by C. A. Harms
"Then why are you here now?" I look up at him, and he steps closer, placing one hand on my hip as he holds my stare. His nostrils flare, and I wonder what's going on inside his head. Then he leans in and brushes his lips over mine. My eyes flutter shut, and I fist his shirt just before his mouth covers my own.
His kiss is tender and sweet and the perfect calm. My body relaxes into his, and I gave in, allowing this kiss alone to soothe me.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Brantley
* * *
The taste of Sutton is just as addicting now as it was the first time, maybe even more. I've craved her lips on mine, dreamt of it daily. Like a starving man, I've ached for it. Cupping the side of her face, I slide the tip of my tongue over the seam of her lips, and when she parts them, I kiss her deeper.
A soft whimper vibrates against my lips, and her body leans in closer to mine.
Wrapping my arm around her waist, I place my palm to her back and hold her there. "Tell me that you feel this too," I say as I rest my forehead to hers. "Tell me I'm not imaging things."
"I feel it," she whispers.
I've felt this pull toward her since the very first moment we locked eyes.
"I've tried to stay away from you because I know how Bennett feels—,"
"We're friends," leaning back; I want to make sure I can see her eyes fully. "We've never been more."
I hold her stare, and her throat bobs when she swallows hard. "But Ben wants more," I know that she knows this; everyone else has managed to pick up on that fact. Everyone has warned me off, told me Bennett would snap if he found out. But there has to be a way around it all.
"I have to talk to him," lifting my hand, I push back the hair from her face. I don't want anything to obstruct her beauty. "I don't want to stay away from you anymore." My thumb trails over the contour of her jaw. Sliding further, my hand slips around the back of her neck and remains there. "Tell me you want this," I whisper before kissing her softly once more. "Tell me you want me as badly as I want you."
"More," she confesses, and I smile against her lips, gently kissing her once more.
I try to step back, but she holds my shirt tight. "Are you heading home?" She nods, "I'm gonna follow you."
Sutton takes a step forward when I step back, and I chuckle as she bites her lip. She is so painfully beautiful.
"Gotta make sure you make it there safely." I don't miss the way she pouts, and I find the gesture cute. "This stops right here until I talk to Ben."
She releases her hold on me, and I grab her hands with my own. "I owe Bennett that, even if you don't feel that way about him, he has feelings for you. I can't hurt my brother like that, Sutton."
"And if he says you and I can't see where this might go, is that where this ends?"
"Let's hope he doesn't."
With my hand in Sutton's, I lead her to her mom’s car and pause at the side as I open her door, and she steps around me. Waiting with her hand over mine, she looks up at me, and I feel my chest grow tighter.
I have no idea what I'll do if Bennett decides that Sutton and I together will be too much. I haven't thought that far ahead because right now, all I can manage is getting lost in her beautiful eyes. "I'll follow you home."
"And you'll come inside?" She asks with a smile, and I can't stop myself from kissing her once more.
"Babe, you have no idea how badly I want to say yes, but we can't."
She worries her lip, and this time I tug it free from the imprisonment of her teeth. "One way or the other, this will work out." She doesn't seem convinced, and honestly, I'm not entirely convinced myself, but I have to hope.
After tucking her inside her car, I climb up in my truck and follow her to her apartment. Leaving my truck running, I walk her to her door and pause a few feet back. "You afraid you won't be able to say no if you come any closer?"
"You're killing me; you should know that." Sutton smiles, seemingly pleased with herself. "I'll call you tomorrow."
I expect her to go inside, but I hook her waist and hold her close when she moves toward me. She wraps her arms around my neck and presses her lips to mine once again. This kiss is not slow or sweet. It is meant to remind me of what I am leaving when I walk away. And it weakens me. I walk forward pressing her to the wall just outside her front door, shifting my body against hers. The way she sucks on my tongue is sinful, and my entire body feels the effects.
Sutton is not the sweet girl she appears to be on the outside; she has a hungry side that I am desperate to unleash. The way she is practically climbing my body makes it next to impossible to pull away. But I do.
Both of us are breathing heavy, her lips swollen from our kiss and my pants feeling much tighter than they were moments ago.
"Go inside," I tell her, and she doesn't move away. "Go," it is the last thing I want, but damn it, she has to. She hesitantly takes a step back and then looks up at me through her long lashes. Her breasts are rising with each deep intake of breath. "Please," fuck, a man can only hold on to his strength for so long. I am crumbling by the second.
She seems to pick up on my struggle and turns around, turning around to face her door, with her key in the lock, she twists the handle and then looks back at me. "Goodnight, Brantley," and with that, she steps inside, and I finally let out the breath I've been holding. Then, hanging my head, I take the few minutes I need to calm down before I walk back to my truck.
Tomorrow I'll talk to Ben, and more than anything, I hope that he and I will be okay in the end.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Sutton
* * *
I wake to the sound of the alarm I'd set and instantly groan. I was having a perfect dream, one that involves a certain man and I tangled up in my sheets. If one dream can set my body on fire the way it has, then I have no doubt the actual event will be epic.
Climbing out of bed, I open my bedroom door slowly in hopes of not waking Lexi and am surprised to see her bedroom door already open and the light on down the hall. The closer I get to the kitchen, the more I can hear that she is not alone. Then I remember Jillian telling me she'd be here at seven, and that's when the smell of cinnamon yumminess hits me.
As I round the corner, I find Lexi and Jillian who I expect because of the delicious smell but there’s also Adley, Sophie and Kendall. They all turn to look at me, and my eyes flood with tears. These girls are my sisters, not by blood but by choice. They are my people, my support system, and their kindness and love are overwhelming at times.
Jillian points to a couple of boxes on the counter. "We thought we'd make a morning of it." Moving forward quickly, I fall into their embrace, and we all stand there in my kitchen, sharing a moment.
I am a lucky girl to have the friends I have; they're incredible.
Entering my father's hospital room, I pause when I see he is in bed with his eyes open. Propped up is the leg he had surgery on, and there is a tray in front of him with a half-eaten breakfast.
My mom and my Aunt Jean pause and look toward the door as I remain frozen there watching my father. "Hey peanut," he smiles, and I inhale, hoping to hold back the tears that threaten to spill over. "Get in here." Then, letting out a long shaky breath, I begin to walk in his direction, and when I reach him, I lean over and place my forehead to his shoulder.
The room remains silent, giving me my moment with my dad.
"I'm good, darlin'," he assures me, and I turn my face toward him. "Too damned stubborn not to be."
"Ain't that the truth," Aunt Jean snorts, and both she and my mother smile.
Standing tall, I allow him to take my hand in his, and I sit on the side of the bed. "You scared us," more like terrified us or crippled us with fear. "What were you thinking?"
"I thought that I had to get that board dislodged, and I didn't have anyone else there but me." I shake my head at him and give him my best-displeased look. "Stop looking at me like that. You think I haven't already gotten it from these two."
Mom and Aunt Jean
seem pleased with themselves as they both nod. I can imagine he woke up to a lecture that has not stopped.
"Next time you call for help."
"Darlin' that ain't my way of—,"
"I don't care if you're too stubborn and pigheaded to ask for help." I interrupt him, holding his stare. "If you ever put us through that kind of fear again, I can promise you that the physical pain you suffer will be nothing compared to the wrath you'll face when you wake up." He arches his brow but says nothing. "You are not indestructible Daddy, I hate to be the one to break it down for you, but that's just the way it is."
We stare at one another; no one talks. Two strong-willed people having a silent standoff until finally, he gives me a nod of acceptance that seems to satisfy me.
"I brought cinnamon rolls," I hold up the box and pass it to my mother. "Jilly came over this morning, and all us girls made about three dozen."
"You should share with your friends," looking back to my dad, I am just about to tell him we ate more than our share while baking them, but he was looking past me toward the door. Shifting around, I find Bennett, Finn, and Marshall standing just outside my dad's room. "Come on in, boys," my dad motions for them to join us, and they each move inside. I watch as my mom hugs each one of them and tells them thanks for coming. Then Aunt Jean takes her turn, but I know it’s for selfish reasons only. She doesn't hide that she is old but surely not dead, and these boys give her an adrenaline rush. Divorced and on the prowl, or so Aunt Jean puts it. But she's been divorced for more than ten years, and I don't think she has ever not been on the prowl.
Bennett walks up to my side and reaches out to shake my father's hand. The two of them share a few words, and I can't help but stare at him. Memories of last night flood me, and my chest grows tight. Bennett is one of my very best friends, and the idea of hurting him or of him hating me terrifies me.
He finds me watching him and leans in to kiss my cheek, only furthering my discomfort. "What's up, Tink?"
"Nothing," everything.
"You look like you're about to puke," he says with a chuckle.
"Here," I grab the box of cinnamon rolls and practically shove them at him. "Have a cinnamon roll or two. They're good; Jillian made them."
Bennett arches a brow and grins before taking the box from me. He then passes the box off to Marshall, who is practically drooling.
"I need to call work and let them know what's going on," I announce as I turn around and start toward the door. The discomfort I feel has me acting a fool and talking a mile a minute with nervous energy. "I'll be back." I don't wait for anyone to respond, my feet hurrying down the corridor toward the lobby.
My hands shake, my stomach tenses, and suddenly, I feel like I’m going to puke.
"Sutton, wait up," my feet are moving faster than my body, and when I hear Bennett holler out my name, my heart sinks. "Your ass on fire or what?" He chuckles, and I stop right in the middle of the hallway. My throat is so tight, and it is hard to breathe.
"Hey," he reaches out and touches my arm. "He's okay."
"I know," maybe it's due to the exhaustion I feel, or because on the inside, I'm torn and tied in knots. What I think when I'm with Brantley is hard to explain, but the pull is intense. I've never felt the kind of attraction I feel for Brantley for anyone else. Then when I'm with Bennett, I feel comfortable, like I always have. I look into his eyes and fear that telling him the truth will only hurt him. But hiding is so much worse. Deceiving him, even though he and I are nothing more than friends, feels worse.
"I need to tell you something." He takes a step closer, allowing his palm to soothingly run along my shoulder before pulling me in for a hug. "Bennett," I try to pull away, only he holds me tighter.
"Everything's gonna be okay," he assumes I'm upset about my father, which, yes, I'm sure that's part of my emotional rollercoaster, but the truth is I can't hide what I'm genuinely feeling any longer. Not from Bennett, there is now this uncomfortable wedge between us, and I'm not fond of it.
I allow my body to relax to his, and he holds me there in the middle of the long narrow hallway. When I feel his lips skim over my cheek, my body grows tense. "Let me get you outta’ here for a while."
"Bennett, we need to talk," I start to move away, but he cups the side of my face, and before I register what is happening, he presses a kiss to my lips.
Pushing back against his chest, I shake my head. "What are you doing?"
He seems surprised by my question, lifting his hand to run his fingers through his hair. "I just," he lets out a slow deep breath. "I know I said that—" he stops as if he can't find the right words.
My chest feels restricted, like no matter how slow and steady I attempt to take in a breath, it isn't enough to soothe the ache that lays there.
"This isn't us," I wish that I knew the point in time when I allowed him to believe that we were ever more than friends. But I can’t find it. No matter how hard and how long I run through every moment we've ever shared, there is never a time when I felt as though I led him to believe I envisioned anything more than friendship. Of course, we were close, but all the girls are the same way with Bennett. "It's never been us."
"But it could be," the hopeful look in his eyes guts me, and tears fill my eyes. "Listen, I know that I said nothing has changed. I know that I said we could go back to where we were before, but I think we've both noticed that we can't. Feelings are out there now, and it scares me that I may be breaking this bond we have by saying anything at all, but I don't want to be just friends, Sutton."
"I don't think you know what you want, Bennett." He seems confused by my words, but at this point, there's no longer a reason to hold back. We've already crossed the point of no return; what we were, what I thought we'd always been, is over. And that saddens me more than I can ever express.
"I know what I want, Sutton," his head tilts slightly to the side, and at that moment, he looks so hopeful.
"I know you have feelings for Lexi," again he seems surprised as he bites his lower lip. "Somewhere along the way, things got blurred between you and I, and I've tried to figure it out. I've tried to remember the shift, but I'd grown so comfortable with you that I think I messed up somewhere. I think I relied on you too much, and that was misconstrued as an attraction."
"I love that you rely on me," reaching out, he hooks his finger with mine, and when he attempts to pull me closer, I step back.
"I don't feel the same," a single tear falls and runs along my cheek. "I love you, Bennett, but as a friend. As one of my very best friends."
He nods sadly, and I want nothing more than to hug him, but I know I can't do that anymore. The connection I've always had with Bennett I now know is severed, and that breaks my heart.
"And there's something else."
Bennett lifts his gaze to meet mine once more but doesn't say a word.
"It's about Brantley.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Brantley
* * *
I stand outside Bennett’s place and knock on the door for the third time in the last five minutes. I know he’s home, his truck’s parked in its usual spot. I’d sat around all morning, trying to decide the best approach, when I realized there honestly wasn’t any good way to tell him I have feelings for Sutton.
I’d tried to call him; only it’d gone straight to voicemail. I had half a mind to break through his door, but instead, I walk back to my truck and climb up inside.
My phone rings from the passenger seat where I tossed it only a few minutes ago. I grab for it, expecting to see my brother’s phone number lighting up the screen but I’m surprised when I see Marshall’s name.
“What’s up?”
“Where are you?” He sounds winded.
“Outside Bennett’s place, been trying to get him to answer his fucking door but—,”
“Leave,” he interrupts me, and I hear the sound of tires squealing.
“What?”
“Bennett’s looking for you, and he’s pis
sed.” I glance toward his front door and find it’s still closed. “He and Sutton had it out at the hospital this morning, and now he’s losing his shit.”
“What do you mean they had it out?” I have no intentions of running from Ben; O’Shay’s aren’t built like that.
“All I know is that he’s in Finn’s car in front of me. We’ve already been by your place, your parents, and all through town. He knows something is going on between you and Sutton, and from what I can tell, he’s beyond the point of talking.”
“Nothing is going on; I need to talk to Ben first.”
“Well, it looks like you’ll get your chance,” I glance up in my rearview mirror just as Finn’s red Tahoe turns into the parking lot, with Marshall close behind. “Don’t say I didn’t try to warn ya.” He ends the call, and I toss my phone to the seat once more. I’m not running; this needs to be handled.
I open my truck door and climb out, turning my body toward the approaching SUV just in time to see the passenger door go flying open. Marshall was right about one thing; Ben is pissed. I’d recognize that O’Shay’s anger anywhere. Fisted hands at his sides, flaring nostrils, and a set jaw, he has it all.
He doesn’t take the time to speak before he swings, and his fist connects with my jaw. I don’t even try to shield myself. I owe him at least one good hit, and that was it.
“Sutton,” his voice booms, echoing around us. “Of all the fucking girls, you can go after… you go after her!”
“I didn’t go after her.” I was prepared to restrain him if needed, but if he wants to hash this out as two men should, I need to give him that chance first.
“After all the conversations we’ve had about how I have feelings for her, you still crossed the fucking line?”
