“You fucking did what?” I close my eyes for a second. Flashing lights and explosions burst behind my eyelids. I shake my head and open my eyes back up to stare daggers at him.
He chortles. “I never figured out why you didn’t just tell Dana it wasn’t you. You could have thrown it right back at me. It was me. I fucked that girl Laurie in my truck. That’s why Madison found her bracelet there.”
Without a second thought, my hand fists and my arm explodes into action, meeting my best friend’s face with a loud crack and ending our friendship for good.
I blow out a breath heavy with memories. Dana hadn’t told me anything. I’d had no clue where she’d gotten the idea that I’d cheated, and she wouldn’t elaborate. She’d broken things off with me immediately. I’d been miserable. Heartbroken. Just sick. And the hell of it was, I’d been close to proposing to her. I’d thought we would build a life together. I’d loved that girl. So. Fucking. Much.
It still stings that Dana hadn’t trusted me enough to know I’d never have cheated on her—but she wouldn’t listen to me, wouldn’t let me try to sort through the whole mess with her.
Losing her hurts to this day. I rub one hand over my heart and squeeze my eyes shut. Fuck. I remember the shock on her face when I’d gone to tell her about Chase’s confession—when she realized she’d been wrong. She’d apologized, but at that point, the damage to our relationship was done. She didn’t trust me then. I don’t trust her now. Funny how that works.
Madison shifts again in her sleep, and my mind jumps back to earlier at dinner. She’d seemed surprised to find out Chase and I aren’t on speaking terms. But fuck, there’d been no way I was comfortable continuing on with our friendship after finding out that he’d lied to Madison and pinned the scarlet C—C for Cheater—right on my chest. And the problem is now that I know she has no idea about all of that, what do I do with the information? I feel like she deserves to know, but will it only be more painful for her?
How do I tell her that Chase cheated on her more than once? That she’d been dating the ultimate in complete douchebags?
And fuck me, does she think I cheated on Dana? I guess I should have thought about that more when Chase told me what he’d done, but the honest truth is I didn’t think I’d be speaking to Madison again, much less going away to a wedding weekend with her. I hadn’t expected to be in the same space as her ever again, much less the same bed. The idea that Madison might think I’m a cheating fuck just like Chase gives me a moment of panic.
But wait. She wouldn’t be here with me if she thought that’s what happened. Right?
In her sleep, Madison moans, a deep throaty sound that has my eyes flickering open and glancing down at her. Damn. I wonder what she’s dreaming about. Is it him she still dreams of?
Oh, well. At least one of us is getting some rest. I’m not sure sleep is in the cards for me tonight. The more I think about it, the more I know I’ll have to tell her about Chase. But how? Maybe once we get through this weekend, I can broach the topic with her. She doesn’t need to deal with this on top of everything else.
Her arm flops over my chest, and she huddles closer to me. I can’t help myself. I pull my arm out from between us and put it around her, gathering her closer to me. Sweet girl. Her head shifts to my chest, her raspberry and cream scent surrounding me.
A wave of protectiveness rushes over me. No one will hurt this woman like Chase did ever again. I shake my head. Never.
In her sleep, she clings to me, her body so soft and warm. I shudder, a wave of lust smacking into me. Her sweet breasts are soft against my side, only the thin layer of her T-shirt between us. Then she does me in further, throwing a leg over mine and snuggling in even closer. A soft sigh leaves her body as she relaxes even more deeply into me in her sleep.
Restraint and pure control fight an internal battle with fiery, desperate, hopeless desire. I want her in a way she’s definitely not prepared for. I want this weekend to be more than fake.
And yet, she’s lying here next to me, oblivious to the surge of heat pounding its way through me. She’s completely relaxed for the first time since I saw her at the bar last night with her friends.
It seems like that was a lifetime ago. I’ve gone from wanting to help her to wanting her for my own all in a single day, and I don’t know how to come to terms with that.
I should not be lying here in the bed with her—I should be on the floor, being a good fake boyfriend—but I can’t bear to move away from her, to leave her. She feels too fucking good here in my arms.
I’m in so deep with this girl already, the waves of longing continuously crash over my head, threatening to send me under. I hunger for her like I’m a starving man and she’s a beautiful buffet. And there’s no doubt in my mind that I’m already a goner.
I’m lost in her.
Chapter 12
Madison
My cheek is mashed up against something warm and smooth. I inhale, and the scent is distinctly masculine, all woods and smoke and night. A flow of warmth snakes its way from my belly down lower. I’m slipping, sliding, craving more of the feeling. The throbbing between my legs becomes more insistent, and I try to press my legs together. I can’t, though, as there’s something rock-solid in the way. Instead, I press myself against the hardness, hoping to soothe some of the ache I’m feeling.
In my sleep-fogged state, I seek out more of that sensation, anything to assuage the building pressure at the juncture of my thighs. It feels so good, so right, I let out a breathy little moan.
That’s when I realize this isn’t a dream. I’m rubbing up against Shawn’s muscular thigh like I’m in heat. Like I’m some sort of oversexed floozy.
Oh. God. I blink, my pulse racing. Lying there quietly, I try to calm myself. I don’t dare look up to see if he’s awake because if he is, I just won’t be able to handle it. Even worse, my breasts feel heavy and tingly, my panties are damp, and my lady bits are still humming, fully aware of the nearness of his very hot, very hard body.
I have no idea why he’s still in the bed. I guess we fell asleep watching the TV, which is still on. Please, oh please, let him think I’m asleep. Or better, let him still be asleep and be none the wiser.
Finally, I get up the courage to roll over, away from all the manly muscle, scent, and warmth. I make a little noise like I’m sighing in my sleep and settle in, my back to him.
Looking at the small clock on the bedside table, I see it’s five in the morning. Too early to get up, but now I’m too keyed up for sleep. This is going to be the longest day of all the long days there ever were. This is worse than last-day-of-school long. The absolute worst.
After several more minutes, I manage to finally slow the overwrought state of my pounding heart. It’s okay. Nothing to see here, folks. I’m just a woman, in bed with a man, and haven’t gotten laid in a long, long time.
“It’s okay, Madison. You were asleep.” His gruff voice sends me spinning. He grunts and the mattress dips as he shifts his big body. He rasps, “That was the cuddling you were talking about yesterday, right? So, let’s try the spooning.” He plants his hand at my waist and scooches closer, wrapping his body around mine. His sleep-laden voice rumbles out again, “Practicing.”
I work a hard swallow. “I’m never sleeping again.”
A rough chuckle sounds from behind me, but after another minute, his breathing evens out, and it’s obvious he’s gone right the hell back to sleep.
There’s no way I’m sleeping, but I close my eyes and my mind wanders off, thinking about everything we’d talked about yesterday. Shawn has been so kind, so helpful, and such a damn good sport dealing with all of my worries for what’s to come this weekend. It’s all so unlike the image that’s built in my head of him, the one where he’d shocked me completely by cheating on his girlfriend.
Something feels wrong. So wrong. But I can’t pinpoint it.
When Chase pulls up in my driveway, I hurry out the door, a bag in my hand and a skip in my step.
I give him a quick wave and a grin before circling his truck. Snatching the door open, I pull myself into the cab, and flounce onto the seat before leaning over to touch my lips to his.
“Hey, babe. You ready to roll out to the theater?”
I nod eagerly. “What’s playing tonight?” Chase and I have plans to go to a quaint little drive-in movie theater on the outskirts of town. I’m excited because one, I really love going to the movies, and two, I’m really starting to feel like he may be “the one.” He’s kind and attentive and oh so handsome. There’s something about his chocolate-brown eyes that just make me melt when he looks at me.
“I think it’s the same Godzilla flick as last time. Is that okay?”
“Sure. I don’t care what it is so long as I’m with you.” I give him a soft smile and scoot back to get more comfortable.
“Oh, shoot. I think I’m sitting on something.” I shift to the side when I realize something is wedged in the seat. I poke around behind me for a second before my fingers wrap around something metallic and circular. “Chase? What’s this?” I hold up a silver bangle with some charms on it. They make a tinkling sound as I examine it, holding it this way and that. It’s really pretty. There’s a charm with a little flower, one with a Scorpio symbol, and then a final one with an L imprinted on it. I frown, my brows furrowing together.
“What’s what, baby? What’d you find?” He grips the back of my neck in his hand and his mouth descends on mine in a hard kiss before he angles back and hits the accelerator, taking us off down the road.
“This.” I hold the bangle up so he can see it while he drives. “Where’d this come from?”
He clears his throat, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. “It’s not yours?” He glances at it, then returns his attention back to the road.
I’m completely distracted by the jewelry in my hand. “No, it’s not.”
He looks confused. “Huh.” Then he snaps his fingers. “You know, Shawn borrowed my truck last week for a date. He was driving up to the mountains and didn’t want to take that crappy old sedan of his.” He nods. “Yeah, I bet that’s it.” He tosses me a nonchalant smile and shrugs his shoulders.
“But Chase. There’s an L on one of these little charms. Shawn is still dating Dana, isn’t he?”
“Well …” He presses his lips together and holds his hands up for a quick second before returning them to the wheel. “He gets around quite a bit, I guess. I saw him with some other chick last week. Maybe it’s her.” Chase smirks playfully. “That dog.”
He’s laughing it off like it’s something guys just do, and I’m sick to my stomach. Dana and I have chatted quite a bit the times we’ve been out together. She’d told me a week ago that she thought Shawn was going to propose soon. How could he do this to her? What the hell kind of guy does that? Fuming, I make my decision.
I’ve got to tell her that he cheated. If it was me, I’d want to know.
Surprisingly, I guess I managed to finally fall back to sleep. Taking a quick inventory of myself, I realize Shawn’s hand still rests on my waist. My heart pounds, and I’m amazed at how quickly every part of my body awakens. I do my best not to disturb him and carefully reach an arm toward the bedside table to grab for my phone. I must have completely knocked out again because all of a sudden, it’s past nine, and my stomach is rumbling like the motor of a monster truck.
A smirk tips onto my lips when I see the exchange of chatter that had gone on after I put my phone down last night.
Piper: I guess you have all weekend to figure it out.
Hadleigh: Allllll weekend. With Shawn. Wow.
Sophia: Stop thinking impure thoughts about my soon-to-be brother-in-law.
Quinn: I mean … can you blame her?
Zoey: Who are we blaming for what, again?
And it went on and on for several hours just like that. I stifle a giggle, glancing down through the comments again before I respond.
Me: I think I may have a very real crush on my very fake boyfriend.
Me: Discuss.
It’s not long before the messages begin to ping in like speeding bullets.
Sophia: Oh, girl. I knew that would happen, especially since you already told me you had a little crush on him before.
Zoey: Whaaa????
Me: Yeah. Back in high school. And maybe even again when I first started dating Chase.
Hadleigh: Naughty girl.
Me: It’s bad. So bad.
Quinn: Well, practice makes perfect. Maybe he’ll realize what a catch you are after pretending all weekend.
Piper: Good grief you all get up early when you’re on vacation.
This time, I can’t stop the giggles.
Behind me, Shawn props up on his elbow. “What’s so funny?” He leans in, his face right in the crook between my shoulder and neck, and I pull the phone to my chest.
“Nothing. Nothing at all.”
“Lemme see.” He holds out his hand in front of me, wiggling his fingers.
I shake my head. “No. Nope. No can do.”
He puts his hand on my waist again, tickling me with his strong fingers and sending those same tingly feelings as before through my whole body.
And I want his hands on me, but I just can’t. I lurch from the bed, fleeing to the safety of the bathroom.
I take care of business, brush my teeth, splash water on my face, and examine my expression in the mirror. My eyes are bright, cheeks are pink, and a smile tugs at the corners of my lips. Today’s the day. I get to spend the whole day with Shawn in front of other people, and we’re going to … lie.
Well, that puts a damper on things. With a sniff, I rejoin Shawn. He eyes me from where he’s still lying in the bed, tangled up in the bedsheets.
And there it is again—the jolt of lust is so strong it makes me dizzy. I blow out a deep breath.
Shawn rises from the bed, his hair so sexily sleep-rumpled it makes me want to scream. Or maybe it’s just that I wish he would make me scream. He passes me on the way to the bathroom, and it’s all I can do to keep myself from reaching out and swatting his bottom.
Maybe if I have some breakfast I’ll get my head screwed on straight. I pick up a little bed-and-breakfast pamphlet from the desk and thumb through it until I find a section on dining services. Thank goodness. They serve breakfast until ten, and they do room service.
I pick up the hotel phone and dial the front desk.
“Good morning. This is Jeannie at the front desk speaking. How may I help you?”
I think it’s the lady who’d checked us in. Her voice is just as chipper at nine in the morning as it was yesterday afternoon. “Hi, Jeannie, this is Madison Green in room eight. I was hoping we’d still be able to order breakfast.”
“Oh hi, honey. Did you enjoy your room last night?” she titters, not waiting for my answer. “You’re calling just in time. What can I get you?”
I glance over the menu, not having any idea what Shawn will want. “Um, can I get an order of the waffles with blackberry syrup, three scrambled eggs, and two sides of bacon?”
Hopefully, that’ll be enough. I know my brother eats enough to feed a horse.
“Of course, dear. We’ll send it up as soon as it’s done. Enjoy!” The phone clicks in my ear, and I set it down with a sigh, looking around the room.
As I’m contemplating whether to shower now or later, Shawn reappears, hair slightly calmer now. He’s still missing a shirt, which I’m rather enjoying now that I’m not so surprised by the sight of his bare chest, muscles and all.
Shawn points at the phone. “Did I hear you order breakfast?”
“Yeah, I hope I ordered something you’ll eat. I got waffles, eggs, and bacon.”
“I’ll eat whatever, but that sounds great.” He watches me carefully as storm clouds cross my face.
I breathe out an exasperated sigh. “Ah, shit.”
“What?”
“I forgot to ask for coffee.” I pout first, then groan.
He sh
oots me a look of disbelief. “How could you?” Then he immediately wrinkles his nose and laughs at my startled face. “No joking around until after the coffee. Got it. It’s no problem. I saw they have some down in the lobby. I’ll just go grab us a couple cups. How’s that sound?”
A slow smile spreads across my face. “That’d be great, actually. Thank you.”
“No problem.” He pulls a T-shirt over his head, yanking it into place over his torso.
The peep show is officially over. Damn.
Chapter 13
Shawn
After we shared breakfast, we’d taken turns in the shower, both of us throwing on jeans, T-shirts, and hoodies. At first, Madison suggested we stay in the room all day, but I’d convinced her we should go for a walk to get some fresh air rather than stay cooped up here. I know she’s scared to have to put on an act any longer than we absolutely have to.
“Are you ready for your first official outing as my fake girlfriend?” I raise my brows at her.
“Um, yeah, I guess so. What are we doing?”
I hand her coat to her and toss mine on. “You’ll see. Come on.”
She hesitates, eyeing me warily.
“Trust me. Shawn Mitchell knows how to be the very best fake boyfriend.” I take her coat out of her hands and hold it up for her.
When she slips her arms in, she whirls around. “Sorry. I’ve had a little trouble with the T word for a while now.”
My head bobs. “Trust? Yeah, understandable. But no more referring to ex-boyfriends on our first date.” I wink at her.
A quick giggle escapes her. “Yeah, okay.”
Lost in You (Flirting with Forever Book 1) Page 8
