. Brooke Matthews.”
Darcy smiled wide. “Seriously? Like the actress? That is so cool!” She turned and looked at Owen. “Admit it, you had no idea she shared her name with a famous model-slash-actress, right?”
He looked away briefly and sighed. When he faced her again, his expression was stern. “What are you doing here, brat? I thought you had that internship back in LA. You were talking about it nonstop when you were home last month. Does your boss know you’re off gallivanting in Vegas instead of working?”
To her credit, Darcy seemed genuinely taken aback by Owen’s stern words and tone. “I…I…” She paused and huffed. “I’m an adult, Owen. I took a three-day weekend. It’s not a big deal.”
“It seemed like a big deal,” he countered. “And who was the guy you were fighting with? You didn’t mention that you were dating anyone.”
She rolled her eyes. “Gee, I wonder why?” she deadpanned. “I learned a long time ago to not bring up my dating life when I’m around you guys. You all freak out and for no good reason.”
“Again, it seemed like there’s a good reason. You catch this guy cheating on you, and you’re okay with screaming at him in the middle of a casino but not with your brothers wanting to protect you? That seems a little off, don’t you think?”
With a huff, Darcy paced a few feet away and then back again. “Look…it’s not a big deal, okay? It was just—”
“Are you going to stand here and seriously say that to me after I—along with everyone else in the casino—heard you tell that guy how his cheating on you was a big deal?”
“That’s not… It wasn’t…” She let out a little shriek of frustration. “I handled it, didn’t I? I don’t need you or Aidan or Hugh or Quinn or Riley to fight my battles for me!”
Owen was about to answer when a big, burly-looking guy walked over, his gaze keenly focused on Darcy.
“Okay, Darce, you had your fit. I get it, and I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. Can we go now? I thought we were going to try to see Britney’s show tonight.”
For a minute, they all seemed to just stop and stare. Was this guy for real? Seriously, did he not understand all the ways he was a jackass?
“I’m not going anywhere with you, Jimmy,” Darcy said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Why don’t you find your kissing partner and go see Britney with her?”
Jimmy looked at Brooke and then at Owen before returning his attention to Darcy. “Who’s this dork? Is this who you’re trying to make me jealous with? Be serious, babe.”
Owen went to take a step toward him, but Brooke reached out and placed a hand on his arm to stop him.
“That’s one of my brothers,” Darcy said defiantly.
Jimmy laughed. “If the other four are like him, I’m pretty sure I’m okay. Now, c’mon, Darcy. It’s getting late. Let’s go.”
“She’s not going with you,” Owen said, his voice deep and menacing, and both Brooke and Darcy looked at one another with surprise. “I suggest you respect her wishes and leave.”
Jimmy stepped in close. He was only a couple of inches taller than Owen, but he was built like a linebacker. Owen didn’t back down. “Really? You’re telling me to leave?” Jimmy asked.
Owen nodded. “I am.”
“Jimmy!” Darcy cried and jumped between the two men. “Just go! We’re done! Deal with it!”
But Jimmy didn’t take his eyes off of Owen. “I’m not ready to deal with it. We came to Vegas together, we’re sharing a room, and we’re flying home together tomorrow.”
“No, we’re not,” she countered. “Not as far as I’m concerned.”
“Is there a problem here?” Everyone turned as a uniformed officer approached.
/>
“Yes,” Darcy said quickly. “This man is bothering me.” She pointed at Jimmy. “He’s made threats toward me, and I’m afraid to leave with him.”
“Damn it, Darcy!” Jimmy yelled.
She gave him a smug look.
Brooke reached out for Owen’s hand and gently tugged to get him to turn around. When he faced her, she could see how tense he was. “Are you okay?”
He shook his head but didn’t speak.
“What do you want to do?” she asked softly.
He was saved from answering as Jimmy cursed and the officer led him away. For a minute, Brooke thought it was all over—crisis averted. But Darcy spun around and faced Owen with a furious look.
“What is wrong with you?” she demanded. “Did you think you were going to take him? What would you have done if he’d hit you?”
“I imagine I would have hit him back,” Owen snapped.
Darcy snorted with disgust. “Right. Because besides taking impromptu trips to Vegas, now you’re a fighter. Damn it, Owen—”
“What was I supposed to do?” he yelled. “Was I supposed to just stand here and let him talk to you like that?” He suddenly stopped talking at the sound of his phone beeping with an incoming text. But he didn’t bother reaching for it. “Tell me, what did you expect me to do?”
“I would have thought you of all people would…” She stopped when her phone dinged with a text message too.
A small crowd was still milling around them, attracted by the yelling and arguing, and Brooke stepped between Darcy and Owen and spoke in her most diplomatic tone. “Why don’t we stop giving everyone a show and go find someplace else to talk? And it seems to me if you’re both getting texts, there’s a chance they could be related. So take out the phones and see what’s going on.”
Both Darcy and Owen agreed, and they walked all of two steps when Darcy gasped and Owen stopped dead in his tracks.
“What?” Brooke asked. “What’s going on?”
“Anna’s having the baby!” Darcy cried, smiling broadly.
* * *
A Sky Full of Stars Page 17
