by Ali Parker
"I doubt it, but whatever." She was resorting back to being the stuck up brat that drove me bonkers. Not that I could blame her. She was fighting herself over Pauly. I could almost feel the tension rolling off of her narrow shoulders.
She had no idea how much her comment tore at me. My lack of smarts continued to plague me. I was good with judging character unless I was dealing with a fucking chameleon, which is exactly what Mitch and Jeremy were.
"Is your friend Jess out at the house?" I tried to change the subject as we walked toward the elevator.
"I don't know." She pulled her phone from her pocket and glanced up at me. "Are you seriously going to trust Jeremy with those zip drives?"
"Yes." I wanted to tell her that I'd have a few more in my back pocket, but there was no reason to give her more information than she needed. Cole and I would take care of it one way or the other.
"I think you're making a mistake." She walked into the elevator and turned to press her back against the wall behind her. The position caused her breasts to jut out, and damn if my body didn't wake up.
"We're not going to get anywhere over the next day or two while your father is celebrating his victory. Let's try and enjoy each other so we have something good to lean on when the shit starts to hit the fan again."
She reached for me, pulling me close and pressing her forehead to the center of my chest. The soft sigh that left her caused my heart to hurt.
"I just want things to go back to normal. I want to see Pauly and give my dad shit over being a bastard in a joking manner." She glanced up at me, her blue eyes rimmed with tears. "I don't want to find out what happened to my mother. I'm not sure I would survive it. I stapled all of those pages in my journal shut for a reason, Ian."
"I know, baby." I cupped the back of her head and leaned down to kiss her a few times before moving back. "Let's get back to San Diego and we'll take a day off from this madness, okay? You can have Jess over and I'll check in with my brother. We'll see where this thing with Jeremy leads, and hopefully Cole can get some answers from Pauly's place."
"Are you going to hate me if I don't want those answers?" She moved up beside me and turned her face toward the ground as we walked to the parking lot.
"No, Chloe. It's up to you to decide what you want to know and what you don't. Your life can change in the blink of an eye because of something we find. If you'd rather not know, then we won't tell you." I opened the door for her before walking around to my side of the car. I somehow thought she was stronger than she appeared right now, but maybe it was the weight of everything finally settling on her shoulders.
"My life sucks as it is." She buckled up and glanced over at me as I got in the car. "I'm not sure I'd be able to sleep again if I found out my father killed my mother and his best friend."
"And if he's not your father?" I started the car and waited for her response.
"He's my father, Ian. I've seen my birth certificate. His name is on it."
*
She slept the whole flight home, and I didn't have the will to tell her that her birth certificate could have been altered. What would have been the point? As much as she hated Mitch, he was still her father in her mind. She'd only lost one parent, which was painful, but much easier to swallow than thinking she'd lost two.
"Baby." I reached over and squeezed her thigh.
"What?" She jerked up and glanced around.
We were stuck in coach on a commercial flight, which was our only hope for getting home early. Mitch had his plane on lockdown, which was almost comical. The bastard had pushed past his biggest hurdle to the Presidency and now that he'd won the nomination, Chloe wasn't nearly as valuable. People wanted a candidate like the one he played on TV, but now he would move into being more of a politician than a family man.
He wasn't worried about Jeremy or anyone else harming Chloe. He was the only one with a weapon ready to strike any of us, and his attention was diverted toward the seat of power he coveted.
"We're here. Come on." I stood up and moved into the aisle, reaching up to get her bag from the overhead bin.
She reached for my hand and moved out in front of me, stopping as the lady in front of her helped a small child out of the seat.
I pressed myself against Chloe's back and slipped my hand around her waist, pressing my palm to her stomach as I leaned down and pressed my lips to her ear.
"The sound of you moaning in your sleep had the poor guy beside you completely turned on."
She turned toward me and smirked. "Who? You?"
I moved my hand from her stomach to grip her chin as I held her in place and leaned down. The kiss was quick, but hungry. We both needed to get lost in a night of passion, or even better yet, several nights.
She pulled from me and walked toward the front of the plane. I let my eyes run down her back over the swell of her ass in her jeans. I made sure to hold Chloe's bag in front of my erection and followed her out. She had the power to turn me on without even trying.
"Where are we going?" She slipped her hand into mine.
"We'll get a cab and go out to my apartment. I'll grab my bike and we can spend the night at the beach house." I squeezed her hand and moved in front of her to take the lead.
"Can we go out to Coronado for a little while? I just want to watch the boats go by."
"Hell yeah." I glanced over my shoulder and moved to the side to give her room to walk next to me. "We can do anything you want to do."
"Oh yeah? Going through hell might actually be worth it if I get to control a sexy guy like you for a night."
"A night? Is that all you want?" I was beyond glad to see her looking a little more alive. It would seem that the nap on the plane did her good.
"I want every night for the rest of our lives." She snuggled against my arm. "Too much?"
"Not at all." I wanted to stop in the middle of the exit and show her just how much I agreed, but we'd be back at the beach house soon. She was compartmentalizing her pain and worry, but maybe it was a good thing. Otherwise it would quickly consume her, and I had no doubt that I'd follow right behind her.
*
The feel of the wind on my face almost felt too good as we drove out to Coronado Island. The sun was starting to set, and we wouldn't have long before it was too chilly outside. Whatever time we got to watch the sun sink behind the earth would be worth it though.
Her fingers pressed into my chest as she held on tightly to me. I had a feeling that once things finally settled down, her and I would have many more nights of riding my bike wherever the fuck she wanted to take it.
Life was going to suck for a while until we unraveled Mitch and his schemes, but I could almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. I just had to keep us both safe until that time came.
The quick stop by my apartment gave me a minute to see Cole, and surprising enough, he was in a good mood. Funny how removing himself from the situation with Cindy left him breathing a little easy.
We were meeting on Sunday afternoon at Billy's. He'd gotten into Pauly's place, but needed more time than I could give with Chloe beside me. I wanted to shelter her from as much of the drama as I could.
I inhaled deeply as we rode over the long bridge that would take us to the heart of the island. Everything about the moment seemed perfect, and fuck if I didn't need the reprieve.
We drove to the shoreline and I parked and got off.
Chloe pulled her helmet off and handed it to me as she shook her head. Thick blond strands of hair danced in the wind as she turned her attention up to me.
"We're going to get through this, right?"
I offered her my hand. "Yes, baby. We're going to get through this and live any kind of life you want to live."
"What about me going back to UCLA? That's part of the plan, right?"
"If you want it to be." I hung the helmets on the back of the bike and took her hand. "Let's live in the present and let the future form itself as we get there. We have a few more things to get through be
fore we can claim freedom."
"Okay." She snuggled against my side as we walked toward a pretty little park that I knew she loved to visit. We'd been there together one time before in the middle of a thunderstorm, but under very different pretenses.
I found a good place to drop down and motioned for her to join me. Pressing my back against a thick oak tree, I opened my legs and pulled her to sit between them. I wrapped my arms around her and pressed my face against the side of her hair.
"You okay?" I had to ask. She was getting too good at hiding her heart.
"I don't know." She rested against me and let out a soft feminine sigh. "I'm good right now. Right here with you, but I'm not sure what I feel about everything else."
"I understand that." I kissed the side of her face. "We'll get through all of it, okay?"
"Will we?" She turned her face a little to look up at me. "And if my father is the murdering bastard we think he is?"
"He'll go to prison for a long time, Chloe." I brushed my nose by hers and kissed her soft lips. "I'll make sure of it."
She nodded and pulled me down for another long kiss, forcing my thoughts away from her nefarious father and back to her.
Chapter 14
Chloe
We spent an hour at the park on Coronado and headed back to the beach as the sun disappeared behind the clouds. It was a peaceful hour that helped me to pull myself back together. I trusted Ian, which was a good place to be. After everything that happened with Pauly, I wasn't sure I could find it in myself to reach for the sexy bastard on the bike in front of me, but here I was - reaching.
He'd come clean on the situation surrounding Pauly's death without me pushing much at all. Whether he wanted to hold it back to protect me or not, he let truth be his guide. For that... he had my trust to go along with my heart. I had no doubt that he'd be sorely upset with Jeremy, but maybe I was wrong. The asshole had been playing one side of the fence or the other for as long as I knew him.
We pulled up to the beach house, and I stiffened. The image of Pauly lifeless on the floor brushed by my mind's eyes.
Ian pulled off his helmet and turned a little. "What's wrong?"
I pulled off my helmet too. "I can't stay here. Not yet."
"Let's go back to my place? Cole is there because of the shit he's going through with his wife."
"Or we could go to a hotel?"
"We could. You tell me." He reached back and ran his hand over my knee.
Maybe I was overreacting. The beach house was beautiful and held some good memories too. Lots of them, actually.
"Let's just stay here."
He snorted. "Women. I swear there is honestly no understanding you fickle creatures." He turned the bike off and offered me his hand. "Let's go in and if you decide you'd rather not be here, then we'll walk right back out, all right?"
"Okay." I took his hand and got off before glancing around as if I expected Pauly to walk around the corner and give us some shit.
Ian got off the bike and turned to face me. "Come on, let's go get a hotel room. I can see the hurt all over your face, Chloe."
"I just can't believe I'm not going to see him again." I didn't want to ask, but I had to. "What did you do with his body, Ian?"
He shook his head and glanced out toward the ocean. "I gave him a proper burial and made sure that no one would find him."
I swallowed and reached for his hand. "Okay. Don't tell me where."
"I didn't plan to." He wrapped his arm around my shoulders as we walked toward the back door. "I'm sorry for having to play a part in any of it. I wouldn't have hurt him. I was glad to see him that night."
Tears stung my eyes. "I know," I whispered. There wasn't much more to say. My father killed Pauly to shut him up. Whatever he had on my dad had burned a hole in his stomach and he was finally willing to spit it out.
"Let's get settled and then we can order a pizza or something. I highly doubt that anything in the fridge is worth eating."
"I'm not that hungry." I pulled back as Ian slipped his arm from around my shoulders and unlocked the door.
He glanced back, giving me a concerned look. "You sure about this?"
"Yeah." I walked in behind him and slid my arms around his waist, reveling in the firm press of his body against mine. I kissed the back of his shoulder and released him. Taking my time, I moved to his side and took a deep breath. "I miss him so much. I think I've shoved the pain in a small box in my heart. I know I'm going to have to face it sooner than later, but it's too much right now."
He moved behind me, wrapping his strong arms around the tops of my shoulders and pulling me tightly against him. "Did you do the same when you lost your mom?"
"Yeah. I still haven't let myself mourn for her, except for that one day in ninth grade when I was caught off guard by a picture book Pauly left out." I reached up and brushed the back of my hand by my nose. "I shouldn't have looked at it, but I did. It tore my heart open to see her and I together. From the pictures it looked like she loved me."
"I'm sure she did, baby." Ian leaned down and kissed the side of my neck.
I closed my eyes and let the warmth of being in his arms fill me up. I pressed back and reached to squeeze the side of his thigh.
"Maybe," I whispered and forced my tears back. I didn't want to cry anymore. I didn't want to be scared or feel young and helpless. I wanted to find my backbone and go after my father with a vengeance that would scare everyone involved - even me. It just seemed too farfetched to become that woman.
"I grew up on the streets with Cole. We have no clue who our parents are." He moved back a little as I turned in his arms. "My brother yearns for what we missed out on, but he's headed for a nasty divorce."
I reached up and touched the side of Ian's face, grateful that he was willing to open up if even just about Cole.
"I'm so sorry he's going through all of this."
"Me too." Ian turned his face and kissed my palm sensually.
My body ached for everything I knew he could provide, but it was a temporary solution, a balm that would last for the night and nothing more.
"And what do you want?" I needed to know.
He turned his dark gaze toward me and licked at the side of his mouth. "I haven't wanted anything in a long time. It hurt too much to be denied, so I stopped wanting and started taking."
I nodded, understanding the multi-layered answer. His life was far harder than anything I could even begin to imagine.
"Take me." I brushed my thumb by his lips and groaned as he sucked it deep into his mouth and nodded his head like he planned to do just that.
His teeth pressed down on my finger, and I groaned softly as my stomach contracted. Maybe it was just a night of pleasure, but suddenly, it was all I wanted. To disappear in the pleasure he could provide and be forced to beg for air when it got to be too much?
Ecstasy.
"I plan to take you, Chloe. Tonight." He nipped at my lips. "Tomorrow night and every other night for the rest of our lives. You can give it to me, or I'll take it from you."
A shiver ran down my spine. He knew I was more than willing to give myself up to him. The promise turned threat was just too sexy to deny me hearing it though.
"Why does that turn me on?" I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and he gripped my hips and forced me to wrap my legs around his taut waist. The thick press of his erection against my center had me melting.
"Because you know it's true." He walked toward the bedroom, massaging my ass and licking at the top of my chest. "Let's forget about all this shit flying around us and enjoy each other. We'll lay around and soak up the sun tomorrow, and Sunday we'll work to figure out what the fuck we're going to do next, all right?"
"Yeah. Stop talking and make love to me," I whispered before smiling. I couldn't help myself. The growl that left him reminded me who was in charge and who wasn't.
"You're about to find yourself in trouble, little girl." He laid me down on the bed and gripped the front of my t-shir
t. "Somehow I think you like trouble."
"When it looks like you, I do." I lifted my legs and pressed my feet to his chest as he tore at the front of my shirt.
"Good answer." He slid his hands up my legs and stood up, turning and kissing my ankles as his eyes closed.
He had to be the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. Life had been nothing but shit for him and yet he was fighting back against it. He was working to claim something for himself - me.
I opened my legs and reached up, gripping his shirt and pulling him down toward me.
He caught himself, pressing his hands into the bed beside my head and smiled. "You smell so good. Like the ocean mixed with lust."
"I taste even better." I pulled him in for a long kiss, enjoying far too much how right he felt against me.
He rolled his hips, massaging the hardest parts of his body against the softest of mine. "I need you."
"Then take me." I smiled against his lips before sucking his bottom lip into my mouth.
He grunted and pulled back. "Let me grab a condom."
"You brought one?" I moved up to my elbows as he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket.
"Yes, bad girl. I did." He pulled it out and handed it to me before leaning down and tugging the front of my shirt and bra halfway down my chest. He took his time lavishing each of my breasts as I ran my fingers through his dark hair and watched him intently. He seemed to enjoy himself far more than I've ever witnessed another man do with something so simple.
He glanced up as he pulled my nipple deep into his mouth and watched me.
The pulse between my thighs grew worse than I imagined possible.
"Ian, please," I whimpered and arched my back, trying hard to get more of him pressed down on me.
"Please what?" He rolled his tongue around my breast before giving me a cocky smile.
"Please fuck me." I wrapped my legs around him, quickly losing the last bit of modesty that I might have been holding on to.
He moved back and worked my shorts off my hips before pausing. He licked at his lips as he dragged his fingers through my wetness, pressing just a little as he glanced up toward me.
