Consolation Prize (Forbidden Men Book 9)

by Linda Kage

  Julianna nodded. “Yes. He...” She glanced away, clearly uncomfortable. “Well, I guess he knows about us…” Her eyes slashed to me. “You and me. And he wasn’t very happy about it.”

  There was more. I could tell from the look on her face. “What did he do?”

  “Nothing,” she immediately answered. When I narrowed my eyes, she lifted her hands. “I swear. He grabbed my wrist and—”

  “He grabbed your wrist?” I caught her arm and immediately slid her wrist into my palm so I could examine it.

  “See,” she offered, holding out both of them and turning them for my full examination. “He didn’t even leave a mark. Brandt caught him getting handsy and ran him off. The whole thing lasted ten, fifteen seconds, tops. No big deal.”

  “No big deal?” I demanded, my mouth falling open. “The guy is stalking you enough to know who you’re seeing. We haven’t exactly made a big production of our relationship, you know. He’s got to be keeping close tabs on you.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Or he heard about it from Theo, Tyla’s boyfriend. I think they’re friends.”

  “I don’t care how he learned. He had no right to approach you about it and put his hands on you. You two are fucking over, and he’s not letting it go. He’s going to be a problem.”

  When she started to sigh, I narrowed my eyes. “He’s going to be a serious problem, Julianna. Don’t brush this off as nothing. What he’s doing are beginning signs. It only gets worse from here. You need to report this.”

  She squirmed on my lap, clearly uncomfortable. “Really, I don’t think it’s that bad. He wants us to get back together, not kill me. And he’s not too energetic about reconnecting with me either because he only comes around when he’s between women. I seriously think his attention will peter out completely over time.”

  I only shook my head. “I don’t. He hasn’t stopped yet, so I doubt he’s going to. I’ve had you, I know how addictive you are.” Growling out my frustration, I gripped my hair. “Thank God you called me over. I don’t want you being home alone while he’s fucking stalking you.”

  “Oh my God, Colton. It’s not that bad. I swear to you.” But I remembered her face the first night I’d stayed on her couch and he’d come knocking. A strong independent woman like her who’d hated me at the time had allowed me to sleep over. She knew just as much as I did that Shaun’s behavior was wrong.

  “You should’ve called me from work,” I told her, “I would’ve come and followed you home.” When she cringed over that, I studied her more intently. “What?”

  She let out a breath before glancing away and mumbling, “Brandt followed me home.”

  I couldn’t control the instinctive jealousy that ripped through me. My brother had been there for her when I hadn’t.

  I hated that.

  But I nodded like the big, mature boy I was supposed to be. “Well…good. He better have walked you to your door and checked out your apartment too.”

  “He walked me to my door,” she confessed, “but I wouldn’t let him inside.” Her brown eyes were worried and watchful as she studied my face.

  I nodded again and repeated, “Good.” Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, I glanced around the room and cleared my throat. “We should probably put some clothes on. I’m sure the police department frowns upon naked people showing up and trying to file reports with them.”

  Her lips parted before she shook her head. “Wait. What? Why would we go to the police department? We’re not going to the police department.”

  “Yes, we are.” I stood and reached for my pants. “We’re getting a restraining order against your fucking ex.”

  “What? No. No, we’re not. Why would we do that?”

  I glanced at her before yanking up my sweats. “This is going to stop, baby doll. It’s going to stop today.”

  She just stared at me. “Don’t you think that’s kind of drastic? And what would we even tell them? That he came and glared at me and told me he was very upset with my decisions lately? The police would laugh me out of their precinct.”

  “He grabbed your arm,” I reminded her.

  She was already shaking her head. “And it didn’t even leave a bruise. I don’t want to go to the police, Colton. Seriously. It seems so unnecessary.”

  I paused after tugging on my shirt. Then I stepped to the edge of the bed and took her hands until she looked up into my eyes. “Your safety is more than necessary to me. Don’t ever say it’s not. Now, tell me why you really don’t want to do this. Are you afraid it’ll piss him off and he’ll come at you harder?”

  “No.” Her eyes grew big with disbelief. “I think it’d freak him out and scare him off for good.”

  I smiled. “Good. That’s exactly what we want. So let’s do it.” But the uncertainty in her eyes made me frown. “That is what we want, right?” I said slowly. “I mean, you want him to stop harassing you, don’t you? Don’t tell me you secretly like it and want to get back together with him.”

  Shit. Maybe I’d been reading everything wrong, and Shaun’s stalking was some kind of kinky sex game to them, kind of like the way she and I got off on bickering.

  She sent me an irritated frown. “Of course I want him to stop.”

  “Are you sure?” I said slowly.

  She slapped my arm. “Yes! I just…dammit.” She scowled at me harder before mumbling under her breath and admitting, “It’s fucking embarrassing. I don’t want to tell my personal business to a bunch of complete strangers only for them to look at me as if I’m some kind of drama queen making a big deal out of nothing.”

  Oh Jesus. My girl and her issues with keeping up appearances. It irritated the hell out of me, and yet made me love her even more.

  I sat next to her on the mattress and pulled her into a hug. “He’s been hounding you for almost two years, baby doll. Do you want him to stop or not?”

  “Yes,” she admitted against my chest. “But—”

  “There’s no buts about it. What everyone else thinks is their problem. The police will do their job regardless. I just want you to be happy and not worry about some dumbass and his inability to let go.”

  She blew out a long breath and waited a second before finally looking up to catch my gaze. Then she murmured, “Okay.”

  “Okay?” I repeated in surprise, straightening. “Really? You’ll actually go with me?”

  Damn, that had been easier than I’d thought.

  She rolled her eyes and shoved lightly at my arm. “I’m stubborn, not completely impossible.”

  “You’re completely beautiful,” I corrected, then made her laugh when I tackled her onto the bed and began kissing her neck in an exaggerated manner.

  She squirmed under me and screamed out a laugh before attacking me back, racing her hands up my arms and clutching my hair before kissing me full on the mouth and spiking her tongue deep between my teeth.

  My hand was clutching her full, lush breast, my tongue tangling with hers before I realized what I was doing, but I managed to tear myself away and pant a few times before muttering, “Dammit, stop trying to seduce me out of my idea. We’re going to the police station. Right now.”

  Her eyes twinkled as she grinned up at me. “You’re the one who kissed me first.”

  “Well, if you hadn’t been sitting there looking all hot and delectable, I would’ve been able to resist you.” I gave her breast one last affectionate squeeze, then licked the nipple before climbing off her. “Now get dressed before I can’t help myself again.”

  She lifted her eyebrows, looking amused and yet very unamused. “Did you just give me an order, boy?”

  I could play this two different ways. I could smart mouth her some more, going way overboard with it on purpose. But I already knew how that would end. She’d take up my frisky challenge and order me around right back until we were arguing hot and heavy into sex again.

  Okay, so I liked that option. I liked it a lot. In fact—

  Wait, no. Her safety was top priority. No
sex until after we’d been to the police.

  So I went with option two and demurely fluttered my lashes, begging, “Pretty please, baby doll, will you get dressed now?”

  She snorted, not buying that act either. But at least she climbed off the bed. My pecker took note of how nice she looked naked, and he got pretty pissed at me for not choosing option one, but I promised him later, and he calmed down some.

  It took her nearly fifteen minutes to primp. I knew she was still worried what they were going to think of her report because of how much attention she put into how she looked, and then she went for a gray, white, and black ensemble. But I didn’t say anything about it. She was actually going to do this, so I was going to be satisfied with what I got.

  I took her hand and squeezed her fingers encouragingly when she announced she was finally ready. We walked from her room side-by-side and down the hall through the front room to her door. I waited as she pulled her purse and coat from their hooks. Then I retook her hand and opened the door, only to find myself face-to-face with my brother.

  COLTON’S CHAPTER | 29

  Brandt dropped his hand where he’d had it raised to knock. His gaze settled on me before he said, “I knew I hadn’t called the wrong number.”

  I shrugged. “You know, you could’ve just checked the call history on your phone instead of coming all the way over here to figure that out, right?”

  He narrowed his eyes at my smart-ass reply. “What the fuck are you doing here, Colton?” Then he dropped his gaze to where my hand was linked with Julianna’s, and his eyes bulged with disbelief.

  She tightened her grip on me. I wasn’t sure if she was nervous or trying to be supportive. But I did know she wasn’t ashamed of being caught by him with me, which was all I needed to know.

  So I blinked at my brother and shot back just as accusingly, “What the fuck are you doing here? You’re the married one of us two.”

  He shot me a grow-up look and muttered, “I’m trying to figure out why you were answering Juli’s phone first thing in the morning.”

  “Well, I was asleep,” I replied in the most logical way I could. “And this annoying ring kept pestering me, so I answered it because I was closest to it. I didn’t even realize it wasn’t my phone until after we hung up.”

  He blinked at me blankly for a moment before he blew. “What the fuck, Colton? You and Julianna?”

  When a door across the hall from us creaked open, Julianna waved Brandt forward. “Maybe we should talk about this inside,” she said in a hushed voice.

  When Brandt merely transferred his stunned gaze to her, I sighed and grabbed his arm, yanking him into the apartment.

  Juli quickly shut the door behind him.

  In a daze, Brandt gaped between us before sputtering, “Since when?”

  “Uh…” I glanced Juli’s way, not sure how to calculate that. I’d wanted her since the moment I’d met her, damn near a year ago. Or maybe we should go from the night of his wedding when we’d nearly hooked up. Probably shouldn’t measure from the night I’d slept on her couch; we hadn’t exactly been the best of friends then. I guessed we could start counting from the first time we’d had sex, but that didn’t seem like the starting place at all.

  But when Juli quietly answered, “A couple weeks,” I nodded in support. Sounded good enough to me.

  “You...” He pointed a finger threateningly at me. “You lied to me, you little asshole.”

  “Me?” I pressed a hand to my chest, my eyebrows rising. “I never lied to you. When did I lie to you?”

  “Last week or so,” he explained. “I texted you after hearing a rumor from Ten and specifically asked you if you were seeing a new girl.”

  “Mmhmm.” I nodded, remembering that text. “And how did I answer?”

  Brandt sighed and rolled his eyes. “Something stupid like you sit next to them all the time in your home economics class.”

  I grinned, still loving that line. “I was quoting Forrest Gump.”

  Brandt’s scowl turned dry as he set his hands on his hips. “And then you said the only thing you hadn’t been seeing were ghosts.”

  My grin widened, and I had to glance at Julianna before adding, “A Sixth Sense reference.”

  She groaned. “Dear God, you’re an annoying pest to everyone, aren’t you?” But there was a smile playing around her lips and amusement in her eyes.

  “Everyone,” I murmured before returning my attention to my brother. “And my texts answering that question were clearly a diversionary tactic if I ever heard one. You’re the dumbass for not catching on.”

  Eyes narrowing, Brandt grit out, “Thanks, little brother. You’re the one who lied to me, and I’m the dumbass?” Then he pierced a probing, stern glance toward Juli. “And you.”

  I swear she sank closer to me. Then her throat worked as she swallowed her dread. “Me?” she whispered.

  “I thought we were friends,” he charged softly, hurt and betrayal coating his expression and making her grip on my hand tighten. Then he tightened the screw on the guilt trip he was winding into her by adding, “Confidantes.”

  But instead of making her blurt out an aggrieved apology, she narrowed her eyes. “Confidantes?” she repeated in a low, hard voice. “Confidantes? If I was such a confidante to you, why didn’t you come to me with your worries when you thought I was still into you? I would’ve been open and honest and told you that wasn’t the case. But no…you sent your little brother over to distract me at your own wedding? That doesn’t seem very confidante-like to me.”

  Brandt’s mouth fell open before he sniffed. “I’m sorry, but the way you were staring at me that night said you weren’t over shit. So excuse me for loving my wife and wanting to be faithful to her. I—wait.” He shifted his gaze suspiciously between us before he whirled to me. “You told her about that?”

  I winced, unable to answer. But my non-answer made Brandt’s face clear as if he’d just figured something out. Pointing between us, he asked, “So…curious question. Did you tell her about that before or after she first slept with you?”

  My mouth opened, but it took me a second to remember the answer.

  Brandt started nodding as if he already knew, though. “Uh huh,” he murmured. “I’m guessing you told right before the first time. I bet learning I pushed you at her pissed her off so much she thought she’d get her revenge against me by fucking my susceptible little brother.”

  I blinked, never having even thought up that notion before.

  Next to me, Julianna huffed out a sound of outrage. “Wow,” she muttered. “That’s quite an insulting theory.”

  My brain kicked back into gear, and I nodded. “Hell yes, it is,” I agreed, as I took a step closer to Brandt. “To both of us. Do you think I’m so stupid I would really fall for such an awful scheme, or do you really think she couldn’t possibly like me for me?”

  Brandt straightened and sent me a look as if he couldn’t believe I’d apply either label to his thought process. “I think you need to find someone who does like you for you,” he murmured, “someone who loves you without a doubt. That’s what I think.”

  “I don’t have any doubts,” I told him, staring him straight in the eye, when okay, sometimes I did, like twenty seconds ago when he’d come up with that idea, or twenty minutes earlier when he’d called her phone, or that day on campus, when I learned they talked—like talked—at work together.

  But she’d told me she loved me, dammit.

  Then again, she’d also told me she loved Brandt the night of his wedding.

  Jesus, I hated doubts.

  My brother quirked a brow as if he knew I was lying. But I continued to stare at him steadily.

  So he whirled toward Julianna, pointing threateningly. “Stay the fuck away from my brother.”

  Her lips parted in shock. I stepped in front of her, glaring him down. “Don’t fucking talk to her like that.”

  “And you.” He pointed a finger at my nose next. “You’re done with
this. With her. With this whole…whatever you two are doing. You’re done. No more.”

  I laughed in his face. “Yeah, you don’t tell me who I can and cannot date. Sorry, bro.”

  “When it’s my leftovers you’re sniffing around, I sure the fuck can.”

  “Leftovers?” Juli and I cried in unison.

  “As if,” I added. “You didn’t even finish a single date with her.”

  “Yeah. Are you sure that’s all that ever happened between us?” he asked in the most taunting voice I’d ever heard him use.

  “Hey!” Juli nudged me aside so she could get into Brandt’s face and glare. “Stop putting ideas in his head.” Turning to me, she stared beseechingly into my eyes. “Yes, half a date is all that ever happened between us. He’s being an ass.”

  I swiveled my gaze to my brother. He stared at me a quarter of a second before folding.

  “Okay, fine, dammit,” he admitted. “That half a date was it. But I still considered it. You cannot date someone I considered. It’s weird, so…you two…done.”

  “No.” I shook my head. “No, we’re not.”

  “Colton,” he muttered, gritting his teeth. “Stop being such a stubborn little shit. You owe me.”

  As my face drained of color, Julianna gasped. “You fucking prick,” she started in a low, calm rage. I glanced at her, worried she was pissed at me. But her glare was solely for Brandt. She shoved him hard in the chest.

  He stumbled a step away from her, his mouth falling open with obvious shock.

  “He doesn’t owe you shit,” she growled, making him blink and shake his head. But she kept advancing, getting right in his face. “He was eight fucking years old. You can’t hold him accountable for that. If you want to blame someone, go talk to your goddamn mother. Not Colton.”

  My mouth fell open. But seriously, what the hell?

  Brandt gaped at her too before looking at me and saying, “What the fuck is she talking about?”

  “I…I don’t…” I turned my gaze to Julianna, right about the time her eyes grew wide and she slapped her hands over her mouth.