11. Chapter Eleven
Chapter Eleven
Griffin’s Beach Beckett
“ B eckett?” Shannon whispers into the darkness.
“Yeah?”
“Are you asleep?”
Beckett chuckles. “Obviously not if I’m answering you.”
“There’s been no word on Kiefer for weeks now.”
Turning to face her in the bed they’ve shared every night since he found her again, he rubs his hand along her jaw. The curtains don’t block out all of the outside light, and the small sliver from the bright moon shows her content smile at his loving caress.
“We’ll find him.”
“What if he finds out I’m here before then?”
“He’ll never make it past the front door.”
“I’m scared.”
His lips press to her forehead, and he knows just how much that admission bothers her. Shannon lives her life doing whatever she needs to in order to get by, and that requires a significant level of fearlessness to have survived this long.
“I’m not going to let him hurt you. As long as I’m around, he can’t touch you. I’ll die before I let that happen,” Beckett whispers.
“I’m scared of that, too.”
“What?”
She rubs her nose against his. “I’m scared he’ll hurt you.”
“I’ve been through things you’ll never know. I can handle anything a man like him can throw at me. Especially if it means ending this fear you live in. I never want you to be scared again.”
“After he’s taken care of… What does that mean? For us?”
This position feels more intimate than when they spoon at night as they sleep.
He’s waited for her to make any type of initiation when it comes to wanting more because he doesn’t actually know what she’s been through outside of the small amount she’s shared.
And they certainly haven’t approached the topic of what they are or aren’t.
“What do you want?”
“Oh, no you don’t. The last time I tried to verbalize what I wanted, I got rejected. You gotta be the first to say it.”
“I want you,” he whispers. “I’ve wanted you for longer than I should have.”
They continue to lie face-to-face, simply looking into each other’s eyes for a while. Both wear only T-shirts and boxers, and when her leg lifts to wrap over his hip, he knows he doesn’t have the strength to stop her if she wants more.
“Take me,” she whispers, her lips just a breath from his, their noses still touching.
“What do you want, Shannon?”
Gently grazing his lips with hers, it makes him yearn for more. It’s barely a kiss, and his tongue slides out to wet his lips as he waits.
“You,” Shannon says.
“For just tonight?”
“All the nights.”
That’s all Beckett needs to hear, and he wraps her up in his arms, pulling her body flush with his as he kisses her for real. A painfully desperate kiss of teeth clanging as he rubs her tongue with his own. It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough.
His erection presses painfully between them, and she shifts to rub herself against his cock. Their boxers continue to be a barrier between them, but it feels better than anything else ever has.
“Please don’t turn me down,” she begs. “I couldn’t take it. I need you like I need water. Sleeping next to you without touching you the way I crave has been killing me.”
If only you understood the pain I felt, Shan.
He slips his hand down her boxers and toys with the curly hair between her legs, smirking as she gasps against his mouth.
She’s wet and needy, and he wants to hear her moan before he takes her for the first time.
Almost as though it makes up for turning her down when she offered herself to him that last time.
“Yes,” she moans, her head tilting back to expose her throat. “Yes, please, yes.”
Kissing her neck, he moans when she reaches down to stroke him, both of them unrelenting as they get their first taste of being together.
“Slow down,” he murmurs against her skin when she grips him harder and increases her pace.
Giggling, she does as requested, but her giggles quickly change back into moans. Her hips rock against his hand, and her heels dig into his ass as she begins to pant before she comes. His fingers are slick with her juices, and he doesn’t think he’ll last long inside her.
It’s a dream come true to finally be with Shannon, and he slowly strips her out of her T-shirt and shorts before moving to match her.
Guiding her onto her back, he teases her by rubbing himself between her legs, loving the feel of her swollen lips around his tip.
She jolts when he rubs it against her clit, and he can’t help but smirk.
Fully naked and willing beneath him, he gazes over her body before sucking a hard nipple into his mouth as he caresses the other tit. Her moaning stops as his name comes from between her lips, and his heart sinks.
“Yeah?” Beckett shifts to look into her eyes, and he swallows as her body trembles beneath him. “We can stop.”
“No,” Shannon says and shakes her head. “It’s just…”
He cups her face and refuses to break eye contact. “Whatever it is, you can tell me.”
“I’m not proud of my past, okay?”
“That doesn’t bother me.”
It’s a lie. Her past does bother him, but not for the reason she’d think. It bothers him because she didn’t have to go through all of this. All she had to do was talk to his parents, and word would have gotten to him. He would’ve set her up and taken care of her.
“It should. It bothers me, and it’s been a really long time since I’ve been with someone who cares about more than just getting off. At least, I hope that’s what this is.”
He strokes her cheek with his thumb. “That’s what this is. But what are you trying to say, Shan?”
“I’ve been fucked. Many times. But I’ve never had anyone make love to me before.”
“You’re in luck,” he says and gently touches his lips to hers for a quick peck. “That’s kind of my specialty.”
A relieved sigh escapes her, and she kisses him. “I’m putty in your hands, Beckett Cohen.”
“They’re very capable hands, I assure you.”
Shifting to press against her entrance, he kisses her neck and slowly enters her. His goal is to let her feel every inch of him, and when he looks at her, she stares at him in amazement.
That’s the moment it all changes for Beckett. This no longer is about him or what he wants. It’s about Shannon and showing her what it means to be in the arms of someone who loves her. This is about her and only her right now.
Sliding his arms under hers, he rests his forearms on either side of her as he rubs their bodies together.
While his hips thrust in long, even strokes, he keeps tabs on her body.
He looks for any sign she does or doesn’t like something to know when and how to change things up.
This needs to be the best sex she’s ever had.
“Oh, Beckett,” she moans when he rotates his hips. “That feels so good.”
He moves and hooks an arm under her leg, lifting it up to give himself access to even more of her. His right leg slides up to help brace him as his pelvis rubs her clit with every thrust.
She feels so damn good, and it takes every ounce of willpower he has to hold back his release. Coming before her tonight is not an option, and he says a silent prayer when she claws at his arms.
“Oh!” she cries out as her pussy vibrates around him. Her back arches, causing her head to disappear into the pillows, and she almost screams. “Oh, yes!”
Picking up his speed, Beckett realizes a second too late that he never grabbed any protection. Not until he cries out, “Ah!” His body makes small thrusts as he fills her and follows it with, “Shit.”
“What?” Shannon asks, her back laying flat on the bed again. “That was amazing.”
Resting his head on her chest, he remains where he is as he tries to explain his mistake. He hopes she won’t freak out.
“I didn’t grab anything. I got caught up, and you felt too damn good. There wasn’t time to pull out, either.”
Beckett slides out of her and dares to look at her as he lies next to her on the full-sized bed. She doesn’t look horrified, which feels like a win if nothing else.
Laying her head on his chest, she cuddles against him. “I’m covered. I have an implant. I also always use condoms, and I get tested every month at the free clinic.”
“Always… except with me.”
“You’re the only person I haven’t used one with.”
“I’m the first?”
Giggling, she nods. “In more ways than one.”
“Do explain,” he coaxes.
He runs his fingers through her hair, enjoying the feeling of their bare skin on each other. It feels like the start of the rest of his life, and he could stay here like this forever.
“You’re the first guy I haven’t had to fake an orgasm with. No one has ever really cared enough to make me enjoy it before.”
“Well, that’s a shame for them because you look pretty damn sexy when you come.”
Shannon tilts her head up to look into his eyes again. “Is this the real thing?”
“What do you mean?”
“Us. Are we a… I don’t know if I should call us a couple considering the weird circumstances, but we’re really going to try this, right? This wasn’t just about getting into my pants? Or, I suppose, into your boxers?”
The vulnerability makes him love her even more. “I want it all with you. It’s why it hurt when I thought you only wanted to be with me because you felt like you had to. This means more to me than you know, Shannon.”
“It does?”
“No, actually that was a lie,” Beckett whispers. “It means everything.”
She wraps her arms around his neck and clings to him. He’s pretty sure no one has ever said anything close to that to her before. For far too long, sex was nothing but a transaction when it should have been passionate. It’s time she learns there’s more to sex than just the physical act.
“I want to believe that.”
“Believe it,” he says. “Now, I won’t lie and say there are times I won’t want it quick and dirty, but I promise, you will always get off. One way or another.”
Shannon laughs, easing the tension in her shoulders. “Such a gentleman.”
“Have you ever known me any other way?”
“No, I guess not. I mean, I got off twice already. I shouldn’t surprise me that you’d make that kind of commitment.”
Pounding on his apartment door has her clinging to him and burying her head against his neck. He turns his head to avoid shouting into her ear and calls out, “Go away! We’re busy!”
“It’s me,” Brock calls. “We need to talk. Now.”
Knowing this has to do with the asshole after his girl, Beckett turns back to Shannon. “I gotta go talk to Brock. I’ll be right back.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
Climbing out of bed, he slips on his boxers and a pair of sweatpants before walking into the hallway barefoot. Brock gives a quick once over before smirking and saying, “Nice.”
“What’s going on?”
He glances at the door. “Let’s talk in my apartment.”
They walk away, and the moment the door closes, he feels claustrophobic. There’s barely enough room for a bed with all of the equipment and extra tables in the room. The air even feels warmer and thicker than the hallway.
Why the hell doesn’t he have a bigger room? Or an office for all this shit?
“We got a problem.”
“Did you find him?”
Brock nods and pulls up a picture of him. “Yeah, I did.”
“Okay, let’s get go kill this—”
“We can’t.”
The stabbing feeling of betrayal has Beckett looking at him like an enemy rather than an ally. “Excuse me?”
It seems to pain Brock, but he explains what he learned after talking to his father-in-law. As Beckett hears what he has to say, he stares in shock. This asshole is known in town but no one knows him at the same time. And he’s powerful.
“We can’t touch him, man.”
“The fuck we can’t!”
“He’s untouchable. He has shit on everyone. Probably us, too. If we target him, he’s going to unleash his fury against us. We’d be lucky if we’re not all locked up in prison.”
Anger momentarily silences him as he stares at the man telling him they can’t save his girl. The girl he just got back into his life and finally into his bed.
“It’s not that I don’t want to,” Brock says. “But if we’re all locked up behind bars, we can’t protect her. She’d be a target without any barriers preventing him from hurting her.”
That calms Beckett a bit, but he shakes his head. “He’ll take her again if we don’t stop him. I know he will, and I can’t just let that happen. No fucking way.”
“Killing him will make our problems worse, not better. Trust me, others have thought about it.”
“How the fuck does that work? Death stops everything.”
“He has contingency plans to protect him against it. Powerful people are brought down by him and his blackmail. I have an idea, but we have to get everyone else onboard with it.”
He shakes his head, realizing this is bigger than they originally thought. “No, we can’t. If the whole club goes into this, it’ll get too loud and messy. Tell me what you need done, and I’ll take care of it. It’s my girl, so it’s my problem.”
Referencing Shannon as his girl makes Brock’s eyebrows shoot up. “You can’t.”
“The hell I can’t. Look—”
“I need to get into his computers. At his house. I need to get into his network to find something damning enough to use as mutual destruction. We can’t take him out, but we can fight fire with fire. If I can get it. If there’s nothing, I can try and take his files. Take away his power altogether.”
He sighs and rubs his hand over his face. Beckett doesn’t have the skills to do this, and he knows it. “You have to get into the house?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait, you said he works for your father-in-law.”
Narrowing his eyes, Brock stares hard at him. “Yeah.”
“Will he be at that fundraising party for some charity I keep seeing advertisements for all over town?”
“Probably. Why?”
“Because that’s the time to strike.”
“Doing this without the rest of the club—”
“I’m going with or without you. It’ll be easier with you, but if I have to snag his entire system and bring back here piece by piece, I will. This needs to fucking end, and we need to keep as many people safe as possible.”
The look of unease on Brock’s face doesn’t deter Beckett.
“It doesn’t feel right, but your plan won’t work.
He’s likely got a home network, and—You know what?
Never mind. I guess I’m going with you. But for the record, if this blows up in our faces, I’m going to tell you I told you so for the rest of our lives. ”
“Got it,” Beckett says and slips out of the room before Brock can change his mind.
“Is everything okay?” Shannon asks when he enters his apartment.
Stripping naked again, he climbs into bed, happy to find her still naked, too. “It’s going to be over soon, Shan. We found him, and Brock and I have a plan.”
“Really?”
“Really,” he whispers and kisses her as she guides him onto his back and climbs on top of him. “Oh, this is something I think I could get really used to.”
“Me, too.”