Chapter 2 #2
He waggled his dark brows suggestively. “I wouldn’t say no to that kind of cuddle comfort.” A sly smile pulled at his lips as he stared at my bare chest. “You know that firsthand.”
I did know that.
Not recently, though. I was still attracted to West and wanted him, but the idea of following through felt empty, almost like something—or someone—was missing and it wouldn’t be right.
“Whatever. I need to shower, and you need to take care of that situation.” West chuckled, nodding at the outline of my hard cock beneath my shorts. “And shower that stink off you before it permeates the fucking paint. We have a meeting with Brandon in an hour.”
I twisted to see the clock on the microwave, cursing. Damn, West was right. If I wanted to make the meeting with our boss without a hard-on and smelling like garbage, I needed to hurry.
Walking through the kitchen, I swiped my dirty shirt off the floor mid-stride and went to my room, heading straight for the shower.
Under the warm spray, I slapped a palm to the tile wall and wrapped the other around my stiff cock, squeezing until my hiss sounded over the streaming water.
Remembering Juno in those tiny shorts that made her ass and thighs look fucking squeezable and that top that had her full tits spilling out had my hand pumping faster.
A dirty fantasy played out, of me pinning her to the wall with a hand around her throat while the other stripped her naked.
I would take my time with her, teasing her to the breaking point like she had me these last few months before hiking her leg over my hip, giving me the perfect angle to slam into her warm pussy.
Eyes sealed shut, I thrust into my fist, imagining it was her tight cunt squeezing me to death, not wanting me to ever pull out.
That image faded to the three of us on the bed, me taking her from behind while West stuffed his long cock down her throat, entranced by the way mine disappeared inside her.
We’d watch each other, both of us taking her hard and fast, her muffled screams piercing the air with every soul-shaking orgasm we wrung from her as we chased our own.
Peeling my lids open, I gazed at my dick, fantasizing a different scene of West taking Juno hard on my bed with me right behind him, fucking him into her.
“Fuck,” I grunted, slamming a fist against the tile hard as a violent orgasm raced through me.
Both knees shook and my thigh muscles spasmed, threatening to make my legs give out under me.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I repeated as I thrust into my hand, wringing out every drop of cum and watching the evidence of my obsession swirl down the drain.
So I found her sexy as hell. That meant nothing. Juno Jones was trouble, I just knew it, and there was no way in hell I’d let my defenses down around her long enough to see those fantasies come to life.
Forty minutes later, I no longer smelled like I’d swum in a dumpster full of rotten fish and piss, and I’d relieved enough of the earlier tension that I wasn’t a walking hard-on, which would’ve made the coming meeting awkward as hell.
After locking up the cabin, I leapt down the front porch steps, eager to find out what this impromptu meeting was all about.
In stride, West and I walked along the main road that cut between the row of cabins, heading toward the building where Brandon held all his meetings since his office was tiny and he shared it with Carl.
As we walked past Miles, Aiden, and Aspen’s place, the former SEAL raised a hand in greeting, and I returned the gesture with a nod. Not that he noticed, as his focus was already back on Aiden and Aspen, laughing about something while they rocked back and forth on their front porch swing.
“Careful there,” West murmured with that knowing smirk of his that made dimples pop in both cheeks. “Keep watching them with that longing look in your eyes and people will think you’re jealous of their little family.”
A huff escaped, sounding more like a scoff, as I jerked my attention to the opposite side of the street, forcing myself to look away from the idyllic scene.
My heart squeezed painfully at yet another reminder of the type of relationship I didn’t have now or ever before.
Well, except Mattie, but she was my baby sister and didn’t count.
And West, but what we had didn’t fill that family need that had grown over the last few months.
Sure, everyone here in our community was the family I’d never had in the way of love and support, but I wouldn’t admit how much I had wanted a family of my own, a solid unit that was mine to protect and I could depend on in return.
That need made me feel weak, to want a committed relationship with someone who accepted me and stood by my side.
West was my best friend, and I could count on him always, but there was still something missing there that no amount of support, love, or fucking him could manifest.
I cleared my throat. “I’m not jealous of them. Just watching to make sure everyone is good.”
“Right,” West drawled as he marched up the steps to the meeting room ahead of me.
Opening the door, he walked in first, then spun around with a mischievous grin, which had me groaning in return. With a hard push, the door swung fast toward my face. I slapped a hand to the center of the flimsy wood right before it could smash my nose.
“Stop being a fucking toddler,” I snarled, pushing it open so hard that he stumbled back to keep the edge from clipping his side.
“Fucking make me,” he joked with a middle finger raised high in the air, taunting me to finish what he’d started.
I knew what he was doing, and I hated to admit that it was working. West noticed everything about those around him, and this was his immature way of cheering me up—distracting me by being a brat, which made me want to dominate him, naked, like I had in the past.
A low growl vibrated in my chest as I stormed into the meeting room, my only focus on West, determined to put the sassy fucker in his place.
Passion-filled heat slithered through my veins as I pictured slamming him against the wall and reminding him exactly who the fuck he was taunting.
He wouldn’t walk right for days after I was through with him, and he would love every fucking second of it like he had before.
“Fucking hell.”
Chest heaving from the building frustration, I turned a death glare at the man following me into the meeting room, just now realizing he had been right behind me.
The former SEAL just glared right back, not giving two shits about my foul mood, as he passed. “You two need to sort your shit out.”
“What shit?” I grunted, working hard to slow my breathing.
Hudson huffed an incredulous laugh, like I was the idiot missing something.
“Between the two of you, plus you and Juno, the constant fucking sexual tension around you three is annoying and distracting. Hell, Calista makes a joke about it when I come home worked up, knowing exactly who I’d met with. ”
I shook my head. “Juno and me, sexual tension? I don’t think so. We’re more likely to strangle each other than fuck it out.”
I swallowed hard, knowing those words were a lie as I turned to find a chair far away from West’s antics and froze, finding a pair of big aqua eyes glaring at me from the doorway.
My narrowed-eyed gaze slid to West, whose loose fist hovering over his lips did nothing to conceal the mischievous grin.
“What are you doing here?” I grumbled like the asshole I was.
Entering the space after Juno, Brandon rubbed his temples. “Langston,” he sighed, like I was trying his patience. “Stop being an asshole for two seconds. I asked her to be here for this.”
My gaze cut to Juno, who shot a smile over her shoulder at Brandon only for it to disappear when she noticed me watching her.
“And, West,” he continued, “stop fucking instigating his foul mood, because then we all have to deal with the result.”
“I think that’s just his perpetual mood. Grumpy asshole with a chip on his shoulder,” Juno said under her breath as she found her seat, setting the laptop she went nowhere without on top of the table in front of her.
“I’d rather be that than….” Fuck.
I adjusted my backward black Golden Knights cap in frustration.
I couldn’t think of a damn thing negative to say about her, because as much as I didn’t trust Juno and knew she was trouble, the woman had no flaws.
From the way the loose curls framed her face to the unique color of her eyes, that little nose that fit her other petite features, and those fucking suckable, kissable lips.
Lips I wanted everywhere.
“Care to finish that statement for the class?” West questioned, grabbing a chair with his good hand and twisting it around to plop down into the seat backward.
I flipped him off and jerked a chair out, praying it didn’t break as I carefully sat.
At six foot three with a solid-muscle frame that came from a lot of hard work in and out of the gym, I’d broken a few cheap chairs just by sitting in them.
It hadn’t happened only to me either. Miles and Liam both had chair legs fold out from beneath them in the past, so I tried not to let it bother me too much.
Gripping the sides of my hat with both hands, I twisted it back and forth while glaring at my best friend.
Instead of responding to his comment, since I had none, I rolled my eyes and crossed my inked arms over my chest. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Juno studying me, gaze locked on the word ARMY stretched across my gray T-shirt.
A single corner of my lips twitched upward.
Maybe Miss Trouble wasn’t so turned off by my asshole personality after all, or at the very least she liked what she saw physically.
If I trusted her more, we could fuck out the simmering aggression between us, possibly curing the rolling tension that hadn’t faded since she stumbled into my life.
Our gazes clashed, and a spark of thrill raced through my veins as we stared at each other. It was then that I saw a glimmer of what West mentioned earlier. I didn’t see deception or malicious intent behind her gorgeous eyes, rather sadness mixed with fear and reservation.
Blinking her long black lashes, she jerked her attention to West, who instantly softened, a slow, shy smile curling his lips, which he knew was sexy as hell. He was upping his game, popping the dimples at her.
Brow furrowed, she studied his injured hand, resting on the table, before reaching across the worn surface to take it in hers.
“How’s your hand healing?” Chewing on her lower lip, she carefully brushed the tips of her fingers along the soft cast. “I have nightmares from that day.” Her throat worked with a hard swallow, skin paling.
“Remembering how much pain you were in and that there was nothing I could do about it but hold you.”
All the annoyance and frustration from earlier drained away. My arms went slack at my sides as I studied each gentle stroke along his cast. Hearing her mention that day, how it affected her, was like a punch to the gut with a dull sword. I wasn’t there for either of them like I should’ve been.
It happened weeks ago. West, our company’s resident fixer of anything with an engine, was working on the helicopter when something in the engine shifted, smashing his hand and fingers.
I wasn’t there to offer my medic training help, but Memphis, Baylee’s new guy, had been an EMT back in Orlando and handled the situation, maybe even better than I could have.
Juno’s resulting trauma from the accident was from holding him as he screamed between going in and out of consciousness.
West’s was a memory of the intense pain, which had caused night terrors.
Then there was mine, even though I wasn’t there to witness it all or experience the debilitating pain.
My distress came from being out on a run for The Nest’s doctor instead of with my best friend when he needed me most. I should’ve been there for him, but I wasn’t, and it ate me fucking alive every time I thought about it.
About my friend in pain while I was out on the fucking boat without a damn care in the world.
“Langston,” Hudson said, voice loud and commanding, like it wasn’t the first time he’d said my name.
Fixing a blank expression on my face to hide my inner turmoil, I turned his way, arching a single dark brow.
“Did you hear anything Brandon just said?”
I slid my gaze to my boss, instantly grimacing at his annoyed expression that was aimed at me. Clearing my throat, I shifted in the seat uncomfortably. “You were saying, boss?”
He held me hostage with his glare for a few more moments before repeating what I had missed, too lost in my own thoughts.
“I was telling everyone about the new feature Juno created for the client booking system, then asked if you would sit down with her tomorrow to go over the details she needs for the fishing and boating options.” He studied me and then her with a weary expression. “Without it ending in a yelling match.”
“I don’t yell at women,” I said through gritted teeth. “Any man who does deserves to be eating through a straw the rest of his life.”
Juno looked shocked by my response, eyes wide and lips parted.
Hmm, that was interesting.
Interesting and concerning.
Well, concerning for whoever made my statement seem shocking to her.
Studying Juno while she explained the new addition to the program, I wondered if maybe it was time to do more than just watch her to uncover her secretive past. Maybe West was spot-on when he said she’d been hurt and was running from someone rather than from trouble that might follow her here to Anchor Bay and put my family at risk.
Absentmindedly, I traced the many scars decorating my knuckles while plotting how I could learn more about Juno Jones and uncover her darkest secrets without letting my guard down and falling for the mysterious, yet amazing and beautiful woman.
How hard could that be?