Taking What's His (Entangled Brazen) (11 page)

“Never mind.”

He tugged harder. “Answer me.
Now
.”

“I said I’m already worried I’ll never want you to leave,” she said, her voice soft and heated. “Happy now?”

Satisfaction hit him. That, and…yeah, fucking
happiness
.

He wasn’t going to lie.

She liked him and didn’t want him to leave yet, and that was a good thing, because he didn’t want to leave yet, either. He smacked her ass gently, grinning when she cried out. “Actually, yes.”

“Then what was that for?”

“Talking back to me. You know you’re not allowed to do that.” He rubbed the spot he’d struck, soothing away any lingering pain. “Don’t act as if it’s actually a punishment. We both know it’s not.”

He pulled her hair again until her head was tipped back, and bit her neck at the same time as he smacked her ass again. She whimpered. “Oh my—
Holt
.”

My Holt
. He liked the sound of that. Slipping his finger under her thong, he slid it across her stomach and stopped just above her core. “Do you have protection here?”

“Yeah. Top drawer.”

Without letting go of her, he opened the drawer and pulled out a condom. “I won’t ask why you have these in your room, since you were practically a virgin before you were mine.”

“I wasn’t screwing guys, but that doesn’t mean I was a nun.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Believe it or not, I’ve been in this bed with a man before. Not—”

Growling, he gently shoved her face first on the bed. “Enough of that. I don’t want to hear a single fucking word about the other men you’ve known.”

“If you say so,” she said, wiggling her ass. Her hand disappeared under her body, and she touched herself. He could see her fingers peeking through from between her legs. “I need you, Holt.
Hurry
.”

He smacked her again, and she grinned. Actually fucking grinned. Jesus, she was going to kill him. And he’d never find someone who turned him on as much as she did, either. No matter how long he searched, or how far. She moaned and her fingers moved over herself faster, making his stomach tighten and his dick get uncomfortably hard.

Slipping the condom on his cock, he gritted his teeth. “Lydia.”

“Please,” she whimpered, tilting her ass up even more. Her fingers never stopped moving. “
I need you
.”

Slowly, oh so fucking slowly, he lowered her thong. Gripping her hips, he positioned himself behind her. “Then hold on tight, because you have me.”

Her hand curled into her comforter, and he thrust inside of her with one hard, fast drive. She was so tight and wet and hot. But when she writhed beneath him, a cry escaping her, he forgot all about that. “
Harder—please
.”

He froze, his grip on her hips softening. Hell, he’d just barged into her like a fucking newbie. He should have been easier on her. Gentler. “Are you…Did I…?”

“You didn’t hurt me.” She smacked the bed, her entire body practically throbbing with frustration. “Now keep going. And don’t you dare stop again.”

Oh, he wouldn’t. As a matter of fact, he never wanted to stop…

And that was fucking terrifying. More so than being lost in enemy territory, with no one to come help him. He tipped her hips up and withdrew, gritting his teeth when her body tried to pull him back in. She moved her hand out from underneath of her, but he grabbed it. “No. Keep touching yourself. Don’t stop.”

She whimpered, but did as told. As soon as she had her fingers on her clit, he moved his hips, driving inside of her again. She was even tighter now, and she made those whimpers that meant she was close to coming already. Reaching around her, he added his fingers to hers, helping her get herself off.

His other hand covered hers, entwining their fingers on the bed. She stiffened beneath him, clinging to his hand tightly. “I’m going to—
yes
.”

The words died on her lips, and she came. Her walls squeezed him, and she tried to pull back. He pressed down on her, leaving their hands against her clit, and fucked her. Nonsensical words escaped her, words that made no sense.

He’d never heard anything more beautiful.

Burying his face in her hair, he groaned and moved his hips faster, resting his weight on his elbows. “Fuck, Lydia. You’re going to kill me, you know that?”

She nodded frantically. “I can’t…no, don’t stop. More, more,
yes
.”

Her entire body went hard, and she came again, clamping down on his cock with heavenly pressure. Sweat rolled down his forehead, and he lost all control. What little he’d had left, anyway. The faster he moved, the more she cursed and cried and strained to get closer to him. By the time he came, she was right there with him again.

Spent, he collapsed to the mattress, rolling and taking her with him. They ended up lying diagonally across the bed, her hand on his chest and a leg thrown over both of his. He covered her hand with his and kissed her temple. It was quiet and still…

And he had something he needed to say.

Chapter Thirteen

Lydia sighed, feeling more at peace than ever before. Ever since her brother had dropped the bomb on her that, through his buddy, Ian, he might have found a position for her down at a hospital in Delaware, she’d been a mess of emotions, not sure what she should do, or say, when Ian called her later today, as promised. And when Holt had asked who Ian was, she’d frozen and refused to answer, refused to tell him he was her potential boss…all the way down in Delaware. If she told him she might be leaving, and he didn’t give a damn, it would hurt.

And she wasn’t kidding herself. He
wouldn’t
give a damn.

He played with a strand of her hair, his body gradually tensing beneath hers. Eying the clock, she saw it was close to eight-thirty in the morning. How it could be so early in the day, when so much had happened already, was beyond her.

She sighed. “Do you have to—?”

“Look, I’m sor—” he started at the same time, cutting himself off when he realized they spoke at the same time. “Sorry, go ahead.”

She shook her head. “You go first. I insist.”

“Okay.” He took a deep breath. “I wanted to say I’m sorry for last night. I felt the headache coming, but I’d been hoping I could take a pill and be okay before you noticed.” He paused. “I was obviously wrong.”

She shook her head. “I don’t care. There’s nothing to apologize for. You had a headache. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“But there is. It’s not just the headaches, Lyd.” He took a deep breath and held it in. “When I’m having an episode—that’s what they’re called—for the days leading up to it, I can’t function. My brain doesn’t work properly. If my boss found out I still have those migraines, and that I can’t do my job…”

She lifted up on her elbow and bit her tongue. He was opening up to her, and that was great. But she was scared if she pushed too much or too hard, it might scare him away. “So you only have the problems leading up to the migraines?”

“Mostly. When my words start getting mixed up, I know one’s coming. I’ve gotten good at hiding it, and at dealing with the pain, but last night was particularly bad.” He dragged a hand through his hair, staring up at the ceiling with a wrinkled brow. “It’s basically like a slow build. It starts with having problems figuring out simple things. Then the words get all jumbled up in my head, and then a few days later…it escalates till I’m incapacitated. After that, it slowly gets better until the next time.”

“What happened to cause it? Or has it always been like this?”

He dropped his hand above his head. The other was wrapped around her waist. The sun hit his face, making his five o’clock shadow look even darker than before. “It happened the same place I got those scars. Same time, too.”

And that was obviously all he wanted to say on that matter. He was very much like Steven in that regard. He never wanted to talk about the things he’d seen and done over
there
, either. She couldn’t blame them. “I’m sorry.”

He glanced down at her. “Did Steven ever mention anything?”

“Kind of.” She licked her lips. “He mentioned you’d been injured over there and were struggling to fit back in to society, but I didn’t ask for all the details. I figured if you wanted to tell me, that was fine, but if not, that was fine, too. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.”

He smiled and cupped her cheek. “You know, for the first time ever, I want it to stay that way. I don’t want to lose you.”

Her heart stuttered and sped up, all at once. Which, medically speaking, wasn’t possible. “Don’t say that too loudly. I might think you actually mean it.”

The smile slipped off his face, and his bright blue eyes were bluer than she’d ever seen them before. “What makes you think I don’t?”

Not knowing what to say to that, and quite frankly a little bit speechless, she leaned down and kissed him gently. By the time she pulled back, his grip on her was no longer gentle. It was possessive and demanding.

“It’s almost nine,” she whispered against his lips.

He groaned. “I know. I have to go before Steven realizes I took way too long to get to work, and figures out why.”

“Ugh.” She rolled off of him and stared up at the ceiling. “All right. Go, before I change my mind and chain you to my bed.”

He leaned on his elbow and smiled down at her. This man, naked, in her bed, smiling at her, was freaking dangerous as heck. “You can chain me to your bed anytime you want, Lyd. How’s tonight sound to you?”

“It sounds…” Her heart sped up, because he traced a path around her bare nipple. “Y-You’re coming over?”

“Hell yeah.” He kissed her gently, and hopped off the bed. She watched him walk over to his discarded clothes. His body was hard and toned. She could literally count the muscles that made up the perfect image that was Holt. “That is, unless you don’t want me to. I guess I should ask?”

She laughed. “Oh, I want you to.”

“Good. Because I would have come anyway, and changed your mind with a few orgasms.” He dressed quickly, and went into her bathroom. By the time he came back out, he looked as put together as he had before she’d stripped him. He wore grey khakis, a plaid shirt, and Converse sneakers. After he slipped his glasses on, he stared down at her with so much heat she should have combusted right there on her cotton sheets. “Stop looking at me like that, or I’ll forget I have to go to work today, and spend all afternoon making you come.”

“Hm. Is that supposed to be a threat?” She gave him what she hoped was her most sultry look ever. “Because it sounds more like a promise.”

Growling under his breath, he slipped his hand behind her head and lifted her up so he could kiss her. His mouth moved over hers with a hypnotic perfection that only he could ever manage. It was no wonder she was so hooked on the guy. He knew exactly what to do to get her all hot and bothered, and he was gorgeous, to boot.

He pulled back and groaned. “You taste so fucking sweet. I’ll be by around eight. Be naked and ready for me, or pay the price.”

“Yes, sir,” she breathed, anticipation already making her wet. “I’ll be ready for you…and only you.”

He made a sound of approval, and gently lowered her back down to the pillow. After one last long, heated look, he turned and left her alone in her bed.

She missed him already.

…

Two nights later, a knock sounded on her door at nine o’clock sharp. Exactly when Holt had told her he’d be coming over. They’d spent every night together either at her place or his, since the morning he’d taken her home from her brother’s house. Lydia had spent the day applying to open positions and fielding a few phone calls from a few more. So far, she’d had no luck at all…besides the position in Delaware. She’d spoken to her brother’s friend, Ian, and he wanted to hire her. She had until tomorrow afternoon to decide whether or not to accept his generous offer.

And she still had no idea if she wanted to take it or not, but she had a pretty good idea what her answer would be. She’d lived in Maine her whole life. Her family was here. Her friends. Holt…

Yeah. Him, too.

They might not be a forever thing, but she liked him a lot, and she didn’t want to leave before they were finished. Didn’t want to leave him yet.

Opening the door, she smiled at him. “Hey. Sorry, it was a busy day filled with papers and phone calls and—”

Cupping her cheeks, he kissed her midsentence. Her arms flailed for a second, as she was completely caught off guard, but then she rested them on his chest and returned the kiss. By the time he pulled back, she’d forgotten what she’d been saying.

“Hey,” he whispered, his forehead pressed to hers.

“Hi,” she whispered back, fisting his shirt. “That was quite the welcome.”

He let go of her and backed into the hallway, a hesitant smile on his face. He looked almost…nervous. “I’m not done yet. I got you something.”

“Oh?”

Her roommate and best friend, Gianna, came out of her bedroom. “Sorry, just passing through.”

Lydia cleared her throat. “Gianna, this is Holt. Holt, meet Gianna.”

“Nice to meet you,” Gianna said.

“Likewise,” Holt said, smiling. “Sorry to barge in like that.”

“Please.” Gianna waved a hand and grabbed her purse. “It’s fine. I’m leaving, anyway, so you guys will have the place to yourselves.”

Lydia smiled. “See you later.”

“You too.” She wiggled her fingers as she slipped out into the hallway. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Once she was gone, Lydia stared at Holt, who cleared his throat. “She seems nice.”

“She is.” Lydia tapped her fingers on her thigh and peeked out the door. “What were you saying earlier about not being done?”

“Oh. Right.” He reached down for something on the floor in the hallway, but didn’t pick it up. “You have been good to me when I’ve been cranky, surly, and at times…standoffish. So when I saw this, and it made me think of you, I just had to get it. As a thank you.”

She blinked, holding a hand to her heart. “Okay. You didn’t have to get me anything, though. I took care of you because…”
I care about you
. “…it was the right thing to do.”

“And so was this. You deserve to be treated like a princess, Lyd.” Swallowing hard, he pulled a big box out of the hallway. “This is only a tiny thing in comparison.”

She reached out with trembling hands and took the box. It was wide and not all that heavy. She sat on the couch and ripped it open, more eager than a child on Christmas morning to discover what Holt had gotten her. She couldn’t wait to see how—

“Oh my God.” When she lifted the last piece of cardboard, she gasped out loud in delight. “It’s Rose and Ten! On the wall! In parallel worlds!”

Holt relaxed, a grin taking over his previously intense expression as he’d watched her open the present. “Yep. I remembered you saying you liked that moment…”

Heart racing, she stared down at the drawing, blinking back tears. He’d gotten her a lovely depiction of her favorite couple from
Doctor Who
, in her favorite scene. The fact that he’d remembered her passing remark about this being her favorite part of the show made her heart melt. Heck, it made
her
melt.

She should literally be a puddle of goo at his feet right now.

“This is…” She trailed her fingers over the glass, staring down at David Tennant and Billie Piper. “Perfect. It’s just perfect. Thank you.”

He sat beside her and rested a hand on her thigh. “No, thank you. For way too long, I’ve believed that being alone was the thing for me. That I couldn’t trust anyone, or let anyone in. But then I met you, and for the first time ever…I want to do it. I want to let you in.”

She gripped the picture frame. “You mean…like, a real couple or something?”

“Yeah. Maybe. I don’t know.” He clasped her hand, entwining his fingers with hers. “I’m a hot fucking mess. I get migraines and nightmares, and I don’t really believe in happy endings for guys like me. I’ve done horrible things I will never talk about.”

“Holt…” she whispered, her heart wrenching. “You know—”

He held his hand up. “And, yes, I know you deserve more than I can give you, but will you be mine anyway?”

She blinked rapidly, fighting to keep the tears back, and set the picture down on the table safely. Turning to him, she framed his face with both of her hands. “Y-Yes. I’d love to be yours, but just so you know? I already was.”

He dragged her onto his lap and kissed her, just as he’d done plenty of times before. But this time it felt different. As his mouth melded to hers, she melted into him, and figured out why it felt different. This kiss was filled with wonder and tenderness.

And so much more.

When he ended the kiss, he pulled back and smiled at her. “So it’s official, then? We’re dating?”

“I guess so,” she said, running her thumb over his cheekbone. “Now what do we do? Tell people?”

He groaned. “Can we not? I just know that this is all so new to me, and having your brother glaring over my shoulder as I try to figure out the way to be a good boyfriend…”

Part of her felt let down that he didn’t want to tell anyone, like she was some dirty little secret or something, but the other part of her understood. Mostly.

“Then we won’t tell anyone,” she said, forcing a smile. “But at some point, provided you decide to stick around, we’re going to have to let people know.”

He looked more relieved at being let off the hook than she would have liked. “Okay, good. And we will tell them, eventually. I promise.”

“Right.” She swallowed hard and focused on the picture again, trying to ignore the part of her that was upset. “Sounds good.”

He captured her chin and turned it toward him. “Hey, why so sad?”

“I’m not sad,” she said quickly.

“Yes, you are. Don’t lie to me.” His fingers flexed on her chin. “You want to tell Steven. That’s what it is, right?”

She bit down on her lip. “Yeah. It’s just…it almost feels like you’re hiding me because you’re ashamed. Like you don’t want to admit you like his annoying little sister, or whatever.”

“No. That’s not it at all.” He shook his head and sighed. “If anything, it’s the other way around. I know you deserve better than me, and you can bet your ass Steven knows, too. Not to mention the fact that he specifically told me to stay the hell away from you. There’s that, too.”

She winced. “I know, and I get the bro-code. I do. But…if you really want to be with me…”

“I’d tell him,” he finished flatly.

“Yeah. Pretty much.”

He let go of her and dragged his hands down his face. “All right. I’ll do it tomorrow at lunch. It’s a Friday, so it’ll give him the whole weekend to get over his urge to kill me before I see him again.”

“Really?” she asked, her heart picking up speed. “Want me to be there?”

“No.” He blew out a breath. “I think this is something that’s better done on my own, in case he decides to kill me right away. You won’t want to watch that.”

She winced. “He won’t kill you.”

“Yeah, he probably will.” A grin lit up his face, and he yanked on her legs till she was flat on her back on the couch. Without wasting a second, he was on her, his body covering hers. “But it’ll be worth every single moment of pain.
You’re
worth it.”