Rush Too Far: A Rosemary Beach Novel

by Abbi Glines

  “So she’s why you suddenly wanted to play with us today?” Woods asked, sounding annoyed.

  I wasn’t interested in answering him. My focus was on Blaire. Her hairline was wet from sweat already. It was hot out here today, and she could be suffering. If she was hurting at all, then Woods was going to let her go home. I’d throw her over my shoulder and leave with her if I needed to. I slid my hand around her waist and tugged her against me possessively before lowering my head so I could whisper in her ear. “Are you sore?” I asked her.

  “I’m fine,” she replied.

  I kissed her ear, but I wasn’t ready to let her go yet. “Do you feel stretched? Can you tell I’ve been inside you?” I asked. As much as I didn’t want her hurting, I wanted her to feel me there. To remember I had been there.

  She nodded and melted against me. Little Blaire liked me talking naughty. I would need to remember that.

  “Good. I like knowing you can feel where I’ve been,” I said, then leveled my gaze at Woods. I wanted to make sure he understood me.

  “I figured this was gonna happen,” Woods said, sounding pissed.

  “Nan know it yet?” Jace asked, and Thad, one of Woods and Jace’s close friends, nudged him as if to shut him up.

  “This isn’t Nan’s business. Or yours,” I replied, glaring at Jace. He needed to listen to Thad and shut up. I would deal with Nan. They didn’t know shit.

  “I came here to golf. Let’s not talk about this out here. Blaire, why don’t you get everyone’s drinks and head on to the next hole?” Woods said.

  I didn’t like him bossing her around. He was doing it on purpose. The fucker had better watch himself. His daddy would have me in his office real damn quick. Finlay money kept this place going.

  I wouldn’t do this in front of Blaire, because it would upset her, but Woods was going to be set straight.

  Blaire stepped out of my arms and went to get everyone’s drinks. She handed me a Corona without asking what I wanted. She handed Woods his beer, and he slipped a fucking hundred-dollar bill into her hands. I could see the way her shoulders tensed as she cut her eyes toward me and quickly stuck it in her pocket. I would not get pissed because he paid her well. He could afford it, and she deserved it for working for his sorry ass. Bastard.

  I walked over to her and placed two hundred-dollar bills in her pocket, then pressed a kiss to her lips. I was staking my claim, and they’d all better fucking get that. I winked at her and headed over to the caddy. I wouldn’t look at Woods until Blaire was gone, because one smirk from him, and I would break his goddamn nose.

  When I glanced back, I saw Blaire driving away. I pulled out my phone and sent her a text.

  I’m sorry about Woods.

  He had been an ass, and I was worried that she was upset. He was her boss. She needed to know he wouldn’t do that again.

  I’m fine. Woods is my boss. No big deal.

  Was she used to him acting like this? Yeah, he and I were gonna talk. Now.

  “So, you and Blaire, huh? Didn’t see that coming,” Jace said, grinning like an idiot.

  Woods let out a bitter laugh.

  I stepped over to stand in front of him. “Do you want to say something to me, Woods? Because if you do, go ahead and say it now, because I sure as shit got something to say to you.”

  The anger in Woods’s eyes didn’t surprise me. He didn’t like being reminded that he couldn’t intimidate me. He shook his head at me and looked out to where Blaire’s cart had disappeared over the hill. “She’s too good for you to fuck with. I thought there was some chance you’d have enough heart not to touch her. She deserves so much more than she’s gonna get from you. If she had so much as given me a chance, I would have shown her how she deserved to be treated. But you.” He pointed at my chest. “You, Finlay, you just crook your son-of-a-rock-star finger, and they come running to you. And you toss them away without a thought. Blaire isn’t worldly enough to handle that. She’s not that tough, damn you.” He looked like he would slam his fist into my face.

  The only reason I let him stand there and yell at me was that he didn’t understand. He thought I was using her. He wanted to protect her. He wasn’t gonna get to, because I wasn’t letting him near her, but I appreciated the fact that he saw what I did. Blaire was precious. I shoved him back enough to get him out of my face. “Do you actually think I would have touched her had I not known all that? You think I would have threatened my sister for just anyone? No. Blaire isn’t just another girl for me. She’s it for me. She. Is. It.”

  Saying the words out loud didn’t just shock everyone around me, it shocked the hell out of me, too. She was it.

  I would never want anyone else.

  Ever.

  Just Blaire.

  “Motherfucker,” Jace whispered from behind me. “Rush Finlay did not just say what I think he said.”

  Woods’s angry glare slowly dissipated. As my words sank into his thick skull, I saw disbelief and then acceptance cross his face. “Shit,” he finally said.

  I stepped back and shrugged. “You said it yourself. Except you were wrong about one thing. She isn’t special. She’s fucking perfect.” I turned around, then stopped and looked back at him pointedly. “And she’s mine,” I said, loudly enough for all of them to hear me. Swinging my eyes in a warning glare to the other two, who were watching me as if I had lost my mind, I repeated, “Mine. Blaire is mine.”

  “Well, shiiit,” Thad finally said. “Guess I shoulda paid more attention to the new girl. She’s got the biggest player I know tied up in knots. Day-um, I’m impressed.”

  This time, Jace shoved Thad. “Shut up,” he hissed.

  “Let’s play some golf,” I said, taking my driver and heading for the tee.

  I had a late lunch with Grant and then headed home to shower and decide what to do with Blaire tonight. Although sex was pretty damn high on my priority list, I knew she needed to take it easy. I also wanted to talk. There was so much I didn’t know about her. I wanted to know everything. I wanted to sit and listen to her talk to me. Tell me things.

  Taking her out was an option, but I was greedy. I didn’t want to share her yet. I wanted all her attention. I didn’t want to know that others were getting to look at her. I just wanted it to be us here in this house alone. Together.

  Then, of course, I wanted to kiss her all over her body and taste the sweetness between her legs again. But first, I wanted to talk. I didn’t want this to be a sexual thing only. For the first time in my life, I wanted to let someone in. I didn’t want to keep Blaire out. She needed to love me. For me to survive this, she would have to love me. How the hell I would get her to fall in love with me I didn’t know. Getting to know her would help. Eating her pussy wasn’t the way to her heart. I had to remind myself that my addiction to tasting her couldn’t take over. Did I love her? I hadn’t ever been in love. Other than my dad, Nan, and Grant, I couldn’t say I had ever loved anyone else.

  Would I choose her over one of them?

  Yes.

  Would I die to protect her?

  Hell, yes.

  Could I live if she left me?

  No. I would be shattered.

  Was this love? It seemed so much stronger than something as simple as love.

  A knock on my bedroom door broke into my thoughts. Shit. It wasn’t Grant. Nan was here. Not who I wanted to deal with right now. I took my time going to the door. Her banging just got louder.

  Jerking the door open, I was greeted by my sister’s tearstreaked face. She wasn’t allowed in my room. I hadn’t actually told her that, but it was understood. I stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind me.

  Nan was pointing at the room Blaire was sleeping in . . . or, rather, keeping her things in. She would be sleeping with me from now on.

  “So it’s true! She’s in there. You let her move up here? Are you fucking her, too? Is that what this is? She’s not that attractive, Rush. It isn’t like you can’t have anyone you want. She’s just an
other pretty face. Why can’t you not fuck her? Do you have no control over your damn dick? She can’t be that good in bed!”

  “Stop!” I roared before she said any more. Nan was pushing me. I hated that she had been crying, but with Nan, you never knew if those were real tears or not. I hadn’t seen her actually crying, so I couldn’t be sure. But I didn’t want her upset. I just wanted her to let me be happy. For once in my goddamn life to let me make a decision for myself. Not for her.

  “Don’t yell at me!” Real tears filled her eyes as she started crying again. OK, so maybe she really was upset. I didn’t yell at her often. She didn’t normally piss me off so bad. “Since . . .” She sniffed. “Since she got here, you’ve been yelling at me. All the time. I can’t . . .” She let out another sob. “I can’t stand this. You’ve turned on me. For her.”

  This wasn’t Blaire’s fault. Why couldn’t Nan see that? This was like talking in circles. I reached out and pulled her into my arms. The little girl I had taken care of my entire life was looking at me through swollen eyes. I was all she had. “I’m sorry for yelling at you,” I told her, and she sobbed harder against my chest.

  “I just . . . just . . . don’t understand,” she said.

  Telling Nan that I was in love with Blaire wasn’t the answer to this. For starters, I hadn’t told Blaire I loved her, and I needed to tell her first. Second, Nan would lose her shit if I told her that. She could go from pitiful, sobbing mess to wild, insane tornado in a second. I had witnessed that more than once. “It isn’t about the sex. I’ve tried to tell you that Blaire isn’t to blame. I’ve tried explaining to you how she’s been wronged here, too. You aren’t the only victim. You shouldn’t hate someone who has suffered the way you have. I don’t understand why you can’t see that, Nan. I love you. I will always love you. You know that. But I can’t choose you over her. Not this time. This time, you’re asking for too much. I won’t give her up.”

  Nan stilled in my arms. I wanted to hope that she was listening to me, that I was getting through to her, but I knew my sister. That would be too damn easy. It would take something much bigger to get her to give up a hatred she had held on to most of her life. “Why can’t you give her money and send her away?” Nan asked quietly as she leaned back from my embrace and crossed her arms over her chest defensively.

  “Because I can’t let her go. She . . . she makes me happy, Nan.” I admitted that much to her.

  Nan’s eyes flashed the anger I knew would ignite if she thought for a minute that I felt more for Blaire than I did for her. As fucked up as that was, Nan expected to be my number one her entire life. She never considered what would happen if I fell in love one day. She was so desperate to be someone’s number one that she was determined to force it on me. “Because she’s a good fuck?” she said sourly.

  I closed my eyes tightly and took a deep breath. Keeping my calm was important. Losing it with Nan again wouldn’t help anything. When I opened my eyes, I leveled my gaze on my sister. “Nan. Don’t do that again. Blaire is not a fuck for me. Get that through your head. She isn’t controlling me with sex. She’s more than that.”

  Nan stiffened and turned her head to glare at the open door to Blaire’s room. “You don’t even know her. You just met her. Yet you want to choose her over me,” she spat.

  “I do know her. I’ve been sharing a home with her for weeks now. I’ve been unable to keep my eyes off her. I’ve watched her. I’ve talked to her. I know her. She’s . . . God, Nan, she’s what makes me happy. Can’t you accept that? Let this thing with her go!”

  Nan didn’t look at me or respond. The fight was done for now, but I knew I hadn’t won. She wasn’t over this.

  We stood in silence for a few moments, and I waited for her to say something. Whatever she was deciding needed to be dealt with carefully. Nan held the power to ruin things for me. She could tell Blaire everything, and I’d lose. I couldn’t lose Blaire.

  “I want to have friends over here tonight,” she said, swinging her gaze back to me.

  Fine. She was going to force one of her parties on me. Typical Nan. She needed to know that I would still give in to her on some level. “OK,” I replied without argument. I would take Blaire up to my room, and we would be away from the crowd and noise.

  Nan nodded, then turned and walked away. That was it. For now.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  I wasn’t in the mood for this, but I’d told Nan she could have her party. I should have expected she’d overdo it without me giving her any guidelines. I wasn’t drinking tonight. I intended to spend my night with Blaire. The guys may have been informed of the fact that Blaire was off-limits, but the females hadn’t accepted that I wasn’t available. I shook my head at another of Nan’s friends who was offering to give me a blow job right in front of everyone.

  Grant’s eyes met mine over the crowd. He was kicked back on the sofa, with a girl I had said no to earlier half-sitting in his lap. He rolled his eyes and took a swig of his beer. I had asked him to come and monitor things tonight. I didn’t want interruptions. He had agreed, as long as he could stay in his usual room if one of the females piqued his interest.

  I didn’t care what he did, as long as no one bothered Blaire and me. I nodded my head in the direction of the girl I had just sent away. If he wanted easy, adventurous sex, I was sure that one was a good choice.

  He raised his eyebrows in interest and watched her saunter into the living room. I was going to head upstairs and wait for Blaire in her room. She shouldn’t be too much longer now.

  “You going up?” Nan asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah. Grant’s here if you need him.”

  “What about her? Is she gonna stay up there, too?” Nan asked, trying to look like she didn’t care what Blaire did.

  “Blaire will be with me. Good night, Nan. Enjoy your party” She spun on her heels and stalked toward the kitchen.

  I turned to look back at Grant, and he just shook his head.

  He knew Nan was giving me shit about Blaire. I could tell he wasn’t on board with the not-telling-Blaire idea. He thought I should tell her now before it went too far.

  Problem with that was that I had already let it go too far.

  Blaire’s room smelled like her already. I didn’t turn on the lights. I could see the moonlight on the Gulf better in the darkness. Sitting down on the end of her bed, I inhaled, trying to feed my hunger for her. She would be here any minute. But I was growing impatient. If I could get her to stop working and let me take care of her, I would, but I knew better than to suggest that. Blaire would throw a fit. I’d had to lie to her to get her to take the damn cell phone. She was still planning to pay me for the food in my kitchen. I was just going to find a way to put that back in her savings. Somehow. Stubborn woman wouldn’t take anything from me but my body. I grinned at that thought. I was more than willing to give her my body. She would also gladly accept my tongue. She had a thing for my tongue. The way her eyes danced with anticipation when she saw my piercing was so damn sexy .

  I heard footsteps and turned to see Blaire enter the room. Both her hands flew to her mouth to cover a startled scream, which died the moment she realized it was me. I stood up and walked toward her. I couldn’t not touch her a moment longer.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Hey,” she replied, and then a frown tugged on her lips. “What are you doing in here?”

  Where else would I be? “Waiting for you. I kinda thought that was obvious.”

  She ducked her head to hide the pleased smile I still saw on her lips. “I can see that. But you have guests,” she said.

  I had already forgotten they were here. My focus had been completely on her. “Not my guests. Trust me, I wanted an empty house,” I assured her, and cupped the side of her face. “Come upstairs with me. Please.”

  She tossed her purse onto the bed, then slipped her hand into mine. “Lead the way.”

  I managed to let her get to the top step before pulling her into my arms and p
ressing my lips to hers. All day, I had thought about how good she tasted and how I loved the feel of her tongue sliding against mine.

  She wrapped her arms around my neck, kissing me back eagerly. The longing in her kiss matched mine, and I knew I had to stop now if I intended to have a talk with her tonight.

  I tore myself away from her. “Talk. We are going to talk first. I want to see you smile and laugh. I want to know what your favorite show was when you were a kid and who made you cry at school and what boy band you hung posters of on your wall. Then I want you naked in my bed again,” I said.

  She smiled and walked over to the sofa. Images of her naked on my large sectional flashed in my head, and I had to shake it to stop myself. Not the plan, Rush.

  “Thirsty?” I asked, opening the fridge I kept in my room.

  “Just some ice water would be nice.”

  I started fixing her a glass of ice water and thinking about everything I wanted to know. Not how she looked when she came.

  “Rugrats was my favorite show. Ken Norris made me cry at least once a week, but then he’d make Valerie cry, and I’d get mad and hurt him. My favorite and most successful attack was a swift kick to the balls. And, I’m ashamed to admit, the Backstreet Boys covered my walls.” Blaire had answered every question I had mentioned.

  I handed her the water and sat beside her on the sofa. “Who’s Valerie?” I asked. She had never mentioned her friends. I assumed she didn’t have many because of her mom.

  Blaire tensed up beside me, and my interest further intensified. Had Valerie hurt her? “Valerie was my twin sister. She died in a car accident four years ago. My dad was driving. A year later, he walked out of our lives and never returned. Mom said we had to forgive him, because he couldn’t live with the fact that he’d been driving the car that killed Valerie. I always wanted to believe her. Even when he didn’t come to Mom’s funeral, I wanted to believe he just couldn’t face it. So I forgave him. I didn’t hate him or let bitterness and hate control me. But I came here, and . . . well, you know. I guess Mom was wrong.”