Stealing First: (A Bad Boy Single Father Billionaire Novel)

by Weston Parker

  I moved my hands down to grip her ass tightly and tried not to remember the last time she let me deep inside of her. What a fucking nightmare that had been. Now was different. We were grown up and she wasn't a scared little girl anymore. I wasn't so sure if I'd changed much, but more than anything in the world I wanted to give her what I wanted her to have all those years ago. Pleasure.

  "Hell yeah, you are." I stood up and turned before pressing her to the bed and moving us up toward the pillows. I pressed back into her and lifted up to my arms so I could get a clear view of how good she looked below me. "You always have been."

  She moaned and tightened her grip on my upper arms as she lifted her hips off the bed and worked me good from underneath me.

  "Work me anyway you need to." I moved to lay down on top of her and gripped her knees, pulling her legs up to open her up fully for me. I buried my face in the side of her neck and lost myself in the scent of our sex, in the sound of her coming over, and over, and over again.

  We made love three times that night, and I couldn't help but worry a little about not having a condom for the last two. Somewhere during the madness to have each other again, neither of us cared much about the consequences. If I had my way, she'd have already had several of my babies.

  I brushed my hand down her side as she slept with her back pressed against my chest. A peace I couldn't remember feeling held me awake and unwilling to miss a moment of her beside me. Just in case it was a ruse and she was soon to leave me again. I wanted to treasure every last minute she gave me.

  Pulling her closer, I snuggled in tightly against her back and slid my hand around to cup her breast as sleep started to pull me under.

  "I love you more than anything in this world, Olivia Desmant. Be mine? Forever, baby. Please." I kissed the back of her shoulder a few times and slipped into the darkness, finally giving up the fight to stay awake.

  ****

  I sat up in a cold sweat to find her gone.

  "No." I patted the bed beside me as my heart hammered in my chest. My nightmares had replayed the horror of my senior year as if I'd just lived it. "Olivia?"

  I got out of the bed and grabbed my slacks from the pile of clothes on the floor. There was no reason to panic, and yet I couldn't stop myself.

  "Stop. Shit. You dumb-ass psycho." I walked into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face before staring at my complexion in the mirror. "She isn't your world. She can be a part of it, but you can't go back to worshiping her. It's not healthy."

  I let out a shaky breath and closed my eyes. I couldn't hear anyone moving around in the hotel room, which caused my heart to race all over again.

  After clearing my throat and wiping my face, I walked into the living room area and stretched. "Olivia?"

  Nothing.

  I moved into the extra bedroom to find the sheets messy. Had she left me when I fell asleep and come into the extra room? Why? I didn't snore. At least, I didn't think I did. Why would she leave?

  "Baby?" I turned around and walked back into the kitchen to find a note on the table. Ice water ran through my veins, and I realized how fucked up it was that I was letting this affect me so much. Maybe I needed to run far from her. Something inside me felt the need to obsess over her.

  I flipped the paper over and let out a soft sigh. She went for a jog.

  "That's it. You need help. Fuck." I walked back to the bedroom and grabbed my phone, calling Jake. He answered on the second ring.

  "Hey, brother."

  "Hey man. You still up for getting together?"

  "Hell yeah. Where are you? At your momma's place?" The sound of laughter filled up the phone.

  "Naw. At the hotel. Who's laughing?"

  "Mom and Kari. They're looking at my baby pictures. Come save me."

  I chuckled. "Yeah right. Good luck with that."

  "When are we getting together?"

  "Tonight sound good?" I let out a tight sigh.

  "Absolutely." He paused. "So... is she with you?"

  "Yeah. I found out that Luke was cheating on her, so I told her last night."

  "Awww, damn," Jake growled softly. "Kari's ex did that shit, and you know mine did too."

  "I remember all too well about yours." I ran my fingers through my hair. "We made love last night."

  "Really? That's awesome, Caden." He paused as I tried to catch my breath. "Why doesn't it sound like this is a good thing?"

  "This girl destroyed me all those years ago, and she could do so much more damage now." I rubbed my chest and fell back on the bed. "What if she slept with me because she needed a rebound from Luke?"

  "We're both talking about Olivia Desmant, right? The sweetest girl both of us have ever known, or is this some other girl that we've moved on to."

  "She's not that girl anymore, bro. She's a woman now, and much like I've tried to create a whole new life, she had too. I'm just... I don't know. I'm being a vulnerable-ass girl this morning."

  "You always have been when it comes to her." Jake laughed. "Did she tell you that she loved you?"

  "Kinda. I think so. Fuck, I don't know." I pressed my palm to my forehead and tried to remember. "I want her to be my wife. I wanna ask her now, this weekend."

  "Ask her." He made it sound so simple.

  "Right. Anyway, we talked through all that shit from high school. I'm pretty sure she didn't start all that shit. She thought I started it." I snorted. "Who would do that to us?"

  "Um, the cheerleading squad and the football team. You were king and queen of the homecoming court, Caden. Don't be a dumb-ass, bro. A sensitive guy over the girl of your dreams, yeah, sure, but not this. You guys were too good together. I could name fifty people that would have loved to pry you apart."

  "Yeah, you're right." I sat up at the sound of the front door closing. "I don't know what to do, man. I don't wanna fuck this up."

  "Cool. Then don't. Just be you, bro. That's who she's in love with. The old you. The one I call friend."

  Chapter 24

  Olivia

  I needed a jog after the long night we'd had together. Never in a million years had I imagined someone capable of taking me to such a high place, and yet Caden had done it too many times to count. My body ached for more of him, but I wasn't about to bring up sex again. He'd seen me for the whore half the school believed me to be. Just because we'd cleared up the fact that it wasn't our fault that everything went to shit, I still couldn't shake the stigma around him. I wasn't sure I would ever be able to.

  "Caden?" I walked into the kitchen and poured me a glass of water.

  "You back?" He walked out into the living room as I turned. His black slacks were low on his hips, leaving his upper body on display for me. My body tightened, and I stifled a growl.

  "Yeah. Just needed to clear my head." I drank deeply of the water as he moved to stand in front of me. "No touching me. I'm gross."

  "Matter of opinion." He slid his hands over my sides and down to cup my butt before leaning toward me. "How are you? You still reeling over the shit with Luke?"

  "No. I'm good there. He's an asshole, and I was tired of placating myself to think that I could live without love." I reached up and brushed his hair back before pressing my lips to his. "Are we seeing Jake and his wife tonight?"

  "They aren't married yet." He kissed me one more time, stealing my breath with the delicious press of his body against mine. "Come take a shower with me. Let me wash you off."

  "That'll only lead to more sex. We were kinda taking our chances last night as it was." I laughed and moved out from in front of him. There was no doubt in my mind that I wanted something more between us than a friendship, but I needed to take it slow. My young adult life was a fucking mess thanks to all the shit between us in the past.

  "I don't mind. Having a baby with you would be a fine by me. I feel like I’m running late on life’s plans as it is."

  His words stopped me. He was hurting. But why?

  I glanced over my shoulder. "I don't mind either
, but it would be nice to ease into this relationship, wouldn't it?"

  "I'll do what you want to do, but I'd rather dive head first and pray like hell it’s everything we know it could be. I'm a romantic, remember?" He shrugged and pursed his lips.

  "And by far the sexiest, most loving man I've ever known." I turned and walked back to him to pull him into a tight hug.

  He sniffed the air and smiled. "You need a shower, woman. You smell like sex and candy."

  "I thought you liked both." I leaned in and kissed him a few times as his strong arms locked around me.

  "I love them." He brushed his nose against mine. "You didn't sleep much last night. How about breakfast and a nap?"

  "Shower, then breakfast, and then yes, a nap would be good." I kissed him again and moved out of his arms. "You coming?"

  "No, you go wash up and I'll get breakfast up here." He popped my butt and growled as I shrugged and walked off.

  Could I do this new life with him? Could I not?

  "Where are you staying tonight?" I called over my shoulder.

  "At my mom's house. You staying with your mom or you want to sleep over with me?"

  "I don't know. Let me think about it." I closed the door behind me and stripped as I tried to think through the best plan of action for the evening. I wanted to see my mom, but I knew without a doubt that she wouldn't want to see Caden. I had a lot of explaining to do, and to be honest, I had no clue what I would tell her. We weren't together. Not yet at least.

  After a quick shower, I walked out to find a plate of fruit and muffins with a note that Caden was running out to get the Parkmounts to sign the final papers that Annie had faxed to the hotel lobby.

  "Annie." I shook my head, sickened by how sweet the bitch had seemed, and all the while, she was screwing my boyfriend. Did she not have one of her own? People were disgusting.

  I grabbed my phone and sat down at the kitchen table before dialing Luke.

  "Hey, baby. There you are. I was going to call to see if-"

  "Stop. Just shut up and listen to me clearly. I know about you and Annie, and you can take your job and your fucked up offer for a relationship and shove it up the crack of your ass. I hope your dick falls off. No! I hope some piranha of a bitch bites it off."

  "Olivia. Wait a minute, now. Nothing is going on with me and Annie. I have you, baby, why would-"

  "No, you don't. We're done, so honestly, enjoy yourself. Knock yourself out." I hung up and laid the phone down as tears burned my eyes. I wasn't sad about losing Luke as much as I was sickened over being taken a fool. It had been a constant story in my life. One asshole after the next.

  I reached out and picked up the note from Caden and took a deep breath. "Who are you? Are you the guy I think you are, or another asshole?"

  After getting myself to calm down, I hate half the plate of fruit and a muffin and walked back to his bedroom. It would have been more couth to sleep on my clean sheets, but I wanted the smell of him all around me. It was a comfort I couldn't explain.

  I crawled up into the bed and drifted off to sleep with the thoughts of what our children might look like. I was jumping ahead, but I couldn't help it. We'd been waiting far too long to find each other, and we had. Nothing could take that away, right?

  ****

  "Baby. Time to get up." Caden was leaning over the top of me as I woke up from my nap.

  "What? Where are we?" I sat up and moved to the edge of the bed as I pushed my hair from my face.

  "We're in Houston. We need to get going if we're going to see Jake and Kari." He helped me up and pulled me into a hug. "God, you're so damn cute when you sleep. Did you know that?"

  "Stop." I laughed and brushed my hands up his chest and up to his handsome face. His five o'clock shadow only made him more attractive. "We need to check out?"

  "Yeah, but I paid for another night for us so we didn’t have to rush today." He leaned down and kissed me a few times. "Let's go see Jake, and then we can figure out the rest later."

  "Sounds good." I kissed him once more and moved away to walk toward my bedroom. "I really didn't bring anything too summery. I wish I had-"

  "I got you something. Go check it out. Don't wear it if you don't like it."

  "What?" I glanced over my shoulder. “You got me something to wear?"

  "Yeah, it's just one of those dresses you like." He shrugged, breaking my heart with how good of a man he was.

  "How do you know what I like? You sneaking through my closet?" I laughed and walked back to my room, trying hard not to sprint. The soft cotton dress hanging up in my room was blue and yellow, simple, but beautiful.

  "You like it?" He moved up behind me and pulled me into his arms. "It just looks like you to me. Beautiful and innocent."

  "Innocent? I rode your cock for six hours last night." I laughed and turned my face toward him.

  "Making love to me doesn't cause you to lose your innocence. It's just who you are." He kissed my neck a few times. "Put it on for me."

  I nodded and moved out of his arms as I pulled my t-shirt over my head. "What size did you get?"

  "Your size." He tugged my shorts over my hips and moved to a squatting position as he pressed kisses around the curve of my panties on my ass.

  "I'm not going to dinner if you keep it up." He tugged at my hips to force me to turn toward him as I lifted my arms and let the dress fall down to cover me up. It barely hit the tops of my knees and left me feeling beautiful. "I love it."

  He slid his hands up my thighs, taking the dress with him, and leaned in to press his mouth to my center in a long string of kisses that made my knees weak.

  "And I love you." He kissed me once more and stood up. "Don't even think for a minute that you’re going to your mother’s without me. I'm spending the night in your arms. Period."

  "She hates you." I tugged the dress back down and gave him a sympathetic smile.

  "I love a good challenge." He kissed me and brushed his hand down my hair. "Let me change my shirt and let's go. I can't wait to see Jake, and I know he can't wait to see you."

  "He doesn't hate me?" I asked and followed him out into the living room.

  "Hell no. He's always been on your side, like a fucking cheerleader in my ear for the last six years." He laughed and warmth engulfed me. We belonged together. I had no doubt.

  "Then I owe him a debt of gratitude."

  "Just a smile will work. No one gets anything from you but me from here on out." He winked and turned to walk back into his bedroom.

  "So bossy." I dropped down on the couch and let out a content sigh.

  "You like it."

  "That I do."

  Chapter 25

  Caden

  "Well, look at what the cat dragged in!" Jake walked toward us as we entered the old Catfish Barn at the edge of the city. His dark hair and Italian looks had half the room turning to look his way. He was the only man I knew that had a heart of gold. I couldn't have had a better mentor in life.

  "Hey, buddy." I shook his hand and moved over to pull Kari into a side hug. "I'm Caden. It's nice to finally meet you. This guy hasn't shut up about you in the last year."

  "It's not been that long, has it?" Kari moved over to talk with Olivia after Jake stopped hugging the poor girl.

  "How are you, buddy?" He pulled me into a brotherly hug and patted my back. "You doing better?"

  "Yeah, lots better. I went over to mom’s today and picked this old thing up." I pulled the little black box from my jeans pocket. "Remember this shit?"

  He smirked and took it before turning his back on the girls as if to block our secret. "Are you giving her this?"

  "Yeah, as a promise ring or something. I know she's not ready for much more than that." I shrugged. I would've asked her to marry me in a heartbeat, but she needed time to heal from Luke.

  "I think that's a great idea." He handed me the ring back and shook his head. "Who would have thought this would be the ending?"

  "Ending? Fuck that. This is only the b
eginning." I glanced around him to find Kari and Olivia laughing together. "I wanna enjoy each day with her."

  "You got a lot of clean up to do thanks to Luke, my man." He patted me on the back and nodded toward the bar. "Let's get some beers and catch up. Dinner is on me."

  "Naw, it's on me. I make ten times what you do, but one day - one day, you'll be buying because I'll be a poor ranch boy with ten kids and a simple life."

  "If that's what you want, then go get it." He walked with me to the bar, filling me in on his parents and the talk of the town as of late, which was nothing new.

  Football, drama, and scandal. Sounded like life to me.

  ****

  "Where are we going?" Olivia glanced over at me as I turned down a long dirt road and smiled. She must not have been home in the last year or so. They'd built up a new back road system from the city to the country, and at the end of it was our old football stadium where we played all our games.

  "You'll see. Stop being so inquisitive. What are you, an investment advisor?" I smirked and reached for her hand as her face fell.

  "I was." She shrugged. "I broke up with Luke this morning."

  "Good. You don't need him." I squeezed her hand as elation ran through me. Step one in having her forever was over. "Now we need to either find you a new job or get your old job back at Tangling. You tell me what you want to do and I'll pull every string I can. I have lots of connections."

  "I'm not sure what I want to do just yet. I told Luke I was quitting, but I might stick around at your firm just to put the emotional pressure on him." She shrugged and I couldn't help but laugh.

  "Why do I find that incredibly sexy?"

  "Because you're a horny guy with a cute cheerleader on your arm? A blonde cheerleader that’s just trying to play with the big boys..."

  "Hush. You bad thing. You knew I was just baiting you that night at Kadia. I needed to reel you in, and I knew slapping your pride would win me at least another round of fighting if nothing else." I smiled and lifted her fingers to my mouth to suck on the tip of one.

  She moaned softly and reached over to brush her fingers down my leg. "Maybe we will break into the old locker room? Make love on one of those weight benches."