Drawn To You (Paloma's Edge) (19 page)

Pierce squared h
is shoulders. “Noodles, I know Mom wants me to move back home, but Dad and I will get into a real fight. And I am tight that Cassidy doesn’t have to answer for her behavior. Say Chase had been dumb enough to mess with her—why wouldn’t she face consequences, like Chase did for supposedly fucking around in their house?”

“Because
she’s their daughter,” I said, strongly disliking their names and the word “fucking” in the same hypothetical scenario.

His face burned with exasperation. “When Mona and I hooked up in their house when we were kids, I had to clean the neighbor’s
house and mow their lawn for three months. And no one can miss that house with the huge-ass water fountain in front of it when you enter our community.” He sighed heavily. “Cassidy can do all sorts of wrong, but I have to be noble? I’ve brushed it under the rug, but Dad played my boy. Dad has told me to think before I act, but he failed to do just that.”

I completely understood where Pierce was coming from. I titled my head sympathetically and Pierce gave me a half-hug. We resumed walking again. “Are you and Chase doing okay?”

I nodded. “How about you, Porkchop?”

Impatiently, Mona tapped her foot loudly. A
n annoyed, conflicted look flitted over Pierce’s face. Brianna rolled her eyes as she and Gavin got into her car. A minute later, she drove behind Rylan and Joel’s cars. With a scowl, Pierce stood stock-still. Mona mouthed “sorry.” As I left Pierce’s side, and the question hung in the air, I trotted over to Chase, who lured me with the heat in his eyes. My disquiet began to melt away. Pierce strode towards Mona, or his Mustang.

***

The laptop and the desk lamp were the first objects I noticed when Chase brought me into his guestroom. I hadn’t seen the guestroom he used at Uncle Anton and Aunt Deborah’s before he’d left, so I didn’t know if he was a tidy person in general. I’d been neater since staying in my guestroom, because it wasn’t really my room, and Chase may have kept this space spotless for the same reason. Brianna and Gavin weren’t here yet, and I pondered what could happen tonight. His twin bed looked like it was too short and narrow for his six-three frame. No object was out of place. The wooden floor had been polished recently.

I took off my tunic and hung it up in front of his closet to keep it with the orderly appearance of this room. Chase came inside and my eyes darted from his broad, welcoming smile to the morir soñados he
had in his hands.

“Need me to put on the fan?” he asked as I reached for my glass.

I shook my head, swigging some of my beverage, and Chase set his drink by the night table and sat down on the bed.

A shiver ran through me as his gaze darkened
and he angled his head at the bed. My lower stomach tightened, as I recalled the thrill of possibly being caught in the act with Chase in broad daylight at the parking lot.

I complied and when I laid a side of my body against his, I heard him sip
his drink. He settled his other hand on my buttock and I slid my hand underneath his shirt, surprised to feel barely any hairs this time. An ache flared between my legs.

I raised
my head. “What’s your last name?”

Frowning, he answered, “Lovell.” His features smoothed. “Pierce
didn’t tell you?” He sounded surprised.

I nestled my head against his shoulder again. “It never came up.”

“And you didn’t try to find that info in HR?”

“Records for new employees are computerized. The new system tracks what every employee does
, and that was enough incentive for me not to get nosy. Only Mrs. Clark and Mrs. Adler have access to the file cabinets.”

I reached for my glass and gulped most of it down. My heart pounded and I heard the blood rushing past my eardrums. “You didn’t think I’d say yes to bringing you back here, did you?”

I laughed nervously. “Was it obvious that I thought you’d say no?” When Chase ha driven a mile from the beach, I’d wondered if I could come with him to Brianna and Gavin’s, and the next thing I knew I’d suddenly asked him without any real consideration to the potential implications. And he understood that I hadn’t wanted to stay in the living room or the kitchen this time. I wanted to be with him in his guestroom.

“No, babe,” he said. “I am surprised that I said yes.” He fell silent for a beat. “This morir soñado is cooling me down.”

The warmth of his big, hard body, coupled with the tenderness I saw in his hazel eyes, overwhelmed me. “When you swim, you look good, so free. It does something for you.”

“I’ve never been a great swimmer,” he said. “I’ve gotten competent at it over the years
, and it’s become a huge part of my training for football. My muscles are stronger and I am more agile now.”

“You let go of whatever you’re feeling
when you swim?” My statement came out as a question.

He
sucked in a breath and my fingers trembled against his chest.

“As much as possible,” he said
, and the side of his mouth tugged up.

He drifted his hand from my backside and
dragged it over my arm, the familiar caress sending chills through me. We hadn’t said anything for a while. Staying in his embrace, I glided my fingers from his belly button and up to his nipples until they stiffened like mine had because of him. Ever since he’d first touched me. I’d been weak. The self-loathing in Chase’s face when he’d told me about his promiscuity replayed in my mind and I couldn’t discount how important it was for he and I to have sex when our hormones weren’t consuming us. I had to be strong for the both of us. I didn’t want to disrupt Chase’s goal. I laid my hand flat against his chest again.

Chase

“What’s good?” Gavin asked, entering the living room the following day. He wiped his pillow wrinkled face with the sides of his hands. He’d slept for about three hours after he’d come from La Floridita. He rested on his sofa and put his thermos on top of his fold-up table. Bri had left for work at the Paloma hours ago, and even I felt like it was too empty in here, especially since Joel and Rylan were probably still asleep. Pierce was working twelve hours today. I recalled the times when I’d pulled those hours with he and Brody.

“Pierce
networked for me at a meeting he and his Mr. Pruitt had in Miami, and a potential employer emailed me about possibly taking on a job. I’ve been reading the branding guidelines since I first woke up,” I told him, shooting him a look.

Gavin lowered the newspaper down to his lap. “Are you feeling it?”

“The branding guidelines are kinda rigid, but I can design the images that the company wants for its promotional goals.” I shrugged. “And the pay is right. It’s the standard half upfront and half after the completion of the project.”

He nodded. “Oh, and here comes the contract!”
I opened up my new email.

He gave a dry chuckle. “Now, let’s see how you’re really feeling it once you’ve read that contract!”

As I started to read the first paragraph, Gavin began reading the paper again. About two hours later, and after a lot of side notes on my computer’s notepad, I took in a breath and reclined on the sofa. When I turned my head, Gavin raised a bushy brow at me. “The contract is kinda verbose.” I huffed. “I’m gonna have Pierce look this over and tell me what he thinks.”

With an amused expression, he went to the kitchen. “You want sugar with your coffee?” Gavin called out from the kitchen.

“Done,” he replied.

Minutes later, he returned with our mugs of coffee. My phone vibrated,
and there was an alert of a new message against the background picture of Beth and Bri with Tainted Virtue that she’d finally emailed me yesterday. It was unlikely that I’d ever change my screensaver.

Beth:
Have plans 2nite?

I slid my eyes to the side, and with a shy expression, Gavin put his headphones on as if I was actually talking to Beth over the phone. I messaged her back.

Me:
Am I gonna get lucky 2nite? =)

Beth:
Very. Brianna and I are taking you out 2 La Floridita.

After I tossed my phone the couch near me, I composed an email to Pierce and attached the contract, in addition to my questions in the body of the email, so I could have some answers by tomorrow if he had time to read it at the Paloma. I hadn’t known that Pierce had gotten my name out their with other business professionals. While I was all for earning some extra cash, I wasn’t agreeing to anything unless I understood all of the stipulations.

***

Beth didn’t need to stand on tiptoes in order for me to plant her a kiss on the mouth tonight. She was in the black heels I’d seen her in before that gave extra definition to her luscious legs. Her hair was in some up-do that bared delicate neck.

“Now
that
should’ve been how my day started,” I said as Bri went upstairs to shower and get dressed.

I cupped her ass and a flush
swept over her body. I lifted her black skirt up and found that, unlike Saturday, she was wearing a thong. Which would make it perfect to grab onto her rear as I lodged into her to the hilt. The image flashed through my mind, arousing me.

After a beat, Beth
stared at me with those luminous azure eyes. “It may not be the only way your night ends,” she teased me. I rained kisses on her face and she took my hand, bringing me into the living room with her. When we neared the couch that we’d sat on last weekend, I spanked her ass, recalling how good it felt to palm her. Chuckling, Beth lifted up her skirt, showing me her rounded cheeks. There was no sin better than Beth’s bare skin.

Beth linked her arms with Brianna as
we entered the bar. I could tell that Gavin wanted to be with the rest of us instead of working, but he didn’t say so.

“I am gonna
clock in,” he told us, and headed to the back of the bar.

I f
lung my arms around Beth and Bri’s shoulders. Millie signaled us to the biggest booth at the center of the bar, where Joel, Rylan, Maude, Amberlynn, and her boyfriend, Jared, were. It was packed in here but not so much that we didn’t have space as we headed toward them.

Joel stood up and made space for Bri, placing her beside him. She rolled her eyes but Joel wasn’t discouraged; he brought her closer to him. Beth eyed Joel and he blew her a raspberry.
Millie and Jared made room for us in the both.

“Hey, Millie,” Beth
said, and peered at her boyfriend.

“Beth.” Millie grinned. “This is Jared.”

“Nice to meet you,” they said at the same time, and laughed.

I
nodded my head to Jared, who had his button-down shirt loose and undone at the wrists. He watched Millie like she was the only female at this joint, and I really respected that about him. Some chicks in here had overtly flirted with him, but he hadn’t paid them any mind. People who met him may have at first come to the conclusion that because he was formally dressed and had a top-of-the-line haircut that he was uptight and preppy. I hadn’t seen him in pair of jeans, or sneakers, or even boots the various times he’d come in here. Perhaps he just felt comfortable with the way he dressed. Either way, he was a cool dude.

***

Bethany

At the heady sound of Tainted Virtue’s “One Night Salvation,” I pushed myself out of my seat and took Brianna with me towards the middle of the bar, where Amberlynn had gotten Rylan to dance to another song after he washed down half of his black Russian. Chase’s hands had remained on my waist as I got out of the booth and I enjoyed feeling his desire for me from his touch and in his eyes. I didn’t care that there were tons of people here.

“Move your body like you did at the concert,” I told Brianna, who moved sinuously and tastefully.

Throughout the song, Brianna swayed her hips, and I contrasted her movement by rotating my upper body. Chase’s penetrating gaze seared through me. Brianna and I turned our backs to each other and lowered ourselves to the ground, coming back up slowly.

“Chase isn’t the only one enjoying this,” Brianna said
with a smirk, and I looked at Joel, who was giving us a thumbs-up. I shook my head at him. Some other guys stopped what they were doing and watched us, to see if we’d go further. And we didn’t.

I
gulped down the moisture in my throat. “We know Chase was the only recipient I was aiming for.” I smirked at her.

“Well, Chase probably thought we were just gonna get him dinner and drinks,” Brianna remarked.

When we started for the table, I bumped into a tall and broad chest, the natural and mint aftershave scent invigorating me more. My breathing accelerated as Chase’s mouth slanted over mine. My lips clung to his, savoring how soft he felt and the tangy taste of lime on his tongue. Coming up for air, I realized that he’d led me to a darker corner of La Floridita.

His lips curved and he combed damp strands of my hair back. “I was dying at the table. I wanted to tear every fucker’s eyes away from you
. But they can’t do this.” Stroking my nipples, he hauled me closer to him with his other hand. The force made my bust shake before it collided with his hard chest.

I shook my head.
“Only you can.”

For over an hour we hadn’t said anything.
Boy, being close in height to him was pretty advantageous tonight. Chase pressed his pelvis against mine. I didn’t know which song was on and I didn’t process any of the noises and the limited space that I usually had when I was at La Floridita. Lifting my head to peer at Chase, the green flecks in his eyes reflected various emotions. The one emotion that I identified was bliss, and not even the carnal sort of bliss I’d anticipated.

We’d danced to one more song when all of my movements made me hungry. Everyone else was dancing and talking. Millie
had a relaxed expression on her face and happily complied when Jared guided her on the dance floor. I liked seeing her come out of shell more when she danced with him.

Chase’s body turned rigid and I angled my head over my shoulder to see Cassidy and Mona coming in
as if they owned the place with two guys who had been at Pierce’s party. Right away, I was really annoyed, mainly because Cassidy pinned Chase with a scorching look and he eyed me like it didn’t matter. I’d never understood the statement “fight for your man.” In fact, I disliked it very much; so many of my female counterparts had acted rashly over guys who thought of them as dispensable, but I had a whole new understanding for that mindset now. If I weren’t basically glued to Chase, Cassidy would’ve found some way to be next to him. I wanted to toss her out of here. This was a place where most people came to have a good time, maybe feel good enough with how they looked, and where they were at in life. Not where Cassidy viewed us as road kill. With her puckered chin, Cassidy was acting like she’d never been to an old-school bar before.

“Don’t sweat her,” Joel said.
Brianna walked beside me and Joel did the same with Chase. They led us to the table.

***

Chase

The way Beth had stepped in front of me and placed her hands on my chest generated an increased need in me for her. Two weeks ago, there was a slim chance that she would’ve owned up to how much she wanted me, but she had been fearless. I liked that she didn’t want Cassidy near me. I was hers and she acted accordingly. There was nothing for Beth to worry about, though. Yet Cassidy had such a distorted way of thinking, so she probably assumed that Beth was jealous of her.

“Now they go out together, on double dates,” Millie said after a server handed us our drinks.

“Hmmm,” Bri said, “but they still don’t like each other.”

Joel cocked his head to the side. “They’re one of a kind. It makes sense that they’d have a double date,” he said flatly.

My phone chirped and I took it from my side pocket.

Pierce:
You got the gist for the assignment. U gonna take on the job?

Me:
Yeah. Company has a great reputation. Will look gud on my resume.

Pierce:
Have fun sending him a million versions of the new logo and the other promo materials!

Me:
Thanks 4 looking everything over and 4 networking for me.

Pierce:
Ur online portfolio spoke for itself. TTYL.

I wasn’t going to tell Pierce that Mona had come here with his sister and a guy through a text message. Considering that Mona didn’t make any real effort to interact with Beth or Bri when he’d brought her to the beach, I think she was still on his shit list. It might change tomorrow. But I wanted to tell him in person, if Rylan didn’t get around to it first.

“Hello.” My eyes closed for a very short time and I met Cassidy’s pale blue eyes. She had on a white blouse, a blazer, a short skirt, and shoes
, like she was some schoolgirl. The guy with her was oblivious to how much she wasn’t welcome and him, too, because he was with her. Mona and the guy she was with remained at the opposite side of the bar.

“Cassidy,” Joel addressed her dryly.

No one else said anything, but her eyes were fixed on me and I didn’t miss that Beth had kept her lips firmly pressed together since Cassidy had materialized at our table.

“
Don’t sound too happy to see me,” Cassidy teased, and we collectively sighed. “Beth.”

“It’s Bethany to you,” Beth corrected without
any inflection in her voice, and braced her arm around my shoulder.

The dude with her looked uncomfortable
, and after some minutes had passed, he turned away from her, trotting back to the table where Mona and her date were chatting with Emilio.

“Guess he gets that you’re more trouble than you’re worth,” Bri remarked.

“Most guys here hadn’t been saying that when we were horizontal,” she shot back, her eyes trained on Beth.

“But they woke up,” Beth told her.

“For real,” Joel said, sounding contrite. “As my dad had told me time and time again: sometimes it’s best to go without the pussy,” he added with a sneer.

Cassidy scanned the bar; there was a group of much older
, unkempt men by the counter who had taken a glimpse of her.

“What I don’t get is why Miss Prim and Proper would put herself on blast like this?” Rylan said casually.