Melting Steel: An Alpha Billionaire Romance (3 page)

Keeley

My head is spinning and I’m trembling uncontrollably as I get into the car.

Drew’s text was clear.
Don’t go home. Don’t try to find me…I’m sorry.

Anger overrides the fear I know I should be feeling. Anger at Drew, at Jax, even at the stranger who’s done nothing but try to protect me tonight.

What is it with men being self-centered, narcissistic assholes?

I blink back tears and clench my teeth.
I won’t cry.

Henry glances over at me when he gets in the car, brows raised. “Where to?”

Drew said not to go home. It’s as much an admission of guilt as anything. I can only assume he knows Jax will search for him there, and when he doesn’t find him, it’ll be me he takes his rage out on.

I shiver and look away, staring blankly out the window, a cold numbness settling over me.

It won’t be the first time I’ve taken the punishment for something Drew has done.

People don’t understand why I defend my brother the way I do, but then only a handful of people actually know what we’ve been through. He’s the only family I’ve got, and I won’t let anyone hurt him, even if it means sacrificing myself.

“Keeley?” A warm hand reaches out and touches my leg. “I can’t drive you home if I don’t know where you live.”

“Five-twenty Maple Street.” My voice is hoarse, raw, and I hate the emotion I hear in it.

He presses a button and repeats the address. A map pops up on a small screen, and a woman’s voice directs him to make a right turn onto Saunders Ave.

We drive a few blocks before either one of us speaks.

“Are you in some kind of trouble?” The way he asks, I know he already assumes I am.

I don’t meet his gaze. “I’ll be fine.”

How many times have I said those words?
I’ll be fine
. I wish that I still believed it. But I’ve been
not
fine for so long, I know that it’ll never be true.

He seems to tense, his long fingers tightening around the steering wheel.

Stopped at a red light, he turns his gaze on me, and I can’t move, can’t turn away.

If my life weren’t so fucked up, I’d jump at the chance to spend one night allowing him to fulfill every promise I see in those eyes.

“I can help you find another job,” he says, his expression serious. “I own a company–”

“I don’t need handouts.”

“It isn’t a handout. You said yourself it’s my fault you got fired. It’s the least I can do.”

I sigh, shaking my head. The last thing I need is to be indebted to someone like him.

“I can find a job on my own.” Another bullshit lie. I’ve been fired from my last two jobs, and now this one. Who the hell is going to hire me with no references?

He gives me a look that says he doesn’t believe me.

We’re almost at my apartment, and I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep my emotions from overwhelming me.

“At least let me give you my number in case you decide–”

“Thank you for the ride.” As the car slows, I open the door and jump out, even before we come to a complete stop, knowing if I stay one second longer, I may break and actually accept his offer.

“Keeley, wait.” The command in his voice stops me before I can slam the door and take off up the old stone stairs towards my second floor apartment.

A quick glance up and I know someone has been there. The lights are on, and the large fern that usually sits in the windowsill is gone.

I freeze with my hand on the door, already shaking at what I’m going to find. With all the strength I can muster, I give him a small smile, and lie to him one more time, “I’ll be fine.”

Henry

I don’t know why I follow her. But I do.

The lock on the front door of the building is broken, the plaster walls peeling, and the scent of mildew almost overpowering. The run down brownstone is only four stories, but I only make it to the second floor when I hear Keeley’s soft cry of alarm.

A yellow stream of light filters through an open door, and even before I enter the apartment, I know someone has ransacked the place.

“Shit,” I mutter, stepping over a broken vase and several scattered magazines. Nothing has been left untouched. Even the old, corduroy couch has been slashed.

Sitting in the corner on an overturned bookshelf, Keeley’s face is pale, eyes unfocused. Her gaze drifts up to me, and she blinks several times as if she doesn’t really see me.

I move across the room, crouching in front of her, and take her hands in my own.

“Did that asshole from the club do this?”

She lifts her shoulders in a small shrug. “Him. Drew. It doesn’t matter. It’s all gone.”

Who the hell is Drew?

“What were they looking for?”

“Money.” Her gaze focuses on me, expression hardening. “Drugs.”

I narrow my eyes. “Why would someone be looking for drugs here?”

She drops my hands and stands quickly.

“Are you selling?” I ask, a hard edge to my voice. It’s really none of my business, but I can’t shake the feeling that I need to protect her. If she’s messed up with drugs, it’s going to make things a hell of a lot more complicated.

“No.” She squares her shoulders and looks me straight in the eyes, and I know she’s telling the truth.

With a heavy sigh, she leans down to pick up an overturned plant, then places it on the window sill.

“I’ll figure it out.” Her words are steel, but there’s a vulnerability behind them.

“You need to call the police.”

“No.”

“Why the hell not?”

She sits down heavily on the torn couch and puts her head in her hands. “Until I know what Drew’s done, I can’t risk it.”

“Drew?” It’s the second time she’s mentioned the guy. Jealousy tightens my throat.

“My brother.” She looks up at me, and my chest constricts at the fear I see in her eyes.

I’m starting to put the pieces together.

“And the guy from the club?”

“Jax.”

I grind my back teeth, remembering the way he’d grabbed her.

“He thinks Drew stole from him.”

“Did he?”

“I don’t know. But if he’s using again, then it’s possible.” Despite what the asshole has done, the danger he’s put her in, I can hear the concern in her voice. Concern not for herself, but for her brother. “I have to find him before Jax does.”

I have no doubt that whatever she’s planning is not only dangerous, but completely idiotic.

If I was smart, I’d get the fuck out of here, now.

Lust wars with self-preservation.

Damn, if I don’t want her. But I already know that one taste will never be enough, and the woman has trouble written all over her. She could never be a one-night stand or a casual fuck, and that’s all I have room for.

Nothing else. Nothing more.

She doesn’t need my help, she already told me that. Not that I believe her. But I need to get away from her before I pull the caveman shit my cock is urging me to do.

I don’t even know the woman, but I can safely say I’ve never felt so fucking possessive over anyone or anything.

It’s my nature to control. To fix. Maybe that’s all this is.

Maybe.

Whatever it is, I know I’ve finally found my kryptonite. 

Running my hand through my hair, I glance around the apartment, realizing that the lock on the door is broken, the wood frame splintered. She can’t stay here.

“You have somewhere you can go for the night?”

She follows my eyes to the door, then shakes her head. “Whoever did this isn’t coming back. I’ve got a lot of work to do cleaning this up, so–”

“Where did you get this?” I bend over to pick up a small wooden sword that’s half hidden under the coffee table. I run my fingers over the initials carved into the handle
–
H.W.C.

My initials.

Keeley glances up at me from where she’s picking up pieces of broken glass, brows furrowing when she looks at the sword. Emotion flickers across her face, then it’s gone, replaced by a cold mask. She shrugs and turns her back to me.

My throat constricts, images of a small, dark-haired little girl, racing through my mind.

No. It can’t be.

“What?” She dumps the glass pieces into a wastebasket, then crosses her arms over her chest, blue eyes narrowed on me.

I glance away trying to regain some composure. Was it possible she was my blue-eyed girl? The one I’d sworn to protect. The one I’d been dreaming of for the past twenty years.

Despite the beating I got for persisting otherwise, I knew she was real. That I hadn’t made her up.

“Get what you need for the night.” The words are spoken before I really think about what I’m suggesting.

Her jaw locks and she studies me for a moment, eyes heavy with mistrust.

“Look.” She takes a deep breath, gaze locked on me. “I appreciate you want to help, but this is my problem. I don’t even know you.”

She’s right. We’re practically strangers. Christ, I don’t even know her last name. But there’s no fucking way I’m walking out of this shitty apartment without her.

She’s mine. She just doesn’t know it yet.

“And what happens when that asshole comes back looking for you?”

She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, and I can tell her mind goes somewhere dark.

“I’ll handle him.” The confidence that was in her voice moments before is gone. She’s scared and she has every reason to be.

I move towards her, ready to use any and all tactics to make her see reason. Sheer force won’t work, not with her. If anything, it’ll just make her dig her heels in deeper. No, it’s time to turn on the charm. Appeal to her feminine needs.

She stiffens slightly when I reach out to stroke a strand of dark hair that’s fallen loose from her bun.

“What are you doing?” Her voice cracks slightly on the last word.

A grin pulls at my lips, but I stifle it. I can tell my touch affects her. She’s so fucking responsive. I lean in slowly, and wrap my other arm around her waist.

“Come home with me.” I brush my thumb across her bottom lip and she instantly parts them for me.
The things I’m going to do with that mouth.

She shakes her head, but I can tell she’s thinking about it. I can feel her resolve fading.

“Just for tonight. There’s nothing you can do until morning.”

“Just for tonight,” she repeats, her gaze focused on my lips.

I lean in slightly and she closes her eyes, clearly anticipating my kiss.

Not yet, sweetheart.

When I finally kiss her, there will be no stopping.

“Go pack a bag.”

She nods, and I know I’ve won.

Keeley

When he looks at me like that, my panties may as well evaporate. But there’s something else behind his gaze, like he actually wants to help me.

Don’t be so naïve, Keeley.

He wants one thing from me, and once he gets it, I’ll be just another notch on his bedpost.

But at least I’ll have the night to figure out what to do. I have no doubt Jax will be back, looking for me.

I keep saying that I don’t need his help, but the truth is I’m terrified – for myself, but also for Drew. I made a promise years ago that I’d never let anyone hurt him again, and I’ve sacrificed everything to make sure no one did.

But I can’t protect him from Jax. Not unless I can somehow come up with the money he’s stolen.

Ten thousand dollars
. Shit. It might as well be a million.

The small envelope I kept taped under the couch is gone. Tip money that I was going to use to pay for this month’s rent. It was only five hundred dollars, but it was all I had.

“You have everything you need?” A calloused hand brushes against the bare skin of my arm, sending a wave of heat rushing to my core. And again, the world stops, and nothing but him seems to matter.

I nod, and he places his hand on my lower back, ushering me out of the apartment and down to his car.

The shadows seem to have eyes, and I get the overwhelming sense that we’re being watched as he places my bags in the trunk.

He must sense it too, because the muscle in his jaw seems to jump, and his frown deepens.

I focus on keeping my breathing even, but I don’t relax until I’m in the car with Henry beside me. It’s odd how safe I feel with him. Beyond the sexual magnetism and bad boy good looks, there’s something else about him that pulls at the back of my mind – a sense of familiarity like I somehow know him.

The silence between us hangs heavy, until we pull into the private underground parking garage of a luxury high-rise.

“You okay?”

I give a small nod and bite my bottom lip to hide the slight tremble that threatens to expose my nerves.

“Come on. I’ll grab your bag.”

He guides me into the elevator, and I need to remind myself to breathe when he inserts a key, punches in a code, then presses the top button on the chrome panel.

I can feel his gaze on me, hot and heavy. He hasn’t touched me since we left my place, but the heat between us is almost tangible. His intentions are clear, and I’m both excited and terrified at the same time.

“I don’t usually do this.”

“Do what?” A smile twitches the corners of his mouth.

“Go home with random men.”

“I wouldn’t judge you if you did.” He reaches out and tucks my hair behind my ear, his touch sending shockwaves of pleasure racing down my spine.

“Well, I don’t. It’s been eighteen months since I’ve–” I bite my tongue on the awkward confession.

“Since what?” His eyes sparkle with humor, but there’s nothing comical about the way his hands trail down the swell of my breasts, then around my back, drawing me towards him. His mouth is inches from mine, his breath warm against my lips.

The man’s touch is lethal. My body practically vibrates with need.

“Don’t be nervous.” The way he watches me, it’s like he can read my thoughts.

“I’m not,” I lie.

A small bing tells us that we’ve arrived, and I take a small step back so that he releases me.

I’m not prepared when the elevator doors finally open. Instead of a hallway with multiple apartments, he ushers me into the large two-story foyer of a penthouse suite.

Holy crap.

“You live here?”

He gives me a cocky-ass grin. “Like it?”

“It’s…” My mouth hangs open and I clamp it shut, shaking my head. “It’s a little much for one person.”

He laughs. “Come on. I’ll show you the bedroom.”

The bedroom.

This is seriously going to happen.

I follow him down the hall, past the open concept kitchen and living room with floor to ceiling windows. The master bedroom is twice the size of my apartment, the bed the central focus.

He places my bags in the corner of the room and nods at a second door on the far side of the room. “If you want to shower, the bathroom is there.”

“Thanks.” I swallow past the lump in my throat. The thought of a warm shower is almost overwhelming. It’s been weeks since my apartment had hot water.

For a long moment, he stands there watching me, his expression undiscernible. Then he gives a sharp nod and turns to leave the room.

Alone with my thoughts, I start to question everything.

What the hell am I doing here?
I should be out looking for Drew, or at least trying to figure out what I’m going to do about Jax.

I can still leave. There’s nothing stopping me.

But I don’t want to. I feel safe here. Safe with him
– with Henry.

I shouldn’t want this. I’m used to feeling empty, hollow. And I can’t explain the overwhelming need for him to fill that void.

One night.
I can give myself that. One night of pleasure. One night to feel safe, to feel treasured. I deserve at least that.

I grab my toothbrush from my overnight bag and head to the bathroom. The shower, if you can call it that, looks like something out of a movie, and it takes me a second to figure out how to turn it on. Once I do, I undress quickly, and step under the steaming water, allowing the warmth to ease some of the tension from my body.

My mind drifts to
him,
and a raw ache starts in my center, pulsating between my legs, and my breasts heavy, nipples hard.

I’ve never lusted over a man. Not like this.

One night
, I remind myself. One night to forget the hell that is my life.

I turn the water off and dry myself with a large plush towel. There’s a robe, like you see in commercials for fancy hotels, hanging on the back of the door. Biting my lip, I run my fingers over the softness and sigh. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if I borrowed it for the night.

A small moan escapes my lips when I pull it on. I’ve never been into material things, never had the luxury, but I could get used to the softness that wraps around me.

With a deep breath, I open the door, and have to blink several times for my eyes to adjust to the darkness that greets me.

A shadowy form is sprawled out on the mattress, the bottom half covered by the comforter. In the dim light, I can tell his chest is bare, each chiseled ab clearly defined in the shadows. I can’t see his eyes, but I know he’s watching me. Waiting.

“Come to bed, Keeley.” His voice drips with sex and the words go straight between my legs.

I pad across the floor towards the king-size bed, my heart beating a million times per minutes.

No more hesitation. I want this. I just need to get out of my head and do it.

I pull the blankets back and crawl in beside him.

He doesn’t move. Not even when I inch towards him, so close that I can feel the heat radiating off his body.

I don’t know what I expect, but his next words shock me to the core. “Get some sleep.”

Sleep? Is he kidding?

My body is humming with pent-up sexual energy.

“I thought…” I swallow thickly.

“Go to sleep, Keeley.”

What game is he playing?

I start to roll towards the edge of the bed, when his arms wrap around me, pulling me back against his chest, so that my backside is snug against his heavy hard on.

His fingers sneak under my robe, finding my breast. A wave of heat rips through my body as his thumb circles the nub, then pinches it lightly.

I groan, wiggling back against him, and he lets out a deep, guttural moan of his own.

His mouth is by my ear, his breath warm on my cheek.

“You want me?”

“Yes,” I whimper.

He lets out a low chuckle and brushes his lips against my neck, making my entire body shiver in anticipation.

“It’s late and you’ve had a shitty day. When I do fuck you, I want you to be completely rested, so I can take my time tasting and devouring every part of you.” He pinches my nipple again, this time harder, and I let out a little yelp of pleasure mixed with pain. “Now go to sleep before I forget to be a gentleman.”

I want to protest. But I’m also grateful. The moment I close my eyes, I realize how tired I really am.

And it feels good to be held. I don’t remember the last time anyone just held me.

One night.
I can let my walls down for tonight. Cause God only knows what tomorrow will bring.