I felt him turn to me, could feel the heat of his concerned gaze drilling into the side of my face. “Marin—”
I didn’t want his pity. Spinning my head around quickly to face off with him, I gave him as much of the truth as I was willing to give. “All I’ll say is that your brother isn’t a good man. I’m sorry if that bothers you, but, from my standpoint, it’s the truth, and that’s all I’m going to say.”
I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I was expecting from him, but it surprised the hell out of me when he nodded and breathed, “I know he’s not.”
Neither of us said a word for the longest time as we stared into each other’s eyes. The only sound that could be heard was the soft chirp of the crickets. The air around us felt like it was sparking to life as I sank deeper into the clear blue of his eyes. It was like swimming in the ocean. My chest compressed with my held breath, then my head breached the surface, and I sucked in air before Pierce’s tide could pull me under again.
“You’re not like him,” I whispered.
His breath whispered across my face as he said, “I hope to Christ that’s a good thing.” Until that moment, I hadn’t realized we’d inched closer together. There were barely two inches of space between his arm and mine, between our mouths.
“It is.” My tongue peeked out to swipe across my bottom lip, the action drawing his darkening gaze to them.
A warning signal went off in my head, bright flashing lights like you’d see at night as you drove, alerting you to the fact that the road ahead had been washed away. It was the red flag waving you back from danger. But I couldn’t seem to make my body stop.
The smell of his cologne invaded my senses, like a physical tether pulling me closer and closer to him.
I was trapped under his spell, and I wasn’t sure if I’d make it out alive.
“Daddy, I had a nightmare.”
And just like that, the spell was broken.
With a startled gasp, I jerked away from Pierce, standing to my full height and spinning around to see Eli standing just inside the threshold, rubbing at his sleepy eyes with his fists.
Pierce jumped into action, moving to his son and picking him up. Seeing this big, strong man lift his little boy into his arms, propping him against his hip and soothing him after a nightmare, would have made any woman’s ovaries explode. And I was no exception, which was why I had to get the hell out of there.
“I should go,” I said, my voice suddenly as husky as a phone-sex operator who’d been working some serious overtime.
My plan was to bypass the two guys who had quickly started to become an integral part of my life without me even noticing, but that was thwarted when Eli lifted his arms and held them out wide.
Sometimes he seemed so much older than his age, and other times, like just now, I remembered he was still an adorable little boy. I held my breath, not wanting to risk getting another whiff of Pierce’s enticing cologne as I leaned in and returned to the little cutie’s tight embrace.
“Night, sweetheart.”
“Night, Mar-Mar.”
I pulled back, unable to meet Pierce’s gaze as I backed away.
“Marin.” He said my name in a husky voice that sent a pulse through my core. Damn it. “If you could just wait a few minutes—”
“It’s okay. Really. Go take care of Cool Guy Eli. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
Without a backward glance, I spun around and bolted for the door, placing a hand on my chest the whole way in an effort to keep my wild heart from beating right through it.
Pierce
The hard-on I’d valiantly managed to get under control while I helped Eli back to bed, staying with him as he drifted back to sleep, came back in full force as I closed my bedroom door after shutting the house down for the night.
Marin’s intoxicating fragrance was still in my nose. I could still see her plump pink lips glistening from where she’d licked them. I’d nearly lost control tonight. And the scariest part about it was, I didn’t regret it.
I wanted her. Christ, did I want her.
It was no longer about whether or not I could ignore my attraction to her. It was now about whether or not I’d survive it.
Moving into the bathroom attached to my room, I braced my hands against the vanity and clenched my jaw, willing my breathing to return to normal.
The ache in my groin was constant, and I knew there was no way in hell I was getting to sleep tonight unless I did something about it.
With my eyes closed, I reached into my sweats and pulled my dick out, hissing at the sensitivity. I’d only just touched myself and I already felt ready to blow.
I stroked my length in a tight fist as I pictured Marin. I imagined it was her delicate, feminine hand wrapped around me, stroking me over and over. I imagined she was beneath me, her pussy clutching me as I slid into her.
A groan worked its way up my throat as I picked up the pace. I could feel my release building and building, the tingle forming in my spine. I was close, but there was a part of my brain that knew it still wouldn’t be as good as it would have been if I were with her.
My jaw flexed and the muscles in my arm began to heat as I fucked my fist, wishing it was her. Seconds later, I came, releasing my load all over my hand and the bathroom counter, all the while, chanting Marin’s name like a goddamn benediction.
15
Marin
I was a coward, I knew that. I just couldn’t help it. I’d gone from hating the man, to kind of sort of becoming his friend, to wanting nothing more than to climb him like a tree. I didn’t need a shrink to tell me it wasn’t necessarily the healthiest option to get involved with the brother of a man I despised with every fiber of my being.
Avoidance: that was the name of the game, and it wasn’t easy at all, what with me watching his son nearly every day.
I’d had to work the club tonight, so I used that as an excuse to bail almost the moment Pierce’s sleek black Audi pulled up into the driveway. I’d given Eli a hug and kiss and ran like Usain Bolt for my car, spitting frantically, “Sorry, have to go! Running late,” when Pierce tried catching my attention.
Now I was sitting at my station in the dressing room at Whiskey Dolls, done up in a barely-there sailor costume covered in sequins, with my hair and makeup done like a 50s pinup model, complete with vintage pin curls, red lips, and winged black eyeliner.
Usually I loved getting all dolled up for this particular number, but tonight I couldn’t concentrate on anything but the text that had come through my phone three hours earlier.
Pierce: You can’t avoid me forever. We need to talk.
I knew we did, but I couldn’t bring myself to reply. Like I said, I was a coward.
“Hey, you good?”
I looked up to find Alma watching me curiously. I gave her a smile I knew didn’t reach my eyes. “Yep. All good here.”
She lifted one perfectly arched, thick black brow. “You sure? Because you’ve been staring at your phone for the past five minutes with this deer-in-the-headlights look on your face.”
Carefully blanking my expression, I shoved my phone back into my bag under my little makeup table, determined to put the text out of my mind, at least for now.