Fifteen
FIFTEEN
Greyson
“What are you doing here?”
The stunned look on Cierra’s face matched the disbelief in her tone. It was like she was looking at a ghost.
“You need a ride to work this morning, don’t you?”
That single question had her shaking her head as though attempting to rid it of unnecessary thoughts. “I… Oh my gosh, I completely forgot.”
I chuckled and stepped forward as she took two steps back and opened her door wider to allow me to come inside. “How could you forget? There’s no car outside.”
She glanced toward the driveway to confirm what she already knew was the case and closed the door. “Apparently, it’s not just situational awareness that you make me forget, Greyson. It’s everything. I think I had far too much fun with you this weekend that it slipped my mind.”
Narrowing my eyes playfully, I said, “I think you just want to blame me.”
Cierra stepped close, brought her hands up to either side of my neck, and pressed a kiss to my lips. That kiss quickly went from being a soft peck to so much more. Tongues were tasting, hands were roaming, and the sounds escaping from both of us were undeniable. It was like we hadn’t seen each other in months or years rather than a few hours. When we finally separated our mouths from one another, she looked up at me with hooded eyes. “Do you forgive me?”
My hands had gotten tangled in her hair at the base of her skull. I dragged my fingers through it to the ends of her strands. “I was never upset with you to begin with. Blame me or don’t. It makes no difference to me. Because even if you want me to be the one who’s at fault here, that just means that you’re so caught up in me when we’re together that you forget other, less important, things. I’m okay with that. Plus, if that’s the way you want to show your appreciation, I’d prefer to be the one to remember things like this for you.”
She smiled and gave me another peck on the lips. “Thank you for not only remembering about my car situations but also coming over here to take me to work. You’re the best.”
“I’m certainly trying to be that for you.” Cierra leaned her weight into me. “So, are we walking this morning, or do you want me to drive?”
Her head jerked back in surprise. “You’d… you’d walk me to school?”
I shrugged. “Sure. Why not? You said you like it, and since it’s nice today, it’d be a great day to do it.”
Cierra considered the options and glanced at the time. “I’m grateful you’re willing to do that, but then you’ll need to walk back on your own. Plus, I didn’t plan today’s outfit around having to walk to and from school. So, it’s better we drive.”
Instinct forced my eyes to sweep down over Cierra and the warm shade of green she was wearing. The long-sleeved dress with a high neckline cinched at her waist with a tie made of the same fabric as the rest of the dress, and it landed just an inch or two below her knees. She wore a pair of tan heels, a single decorative strap across the top of her feet, and her jewelry was minimal, with a pair of earrings and a bracelet. The only way I could think to describe the way she looked was soft, feminine, and breathtaking. It was perfect for spring, perfect for Cierra.
“I’m ready whenever you are, pretty lady.”
Pink tinged her cheeks, a shy smile appearing. “I just need about ten minutes to finish getting myself ready.”
I was in no rush. I’d stay here as long as she needed this morning, because I was glad to have any additional time with her that I could get. “Take all the time you need.”
Her features softened further, and she sent a look of such warmth my way. Following a few beats of silence, she said, “Make yourself at home. I’ll be right back.”
Cierra took off to finish getting herself ready. And roughly fifteen minutes later, I was behind the wheel with Cierra sitting beside me as I drove her to work. Though we’d been told her car should be ready by Tuesday, I had to admit I wouldn’t have been upset if it took longer. Getting to see her for just these few minutes in the morning was nice.
Not even two minutes after we left her house, we’d arrived at the school. Cierra directed me where to go that would be best for her. And when we came to a stop in front of the building, I glanced over to see her staring at me. “What is it?”
Pressing her lips together to fight the smile, she shook her head. “Nothing. I’m just thinking how lucky I am to have met you.”
I reached over and cupped the side of her face, my thumb moving lightly across her cheekbone. “That goes both ways.”
She swallowed and nodded. “Thank you for the ride. It was such a lovely treat this morning to see you.”
I wanted to tell her that if she wanted to see me first thing in the morning all the time, the only thing she needed to do was ask. And whether that happened because I showed up at her door every day or because I woke up in bed beside her would all be her choice. “You’re welcome. I agree this was a great start to my morning, too.”
Cierra leaned across the console, the movement forcing my hand back into her hair. I kept it tangled in her locks as she pressed her lips to mine. Between the scent of her so close and the taste of her mouth first thing in the morning, the urge to drag her over the center console and into my lap was strong. With the way she kissed and the soft moan that escaped from her, my pants grew tight around my groin. It was a good thing I’d have a few minutes on the drive to work to get myself settled down.
Eventually, Cierra tore her mouth from mine. Her cheeks were flushed, her breathing a bit labored. “I should probably go.”
“Yeah. I’ll come back to pick you up at the end of the day.”
“I think I’m going to have to keep you around for a while, Greyson. I wasn’t even thinking about that, so I’m glad one of us is thinking straight.”
If only she knew what I’d been thinking about.
“I’m not going anywhere, so you won’t have to try too hard to make that happen,” I assured her. “But I’ll give you just one more kiss to make sure you don’t change your mind.”
Without waiting, I used my hand in her hair to urge her mouth toward mine again. Then I gave her a kiss that would hopefully have her thinking about me throughout her day.
When I pulled my mouth away, I clenched my fist in her hair and took in the sight of her swollen lips and flushed cheeks. Damn, she was gorgeous. “Have a good day, pretty lady.”
“You, too.” Her voice was barely a whisper.
Cierra grabbed her bag and got out. I didn’t pull away until she was safely inside the building. Then I drove myself to work, doing everything I could to rein in the excitement of my morning. It wasn’t easy to do, considering I could still taste her on my tongue and smell her perfume all around me.
When I walked into the training room, I immediately knew I was in for a discussion. It didn’t matter that Jake and Kane looked like they’d just spent an hour sparring with one another or that Brix hadn’t gotten much sleep last night. Huck was standing there with a smirk on his face, like he already had insider information on how my weekend had gone.
I casually strolled in. “Hey, guys. Good weekend?”
“Yeah,” Brix and Kane said.
At the same time, Jake answered, “Great weekend.”
I nodded, my eyes sliding to Huck’s. “What about you? How was your weekend?”
Maybe I could keep it to myself just a touch longer. I shrugged. “It was good.”
“Really? Just good. Considering the way it started, I was expecting something more than just good.”
My brows lifted. “How it started?”
He squinted his eyes at me, but it was Kane who declared, “Did you forget about being sprawled on this mat with that woman on top of you, kissing you, on Friday evening? Or did the four of us make it all up in our heads?”
Right.
I should have known better than to think they’d have forgotten something like that. “Fine. I had a great weekend.”
“Great? How great?” Brix pressed.
I inhaled deeply as my mind drifted to thoughts of everything that had happened just this morning and yesterday with Cierra. I hadn’t even made it as far back as Friday and Saturday, when my friends must have gotten all the answers they needed.
“He’s done for,” Jake muttered. “Gone. Completely gone for her. How long did it take? A week?”
I glared at him. “Like it was any different for you.”
“So, it’s true, then?” Huck asked, stepping forward. “You and Cierra are the real deal?”
Nodding, I confirmed, “Yes. I’m happy to report I finally understand the reason all of you wish the weekend was a little bit longer. We had fun getting to spend some time with each other outside of this setting. It was nice, and I hope I’m not getting ahead of myself, but I really think this woman is the one.”
That statement was met with a round of grins and nods of acknowledgement. “Welcome to the club, Grey. It only gets better from here.”
The genuine happiness was evident in Huck’s tone. He meant every word he said. I was just about to thank him for that when Kane said, “And count your blessings. At least you’re getting into this without the terror the rest of us had to endure. You’ll be the first of us to have it be smooth sailing.”
“Um, not exactly,” I revealed.
In an instant, the air in the room changed. The tension was thick, and where satisfied and happy faces existed only moments before, they had now been replaced by concern and trepidation. “What do you mean?”
I sighed. “Cierra didn’t just come in for self-defense lessons because she enjoys learning.”
“Fuck,” Jake hissed. “What’s going on?”
It likely seemed strange that my mouth curved into a smile, but I couldn’t help feeling a sense of pride wash over me at the thought of what Cierra had done. “Well, years ago, Cierra saved a woman’s life when she stepped in as that woman was being stabbed near to death. Long story short, the man responsible was arrested, charged, and sent to prison, a big part of that being possible because of Cierra’s willingness to help the police while the victim was in the hospital recovering. She also testified at the trial. Unfortunately, this guy believed Cierra was responsible for his misfortune. She learned just a couple of weeks ago that he was being released early, and it spooked her. So, that’s why she came in. I only found out about it, because on Saturday morning, she woke to find her tires had been slashed.”
“Are you kidding me? This guy wants revenge against the woman who saved someone else’s life?”
My shoulders rose to my ears. “I don’t think he sees it that way. A guy like that doesn’t look at a woman like Cierra like the hero she is. He looks at her like she’s the villain in his story.”
“So, he was the one who slashed her tires? He knows where she lives?”
Shaking my head, feeling the frustration over that creep in, I admitted, “We don’t know.” I went on to tell them about a couple of her neighbors experiencing the same with their tires, the police being called, the lack of security footage, and the security system I’d installed at Cierra’s place on Saturday morning.
“In the instances we’ve seen her here, she’s always been pleasant. Upbeat, even. Maybe she was just good at hiding it all, but now that you know what drove her to come in for the lessons, how does she seem? Is she doing okay?”
Despite the awful threat surrounding her, despite knowing there was likely to be some drama that would swirl around all of us over the next couple of days and weeks until we got a handle on the situation, it was reassuring to know these guys were concerned about all aspects of the situation. It wasn’t just about catching a bad guy, solving a case, or seeking to right the wrong against an innocent person. They cared about what happened along the way, about how the people involved were handling it. And even if they didn’t know her that well, I liked knowing that my friends cared enough about the new woman in my life—maybe more so because of what they believed she meant to me—that they took the time to ask about how this was affecting her.
“Cierra’s worried about what this guy could do to her, of course, but she’s more concerned about the possibility of him coming into the school and harming the children. So, before the first class today, I’m going to go talk to Forrest and Ty about what they can do on that front. And I think I might enlist the help of Leo, Jax, or whoever is available to look into this Richard Lynch guy.”
Huck walked up and clapped me on the shoulder. “You were there every step of the way for me when Josie was going through it. All of you were. And you did what you could for Jake, Kane, and Brix whenever they were dealing with something in their own situations. I think I speak for all of us when I say that if there is anything you need through this, anything Cierra needs, you can count on us to do the same for you.”
My eyes scanned the men standing around the room with me. It was evident that none of them disagreed with a word Huck had just said. If I needed them, if Cierra did, they’d be there for us in a heartbeat.
And if the way it was impacting me to know I had their support like this was anything like it had been for them when I was able to help them through their most trying times, I couldn’t say I wasn’t proud. Of myself for being the kind of man who could give that to my friends, yes. But more for putting myself in the company of such great men. Far too many people weren’t that lucky.
I hadn’t been lying when I told Cierra that I thought I had a great life as it was. It was because I had people like my family and the men standing in this room with me, willing to go to battle when I needed them.
I inclined my head with appreciation. “Thank you. Let’s hope things don’t get to the point where anything crazy happens. But if it does, I’m grateful for the support.”
“Whatever you need, Grey. Just let us know.”
“I will. Before this next class comes in, I should probably head down to the office to talk to Forrest, Ty, Jax, and Leo. I’d rather be proactive in this scenario, and hopefully we’ll be able to avoid a big mess.”
Nods of approval surrounded me.
Feeling an overwhelming sense of determination, I strode out of the training room and toward the office. With any luck, I’d be in the club the guys had mentioned, with a woman I adored, without things having to get too terrifying.