"Okay." He grabbed her backpack and put it over one shoulder. "Is this the only other bag?" he asked and picked up another bag lying on her bed and handed it to her to hold.
"That's it."
She was quiet as he rolled her out into the hallway and down the hall to check out at the front desk, and she stayed that way all the way to his car. She got herself into the car; he handed her the backpack and put the chair and the other bag in the trunk.
He climbed into the car, and she handed him the address. He put the address on his GPS and pulled away from the curb. Siri gave the first few instructions, and they were on their way.
Stephanie was looking out the window, lost in thought.
"Hey, baby. Let me know when you need to stop and rest. Last time you rode for a while, you hurt badly afterward," he told her, remembering the night of the transfer.
"Okay. I'm all right."
But he knew she wasn't. "The heat for your seat is right here. Do you need a blanket or anything?"
"I'm good, thanks."
"There's a pillow back there too."
"I'm good, Jake. I'll let you know if I'm not," she bit off at him, and he clamped his mouth shut.
Who knew silence could be so deafening? For almost two hours, she'd been deathly silent, but he could see her start to shift in her seat, a grimace settling on her beautiful face. Of course, she wouldn't tell him anything.
Jake saw a sign for Jack's Inn and turned off the exit—Siri started rerouting, and he punched the off button.
"What are we doing?" She speaks!
"We are stopping for a rest at Dylan's dad's hotel, and I'm checking out the kitchen. They are starting on the one at the facility on Monday, and I think Dylan may be helping them some."
"Oh."
He pulled up in the handicapped space and ran into the building. He came out shortly and got her chair out of the back, rolling it up to the passenger side door. He opened the door and scooted her chair close. She got herself into the chair, and he pushed her down the sidewalk to the first room they came to. He unlocked the door for her and ran back to get the bags while she rolled herself inside.
He placed the bags on the bed. "Do you want to come to the kitchen with me?"
"No, I'm going to lie down."
"Okay. I'll be back. Do you need..."
"No," she cut him off.
"Fine." He turned on his heel and left the room, the door closing behind him.
He walked briskly to the kitchen and entered the beautiful space. "Jake?"
He turned, and Sam was standing there. The first thing he noticed was how tired she looked. "Hi, Sam. Stephanie's in the room if you want to see her. I decided to stop here and see the place before the guys start on our kitchen soon. We are going to see her birth mom, but she's..." He stopped abruptly. "I don't know what's going on with her, to be honest, but I could tell she was hurting, and I saw the exit."
"I thought Matt was taking her."
He must have shot her a look because even in her exhausted-looking state, one corner of her mouth ticked up. "I see."
He opened his mouth to... what? Deny something? But instead answered, "Yeah."
"Well, she may be resting. Are you guys staying for lunch and dinner?"
"Yeah. She doesn't know that yet. I didn't tell her we were staying that long. Just that we were stopping for a rest."
"I'll let her rest now, and I'll see her later. Lunch is at one. Dinner is at six. I have to check on Dylan and Drew. They went to the pool with Jack. Look around, or come see the pool area." Jake nodded and followed Sam out the back.
"Just sit there, Drew!"
"I want to swim!"
"We don't always get what we want!" Dylan erupted.
"I should have told you no," he seethed.
"What are you talking about?"
The doors to the pool area swung open, and Jake and Sam entered the room.
"I should have told you no when you asked for my permission to marry mom!" he yelled.
"Drew!" Sam gasped and froze in the doorway.
Dylan climbed out of the pool and exited out the back door. He didn't even bother grabbing a towel.
"Come on, Drew," Jack said and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around Drew's shoulders. He smiled sympathetically at Sam and left through the front door with Drew.
Jake felt awkward and didn't know what to do.
"I'm sorry," Sam apologized, and Jake recognized she was close to tears. "Make yourself at home here. Call the front desk if you need anything." He watched her hand tap a beat on her leg before she turned with her head down. "Sorry," she repeated and quickly went out the back.
He felt awful for Dylan and Sam. Well, Drew too. He was going through something. He tried to shake his head of the sobering thoughts and walked more fully into the room to check it out thoroughly.
The pool was gorgeous, and so was the hot tub. Stephanie would like that, which immediately brought his thoughts back to Matt. Was there something going on there? They looked awfully chummy. He took a little walk around the grounds, trying to clear his head.
By the time he made it back to the room, Stephanie was asleep in the bed. A bottle of Ibuprofen sat on the nightstand. Why did she torture herself and not take something stronger? She always waited until it was too late.
He really should talk. He had gotten his sleeping pills refilled, and they were in his bag. He sat on the bed and kicked off his shoes. Stephanie had discarded her hoodie, and the pair of yoga pants she had on was on her wheelchair, which meant her legs were bare under the comforter.
He took off his jacket and pants, leaving his T-shirt and boxers on before finding some water to take his pills.
He slid into the bed and wanted to wrap his arms around her. His hands itched to run over her soft curves, pull her body flush with his, and let his hardness fill up the gaps.
He had never wanted someone so much in his life. And he couldn't have her. She wasn't cleared for sex yet, but maybe he could make her feel good if she'd let him touch her. His hand hovered over her hip before he thought better of it and turned his back to her.
His medication finally kicked in, and he drifted off to sleep with visions of Stephanie naked in his arms.
Chapter 15
Stephanie reached for her phone and glanced at the time. A little after five in the afternoon. The curtains were pulled, but she could see that it was already dark outside. She ignored her missed calls and got herself to the bathroom. She even managed to get her pants back on before getting back in bed. Jake didn't even stir.
She saw his pills on the bathroom counter. He must have recently gotten the prescription filled. He was on his side facing her, and she took the time to study his features. He had been so cute in high school. A memory flashed in her mind, and she blushed. Had she really told him he was cute last night in a pain medication-induced high?
Man, last night was fuzzy. She'd never been drunk before. Was this what it was like? Would Courtney be offended if she asked her? Her hand hovered over his face for a brief second, but she thought better of it and dropped her hand to the bed. Her stomach growled. How long had it been since they’d eaten? Obviously, they skipped lunch.
She groaned and shifted to her other hip. A large arm wrapped around her body as Jake sidled up behind her and pulled her close. "Are you okay?" His voice, raspy from sleep, sent tingles down her spine when he spoke low in her ear. His hand flattened on her stomach, and just like that, she moaned for another reason.
"I-I'm fine."
She could feel his breath on the side of her face, and then a soft kiss was planted right behind her ear. "Oh," she whimpered.
"Was that a good whimper?"
"Y-yes."
His hand trailed underneath her shirt, across her flat stomach, and under the sports bra she wore. He covered her breast and began to knead.
"Does that feel good?"
She couldn't form actual words, and incoherent babbling came out of her mouth instead. Jake was touc
hing her. Was this how it felt when fantasies came true?
"I take that as a yes." His light chuckle did things to her insides, and she stiffened. "I need you to relax, baby, or when you come, it might hurt."
"Oh, God."
His hand left her breast and traveled down her stomach to the waistline of her pants. He placed another kiss on her shoulder as his hand went inside her panties, finding her soaked. "You feel so good, baby."
"Jacob," she hissed. "Please."
"Please, what?" he asked as he palmed her.
"I-I'm afraid this is going to hurt," she cried.
He paused his rubbing. "Do you want me to stop?"
"No."
He kissed the back of her neck as his hand began to rub again, his fingers finding her folds and sliding through, making her hips buck slightly. Her breathing picked up.
"You doing okay, Annie?"
"Yes," she answered, and her hand fisted the sheet. "Oh, Oh. That. Do that."
"This?"
"YES!" Her hips jerked as she came, and his rubbing slowed down and stopped. His breathing had changed behind her. It was quick and fast on the back of her neck. She could feel his erection on her ass when he pulled his hand out of her pants and rested it on her hip.
She moved back slightly, and Jake groaned, his hips tilting forward, coming more in contact with her. His hand flexed on her hip. "If you want me to come on your ass, keep doing that," he breathed.
She did it again, eliciting another groan from him. His hands grabbed her pants and pulled them down slightly before he pulled his cock out of the top of his boxers and placed it between her butt cheeks. They both moaned at the same time.
"Shit," he said out loud, his hips moving forward. "I'm about to embarrass myself."
"Why?"
"I'm gonna come in like five seconds."
She chuckled but was cut off when he thrust forward once more and squeezed her waist. He grunted near her ear and shot his warm cum all over her ass. The sensation almost caused her to come again.
"That-that was hot as fuck," she whispered.
He was still panting on the back of her neck. The heat was still sending prickles of awareness down her spine.
"I-I think I need a shower, and I'm hungry. We didn't have lunch."
He began to rub her arm. "That reminds me. Dylan, Sam, and their son are here. Um. Drew said some things to Dylan, mean things, and everyone was upset. Maybe you should talk to him."
"Who? Drew? Sam hasn't told me anything."
"I think they are having issues with him. Sam looks awful, and she's doing this tapping thing with her fingers."
Stephanie let out a deep breath.
"She told me before the blowup out there that dinner is at six. Their kitchen is nice. I can't wait for you to see it."
"Will you help me to the shower? My legs feel liquified."
"Yeah. I need one too. Hold on." He set one more kiss to her sweat-dampened shoulder before rolling away and fixing himself in his boxers while she pulled up her pants. He wheeled her chair out of the way and picked her up. She buried her face in his shoulder as he carried her to the shower. The room was handicap accessible, and there was a bench in the stand-up shower, reminding her of the facility. He placed her on the seat and kneeled in front of her.
Suddenly, she was nervous and couldn't look at him. "I think you need to take your ibuprofen again when you get out of the shower. Do you need help getting undressed?" Pink rushed to her cheeks. "Hey." He grabbed her chin, tilting it up so she had to look at him. "What's the matter? You aren't regretting that, are you?" He swallowed hard. "You're not involved with Matt, are you?"
Stephanie couldn't help it. She laughed.
"What's so funny?"
"I am not with Matt. Sure, he likes to flirt, but he knows..." She looked away and bit her lip.
"Knows what?" he asked softly.
She turned back to look at him and cupped his face. "He knows there's someone else, that there's always been someone else."
"Stephanie," he whispered her name, and tears sprang to her eyes. "I wished I'd known you liked me in high school. I wouldn't have let you go out with those other guys."
"I went out with them trying to make you jealous. That backfired in my face. I think that's what you call an epic fail."
"I was jealous!"
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"Because I'm a dumb-dumb?"
Stephanie turned bright red, and Jake laughed hard.
"Did I say that last night?"
"Yep, among other things, but we will talk about that later. Let's get cleaned up and eat. I'll bring your bag in here. Call me if you need help, okay?"
"Okay."
He cupped her face in his hands and touched his lips to hers gently. "I'll be right back."
*******
Jake pushed Stephanie through the open door to the hotel's kitchen. A beautiful mural took up one wall, and she wheeled herself over and was shocked to find Damon's name at the bottom. Leslie had told her that he could draw, and she was one hundred percent correct. That was gorgeous.
Jack had set a buffet-like spread on the counter, and Jake left her to get them some food. Her eyes scanned the kitchen area and landed on Sam sitting at a table alone. One hand was in her hair, and the other was tapping furiously on the tabletop.
Stephanie rolled herself over and spoke when she neared. "Hey, girl."
Sam's head popped up, and she looked like she'd just gotten over a crying jag. "Oh, hi, Steph," she answered with a small smile.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
Stephanie shot her a look.
"No, no, I'm not."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"I don't want to bother you."
"Sam, I'm your therapist." Stephanie stopped. "I was. I know I've neglected you since I was shot, and I'm so sorry about that."
"It's okay."
"You know." She wheeled under the table and placed her hands on top of it, nervously playing with the grain. "It's really not okay. I've been angry, and I'm struggling with this. Is that why you didn't tell me you were having issues with Drew? Where is he? Where's Dylan?"
"Steve's parents came and picked him up because I can't deal right now, and maybe he needs to be around his dad's family. And Dylan..." Her voice trailed off, and she bit her quivering lip. "He's-he's extremely upset, so he went out in the Gator hours ago and hasn't returned yet. I'm used to him being the strong one, and he looks devastated and lost, and I don't know what to do."
Stephanie reached over, grabbed Sam's hand, and squeezed it. Meanwhile, Sam's hand left her hair and landed on her abdomen. Stephanie's eyes narrowed at the motion.
Jake carried two plates over and set one down in front of Stephanie. "Here, baby. Oh! Let me get the drinks." He left quickly, and Stephanie checked out his ass as he walked away. When she turned around and realized she’d been caught ogling, she blushed to her ears.
Sam smiled the first genuine smile she had at her. "Very nice."
"Shut up, Sam," Stephanie hissed at her, and Sam grinned.
Jake returned with the drinks and spoke to Sam, "Do you need anything?"
"I'm good." She held up a ginger ale. "Thanks for asking."
"No problem."
"This is so good. Diana and Jack should open a restaurant," Stephanie murmured between bites.
"Right?" Sam asked.
"And." Stephanie pointed her fork at Sam. "Your mom could handle the desserts."
"Don't tempt her. She might just do it. And where would this restaurant be located?"
"I mean, obviously, the logistics would have to be worked out," Stephanie said and cut into a juicy steak. "Did you already eat?"
"No, I'm okay."
Stephanie narrowed her eyes at her. "Are you sure, babe?"
"Yeah." Her hand rubbed her stomach, and she looked sad again. The light that had lit her eyes briefly had already disappeared as she looked at the front door and then out the win
dow, searching for Dylan. "I'll wait for Dylan."
"How long has he been gone?"
"Um, since I don't know, eleven?"
Jake put his fork down. "This morning? After the pool thing?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. I'll find him." He stood. "Does Jack have an extra four-wheeler or something?"
"I think so."
"Jake, you don't know your way around here."
"I'll figure it out." He stood and strode toward Jack, and Jack led him out the back door.
"Maybe I should go with him. I know where the cabin is, and sometimes cell phone coverage can be spotty."
"Have you tried calling him?"
"I didn't want to bother him. He needed to be alone, so I let him go. What if..."
"Sam!" Stephanie cut her off. "He's fine."
"But he knows I worry. I can't lose another..."
"You said it yourself. Phone coverage is spotty. He'll be here soon. He probably lost track of time, and now he can't get a hold of you."
Sam stood suddenly. "I'm going outside." She turned and walked out the door before Stephanie could call after her.
Damn! She hated this wheelchair. She couldn't chase Sam down. Jake was mostly done with his food, so she stole his roll off his plate and chowed down while she waited for everyone to return.
A nice older woman came over and brought her some dessert. Thirty minutes later, Jake came back in and headed in her direction. "He's in the apartment now. His Gator ran out of gas, and he was walking back because he knew Sam worries."
"How was she?"
"Falling apart," he answered softly.
"Is that blood?" she asked as she grabbed his jacket and pulled it to her for a better look.
"His phone died using the flashlight, and he fell in the dark and scraped his arm. He's okay, though. Well, he's upset. He's okay physically."
"Do I need to go up there? Wait, I can't."
"If they call that they need you, I'll make sure you get there. I'll clean up, and we can go back to the room."
A few minutes later, they were back in the room. Jake had propped up some pillows for Stephanie, and she was looking over the paperwork that Sam had sent over.
"It's only fifteen minutes from here," she said softly. "She lives less than three hours from me."
Broken Ties (The Healing Series Book 5) Page 11
