How wrong she’d been. But wishing to go back in time and change things wouldn’t actually make that happen.
“When I got a dizzy spell and fell into the pool, the doctor who saw me was a specialist because my parents insisted on the best.” As if they settled for anything else any other time. “After talking with him and going through some tests, he diagnosed me with macular degeneration. It’s a slow disease that will rob you of your sight if not caught early enough.”
Braxton wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “You don’t have to tell me all of this. I don’t want you uncomfortable.”
Reaching up, Cora curled her fingers around his wrist. “I know. I need you to know why I’m here, what brought me to Haven, and that I may be running, but my reasons are justified.”
“You don’t have to defend yourself to me or anyone else,” he told her. “But I’ll listen if you feel better.”
“After the accident when we knew my sight was limited, I saw my control slipping.” Cora swallowed. This was the hardest part, actually. “I was fine, but they were already treating me as if I was broken, vulnerable, and unable to take care of myself. I started seeing my life in a whole new light. I wanted different things, I wanted out of that mold I’d been shaped into.”
Cora tipped her head back onto Braxton’s shoulder and closed her eyes. “Eric pressed marriage, saying someone needed to care for me once I went blind permanently. No way in hell would I marry someone just so he could take care of me, but I know Eric was worried about his place in the company. With me pulling away, my parents were worried, and he was worried. If we weren’t married, he didn’t know if he’d still have a high position in the company once my parents retired.”
“This guy is an ass.”
Cora laughed. “A bit, but I shouldn’t have let things go on the way they had. I shouldn’t have let him think there was a chance because I never wanted to marry, especially after my accident and I knew what I was facing.”
“And they still don’t know where you are?” Braxton asked.
“I’m not ready to tell them,” she admitted. “I know it’s cruel, they’re my parents, but in all honesty, they’re more concerned about their company than my well-being. I don’t want to be a burden to anyone. That’s why I had to leave. I couldn’t handle it.”
That familiar burning in her throat and eyes built up and she cursed herself for the tears that threatened. She didn’t want to cry, didn’t want to let this have such power over her.
“I could hear them whispering about me,” she went on, swallowing the lump in her throat. “I could hear them talking and already making plans for who they could hire to come in and help me while they were all at work. They didn’t ask what I wanted, they didn’t even think to consider my needs. Everything was about them and their needs.”
Braxton’s hold on her tightened as he placed a kiss on top of her head. “You made a bold move coming here alone. How did you get here if they don’t know where you are?”
“I had one of my coworkers from the salon bring me. I had already scoped homes out and had been in contact with Sophie, so I knew I’d be fine once I broke free. Besides, I have Heidi and she’s seriously the best thing that’s happened to me in the past three years.”
A slight release of pressure lifted from her shoulders now that she’d told him a bit about why she was here. She needed him to understand her position, but at the same time she wasn’t quite ready to reveal who she was. Money changed people and she’d already picked up on the fact Braxton wasn’t too keen on padded bank accounts. Whatever his ex had done to him, she’d really damaged a portion inside of an incredible man.
“I don’t want to get in on family issues,” he stated as he eased his hold on her. “But I wouldn’t shut them out. I know you want your independence, but I’m sure they’re worried about you.”
Perhaps in their own way they were, but she’d lived her life for them for the past twenty-four years and it was time to live her way.
“You’re the peacemaker,” she muttered. “I heard Zach say it, but I’ve seen it. You’re doing it now.”
His silence spoke volumes. Something had happened to instill such a strong trait in him.
“Care to tell me what has you so determined to keep everyone happy and all waters around you calm?”
He moved lightning fast and lifted her up and over to straddle his lap. The man was strong, that was for sure.
“When I’ve got a beautiful woman in my house, wearing my clothes, and I can still taste her on my lips, the last thing I want to talk about is my past.”
Braxton cupped the back of her head and brought their mouths together, no less explosive than hours ago when he’d done the same thing.
Cora held on to his shoulders, warmth radiated through her body. When Braxton framed her face with his strong hands and lifted his mouth slightly, Cora nearly whimpered.
“Stay,” he muttered against her mouth. “Stay with me and I’ll take you home in the morning.”
Okay, spending the night was a whole other level of intimacy. Cora hadn’t expected the question, hadn’t expected him to even want her to stay.
“I haven’t had a woman here since my breakup a year ago,” he told her as if sensing her internal battle. “Your call, but I want you in my bed. It can be for now or all night.”
Cora closed her eyes as her body continued to hum against his. “I’ll stay.”
In another unexpected move, he lifted her up and carried her. With her legs locked around his waist, her arms looped around his neck, Cora laid her head to the side and relished the fact she was being pampered by a man who obviously wanted more with her than a quick romp.
The last thing she expected to find when coming to Haven was a man who made her feel anything, really. She had never experienced such fierce emotions, she’d never ached for more and needed a man’s touch more than she needed her next breath.
But Braxton pulled passion out of her she hadn’t even known she possessed.
She’d lost all sense of direction in her state of euphoria and anticipation. Suddenly she was tipping and her back hit the plush mattress. When she started to rise up on her elbows, Braxton gently placed his hands on her shoulders.
“Don’t move. Let me.”
Let him what?
A tug on her shirt had her easing up slightly and in an instant the material was whipped over her head. His thumbs hooked into the folded waistband and slid the pants down her legs. She’d not put anything on under his clothes for two reasons: For one they’d been wet from the downpour, but for another she craved just that sliver of intimacy.
Now that she was bared to him, she was thankful for the electric being off due to the storm. She wasn’t too self-conscious, but she was a woman and well . . . okay, fine. She might have worried what he thought.
“You’re already tensing up on me,” he whispered. “I’m going to have to work harder at relaxing you.”
“If I relax any more I’m going to melt into a puddle.”
Braxton gripped her foot and started massaging. Then he moved to the other foot and moments later he was gliding those talented hands up her legs.
“You’re going to put me out of a job before I can even start,” she moaned. “You’re very good at this.”
“I’m memorizing every inch of your body.”
Instant. Chills.
The way he spoke to her in that raw, sexy tone had her trembling beneath his touch. When he skimmed right over the spot she ached for him the most, Cora groaned.
“Easy,” he laughed. “I’m taking my time with you.”
“Can you take your time later? Now I’m kind of in a hurry.”
He slid his hands over her stomach and up to cup her breasts. “I like that you’re already planning a next time.”
“If you don’t get this show on the road, there won’t be an encore.”
When his mouth replaced one of his hands, Cora arched off the bed and gripped the comforter. She pulle
d her knees up on either side of Braxton’s body as he laid his weight on her.
“You’re overdressed,” she panted.
Suddenly he was off of her and a rustle of clothing had her smiling. Perhaps Mr. Take His Time was in a hurry after all.
When she heard the unmistakable crinkling of a wrapper, she smiled. “That’s more like it.”
“Damn it. My hands are shaking,” he half laughed.
Cora sat up and reached for him. When she hit his thighs, she slowly moved up to grip his hands. “There,” she murmured. “Let me help.”
He was indeed shaking beneath her, but that only proved just how monumental this moment was for both of them. Cora was humbled and excited that he was so nervous. At least she wasn’t alone.
She glided her palms up his arms and curled her hands around his shoulders. “I’m scared too, if that helps. For reasons I can’t think about, this matters more than I wanted it to.”
Braxton’s lips nipped at hers. “You’ve mattered since I met you.”
With that declaration, he eased her back down and settled between her legs. Cora thought she’d mentally prepared herself for the emotions that would flood her once they came together, but when Braxton joined their bodies, Cora had to shut her eyes to hold back the tears.
“Am I hurting you?” he asked, his voice husky, full of desire.
Cora shook her head and bit her lip. She couldn’t speak, didn’t want to ruin this moment with words. Everything about being here with him was so much more than she’d thought it would be. The intensity, the slow, easy passion they shared consumed her and pulled out sensations she’d never felt before.
Only this man had the ability to do that.
Cora lifted her knees and tilted her hips as he started to move. Part of her wanted him to hurry, to fulfill both their needs. But the other part of her, the woman who relished in all of these newfound emotions, wanted Braxton to take his time, to make this last so she didn’t have to face reality and analyze what all of this meant.
Braxton caressed his lips over hers as he continued to move. Cora opened for him, needing to feel even more of a connection. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders at the same time she encircled his waist with her legs.
He tore his lips from hers to trail his mouth down the heated skin of her neck and across her shoulder. “Feels so good,” he muttered.
Cora threaded her fingers through his hair as her body started to rise. Wave after wave slid through her entire body until she was bowing up, tightening around him, and crying out his name.
Braxton whispered something as he trailed kisses along her neck. Before she could fully come back to reality and grasp what he was saying, his entire body trembled against hers. She held on to him as his release took over. Beneath her palms, the muscles in his back tightened, strained. He chanted her name over and over, and Cora knew what they’d just shared was something far beyond what they’d anticipated, far beyond sex.
Intimacy was too mild a word. The bond they’d forged was deep, it was strong, and now they had to figure out where to go from here.
Braxton settled against her side, tucking her against his warm, solid frame. “Sleep,” he murmured as he kissed the top of her head. “I’m not letting you go.”
Cora swallowed and closed her eyes. He may not want to let her go, but once he found out who she was, would that be a total game changer?
“I’m glad the electric was off,” she muttered. “Only fair that if I can’t see you, you can’t see me.”
His fingertips trailed over her side, leaving goose bumps in his path. “The lights came back on before we started. I saw every amazing inch of you.”
Cora froze. “What?”
He kissed her softly. “I’ve never seen a sexier sight than your body, your face when you think I can’t see you. Nothing about you could turn me off. Absolutely nothing.”
Cora wasn’t so sure of that, but she was still reeling from the fact he’d seen her. Truly seen her. Even when she’d been with Eric she’d demanded lights off. But Braxton made her feel beautiful, cherished, and . . . dare she say, loved?
Too tired and scared to delve into that territory, Cora rested against his side and welcomed sleep. Whatever newfound emotions she had to face would have to wait. Right now all she wanted to do was rest in the arms of a man who was everything she’d ever wanted and hadn’t known she was missing.
Chapter Twelve
“Our chef quit.”
Braxton had barely taken a step inside the back door of the resort when Zach dropped the bomb.
“Quit? How can she quit when she hasn’t technically started?”
Zach shrugged as he hung the last pot on the hook above the massive center island. “Her boyfriend wanted to take off and drive out West for the next three months and she’s going with him.”
Braxton shook his head and closed the door behind him. The irony of a free-spirited employee for their free-spirited sister’s resort just taking off was . . . well it would be laughable if they had a plan B.
“The open house is next week and Christmas is in two weeks. We open for business the next day,” Braxton stated.
Zach glared across the room. “Thank you. I had no idea the time line.”
“Don’t be a smart-ass. What are we going to do?”
“Not we.” Zach was shaking his head, pointing to Braxton. “You. You’re going to ask Liam to fill in until we find someone more permanent.”
“Shit,” he muttered, wiping a hand down his face. He should’ve stayed in bed with Cora. He was happy there. The world ceased to exist when he’d been between the sheets curled around her lush body.
“He’s actually coming in this afternoon, so you can talk to him in person.”
“I don’t want to talk to him at all because I can tell you he will say no.”
Zach snarled. “Don’t give him an option.”
“Afraid to do it yourself?”
“I’m afraid if Liam and I don’t see eye to eye and fists start flying, my fiancée will kill me.”
“You’re afraid of Sophie?”
Braxton laughed as he ran his hand along the new quartz countertop. So many people gravitated toward granite, but the quartz was a favorite material of Zach’s and since he was the lead carpenter on the project, Braxton really didn’t care. Quartz also fit a bit better into their tight renovation budget.
“If you ever settle down and find the one, you’ll be terrified of pissing her off,” Zach defended. “Trust me.”
The one. He’d thought he had that once. Now that he’d shared the night with Cora, Braxton knew without a doubt that anything he’d felt for Anna wasn’t even close to what he felt for Cora. He was falling hard and fast. Part of him couldn’t believe he’d only known her two weeks, but could he really put a time on how long he should take to have strong feelings for a woman? He’d known Anna for years and look how disastrous that turned out.
Speaking of Anna, he’d had a missed call from her when he’d woken this morning. What the hell could she possibly want? Didn’t his lack of returning calls compute with her?
Zach slammed his hand on the countertop. “Dude. Are you with me?”
Blinking, Braxton nodded. “Yeah, yeah. What were you saying?”
Dark brows drawn in, Zach studied Braxton. “Oh, shit,” he muttered as he narrowed his eyes. “Don’t even tell me you’re getting all wrapped up in our new masseuse.”
“Fine.” Braxton shrugged. “I won’t tell you.”
“Man, we lost the chef. We can’t afford to lose another employee.”
Braxton sighed. He really didn’t want to get into a pissing match with his brother. “Listen, Cora isn’t going anywhere and whatever is going on between us is none of your business.”
“It sure as hell is my business when you can’t keep your pants on with one of my workers.”
Braxton didn’t even try to control his anger. His fist connected with Zach’s jaw, sending Zach’s head whipping back.
“Keep your damn mouth shut,” Braxton warned. “Cora is not your concern.”
The back door slammed. “Such a warm welcome. I just love coming home.”
Braxton turned at the sound of Liam’s sarcastic tone . . . and that’s where he went wrong. Zach seized the opportunity and plowed his fist into Braxton’s gut. Doubled over, trying to take in much-needed air, Braxton braced his hand on the countertop.
“What could you two possibly be fighting about?” Liam asked, his tone worn and tired.
“Ask your brother, who is currently screwing the new masseuse.”
Braxton lifted his arm, fist raised. Liam snaked his arm around Braxton’s stomach and jerked him back. “Easy, killer. I’ve never seen you this worked up.”
Rage bubbled inside Braxton and he realized there was only one other woman in his life he’d ever wanted to defend so fiercely . . . his mother.
“Zach has something to tell you about the chef.”
Zach narrowed his eyes, one of which was starting to swell. Braxton couldn’t help but smile in return. He shrugged out of Liam’s hold. “I’m fine. I’m not going to kill him unless he says something else about Cora.”
As if to be safe, Liam stepped between the two. “Cora? We’ll get back to that later. What’s this about the chef?”
Zach continued to stare at Braxton. “She quit.”
Silence filled the kitchen and Braxton waited for another fight to break out. When he risked glancing at Liam, his brother was simply shaking his head.
“No. Don’t ask me, don’t even look my way.”
“We have no one else and the open house is next week. We open the week after,” Zach reminded him. “It’s only temporary.”
“Temporary? It will still interfere with my very not-temporary job in Atlanta.”
Now that he was able to pull in a full, deep breath, Braxton propped his hands on his hips and jumped on the begging wagon. “Listen, we all have had to sacrifice here, but we’re so close to fulfilling Chelsea’s dream. I took off a semester, surely you can take a month off. I’m sure we can find someone by then and if we get someone earlier, then you are free to go.”
Caught Up In You Page 18
