She’s smiling but I can hear the pain in her voice and I reach across the table, grabbing her hand. “He sounds really great.”
“He was,” she agrees, her voice cracking.
“What happened between him and your mother?”
The tears shining in her eyes quickly vanish and she scoffs. “What happened is my mother became obsessed with all the things she didn’t have instead of focusing on the beautiful family and home my father had built for her.”
“She cheated on him?”
She nods. “Yeah. They started fighting a lot and even as a kid, I could see that it was tearing my dad apart. One day, I came home from school and she was shoving all our clothes into suitcases. He came home to find her loading up the car and he started crying, begging her not to take his family away. She was so cold…” Her voice trails off and my chest constricts for her as anger simmers in my veins. I didn’t like her mother when I met her but seeing the pain in Carly’s eyes, I know I won’t hold back if I ever see her again.
“Mom shoved Ivy and I into the back of the car and as we pulled away from the house, I stared out of the back window, watching my dad fall to his knees in the front yard. That was the last time I ever saw him.”
“How did he die?” She already told me he died on her sixth birthday, but she never said how. Although, I think I probably already know. A tear slips down her cheek and she quickly wipes it away.
“He shot himself.”
“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry.”
She nods, dropping her chin to her chest and I grab her hand and give it a tug. Peeking up at me, I offer her a smile and point to the center of the booth.
“Come here, Princess,” I whisper, scooting along the booth until my back is to the window and I pat my leg.
“Here? Everyone will look at us.”
I shrug. I couldn’t give a damn. She’s upset and I’m not going to let our location stop me from comforting her. Besides, we’re in the back corner so it’s not like we’ll draw that much attention to ourselves. She glances around again before scooting over to me. When she reaches me, I wrap my arm around her shoulders and pull her legs into my lap. A few people glance over before quickly turning back to their dinners but it’s not near the scene she assumed it would be.
I slip my hand into her hair and massage the base of her neck as I press my lips to her forehead. She lets out a breath and once again, I wish we were alone. Why the hell did I think this would be a good idea?
“Ladies and gentlemen,” a voice booms over the speakers scattered across the restaurant. A hush falls over the crowd and Carly turns to me with questions in her eyes. “As many of you may have heard, this restaurant is well known for being…haunted and now, as part of your dinner service, we’re going to lower the lights and see if anyone wants to reach out from beyond the grave and speak to us.”
Her eyes light up and a smile slowly stretches over her face as they dim the lights in the dining room. Excited whispers echo around us and she beams at me.
“You brought me on a real-life ghost hunt?” she asks and I nod, pulling an excited giggle out of her that makes the blue balls I’ll be suffering from for the next few hours worthwhile.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Carly
I lean down and slip my heels on before straightening and staring at my reflection in the mirror. There’s something different about the woman looking back at me – she’s happier… free in a way I never have been before and I can’t help but smile as I think about the reason why.
“Shit, Princess,” Chance growls as soon as he walks out of the bathroom, a towel slung low on his hips and water dripping down his abs that I suddenly want to lick off. Maybe I could call in sick today and just spend the whole day in bed with him. “You look fucking sexy in that skirt. Makes me want to rip it off you.”
Running my hands over the navy-blue pencil skirt I chose for today, I playfully glare at him in the mirror. “I’m already running late and it’s all your fault.”
“I’ll take the blame for the time in the shower,” he says, stepping up behind me as he wraps his arms around my waist and presses his lips to my neck. “But I woke up with my cock in that pretty little mouth of yours so that one was all you.”
His breath washes over me, producing goose bumps in its wake and as his teeth sink into my skin, it doesn’t matter that I’ve already had him twice this morning because I want more. Closing my eyes, I imagine him bending me over right in front of the mirror and hiking my skirt up over my hips before burying himself inside me and I moan. My head falls back on his shoulder and I rub my legs together, trying to relieve the ache because I know I don’t have time for round three this morning.
“You’re insatiable, baby,” he whispers and the husky tone of his voice turns me on even more. He’s not wrong. Since our date Saturday night, we haven’t left the bedroom except to go to work yesterday and even then, I came home early because I needed to see him. Why is it that everything about this man turns me inside out?
“It’s all your fault.”
He meets my gaze in the mirror and smirks. “I’ll take it.”
Spinning me in his arms, he claims my lips in a kiss that is sure to leave me achy all day long and I mold my body to his as I sigh, my lips parting in invitation. I swallow his groan as he walks us backward and presses me against a wall. Running my fingers through his wet hair, I’m rewarded with another deep groan and I’m just about to say “fuck it” when he pulls away, breathing hard.
Something is definitely different between the two of us in the past week and I don’t know if our relationship is actually different or if it just seems that way because I’m not constantly fighting my feelings anymore. Maybe letting go of my fear allowed me to see what was right in front of me all along. Either way, I’m not obsessing over it. Being with Chance feels too good to spend my day worrying about things that could go wrong. There are still things that I need to tell him about my past and I will, when the moment is right but until that time comes, I’m not going to stress about it. For the first time in twelve years, my mind is clear of the agony that’s haunted me for so long.
“You’ve got lipstick on your face,” I say with a giggle as I start wiping it away and he waits patiently for me to clean him off before leaning in and kissing my cheek. When I glance at the clock on the bedside table, I groan.
“Shit. I really have to get going.”
He nods. “Just let me get dressed and I’ll walk out with you.”
“Am I going to see you tonight?” I ask, holding him captive as he tries to pull away. His grin makes my heart skip a beat.
“Of course, you are, baby. You think I’d miss a chance to see you? Besides, I’m pretty sure I go through withdrawals when I’m away from you for too long.”
I roll my eyes and push him away. “Don’t try and sweet talk me.”
“There’s the attitude. I was beginning to wonder if you were going soft on me,” he says with a laugh and I glare.
“Go put your clothes on.”
He laughs, his gaze locked on my face as he walks backward into the bathroom with humor lighting up his eyes. When he disappears behind the door, I go back to the mirror and shake my head, unable to wipe the ridiculous grin off my face. God, that man is doing strange things to me.