Chapter 4
brAY
The things that fucker said to me about Katie… he deserved more than being punched in the face. How I must not care how ugly she was when my dick was in her mouth. That she must suck like a Hoover vacuum.
No one talked about her that way. Besides being so fucking disrespectful, it was plain wrong. She was gorgeous. While I definitely imagined her sucking me off, no one else could.
No one.
Especially not that asshole.
The second she climbed into my lap and whispered in my ear, she was mine. Like an earthquake that shook the earth before settling into a more solid, new way.
My brother Trig had found his woman, Ellie, in a fucking snowstorm over the winter. He’d said he saw her and knew she was his. One look, that was all it took. The way Colt told everyone how he met Molly, he saw her in the stands at a rodeo and had been struck by lightning.
Except I’d known Katie since we were kids. Maybe she’d been mine for as long as I could remember. I just needed a stupid asshole to get her to climb in my lap and rub her little pussy all over me for me to realize that there was nothing else I wanted to do in this world than take care of her.
Because while she said to pretend, it was obvious from the kiss and how she writhed and moaned in my lap, that she wanted me right back.
She sure as hell hadn’t pretended. Not the way I felt how hard her nipples were pressed against my chest. Or her little moan when we kissed.
It was the real deal because I never once heard about her having a boyfriend.
Not a high school crush or a college… no, she hadn’t gone to college.
Not a guy in Devil’s Ditch. I’d know because I’d have heard Mom or Lainey mention it.
Katie wanted my kisses? She wanted to make herself come on my thigh? She wanted to moan and whimper when I touched her?
Good, because I’d give her anything she wanted.
In fact, I had a good feeling I knew exactly what she needed.
Was this an issue that she was my little sister’s best friend? I’d thought it was, but no longer. Maybe for Lainey, but she’d have to get over it. I was done keeping my distance from Katie Camden.
I cut through the crowd, recognizing a number of familiar faces.
Some amused, mostly men. Some stunned, all women.
I didn’t pay them any attention. When I got outside, the music and noise of the bar faded away.
I walked directly to my pickup with Katie over my shoulder, only putting her down after I opened the passenger door, flung a pair of leather work gloves out of the way, and set her on the seat.
The parking lot was full, but there were only a few people heading in or out. It was well lit, but my truck was tucked back from the street.
“You okay, kitten?” I asked.
I needed to know before this went any further.
“I’m okay. Thanks for your help.” She nodded, then glanced around. “Bray, I have to go back to work.”
I shook my head. “Not happening. Not with that fucker still in there.”
Although he would be lucky if his friends scraped him off the dirty floor.
Instead of looking thankful, she looked worried. “I have to finish my shift.”
Pulling my cell from my pocket, I texted Kyle. He owned the bar. He’d gone to school with Colt, but we were friends. His parents owned a ranch south of town near ours.
“What are you doing?”
“Letting your boss know what happened and that you’re not coming back.”
I didn’t mean tonight, I meant forever.
She grabbed my wrist. “Bray, no. Don’t tell him. I need–”
I flicked my gaze from my phone to her, saw the panic in her eyes. “What?”
“I need the money,” she said, glancing away. “It’s Friday night. I can’t… can’t miss the tips.”
She needed money. The extra she got from a crowded weekend night’s tips. From The Roadside. Shit.
“He’ll pay you,” I told her. “Plus tips. This is his fault. He shoulda had a bouncer watching you. Where the fuck were they?”
“It’s the way it is,” she said with a shrug.
It’s the way it is? That meant–
My eyes narrowed. “This has happened to you before?”
I saw red, imagining all the times she’d had shitty men pawing all over her and telling her how they were going to fuck her.
She glanced away, then took a deep breath. Her hands fidgeted in her lap. “Not like this guy. He… he scared me.” Her voice was soft and sweet. So pure, but tainted by that fucker.
With her sitting sideways on the passenger seat, I stepped close, nudging her knees apart for me to settle in close.
“That won’t happen again.”
I wanted to tell her that was because she was mine, but she’d had enough for one night.
I couldn’t resist touching her though, so I stroked my hand through her hair. Felt how silky soft it was. The lot lights weren’t bright, but I could clearly see her. It was as if I was looking at her for the first time.
I knew her by heart, but now? I saw the freckles on her nose. The upward tilt of her top lip. Her big eyes. The pretty flush to her cheeks. She wasn’t just Lainey’s friend any longer.
No. Katie Camden was my girl. My kitten.
There was no going back for me. Ten minutes ago, I walked into The Roadside single. Now, I’d never have anyone else but her.
Leaning down, I brushed my lips to hers. It was a gentle kiss. Sweet, even, in comparison to the one we shared inside the bar. This was our real first kiss. When I knew what was going on and it wasn’t fake. The chemistry was so fucking real.
The air between us sizzled. Our breaths mingled.
I stepped closer, the height of the truck just right for her pussy to press against my dick through our jeans.
“Fuck,” I murmured, breathing in her soft scent.
“Bray–”
I’d get her to say my name like that, all soft and breathy, when there weren’t any clothes between us and we weren’t in a fucking parking lot.
She deserved more than a quick fuck right here.
I wouldn’t be much better than the guy who I knocked unconscious.
Besides, when I finally got her beneath me, I needed lots of time.
Hours. All fucking night. Good thing we had the rest of our lives.
“Come on, let’s get you to your truck.”
“I can–”
“You’re not walking by yourself across this parking lot,” I told her.
In fact, I practically growled it. Clearly, she’d taken care of herself for far too long.
She’d lived with her grandmother growing up, but the older woman had died over a year ago.
Kitten didn’t have any other family that I knew of, which meant she had no expectation of anyone helping her out. She’d said, Play along. Please, Bray.
She’d had to beg me to help her because I’d been a familiar face in the crowd. Now, she didn’t expect me to walk her to her vehicle. At midnight.
She looked around a little bewildered. Hopefully, it was because of the kiss. “I… I don’t have my keys. Or my purse.”
Fuck, she was right. Giving her legs a little push, I had her swing into the passenger seat. “Sit here. I’ll go get them.”
“But–”
I shut the door and clicked the locks before she could protest more.
I checked in with Kyle directly, told him what I put in the text and that Kitten quit. There was no way in hell my girl was working in this place ever again. He understood, or at least understood the look in my eye and the seriousness of my tone, then directed me to the back to get Kitten’s things.
I was outside and to my truck quick enough and handed her the small bag.
“Thanks,” she sighed.
Grabbing her hips, I helped her down, then took her hand and walked her to her truck. I liked the feel of her palm against mine. While she was fairly tall for a woman, I had many inches on her being six-three. But those curves… fuck. I wanted to do more than lace my fingers with hers.
After she pulled out her keys and unlocked the vehicle, I opened the driver’s door for her.
She climbed in, tossed her bag on the other seat.
The truck had seen better days and I worried that it was safe.
Minimal airbags, only two-wheel drive. I’d have my brother Shep, who was a mechanic, check it out and make sure it was safe until I got her something more suited for Montana… and my girl.
I wanted to kick my own ass for letting her deal with all this on her own.
I had one hand on the open door as I leaned down. “I’ll follow you home.”
“I don’t want to be a bother, Bray,” she countered quickly, shaking her head. “You’ve done enough and your friends are waiting for you.”
“I wasn’t asking.” I gave her a look because she was not a bother. Besides, since I carried Kitten out over my shoulder, Ace and Cody sure as fuck weren’t expecting me back.
“I’ll follow you to your driveway.” Her house on the Camden ranch was set back from the road, but I’d see her taillights the whole way, then the house lights when she went inside.
I’d compromise that much. I didn’t want to leave her.
I wanted to take her to her bed and show her all the ways we were perfect for each other and she was mine.
But she’d had enough for tonight. I wasn’t claiming her like this. “Call me if you need me. Promise.”
Her forehead crinkled with confusion. “Call you? I don’t think that man’s going to–”
“For whatever,” I said, cutting her off. “You call me.”
She studied me, probably wondering if I was actually serious, but was smart enough to know I wasn’t going to back down on this. “Okay.”
“Good girl.”