Authors: Cherrie Lynn
Ross 02 Rock Me (25 page)
“Brian, you haven’t done anyth—”
“No, I have. Even being with Michelle when I should have been with you all along.”
“Don’t apologize for that. She liked you a lot. You liked her too.”
“She didn’t brighten the whole room for me when she walked in the door. She didn’t make my whole day better just by smiling at me, or make me ask myself what she would think of me when I said or did something shitty to somebody. She wasn’t the one who made me want to get off my ass and do more, be a better person. Only you’ve ever done that, sunshine.”
Even in the darkness, he knew she smiled. “I missed hearing you call me that. I had no idea you felt that way about me.”
“I am out-of-my-head crazy about you.”
They fell silent as she nipped little kisses across his chest. He contemplated dozing until her voice drifted through the pleasurable haze in his mind.
“Brian… I have to tell you something.”
Oh. Shit. The way her voice had darkened from its sweet coo didn’t bode well. If she was about to trot out some line about how she had feelings for him, but this had just been about sex or getting back at the parental units or whatever-the-fuck else, he might as well take a sledgehammer to his own skull right now and get it over with. “What?”
“Deanne’s wedding was today.”
Of all the things he’d expected her to say, that wasn’t it. “Weren’t you supposed to be in that or something?”
“I was supposed to, yes. I left last night after the rehearsal dinner, and didn’t tell anyone where I was going. And then I saw you this morning, and…here I am.”
Christ, she should have said something. He never would have—
Exactly. If she’d told him she couldn’t go with him, they would still be right where they were before. He wouldn’t have wanted that for all the world. “No one has any idea where you are?”
She shook her head, looking miserable.
“No wonder Michelle called me twice today.”
Candace stiffened in his arms. “She did?”
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“Yeah, at the concert. I let it go to voicemail both times, and I never bothered checking the messages.”
“Don’t check them, please. I don’t want to know what’s going on. I don’t want to ruin this.” She sighed. “I hope you aren’t mad at me.”
“Why would I be mad?”
“Because I was afraid you might have been thinking that everything was fine and people knew I’d come here with you and were okay with it. But as usual, it’s not fine at all. I’m going to try to keep you out of it as best I can, but when I get back I’m going to be facing—”
“Don’t you dare keep me out of it. I want to be right there at your side when you go home. I want them all to know where you’ve been.”
“And I was afraid you might think I was a wimp for running away from my problems instead of facing them. Brian, I couldn’t. Deanne paired me with that guy I told you about, the one who cornered me at the party. Mom even invited him to our lake house this weekend. I ended up in a huge argument with everyone. So, wimpy or not, I ran. I couldn’t take any more.”
“I get it, sweetheart.” His vision was washed with a red haze at the thought of that douche bag trying to get his hands up her skirt all weekend long.
Hell
, no. That shit was over with, as of this moment. She was his, and no one hurt what was his. “I don’t want you to worry about it. I’ll be there, and I’m not going anywhere. We’ll stay gone however long you want, in fact.”
“I have to get back tomorrow. I have finals starting Monday.”
“Shouldn’t you be studying?”
“I’ll be okay. And I know there are other options out there for me, so I don’t give a damn what they think or do anymore. But I’m so used to them taking care of everything. I’m scared.”
“It’s scary for anyone. You just buckle down and get through it. But in your case, I’d wager it’s mostly their fault for sheltering you so damn much.” He gently stroked her face with his thumb. “All locked up high in your tower. I want to rescue you.”
“Like a knight in a fairy tale?” Her voice was quivering, and he wondered why. Here he was trying to be all white-knight dashing for her…
“Yeah, sweetie. Just like that.” He kept soothing her, rubbing her back, tracing the line of her nose with the barest brush of his lips until he felt her relax.
“That’s what I’ve always dreamed of. What I’ve always wanted.”
“Well, that’s good. You’ve got it now.”
“But what I’ve realized lately is that as much as I’ve fantasized about the fairytale, and wanted it to be you, what’s become most important to me is getting to a point where I’m able to save myself.”
He probably had no business being proud of anyone. It sounded condescending, and he was certainly in no position for that. The emotion that swelled in his chest for her was more like reverence. If she would
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keep him around so he could watch her spread her wings and fly, it would be enough. But he wanted to be right by her side. “I’m there in whatever capacity you need me. Savior or cheerleader, whatever. I’m flexible.”
“God, I love you,” she whispered, tilting her head so that she captured his mouth with hers. Let tomorrow take care of itself, he thought. She might have left a clusterfuck waiting back home, but tonight, they only had each other. And her lips were so sweet against his, he could have eaten her alive. In fact, that sounded like a damn good idea.
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Chapter Seventeen
His friends were going to take one look at her and
know,
but Candace didn’t mind. In fact, it gave her a wicked little thrill.
Every time she moved, she felt him. He’d left a raw, aching fullness between her legs that kept her on the verge of arousal even when he wasn’t anywhere near her. Whenever she sat, she found it hard to resist grinding her hips in tiny circles to drive the sensation deeper, to send aftershocks through her body. The faint pink mark of possession he’d left on her neck when they’d been waiting in line after the concert was plainly visible when she was wearing this tank top. She loved that it was there…even if her mom would have called her a trashy whore. The thought made her chuckle, though it was grim. There was the music to face today.
She didn’t want to go. She could’ve lived forever in that hotel room with him, if it meant never having to face the world again. With his arms around her, she had the only thing she needed. They stopped for breakfast and lingered over coffee, putting off the inevitable as long as possible. Her stomach felt jittery as she watched him, finding pleasure in even the most mundane things like his lips closing around his fork and the way he held his coffee mug. She would probably never get over her fascination with his mouth and his hands. Both were such efficient instruments at driving her wild. Back at Kara’s, the crew was apparently still asleep. Brian said they’d probably only just gone to bed. Kara answered his insistent knocking with a big yawn, wearing a huge T-shirt and her hair an unruly mess.
“Hey, guys. You look way too bright-eyed. Coffee?”
“Just had some, but I can always use more,” he said. They stepped in, and Candace had to laugh at the carnage of bodies and blankets and air mattresses strewn throughout the spacious living room.
“Yeah, we had a few more people come over last night,” Kara said, following her gaze as they walked toward the kitchen. She wasn’t bothering to keep her voice down. Given the snores, those guys could have slept through an earthquake. “Probably a good thing you two went elsewhere if you wanted privacy. Our neighbors are going to lynch us someday.”
“Sorry to get you up, but we need to round up my guys and get back home.” His hand stroked up and down Candace’s back. “She has finals starting tomorrow and I want to make sure she studies.”
“I told you I’d be fine,” she protested, giving him a pinch on the butt. Kara was watching them with a knowing smile as she pulled mugs down out of the cabinet. “Awww. You guys.”
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“By the way,” Candace said to her, “thank you. A million times.” The memory of the way it had felt when he stroked her depths with those beads still drove shudders through her. Brian looked at her suspiciously as Kara laughed. “You’re welcome a million times. And I was joking yesterday. All I require as thanks is that you come with him whenever he visits us. We’d like to get to know you better.”
“Deal,” she said.
“I won’t let you corrupt her,” Brian said with mock warning. “That’s my job.”
It took forever to get the others roused, and then a heated argument ensued over who was going with Brian and who was staying to get some more sleep and riding back later with Connor and Tay. Since space was limited in Connor’s car, at least a couple of them were going to have to go with Brian.
“I’m never riding with anyone else again. I’ll find my own damn way,” Ghost complained. “Dragging my ass out of bed two days in a row…” He grumbled on into incoherence.
“Good,” Brian said, cutting him off. “All I know to tell you guys is to draw straws. And anyone scheduled to work tonight better have their asses there on time.”
A chorus of groans went up. “Shit, that’s me,” Starla said. “I’d better ride with you, then. Oh, Brian, I almost forgot.” She tugged her shirt up a bit, separating it from the waistband of her shorts to reveal a funny little happy face drawn on her midriff. “I got Jonathan Davis’s autograph! He was doing a DJ set at the club we went to after the concert. Can you ink it on when we get back?”
Brian grinned. “Cool. Sure thing.”
“Why can’t I?” Ghost asked.
Starla dropped her shirt and rolled her eyes. “Because I’d rather not be molested throughout the process.”
The closer they got to home, the tenser Candace grew. It was back to reality. Yesterday it’d been easy to pretend today wouldn’t come. Now it was in her face.
Brian kept a firm grip on her hand as he drove. At least she had him beside her now, and she wasn’t defending this all for nothing. He was hers, and she was his, and nothing her family could say or do would change that at this point. But it was going to get ugly. Really ugly.
“What do you want to do?” he asked after everyone was dropped off and they were alone in his truck.
“Do you want to come home with me?”
She blinked at him. “Really?”
“Sure. You can stay with me as long as you want.”
That would be a dream come true. And it might actually have to happen before it was all said and done, but for now, she couldn’t ask that of him. It would only be more running. She had to try to get through this on her own.
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“I would love that. Honestly. But…I need to face them right now.”
He gave her fingers a squeeze. “Then I’ll stay with you until you confront them. That’s an order. I’m not leaving you to go through it alone. I’d scheduled myself to work later, but you can hang out at the parlor with me.”
His tone brooked no argument, so she sighed and nodded. “Okay.”
Her apartment was silent as they entered it, as she expected, but it felt strange. Like the silence after the apocalypse. She didn’t know what she’d expected to find, but for some reason it was disturbing to walk into the normalcy of it now that the world had changed. It should’ve been trashed, or the electricity cut off, or the locks changed or something.
Brian shut the door behind them as she stood staring at everything, everything that wasn’t hers. Her gaze alighted on her cell phone sitting on the counter, but she was afraid to pick it up to see how many missed calls and outraged voicemails and text messages she had.
“Oh, God,” she whispered, feeling unsteady.
He was right there, guiding her toward the couch. “Sit down. It’s all right.” She dropped onto the cushion and he sat beside her, facing her. “Don’t let yourself get all worked up. You don’t even have to do anything today. Take some time before you agree to see them, let everyone cool off.”
“Cooled off isn’t really a state my parents ever get to.” She sighed. “It’s okay, Brian, I’m fine. I did what I did, I have to take the heat. I mostly hate that you’re going to be around to see this, but at the same time I’m glad you’re here.”
“Don’t you even worry about it.” He grinned. “You probably don’t know this, but in a verbal sparring match, my mom would make Sylvia Andrews look like a Chihuahua yapping at a mastiff. And you don’t grow up with someone like her without learning to hold your own.”
She relaxed against him, snuggling into his chest when his arms went around her. “Tell me about your mom. I’ve never met her.”
“What to say about Mom. Well, she’s highly opinionated, she can kick my ass one minute and be fiercely protective of me the next, and she’s famous for reverting to Italian when pissed off. But she hates my tattoos.”
“Are you close to her?”
He was silent for a moment. “I don’t see her nearly often enough. It’s complicated. But…yeah, my mom is pretty cool.”
“Do you think she’ll like me?”
“I think she’ll be crazy about you. How could she not?”
“Well, my own parents hate me, so it stands to reason someone else’s could, too, I guess.”
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“They don’t hate you, baby. They can’t possibly. Anyone should be proud to have you as a daughter. That isn’t to say I know what the fuck their problem is, but it can’t be that they hate you, not in a million years.”
She could have argued with him, but she was too exhausted. He would see what she was talking about shortly, the open disdain and disappointment in her mother’s eyes whenever she looked at her. Candace had begun to detect it shortly after high school, but now there was no questioning it. She was tired of doing that, anyway. Tired of trying to figure out what it was about her that disgusted her mother so. She didn’t want to think about anything else. And having Brian alone in her apartment was too much temptation.
It amazed him when she lifted her face from his chest and crawled over in his lap, straddling him and lowering her mouth to his. But as usual, it was insta-erection where she was concerned. He groaned into the sweet cavern of her mouth, sweeping his tongue inside to taste more of her.