Chapter Fourteen #2
She sighed. “Well, despite all those bills ... what the shop has paid for in parts doesn’t match the inventory list Walt gave me.
There are things that were apparently purchased that it seems were never delivered.
And it’s not just a few things. I’m not talking about ten bucks here and there.
It’s thousands of dollars’ worth— every month, Chad.
It looks to me like someone is making up bills for parts that don’t exist, then pocketing the money. ”
“And you think that’s Otis.”
Britt nodded. “I don’t know who else it could be. He’s the only one, up until now, who’s used the accounting program. Unless one of your brothers has been helping?”
Chad shook his head. What she was accusing Otis of doing was serious. Felony serious. Thousands of dollars a month added up to a hell of a lot of money, no matter how long it had been happening.
And his mother had mentioned money was tight ...
He’d wondered in recent years why his parents had refused to retire at least some of their businesses.
He’d casually suggested over a year ago that maybe they shut down the rental houses, let themselves slow down a bit and enjoy life a little more.
But his dad had basically blown him off, said they liked to stay busy .
.. but now he wasn’t so sure that was the reason.
Then another thought struck him. If Otis was skimming off the top from the auto shop, what was he doing with their taxes? And their investments?
His stomach dropped.
“I’m sorry,” Britt said, sounding upset.
“No,” Chad said a little too forcefully. “You have nothing to be sorry about. If you’re right, we all owe you a huge debt of gratitude.”
But she looked as miserable as Chad felt.
His mind was reeling. He needed to talk to his brothers.
See if they could find an independent auditor to take a look at not only the auto shop books but their taxes and investments as well.
And maybe have a conversation with his mom without letting on about what might be happening. Not yet. Not until they were positive.
If Otis was guilty of what Britt suspected, it would destroy Evelyn. Losing her husband was devastating. Losing one of their oldest friends on top of that would be another huge blow.
“Come here?” Chad asked, letting go of her hand and holding out his arm, inviting her to scoot over.
Thankfully, she didn’t hesitate, moving into his side. She leaned into him and curled her arms in front of her chest as she snuggled closer.
Chad wrapped his arm around her shoulders and arranged her blanket over both of them. Just having her near made him feel so much better.
Neither said anything for a long minute or two.
“That couldn’t have been easy to tell me. Thank you,” Chad told her.
“I feel awful about it. When I realized what I was looking at, I felt sick,” Britt said quietly. “I admit that Otis and I didn’t hit it off, but I wouldn’t lie about this. And I wouldn’t accuse him of something this horrible if I wasn’t sure something was off.”
“I know. And in case you’re worried he’ll turn around and try to blame everything on you ... if he’s guilty, there will likely be years’ worth of data. Long before you arrived.”
She nodded. “I know. I was actually thinking about that all day, and it’s one of the reasons I felt brave enough to come forward.
I wanted to wait until I had proof, but I figured the longer I waited, the more time he had to find a way to blame me.
Say I messed with the software and screwed things up or something. ”
She wasn’t wrong.
As the minutes ticked by, Chad felt Britt relaxing against him, which was a relief. He wasn’t quite as relaxed, but with her in his arms, he was getting there.
When the current episode of the TV show ended, the next one started.
But Chad wasn’t paying any attention. Everything he’d have to deal with tomorrow was eventually pushed to the back of his mind as he continued to hold Britt.
Slowly but surely, his senses tuned in to her.
The way her warm breath felt against his chest. How close her hands were to his nipples.
The feel of her body. Every time she shifted, he imagined turning them so she was on her back beneath him.
He wanted her. Having her in his bed last night felt so right .
.. even though the circumstances sucked.
And he’d extended an invitation for her to use the secret door in the back of her closet to join him again tonight .
.. but he didn’t want to sneak around. They were adults, and his mom was perfectly fine with the fact they were dating.
She loved Britt, already considered her a part of the family.
But he wouldn’t pressure Britt into doing something she wasn’t ready for. She was relying on his mom, and him and his brothers, for a place to live and her salary. He didn’t want her to agree to do anything out of a sense of obligation or because she felt she had to in order to keep her job.
Needing some space before he did something he’d regret, Chad lifted his arm in preparation for getting up. He opened his mouth to make some excuse about needing something to drink from the kitchen, when Britt moved.
She turned into him, hitching her leg up and over his thigh while grabbing his shoulder. Then she lifted her head and kissed him. It wasn’t a tentative kiss either. It was aggressive and almost desperate—and it communicated exactly what Chad was feeling.
He moved without thought, pushing her backward without lifting his lips from hers until she was just as he’d envisioned in his mind seconds earlier. On her back, beneath him. His hands roamed her body as he took control of the kiss and devoured her.
But Britt wasn’t passive. Her hands were just as busy, one second clutching him to her and the next shoving up under his T-shirt to rake up and down his back. She arched into him and lifted her knees until her feet were flat on the cushions and she was cradling him between her thighs.
Chad’s dick was hard, and he couldn’t stop himself from grinding into her soft belly as they made out. He felt like he was sixteen again and making out with his girlfriend while pretending to watch a movie, hoping against hope his parents or brothers wouldn’t come downstairs and interrupt.
Desperate to touch her bare skin, Chad thrust a hand under her shirt. He roughly pulled one cup of her bra down, and they both groaned when he palmed her naked breast. Her nipple hardened under his touch, and he felt a spurt of precome leak out of his cock.
This woman had him ready to blow, and they were still mostly dressed. He lifted his head and stared down at Britt, in awe at her power over him. At how much he wanted her.
Her chest rose and fell with her rapid breaths, pushing her tit into his hand with each inhale. One of her hands was clutching an ass cheek, holding him against her as close as she could get, and the other was digging into his bicep, her fingernails lightly stinging through the cotton of his shirt.
She licked her lips, and Chad swore he was two seconds from coming in his pants right then and there, because all he could think of was how those same lips would look wrapped around his cock as she swallowed him down.
“The invitation to stay with you tonight is still open, right?” she whispered.
“Tonight. Tomorrow. And every day after that,” he said truthfully.
“I’m scared things will change. Once it comes out that I was the one who told on Otis.”
Giving her nipple one last tweak and loving how she arched into his touch, Chad reluctantly removed his hand from under her shirt.
He palmed her cheek and leaned down to kiss her gently.
“Nothing is going to change. You’ve got my mom wrapped around your little finger, Walt and Barry adore you, the rental guests think you’re amazing, and my brothers already see you as part of this family. ”
“And you?” she whispered.
“You don’t know?”
She shook her head.
“I can’t imagine you not being in my life.
It’s as if I’ve known you forever, except I’m pissed that I haven’t.
That we’ve missed out on so much time. You’re different from every woman I’ve ever known, Britt.
I feel it deep inside. We were meant to be in that parking lot at the same time.
You were meant to be here at Lobster Cove. With me.”
Chad held his breath. He had no idea if he was freaking her out or not, but he couldn’t keep quiet about his feelings anymore.
Hell, he’d come this far ... he might as well be completely honest.
“I love you, Britt Starkweather. It’s too fast. I know. But my feelings aren’t going to change. For the first time in my life, I understand the kind of love my parents had for each other. But I have no intention of rushing you or forcing you to be with me if you don’t feel the same way.”
“I do,” she whispered. “And ... rush me. Please.”
Chad lowered his head and kissed her hard. His dick was pulsing and his balls were drawn up so far toward his body, they hurt.
He was seconds away from yanking her pants down and taking her right then and there when he heard a noise at the front door.
He pulled his head back and swore. “Shit, Mom’s home.”
The next few seconds were almost comical as they both sat up quickly and tried to right their clothes and act like they hadn’t been about to make love right on the couch.
They were sitting two feet apart and staring at the television when Evelyn walked into the room. “I’m home!” she said. “What have you two—”
Her words cut off abruptly, and Chad turned around to look at her, praying she wasn’t as good at reading him as she used to be.
“Well, crap. My timing is shit, isn’t it?” she asked with a huge grin on her face.
Chad wanted to laugh. It seemed he still couldn’t hide anything from his mom.
“I’m just going to go to bed. I had a wonderful birthday, and I’m beat.
You two carry on with ... you know ..
. whatever you were doing. Don’t mind me.
I’ll be in my room on the other end of the house .
.. far away from anything going on out here.
And I sleep like a rock, so don’t worry about the . .. TV bothering me or anything.”
With that, she turned and headed for the hallway that led to her room.
Chad caught Britt’s eye, and they both burst out laughing. He stood and held out a hand. “What do you say we take this upstairs?”
To his relief, she took his hand and let him help her up. “I’d like that,” she said, sounding a little shy, but eager at the same time.
Chad leaned down and kissed her on the lips, keeping his tongue to himself this time.
If he didn’t, he’d end up bending her over the couch and taking her there and then.
And as much as his mom was apparently thrilled with the idea of the two of them together, he didn’t think she’d enjoy knowing they’d had sex in her living room.
He turned off the TV and led Britt toward the stairs, then stopped.
“Shit. I want to make sure the house is locked up. My mom sometimes forgets to lock the door. Dad always used to complain about that. Wait for me? Better yet, you can go up and use the bathroom first and meet me in my room?” It was as much a question as a suggestion.
“Okay.”
Relief swam through Chad’s veins. His cock was still hard, and the thought of her waiting for him in his bed wasn’t helping the situation.
She backed toward the stairs slowly, smiling at him, and it wasn’t until she’d gone up three steps that she finally turned around and hurried up the rest.
Chad watched her go, his gaze locked on her ass until he couldn’t see her anymore. Then he quickly headed for the front door to make sure it was secured.
Things had taken a strange turn tonight. He’d wanted to know what was bothering Britt, but never in a million years would he have thought she’d tell him Otis might be stealing from his family.
He’d had no intention of admitting so soon that he loved her, but he hadn’t been able to hold back.
And now he was going to get to make love to her, something he’d thought about almost constantly recently. Tonight, he wasn’t going to have to be content with masturbating to the thought of Britt; he’d get the real thing.
Smiling, Chad forced himself not to rush as he made sure the windows and doors were all secured.
He wanted to give Britt time to get ready.
Because as soon as he set foot inside his bedroom and saw her there, going slow was going to be a thing of the past. He’d waited too long for this moment . .. to make love to a woman he loved.