Keep Me (34 page)

Hovering over me, his eyes met mine. I felt the tip of him against me, readying for entry. Instead of slamming into me, the way I desperately wanted him to, he eased in slowly, never removing his eyes from mine. “I love you, Tessa. I think I always have.” He slid in and out of me, deliberately, allowing me to savor each unhurried thrust.

“I love you, too, Marcus. I think I always will.” And I
knew
I always would. We rocked together, tangled in each other, letting all the emotions soak in. But it eventually became too much to tame, so I wrapped my legs around him tighter, urging him deeper with the heels of my feet against his bare bottom. I didn’t need him to be gentle now just because our feelings were out in the open. I still wanted the rough and tough Marcus that knew how to claim me, mind, body and soul. “Baby?”

“Mmmhhmm,” he hummed against my ear.

“We can make love another time.”

His head shot up and he looked down at me downright confused.

I smiled, sliding my hand down his torso, cupping his ass and pushing him deeper.

“Right now. I want you to fuck me.”

“Oh God, I thought you’d never ask.”

What seemed like hours later, we lay tangled together upstairs in the Santa Fe-inspired guest room. My parents were taking an awfully long time to food shop, but I didn’t mind the alone time with Marcus. We needed this—this normalcy. This was the first time since this whole thing between us started that I felt like a
real
couple. No secrets, no hidden feelings, just two people—in love.

I stretched my arm across his chest, finding his hand resting at his side. I wove my fingers into his and broke the peaceful silence. “So, Mr. Determined, how’d you find me?”

He brought my fingers to his lips and kissed each of my knuckles before nipping my skin between his teeth playfully. “For me to know and you to find out.”

I curved my body closer to his, my free hand tilting his head toward me. “Riley caved, didn’t she? It’s okay. You can tell me. I won’t be mad. I’m glad you jumped on that plane to tell me you love me. Besides the birth of Luca, that was the single most thrilling moment of my life.”

“More thrilling than the motorcycle ride?” His eyebrows danced up and down.

“Yes,” I giggled. “Even better than that. But, come to think of it, you definitely need to get one! Pronto!”

“Mmm,” he hummed, the vibration tickling my ear as I pressed it against his hard chest. “We’ll have to visit the Harley shop as soon as we fly back. I’d love to have
my
girl riding bitch on my very own bike—your arms wrapped around me, your tits up against my back.”

The bulge forming beneath his denim was unmistakable. “You can’t be serious.” I pointed, steering clear of contact with said bulge. I was exhausted from all the making up—I didn’t have another round in me.

He let out a hearty laugh, smoothing my hair from my face and then removing my arms from his body. “I told you I’ll never get enough.” He bent down to kiss the top of my head. Using his elbows to prop himself, he sat up, leaning against the oak headboard. “But your parents will be home soon and the beautiful way you sound while we—they might think you’re being murdered up here.”

“Very true.” I smiled, sitting up to face him with my legs folded together like a pretzel. “It’s better if they meet you with your clothes
on.
Although my mother is a big fan of yours without them, too. I wouldn’t be surprised if she picks up a pair of those underwear you model for my dad.”

Laughing, he slapped his leg and blurted out, “Secret Agent Brenda’s seen my goods?”

I was confused. “Secret Agent Brenda?”

“Woops. I guess I let that one slip out a little quicker than expected.”

“What’re you talking about?”

“Baby,” he leaned closer, his face inches from mine. “Your mother is one amazing fucking woman. Just like her daughter.”

“Yes,” I said, my hands covering his as they cupped my face. “She is amazing, but what’s with the little nickname? Did I miss something, a joke from when we were kids? I don’t recall…” I wracked my brain for any forgotten or misplaced memory of Marcus, or Riley, and my mother. Blank… totally blank.

“Pretty girl, I love watching you think. That adorable worry line between those sparkling baby blues. But there’s nothing to worry about—not anymore. I’m here, we’re together and… it’s all because of Secret Agent Brenda.”

“Huh?” My face crunched. What was he talking about? “What does my mother have to do with—”

“She called me, Tess. We talked, for a while actually, and when she was convinced that I wasn’t a total asshat, she flew me out here—on her dime—to come tell you how I felt. So fucking romantic, right? Way to go Mama Bradley!”

“She
what?
” I jumped off the bed, rushing to the closet to find some clothes. My mother called Marcus? How could she do that to me? Did she beg him to come here and
tell
him to tell me he loved me?

“Why’re you so pissed?” He was behind me, pulling his t-shirt over his head.

Because now I wasn’t sure if Marcus felt he
had
to come out here or if he actually
wanted
to. “She had no right to do that. I needed space to clear my head. How could she call you and tell you to come here? I feel so stupid.” I tugged my hair up in a ponytail, avoiding eye contact with Marcus.

“Stupid? What’s to feel stupid about? Listen to me.” He spun me around to face him and then eased me down to sit on the edge of the bed. He stood over me, his strong hands holding me in place at my shoulders. “Stop your over-thinking bullshit. Here’s how it went down. She called me because she was worried about you and had the sense to want to hear the other side of things. You’re a stubborn pain in the ass sometimes and no one knows that better than your mom. And don’t think that for one second she went easy on me and just threw me on plane without making me work for it. She grilled the shit out of me. Called Riley to double check that I wasn’t some lying piece of shit just trying to convince her I wasn’t fooling around. She knew you were hurting and when I told her the truth and then told her I loved you—Secret Agent Brenda got to making undercover plans. Even down to the time she left with Luca and your Special Ops sidekick of a dad.”

I sat there astonished. Totally and utterly flummoxed, flabbergasted—was there another funny sounding word that covered my downright dumbfoundedness? “Really?” It was the only logical thing I could muster.

“Yes.” Marcus pulled me back up to him by my arms. “Really! We’ve got people in our corner now, my love. People rooting for us. For
this
,” he waved his finger back and forth between us, “to work out.”

I couldn’t say it again, but
really
? We were finally free of the judgment and the discerning warnings about how we were doomed for failure? But there was one name that couldn’t help itself from popping into my head— “What about Riley?”

“Taken care of. Miss Nosy Body is done being skeptical. She’s already apologized her ass off to me; I suspect you’ll be getting your own when we get back to New York.”

After the emotional rollercoaster of this week and the months of sneaking around and worrying about what everyone else thought—I finally,
finally
felt free to go on with my life and be happy. With Marcus. “I don’t need her overdue apology.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him in for another knee-buckling kiss. “I have everything I need right here in my arms. I love you, Marcus Grayson.”

“I love you, too, pretty girl, but before we get carried away, I think we have some company.”

I slouched against him, disappointed that we couldn’t have one more go at it, and then listened for the impending bellowing that was sure to ensue.

One…
two…
three…
“Tessa? Where are you, honey?”

“Ready for this?” I gazed into his stunning grey eyes—my stunning grey eyes. Everything about him was finally mine.

“Oh, I’m ready. Brenda loves me. This is going to be cake.”

Brenda and Michael
were
cake. The rest of our stay in Arizona was pleasant and memorable and exactly the way a visit to your girlfriend’s parents should go—devoid of drama, full of laughs and simply effortless.

Especially compared with the routine of being home and the unrelenting annoyance that was my sister. Riley was
not
cake. She was the complete opposite—what was the opposite of cake?

“What the fuck, Ry? Why are you being so… over fucking bearing? And why are you crying?”

Big, fat, annoying tears fell from her eyes, dragging black shit down her cheeks with them. “I’m just so emotional these days,” she sniffled while unattractively wiping the snot from her nose. “I’m sorry. I can’t apologize enough. I was such a meddling pain in the ass. I should’ve just been a good sister and a good friend and been supportive from the beginning. I knew you were always hot for her, Marcus. And Tessa, I get that he’s hard to resist, but—I never imagined you two
in love.
And now, you guys are a couple and I’m…” The sobbing continued and Tessa consoled her, shaking her head and rolling her eyes in my direction.

During our whole homecoming the two of them kept looking at each other like they were hiding something. Maybe it was just me—my nerves were shot from the traveling and the coddling from my remorseful sister. But something was off—I just felt it.

“What’s going on?” I mouthed to Tessa who was busy rubbing Riley’s back as she wailed into her arms.

“Later,” she mouthed back, winking.

Later?
I wondered. It wasn’t a shrug of her shoulders or a clueless shake of the head. By later she meant that she had something to actually
tell
me—something I didn’t know about. Damn girls and their secrets. I just wanted to relax and fight off the jetlag with my girl. Instead Riley was here fucking it all up!

“‘Kay, Ry. Enough of the waterworks. We get it. You’re sorry. Time to move the fuck on.” Really. It was that simple.

“Marcus!” Tessa hissed through gritted teeth. “She’s upset. Let her be.”

Ugh! Fucking women and their girl code—men didn’t do this shit. I got that she felt bad—served her right—but was all of this really necessary? Where were my men? I needed my men. “I think Luca’s up from his nap. I’ll go get him.”

“Good idea.” Tessa waved me off, still cradling Riley.

I walked toward the steps, calling out, “Mind if I call Beck to come over for the game?” The more testosterone the better.

“NO!” Tessa shouted at the same time Riley whispered a barely inaudible “Yes.”

They looked at each other, a mysterious silent dialogue taking place; one’s eyes wide with concern, the other pouting, practically pleading.

What. The. Fuck. “Okay, you two. What’s going on?”

Riley perked up, wiping her face again. She stared long and hard at Tessa who was shaking her head like a damn bobble head doll. Riley shrugged off whatever it was Tessa was trying to telepathically tell her and turned to me. “Call him. A casual night of pizza, beer, and the Yankees will do us all some good.”

“Done.” Did I even want to know what these two had up their sleeves? I’d worry about it
later
. “Fucking weirdos,” I mumbled, climbing the steps to Luca’s bedroom.