by Mandy Morgan
I was glad I’d slipped some of the extra-strength ibuprofen Bryce had given me into my purse before we left the house. By the time we’d finished up at the mall, my shoulder was throbbing to beat the band, but I was so glad I’d listened to my gut and gone with Bryce, instead of allowing the fear of the unknown to control me.
Bryce had been right not to give me anything stronger for the pain. I’d grown to enjoy the pills Drake had fed me too much, and I wanted to separate myself from that part of my past as much as I possibly could. And he’d been kind and attentive the whole time we were shopping.
But what really convinced me that Bryce was a good guy who just wanted to be helpful was what happened after we’d left the department store where I’d picked up some clothes and other essentials. We were chatting about nothing much when a little boy went running past and hopped up onto the fountain in the middle of the mall.
Bryce watched him like a hawk as he jumped up and down on the brick side of the fountain, and I held my breath as we waited to see what would happen. I gasped as I saw him crash to the ground and roll around in pain. I instantly began to move toward him and check if he was alright, but Bryce beat me there and knelt next to the boy.
“You’re okay, little man,” he said in a soothing voice. “Let Dr. Daniels take a look and then we’ll find your mom, how’s that sound?”
Bryce gave the boy a quick but thorough once over and then nodded. It looked like there was nothing more than a scraped knee and hurt pride involved in the incident. I watched in amazement as Bryce helped the little boy up, walked with him over to where his mother was looking at makeup, and returned him safe and sound.
“He’ll be just fine,” Bryce said to me after coming back to where I waited. “I used to get up to the same kind of shenanigans when I was his age. You ready to head home, honey? I could eat a horse at this point.”
I laughed and took the arm Bryce offered, and we made our way to his sports car, where he settled me carefully into the passenger seat before pointing it toward a place he said had an awesome to-go menu.
I had to admit that sounded like a very good idea right then. I’d had a wonderful day with him, but I was weary to my bones from all the walking of our whirlwind day together.
We both ordered salads and after we got back to his place, Bryce got us set up in the comfy dining room. We chatted some more about what he called “the embarrassment that is my dating history,” and I accepted his offer of a glass of white wine to go with my meal. I figured that was safe enough, since I wasn’t taking pain medication, and what with having a doctor in the house and all.
I couldn’t stop myself from watching Bryce’s mouth close around forkfuls of salad and sips of wine. That incredible kiss we’d shared on the front porch kept playing through my mind as I watched his full lips work, and I felt a surge of warmth move through me from my belly to my cheeks.
My thoughts turned to how safe I felt each time he’d had his well-muscled arms around me, and when Bryce suggested we move to the living room couch, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to deny the heat that was building inside of me for much longer.
“How’s the wine treating you?” Bryce asked as he sank down onto the supple leather sofa next to me. “I’m no expert, so I just get whichever bottle appeals to me most.”
“It tastes wonderful to me,” I murmured and took another sip. “Thank you for today, Bryce. I had a great time and I’m sure that boy’s mother is grateful for what you did for him.”
Bryce shrugged and gave me a grin that left my thigh muscles trembling. “Just doing my job, honey. You never know when someone will need a doctor.”
“You’re right,” I whispered and set my wine glass on the coffee table in front of us. “In fact, I need one right now.”
And then I pushed everything other than my desire to the side, leaned forward slowly, and pressed my lips to his.
Chapter Sixteen
Bryce
I’d been thinking about the first kiss I’d shared with Kayla almost constantly since it happened. It had seemed as if no other would ever match it. Sweet Jesus, was I wrong about that.
When she first set her wine glass down and moved in toward me, I’d held myself back from throwing everything I had at her. I’d been ready to go from the moment we’d first sat down on the couch, but I didn’t want to scare her off or rush her into anything she wasn’t up for.
But when my lips met hers for the second time, it was like my body was a fireworks factory that had caught fire. Each one of my nerves shot off and it was as if some switch inside of me had been flipped. I’d been with my fair share of women over the years, but I’d never felt anything like this, and a deep hunger came over me.
“I want you so bad, honey,” I growled into Kayla’s open mouth. “Do you want me too?”
Her face was hazy with desire. “More than anything, Bryce.”
That was all I needed to hear. I pulled Kayla into my arms and crushed her to my chest as hard as I dared with her injured shoulder. She moaned as I trailed kisses down her neck and onto her chest. I’d love to rip her clothing off, so I can get to those curves I crave, but I know I’ll have to take things slower than I would if she didn’t have one arm in a damn sling.
“I want to see every single inch of you, honey,” I whispered into the soft skin underneath her ear. I took her free hand and helped her stand, and then I gently peeled her clothes away, starting with her t-shirt, and then stripping off her jeans.
I groaned when I saw Kayla standing before me in just her bra and panties. Her strawberry blonde hair was a cascade of shining waves crashing over her shoulders and onto her chest.
I found myself having to clench my hands into fists to stop from ravaging her right then. I counted to ten in my head to cool myself down a bit and then moved in to kiss her again as I peeled off my own clothes.
Kayla responded to my kissing with a hunger of her own and gasped when she felt my cock pressed into her as I took her into my arms again.
“Oh, God, please…” she moaned.
“Please what, honey,” I murmured as I unhooked her bra and sucked one of her nipples into my mouth. “Tell me what you want. What you need from me.”
“Please, Bryce,” Kayla whispered as she leaned her head back and arched her body into my touch. “I need all of you, right now, please…”
Her words drifted away as I scooped her up into my arms and gently lowered her back onto the soft and yielding leather of the couch. I never took my eyes off her face as I knelt next to her and hooked her panties with my fingers, pulling them down and flinging them away as I climbed onto the couch and settled myself in between her creamy thighs.
“You smell so good, honey,” I breathed into the supple flesh surrounding the object of my desire. “I want to taste you so bad, Kayla. I want to eat you like the juicy peach that you are.”
Kayla moaned and spread her legs for me, lifting her hips up to welcome me as I kissed my way to the very center of her and slipped my tongue inside. I moaned into her flesh with the satisfaction of dipping into her sweet nectar. My hands moved under her ass and lifted her up, so I could bury my face into her wet heat, making her cry out with pleasure.
I sucked her clit into my mouth and rolled my tongue around the vibrating nub, turning her cries into screams, and causing her to squeeze my head with her thighs. I moaned again and settled in to lap at her sex. There was nothing I wanted more in that moment than to be coated with her juices.
My cock was rock-hard and dripping as Kayla called out my name, threw her legs over my shoulders, and bucked with convulsions that could only mean she’d crashed over the edge into orgasm. I gave a satisfied groan and kissed my way up her body until my throbbing shaft was pressing against her quivering core.
I looked down at Kayla and saw her face was bleary with contentment. My need was pressing, but I was so blown away by how sweet she was, I had to lean down and press kisses into her flushed cheeks. Fulfilling her had filled me up in ways I’d never know
n.
“Are you ready for me, honey?”
“God, yes,” Kayla moaned softly and reached up to wrap her free arm around my neck to pull me down for a passionate kiss. I took a deep breath and slipped slowly into her, both of us crying out at the sensation of utter completion.
I groaned and did my best to think about something other than how good it felt to be deep inside of Kayla. I wanted this to last forever, but she was such a perfect fit, I knew it would be over before much longer. I just wouldn’t be able to hold myself back from filling her to the brim, simple as that.
Kayla lifted her hips up to welcome of all of me and moved in time with my thrusting. I hooked my chin over her shoulder, breathing in the sweet smell of her, and losing myself completely in the feeling of her luscious curves working underneath me.
In what felt like moments, Kayla was panting and bucking again, and her deepest muscles clamped my cock in a hot, slick embrace. I called out her name as I came, pushing myself into her with all of my might as she kept screaming her satisfaction.
“Yes, yes, Bryce! God, yes!”
I released everything I had inside of Kayla and felt my heart swell as my body drained. I knew then and there, this was about much more than sex for me. And there was no way I could let this woman get away. In a matter of days, I’d done what I hadn’t managed to do in my thirty-six years of life before Kayla.
I’d damn well fallen in love…
Chapter Seventeen
Kayla
The sound of a phone ringing echoed through my head, and I groaned as I came awake, shifting myself carefully to keep my shoulder from hurting any more than it already did. I cracked my eyes open and saw Bryce stirring next to me. We’d slept through the night on the couch, our limbs still intertwined and the throw pillows tossed to the floor.
Bryce extricated himself and sat up, reaching out for his pants, and pulled his cell phone out of a front pocket. “Hey Paul, thanks for getting back to me, man. No, no, it’s fine that it took awhile. What’s up?”
I pulled myself into a corner of the couch and wrapped my arms around my chest and belly. I’d never really been one for sleeping around, so waking up in a man’s living room after a night of passion was bringing out my shy side. But in that moment, I was honestly more concerned with what Bryce’s lawyer friend had to say than anything else.
“Alright, that makes sense,” Bryce said into the phone and rubbed one hand across his eyes. “Just do the best that you can and keep me posted, okay? Yep, thanks again.”
I could tell the news wasn’t what he’d been wanting to hear. “How bad is it, Bryce?”
“Well, it’s not the best,” he admitted with a sigh before moving closer to put an arm around me and pull me close. “But Paul is working his ass off to figure out just what they’ve got on you, and he swore he’d update us when he had more information.”
My stomach clenched into a knot. I’d almost forgotten about the life I’d been running from when I met the handsome and kind Dr. Daniels. But the truth was I had baggage that I couldn’t just shed like skin when I got the urge. I’d made some serious mistakes, and I had to own up to them.
“I think I should go back,” I said and looked him in the eyes, trying to not give away how scared I was. “The last thing I want to do is complicate your life. You don’t deserve that.”
Bryce’s eyes went dark and his jaw clenched. “Honey, there’s no way I’m letting that happen. I’m in this to win it. Period.”
I pulled back from his embrace and shook my head. I felt as if I might burst into tears at any moment, and I didn’t want to look any worse in Bryce’s eyes than I already did. “No, I can’t take any more help from you, dammit! I need to face the music, that’s it and that’s all.”
And with that, I stood up and hurried from the room, holding my injured shoulder so it wouldn’t slow me down, and made a beeline for the guest bedroom. I didn’t even care that I was still as naked as the day I was born.
I was going back to the hospital to get my car. I couldn’t allow myself to be blinded by false hope for one second longer…
Chapter Eighteen
Bryce
I burst into the guest room to find Kayla pulling on the clothes she’d been wearing when she first came into the Pineview Memorial emergency room. My blood was boiling and my heart was hammering. She had a wild look on her face and tears in her eyes. I had to stop this craziness.
“Kayla, what the hell is going on? Where are you going?”
“Back to where I belong,” she barked as she finished buttoning her jeans and grabbed her purse off the dresser. “My life is a big mess and I’m not letting you get involved.”
She headed for the door and I grabbed her arm. “Honey, you need to stop and think about this, okay? You’re not making sense right now. Let’s have a cup of coffee and talk.”
Kayla’s chin trembled and she twisted in my grasp. “No! I’ve taken too much from you already. And you got what you were after, so what’s the point of keeping me around?”
“Is that what you really think? That this was all about getting into your pants?”
Kayla stopped fighting me and looked into my face. Her eyes were wet and full of surprise. “You mean it’s not?”
I couldn’t stop myself from laughing out loud as I pulled her into my arms. “Hell, woman, I’m in love with you! I’ve never done anything like this for anyone in my life, and I’ve never felt like this about anyone else. Can’t you see that?”
Kayla pulled back enough to look me in the eyes. “I didn’t know what to think, to be honest. I’ve never met anyone like you before. And I sure as hell have never had a man help me without wanting something in return. Usually, once he got it, he was gone.”
She shrugged and looked so sad that my heart cramped. “Honey, I can guarantee you that is not what’s going on here. I truly care about you, and if you’ll let me, I want to spend the rest of my life proving it to you.”
A smile broke out on Kayla’s face, banishing her fear and uncertainty the way the sun sent clouds running after a storm. “I guess I may have jumped the gun a bit.”
I laughed again. “Maybe just a little. So, what do you say? Think you’re going to stick around, after all?”
Kayla leaned in and kissed me. “You know what? You convinced me, Dr. Daniels. But how about we start with that cup of coffee you mentioned?”
“Honey, that sounds like a damn good idea,” I said softly and pulled her against my chest, not wanting to let her go just yet. “If you let me love on you a little bit longer, I’ll even throw in some breakfast.”
I could feel Kayla smile and she snuggled up closer to me. “Make it pancakes and bacon, and you’ve got yourself a deal.”
Epilogue
Kayla
I walked through the front door, feeling exhausted but utterly satisfied, and hung my shoulder bag on a nearby hook before making my way into the living room and throwing myself onto the couch.
“Kayla? How did things go, honey?”
I smiled and stretched my arms out to Bryce as he came in from the kitchen, wiping his hands on a dishtowel, and giving me a cautiously optimistic look. He knew how much today had meant to me, and the fact that he obviously was waiting to hear me come in while he cooked me a dinner that was sure to be delicious just made me love him even more.
“Good God, you’re the best,” I murmured as I snuggled into his warm embrace. “You know that, don’t you?”
“The best for the best,” Bryce said softly as he lifted me up and moved me over so he could lay down next to me. We pressed our bodies against one another in the kind of full-length cuddle that never failed to send tingles running up and down my spine.
“Whatever you’re making smells so good,” I moaned. “But laying here like this feels too nice. I don’t want to move for at least a year.”
Bryce laughed and propped himself up on one elbow so he could look me in the eye. He poked me in the ribs and then brushed the hair tha
t fell into my face after I’d convulsed with giggles.
“We can stay this way as long as you’d like, honey, but you know I want to hear all the details of your day, so give them up or there are more tickle attacks coming your way.”
I dissolved into laughter and squeals of delight as he growled and bared his teeth, acting as if he would attack if he didn’t get what he wanted. “Okay, okay! You win, you scary monster of a man!”
Bryce nodded in satisfaction and then settled back down into the couch cushions to listen as I told him about my first day of nursing school. Even as I shared everything about my professors and classmates that I could remember, I almost felt as if I should pinch myself. Things had changed so much in the last six months, it was as if I was living in a dream world.
I’d gone from a wreck of a woman that was on the run from herself as much as law enforcement to someone that looked forward to every new day as if it was a gift. Bryce had made all of that possible by enlisting Paul to make my potential legal issues disappear, and he’d also encouraged me to enroll in courses at the local community college.
Paul had stuck with my case until he’d finally found the right cop to talk to back in my hometown. There’d been some worry that I’d be charged with evading arrest, but when Paul told law enforcement I could point them toward Drake, they’d agreed to drop all charges against me in exchange for landing a much bigger fish.
And just being around Bryce and hearing about his work at Pineview Memorial each morning when he got home from a long night shift in the ER made me want to do more with my life. To become more than I ever thought possible. He believed in me and that pushed me to do the same.
“You’re making me miss med school,” Bryce said when I was finished filling him in. “And I’m sure Janice will be happy to hear that you haven’t been scared off yet, although there’s still time. She seems to think you might get squeamish with the labs, and told me you can text or call her anytime with questions.”
