Chapter 23 #2
"What’s not funny?"
She pushes out her tongue with her cheek; her hip jutting out, and she puts her arms across her chest. "The thing you just said about parents. That’s not funny.
Some of us were raised without our parents.
That’s literally why I am doing all of this.
I must save my Aunt Minnie, her bungalow, and the children’s shelter where my mother dropped me off when I was a little kid. "
For a second, I am so taken aback by her words that I find myself speechless. "You didn’t know your parents?"
"I didn’t say that. My mom is still around, somewhere.
But she never knew who my father was, and she found being a parent pretty stressful, from what I’ve heard.
She had some kind of psychiatric emergency where she couldn’t get ahold of her sister, my Aunt Minnie.
So she dropped me off at Hope House. The people there called my Aunt Minnie, who rushed to pick me up. I haven’t seen my mother since."
I screw my face up, unconsciously asking, "How did I not know this about you? This could be a real problem."
"You didn’t know because you didn’t ask. You didn’t ask anything about me. Basically, all you know is that I slept with your brother once and that my womb is fertile."
Damn, she has got me there. I pause, my mind whirling. If Talia’s mother shows up out of the blue, as a poor relative who wants something to do with those that suddenly get rich, it could be a problem. She could demand money, at the very least.
I turn to her, my expression careful. "Talia, about your mother..."
She arches a brow and turns away from me, walking along the wall of windows and reaching out to trace the windowsill. "I don’t want to hear it unless it changes something between us; I don’t really care about me not having a mom. It’s not like I chose it for myself or anything."
I think about it for a long second. Does it actually change anything?
Talia is still pregnant with Burn’s baby. Soon to be my baby, if everything else goes to plan. In practical terms, that’s all that matters.
I suck in a deep breath and shake my head, entertaining her at last. "No, I don't think it makes a difference.
This is the kind of thing that we need to know about each other, though.
For instance, you should know that my mother is dead.
You should know that my father is an alcoholic waste of space. "
Talia reaches the end of the row of windows. She turns back, her other hand tracing the windowsill as she walks. "I didn’t know about your mom either. I’m sorry."
I huff, uncomfortable at her vulnerability. "It was a long time ago." As if that really mattered. As if it makes my mother less dead or fills in the hole she left in my life many years ago.
"I’m just telling you so that if anybody asks, you already know. Now stand up straight. Put your shoulders back and hold your head up high."
Her mouth turns down, but she walks out into the middle of the floor and sucks in a deep breath, adopting a formal posture. I walk over to her, my hand touching her shoulder and pulling it back a little more. Then I touch underneath her chin, lifting her head.
"There. This should be your resting posture when you are trying to impress people. Basically, any time that you’re around my family."
A flush creeps up from her chest to her neck. She looks at me but doesn’t move. I give her a small smile and touch her shoulder again. She shivers and pulls away.
Before she can protest, I shake my head and look at her sternly.
"If this is going to work, we’re going to have to get very comfortable with each other.
We are going to have to touch each other.
We will have to kiss and do all the things that couples who are in love do.
We don’t have a choice if we want people to believe us. "
Talia looks me in the eyes, her gaze inquisitive. "So… what are we supposed to do? Practice?"
My neck heats, but I press on. I nod and slide my hand from her shoulder to the nape of her neck. "That’s exactly what we are supposed to do. That is what I brought you here for."
Her throat works as she swallows. I can smell the floral notes of her perfume. A tiny part of me wants to lean in close to her throat and get a better sniff. But I must restrain myself. Now is not the time or the place.
Instead, I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her close so she comes to me naturally, as partners do when they dance together.
Her hand touches my shoulder, smoothing the fabric that she finds there. I understand her feeling of trepidation. Her touch is so intimate. I look down into her big blue eyes, thinking for a moment that I need to escape this room and her gaze.
But no, I’m not going to do that. I’m going to man up, bear down, and get through this.
It doesn’t matter that she feels so slight in my arms. It doesn’t matter that she smells good or that she is now dressed in a manner that would make my jaw drop under any other circumstances.
It doesn’t matter at all that I find her skin silky smooth to the touch or that I am hyperaware of the faintest stirrings of attraction that I feel.
My heart beats faster as I bring my hands low around her waist, cupping her ass and pulling it into rough contact with my body.
Her eyes widen, and her nostrils flare. "Dare!" she protests.
I smirk at her and shake my head. "It’s better if we just dive in. We can take a ton of time to test the waters, or we can just submerge ourselves. Let’s do it and be done with it."
Her lips tremble. "What do you mean, do it?"
I grunt and release her, rolling my eyes. This is proving harder than I anticipated. I don’t feel the need to mention that my cock stirs when she says ‘do it’. As if I'm a thirteen-year-old boy, and she's casually mentioning sex.
It has been a long time since I’ve gotten hard from just a girl talking to me.
She steps back and covers her chest with her arms. The move is defensive, but it only draws attention to her cleavage. My gaze drops there, and she scowls at me.
"This is a terrible idea," she says. "You know that, right?"
"Yeah, well. If you hadn’t already gotten horizontal with my brother, maybe this could go a different way.
We could take our time and get to know each other before we started fucking like rabbits.
But unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be.
You just happened to sleep with my twin and got pregnant before we even met.
So that forces a certain timeframe on us, doesn’t it? "
She makes a soft sound of disgust and looks away, shaking her head.
I grab her by the hips, pulling her softly against my body and growling. "It does. So now you just have to deal with it. I’m about to kiss you, and you better get used to it. Don’t forget, I have you and your child’s entire future in my hand."
Talia looks up at me, her eyes wide. But she doesn’t protest or push back against my body. Instead, she gulps and slips her arms around my neck, looking frightened but determined.
Her lips part as her tongue darts out to wet them. I can’t help the animal instinct that takes over me at that point.
Pulling her against my waist, I bury my hands in her hair, my fingers pulling her head back. She exhales the tiniest gasp, and I realize that sound turns me on more than anything she’s done to this point. I angle her head and plunge my mouth down against hers, mercilessly kissing her.
Her whole body shudders as I grip her waist, and I take that as a compliment.
Her body tenses up as her hands push gently at my chest. Her response only throws kerosene onto my already-lit fire.
It makes me hungry. I wrap my arm around her waist and lift her off her feet as I plunder her mouth, pressing my tongue against hers.
In this moment, I have complete control, dominating her small body so completely. I can feel fury of my own satisfaction running through my veins.
I know that I should stop myself, that I should bring myself in, but I can’t. I am a feral beast, and Talia is my prey, locked into my deadly embrace.
My cock throbs and I thrust into her soft body, pulling back from her lips only long enough to let out a snarl.
God, Talia feels too good. I look down into her eyes and see terror written there, mixed with a note of pure desire. At least, that’s what I like to imagine.
She pushes against me again, her brow descending as her small body fights mine.
I relax my grip and release her. My dick is so hard that it hurts.
"Jesus, Dare!" She quickly takes a step back, her eyes contemptuous. She wipes her mouth and straightens her dress.
At some point in our scuffle, her hair grew slightly disheveled. She moves to smooth it out, fanning it out across her shoulders.
My fingers clench; the feeling of the silky copper strands is imprinted on them.
"We can’t do it like this," she says, looking shaken. "We can’t get comfortable with each other, I mean. It won’t work."
Wiping at my mouth, I drag in a stuttered breath. "Yes, we can."
"No!" Her eyes gleam as she stares at me. "I don’t think so."
"Listen to me." I flick my fingers out, beckoning her closer.
"You are the mouthiest, most stuck-up, most stubborn girl I’ve ever met.
But for some reason, I find it arousing when you surrender to me.
And I think you like it when I take control.
" I scan her face. "You want me to dominate you. Am I right, darling girl?"
"No," Talia says, her voice coming out in a breathy whisper. "I don’t want you. I hate you."
"You might hate my personality. But you want me. You long for someone to show you how to be a good girl. Even now, as we stand here, your pussy is wet for me. I can tell."
Her breath leaves her in a scoff. She crosses her arms and rolls her eyes. The fragile moment between us passes, slipping away in that half a breath.
"I don’t know what you want from me, Dare."
With that, she turns and flees the room, leaving me feeling more than a little foolish. Did I just imagine the flicker of attraction that flowed and sparked between us when I kissed her?
I think not. But Talia obviously feels differently about it.
I adjust my cock in my trousers and stare at the empty hallway she disappeared down, debating whether I should give her the night off and try again tomorrow.
I will not give up over one little misstep. Talia and I will emerge from this weekend seeming as if we have been lovers for ages. I’ve decided that it will happen…
Regardless of whether she likes it or not.