by Kylie Walker
She looked embarrassed as she said, “No, not in person.” Conrad started pulling his shoes off and rolling up his jeans. Sam watched him curiously before asking, “What are you doing?”
He grinned at her. “Take off your shoes.”
“Foot fetish?”
God she was so sexy he almost couldn’t stand it. He’d take her feet, or any part of her she wanted to give him. He cleared his throat and said, “Maybe, we’ll talk about that later. Right now I want to formally introduce you to the ocean.”
Sam looked at him suspiciously but she started untying one of her black Chucks. Conrad reached over and untied the other one and pulled it off. He looked at the shoe in his hand and said, “I really can’t believe your foot is as heavy as it looked the other night.”
Raising her eyebrow she said, “What does that have to do with my shoe exactly?”
“I can fit this whole thing in the palm of my hand,” he said. “I can’t imagine how it could be heavy enough to get you an eleven-six.”
Sam smirked and took her shoe out of his hand. “You don’t have to imagine it, you saw it first-hand.”
“And I’m sure if I ever forget, you’ll be happy to remind me.”
“More than happy,” she said with a pretty smile. Her confidence was another thing about her that turned him on. She finished rolling up her jeans and stuffing her socks into her shoes. He took hold of her hand again and led her down toward the water. They stopped when they reached the edge of the lacy foam that spread out across the sand like the edges of a frilly skirt. The breeze blew in cool air off of the water and as Samantha stood there with her tousled locks blowing out behind her Conrad thought that he’d never seen anything so beautiful. She let go of his hand and he watched as she sucked in a deep breath of the salty air and then walked forward until the cold water covered her ankles and stretched up toward the bottom of her jeans.
“It’s beautiful,” she said. “Did you grow up here?”
Conrad walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist. She stiffened up for just a second but almost as quickly relaxed back into him. He bent his head slightly so that his mouth was next to her ear and he said, “Yeah, in Pasadena. Pasadena is weird. It’s kind of like Mayberry only surrounded by oceans and big cities. But you know what?”
“What?”
“None of it is as beautiful as you are.”
Samantha twisted around and looked up at him. Conrad hadn’t meant to bring her out here to seduce her. He had brought her out here to stop himself from taking things with her way too fast. He wanted to get to know her without the awkwardness of sex between them, but her breasts were pressed into his chest and her crystal blue eyes were shining like the moonlight was coming right out of them and he couldn’t resist another kiss. He brushed his lips gently against hers and then hesitated for half a second to see what she would do. She didn’t pull away. As a matter of fact she actually snuggled in closer and tipped her head back. He gave her a real kiss then, soft and unrushed, savoring every part of her lips. He slid the tip of his tongue along the seam of her lips and her mouth instantly fell open and his tongue slid inside to meet hers. She brought her arms up and put them around his shoulders and he had his hands on the small of her back. He let them slide down and finally touch her sexy backside. She moaned into his mouth when he did and the sound was like throwing kerosene on the already raging fire.
He reluctantly broke the kiss and led her back over to the blanket. Neither of them said a word as he lowered her gently down to the blanket. She lay down on her back and reached up for him. He knelt over her and she put her hands in his hair and twisted her fingers up in it. He brought his mouth back down to hers as he felt her slide her hands down from his head and over his shoulders and down his back. Her touch left a trail of heat in its wake. When she reached the hem of his shirt she pulled it up and he gasped against her lips when he felt her warm hands sliding up the sides of his torso until they reached his chest. She pressed her palms into the hard muscles of his and touched him like a blind woman reading braille, or like she was trying to memorize every curve. It was so sexy and Conrad had a painful erection again. He pulled out of the kiss and reached down to pull her shirt up. He slid it up until it was around her ribcage and looked down at her. Her body is insane. He leaned down and put his lips on her neck and began slowly placing open kisses down the length of it. She tipped her head back to give him better access. She was so soft and pliable in his hands and he could tell she wanted him as badly as he did her. He had tingling sensations racing throughout his body and the taste and feel of her had shut down the argument in his brain right up until he heard her say,
“Um, Conrad?” He pulled his head up and looked at her face. Wet tendrils of her dark hair were stuck to her face and her pretty blue eyes were half closed. Her lips were swollen but drawn up in a half smile and he almost forgot she’d spoken as he went for them again. “We’re not exactly alone here.”
Conrad had forgotten they were on the beach and that there were other people around. He forgot that the moon was as bright as a lightbulb. He’d forgotten everything except for the beautiful woman lying underneath him. Now he looked around and saw that the other couple had walked down the beach at some point and were now walking back toward them and not far to the other side a man was walking his dog. The man with the dog wasn’t even pretending not to watch. Conrad shot him a look and reached down and pulled on Sam’s shirt to make sure she was covered up. He couldn’t really blame the guy for looking. She’s so hot. “I’m sorry, I got caught up…”
She laughed softly. “Please don’t be sorry, I’m not sorry. Just take me back to your place and we’ll pick up where we left off.”
Conrad pushed himself up with his arms and held his hand out to her without saying a word. Once she was up on her feet he gathered their things and he held her hand and led her back to the car. The drive back to his apartment was a quiet one and it seemed like it took them twice as long to get there as it had to get to the beach in the first place. He was cursing his choice of beaches. Once they finally made it to the apartment Conrad was relieved to see that Shawn’s car wasn’t back yet. As soon as they got inside, he closed the door behind them and dropped everything to the side of the door in the floor as he kicked the door closed and locked it. Then he wrapped Sam back up in his arms and led her backwards down the hallway to his bedroom. He couldn’t wait to kiss her again but before he did he said, “You’re sure you want to do this?”
She still didn’t speak, she only nodded. The desire she was feeling for him was apparent in her eyes. He didn’t waste any more time. He had to taste those sweet lips again. He pulled her up so her feet weren’t even touching the floor any longer and he kissed her hard as he carried her over to the bed. He lay her down and lay down next to her and for the next hour or so she lit every nerve fiber in his body on fire. They fit perfectly together, like they were made for each other. It was an experience unlike any other he’d ever had. It was like a lightbulb had come on and he finally understood the difference between having sex and making love.
Afterwards when they lay tangled in each other’s arms trying to catch their breath Conrad looked down at her. She had her head on his chest and he couldn’t see her face but she looked perfectly comfortable there. Her dark hair was splayed out across his chest and he reached down and moved it back so that he could see her face. She had her eyes closed but when he let his fingers trace the curve of her cheek and across her plump lips, she smiled. Conrad had no plans on falling in love any time soon. He had no plans to have a girlfriend. He didn’t want any complications in his life when Sanders Racing hired him as he was sure they would. He was going to race and travel and leave the demons that have haunted him for the past five years in his dust. He looked back at Sam. She scared him because the ache he felt before they’d made love had been as strong if not stronger than the one he felt when he thought about racing. No woman had ever come close to that for him.
He was pondering what to do about it and thinking maybe they should make love again before she had to go when the shrill sound of a phone came from the pile of clothes on the floor. Sam opened her eyes wide and said, “I need to get that, it’s my brother.” Conrad let go of her and watched her climb out of the bed. It was a beautiful sight and he had a smile on his face as he closed his eyes and heard her say, “Aaron, what’s up?” She was quiet for a second but the sound of her voice really got his attention when she said, “Aaron I can’t understand you. Calm down. What happened?” Conrad opened his eyes. Sam’s face looked worried. He sat up and watched as she held the phone to her ear and reached down for her clothes. “He’s still breathing though, right?” “What was he doing when he passed out?” “Did he hit his head?” “Is he still unconscious?” “How long ago did you call 911?” The more questions she asked, the more frantic she sounded. Conrad threw the sheet back and got up too. He pulled on a pair of boxers and a t-shirt and was picking his pants up off the floor as she said, “What hospital are they taking him to?” Then a few seconds more passed and she said, “Go with him in the ambulance and I’ll go straight there. It’s going to be okay. Stay calm for him Aaron, please.” She lowered the phone looking shocked and frozen for a second.
Conrad waited but when she didn’t say anything he said, “Sam? What happened?”
She looked up at him as if she just remembered he was in the room. “I’m not sure. My brother says my Dad passed out. He thought he might be having a seizure or something.”
“Does he have seizures?” She seemed to be fighting back tears in her eyes as she said,
“I don’t know. I have to go. Aaron was hysterical. He’s not good in any emergency so it’s hard to know exactly what’s going on. He’s been through a lot of shit lately. I should have been there.” She finished getting dressed as she talked and so did Conrad. He sat on the bed and started pulling on his boots when she noticed. “I have my truck here…”
“I know but I’m driving you.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
He decided the best way to win this argument was with the facts, “Do you know where the hospital is?”
“No.”
“I do and if you want a reason besides that, I want to be there for you. There it is.”
He couldn’t read the look on her face then but he did see her face change when she seemed to realize they were wasting time. “Aaron said they were taking him to Huntington Memorial.”
“That’s not far from here. We’ll probably get there at the same time or before. Let’s go.” He wanted to tell her things were going to be okay, but he had no idea what the situation was and he knew that would only sound stupid at this point. He didn’t say anything more. He watched as Sam picked up her shoes and carried them and he followed her out of the room. When they got to the living room she hesitated for a second, but then kept going. Shawn was sitting in the living room watching television. He looked at Conrad with a raised eyebrow but Conrad silenced any sarcastic comment he may have had on the tip of his tongue with a look. Sam just passed by and opened the front door. Conrad followed her out and down to the car.
The ride to the hospital was as quiet as the one from the beach had been only this time instead of palpable excitement, he could feel her concern. He felt bad and wished that there was something he could do for her. She got a text from Aaron and told him it said they’d just gotten to the hospital. It was five minutes later when they got there. Conrad parked the car illegally near the emergency room and Sam was out before he even came to a complete stop and headed for the door. Although his legs were a foot longer than hers he almost had to jog to keep up. She went right in through the ambulance bay so he did too and they came face to face with hospital security.
“You can’t come in this way,” the big bald guy dressed all in black told them.
“They just brought my father in by ambulance,” Sam said.
“You need to go around front,” the other security officer, a smaller, older guy told her.
Conrad put his hands on her slim shoulders. Sam shook him off. “I’m here already, can’t you just find out for me if he’s okay? That’s all I want to know and then I’ll go around front and do whatever I need to do…”
“No, you have to go around front.”
“If you don’t at least tell me if he’s okay, you’ll have to carry me around front because I’m not going otherwise.” Conrad tried putting his hand on her shoulder again. He didn’t want her getting thrown out of here.
“Samantha…” She shook him off again. The giant security officer stood up. He was a good six inches taller than Conrad. He took a step toward Sam and Conrad’s protective instincts kicked in. He stepped between her and the man. “Listen man,” he said with his palms up. “She’s just worried about her dad. Can’t you have a heart and just go see if you can find a nurse or someone to talk to her? She’s not a criminal, okay?”
Conrad felt Sam had stepped out from behind him and before he glanced down at her he had a feeling that she was glaring at the big guy…he was right. She wasn’t helping her own cause any, but the older guy must have decided that it wasn’t worth the fight. He put his hand on his partner’s arm and whispered something to him. With another glare in Sam’s direction that oddly made Conrad want to sock him in the face, he turned and walked a few feet away. “Mike!” the older man said. The big guy stopped and turned back toward him. “You need her father’s name.”
“It’s Luke,” Sam said. Conrad felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up as she said, “Luke Glass.” The big guy walked away again and Conrad looked down at her.
“Luke Glass?” Sam nodded and then she drew her brows together and said,
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“We’re talking about the Luke Glass that owns Glass engines?” he asked. He felt like all the blood from his head was rushing to his feet. As it passed through his stomach it made him feel sick.
“Yeah, you having a hard time believing he’s my dad or what?”
“Kind of,” he said. Sam started to look pissed again and Conrad added, “He’s my step-father.”
CHAPTER 13
“What’s wrong with you?” Samantha was trying hard to ignore Conrad’s eyes boring into her from across her father’s hospital bed. She couldn’t deal with him right now. She couldn’t think about the fact that she’d just slept with her step-brother. It just had too much of an ick factor to fathom, especially while she’s standing at her sick father’s bedside. Aaron was slumped in a chair in the corner. He hadn’t said a word since they got here and Sam was worried about him too.
Luke took a deep, shaky breath and said, “So you two already know each other?” Sam finally looked at Conrad. She almost laughed. She found a guy who was not only smart and funny and sweet and sexy, but he was hot and loved to race as much as she did. For those few seconds she was laying against his chest in his bed before Aaron called, she’d actually allowed herself to think maybe this time she’d take a chance and see where things went. It was just her luck the one guy she found worth taking a chance on, was her step-brother. He was staring at her with those light green eyes like he expected her to say something. What the hell was a person in this kind of fucked-up situation supposed to say? “Yeah,” she said to Luke, “Conrad’s team is the one my friend in Arizona recommended. Now, quit stalling and tell us what happened tonight.”
She could see Conrad out of the corner of her eye. He finally pulled his eyes from her face and looked at Luke. “When we came in here the doctor was saying something about a blood transfusion. Why would you need a blood transfusion?”
Luke glanced over at Aaron who was still sitting stock still in the corner, staring at the floor. “Aaron?”
The boy pulled his head up slowly and looked at Luke. Samantha didn’t understand the look in her brother’s eyes. It was almost accusing. “What?”
“Are you okay?”
> Samantha saw the look in her brother’s eyes go from accusing to angry in two seconds flat and once again she was reminded of how much he looked like his father. He had the same angry scowl on his face that Darren used to get, right before he went off. “Okay? Am I okay? You’re kidding, right?”
“What’s going on?” Sam asked, looking from Aaron to her father.
“Do you want to tell her, or should I?” Aaron asked Luke angrily.
“I’m sorry you had to find out like that.”
“Find out what?” Sam asked, frustrated. She looked at Conrad again. He looked as confused as she felt.
“In the ambulance when I woke up they had a lot of questions about my medical history. I was going to sit you all down and talk to you about it, but so much has been happening lately and Sam, you and Aaron had been through so much and Conrad, shit…you’ve all been through so much and…”
“He has cancer,” Aaron said.
Aaron’s words hit Sam like a ton of bricks. Her mother just died and she was just getting to know her father…and really like him. This can’t be happening. Once again she looked at Conrad. He was staring at Luke like he was in shock. “Cancer? What kind of cancer? How bad is it?”
“It’s in my pancreas and that’s why I passed out. My body is not producing insulin any longer and my blood sugar went too high.” He looked at Aaron again and said, “Thank you for calling 911 so quickly. It was so high that I could have died.”
Aaron didn’t acknowledge Luke’s thanks. He continued to scowl at him. “So you’re like a diabetic?” Conrad asked.
“Yeah, it’s diabetes brought on by the tumors in my pancreas basically.”
“So how long have you known about this cancer?”
