by Susan Arden
She recalled when they’d first bumped into one another, he’d been occupied in some discussion about a contract. Staring straight ahead, she felt the tension inside the car ramp up. She didn’t want to ask the burning question if that was an issue for him. That would be nosy, something her stupid cousin would do.
“I need to call my mother,” she said and pressed her finger to the talk icon.
It was almost midnight and if the babies arrived today they’d be born on the last day of November. Snow began to fall, a light dusting of white over surfaces. Brett’s windshield wipers batted away the flakes that fell on the glass. She’d left the hotel tonight without a coat or wrap. Her reflection in the window made her wish she’d brought more than a slim clutch. She tied her hair in a loose knot at her neck, and rubbed her fingertips under her eyes. Everyone who saw her would know exactly what she’d been doing.
“Corinth McLemore, where are you?” her mother asked, concern punctuating each syllable.
“I’m on my way to the hospital. Is Carolina going to be okay?”
“Yes. She’s being admitted. The doctor examined her and she’s in labor. These babies are coming. Doctor said he doesn’t expect them to be born before tomorrow morning.”
“Oh, thank God!”
“Yes, we are praying. Matt is on his way with Stephen and your Daddy.” Her mom’s words were low and she sounded extra tired. “Cory, Daddy doesn’t know the exact details of tonight. I want you to leave him to me. You hear?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cory closed her eyes. The weighted words spoke volumes, as though her mother had been given a play-by-play version of the whole short night. “Nothing outrageous happened.”
“Oh Cory, we all had hoped you would grow up by going off to school. You still have a lot of living and learning to do. You need to think about your actions. Do you know what I mean?”
She opened her eyes and knitted her brows, unable to find the words to defend herself. “Are you saying this is my fault?”
“Of course not. But you can’t up and disappear from the group without anyone knowing your whereabouts. Hotels and you…Cory, this isn’t the first time tongues have wagged. Speculation or not…sneaking off is always a reason for talk. That’s what doesn’t set well here. I couldn’t reach you. Nobody could, from what I understand.”
Not this again. How many times was she supposed to claim she was innocent? She’d never met up with any man in a hotel before. Not back when Carolina’s ex-boyfriend showed up in town. Fine, she’d take the heat on what happened with Brett, but she hated having to take it on the chin for the other hotel debacle. Not when she knew darn well who the woman was who’d shacked up with that snake.
“Mama, that’s not fair. I’ve never done anything like this. Ever! This was supposed to be a party. I wasn’t gone long and besides, the last fiasco…it wasn’t me, it was—, ” she sputtered in humiliation, but stopped talking suddenly. It was coming out all wrong. She didn’t need to defend herself, but dang it if she didn’t feel like she was a child again. She’d love to spill the beans about the other hotel mess, but she’d not be the snitch of the family. With as much control as she could muster, she said, “This isn’t about me. Carolina is the one who needs to be the focal point.”
“I agree with you on that.” There were voices in the background. “Cory, I need to go sign some papers. Be careful, it’s starting to snow.”
“I am. See you soon.” She stared at the screen going dark in her hand.
“Do you want to swing by your hotel?” Brett asked. “You’re not dressed warmly.”
CHAPTER 9
Cory stared back at him with a vacant expression. He could more than imagine the load of shit she was about to be dumped on her. Brett wanted to turn the car around and head out of Dallas. Not stop until they reached his house, secluded and far enough away that her family would need a team of private investigators to find them. Running away didn’t mesh with Cory’s personality, though. She didn’t run, except headfirst into trouble—not this little wildcat.
“Seriously, if you don’t want to do this,” she said, gesturing in the air between them. “I completely understand.”
“Large families don’t bother me. I work on a team of ballers and BS is the name of that game many times off the field. Keeping light on my feet is what it’s all about.” He shrugged, giving her a moment to either accept or reject his offer.
“If abort sirens suddenly or loudly go off in your head, just give me a wink and I’ll know. Absolutely, no hard feelings.”
Brett threw back his head and laughed. “Sorry. It sounds like your sister-in-law is in capable hands. A mishap, but no tragedy. This time next year, this whole adventure will be a memory that your family will find amusing.”
She flashed him a look of disbelief. “Try five years, and maybe.”
“Have faith.” Without thinking further into the future, he dropped his hand from the neck rest to her shoulder and enjoyed the way she leaned her cheek into his hand. Brett stroked the side of her face with his thumb, itching to move his hand lower. His gaze fell to her lap and legs spread slightly open, her dress slipping lower on her thighs. She glanced over and caught him ogling her legs, but didn’t look away.
Their locked gazes heated, and damned if he didn’t go hard at her licking her lip. “What are you thinking?” he asked.
Cory lowered her eyes, long eyelashes spread over her cheeks, and she pulled her dress farther down her thighs. She flashed her attention back to his face, scanning and then lingering on his mouth. “Feels like the last night I’ll have to enjoy myself. Ever.”
“You won’t be locked away in a tower. Even if you were, I’d come rescue you.”
“We don’t live in the same city. Long distance and Friday night parties…I doubt you’ll remember me beyond December.”
Wearing a stern expression, he exhaled. “That’s not true.”
She smiled and looked straight ahead. “I believe you think that now. Even between regular people, long distance doesn’t work out that well.”
“Cory,” he said. The sound of her name, a breath expelled from his mouth, and he longed to recapture the woman and her name as his.
“Don’t think I’m going to pieces like some drama queen.”
“Then what do you want, drama-less queen?”
She slid her gaze over to him, then lower down his body, and it was as though her hands were touching him. From her look, he didn’t require a handout to know where this was headed. His pulse flared at the heat in her eyes and the sight of her raising the hem of her dress mesmerized him. He quickly glanced back at the road, then switched on his turn signal. Up ahead sat the medical center and he turned the block before, taking the back way. He slowed down, passing an alleyway, then skidded to a stop. He clutched and shifted into reverse, his tires screeching against the wet pavement. Backing into the alley, his brake lights cast a red glare over the brick walls on either side of the car, and he stopped when his car was safely enclosed. From his rearview mirror he saw the red glare of eyes stare in fright, then bolt away. The alley was deserted except for a few stray cats.
Damn, his car was tight inside. This wasn’t exactly the type of ride where he could do more than kiss a woman. But hell, with Cory sitting there with her dress pulled up, he’d figure something out, and fast. He punched a button and had the back of his seat moving down. “Baby, what do you want?” he asked, reaching for his belt.
“I want you to…you know. Then drop me at the hospital. Can you do that for me?”
“No,” he said and stopped unbuckling his belt. “I won’t drop you there to face your family alone.” He watched her take a shaky breath at his words as his cock throbbed. Behind his zipper, his hard-on had grown unbearably stiff.
“Fine. You can come. And, I mean that in every sense if you can get us both off.”
Only an idiot would say no. And then his moronic brain went ahead and acted unilaterally, wit
hout doing a head count of who was up for this line of questioning. “What exactly are you thinking?” he asked in a hoarse voice. His dick shouted, Shut up!
Cory reached under her dress and pulled off her panties before she shifted in the seat. “I want to ride you. This is what I’ve imagined. For all I’ll have to deal with, this memory will help me cope.”
“Hold on. What’s going on? There’s more than your sister-in-law’s situation. Wanting a wild night and now this. Talk to me.”
She stared across at him as though he’d sprouted another head. “Why am I always in the position of begging you?”
“I don’t know. You’ve got this way of making me want to…keep you safe.” He grasped the arm rest. Shit. It was true. What was it about this woman that had him wanting to protect her? Any other woman, he’d have been balls deep by now, barely able to remember her name, and this spitfire had him trying to talk her out of sex. He chased her to do what? Keep her safe from harm? That was ridiculous.
Her eyes lowered to his crotch and returned to his face, glittery and darkened. “Unzip your trousers, cowboy. I don’t need a knight in shining armor. I need a stud. You game?”
He reached across the passenger seat, opening the glove compartment. His arm brushed over her legs as he removed a foil pack. In seconds he was wrapped in latex, standing rigid and upright.
“Get over here,” Brett commanded.
“That’s more like it.” She moved, extending her foot in a narrow space on the side of his thigh. Flexible in ways he’d never witnessed, Cory had the skills of a gymnast in moving and bending until she hovered above him.
Her warm, wet center swiped across the head of his cock and he hissed. “You better not be wanting anything slow. You’ve got me so worked up.”
“Brett,” she breathed out in the sexiest voice he’d ever heard. “I want everything you’ve got. Fill me up.”
Shit, he was going to explode before he even breached her lips. Cory ran her hands up his arms, spreading a firestorm over his body. She settled her fingers on his shoulders, her hair skimming his face. Silvery light flooded the front of his car, carving out the curves and hollows of her body. His gaze traced the patterns laid over her skin, memorizing the lines and dips of her neck, shoulders all the way down to her lush hips. He looked back up, his heartbeat thudding in his chest, and the smile on her face hit home deep within him. He was coming undone just by looking at this beautiful girl.
He gripped his cock, positioned it at her pussy, and groaned as she flexed her hips back and forth over him.
“Go for it,” he whispered, urging his swollen crown into her slick opening. Once he was housed inside her hot body for a couple of inches, he let go of his cock and moved his hands over her hips. “Can you take all of me?”
“I think so.” She bit her lip.
He pressed his hips upward as he brought her body down onto his lap. Again, he rose and pulled her to him. Finally, he was deep inside her, wrapped by her tight muscles, the feeling of wanting to burst apart consumed him. She began to move, swaying her hips in a mind-blowing motion of rising up and down over his length. Her breath came in spurts, jagged like his.
“Damn, this is so fucking hot.” He untied the straps on her dress so that the top fell away, revealing her tits. Pink tipped nipples taunted him, and he pinched one while his mouth lowered and closed around the other. He rolled her nipple between his teeth until she moaned, then sucked her hard peak deeper into his mouth. Cory yanked on his hair, grinding her hips down on him. She rode him as he sucked on her tits, his hands gripping her waist, and together they moved in an earth-shattering harmony.
She pulled his shirt free, slipping her hands underneath. There wasn’t enough space for all the things they seemed to want to do to each other. Their limbs tangled as they touched and traced fingertips over skin. Damn, it wasn’t enough but absolutely had the fire in his bloodstream rolling to a boil. His balls tightened and the low hum of lust he tried to contain roared to life with each stroke of Cory’s pussy on him. He didn’t want to come undone and fuck her savagely. She wasn’t that type, he kept telling himself, but was it no use when she scratched her nails down his sides and chest.
He hoisted her hips and plunged into her so fucking deep, the pleasure was blinding. He made her ride his cock, thrusting into her as she squeezed him tight. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her tits rubbing over his shirt, and sweat beaded on his forehead.
Stopping before he lost it all completely, he asked, “Are you sure you can take it like this?”
She stared back at him, her eyes unfocused. “I want it. Give it to me.”
He threaded his fingers into her hair and yanked, exposing her neck, and he sucked a point that had her calling out his name. “Baby, that’s it. Say my name. Again, Cory.”
“Brett, keep doing that.”
“Jesus, if only I could.”
He sucked all along her neck following her flittering pulse with his tongue, under her jaw, then switched and devoured her sweet mouth. God, the things he wanted to do to her, starting with her mouth. He sucked on her lips, teasingly at first, then hungry like he could never get enough. He clasped her hips, hauling her along his length, a slow drag up to the head of his cock, then roughly brought her back down. “Can you take more?” he groaned.
Cory met his eyes, unblinking. “Yeah. Every inch.”
She hooked her hand on the back of his neck and pressed her mouth to his. He could feel her tighten her thigh muscles as she moved faster, digging her nails into his skin, and whimpered. She was near and he had to get there with her and at the same time prolong the moment. What if this was the last time? The sharp edge of something foreign pierced him. The stabbing didn’t quit until he willfully pushed the fear—was it truly fear?—from his mind.
Brett bracketed his hands on either sides of her face. “Promise me one night.”
“One night in the future.” Cory’s eyes widened, her cheeks were flushed, and she nodded with the wild look of someone racing the wind. “Yes. Oh God, don’t stop.”
“Baby, that would be impossible.” He pumped his hips until his legs burned, sliding inside her as she melted around him. Liquid heat surrounded his cock and her muscles squeezed him as she went from hot to nuclear fusion heat, and he began to splinter under her watchful blue eyes. A burst of electrical pleasure jetted up his spine, a red nova explosion in his head, and he shuddered through his release. She came with a cry, his name echoing in the space of the car. Their breaths came out hot and heavy, fogging the windows of the car. Sweat ran down his face, blinding him unless he rapidly blinked the salty drops away. He wiped his hands over her damp face, removing the droplets threatening to fall into her beautiful eyes, brushing aside her moist bangs.
~~~
A woman who looked like an older version of Cory rose from a seat in the waiting room area of the maternity center and waved. This section of the hospital was modern, done in pastels with white furniture where people waited, talking and some laughing which lent a cheerful atmosphere unlike the other parts or maybe just the ones he’d visited. Even at this time of night, it was brightly lit by fluorescent lighting and nurses moved about from behind the check-in area.
Cory wore one of his training jackets that came well below the hem of her dress and covered the bite marks on her shoulders and neck. They’d stopped at an all-night drugstore at the corner where she picked up some things to clean up. He’d offered to take her to her hotel but she’d refused. She arrived looking younger without makeup and her hair picked up. The sight of her standing a foot away from him unleashed a hollow ache, impaling him, and the shock of disconnect thrashed through him, seeing her near enough to smell her fragrance but he couldn’t reach out and draw her to him as he’d like.
“Baby doll, did you get lost on the way to the hospital?” Another woman joined them. A bit older than Cory’s mother, but eyeing him from top to bottom over a thick pair of glasses as if to get a
read on who he was and his purpose.
“No, Mama,” Cory replied, then opened her arms to hug her mother. “Mama, I want to introduce you to my friend.” All three women looked up at him. The one he’d called beautiful and whom he’d marked. Her mother stared back at him with wide blue eyes and the other lady with a frown marring her face.
“Brett Gold, may I introduce my mother, Sarah McLemore. And here is Miss Louisa Newell, my second mother.”
“Good evening, Mr. Gold.” Miss Newell came forward and extended her hand without hesitation. Small, but her handshake was strong and firm and she didn’t let go.
“Mrs. McLemore and Miss Newell, a real pleasure.” Miss Newell studied him, her eyes behind her glasses flicking over his face.
She finally smiled and began to hum a couple of notes. “Oh, you’re in for it,” she whispered to him before releasing his hand.
Mrs. McLemore continued to peer up at him, slightly shaking her head. She inhaled and extended her hand. “Mr. Gold, is it?”
“Yes, ma’am. Is there anything I can do?”
“I think you’ve done enough…by bringing my daughter to the hospital.” She let go of his hand and stepped back. He looked over at the interior of the waiting room and about twenty or so sets of eyes stared at the doorway where they stood. Some of the women immediately waved at him. Brett lifted his chin and tightly smiled. More than a few of them began getting out of their seats and coming out to the hallway.
“Hey, Brett,” a chorus of women’s voices rang out in the hall. Cory’s arched brow sent them sauntering away.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed Mrs. McLemore shake her head over at Miss Newell as they returned to the waiting area. So far his team consisted of a ragtag bunch from the bachelorette party and Cory—true to form, a spitfire, refusing to be blown away. He shoved his hands inside his pockets at the same time the pair of women who had flanked Cory early in the evening rounded the corner of the hallway. Their eyes widened when they met Cory’s and they exchanged some sort of silent female signal. They were her friends without a doubt from the way they came over and hugged her, and then glanced nervously up at him.
