by L. P. Dover
With short, gentle strokes, I glided up and down until his grip tightened on my hips and he growled. “You’re playing with fire.” Giggling, I lowered down inch by inch until he was completely inside of me. With one hand tugging on my hair, he grabbed a breast with the other. His grip on my hair tightened, and I arched my back, still moving my hips as he ravished my nipples. “Jesus. If you don’t stop, I’m going to come.” Picking me up by the hips, we stayed connected as he flipped us around and collapsed on top of me.
I wrapped my legs around his waist and held on tight as he thrust his hips deep and hard. Faster and faster he pumped, his lips still suckling on one of my nipples. The harder he sucked and pushed, the closer I came to losing myself; we were both almost to the edge.
“Bryce!” I cried out.
He growled low in his chest and held on tighter, grunting with his forceful thrusts. “Fuck, you’re getting so tight.”
Digging my nails into his back, I screamed out my release, and at the same time I could feel him spasm, his cock throbbing as it filled me with his desire. Completely spent, Bryce kissed my neck and rested his forehead to mine. “I love you,” he murmured, staring right into my eyes.
I never grew tired of hearing those words from his lips. Every time he said them, I felt closer to him. “I love you too.” He pulled back slightly, and I could tell there was something on his mind. “What is it?” He brushed a hand down my cheek and slowly slid away from me to grab his laptop off the coffee table. I wrapped one of the blankets around my body and watched him curiously as he booted it up. I couldn’t see what he was looking at, but when he turned the laptop toward me, I furrowed my brows. It was a picture of a house in Norwich, with a white picket fence, a barn, an Olympic-sized pool and several acres of land. “It’s beautiful. Whose house is that?”
He set the laptop back on the table, and looked right into my eyes. “Mine. I was hoping you’d move in there with me. I was going to wait until Christmas Day to ask you, but I feel like it’s the right time now.”
The breath whooshed out of my lungs. Excitement coursed through my body, and I wanted to scream with joy. “Did you just ask me to move in with you?”
He nodded. “I did. I love you, Layla, and I want to be with you for as long you’ll have me. This way,” he said, nodding toward the screen, “we have each other, and you can see your family whenever you want. You don’t have to go back to the estate if you don’t want to. I’ll be able to keep you safe.” There were so many emotions swirling through me it felt like I’d burst. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Words had totally escaped me. Bryce cleared his throat, and set his laptop back on the table. “Say something, Layla. If you don’t want to move in with, it’s okay.”
Tears fell down my face, and I gasped as the words finally came from my lips. “Yes!” I shouted breathlessly. “Oh, my God, yes!” I flung my arms around his neck, and he clutched me so hard I could barely breathe. “The house is beautiful. I can’t believe it’s going to be ours. When can we move in?”
Chuckling, he let me go, and kissed me. “We close the second week in January.”
Which meant we were headed back to New York in a couple of weeks. As long as I had him by my side, I’d be ready. “Looks like I have a lot of shopping to do.”
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” he asked, his voice laced with concern.
I cupped his face, and smiled. “More than ready. You just made this Christmas one I’ll never forget.” And one I’d cherish for the rest of my life.
Chapter Twenty-One
Bryce
“Going back to the scene of the crime? With the way Layla loved it here, I thought you’d stay longer.”
Logan and I walked back to his garage, and I sighed. Snow started to come down. “It’s time we get back to New York.” I glanced back at the front porch to make sure Layla and Kassie went inside. The last thing I wanted was for to hear what I was about to say. Once we said our goodbyes to Logan and Kassie, we were headed back north. Micah had left a few weeks ago to take on an undercover mission in Georgia, so we’d already said our farewells to him. Layla enjoyed beating him at cards.
“Is this Layla’s doing or yours?” Logan asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
Leaning against the wall, I turned my attention to the house. “Mine. I bought a farm up in Norwich and we’re moving in together.”
“Dammit, Bryce. You can’t be fucking serious.”
I jerked my head his way, and he stared at me like I was making the biggest mistake of my life. “It had to be done,” I growled. “I don’t want to live in New York, but it’s what I have to do.” I’d already closed on the house and signed the papers under Bryce Chandler.
Logan shook his head. “You’re going to get yourself killed. Not to mention, fuck up everything you have with Layla. What do you think she’s going to say when she finds out you only wanted to move in with her to get closer to her father?”
That wasn’t the only reason, not by a long shot. I wanted to move in with her because I wanted to be with her and I wasn’t ready to give her up. I was selfish. But I also needed to complete my mission. I couldn’t do that being thousands of miles away.
“It’s complicated,” I ended up saying.
Logan huffed. “This is a bad idea. Why can’t you forget the hit on Corsino and walk away? Layla doesn’t even have to know.”
Anthony Corsino had been on the Circle of Justice’s hit list for a long time. I was the only one who’d gotten close enough to do anything about it. There was no way I could back down. “If I don’t do it, no one else will. He needs to be taken out.”
Logan blew out a heavy breath, and uncrossed his arms. “If you need help, you can always call me.” He closed the distance, and hugged me. “You’re not alone.”
I hugged him back and let him go. “Thanks, cuz, but this is something I have to do on my own.” Layla and Kassie walked out onto the front porch, and I watched them smile and hug each other. “I love her, Logan. Dammit to hell, I do, and it kills me to know that she’ll hate me if she ever finds out the truth.”
“A smart man would’ve already told her the truth,” he said.
I shook my head. “No. A smart man wouldn’t have fallen for the enemy.”
Layla waved, and Logan and I joined her and Kassie on the front porch. “You two be safe now,” Kassie said, hugging Layla one last time before hugging me.
I let her go. “We will. Thanks for letting us spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with you.”
Layla linked her arm with mine, and held on tight. “Yes, thank you.”
Kassie winked at me. “Of course. You’re practically family.” Then she smiled at Layla. “Keep in touch and send me lots of pictures of your new house.”
Layla nodded. “We will.”
We walked down to my car, and Logan opened the door for Layla. She hugged him before getting in. Once he shut her door, he leaned in and whispered, “Think about what I said. If you were smart, you’d tell Layla the truth.”
All I could do was nod and pretend everything was okay. I got in the car, and we waved at Logan and Kassie as we backed out of the driveway. Layla buzzed with excitement. “I can’t wait to see our house. While you were outside with Logan, Dominic called. I told him we’d be in New York tomorrow.”
I pulled out onto the main road, and we were on our way. The snow wasn’t sticking on the road at the moment which was good. “What did he say to that?” I asked.
She laid her head back on the seat. “Only that he wanted us to stop by the estate. I figured we’d have to at some point. It’ll be a good time to claim my independence, and to let my father know that he’s not going to get what he wants from you.”
Taking her hand, I brought it to my lips and kissed it. “What if he doesn’t like that? He could easily try to have me killed.”
Her head jerked my way, eyes blazing like fire. “It would also be his biggest mistake. I’ll make sure he knows that too.”
&
nbsp; She was a firecracker, but I doubted Anthony would consider her feelings above his own agenda. He’d try to have me killed if I crossed him. The key word being try. I had to play my cards right, and to do that, I couldn’t be totally against him.
“Our furniture should be at the house already,” I said, changing the subject.
Layla’s expression softened, and she smiled. “I hope you like what I picked out.”
I squeezed her hand. “I’m sure I will.” I honestly didn’t give a shit what kind of furniture we had, but it made her happy to choose it. That was all that mattered.
Layla breathed a sigh of relief, and turned her attention to the window. The snow had started to come down harder. “I’ve been thinking,” she said, glancing over at me. “What would you say if I wanted to get back to work? I was considering opening up my own practice. Not in the big city, but somewhere smaller. Maybe later on this year?”
There was determination and fire in her eyes. I didn’t want to keep her from what she wanted to do. Then again, when that time came, I might not be a part of her life. “I think that’s a good idea. First, we need to make sure you’re safe when we get back to New York.”
She nodded, knowing exactly what I meant. Penelope was still missing, and nobody knew who the two men were that killed Michael and came after us. Layla smiled at me and kissed my cheek. “It’s a new year, Bryce. I know there’s a lot of uncertainty, but I’m looking forward to this new beginning with you.”
“To new beginnings,” I agreed, wishing it were true. I was still very much stuck in my past.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Layla
Nothing could have prepared me for the moment I saw our home for the first time. Covered in snow, the farm house was a vision from a Hallmark movie. It was a yellow, two-story house with a white picket fence that lined the driveway, and the surrounding ten acres of land. There was even a red barn out in the field behind the house.
We pulled up to the front of the house, and there was a small gift box on the front porch by the door. Bryce smiled and nodded toward it. “The real estate agent said she’d leave the keys for us once the movers got everything in.” Squealing, I rushed out of the car, and up the stairs to the box. I opened it up, and there were the keys. “Are you not going to wait on me?” Bryce asked, chuckling from behind.
I slipped the key into the door and held my breath as it opened. Everything was just as I imagined. The living room was airy and light, with rainbows flittering in from the etched glass on the front door. The walls were a light tan, and changed to a soft green in the kitchen.
Bryce came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Will it work?” he asked, kissing my neck.
“It’s so beautiful.” He kissed my neck again, and I giggled. “Why don’t you show me the bedrooms?”
Taking my hand, he led me upstairs, and we looked in the two guest bedrooms before getting to ours. The walls were a pale yellow, and it went perfectly with the four-poster, king-sized bed I bought, and cream bedspread. We had an amazing view of the land behind the house. It reminded me of my room at the estate. Letting Bryce’s hand go, I walked over to one of the windows that overlooked the barn.
“We need horses,” I said. “And chickens.”
Bryce chuckled. “That can be arranged. Might be best to wait for the spring, though.”
It all felt surreal. “This all seems too good to be true, like at any minute it’ll all be taken away from me.” If it wasn’t Julian ruining my relationships, it was my father locking me up to keep me safe. There was a nagging feeling in my stomach that warned me to be on guard. I hated it. I waited for Bryce to respond, but he remained silent, lost in his own world as he stood looking out at the other window across the room. “Am I being paranoid?” I said, catching his attention.
He looked over at me, and shook his head. “I’ve had the same feelings, Lemon Drop.”
I walked over to him and laid my head against his chest. Once he put his arms around me, all my fears slipped away. “I think I’m a little nervous. I’m about to see my dad for the first time in months. He doesn’t like it when he doesn’t get his way.”
Bryce rubbed a hand down my back. “Are you worried about what he’s going to do to me?”
I shrugged. “He wants you a part of our family, so I don’t think he’d try to hurt you. Hurting you would hurt me. I’m just worried about him using you for his own gain.”
Bryce turned me around. “You don’t have to worry about that. I know what I’m doing.”
I loved his confidence, but it wasn’t just my father he was up against. It’d be him against my whole family. My father had the upper hand. Bryce pulled out his phone and slid it back into the inside of his suit pocket. I missed him in normal clothes, looking all sexy in jeans and snug T-shirts that showed off his tattoos and muscles. Now that we were back in New York, I’d seen a change in him. It was as if he was someone else, but he was also still the same. I didn’t know how to explain it.
“We have to go,” he said, sliding his hands down my arms. “You told your brother we’d be at the estate in an hour, and I still need to put up all the security cameras.”
“What if we just didn’t show up?”
He shook his head, and smiled. “It’s going to happen one way or another. Might as well get it over with.” Taking my hand, he pulled me out of the room, and I groaned the entire time. I wasn’t ready in the least.
*
When we got to the estate, there were several cars parked out front. Roger and James were outside smoking cigars, watching us as we hopped out of the car. They were twins, but I could always tell them apart because Roger had a scar above his right eye and James didn’t. I don’t think I’d ever seen them smile, not even around their wives and kids. James had two daughters, and Roger had two sons, all four in high school. The last time I saw them was at my mother’s funeral two years ago. James and Roger had all four of them sent away to an expensive boarding school in Massachusetts. I had no clue if they knew anything about the family business.
Knowing they knew how to make weapons of mass destruction, and had used one of them on innocent people, made me hate them even more. Yes, they were my family, but I always felt uneasy around them. Guess my instincts knew all along that they were evil.
Bryce slid his arm around my waist as we walked up the stairs toward them. Roger stepped forward and blew out a puff of smoke. “Your father’s expecting you, my dear,” he said. He glanced down at Bryce’s arm around my waist and turned his attention to Bryce. “He wants to speak to you as well.”
James nodded at me as we passed him, and I forced myself to smile. Once inside the house and away from them, I breathed a sigh of relief. If it was hard being around them, it was going to be even more difficult to face my dad.
Bryce clutched me tighter, and I sucked in a breath. “I don’t know if I can do this, Bryce. It killed me being that close to Roger and James. How the hell am I going to face my dad?”
He leaned in close and murmured in my ear. “You’ll be fine. I’m right beside you.” That didn’t exactly give me the comfort I needed. Roger mentioned that my dad wanted to speak to Bryce as well. Who knew what was about?
Bryce and I walked through the foyer, and I could see Dominic at the top of the staircase, waiting for us. With him being around my father, I almost expected him to appear harder, more dangerous. In a way he did, but I could still see the brother I loved and adored. He smiled at me and hurried down the stairs with open arms. “It’s about time you came home. I’ve missed you.”
Bryce let me go, and I ran to Dominic’s arms. “I’ve missed you too.”
He hugged me tight. “I was starting to think you were never coming home.”
Slowly, I pulled away, and looked right into his eyes. “For a moment, I didn’t plan to. You can thank Bryce for bringing me back.”
A look of pain passed across his face, but then he turned to Bryce and held out his hand. “Thank you for keep
ing her safe and bringing her home.”
Face a stony mask, Bryce shook his hand and nodded once, not even saying a word in return. We followed Dominic up the stairs and down the west wing of the house to my father’s study. The door was shut, which only added to my nervousness. Dominic knocked on the door, and as soon as I heard my father’s voice, my heart raced.
“Come in,” he called out. Dominic opened the door, and there was my father, leaning against his desk with a smile on his face and a glass of bourbon in his hands. He set his drink down and walked toward us. The past few months seemed to have aged him, but he still looked ruthless, his suit crisp and his gray eyes dark with secrets. Bryce tensed beside me, but his face remained cool and collected. My father grinned up at him and nodded before cupping my face in his hands. “I’m so glad you’re here, cara mia. You have no idea how much I worried about you.” I didn’t doubt that. I could see it on his face, how much he missed me. That was what made everything so hard. I wanted to forgive him for all he’d done, but I couldn’t. He kissed my forehead and stepped back, his eyes searching mine curiously. “You look happy. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you like this before.”
“I am,” I answered. “It was good to get away for a while.”
Turning to Bryce, my father held out his hand. “Thank you for everything. I’m in debt to you. Things have been tense around here. It’ll be nice to know you two are close and safe.”
Bryce shook his hand. “Still no word on Penelope Cartwright?” he asked.
My father glanced over at me, and then back to him. “No, and it has everyone on edge. When shit like this happens, there’s usually a motive. Penelope isn’t a bargaining chip like she was thirty years ago. If anything, she’s probably dead.”
Dominic glared at me, and I flinched. I knew what was about to come. My brother loved me, but he was just as protective as my father. “Speaking of bargaining chips, there’s something Layla needs to tell you, Dad.”
