by Lacey Thorn
“Not happening,” Paisley said.
“About what you said out there,” Bare said, slipping his hands down her sides to curve around her waist.
“Yes?” she asked.
He pulled her up to him until their lips met. His teeth nipped, and she parted on a groan that allowed his tongue to plunge inside, meeting and meshing with hers. She lifted her hands to cup his face, practically climbing him as she pressed impossibly closer.
A throat cleared behind them.
“You might want to find a room before Jamison walks in,” Jagger said. “Something tells me he might not be as amused by this as I am.”
Paisley sank back down off her tiptoes and buried her head in Bare’s chest while she worked on catching her breath.
“You were amazing out there,” Bare said. “I was so proud to be the man standing beside you.”
She glanced up at him, and her heart melted. How had she been lucky enough to find another man who made her feel so alive?
“I swear to God!” Her dad thundered as he walked in, slamming the door behind him. “That woman is going to drive me to commit murder.” He glanced at Bare and Paisley then Jagger. “And I expect all of you to make sure I don’t go to jail for it. It would be a mercy killing for the rest of the world anyway.”
No one had to ask who he referred to.
“And you.” He crossed to Paisley and swept her away from Bare and into a hug. “You were amazing. I’m so proud of you. You had them all eating out of the palm of your hand. And your speech—brilliant! You put the attention exactly where it needed to be, on your attacker. And you put Vivian in her place at the same time.”
“From what you were saying on the way in, I’m guessing you ran into her,” Paisley said.
“Unfortunately, not in my car,” her dad muttered.
Paisley opened her mouth to reprimand him then snapped it closed. Severing ties meant severing ties. Perhaps, there would come a time down the road when she and her mother could be civil to one another again. That time wasn’t now. Paisley had to hold her ground and make her mother see she was serious. Basically, her mother had a choice, accept Paisley on her terms or forfeit any place in Paisley’s life.
“So who’s this Andromeda?” Bare asked.
“Andromeda Eisley,” Paisley said. “She’s a public relations specialist. She worked with Lance, and I hired her at his reference. She’s an amazing woman, and more importantly, I trust her. She’s reached out to me several times since Lance was killed. I thought it was time I reached back. So I called her while I was getting ready. She should be here next week.”
“Any chance you’ll be making a trip back to LA?” Bare asked.
“Not if I can help it,” Paisley said. “My life is here now. If the press wants me, they can come to me.” She glanced back to her dad. “How’s Tuck?”
“Mad as hell, but at the ER now,” her dad said. “I left Marco with him. They’ll stitch Tuck up and get him some antibiotics and pain meds.”
“He pushed you out of the way,” Paisley said. “Why would the shooter target you?”
“I have my fair share of enemies,” her dad admitted. “And I was the one who was supposed to be giving the conference.”
“So the gunman might have nothing to do with me,” Paisley said.
“We won’t know until we catch him,” Bare said. “And we will.”
“Are you staying with Gilly again tonight?” her dad asked.
Paisley glanced at Bare, who shook his head.
“I’d rather stay at my place,” Bare answered. “That okay with you?” He directed the question to Paisley.
“Sounds good,” she said. “I could use a hot shower, some food and a beer.”
Bare grinned. “We better pick up some food on the way. I can’t promise there’s much in my fridge right now, except the beer.”
“I’ll check in with you when I get Tuck home,” her dad said, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “Keep her safe,” he ordered Bare.
“I plan to keep a close eye on her,” Bare promised.
Visions of the previous night filled her head. Visions of how they’d started their morning, too. She sincerely hoped he planned to keep more than his sexy blue gaze on her.
Chapter Eleven
Paisley was a bit disappointed when Bare sent her off to shower while he ordered food. He’d dropped a kiss on her lips and waved her toward his bedroom. She grabbed her bag from where he’d dropped it just inside the door and went. She shouldn’t have, but she took a few minutes to look around his bedroom. It was her first time here, and curiosity got the better of her.
His bed dominated the room. Dark wood with what definitely looked bigger than a king-size mattress covered in a dark gray comforter. She couldn’t resist running her hand over it. It slid easily, and she peeked underneath to find blue silk sheets. Bare? Silk? She wouldn’t have imagined he’d like silk sheets.
She moved over to his dresser where a few framed pictures sat. There were a couple of Bare with a group of men that must be from his military days. There was one of a laughing older couple she thought might be his parents. She could see Bare in both of them. There was a picture of a woman, looking young and carefree, and somehow Paisley imagined this was of his late wife. She paused over it, looking at the woman who’d once owned Bare’s heart, the one who’d cherished and loved him.
Then another framed photo caught her eye. She recognized it immediately. It was from her birthday two years ago. Her father had decided she needed to get out, and he’d dragged her to his house where everyone had already gathered. She’d put on a face that night, pretending to have fun—except for one moment. It had been when Bare had walked over and tugged her against his chest. He’d hugged her then asked her if she was starting a new fashion trend? She’d had no clue what he was talking about until he’d nodded his head down at her feet where she’d worn two different shoes. No one else had said anything, but Bare had made her laugh and someone had caught a picture of it. One Bare had framed and kept on his dresser.
He’d been there for her from the moment she’d woken in the hospital. A stranger then, who’d still offered her a shoulder to cry on. He’d been a protector and a friend when she’d been too deep in grief to realize or appreciate what he offered. At some point, it had changed for him, looking at the photo, it was easy to see emotion in the way he glanced at her. She’d still been too wrapped in herself to notice then. She was lucky he’d waited for her.
“I didn’t think I heard water running,” Bare said as he walked in to join her. He crossed the room, his glance taking in the photos before he cupped her cheek and turned her face up to his. “Adrenaline crash?” he asked.
She curled into him, wrapping her arms around his waist and dipping her fingers into the back pockets of his jeans. “I was waiting for you to join me.”
“In the shower or the bed?”
“Both,” she whispered and loved the way his erection throbbed between them.
He cupped her ass in his hands and lifted her, forcing her to jerk her hands up to cup over the backs of his shoulders and hang on. He turned and stepped quickly over to the bed where he dropped her and loomed over her. He grabbed the hem of his shirt with one hand and wrenched it up and over his head, revealing his hard chest and abs with a smattering of hair, light on his chest but growing thicker and darker as it trailed into the band of his jeans.
She licked her lips. “Going to strip for me?”
“Dinner will be here in twenty minutes,” he said, reaching for the button on his jeans and popping it open. “That might be just enough time for some foreplay.”
“I have a better idea,” she said, rolling onto her tummy then moving to sit on the edge of the bed in front of him. She gripped his thigh with one hand and reached out with the other to trace the length of his denim-covered erection.
“Fuck,” Bare grunted.
She licked her lips again and glanced up to meet his eyes. “I want to taste you. I didn’t get nearly e
nough last time.”
“Yes,” he hissed in agreement, lowering the zipper and shoving the material wide.
She reached in and wrapped her fingers around his girth, tugging him free as he jerked his jeans and boxers down to mid-thigh. She squeezed him and ran her hand from base to tip then back down. A bead of pre-cum leaked out the slit, and she tugged him closer until she could swipe her tongue across, capturing the drop and using her tongue to paint the crown of his cock with it. She moaned, wrapping her lips around the head and sucking while she used her hand to stroke up and down the shaft.
“Baby,” Bare groaned, sinking the fingers of one hand into her hair, gripping the strands. The other one cupped her face, and she knew he was watching her. She glanced up his body again, connecting with his blue gaze.
She moaned around him and bobbed her head, taking more of him into her mouth before pulling back to swirl her tongue around the head again. She began a rhythm that had Bare pumping his hips into her touch. His cockhead bumped the roof of her mouth and slid back toward her throat. She gagged a bit, and he pulled back. The next time he surged in she took him in, swallowing around the invasion before he jerked back.
“Fuck,” he panted. “I’m on the edge here, baby. Why don’t you slide that sexy skirt off and let me inside.”
She moaned around him and sucked hard. The next thing she knew, he was pulling away and flipping her back so her legs dangled off the bed. Her skirt went up, her panties were pulled to the side and Bare’s cock surged deep. She was so wet from the pleasure of taking him in her mouth, Bare slid easily in and didn’t stop until she felt the press of his balls against her. He pulled back and slammed deep again, but his movements were slow and jerky. She knotted her hands in the covers and moaned with need.
“Faster,” she pleaded, but he didn’t listen.
His girth rubbed her walls, giving her the sensation of being full, of being stretched. Each retraction of his hips had the mushroomed head tugging against the grasp of her snug channel. Then he’d slam deep again, making her moan and grind back against him.
“Bare, please,” she cried. “I need you. Faster. God, please faster.”
He jerked again, his cock burying impossibly deeper. He did something with his hips that had her crying out as pleasure shot through her womb to ignite her clit. Then he began a pounding pace that had her screaming his name as she flew higher and higher toward orgasm.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” Bare slurred.
“Yes!” Paisley screamed and came with a hard clench around his pistoning cock. Her breath caught in her throat, and bright lights exploded behind her tightly shut eyes. Her body tingled from head to toe, and she curled her legs up behind Bare’s, her feet pressing against the curve of his ass as she urged him to join in her orgasm.
His motions became jerky again.
“Fuck,” Bare swore. “No condom.”
“No,” she said as she felt him pull out. “Inside me,” she pleaded. “I’m clean and… I can’t get pregnant.”
He stilled inside her, his cock pressing deep as he dropped against her until his lips brushed hers. “I swear to God I’m clean. I haven’t been with anyone in over five years.”
She turned her head, meeting his eyes, and was helpless to hold in the tears. “I don’t deserve you, Barrett Locke, but I’m so glad I have you.”
“I love you, Paisley. I have for a long time.”
He took her mouth in a soft kiss. One hand cradled her hip, and he moved inside her again. This time, she cherished the slow, easy pace he set. Frantic energy was replaced with something deeper, something that overflowed her heart and made it feel full. They caught their breaths together. Bare surrounded her, and she damned the clothes she still wore that separated their skin.
“I need to see you,” she whispered. “I need to feel you, all of you.”
He groaned before pulling free of her. “Hurry,” he ordered as they moved, but she already was.
Clothes flew around the room as they both completely disrobed. He took a step toward her, and she launched herself at him. Her back met the wall this time as he lifted her until his cock nudged her slick sex and slid back inside.
She clenched her fingers into his hair and met his mouth with hers. His hands cupped her ass, squeezing her rear cheeks as he held her up for his thrusts.
“Bare.” She moaned his name when he left her mouth to trail sucking kisses down her neck.
“Hold on,” he said.
She wasn’t sure how he managed it, but he maneuvered them from the wall to the bed without dislodging where they joined. Then he was over her, his chest brushing hers as he rode between her thighs. Each rasp of his coarse chest hair against her nipples sent a wave of electricity traveling from the twin points down to her swollen clit.
“Bare,” she whispered his name on an exhale.
His gaze met hers, and the words of love he’d spoken were reflected there. Once again, she was hit with just how lucky she was. She wanted to give the words back to him, but it was too soon for them. Still, there was something she could give him, something she knew for certain.
“I’m falling in love with you,” she whispered.
His lips tugged up at both corners. “Baby, you don’t stand a chance,” he warned. “When I start pouring on the charm, you’re going to fall so hard for me, you’ll beg me to tie you to my bed and keep you there forever.”
She laughed. “Your charm’s that good, huh?”
“Just wait for it,” he crooned and slid his hand up from her hip to slip across her stomach then dip down to find her clit with his thumb.
“I’m looking forward to it,” she moaned and gave in to the pleasure he gave her. Another orgasm washed through her, and he buried his head in her neck as he joined her. She felt his cum fill her, and it sent off an explosion of tremors through her channel. She rippled and clenched around him.
As the room slowly came back into focus, she shook her head. “I swear I hear bells.”
Bare chuckled. “I’d like to take credit for it, but I’m pretty sure that’s the door.”
“The door?”
He grinned down at her. “Dinner’s here. I’d better snag my pants and grab it before they leave, or we’ll have to put on clothes and venture out for dinner.”
She shoved against his chest. “Go. I plan to stay naked and in your bed for the rest of the night.”
“Night, hell,” he said as he lifted off her and stood. “I plan to keep you there permanently.”
She laughed, enjoying the view as he grabbed his jeans and pulled them up, tucking himself inside before pulling the zipper up but leaving the button undone. “I like the way you think,” she murmured.
“Don’t lie,” he admonished. “You like everything about me.”
He winked at her before leaving the room. She lay back on the bed. Even a week ago, she wouldn’t have imagined being this happy. Part of her felt as if she needed to take a deep breath, but there was a bigger part of her screaming to remember how short life could be. Things happened in an instant that took away all the tomorrows. Slowing down might seem like the wise choice for some, but not for those like her who’d already experienced the loss of tomorrow firsthand.
“If you’re hungry, you’d better get your sweet ass out here,” Bare yelled from the other room.
She laughed again as she sat up and fished his T-shirt from the floor then pulled it over her head. She had a feeling her relationship with Bare would be a lot like the sex they’d shared. She’d be the one begging him to go faster.
Chapter Twelve
Paisley spent the weekend with Bare. They rarely left the house, which was fine with her, and by the time Monday morning rolled around, she’d tasted and felt his charm firsthand. She was such a goner. The man was impossible to resist, even when he was autocratic and commanding.
“Paisley! Get your ass moving. I need to be at the office in fifteen minutes.”
She glanced in the mirror at her sopping-wet hair
and knew there was no way. She grabbed the towel she’d been using to dry it and headed into the bedroom.
“There’s no way I’m going in like this,” she said.
He glanced up from his phone to skim his gaze over her. “You look fine,” he stated.
Paisley bit her lips to hold back a smile as she walked over to him. “Really. Do you think Jagger will like this robe as much as you do?”
“Jagger? What?” Bare’s head came back up, and she twirled around for him. He heaved a sigh. “I’ve got an important meeting this morning, baby. Can’t pass this one off to anyone else. Just throw on some clothes. You’re always beautiful.”
“How long’s the meeting?”
He glanced back at his phone. “It’ll probably take the better part of two hours to get everything planned.”
“So leave me here to finish getting ready then come back for me. I’ll even make the bed for you.”
“I’d rather tumble you back into it,” he said, finally dropping his phone and moving into her.
“That would really make you late,” she warned, leaning up to nip his jaw with her teeth.
“I don’t like the idea of leaving you alone,” Bare said.
“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be right here, waiting for you.” She kissed him where she’d nipped him. “I’m pretty sure you’re down to ten minutes.”
“Damn it,” he muttered as he glanced at his phone again. “Don’t go anywhere. I swear to God, Paisley, I’ll spank your ass if you set foot from this house alone.”
“Are you trying to get me to stay? Or leave?”
He swatted her on the butt and dropped a kiss on her mouth. “Spanking, huh?”
“There are a bunch of things I wouldn’t mind trying with you,” she admitted.
“Jesus,” he grunted and reached down to adjust his erection. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.” He hauled her up on her toes and kissed her in that way of his that had her toes curling and her heart racing. He released her and ran a finger down the gap in the top of her robe. “Maybe, you should just keep this on.”
