by Donna Grant
“We’re going to expose them,” Brice stated. He squeezed her hand. “Do you believe me?”
She gazed into his blue eyes and saw his steely determination. “I do.”
“Good. Now, let’s get the room set up so when Caleb arrives with everything tomorrow, you can get to work.”
Having something to focus her mind on instead of thinking about Whitney was exactly what Naomi needed. In the bedroom, Brice set up the ladder in front of a window as she grabbed a quilt and spread it out.
She then looped the duct tape on her wrist to easily hand to Brice. He was quick and efficient putting up the first blanket. After he’d tapped the top and some of the sides, Naomi took over and finished the sides before folding the bottom under.
The room became dark enough that they had to turn on the light in order to do the second window. They repeated the process before turning to the door.
Brice moved the ladder into the hall while she reached for another thick blanket that they then tapped along the top of the door.
Naomi stood back and admired their handiwork. “This looks good.”
“Just what I wanted to hear. We’ll leave everything here in case we need to make adjustments tomorrow.”
She glanced at her watch. It was now ten after six. When she looked up, Brice was grinning at her.
“What would you like first? Food, bath, or bed?” he asked.
She laughed and shoved at his shoulder. “Do I smell?”
“Just thought you might want a soak in the tub,” he said as he looped an arm around her waist and dragged her against him. “But, we can take that off the list.”
“No, no. I was a bit hasty. It sounds nice,” she said as he kissed her neck.
He groaned and looked down at her. “How about you soak while I start cooking?”
“All the coffee I could ever want and an offer to cook? You’re spoiling me.”
His eyes crinkled as he smiled. “That’s what I’m here for, darlin’.”
Dear lord. The man really had to stop talking to her like that. It made her weak in the knees.
He spun her and put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her into the master bedroom. “I have some clothes you can wear if you want me to wash yours.”
“Seriously,” she said as she stepped aside and faced him, a smile in place. “You want to wash for me, too? I’m not sure I know how to handle this.”
His brows snapped together. “Just what kinds of men are there in DC?”
“Not the kind who do such things for women. At least not any that I know.”
He shot her a sexy-as-hell, lopsided grin.
Naomi watched him walk to the top of the stairs, where he turned and winked before descending the steps. She made her way to the bathroom and started the water for her bath. She had to admit, the idea of sinking into the clawfoot tub and relaxing sounded amazing.
Besides, there was no telling what the next few days would hold. She should get in as much leisure time as she could. Rest her mind and her body for the anxiety of what was sure to come.
She undressed and piled her clothes near the door. As she turned, she saw the light switch was a dimmer. Curious, she tested it and smiled when she was able to turn down the lamps to a soft glow. The only thing missing was candles.
Naomi stepped into the tub. She sighed as she flipped her hair over the side and leaned back to be enveloped by the water and heat. Her eyes closed as she found her mind drifting until she thought of Brice. She hadn’t lied earlier. She really was reconsidering moving.
Actually, that was a lie. She was no longer thinking about it. She was actually planning to do it. Not only would she be closer to her mom and Whitney, but Brice had also been right. Texas was in her blood. This was where she belonged.
And if that also meant getting to spend more time with Brice, then that was an added bonus.
She smiled as she thought of her brief horse ride that morning. Goodness. Had it really been just that morning? So much had happened over the course of the day that it felt as if it happened last week.
Being around the horses forced her to realize that she’d tried to forget something she was passionate about. Walking through the Easts’ barn, petting the animals, smelling the hay and leather caused her to reevaluate … well, everything.
She had a nice life in DC. But she could have a fulfilling one in Texas.
Her grin faded when her mind shifted to Whitney. She had so much regret when it came to her friend, but this was her chance to make up for everything she’d missed. And she was going to set everything right for Whitney.
Once the men were behind bars, Naomi would help Whitney with her recovery, because the road back would be arduous and grueling. Whitney was strong enough to endure it, but she wouldn’t be on her own.
But would Naomi?
Her eyes opened to stare at the opposite wall as she contemplated Brice. They’d confessed to liking each other a lot, but what did that mean?
She knew how she felt. She couldn’t get enough of him. And it had happened without her even knowing it. Brice was always there when she needed him, standing by. His quiet strength and directness were things she appreciated.
If she had the nerve, she’d come out and ask him to explain how much he liked her. But she wasn’t sure she could do it. Being forward like that had never been her strong suit.
In the city, men liked when women asked them out on dates. Perhaps it was her country upbringing, but Naomi preferred for the man to do it. Just as she liked having the door opened for her and being called ma’am. Not to mention having hats tipped in her direction.
It was all a show of respect. The country life.
She laughed at herself. Everything she disliked about the city was everything she could find right here in Texas. Why had it taken so long for her to realize where she belonged?
Or had it been that she’d been fated to meet Brice?
Now that was certainly a thought. He was simply everything she hadn’t known she wanted or needed. And the way he looked at her! It was swoon-worthy to the nth degree.
She shook her head and laughed. Oh, man. She had it bad for him. Like, really bad. Did it mean she was falling in love? She had no idea, but she was curious to find out.
Her eyes slid to the door, where she looked into the bedroom. They had the entire night ahead of them. Alone. Her stomach fluttered with excitement.
She sat up and hastily washed, no longer wanting to relax in the tub. She wanted in the bed with Brice’s arms around her and their bodies slick with sweat from making love.
Her hands shook with the images that filled her mind. She wanted him that badly, the need surging through her until she was dizzy with it. Her heart pounded, blood rushed loudly in her ears, and all the while, she smiled.
Because she was with Brice.
When she finished, she stood and grabbed a towel. After she’d bent and released the water in the tub, she dried off and happened to look down. Her clothes were gone. When had Brice come up here? And why hadn’t she heard him?
She wrapped the towel around her and padded into the bedroom. He’d told her there were clothes, and when she looked into the closet and saw a denim shirt hanging up, she grabbed it and shrugged it on.
Then she paused in front of the mirror and pinched her cheeks for some color before running her fingers through her hair.
At the bottom, she heard Brice singing to an old Waylon Jennings song as he moved about the kitchen. She stopped in the doorway and watched him. Brice had removed his boots and socks, which were by the door where his Stetson hung on a peg.
He turned the steaks before placing them on a plate to rest before checking the potatoes in the oven. She spied the plates, silverware, glasses, and napkins set on the kitchen table, along with two tapered candles waiting to be lit.
No man had ever gone to such trouble for her. And it wasn’t as if Brice had asked her out on a date. In fact, Naomi wasn’t sure what this was, but whatever it was, she was pleased.
Suddenly, he looked up, their gazes clashing. His eyes slowly ran down her before rising back to her face. He let out a low whistle of appreciation. “My God, woman, is there anything you wear that doesn’t look sexy as hell on you?”
“You like?”
“Oh, hell yeah.”
She grinned and walked to him, rose up on her tiptoes, and placed her mouth on his. She let her tongue run along the seam of his lips. One arm snaked around her, holding tightly as he tilted his head and kissed her deeply, thoroughly.
While she might have begun it, he had swiftly taken over and left her breathless. And needy. Her body pulsed with a hunger that only he could quench.
He ended the kiss and gazed down at her. “If I don’t stop now, our dinner will be burned.”
“Then I suppose I’d better let you finish cooking. We’re going to need our strength for tonight.”
His eyes blazed with passion. “I was already burning for you. Now I’m ablaze.”
“Good,” she teased. “Now you know how I feel.”
He briefly shut his eyes as his chest rumbled with a groan. “I swear, Naomi, I’m going to toss you onto the island and take you right now.”
That sounded like something she very much wanted. But she wasn’t about to let the food he’d gone to so much trouble cooking go to waste.
She kissed her finger and pressed it against his lips. “Until later, then. Wine? Or beer?”
“You pick,” he said, turning back to the steaks.
Naomi chose a bottle of red and opened it. She finished pouring some into their glasses when Brice dished the steaks and baked potatoes onto each of their plates.
To her surprise, he pulled out her chair. It was another reminder of her old life. She sat and inhaled the delicious aroma before her. She cut into her steak for a bite before fixing her potato.
The moment the beef touched her tongue, she moaned at the taste. “This is incredible,” she said around her bite.
“I’m not sure I’ve made you moan like that,” he said, desire darkening his eyes.
She cut her gaze to him. “Oh, you have. And you will again. But first, steak,” she said and took another bite.
Chapter 28
Was it wrong that Brice liked the fact that he and Naomi had to be alone? He hated the circumstances that had put them there, but he very much liked being with her.
Liked was the wrong word. He relished every second, reveling in learning all there was to know about Naomi.
Yet his enthusiasm was dimmed by the fact that one of his closest friends was lying in the hospital, and Naomi’s best friend would have a long road to recovery just so she could walk again.
After putting away the last cleaned dish, he found Naomi leaning back against the island. There was a seductive tilt to her lips that made his balls tighten in response.
She drained the last bit of her wine and set the glass aside. He strode to her, his gaze taking in the length of bare leg visible below the hem of his shirt. He loved the look of her in it and the way the collar parted enough to show him just a hint of her breasts while teasing him with the perfect view of her amazing legs.
Her fingers slowly ran up and down one side of the collar, tugging it open farther right before he reached her.
“You love to tease me,” he said.
She raised a blond brow and shook her head. “It’s the fire that sparks in your gaze when you look at me that I enjoy. It makes me burn.”
The woman had a way with words. He grasped her hips and slowly lifted her to set her on top of the island. Her hands slid up his chest to his shoulders as her legs parted so he could step between them.
“Dinner was delicious, but all I could think about was dessert,” she murmured.
Naomi would be the death of him. The hunger he felt for her consumed him and was so powerful that it made him forget everything but her. As if she were his entire world, as if she were the only thing keeping his heart beating.
And he was beginning to think that she was.
Her hands cupped his face as she gazed at him with her soft brown eyes. “What have you done to me, Brice Harper?”
Her question had him raising a brow. “Actually, I was about to ask you the same thing.”
She didn’t smile as he thought she might. Instead, her gaze lowered to his mouth for a moment. “I don’t think I can return to my life before. Not after being in your arms.”
“I like hearing that.” He put his hands on top of her thighs and caressed upward, pushing the material with his hands.
“That doesn’t scare you?” she asked with a small frown.
“Darlin’, I want you here. Right here,” he said before he leaned forward and took her lips.
Her arms wrapped around him as the kiss deepened, passion and hunger pushing them hard. His fingers fumbled with the buttons of the shirt while she unfastened his pants.
A groan tore through him when he saw that she was completely bare beneath the shirt. It was a good thing he hadn’t known that beforehand, or they never would’ve gotten through the meal.
He ripped off his shirt and jerked his jeans down to his feet. He freed one leg from his pants when Naomi shimmied her shoulders and let the shirt drop.
Brice forgot to breathe as he stared at the gorgeous woman before him. Her ankles locked around him, and her legs pulled him forward. Whatever thoughts he had of taking his time making love to her vanished as she guided him within.
The driving need to be inside her took control once he felt the tight, wet walls of her sheath. He thrust deeply, seating himself fully. Her head dropped back when he began to slide in and out of her. His gaze fastened on her breasts that swayed in time with his body.
He yanked her closer, pressing her against him. With every thrust into her, their bond tightened, strengthened. It didn’t frighten him. It thrilled him.
Because he had something to hold onto.
Something to love.
* * *
Jace rubbed his tired eyes with his thumb and forefinger as he waited in line at the hospital for the largest cup of coffee he could get.
His body was sore from sitting—and sleeping—in the chair next to Cooper’s bed. At least Cooper had woken earlier long enough to give his mom and Jace a smile.
After sharing a hug with Betty, Jace quickly sent off a text to Brice and Caleb to let them both know Cooper’s status. He hadn’t heard from Brice yet, but to be honest, he figured his friend was taking advantage of being alone with the pretty Naomi.
Not that Jace blamed him at all. He’d do the same in Brice’s shoes.
Jace covered his mouth as he yawned and stepped up to the counter to place his order. He paid and turned, cup in hand, to find Whitney’s father.
“Sir,” Jace said with a nod of his head.
The man looked dead on his feet. He swayed slightly and ran a hand down his worry-lined face. “Son, I’m wondering if I can ask a favor of you.”
“Anything,” Jace stated.
Mr. Nolan blew out a breath. “I’ve got to get my wife out of here for an hour or two. I want to take her home to shower and change, and maybe get some food. She’s not eaten anything since we got here.”
“You need help convincing her to leave?”
“Actually, her problem is that she doesn’t want Whitney alone. Not even for a moment.”
Jace couldn’t blame Mrs. Nolan for that. “I’ll sit with Whitney.”
The man’s eyes filled with tears. He glanced away, hastily blinking. “We had no idea Whitney had been … she never told us anyone had.…”
“It’s all right, Mr. Nolan,” Jace said and put his arm around the man, leading him back to the ICU doors. “Whitney didn’t tell anyone. Not even Naomi.”
“That’s what has us so confused,” he said with a shake of his head. “Those two girls are as thick as thieves, even with the distance separating them. Why didn’t Whitney tell Naomi?”
Jace gave a shake of his head. “I wish I had an answer for yo
u.”
“You sure you don’t mind sitting with Whitney?”
“Not at all,” Jace replied with a smile.
They walked through the ICU doors together. Mr. Nolan then said, “I don’t think I ever thanked you and the others for what you’ve done—are still doing—for my daughter.”
“There’s no need, sir. We look after our own.”
The older man halted and faced him. “Will Cooper be all right?”
“Yes, sir. And so will Whitney. We’ll all be here to help her.”
Mr. Nolan smiled sadly, his eyes watering once again. “I don’t know yet how Naomi and Whitney came to know you, Cooper, and the Easts, but I’m glad the girls have someone to look after them.”
“That we will, sir. You don’t need to worry. Naomi is in good hands with Brice.”
The man grunted. “Maybe he’ll be able to convince her to stay instead of returning to DC since none of us have managed to do it.”
Jace grinned as Mr. Nolan opened a door and they quietly walked into the room. Mrs. Nolan looked at them as they entered. As soon as Jace saw the woman’s pinched features and weary eyes, he understood the man’s need to get her out, if only for a moment.
“I’m not leaving,” she stated in a whisper.
Mr. Nolan opened his mouth, but Jace held up a hand to him and made his way to Mrs. Nolan. He squatted beside her chair and smiled at her. “Whitney has a long recovery. She’s going to need you to be strong. You don’t want her waking up and seeing you like this, do you?”
Mrs. Nolan’s eyes slid to the bed where her daughter lay with tubs hooked to her. “You’re right. I’m a mess. But my husband can bring me clothes.”
“I’m going to stay right here with Whitney,” Jace continued. “I won’t leave this room until you return. Go with Mr. Nolan and take a hot shower. Get into some fresh clothes and stop somewhere for food. Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”
She considered his words for a long minute before she turned her head back to him. “I admit, I’d like a shower and clean clothes.”
“Then go,” Jace urged.
Mrs. Nolan drew in a deep breath and pinned him with a stern look. “Do I have your promise that you won’t leave my daughter alone with anyone?”
