Keep It Simple (MMG Series Book 4)

by Hilliard, R. B.

  Max and Ellie gave me a ride back to the house, where we changed clothes and joined everyone on the beach for a celebratory bonfire. I hung out for the obligatory hour. Then I acted as if I had to use the restroom and stole away to the house and the safety of my room. I had to get away from Cas’s piercing stare. The man was beyond confusing and I was too tired to care anymore. An hour after I escaped, the girls rolled in from the beach and we stayed up most of the night talking and telling stories.

  Saturday morning, the guys went skeet shooting while the girls went to the spa. The wedding wasn’t until five that afternoon, so we had plenty of time to get pampered before the ceremony. We all were dressed and ready for pictures at three and standing in the courtyard watching Piper and Gage get married at five. After the ceremony, we were whisked across the street to the beach club and the reception.

  By the time Isabella and Dillon hit the makeshift stage to sing, I was on my third beer and thoroughly enjoying my buzz. That is, until Cas appeared beside me.

  “Dance with me?” he asked.

  In lieu of giving him a verbal no, I held up my beer to show my uninjured hand was full. He grabbed my beer, downed it and handed it to a passing waiter. Then he held out his hand and wiggled his fingers in invitation. With a shake of my head and a laugh, I took his hand and let him lead me onto the dance floor.

  Pulling me in close, Cas wrapped his arms around me and pressed his lips to my forehead. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me,” he said into my ear. I’d spent countless nights wishing for this moment, but it was the wrong time. We were at a wedding. I was buzzed. He was buzzed. This was the last place we needed to be doing this and, honestly, I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I wanted to hear what he had to say anymore. Placing my fingers over his lips, I stopped him.

  “Let’s call a truce for now. Let’s drink and dance and just enjoy the moment. If you still want to talk tomorrow, we can discuss it then,” I told him.

  With a nod of his head, he pulled me in tight. “You look beautiful tonight,” he mouthed against the top of my head.

  I breathed him in and closed my eyes. “Thank you.” The song ended and he asked me if I wanted another beer. The rest of the night was more of the same. We danced, drank and hung out together in our bubble of peace. I could feel eyes on us all evening, but didn’t care. I was doing what I wanted. Everyone else could piss off if they didn’t like it.

  “Do you want me to walk you back to the house?” Cas asked. Piper and Gage had ducked out, as had most of the married couples. Sally and Bobby were slamming shots with Benny, Garrett, Tut and Bobby. A few guests were still mingling around, but not many. The musicians and bartenders were starting to get antsy. Clearly it was time for us to go.

  I opened my hand clutch and whipped out a key card. “I’m right through those doors.” I pointed to where I thought the exit was.

  Due to an unexpected late arrival, Piper asked me earlier in the day if I minded to giving up my room in the house with the king bed, and moving over to the last twin room in the hotel. At the time I was a little put out. Now, I was giving her a mental high five. The last thing I needed was to walk back to the house in the dark, especially in heels. I stared down at my feet. Why am I still wearing these things? With a flick of my feet, I kicked my heels off. Cas caught the first one before it caught air, but missed the second one. I roared with laughter when it smacked Garrett’s arm and caused him to drop his shot onto the floor.

  “Hey!” he shouted over at us.

  “C’mon!” I shouted, and took off running.

  “How drunk are you?” Cas asked from behind me.

  “Drunk enough to find this bloody hilarious,” I shouted, as I ran down the hall. Cas caught up to me right as I was turning the corner to a long hall of rooms. With a quick side step and hip check, he had me pinned to the wall. “Why did you stop me?” I panted.

  He nodded to the door to the right of us. “This is my room.” On the door, big and bold as could be, were the numbers 69. I burst into a fit of laughter. This night just kept getting better and better.

  Chapter Twelve

  Cas

  ‡

  What in the hell is she laughing at? As if sensing my confusion, Sarah pointed at my hotel room door and said, “Look!” Then she burst into another fit of giggles. It took a second for it to register she was laughing at my room number. I had to admit, it was pretty funny. Normally, the fact I was staying in room 69 would not have slipped past me, however, I had been distracted since Dana tried to run them off the road. I manage not to lose my mind after my son drowns in my backyard pool, but the woman I’m not supposed to be in love with barely misses getting killed by a lunatic and my emotional shit hits the fan. Go figure.

  Sarah’s hilarity made me smile. So many things were wrong with my life. While I had so much to be angry and sad about, I found myself smiling and laughing every time I was around Sarah McLellan. As I pulled her onto the dance floor tonight, I was ready to tell her my deepest, darkest secrets. When she placed her fingers on my lips and shook her head no, I had a sinking feeling she was going to tell me it was too late. Then she proposed a truce for the night and I snapped it up like a starving man who hasn’t tasted food for months. I had every intention of telling her about Alexandria and Kalen, but if I wanted to spend time with her, it was going to be on her terms. Alexandria and Kalen had waited this long, what was one more day?

  Before we got reported for making noise and booted out of the hotel, I pulled out my room key and inserted it into the door. When the green light flashed, I pushed it open and waited to see what she would do. Please stay.

  As Sarah stepped inside my room, she paused directly in front of me and loudly whispered, “Bet you thought I would run, didn’t you?” With a scrunch of her nose, she whisked past me into the room and I silently let out the breath of air I’d been holding. Then I smiled. I fucking love this woman. I know I shouldn’t, but I do. Now, if only I can find a way to convince her of it.

  After placing the Do Not Disturb sign on the door handle, I closed and locked it behind me. The scent of sea air hit me as I stepped from the hallway into the bedroom, and I knew I’d find Sarah on the balcony. The sheer curtains framing the sliding glass door billowed in the wind like ghosts in the night and a sliver of light from the hallway spilled across the room onto the balcony, illuminating her beautiful body. She stared sadly down at the ocean. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt her. How can I make her understand and still keep her?

  Sarah’s dress whipped frantically around her bare legs. I watched her push strands of hair from her face as it unraveled from its once perfect position on top of her head and my fingers itched to touch it. As I reached behind me to turn off the light, I noticed the strapless bra hanging from the bedroom doorknob and tried not to laugh. I lost the battle when I spotted the matching pair of panties on the floor a few feet away. Just the thought of what waited for me outside on that balcony had me hard as a rock.

  Slowly, I stripped off my shoes and socks and stepped outside. The glow of the moon was so bright I could see the peaks of Sarah’s breasts through her dress. Stepping up behind her, I grazed a finger across one of the taut tips. With a gasp, she arched into my hand and pressed her tight little ass into my very needy erection.

  I buried my face in her neck, breathed in her feminine scent and closed my eyes. I wanted to take a minute to enjoy being this close to her and touching her once again. I had dreamt of this moment more nights than I cared to admit. Sarah let out a full body shiver when I traced my tongue from her collar bone to her ear.

  “You have no idea what you do to me,” I confessed out loud.

  “Show me,” she commanded.

  I checked our surroundings to make sure no one was watching. Public sex was not my thing. However, tonight, I wanted to take her with the moon shining down on us and the music of the ocean surrounding us. I wanted to live in the moment and forget about the lifetime of regrets hanging over me.

>   “Grab the banister, but watch your hand,” I told her.

  I watched her fingers wrap around the banister and paused to pull the condom from my wallet. Placing it within arm’s reach, I slowly began lifting the bottom of her dress up her legs.

  Her breathy voice stopped me before I reached my destination. “Can anybody see us?”

  Stroking both my hands up the backs of her thighs, I cupped her very naked ass. “Do you want them to?”

  “Not really, but I don’t want you to stop, either.” There was a desperate note to her voice I’d never heard before. It told me how much she wanted this.

  I kissed the side of her head and whispered in her ear, “No one will see us and I promise I have no intention of stopping.” Her hair brushed across my face as she nodded her head in silent agreement and I gave her waist a squeeze of approval. Once again, I was reminded of how tiny she was. Yes, Sarah may be tall, but one of my hands spanned more than halfway around her waist. I didn’t remember her being this thin.

  “Stop overthinking this, Cas.” Sarah’s words were muffled by the breeze, but I still managed to hear them. She was right. I needed to stop thinking and start acting.

  Slowly unzipping the back of her dress, I reached inside and cupped her bare breast. At the same time, I slid my other hand between her legs and dipped a finger inside. She was tight, warm and ready for me. A moan slipped from my lips as I worked her with my finger. I don’t think I’d ever wanted anything as much as I wanted inside this woman. Rolling her turgid nipple between my fingers, I lightly squeezed. Sarah let out a growl of desire that vibrated through our bodies and straight to my cock. While focusing on her other breast, I slid a second finger inside and felt her walls contract. Oh no you don’t.

  “Not yet,” I warned.

  “Then you’d better hurry,” she panted.

  “Smart mouth,” I teased.

  Sarah responded by grinding down on my hand. Little vixen. I quickly retracted the hand from her breast as well as the one from her pussy and tried not to laugh at her strangled gasp of outrage. Before she could turn and blast me, I gently wrapped my fingers around her neck and pulled her flush against my chest. The back of her head rested against my collar bone and I could smell the minty scent of her shampoo. Sarah stilled against my hand and I knew she was waiting to see what I would do next. My girl likes to play. She was lucky…I did too. Cupping her chin with one hand, I slid the other down between us and released my cock from the confines of my suit pants.

  “Don’t move,” I commanded. When I got a consenting nod from her, I let her go and slipped on the condom. Placing my hand back on her neck, I pulled her to my chest and said, “Spread your legs for me.” She immediately complied and I gently kissed the side of her neck. “Let me know if I’m too rough, okay?”

  Sarah’s soft, “Okay,” vibrated through my chest. Once again, I lifted the back of her dress and rubbed my hand over her ass. A lusty sigh morphed into a loud groan as I slid around the front and dipped a finger back inside her tight channel. She was always so wet for me and I wondered if I would ever get enough. Somehow I doubted it. Shifting my feet between hers, I bent us both slightly forward and lined my cock up to her entrance. As I pushed inside our moans of pleasure were whisked away by the wind. Another moan escaped my lips as I pulled out and pushed back in. The rippling of my girl’s pussy around my hard cock was sheer heaven.

  “You feel so damn good,” I told her.

  Sexy little noises spilled from her lips as I took her. Like always, Sarah’s body sang for me. With each thrust, her walls clinched tighter and tighter around me. I was so close, but refused to let go until she was there with me. Reaching down between us, I pulled almost all the way out, strummed my fingers across her clit and slammed back in. With a scream, she detonated and took me right along with her. Trying to catch my breath, I released my grip on her chin and caught her as she started to go down.

  “Ohmygod,” she panted.

  Ohmygod is right, I thought.

  Once we both calmed, I carefully extracted myself and steered her inside the room to the bed.

  “Let me get rid of this real quick,” I told her and felt her body tense beneath my hands. Please don’t fight me, not tonight.

  When she took a step toward the bed and not the door, I let out a sigh of relief. Worried she would change her mind and bolt, I hauled ass to the bathroom, disposed of the condom and washed my hands. I was relieved to return to the bedroom and find her in bed. As I nestled in behind Sarah’s warm, naked body, I couldn’t help but think about Alexandria and all the nights I wished she would have left and never come back. The irony of the situation saddened me.

  Maybe I should tell Sarah about Xan and Kalen now while we are both relaxed and sated?

  “Sarah?”

  She mumbled something about numbers and I knew she was either asleep or headed that way, so I wrapped my body around her and breathed her in. She smelled like the ocean and sex. I wanted to believe this was finally the beginning for us, but a part of me was scared shitless everything would end when I told her about my past. Pulling her close, I stared down at her beautiful face and memorized everything about her….just in case.

  “Bam, Bam, Bam.”

  The sound of knocking woke me. I glanced over to check the time it and noticed the bed was empty.

  Shit!

  “Bam, Bam, Bam.”

  Someone knocked again, only this time much louder.

  “Hang on!” I shouted, as I reached for my pants. After pulling them on, I quickly checked the balcony and bathroom for Sarah, before answering the door.

  “Took you long enough,” Bobby griped. He handed me over one of the two cups of coffee he was carrying and I stepped back to let him in. My mind was racing. I couldn’t believe Sarah left.

  I took a much needed sip of the coffee and casually asked, “Have you seen Sally this morning?”

  “She took off for Charlotte about an hour ago, why?”

  Fuck!

  “Was she alone?”

  “No, Sarah was with her.”

  I can’t believe she actually ran. I didn’t know whether I was more hurt or impressed with the little sneak. It was probably a bit of both. “How soon can you be ready to roll? I want to head home as soon as possible.” What I really wanted to do was catch up with Sarah and spank her ass for real this time.

  “Did you forget about Charleston? It’s your call if we bail, but I’ve got to tell you, I think Adam would be a serious asset to the company,” Bobby advised.

  Damn! I forgot about Adam. Dillon’s brother, Adam, was in town for the Fourth of July and mentioned he might be interested in moving to Charlotte. Since he proved incredibly resourceful in helping us gather information on Dana after she tried to run Isabella and the girls off the road, Garrett asked us to detour to Charleston after the wedding to talk to Adam about the possibility of working with us. Garrett was thinking about selling off the Kentucky business so he could better focus on the rapidly growing Charlotte business. If he poured the money from the sale of the Kentucky office into LASH, we could afford to take on both Adam and Sally. The detour meant I couldn’t go after Sarah, but I couldn’t let my team down, either.

  “No, you’re right. Now is the time to talk to Adam. Give me half an hour and we can roll,” I told him.

  Bobby went to pack, which left me alone to stew. I stepped onto the balcony and parked it in the chair with my feet on the table. As I stared out at the ocean I thought about Sarah. Last night was amazing. I may not be able to go after Sarah, but that didn’t mean she was off the hook. Pulling up my text message screen, I found her contact information and typed,

  You owe me a talk.

  While waiting for her to reply, I went inside and packed my shit. Five minutes later she responded.

  I’m not sure I want to hear what you have to say.

  I didn’t blame her one bit for being wary, but I needed her to hear me out. If she decided she wanted nothing to do with me after,
so be it. I would leave her alone.

  Bobby and I have business in Charleston. We will be back in Charlotte Tuesday. What time should I be at your place?

  She responded right as Bobby knocked on the door.

  Max and Ellie are having a get together at MMG Wednesday night. We can talk there.

  It wasn’t what I had in mind, but it would do.

  See you then.

  At the last second, I decided to add, Last night was amazing. I can’t stop thinking about you.

  As I was getting into the truck, she gave me a one word response that made me smile. It also gave me hope.

  Ditto.

  I spent the next day and a half with bobby convincing Adam to move to Charlotte to work with us at LASH. Finally, after talking to both Dillon and Isabella on the phone, he agreed. Once we had him locked down, the three of us went to Isabella’s Uncle’s place to celebrate.

  Tuesday morning we drove back to Charlotte with nasty hangovers. I spent the rest of the day and most of the evening making sure everything was covered through the end of the week. Nothing was going to stop me from talking to Sarah, especially not work. By the time I pulled into MMG Wednesday night, I was resolved. Whatever choice Sarah made, I was going to have to live with it.

  Heavy is the Head blasted across the parking lot as I rounded the corner to the back of MMG. I was normally not a fan of country music, but Zac Brown and Chris Cornell got it right with this song. I was pleasantly surprised to discover only a handful of people milling about.