Out Of Line (20 page)

The next morning, my temper had cooled quite a bit, even if my feelings for Carrie hadn’t. One thing I knew I had to do? I had to tell her I loved her before I left. I had to give it one last shot. If she told me she didn’t give a damn about my feelings, then I’d leave. At least I would know I gave it all I had. I wouldn’t spend my life wondering what would have happened if I’d gotten the balls to tell her I loved her.

I hadn’t been lying when I told her yesterday she deserved better than me. She did. But no one else would love her as much as I could. No one else could make her feel as good, either. My phone rang and I glanced down. When I saw it was the senator, I sighed and picked it up. “Good morning, sir.”

“What’s this I hear about you punching Cory Pinkerton? What happened?”

I rubbed my temples. “Who told you?”

“The police called the campus, and the campus called me.” The senator sighed. “I’ll get it taken care of, but you better have a damned good reason for punching someone who could very well be a huge contributor to my campaign in the future.”

I swallowed the curses wanting to escape. “Yeah. Because your
campaign
is the most important thing here.”

“Are you insulting me, son?” His tone dropped, and I clenched the phone. “I can just as easily let the cops get their hands on your sorry ass. I’m sure your father would be displeased.”

Minus a huge pension, no doubt.

“No,
sir
.” I cleared my throat. “No disrespect.”

“Good.” I could practically hear the smug grin the senator wore. “Now tell me what happened.”

I filled him in, but in my version of the story, Carrie had already left and my cover hadn’t been blown. “So, I told him I was a jealous ex, punched him, and told him never to come near her again.”

“I’ll kill the little brat,” the senator said. “How dare he act that way toward my girl?”

I clenched my jaw. “I felt the same way, sir.”

“Good work, son. Keep in the shadows, and don’t be seen.”

This was the time to tell him I quit. Tell him I couldn’t stay here anymore, but I hung up on him without another word and tossed my phone across the bed. I’d had to make up a story, so now I had to fill Carrie in on the tale I’d told. Time to track her down and fill her in. And while I was at it, I’d tell her I was in love with her too.

I’d leave after she laughed in my face.

I lifted my hand to knock on Finn’s door, but it swung open before I could. There he stood, looking breathtakingly gorgeous as always. I had spent an hour out on the water, enjoying the solitude of the ocean. Everyone out there seemed to be trying to escape something. I wanted to escape it all. My life. Cory. My father.

And most of all…Finn. He was leaving me.

I didn’t even know how I felt about him anymore. I knew when Finn was around, my heart begged for me to forgive him. To give him another chance. But my head screamed just as loudly, and it called my heart a fool. How could I trust him after everything he’d done? After everything we’d been through?

I couldn’t. That’s how.

“Carrie? What are you doing here?”

I licked my lips and focused on him. I wasn’t sure what I was going to say yet. I probably should have thought that through. “I’m checking in to see if you heard from my dad yet.”

“He called. He was informed that Cory pressed charges against me.”

I closed my eyes. I’d been up all night worrying about that. “I
told
you he would do that. We’ll fix this. I’m sure if I speak to him, tell him who I really am, he’ll—”

“No.”

I stiffened. “Why not?”

“Because you’re not blowing your cover for me.”

“What if I want to?”

“I don’t care.” He lifted a brow. “Besides, your father’s taking care of it. I had to fabricate a story so that he wouldn’t know I was outed to you, but he bought it.”

Wait, if he lied and didn’t tell him about me knowing his identity, did that mean he was staying?
Please God, yes
. “What did you tell him?”

Finn quickly relayed the fabricated story, and I nodded. “That was quick thinking.”

“No, it wasn’t. I was up all night, waiting.” He shrugged. “I couldn’t sleep, anyway.”

I looked up at him. “Me either.”

Our gazes latched, and he turned a little bit red. “Look, Carrie, I—”

“Are you still leaving?” I asked at the same time.

He broke off. “Do you want me to?”

“I don’t want you to,” I said slowly, not dropping my gaze. “I want you to stay, but I get it if you can’t.”

“Can you ever forgive me? For lying?”

“I do forgive you.” I took a deep breath. All night long, I’d been asking myself this very question. Asking myself if I could ever understand his motivation. It wasn’t until I answered just now that I realized I already had. “I forgive you for it all. I understand why you did what you did.”

His eyes lit up. “Do you think you can ever… Can we ever…?”

I wished I could say yes, but he’d hit me where I was weakest. All my life, Dad had been paying people to get close to me. And the first man I fell in love with was one of them. It hurt too much. Brought back too many memories—none of them good.

He made a choking sound. “You don’t have to answer. I can see it in your eyes.”

“I’m so sorry,” my voice a mere whisper. It’s all I could manage past my aching throat.

He swallowed hard. “I love you, will always love you. I’m sorry I killed us before we even had a chance.”

And with that bombshell, he shut the door in my face.

Well, there you had it. I’d told her I loved her. Had asked for another chance. She’d said no. Chapter over. End of our story. I’d always known she was smart, and she’d proved it even more by rejecting me. She deserved more than I could give her. Security. Diamonds. A fucking mansion.

With another man, she could get all those things and more.

I slammed my fist into the wall, trembling from the force of the frustration and anger and pain storming through me. What had I been thinking, falling for her? What made me think I could find a way to make her forgive me, when I had so clearly fucked up? She didn’t love me. She never would.

A knock sounded on the door, and I yanked it open. Carrie still stood there. “How dare you?”

I closed my fist around the knob, ignoring the way my heart leapt at the sight of her. “How dare I what?”

She shoved my shoulders, and I backed up. “You don’t tell someone you love them and then just
leave
. What the hell is wrong with you?”

I rubbed where her hand had impacted with my shoulder and raised a brow. “You might as well sit if you want me to list everything. It could take all day.”

“
Shut up,
you idiot. God, you make me so…so…” She made a frustrated sound and covered her face. “Mad.”

I dropped my hand and held my breath. “Carrie?”

“Did you mean it?” She lifted her head, her eyes shooting a challenge at me I would gladly accept. Any day. Any time. Anywhere. “Do you really love me? Or are you just trying to trick me into thinking you do?”

I frowned at her. I wouldn’t dignify that with a response. “What do you think?”

“
Finn
.” She advanced on me. “I need to know. I need to hear it.”

I growled. With one quick step, I had her in my arms and I was kissing her. Kissing her so she would shut the hell up and stop shooting questions at me. Kissing her because if I didn’t, I might die. When she stopped squirming in my arms, and instead clung to me, I broke off the kiss.

Cupping her cheeks, I met her eyes and said, “I want to be your man. To show you how happy I can make you. I promise you, with all my heart and soul, that I’m not lying about this. I’m not making anything up. Not anymore.”

“Finn…”

“I’m falling in love with you, Ginger.” I kissed her nose. “Hell, who am I kidding? I’m already there. I’m not exactly used to this feeling. If you want me to leave, then I’ll go. You can fall for someone who is much more appropriate for you. If you want me to stay, I’ll spend the rest of my life making you happy, or I’ll die trying. Just say the word.”

“My father’s going to kill you,” she said, tears falling out of her eyes. “Because I love you too.”

My heart stuttered to a stop, then sped back up to light speed. Beam me up, fucking Scotty. She loved me. “You do?”

“I do.” She kissed me gently, then shoved me back again. “But if you ever even
think
about lying to me again, I’ll cut off your balls and shove them so far up your butt you won’t even know they’re missing. Got it?”

I laughed. “Got it.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and she raised a brow. “Who is that?”

“Your father, no doubt.” I twisted around to yank it out, holding it down so she could see. No more secrets.
Got the problem taken care of. Where is she now?
“Hm. I can’t lie, so…” I picked her up and carried her to my bed, falling down on top of her. Then I texted,
She’s still in bed.

Carrie laughed when I showed her what I wrote. “Tell him I’m with three different men, but not to worry. They’re all Ivy League.”

I growled and nibbled at her throat. “No way. You’re all mine.”

“No arguments here. Not anymore.” She clung to my shoulders and arched her throat to give me better access. “But he doesn’t know it, and he can’t.”

I lifted my head. “Why don’t you want to tell him? Is it because you don’t want anyone to know about me? About us?”

“What? No.
No
!” She smoothed my hair off my face. “I don’t want your father to lose his pension. He’s always been kind to me, and I need to return the favor. After this year is over, and after your father is done, we’ll tell my father together. Until then, we’ll wait.”

The fact that she cared enough about Dad’s well-being to lie to her own father only made me fall for her even more. “Are you sure?”

“Positive as a proton.”

I laughed and kissed her. My phone buzzed again, and I held it up so she could read.
You’ll be returning home with her for winter break. Your father has requested you visit, so I arranged it all.

Yes, sir.

I chucked the phone aside and settled in between her legs. “Looks like we’ll be spending Christmas together, Ginger.”

“Good.” She trailed her fingers down my spine, then over my ass. “I can’t go too long without this.”

“You’re going to have to if you want us to be a secret.” I lowered my body, nibbling at her shoulder now. “Because when I make you come, you scream, babe.”

“I do
not
,” she said haughtily. “I never scream.”

“Oh yeah?”

I ran my hand down her stomach, tracing the waistband of her shorts. “I just might have to prove you wrong…”

I closed my mouth over hers, and she slipped her tongue inside my mouth. I groaned in satisfaction, savoring her taste. Her smell. The way she moved underneath of me, undulating her body and asking for more. More that I’d readily give her. Anything she wanted. The moon. The stars. It would be hers.

She gripped my ass, yanking me against her. “God, I need you.”

“Not nearly as much as I need you.”

I kissed her gently before I took off her sweatshirt. I made quick work of her bra, and then closed my fingers around her bare breasts. When I kneaded them and bit down on her shoulder, she cried out and dug her nails into my back. I hissed, half in pain and half in pleasure, and captured her mouth once more.

I rolled her nipples between my thumbs and fingers, tugging with just enough pressure to make her squirm. When she trembled and moaned into my mouth, I lowered my hands to her waist and yanked her shorts off. Once she was blessedly naked, I made quick work of my own shorts, then grabbed a condom and tossed it on the bed. I laid down on the bed and rolled her on top until she straddled my hips.

The sight of her perfect breasts hanging above me was almost too much to take in. I lifted my head and urged her down, closing my mouth around her nipple while gripping her hips with my hands. She let out a surprised cry and speared me with her nails, leaving little half-moon marks on my pecs.

She shoved my shoulders back and took a shaky breath. “That’s enough of that. I want to explore this new position.”

Her long hair cascaded around her breasts and her back, making her look wanton. Sexy. “You look so hot right now.”

She looked down at me with smoky eyes and crawled down my body. When she nibbled on my abs, I flinched and buried my hands in her hair. Without hesitation, she closed her lips around me, sucking me in deep. I groaned and closed my eyes, letting her mouth move over me. Torture me. When she rolled her tongue over the head, I bit my tongue to keep from crying out. From begging her to stop…or to never stop.

I didn’t know which need would win.

Reaching down, I picked her up and set her aside. After grabbing the foil and putting on a condom, I lowered her to my cock, spreading her legs wide. “I need you
now
.”

She gripped my shaft and lowered herself onto me, inch by torturous inch. My balls tightened, and I practically came right there. I’d never been one to get carried away by passion, but with my Carrie…I didn’t have a choice. She touched me, and I was gone.

I reached up and cupped her face, bringing her down for a slow, passionate kiss. She whimpered into my mouth and moved faster on me, trying to find a rhythm that would give her what she needed. What I needed too.

I ended the kiss. “Let me try something I think you’ll enjoy.” I tucked her legs behind her body, lifted her up, and then rocked my hips into hers. She shrieked, her nails digging into my skin. “You like that?”

“Again,” she rasped, her perfect lips parted. “Do it again.”

I lifted her up a little bit, then lowered her body as I lifted my own, and she cried out. I grinned. “See? Told you you were too loud.”

“Just shut up and do it again,” she said, ending on a plea.

I did it again. And again. By the time I reached the third thrust, we were both too lost to talk anymore, let alone think. When her tight muscles clenched down on my cock, warning me of her impending orgasm, my own pleasure grew to a pinnacle. With one last thrust, we both exploded and sank into the mattress, her sweaty body resting against my equally damp one.

I ran my fingers over her back and smoothed her hair over her face. She cuddled in closer, letting out a contented sigh. “Yeah, I can’t live without that.”

I chuckled. “I don’t think I can either. We’ll find a way to keep you quiet.”

“Me?” She reared back and glowered at me, but the sparkle in her eye ruined the effect she was going for. “I think we need to worry about you, not me.”

I hugged her close. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

She climbed off me and headed for the bathroom. “I’m going to go in here for a minute, and then you’re going to cook for me.”

“Is that all you want me for?” I rolled onto my stomach and grinned. “Food and sex?”

Her head poked out of the bathroom. “And booze.”

“Brat,” I called out.

She shut the door in my face and I laughed. When I stood up, I stretched my arms high over my head and made my way to the trash can to get rid of the condom. I couldn’t believe she’d forgiven me. Given me a chance to prove to her how much I could be trusted. Life couldn’t get any better than this.

After I stepped into my shorts, I heard my phone buzz. Padding across the room, I bent down and picked it up. I’d apparently missed a call earlier, and had a voicemail notification. When I recognized the number, I sank onto the bed and swallowed hard. This couldn’t be good news. I just knew it. Could
feel
it in my gut.

I hit the
play message
button, then listened to the brief but life-changing message. When it ended, I let my hand fall to my side. Fuck. This wasn’t going to be good, and it was going to make Carrie cry. I didn’t want to make her cry ever again.

But I couldn’t hide the truth from her. Not again.

The door opened and she came out wearing my favorite red shirt. The same one she’d worn twice already. I tossed my phone aside and plastered on a smile. “Damn, babe, you look better in that than I do.”

“You think?” She posed in the doorway, bending one perfect leg and shooting me a
come get me
smile. “I might just keep it. It smells like you.”

I stood up and swept her into my arms, hugging her as tightly as I could. “If you want it, it’s yours. Anything you want.”

“Well, then.” She lifted her face and smiled up at me, her eyes shining with tears. Happy tears. “All I want is you.”

I swallowed hard. “You got me.”

“I did,” she whispered, rising up on tiptoes and kissing me. “And now you need to
feed
me.”

She skipped toward the kitchen, and I followed her with a smile. After dinner, I would fill her in. Give her the news. But we could be blissfully happy for a few hours, right? Because right now, I was too busy being fucking happy that I’d gotten the girl of my dreams. The girl I loved, and who also loved me.

Imagine that.

Watch for book two in 2014