Chapter Twelve
Alicia left for work after she gave Callum a stern lecture to keep an eye on Grace.
She and Callum were alone. She retreated to her bedroom.
Sherlock paced along the edge of her bed until he found the perfect place to curl up and await the attention he deserved.
Grace sidled next to him, absentmindedly stroking his coat.
“I’m sorry Dominic knows where you live now. ”
He purred as if to soothe away her worries.
“What do you think about Callum?”
Sherlock continued to purr.
“I wish I knew what that meant. You’ve always got a good read on people.”
Actually, Sherlock had made his opinion known. He never paid attention to new people unless he either hated them or trusted them. Rubbing his face on Callum’s boots and kneading his thighs was a clear approval. That said a lot for Callum. Sherlock was a harsh judge of character.
She inhaled and held it until she decided to pack her belongings in preparation for their likely departure. At least choosing when to pack was within her control.
There weren’t many items to shove into her backpack. Her belongings had been left at the rental cabin after she’d fled from the grocery store. Meaning she only had her computer, which was always with her, and a few days’ worth of clothes and toiletries Alicia had recently purchased for Grace.
But an hour later, she still hadn’t packed.
Her body physically ached. The idea of shoving her belongings into her backpack—a task that she’d easily done dozens of times over the years—exhausted her to the point of tears.
For the first time, Grace felt she couldn’t keep up the lifestyle she’d committed to, and that made her tired and angry.
Callum knocked on her door.
She pinched her eyes closed. Fatigue weighed over her. The vulnerability was infuriating. And that made her eyes burn.
“Give me a second.” She pulled herself together, opened the door, and returned to her bed. “How’s it going? Any news?”
Callum leaned against the doorjamb. His gaze skimmed over the beautifully decorated room. Her hairbrush lay on the doily on top of the dresser that Grace barely used. She didn’t have enough clothes to warrant more than the top drawer. “Everything okay?”
“Nothing’s okay. That’s why you’re here, remember?”
He stepped inside her bedroom and walked to the bookshelf. This time, he ignored the books and focused on a porcelain figurine of a carousel. “My mom used to collect these when I was little. I don’t know what happened to them. They probably disappeared in the divorce.”
He hadn’t been young when that happened, but she didn’t recall the figurines. “You were in our house way more than I was in yours.”
He meandered to the corner of her bed and sat down. “Do you remember that time you came over and the three of us were in the basement, lights out, playing with a Ouija board?”
She hadn’t thought about that in years and laughed. “The things you two made it say. I was scared out of my mind for weeks.”
His laughter rumbled. “Sorry about that.”
“I think that was one of the last times I was in your basement with the lights off.”
He tilted his head and gave her a funny look. “You were there the time everyone was playing spin the bottle. You took off like a bat out of hell.”
A furious blush caught fire on her cheeks and flamed down her neck. Grace dangled her legs off the side of her bed and lay back so that she didn’t have to look at him. “Well, yeah. You two were seniors. I was a freshman.”
“Half of the hockey team was there. Definitely more than just seniors.”
“You say that like it would have been a reason to stay.” Their high school was on the smaller side.
Everyone knew everyone. Most of her friends knew she worshipped the ground Callum walked on and would have done just about anything to make sure her bottle spin landed on him.
“Well, I wasn’t going to have my first kiss be from some random guy in your basement. ”
Callum scooted closer, dangled his legs, and lay back. “First kiss, huh?”
“I was shy.” She elbowed him.
He jabbed back, softer than she had. “Ha. You are the farthest thing from shy.”
Grace rolled her eyes. “Either way, Hayden probably didn’t want his kid sister there.”
“Bet he didn’t,” Callum muttered, then his lips quirked. “Guess you missed out. I could have been your first kiss.”
“You would have made a puking, gagging noise if my bottle had landed on you. That’s how that would have gone.”
He laughed but didn’t disagree. “I was young and dumb.”
“I was younger.” That had always been part of the problem in catching his attention.
“But,” he said, voice lifting like a tease. “Do you remember the night you met up with us in New York City with your friends?”
Of course she did. They’d all been in college and met up for a long weekend. It had been fun…until it wasn’t. The typical drama where she thought maybe Callum had noticed her, and then he had absolutely not. “Sure.”
“I thought I was going to kiss you that night.”
Her jaw fell open. “You absolutely did not. What are you talking about?”
“I mean, Hayden would’ve killed me—”
“You’re making stuff up.”
He crossed a hand over his chest. “Swear I’m not. I was a little drunk. You were mostly ignoring me.”
“Ignoring you?” Was he out of his mind?
“Except, I think you chewed my ass out over something, and for a split second, I thought you were going to kiss me.”
She knew the exact moment he was talking about.
She also vividly remembered ending up in the bathroom, crying with her girlfriend, because she’d been so obvious, and he’d been the very definition of oblivious.
Grace could have literally been holding up a sign that begged him to take her home, and he wouldn’t have noticed.
Her heart hammered in her chest, and she whispered, “You wouldn’t have kissed me.”
He shook his head. “No. Because it felt like it was…” He held her eyes but lifted his shoulders. “A hate-kiss that would have turned into a hate-fuck, and we would have regretted it in the morning.”
She couldn’t breathe. He was the oblivious one. Why was he acting like that wasn’t true? “I’ve never hated you in my life.”
He searched her face, and she would have done anything if he just touched her. Not even a kiss if that wasn’t meant to be. But she was so starved for him that her body ached.
He let out a long breath and pushed off her bed. “I need to—”
She followed him. “Callum—”
He turned around, and she was right there. So very close to his chest that she could feel his warmth.
“Fuck it.” He yanked her to him and brought her mouth to his.
Every part of her went weak. He took her weight, holding her to his body, backing her until she fell onto the bed.
The warmth of his lips stole her breath, and the deep want she’d harbored for years ignited. Callum devoured her. He possessed her. The velvet slide of his tongue against hers lit a fire so deep and needy that her soul cried for more.
His hands threaded through her hair, and she couldn’t hold him close enough. Grace melted under the strength of his embrace, losing her breath and tasting the sweet cinnamon of his kiss.
Kissing Callum Hale made her head swim. This was what she’d been waiting for her entire life.
His mouth slowed, nipping and sucking, taking his time as if he understood how desperately she needed his mouth on hers.
Callum inched back. His knuckles caressed her cheek. He smoothed her loose hair away from her face. For a moment, panic washed over her. But that wasn’t regret in his golden-brown eyes. “That was the best bad decision of my life…”
She blinked, pressing against the mattress. “I don’t know what that means.”
He pulled her close and kissed her once more as if it would never happen again.
Grace knotted her hands in his shirt and demanded everything she’d always wanted. This could be it. A kiss not to be repeated. A moment they would never discuss.
Callum deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue past her lips, tangling with hers. His hand palmed her cheek and slid into her hair. Sizzling heat of arousal sparked in her blood, racing from her head to her toes, and spiraling deep in her core.
His immense strength enveloped her in thick muscles and a demanding hold.
Her leg snaked up his thigh. Her pelvis tilted and her hips rocked, rubbing against him.
He held her, and it surpassed every dream she’d had about this.
Her fantasies had had nothing on reality as his rough hand moved under her shirt, up her back, and slid down to her ass, squeezing as if he’d needed to hold on to her forever.
His phone chirped.
They froze in her bed. His mouth stilled against hers. Their heavy breaths raced and teased their lips. She opened her eyes and fell into the deep desire burning in his. Callum wanted her. She could see it. She could feel it.
His phone chirped again. As though he hated to be interrupted, he brushed his thumb over her lip, then inched back to answer the call. “Yeah?”
He rolled onto his back. His fingers pinched the bridge of his nose, and his eyes stayed closed.
Grace pushed off the bed and smoothed her hands over her shirt and shorts. Her hard nipples pressed against her shirt, and, catching a quick glance in the mirror, her cheeks were painted pink with arousal. She needed to leave. She couldn’t face him right now.
He moved to the window and peeked out the drapes like she’d seen him do in the living room. He didn’t look out windows like a normal person, but always searched for lurking danger. That served as a reminder of why he was there. They had no business kissing. Even if it was the best kiss of her life.
She turned toward the door.
“Hey, I gotta go.” He tossed the phone onto the bed and snagged her hand. “Where are you going?” Callum sat on the bed and pulled Grace between his legs, locking his thighs around her, and fastened his hands to her waist. “Don’t run away from me.”
“I’m not.”