Colin woke when she leaned forward and stroked her hands up his chest. Leaning up to kiss her he grinned. “Good morning.”
Stephanie smiled. “Good morning.” she lifted her hips and lowered them slowly. “I thought I’d wake you before I left.”
Putting his hands on her waist, trying to urge her to move faster, Colin chuckled, then groaned when she dropped down and moved her hips in a languorous figure eight. Seeing that she wouldn’t be hurried, he contented himself with covering her breasts with his hands. “I’m glad you did.”
Curving down so that Colin could fill his mouth with her breast, Stephanie closed her eyes and forced her breath to steady. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”
Letting his lips linger on her nipple, Colin made a small sound of irritation before releasing it and looking up at her. He grabbed her hips to stop her from moving. “Damn it, Steph, you always do that. I should have known you had an agenda when you woke me up with your mouth on my dick.”
Stephanie tried to look hurt. It was difficult when her body protested the lack of movement. “I don’t have an agenda. I’m just being practical.” She frowned at Colin’s laugh. “It’s about Ashley.”
Colin groaned, trying to push her off him. “Do you have to bring her up while we’re—”
Knees clenched against his hips to make it harder for him to dislodge her, Stephanie bent down and rested her elbows on his chest. “Are you serious? You’re going to get all indignant talking about her while you’re fucking me? She’s not really your stepsister.” She rolled her eyes. “Get over it Colin.”
Colin tried to push her off him again. Steph hooked her heels under his knees.
Exasperated Colin dropped back. Then he laughed. “Fine. Go ahead. What do you have to say about Ashley that’s so important that you felt the need to multitask?”
“She told me you saw her naked.”
Rolling her over so he was on top, Colin frowned down at her. “It was an accident.” Hands braced at either side of her, holding her still with the deep press of his dick, Colin met her eyes. “What are you getting at?”
Stephanie opened her mouth.
“I swear to god if you ask me how it made me feel, I’m gonna toss you off the bed. I don’t want none of your psycho babble, Steph.” Colin’s tone was firm. With him controlling their joining, Steph couldn’t use it to put him back at ease.
She resolved to throw some honesty in to catch him off guard. “Don’t tell her I said this, but for a moment…” She paused, wanting to make sure he got the full impact of her words. “She forgot that you’ve been part of her family since she was a kid. She saw you as a man.”
Running his tongue over his teeth, Colin looked away from her and cursed.
Shifting her hips as much as he’d let her, Stephanie schooled her features so he wouldn’t catch the triumph in her eyes. “She missed you too you know.”
Colin pushed away from her, stood and grabbed his jeans. “Damn it, she’s like my little sister. I’m supposed to look out for her, not—”
“What about me?” Scowling Stephanie sat up. “Does fucking me make me less important?”
“You know that’s not true!” Eyes blazing Colin turned to face her. “Damn it, is the entire family up for dibs? We’ve got a few cousins that are pretty hot. Ashley’s mom’s not so bad when she doesn’t have her head up her own ass…” He sneered. “Hey, remember that summer, just before the accident, when your dad was drunk at the pool? Pretty sure I saw him checking Ashley out. We should see about hooking them up.”
Sheets pulled to her chest, Stephanie wrapped them around her and stood. “Don’t be absurd.”
“You’re the one being absurd. We crossed the line, it worked for us. Hell, I’m happy it did. I love you and I wouldn’t want to change a thing.” Rubbing his hand over his face, he turned away. “That doesn’t mean I want to change what I have with Ashley.”
Taking a deep breath, Stephanie accepted, with much regret, that she couldn’t go any further without risking her own bond with Colin. Stepping up behind him, she wrapped her arms around his chest and pressed her face against his bare back. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up. I just thought…” With a sigh she gave him a bit more of the truth, just enough to soften the edge of her manipulation. “I love what I have with you. I wanted to share it.”
Shaking his head, Colin turned, hugged her tight, and bent down to kiss her. “Awfully generous of you. I don’t think I could be quite so…charitable if I had a stepbrother.”
A pout on her lips, only half in jest, Stephanie gazed up at him. “So you’ll never let me live out my fantasy of being with two guys?”
Grinning, Colin bent down and kissed her nose. “Only if you let me…” He paused, frowned and shook his head. “Never mind.”
Hiding her smirk, Stephanie pushed back and ducked under his arms. “Well, I’m going to take a shower. I gotta get ready for work. I tried to get up early enough so that we could spend some quality time together but…”
Colin gave her a little shove. “Oh shut up, brat. You’re all in to multitasking. I can think of plenty of things we can do while you wash up.”
* * * *
After Steph was gone, Colin tried to sleep. It was impossible. Not only had Steph, voicing his own thoughts aloud, left him troubled and horny—even after their romp in the shower—but working out how she’d tried playing him like a mindless piece on a chessboard settled like a lump in his gut.
Not that her motives weren’t good, in a strange, twisted way. They were also painfully obvious. She cared about Ashley and she was worried about her. To Steph’s mind the solution was simple.
To Colin it wasn’t simple at all. His love for Ashley was pure. What he and Steph had was something different, something rare, something born of pain that had grown into something that satisfied them both. There was no way of knowing if the same would happen with him and Ashley and he wasn’t sure he wanted to risk it.
His body didn’t agree, but he wasn’t about to let it make the choices for him. Ashley needed him to be her protector. Between Steph playing matchmaker and her parents wrapped up in their own lives, Ashley needed at least one person in her life that would put her first.
The door opened. Colin didn’t have to look up to know who it was. Arms folded behind his head he waited for her to close the door, waited to see what she would say before he acknowledged her presence.
“Steph’s gone?”
Eyes on the ceiling, afraid of what his eyes would reveal if he looked at her, Colin nodded. “She had to work.”
Ashley sat of the edge of the bed. Colin sat up, making sure he was well covered and finally looked at her.
Back stiff, sitting so very still, Ashley kept her head bowed as she spoke. “So she spent the night here.”
Colin’s breath caught. He was happy Ashley’s back was to him. His face would have said it all. Clearing his throat he tried to find a way to cover his mistake. “Her condo’s not that far.”
Finally, she looked at him. There was some confusion in her eyes, but the conclusion she’d come to wasn’t part of it. All the little clues, dropped so carelessly, along with whatever Steph had said to her. No matter what lies Colin scrambled to come up with it was too late.
She knew.
Chapter Five
Colin followed the motion of Ashley licking her bottom lip, her wet tongue passing once, twice over the plump, pink flesh. It was distracting, but not enough to turn his mind from the problem at hand. What could he say? What could he do? What if she was so disgusted with him that she never wanted to see him again?
The look on Ashley’s face wasn’t one of disgust. Granted, it was possible she was in shock, that the disgust hadn’t settled in yet. Shock didn’t really fit her expression either.
Pensive. She looked pensive. Pensive was good. Now if he could only remember where he’d left his pants. Talking to her, while naked, definitely wouldn’t improve the situation.
> Ashley’s abrupt motion towards the TV shook Colin from his thoughts. Before he had a chance to say a word, she spoke.
“You wanna watch that last movie we found On Demand? ‘Drag me to Hell’? You said you hadn’t seen it.”
Colin nodded. Her back was to him, so she didn’t see it. He forced the words out, “Sure, but—”
“I’ll put it on while you get dressed.” She paused, rolled her shoulders back, and left them set there, squared and stiff. “Don’t worry. I won’t look.” Colin was at a loss. It was clear Ashley didn’t want to talk about it. Not now anyway. Maybe it was a good thing, he didn’t object to giving her time to process everything. They could talk about it later. Or never. Never was good too.
Fully dressed, slouched back against the padded headboard, Colin was finally able to relax. Fine, Ashley had carefully left about a foot between them, but when the scary parts came, she grabbed his hand and hid her face behind the pillow she clung to. It was all so natural, so much like how he remembered things before the mess of the past few years, he was able to forget a thing had changed.
When the movie was over Ashley went to the bathroom and traded his oversized shirt for her cute little dress from the night before. Her panties and bra disappeared from where they’d been hanging over the shower rod so Colin assumed they were dry and she was wearing them.
Tempting as it was, he didn’t ask. He was going to keep his thoughts platonic and stop imagining that she had stuffed her panties in her purse, leaving her juicy bits to be caressed lightly by the gentle breeze, so very accessible and…
The level look Ashley was giving him made his blood run cold. Damn it, he had to stop. Ashley wasn’t stupid. There was no mistaking the flash of hunger in his eyes; he wasn’t the first to look at her that way. Damn Steph for putting the idea in his head.
Twice the request had to be repeated before Colin really heard what she was saying. Bring her by the house so that she could pack a few things. He could do that. More, he would do his best to keep his thoughts from drifting anywhere…obscene.
Looking at her as the little girl she’d once been—and nothing else—became much easier when she turned for the door and her hair fell off her shoulder. Just a glimpse of the scars on her neck, the white lines that marred the beauty of her creamy flesh, and all that he’d blissfully forgotten returned. Those were scars that he’d put there, scars that went so much deeper than what could be seen. Ashley was not his to have; she was his to defend.
Without another word Colin followed her out to the jeep. Mind clear he efficiently went over how things would be handled from here on. With his savings he could cover both their rooms for at least a week. After that he could either help her get her own place or see if she and Steph could work something out.
After the fiasco at her party Colin wouldn’t question Ashley not wanting to go back to living with her parents. He wouldn’t stand in the way if she changed her mind but he doubted she would.
Ashley needed space to grow and heal. The constant presence of her parents wouldn’t be conductive to either.
Radio thumping out a pleasant beat Colin dropped back his seat in the jeep and prepared to give Ashley all the time she needed to collect what she couldn’t bear to leave behind before she started her new life.
Being able to help her, in any way possible, was more than he could ever have hoped.
* * * *
Nothing was right. Ashley blinked, hand still on her doorknob, trying to make sense of what she saw. White sheets, covering everything. It was like walking in to a morgue.
Dark red on the walls. All her things in boxes. The light lilac accents were gone, the flowers she’d painstakingly painted two summers back were nothing but a faded blur on the one wall that had yet to receive its second coat.
“Oh you spoiled the surprise!”
Ashley bit her tongue to keep from cringing at the bright assault of her mother’s words. Keeping her expression blank, she turned and faced her mother. “Surprise?”
Grace Walker put her hand on her daughter’s shoulder and gestured to the room at large. “Your room was only fit for a child. I’m giving it a full makeover. New furniture, new colors, new everything.” She turned back to her daughter, a secretive smile on her lips. “A woman’s room should be sensual, inviting. A boudoir where a man feels welcome…”
“A man.” Ashley felt numb. Detached. Grace didn’t notice. She continued talking. Ashley nodded, pretending that she was listening. When Grace finally stopped, Ashley forced a smile. “I’m sure it will be lovely. If you don’t mind I’ll get changed and get out of your way.”
Grace kissed her forehead and nodded. “Of course. I’m sure a pretty girl like you has much better things to do with her time then hang around the house. Such a relief that you’re up and about now.”
When her mother was gone Ashley closed and locked the door. She found her suitcase in the closet and filled it without paying much attention to what she packed. All she needed was clothes. Clothes and a comfortable pair of shoes. For some reason, nothing else held any value anymore. She had to be practical, take only necessities. Everything else could be replaced.
Tugging the sheet off the full length mirror in the corner, Ashley looked herself over. Her hair was mussed up, windblown from ridding in the jeep with the windows down. Her eyes, they looked darker somehow. Ashley tore her gaze from her face and looked down at her dress. White. Fit for a child.
Jaw clenched. Ashley pulled off the dress, not caring when it tore at the seams. It took seconds of ruffling through her closet to find what she was looking for. Dressed more appropriately, she donned a black sweater, long enough to cover her to her knees, and buttoned it up to her throat.
Grabbing her suitcase and her purse, checking to make sure her little phone book was inside, Ashley left the room, closing the door for the last time. No one was in the house when she went downstairs, which was good. She didn’t want to say goodbye. She was afraid her tone would betray the fact that she wasn’t coming back.
By the time she climbed into the jeep, Ashley was sure she looked perfectly normal.
Must always look normal, mustn’t let them worry.
* * * *
Colin righted his seat when Ashley got in the jeep, taking her suitcase from her and setting it on the back seat while she did up her seatbelt. There was something in the air, what he wasn’t sure, but it wasn’t good. He’d seen her mother leave the house, so he could only assume it was something she’d said. What he couldn’t decide was whether he should ask about it, or leave it to Ashley to bring it up when she was ready.
One look at Ashley and his mind was made up. The very way she was holding herself, stiff in her seat, turned away from him, didn’t invite even idle chatter, never mind a conversation about her mother. Might even be better to wait until Steph got a chance to talk to her.
Leaving the music loud, hoping it would let Ashley know he was respecting her need to be left alone, Colin drove back to the hotel. He carried her suitcase for her, handing it over in the hall between their rooms when she reached for it, and stood for a few minutes in front of her closed door wondering if he’d done the right thing.
Chapter Six
Stephanie tried the door, found it unlocked and rolled her eyes as she stepped into the room. Cocky bastard, she thought, letting her eyes drift over the darkened room until they fell on her stepbrother. Sprawled out over the bed, fully dressed, shoes still on his feet, Colin was snoring loud enough to wake the dead.
Slipping her sensible, two inch heels from her feet, Stephanie padded quietly across the room. Colin had been a very light sleeper before the military. Stephanie imagined that would be even more true now if not for how tired and comfortable he was. Just the fact that he was sleeping, before ten o’clock, told her a lot.
Not that Colin would say, but it stood to reason that being a heavy sleeper in the field wasn’t very conductive to a long life. The thought made Stephanie’s hands shake. Rather than let th
e feeling overtake her, Stephanie focused on the fact that Colin was here, now, within reach. There was no telling how long he would be home, which meant she wasn’t going to waste a second.
Besides, she wanted to make up for her last miscalculation. Colin might have forgiven her for bringing it up at such an inopportune moment, but he wouldn’t have let his guard down yet. Which meant she couldn’t bring it up again, not if she wanted him to consider it seriously.
Her best bet would be to let Colin think she’d forgotten about it. It was risky; Colin could get the dreaded call any day. Still, she couldn’t see any other way. Colin was damned stubborn, and if he’d convinced himself looking at Ashley that way was wrong, changing his mind would take some careful planning.
Hiking her pencil skirt up over her knees, Stephanie climbed onto the bed, reaching for the top button of Colin’s jeans. If she was going to wake him up from such a deep, much needed sleep; she was going to make it well worth it.
Colin grabbed her hands and rolled. A shriek of surprise was smothered by a breathless gasp when Colin’s heavy body covered hers. With a deep laugh Colin kissed her, his hand moving between them and into her blouse.
Stephanie groaned and smacked his shoulder. “Will you get off me, you big lug. I can’t breathe!”
Setting his knees at either side of her hips Colin took his weight from her and moved his kisses to her jaw. “Is that better?” His eyes lifted to hers even as he glided his lips down her throat. Stephanie nodded. Still watching her, Colin undid her shirt and freed her breasts from its confines. His parted lips lowering to her taut little nipple made her head drop back. His sucking made her writhe against the bed.
“I wanted to surprise you.” Stephanie managed when he turned his attention from one breast to the other.
Colin flicked his tongue against her nipple and gazed up at her. “How?”
Forbidden Steps: A Stepbrother Romance Page 4
