Shooting For Love - A Standalone Novel (A Suspenseful Bad Boy Neighbor Romance Love Story) (Burbank Brothers, Book #2)

by Naomi Niles

  Peter’s eyes met mine. He grabbed me around the neck and pulled me to him. His lips hit mine with a burst of passion, and my tongue explored the softness of his lower lip as he pushed me down onto his bed. There was no gentleness about the way he touched me this time. His hands left burning trails up and down my skin, and I longed for their heat.

  I didn’t want him to treat me gently, not in this one aspect. I wanted him to take me roughly, ravage me and devour me. I wanted him to fuck me hard, until I was screaming his name and clinging to the sides of his bed.

  And in this case, I didn’t care if I woke John up.

  Peter ripped my shirt off me ,and I heard the tear of buttons as they came loose from the thread. I was past caring. I wanted to be free of my clothes and that seemed to be the quickest way. I scratched at his clothes, trying to remove the layers of material separating our bodies. I could see the burn in his eyes, and I felt myself moisten at his obvious desire.

  He pulled off my pants and underwear in the same breath and finally, I was naked and free. He was kneeling on the bed, and I sat up so that I could unbuckle his pants. The moment I pulled them off, I was faced with his impressive erection. I wanted him inside me immediately, but the sight of his cock in my face distracted me. Without thinking about it, I slipped the tip of his penis into my mouth, and I heard him gasp at the unexpected move.

  “Fuck,” I heard him gasp again, and it sent a little thrill of pleasure shooting straight through my body. I sucked him hard, taking more and more of him into my mouth with each suck, until he was deep inside my throat and his body was going into throes of shivers. When I knew he couldn’t take it anymore, I pulled away, releasing his cock.

  Peter’s eyes opened, and I saw how undone he was by the force of that blowjob. I liked knowing I had done that to him, but I was equally sure he could do that to me.

  “Fuck me,” I breathed, as I turned my back to him so that he could enter me from behind.

  I gave a little scream of pleasure when he jammed his cock inside me. It seemed as though my mind and body were no longer mine. I had no control over anything. He was the one in control. He was the one who was holding the reins and I was happy to let him ride me for as long as he wanted.

  His hand grabbed my ass as he fucked me, slamming into me with new force in each thrust. I tried to stifle the gasps and screams escaping me, but it was just no use. I had already relinquished control to him and now I was at his mercy. He didn’t slow his pace, he didn’t relax his movements, and he didn’t reduce the pressure. He barreled into me as though he had something to prove.

  I orgasmed violently, clinging to the bed as though my life depended on it. But he was still not done. I was amazed at his stamina and at his longevity. I had never had a man fuck me this hard, for this long before.

  He only flipped me over and entered me again. My body was aching, still recovering from the first orgasm, but he prompted another wave of euphoria to come over me in a matter of minutes.

  “Peter,” I screamed, as he rammed into me with force. “Peter!”

  He bent down to my breasts and sucked on my nipples as I gripped at the headboard behind me. I could feel the full length of him inside me, and it was amazing. It made me feel whole, complete, as though I had finally found my other half. I hadn’t even realized I was missing something until he was inside me and I felt that completeness. It was more than just a sexual experience; it was a spiritual one. And it was as I came the second time that I realized what I had been missing my entire life.

  Seconds after I came, Peter orgasmed, too. His body shivered in satisfaction and then he collapsed on top of me. Beads of sweat clung to his body and the moment his chest made contact with mine, his sweat fused with my own. I slipped out from underneath him and settled into the crook of his arm by his side as he lay there with his eyes closed. His chest was rising and falling in steady beats, and I bent my head down to lick the sweat off his pecs.

  My body felt like jelly. It felt like I was made up of little particles that could blow away at any time. It felt like Peter had fucked the tension, the worry, and self-consciousness out of me.

  And without all those heavy emotions weighing me down, I was as light as air. I could float away if I chose to. I could fly away if I wanted to. But the point was, I didn’t want to fly away, especially if it meant leaving Peter behind.

  I had never understood what people meant when they spoke about spirituality. It seemed like a strange and vague concept to me. But now, I was beginning to understand. It was that sense of peace you got when you realized contentment was better than happiness and trust was sometimes more important than love.

  “How are you?” Peter asked. His voice was low and soft. His hazel eyes had the hazy calm of spirituality about them, too, as though he was feeling exactly what I was feeling.

  “Great,” I replied, matching his dreamy tone of voice. “I’m going to need the night to recover, though.”

  He smiled and closed his eyes. I leaned in a little closer and traced my fingers along his golden-brown eyelashes. Realization dawned on me in small, sharp bursts. I was starting to fall in love, maybe for the first time in my life – and it was far more intoxicating, far more chaotic, and far more uncontrollable than any orgasm could ever be.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Peter

  I woke up and rolled over, hoping to find Madison’s warm body lying next to mine. But all I landed on was empty space and flat sheets. I opened my eyes instantly to find that she had left. I sat up in bed and sighed with disappointment. She hadn’t even said goodbye. I felt a little deflated as I headed into the bathroom to brush my teeth.

  Was it possible that all she really wanted was sex? Was it possible that I was a good distraction from her life? I wanted so badly to believe that Madison’s interest in me was deeper than that, but it seemed as though she was always in a hurry to leave. I had a quick shower, pulled on some work shorts and an old t-shirt, and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast for John and myself.

  The moment I stepped out into the hallway I heard the sound of voices, raised in laughter and conversation. Wrinkling my brows, I headed towards the kitchen where the sound was emanating from. I turned the corner and found Madison and John, sitting at the table together with plates of bacon, egg, and toast lying between them. Polo was sitting at Madison’s feet, with his nose pointed towards the smell of bacon.

  “Hi,” I said in surprise.

  “Hi,” Madison replied, with a brilliant smile. John gave me a subtle wink that Madison missed.

  “What’s happened here?” I asked.

  “I woke up early,” John said. “And, I ran into Madison when I came to the kitchen. You didn’t tell me we were having guests over.”

  I shot him a look.

  Madison laughed. “I didn’t exactly tell him I was coming over,” she said. “I kind of invited myself. So I thought it only fair that I made breakfast for you guys.”

  “You made breakfast?” I asked. “I thought you didn’t cook?”

  “I don’t usually,” she nodded. “But I just felt…like taking a risk today.”

  “And, it certainly paid off,” John told her, stuffing some egg and bacon into his mouth.

  She laughed and shook her head at him. “John’s just being kind. It’s a breakfast any layman could make, but I wanted to play it safe today. Come join us.”

  I slipped into a chair at the table between John and Madison, and I felt my spirits lift immediately. “Hi, boy,” I said to Polo, as I bent down to pat him on the head.

  He cringed a little at the sight of my approaching hand, but he stood his ground. I petted him for a few seconds and he actually seemed to relax after the initial contact.”

  “I hope you don’t mind that I brought him over,” Madison said. “I heard him whining when I walked out this morning.”

  “You went out this morning?”

  “I got up really early,” she nodded. “That’s how I got the idea to get breakfast t
ogether. I went to the grocery store to get a few things.”

  “We have a fully stocked fridge now,” John informed me.

  I turned to Madison. “You shouldn’t have bothered with that.”

  “You filled my entire house,” she reminded me. “It’s small repayment to fill your fridge.”

  She passed me a plate and started loading it with food. “Everything smells great,” I said.

  “Maybe you should taste first?” Madison said, a little nervously.

  I dug in and chewed slowly, as though I was trying to form an opinion. Then I swallowed and turned to her with a smile. “It’s amazing,” I said. “You might have a few hidden talents, after all.”

  “Good to know I have options.”

  Fifteen minutes later, John scraped his plate clean and headed for the sink. “Thank you, Madison, for a wonderful breakfast and the wonderful company. It’s nice to have some feminine energy around here for a change.”

  “Aw, that’s sweet of you to say, John,” Madison said with a smile. “Are you off to work now?”

  “Yes, I am,” he nodded. “And, I have a full day, so that meal really helped boost my energy.”

  We waved John off and then I turned to Madison, thankful to have a few moments alone with her before she too had to leave for work. She was gazing over at me with a soft, dreamy smile on her face.

  “What?” I asked, suddenly self-conscious.

  She laughed. “I was watching you this morning while you were sleeping,” she admitted honestly.

  “Oh, boy,” I sighed. “Did I snore? Did I drool? Please tell me I didn’t drool.”

  Madison laughed louder. “Of course not. I was just admiring you…”

  “Were you?” I asked with one raised eyebrow. “I’m flattered.”

  “The gunshot wound is…a little scary, though,” she continued in a softer voice.

  “Ah,” I nodded. “You didn’t notice that before?”

  “I did,” she nodded. “But it never really registered. And, I was a little too distracted with…other things before to really pay much attention to it. It looked like a scar. It’s healed well.”

  “It has,” I nodded.

  “Was it painful?” Madison asked tentatively, as though she were scared to offend me by asking the question.

  “It’s strange really,” I tried to explain. “There was this great burst of pain at first, the most awful pain imaginable and then…it faded.”

  “It faded?”

  “You go numb in a way,” I continued. “It’s like your body’s trying to shield your mind from feeling the pain, so it cuts off that feeling. I can’t remember much that happened after the gunshot sounded. I have little bursts of memory, but they’re really vague…almost dreamlike.

  “I remember being in the ambulance with Talen’s face hanging over me. I remember waking up in the hospital in unbelievable pain. I remember that my body was like a foreign thing to me for some time.”

  “It was bad, then?”

  “I was in a coma for quite a while,” I told her. “They were starting to get worried when I finally woke up.”

  Madison’s eyes were large and wide. I could see terror in them, mixed with relief. I realized that all that emotion was for me. She was terrified for me and relieved that I had survived.

  A sudden and abrupt thought entered my head and I couldn’t quite shake it. Perhaps the reason I had survived was to meet her. It was a strange thought. It was strange because it was so romantic, and I certainly wasn’t that guy.

  “Who shot you?”

  “Even I’m not sure about that,” I admitted. “I know it was one of Maddow’s gang.”

  “Maddow?”

  “He’s the leader of a small gang in the city,” I explained. “But he and his posse are hard to pin down. They have people in high places, and those people are willing to protect them. We’ve been after them for years, but in order to arrest them, we have to find them first, and then we need to find proof of a crime.

  “It’s not always as easy as it sounds. Maddow has learned how to cover his tracks.”

  “I heard that you arrested your brother once,” Madison asked.

  I smiled. “People love to talk, don’t they?”

  “I wasn’t sure whether or not to believe it.”

  “It’s true,” I admitted. “It was Talen, and he was running with Maddow and his gang. I needed to get him out as fast as I could and that was the only path I saw.”

  She looked down at her hands. “I wish I could have done something like that with Victor.”

  “You can’t force them to make the right choices, Madison,” I said. “I learnt that the hard way. In fact, I’m still learning.”

  She nodded slowly as her eyes grew thoughtful.

  “The only thing you can control are your own choices,” I told her, reaching out for her hand. “You can choose better for your own life.”

  “I know,” Madison nodded. “That’s what I’ve been trying to do. That was the reason I enrolled in college in the first place.”

  “And, I admire you for it,” I nodded. “I sometimes wish I had gone to college like John.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “I needed a good job fast,” I explained. “I didn’t have the time or the money to put myself through college when I had the rest of the family to think of.

  “John’s grades were always stellar, so he was able to get a scholarship. We agreed that he would invest in an education so that he could bring in a big paycheck one day, and I would join the force and tide the family over with my income until then.”

  Madison shook her head at me. “You are something else, you know that?”

  I smiled. “Is that a good thing?”

  “You’ve sacrificed so much for your brothers.”

  “I did what I had to.”

  She leaned in and kissed me hard on the lips. “I’ve never met a man like you before in my life,” she said, in awe. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re actually real.”

  “If you’re ever in doubt, I’d gladly be willing to prove it to you,” I said suggestively, and she laughed. I smoothed my tone into one of seriousness. “You’ve made sacrifices for your family, too, Madison. I can see it in your eyes.”

  She sighed deeply. “I really want to complete my credits and graduate,” she said. “But I had to defer for a few months because I was forced to leave town.”

  “Couldn’t you complete the credits online?” I asked.

  “I could,” Madison nodded. “But I just don’t have the time to devote to study. I’m forced to work full time in order to pay rent and support myself out here. Once I save up enough money, then I can finish up my degree.”

  “You’ll do it,” I said, with conviction. “I know you will. You were meant to be a college graduate.”

  “You think so?”

  “Definitely.”

  She smiled. “Thank you, Peter,” she said. “It’s nice to know I have someone in my corner.”

  “Don’t ever forget that,” I said. “Wherever you are, wherever you go, I will always be in your corner.”

  I leaned in and kissed her this time. She tasted of bacon, and I thought how wonderful it was to have a beautiful woman sitting across from me in my kitchen.

  “Urgh, I have to go,” she said reluctantly as she pulled away from me.

  “No,” I said, pulling her close.

  She laughed and struggled out of my arms. “I wish I could stay.”

  “Take a day off work.”

  Madison laughed. “I have three appointments today,” she said. “And bills to pay. I can’t afford to call in sick. But I’ll be thinking about you the whole time.”

  “I suppose I’ll have to contend myself with that,” I sighed.

  I walked her and Polo to the door and kissed her goodbye. Then, I walked to my room to survey the plans for the addition. With any luck, I would be able to finish it off today. When I walked back outside with a few tools, Sam was just pulling up ou
tside the house.

  “What are you smiling about?” he asked, approaching me.

  “Am I smiling?” I asked. “I didn’t realize.”

  He wrinkled his brows at me. “You look like you got laid last night.”

  I smiled, unable to hide it. “Madison and I made up.”

  “Ah ha!” he yelled, punching his fist in the air. “I knew it! So, you did get laid last night?”

  I smiled and turned to the addition. “It’s looking good, isn’t it?”

  “Don’t change the subject!”

  “A few more hours of work and it’ll be complete.”

  “Come on, give me the details!”

  “Tomorrow, I can start on the interior.”

  “You are so fucking annoying, man!” Sam complained.

  “I think it’ll make a pretty nice bedroom actually.”

  “Just tell – bedroom?” Sam said, changing gears as he got side tracked. “Why bedroom?”

  I shrugged. “Just in case one of you guys wants to move in at some point.”

  “Like Talen?”

  “Or you,” I smiled. “When you end up with herpes.”

  “Ha, ha!” Sam said, with exaggeration. “No, but seriously… Why do we even need an additional bedroom?”

  I shrugged and but my arm around Sam’s shoulders. “Oh, you never know,” I said. “It might come in handy one day.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Madison

  I spent the whole day dreaming about Peter. I found myself thinking of him at random points during my appointments and when I did, it was impossible not to smile. I would look up at the mirror, and I would realize how ridiculous I looked, smiling for no reason, and I would be forced to iron out my face.

  I managed to avoid Whitney’s attention during the morning shift because we were so busy with customers, but she cornered me in the evening, when the day was just winding down.

  “So, can you tell me why you’ve been grinning ear to ear all day like an idiot?” she asked with one raised eyebrow.

  “Umm…no.”

  “Madison, darling,” Whitney said sweetly, forcing me into one of the swivel chairs and then turning it around to face her. “Do you want to get fired?”