Rough and Rugged: Shameless Southern Nights Novels

by Ali Parker

  “Don’t pretend you’re not thrilled.” He tapped the side of my thigh and smirked. “I said get on top. I want to feel how wet that pussy is for me.”

  I hooked my leg over his hips, positioning myself over him before I remembered we were missing something. “Condom?”

  “Nightstand.”

  Reaching over, I opened the drawer and gasped when Tyson sucked a nipple into his mouth. “You’re distracting me. Stop that.”

  “But it’s right there. If you’re going to lean over me like that, you’re going to have to expect me to give in to the temptation.” He didn’t stop again, the tip of his tongue flicking over my flesh. It got even more distracting when his hand trailed up my thigh and started wickedly brushing my hard clit. “Hurry up, would you? I need to be inside you.”

  Finally, I managed to ignore the hunger he stoked in me for long enough to grab what I needed and roll it on. Once the condom was in place, I wasted no time sinking onto him. My head fell back, my eyes closing with a low moan.

  Tyson wasn’t quiet either. I loved that about him, hearing his sounds of pleasure mingling with mine. Loved feeling every inch of his thick cock sliding against my inner walls. He pushed the hair back from my face. “That’s right, baby. Ride me. Take what you need.”

  Then he started to rock. Bringing my hands to his shoulders, I angled myself so I could feel his pelvis against my clit and set a fast, punishing pace. Tyson picked it up immediately, taking control by pulling back and then slamming into me.

  Heat and electricity burst through me, and my muscles contracted so tight he whimpered. He withdrew and thrust into me again and again, as hard as he could. Tirelessly pistoning into me, he took me higher and higher. I heard my own voice screaming his name, but I didn’t remember forming the word.

  My orgasm exploded deep inside me and my core rippled, squeezing and releasing him until he moaned and bucked underneath me. A few more thrusts and he was there too, his cock pulsating inside me as he came.

  Shuddering, I could barely move. Tyson noticed and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me down to his chest before rolling us over so we were lying on his bed, our faces only inches apart as we caught our breath.

  With greater effort than it should have taken, I eventually extricated my limbs from Tyson’s. He cracked open an eye, a frown forming on his face when he saw I was getting up. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m getting dressed.” A soft smile spread on my lips over his concern. It was sweet but unnecessary. I climbed out of bed and reached for my shirt. “It’s getting late. I should get home.”

  He rolled onto his stomach, his hand reaching out and gently circling my wrist. “Why? Stay with me tonight. Like you said, it’s getting late. You might as well just get back in bed and sleep here.”

  The corners of his lips twitched up into a sleepy half-smile, and he patted the pillow beside his. “I promise to let you get some sleep. I got us some lunch earlier we can have for dinner in bed if you want. Plus, my pillows are pretty damn awesome if you hadn’t noticed. You’ll be comfortable here.”

  That was part of the problem. It would be too easy to let myself become comfortable in his bedroom, in his arms, and in his life. I was already getting too involved with him. If I crawled back into his bed and spent the night cuddling up to him, there was a chance I was going to start thinking there was more between us than there was.

  “I’m sorry.” I gave him a smile that I hoped conveyed how genuine my apology was. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to stay, and the last thing I wanted to do was to hurt Tyson’s feelings by turning down his offer. Yeah, because you could hurt the all-powerful DA by refusing to sleep next to him.

  I almost rolled my eyes at myself but settled for stepping into my skirt and zipping it up. “I have to be up early, and I don’t have any clothes or anything here.”

  Tyson nodded once, but his lips pressed into a thin, disappointed line. “I understand. I’ll let you make it up to me. Let me walk you out.”

  Before I could stop him, he was out of bed. I caught a last glimpse of his deliciously naked body, then he reached his dresser and put on a pair of gray sweats and a clean white T-shirt. “Okay, let’s go.”

  “I’m sure I can find my way to your front door.” My tone was light and teasing, thankfully not betraying how much I just wanted to get away from him suddenly so I could get my head straight.

  “I’m sure you could.” He grinned and took my hand, winding our fingers together before we headed out into his hallway. “But it wouldn’t feel right sending you out into the cold by yourself while I’m cuddled up in bed.”

  “The cold? It has to be at least seventy degrees out.” Having him walk me out made it feel like we’d been on a date or something. Yet another thing making the line between dating and what we were doing seem blurry. Even so, I didn’t let go of his hand. I have to get out of here.

  Tyson chuckled but didn’t reply. He was a perfect gentleman when we got outside. He walked me all the way to my car, pulling me against his warm chest for a tight hug before pressing a kiss to my hair. Once he released me, he opened my door. “I’ll be seeing you, Eve.”

  “Sure. Have a good night.” I forced a smile, got in my driver’s seat and waved as I backed out of his driveway. Have a good night? What is wrong with me?

  Clearly, I was letting sleeping with him mess with my head. It was making me awkward and jumpy. I couldn’t allow myself to develop real feelings for Tyson. Not romantic feelings, anyway. We weren’t in a relationship, and we were never going to be.

  Feeling something for him could only end in heartbreak, which I wasn’t a fan of. There was a reason why the walls around my heart were miles high. I’d been hurt enough in my life. I didn’t have to put myself right in the line of fire.

  Right, well if that’s true then why are you missing him already? I didn’t have an answer for myself, and that was a very, very bad thing. All I knew was that there were a bunch of feelings rolling around inside me, sparking a war between my heart and mind. It was disquieting.

  Why am I struggling so much with my feelings about this guy?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Tyson

  This had to be what it felt like to be on Cloud Nine. I couldn’t stop smiling even if I tried, and I had tried on my way to the office. I had a reputation to uphold after all, and it wasn’t for being a grinning idiot. Heaven forbid if I was unexpectedly called to court today, because my lips refused to obey me, kicking back up whenever I attempted to flatten them out.

  My heart felt light and happy, seemingly beating easier than it had been for weeks now. Even my limbs felt more fluid. I really did feel like I was floating on Cloud Nine. I even caught myself whistling along to a song on the radio before I got out of my car. I also stopped and talked to a bunch of people I usually ignored on my way into the office. Ridiculous.

  There was no doubt in my mind that they were going to think I had finally lost my marbles, or at least they would think that until the news of the ruling on my appeal did the rounds. I didn’t care what people thought today, though.

  For the first time in a very long time, all was right in my world. There were no urgent cases waiting for me on my desk, my dad was safe for the time being, and my brothers were off my back and deliriously happy with their respective women.

  As it happened, I’d also had a couple of outstanding orgasms less than twenty-four hours ago. Eve was a champion in bed, and I’d kept my promise to myself by keeping her in bed all afternoon yesterday.

  It was the best day I’d had in ages. Life was good. So good that I truly didn’t care what people might think or say about my mood.

  If I’d been my usual slightly cynical self, I might have thought everything was too good. I would have braced myself for whatever was going to come to knock me off my cloud and straight back down to earth.

  Somehow, though, that part of my personality was suspiciously quiet as I shrugged out of my jacket and sat down at my desk. Ea
rly morning sunlight poured into my office, giving everything an orange glow that made it feel strangely peaceful. I sat back, still smiling, and powered up my computer.

  It’s going to be a good day.

  There was a soft knock on my open door. I looked up to see Nick walking in with a wide grin. “I heard congratulations were in order, boss. Well done on the appeal. I never doubted you for a second.”

  “Thanks, Nicky. It’s easy to say that now that we’ve won, though.” It came out sounding much more serious than I’d intended for it to, but it was true. I couldn’t honestly tell him I hadn’t doubted myself on this one.

  After Judge Carroway’s warning, it would’ve been stupid of me not to take the situation and the drive of those behind it seriously. I might have been many things, but stupid had never been one of them.

  I returned his grin, lightening the mood again. I was enjoying it too much to let seriousness get in the way already. “At least it’s done now. Onward and upward.”

  “I always knew you could do it.” Nick’s voice was firm and sure. Admiration shone from his eyes. “You kept it together and saw it through successfully. That’s no small feat under the circumstances. I would have lost my shit if I’d been in the same position you were in.”

  “Thank you.” My chest swelled with pride. At least he was right on that account. A lot of people would have lost their shit over being forced to appeal for their father to stay in prison.

  I had long since started thinking the part of my career where I felt proud of myself for winning was over, but evidently it was still there. It seemed it only surfaced now when I really beat the odds and saved a family member’s life in the process, because in my father’s case it was the safest place to be.

  My grin spread wider, splitting my face as I considered the powers I’d been up against and how I’d managed to snatch my father right back out of their clutches. Take that, assholes.

  “What’s on our agenda for today?” Nick’s voice brought me back to our conversation. His head was cocked, and his trusty notebook was open in his lap.

  “We need to—” I was cut off by the booming noise of my door opening with such force that it bounced back off the wall.

  “What the fuck have you done?” Sonny stormed into my office, glaring daggers at me. “How could you go through with it?”

  Nick jumped up from his chair, his eyes darting nervously between me and my brother. Sonny ignored him, his chest heaving as he waited for my answer. Nick shifted on his feet and gave Sonny a wide berth when he walked to the open door. “I’ll be right outside.”

  “Thank you, Nick,” I said, fighting to keep my voice calm and even. Guess my brothers aren’t off my back after all.

  Once Nick was gone and my door was safely closed again, I crossed my arms and lifted my chin. “I did what I had to do. You might not understand it, Sonny, but it’s better this way. Just trust me.”

  Sonny’s eyes, one blue and one green, narrowed in accusation. “Here’s what I understand, Tyson. Our father is in prison and he could be out. He’s rotting away in maximum security because his own son made him stay there. Do you really expect me to trust you after all that?”

  “You’ll never understand the sacrifices I’ve made for this family.” My good mood crashed and burned.

  Bitter anger suddenly clawed at my throat. I was usually better at disguising it, but I’d had just about enough of Sonny’s constant beratement when he didn’t have a fucking clue what was really going on. “I don’t expect you to trust me, but I am asking you to. Think of everything we’ve been through. Everything I’ve ever done was to protect all of you. I had to be the father when Dad went to prison, and that’s just the start of it.”

  A rare expression of hatred crept into his eyes. I hadn’t ever seen anything like it from him. My brother was even-tempered and rational, but he wasn’t either of those as he clenched his fists and stared me down.

  “Don’t bother being your version of a poor excuse of a father to me anymore. I don’t want to see you again, Tyson. From this moment forward, you’re nothing to me. You hear me? I’m done with you. Just fucking done.”

  After another long second of glaring, he pivoted and marched his ass out of my office. I let him go, knowing he needed to calm down before there would be any use trying to talk to him.

  The knowledge didn’t make it any easier to watch him walk away. For years, my brothers had been my first priority. Stepping into the ‘dad’ shoes as opposed to being only a big brother meant I had to let them hate me sometimes.

  It was for their own protection, and yet I never got used to the way my stomach twisted and a thousand needles stabbed at my heart when I had to let one of them hate me.

  I’d gotten it from all of them over the years, but the intensity of the hatred I’d felt from Sonny today was different. He really was convinced he wasn’t going to speak to me again. Goodbye, Cloud Nine. It was nice to get to float on you for a little while.

  Sonny would come to his senses eventually, but it was going to mean waiting him out. Again. It took him a long time to speak to me again after the trial, and I had a feeling this time it would take him even longer.

  He was a detective now, and he had been actively working our father’s case for months trying to find any evidence that could get his conviction set aside and secure his release.

  It was no wonder he’d told me he didn’t want to see me again. Even though he hadn’t found any evidence that could get Dad out, he had been this close to getting his wish anyway.

  I released a deep sigh, turning to look out of my window as I lifted my hand and rubbed my chest. It didn’t ease the pain in my heart, but it was soothing, nonetheless. It was going to kill me to give Sonny time and space, but I would get through it. One fucking day at a time.

  I heard footsteps coming from the entrance of my office and took a calming breath. I couldn’t dwell on the drastic turn my mood had taken as a result of Sonny’s visit. There was plenty of time after hours to figure out a plan for how to deal with him. For now, I had to get back to work.

  “Nick.” I didn’t bother turning around, I needed another minute before facing him, and I knew the footsteps could only belong to my assistant. “Would you mind getting me some coffee before we plan the day?”

  He cleared his throat. “Actually sir, there’s a reporter here to see you.”

  Fuck. Being interviewed by a reporter was the very last thing I wanted to have to do right now, but that wouldn’t make the reporter go away. Doing my best to shake off the argument with Sonny, I straightened my tie and turned to face Nick. “Who is it?”

  “Mr. King from the Cypress Record.”

  I nodded, not surprised that good ol’ Ike King was the first to approach me after the ruling from the higher courts came down. “Send him in.”

  Though his timing was shit, I was actually more than happy to talk to him now that the issue with Dad had been resolved. It wasn’t Ike’s fault my brother had just come around to yell at me, and as much as I disliked reporters, I had known I would have to face them after a ruling was made on the petition.

  I just hadn’t been expecting them to descend on my office quite so soon. Good news sure got around fast in our town.

  Nick popped his head out the door and waited for a graying man in an ill-fitting suit to step into my office before excusing himself and closing the door behind him.

  “Mr. Lovett, it’s good to see you again.” Ike’s brown eyes held a strange glimmer as he made his way deeper into my office.

  “You too.” It was a blatant lie, but Ike was better than most of the other reporters in town. At least he made an effort to keep quotes straight and not twist anyone’s words too much. “Have a seat. Would you like some coffee?”

  He shook his head and extracted a notebook from his leather messenger bag. “I won’t waste your time, but thanks for the offer. Let me start by congratulating you on getting the verdict you wanted on the appeal to keep your father in prison.”<
br />
  “Thank you.” Unlike the way I felt when Nick congratulated me, there was an unease in my gut this time around—no more pride.

  It was like the air in my office had gone slightly stale, and it made it harder to breathe. There was something ominous about that glimmer in his eyes that I just couldn’t seem to figure out or shake.

  “What can I do for you, Mr. King? We didn’t have an interview scheduled.”

  “I only have a couple of questions.” He clicked his pen and positioned it to hover above a blank page in his notebook. “I’m running an article on this tomorrow, so there wasn’t time to wait for an interview slot. Do you have time for two or three questions to confirm details for the article?”

  I nodded, but the ominous feeling kept growing. Something was going on with Ike. “You’re already here, so ask away. I’m going to have to warn you right now that I might not answer all your questions and you can’t make any inferences about my silence.”

  Ike shrugged and made a note on his pad. “You’ve just had a victory with your appeal to keep your father imprisoned for the time being. How do you feel about the federal courts getting involved now and the new hearing that’s been set?”

  My eyebrows pushed together, the unease in my gut exploding. If I thought the air was harder to breathe before, it was fucking impossible now.

  My vision blurred. With just one question, Ike had kicked my feet right out from under me. I couldn’t admit to him that I had no fucking idea what was happening, or that I had honestly thought it was over.

  From the smug grin spreading on his face, I assumed I wouldn’t have to admit it. The bastard came in here knowing this would be news to me. He only wanted to be here to record my reaction, and I wasn’t sure my warning about inferences was going to make a damn bit of difference now.

  Double fuck.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Eve

  “What do you think of this one?” Penny pointed at an elaborate cake stand, tilting her head as she studied it. “I like it, but I’m not sure if it’s the right vibe for the bakery.”