Don't Break (The Reluctant Heart Book 1)

by Jeannette Winters

  “Because they’re already married dear,” her mom stated.

  Both Shanda and DeeDee looked at her, mouths gaped wide open. DeeDee asked, “How…how did you know?”

  She replied, “The same way I always knew what you two were trying to hide from me. This is an old house with rattling old windows. It doesn’t take much to hear what is being said on that porch.”

  Shanda tried thinking of what else they’d discussed last Sunday. Kenneth. At least she didn’t have to worry about them bringing that up tonight. It was insignificant compared to DeeDee’s news.

  She stood up and said, “Then I guess you don’t need me here any longer.”

  Her father said, “Sit.” She did. “Just because your mother knew already, that doesn’t get either of you off the hook. You’re not children any longer, yet you’re sitting on the porch whispering like you are. At twenty-eight and thirty, I’d think you’d have told us the truth from the beginning.”

  “Sorry Dad, I was wrong. I just didn’t want to disappoint you guys. I know how much Mom wants to plan a wedding,” DeeDee choked out. “And we can still have one if you really want, but I…we…couldn’t keep lying to you.”

  “Good. Because it was making your mother sick.”

  Shanda felt horrible and tried to help, which was a huge mistake. “She really was doing it for you guys.”

  “Don’t you dare get me started on you,” he said.

  “Me? Dad, Kenneth and I are barely dating. Trust me. Marriage isn’t in the cards,” she stated.

  “I’m not talking about Kenneth. I’m talking about Home Blown. Why didn’t you tell me the shop was having difficulties? Were you going to wait until you lost the place?” he asked.

  Shit. We talked about that too? She never was going to have another private conversation on the porch. “Dad, it’s not that bad. And besides, I’m getting help now.”

  “That teenage girl Brianna isn’t help,” he said.

  “No. A…friend of mine is giving me some business pointers. It won’t be long before Home Blown is the talk of the town,” she said, not believing it at all. The shop was going to fold and there wasn’t anything she could do about it. She didn’t have what Kenneth said it took. The passion, drive, and need to make lots of money.

  “And what is this friend’s name?” he asked.

  She swallowed hard. Shanda had tried keeping Kenneth out of it. He wasn’t going to be part of her life for long. The most she could ever have with him was maybe some beautiful memories. But now her parents will know and they will want to meet him. What could’ve been simple and fun, was about to come to a screaming halt.

  “Kenneth. But it’s strictly business,” she said.

  “We can discuss him on Sunday,” her mother said.

  “Oh, about that. I can’t make it this Sunday. I have plans,” Shanda said.

  Her father cocked a brow, and practically ordered her in a deep voice, “Then invite this Kenneth to join you. I have a few questions about his…business advice.”

  Her shoulders hung low in defeat. “I’ll be here Sunday.” Without Kenneth. She turned and looked at DeeDee, who appeared to feel bad. You should. This is not how tonight was supposed to turn out.

  She stayed and continued to look at her watch. It was almost nine and she knew Kenneth was ‘Mr. Punctual.’ “If you don’t mind, I’m going to head home. I have work in the morning.”

  “It’s Friday night. You can’t be going to bed this early, are you?” her mother asked.

  DeeDee said, “I’m tired too so we’ll be going home as well.”

  Their mom laughed. “These kids can’t keep up with us. We don’t go to bed till almost one.”

  “Let them go. That means I get you all to myself,” her father said playfully.

  Shanda rolled her eyes and hurried out of the house while she could. DeeDee and Larry didn’t linger either. But before she’d made it out of the driveway, DeeDee came over and asked, “Really? Going home to bed?”

  “Yes.”

  “Alone?” she teased.

  We’ll see. “I’m not having another conversation in this yard.”

  “We’re not on the porch,” she said.

  Shanda chuckled. “I’m not taking any chances. Love you. Glad it all worked out.” For you guys, at least.

  “I’ll see you Sunday. Can’t wait to meet Kenneth,” DeeDee laughed as she walked away.

  You witch. You’re going to pay for that.

  Shanda didn’t want to spend her night planning her revenge. With any luck, she would beat Kenneth to her house, and have something sweeter to occupy her thoughts.

  God, he doesn’t really think I want to talk business all night?

  Chapter Seven

  It was a little past nine and Shanda wasn’t home. He could call and check if she was coming, but he assumed it meant things didn’t go as planned with her parents. Kenneth was about to leave when her van pulled into the driveway.

  She walked up to his car and said, “I’m sorry I’m late. I hope you weren’t sitting here waiting too long.”

  “Just a few minutes.” It had been closer to twenty, but it didn’t matter. She seemed…flustered. He opened the door and followed her inside. “I take it things didn’t go as you hoped.”

  She huffed as she tossed her purse on the couch. “Absolutely not. I was only supposed to be there to love and support my sister. Instead, I got pulled right in there, and worse. My dad is upset that I didn’t tell him about Home Blown.”

  “You mean your financial difficulties?” he asked. She nodded. “And did you tell him that you’re working on changing that?” Kenneth knew it wasn’t going to be a quick or easy process. His gut still told him that her heart wasn’t in it, either.

  “Oh, he knows,” she sighed.

  There was something she wasn’t telling him. “I would’ve expected him to be pleased with you taking the initiative.”

  “The only thing he wanted was to meet you,” she stated.

  “Me? Why?” Kenneth hadn’t wanted to coach her on how to run Home Blown, and it wasn’t easy either. Shanda challenged him on everything he had suggested. Now her father was going to be questioning his advice? Hell no. He was doing this to be... Hell. I just wanted to see her again. Not her entire family.

  “I’m not really sure. I would think that he doesn’t believe I can turn things around on my own and wants to make sure I have someone who has my best interests in mind.”

  “Shanda, I don’t do this for a living. I’m just offering advice based on what I know makes a successful business. There are companies you can hire who might better suit your needs.”

  She looked at him, eyes wide and pleading. “Please don’t leave me now. I don’t want someone coming in and bossing me around. It’s bad enough I have to do what I don’t like in the first place. It would only make me hate it even more.”

  “You hate it?” he asked. She closed her eyes as though she couldn’t even bring herself to utter the words a second time. He reached out, took her hand and said, “Shanda, why didn’t you tell me? I wouldn’t have pushed if I knew you didn’t want it.”

  She opened her eyes and said, “Kenneth, you came into the shop and offered me help. You didn’t ask for anything in return. Like a knight in shining armor rescuing a damsel in distress.” Shanda huffed. “You just didn’t know the mess you were getting into.”

  “Shanda, that doesn’t answer my question. Do you like owning Home Blown?” That was clear. She shook her head. “Then why do you?”

  “My granddad gave it to me. I used to go there with him on the weekends and work with him since I was little. He taught me everything I know about blowing glass. I spent my entire summer vacations with him. It was the best time of my life.”

  She stopped just before saying what she needed to. So Kenneth drew it out of her. “But?”

  “But I don’t want to own the shop. I want to be in the back where I can create pieces that mean something to me,” she said.

&
nbsp; “Why didn’t you tell him that when he gave you the shop?”

  “Because I didn’t want to let him down. This shop had been his life. I guess I wanted to make it mine. I just don’t…”

  “Want it,” he said softly. He knew that probably was the first time she’d admitted it to anyone, maybe even to herself. It also explained why she challenged everything he suggested. It was nearly impossible to be successful in a business that you dislike. “Shanda, that changes everything.”

  “You mean you won’t help me anymore?” Shanda asked, her hand now gripping his tightly.

  “I’m not going anywhere. But it changes things as far as Home Blown. I think you really need to be honest with your granddad as to how you feel. Maybe he’ll have a resolution that would work for you both.”

  She smiled and said, “You mean you’re not upset?”

  “About what?” he asked.

  “That I dragged you all the way down here on a Friday night to…talk business, and I don’t even want it,” she stated.

  He chuckled. “I was hoping that you were just using that as an excuse to see me. Guess I was wrong,” he said.

  She giggled. “No. Not entirely. I’m sure there is something you can teach me. And who knows, maybe something I can…teach you too,” Shanda said, her cheeks turning pink.

  Kenneth wasn’t sure their conversation about Home Blown should end so quickly. She was finally opening up, which gave him more of a perspective on how to really help her. Of course right now, they were both hurting in an entirely different way. Maybe after some fucking hot sex, their minds would be clear to focus on business.

  He pulled her into his arms and said, “There was one offer that interested me very much.”

  Her cheeks darkened and she responded in a seductive tone, “My blowing technique?”

  Fuck yeah! Pulling her closer, he whispered in her ear, “I have a few techniques of my own.”

  She giggled again, responding, “I might be a slow learner; it may take multiple lessons.”

  Kenneth nibbled her earlobe and she arched away, giving him access to continue down her neck. “Then let’s start here,” he said, his tongue trailing from her earlobe, down her neck and back up to the corner of her lips. Ever so slowly, he traced them, until a pleading moan escaped them.

  He’d never wanted a woman as badly as he wanted Shanda. He’d been reluctant to kiss her before, knowing it wasn’t going to be easy to stop. But tonight, there was no reason to hesitate. She’d made it clear she wanted him, just as badly as he needed her.

  He wanted to take her, as his cock was already throbbing, begging for release. Instead he summoned all his restraint. Gently he kissed her lips. He lifted his head slightly to look into her beautiful brown eyes. They were filled with yearning.

  Her tongue darted across her lips, and softly she said his name, “Kenneth.”

  In one swift move, he pulled her against him, devouring her lips with a hard, feverish kiss: promises of what was yet to come. Slow wasn’t an option for either of them now. Shanda pulled him closer to her, parting her lips to let him inside. It only ignited the fire that had been smoldering for a week.

  Kenneth wanted to taste more of her. His lips nibbled as he inhaled her sweet scent moving across her jaw, down the nape of her neck, and back to her lips. Each nip followed by a deep moan of pleasure.

  His hands ran freely down her back, over her hips, and back up, but this time stopping to cup one of the breasts that he hadn’t been able to get out of his mind. Damn. He might have large hands, but even then, he didn’t cover the full, lush globes entirely. Breaking their kiss briefly, he whispered, “Maybe I should remove your shirt and check for stingers.”

  “For…safety purposes, maybe we…we should remove yours too. All of them,” she said breathlessly.

  He smiled and said, “Better to be safe.” He stepped back from her, unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it on the couch. As he did so, Shanda began undressing as well. He smiled as it seemed she was wearing the same bra he had returned to her earlier in the week.

  Now standing only in his boxers, and she in her bra and matching white cotton briefs, he said, “You’re so beautiful.”

  “Even in my granny panties?” she chuckled.

  Kenneth reached out, swept her into his arms and said, “Yup. Sexy as hell. Point me in the right direction so I can show you just how damn good you look.”

  Shanda pointed to the stairs. “First door on the right. But I can walk.”

  “You feel too good for me to let you go now.”

  In just a few long strides, he was climbing the stairs with Shanda pressed snuggly against him. Once inside her bedroom, he laid her on the bed, and stripped off his boxers. Shanda had sat up and unhooked her bra and it rocketed across the room like a slingshot. Even in the heat of the moment, she was fun and playful.

  He walked over and said, “Just one more thing.” She lifted herself so he could slip her panties off and he mimicked her, launching the white cotton to land with her bra.

  Quickly, he joined her on the bed and began to nibble and kiss her jaw to her neck but this time, he wasn’t stopping there. His hand cupped her breast; her moans grew deeper. Plucking at one nipple, he sucked the other, teasingly flicking it with his tongue. Her moans filled the room as he licked and nipped each one.

  But he needed more of her and also had promised to show her something…new. Since it was their first time together, he really had no idea what that should be. I’ll just have to blow her mind with my tongue.

  He continued to kiss his way even lower. When he crossed over her bellybutton, and inched down even farther, he felt her tense. Though muffled against her silky flesh, he said, “And it begins.”

  Her body flinched in anticipation and then trembled as he spread her legs so he could lie comfortably between them. This was all about seduction, and he was going to bring her to the moon and back.

  She quivered as he nipped her inner thigh before kissing it. Then he ran a hand up the inside of her leg and with his thumb and forefinger, spread those sweet, delicate lips until her clit was exposed. He blew on the swollen bundle of nerves before his tongue darted out and flicked, once, then again and again.

  Breathlessly she moaned, her hands gripping the sheets as she begged, “Kenneth, I…can’t.”

  “Oh baby, you can and you will,” he said teasingly as his tongue licked her center gently. He circled her clit then sucked on it. Shanda cried out in pleasure, arching her hips off the bed, her moans only encouraging him. “You taste sweeter than honey.” Sweet to your core.

  “Kenneth. Oh God, Kenneth. Please... I’m going…to...” A cry of pleasure filled the room as her body jerked violently. Her body bowed off the bed as she lost herself in a powerful release.

  He continued his feverish stroking with his tongue, but this time, he entered her with a finger. Damn you’re so fucking wet. She was ready for him, but he wanted to bring her over the edge again. When he slipped a second finger inside her, he felt her tighten around them. In and out he plunged, again and again, matching the rhythm of his tongue until her body once again began to tense. Shanda ran her fingers through his hair, making tight fists as she fought for control. “Oh…yes…yes…yes…” her high-pitched scream could be heard throughout the house. And when she released, her core tightened around his fingers, holding him there. Damn, you’re tight. He could only imagine what it was going to feel like when she was wrapped around his cock.

  He slowed his intimate kisses until he felt her body begin to settle. “Damn it,” he said. “I’ll be right back.” He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten the condom in his slacks downstairs.

  When he got up, she moved and opened the drawer on her nightstand. “Looking for these?” she asked, holding up multicolored condoms.

  Full of surprises, aren’t you Shanda? He didn’t care about color, just protection. She had several in her hand, which he hoped to put to good use tonight. Blue reminded him how his balls ached right now, t
ight and in desperate need of her. Pink was a negative too. “How about we start with the purple, and work our way from there?” he teased.

  She tossed the others back in the drawer. Kenneth was just about to take it from her, but she brushed his hand away. He watched her tear the foil packet, pull the condom out, and then she began to sheath him. His cock jumped at her touch, barely able to hold control.

  Pressing his throbbing cock at her opening, he paused, his mouth taking hers. She was hot and wet, ready for him, and he could wait no longer.

  “Please, Kenneth. Please, no more,” she begged softly in shallow breaths.

  She wrapped her legs tightly around him, tugging for him to take her. In one thrust, he buried himself deep inside her. She instantly moaned and arched up to him to bring him even deeper.

  No thought of his own wants or needs, he began to move within her, wanting to send her over the top again. He wanted this to be a night neither of them would ever forget. Only when her hips began to move did he quicken his rhythm. Moving faster and deeper, her cries of pleasure rumbled through him as he claimed her lips.

  Her fingernails scraped down his back as he rode her hard and fast. He was losing control and could barely hold back. When her body rocked with another release, and she clenched tightly around him, he lost what little control he had. Plunging deep within her, he shuddered and her cries were drowned out by his own primal growl. It was a release so strong, he was spent.

  Pulling out of her gently, he rolled to lie beside her, powerless to move or speak. Shanda didn’t seem to be in any different shape, either. They laid there trying to catch their breath. Eventually, Shanda spoke.

  “That was…amazing. But…”

  He rolled onto his elbow and looked down into her eyes. “But what?”

  “I might be suffering from short-term memory loss. You might have to show me that again.”

  He chuckled. “My pleasure, if you don’t mind waiting an hour.” He claimed her lips, then said, “Make that ten minutes.”

  Shanda laughed and pulled him back down to her. Kenneth couldn’t get enough of her tonight, and he wasn’t sure he ever would.