Chapter Ten
Lucas
Brennan had his hand raised to knock on the door when I swung it open. He looked the same as always—button-down shirt, blazer, tie a little loose. His dark brown hair hung a fraction too long and always slightly out of place.
Friendly brown eyes disguised a sharp brain. I'd seen Detective Ryan Brennan at five a.m., five p.m., and every time in between. He was always the same.
I could've pulled him from his desk or from his bed and it wouldn't matter. I didn't trust many people, but Ryan Brennan was on my short list.
"You gonna tell me what's going on?" he asked in a low tone. Charlie stepped out of the hall and into the kitchen, the overhead light harsh, glaring down on the raw wounds on the side of her face.
"Holy shit," Brennan said. "You're in it this time, Jackson."
"Charlie Winters," I said, crossing the room to stand beside Charlie. "This is Detective Ryan Brennan. You tell him what happened, and he'll get it on record."
Charlie looked up at me with startled eyes. I couldn't stop myself from tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear so it didn't get caught in the ointment on her cheek.
"You're sure I can trust him?" She whispered.
"I'm sure."
Charlie shoved her hands in the pockets of her jeans and told Brennan everything that had happened, including the cigarette butt she'd found by the back door and the intruder she'd thought she'd imagined.
That revelation had me fighting for control of my temper, but I managed to keep my mouth shut. She was under enough stress as it was. I wasn't going to make it worse.
As she spoke, she leaned into me, letting me support her weight. I wrapped an arm around her, ignoring Brennan's curious eyes.
He took notes and assured Charlie no one would find out anything unless it became unavoidable. As soon as they were done, I sent Charlie to get ready for bed and walked Brennan out.
"So, is she a job?" Brennan asked before he left.
"Next-door neighbor," I answered, deliberately leaving out the details.
Brennan met my eyes with a knowing look and stared me down.
"Next-door neighbor and a friend," I clarified.
That was all he was getting. Anything else was between Charlie and me. I wasn't going to make her a target of gossip, even with a man I trusted.
Knowing I was full of shit, Brennan shook his head, but he let me get away with it.
Before he left, he said in a low voice that wouldn't carry down the hall, "Keep sharp.
The Winters family are good people, but they're trouble, and that girl is way above your pay grade.
Don't let whatever mess is swirling around her take you down with it. "
"I've got this," I lied as I locked the door behind him.
It was only half a lie. As far as Charlie's safety was concerned, I did have it under control. I'd talk to whichever Sinclair showed up to put in her system, and we'd get her security settled.
If she was smart and used her head, I could keep her safe.
The rest of it?
Brennan was right.
She was way fucking out of my league. I had no business being friends with a woman like Charlotte Winters, much less claiming a place in her bed.
Too fucking bad. Now that I'd had a taste of Charlie, I wasn't giving her up. Not until I had to.
Charlie was in bed when I got back, wearing some kind of strappy sleep top. I couldn't miss the blooming bruise on her shoulder. If I looked, I knew I'd find another on her hip. They matched the skin on her cheek that hadn't been scraped raw.
If I'd had a target to punish for touching her, they'd be dead.
I stripped off my shorts and T-shirt, leaving them on the floor beside the futon, and slid in beside her. My ego loved the regret in her eyes as she took in my mostly exposed body then realized she was too sore for sex.
Wrapping one arm around her waist, I said, "Maybe in the morning, Princess. I'm exhausted and you're too beat up to do all the work."
As I'd meant her to, she smiled.
The smile drooped, her lips wobbled, and she looked away, saying in a thin, nervous voice, "I'm okay. You don't have to stay since we're not . . . you know. You can go home. I don't want you to feel like—"
Her unease was cute, but I put her out of her misery.
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you to sleep here alone after you got jumped. Just close your eyes and go to sleep. We'll see about fucking in the morning."
I tried not to like the way her cheeks went pink when I said 'fucking'.
"I usually sleep on the outside," she said, rolling onto her un-bruised side and trying to get comfortable with the wall blocking her in.
"I'll move the futon away from the wall tomorrow," I said, "but for now, I stay between you and that door."
"Okay," she whispered.
A slow blink, then another, and she was asleep.
I lay beside her, listening to the house settle, alert for any creak, any thump, anything that sounded out of the ordinary.
I was more comfortable than I wanted to be with her warm body tucked up against mine, smelling of fruit and flowers and Charlie.
I never spent the night with women.
Ever.
I liked having a bed to myself. I didn't like clinging or the kind of expectations you created when you were there for breakfast.
I liked to fuck and go.
Tonight, I didn't even get a fuck, and there I was falling asleep with a woman for the first time in my life. After all these years, the surprise wasn't that I was sleeping with a woman, but how right she felt in my arms.
I woke before dawn to find myself wrapped around Charlie, one leg between her thighs, my arm over her waist, my hand under her sleep shirt, holding her bare breast.
I was already hard, my cock pressing into her soft ass. I wanted Charlie, but I was going to wait. She needed sleep, not for some horny asshole to wake her up before sunrise for a fuck.
I had a thousand things I should do. Get up and get in a workout. Run next door to grab my laptop and see what was in my queue.
A lot of my jobs were in the field, but more of them used my strongest skill set, one that only needed a computer and a connection to the Internet.
I didn't move. I wasn't ready to wake Charlie, but that was only part of it. As much as I tried to think of reasons to get up, I couldn't seem to drag myself from her bed.
She shifted in her sleep, grinding her soft ass into my cock. I pushed back, just a little, the heat between her legs so enticing my head spun.
I could be patient. I'd learned how to wait a long time ago. Nothing worth having came easy, anyway. I closed my eyes. The sun would be up soon enough.
Reaching behind me, I felt for the box on the floor beside the futon. My fingers tagged the lid and I snagged a condom, sliding it under my pillow before I let myself fall into a light doze.
I didn't make my move until I felt Charlie shift against me, her body slowly coming awake.
My turn.
My fingers, still wrapped around her breast, tightened and slid to her nipple, squeezing and rolling with a firm pressure that had her squirming that soft ass against my rock hard cock.
It was a simple matter to push up her flimsy nightshirt, pull her top leg over mine, and tug her thong out of the way.
In this position, her pussy was completely open to me. I took full advantage, skating my fingertips over her, circling lightly.
I let out a groan when I discovered she was ready for me. I pressed one finger inside, my cock surging in demand as her slick heat closed around me.
Patience, motherfucker, I reminded myself, working the condom on my cock. She was bruised and battered, and when she got out of bed, she'd realize how stiff she was.
She didn't need me slamming into her. A second finger joined my first, dipping in and out, my thumb teasing her clit. Holding her open, I nudged my cock forward until just the head was inside. My breath caught in my chest at the tight clasp of her body on mine.
Nothing felt like fucking Charlie.
So sweet.
I buried my face in her hair and rocked deeper, filling her in degrees, our bodies barely moving.
"Touch your pussy for me," I whispered against her neck, taking her hand and leading it between her legs, pressing her fingers to her clit and rolling them in a circle.
I could feel the heat of her blush, but she did it. I slid my hand up her body, tracing a circle around her bellybutton and along her ribs until I reached her breasts.
Her nipples were tight and hard. I plucked at them, teasing and pulling, loving the way her body clamped down on my hard length as I fucked her, deep and slow. She ground back into me, gasping my name.
"Lucas, oh my God, Lucas."
"Shh, baby. Just let it come. I'm going to take care of you. Just let it come."
Instinct told me to roll her onto her stomach, lift her by her hips until she was on her knees, and pound into her until we both exploded.
Another day, I would. Not this time. This time, she needed gentle. Charlie moved against me restlessly, pushing back into my cock, trying to take me deeper.
"Be still," I said, pulling her leg high and back, opening her body wide to mine. I moved her hand from her pussy and slid mine in its place, whispering, "Just let me. I've got you, Charlie."
I was fucking ready to come, the slide and clasp of her hot pussy driving me out of my mind. I pressed and rolled my fingers into her clit over and over until her body went stiff, her back arching, her hips thrusting into mine in one long surge as her muscles tightened in orgasm.
Finally, I let go, filling her in a release that left me drained and oddly weak.
I stayed there, holding her, breathing in the fruity floral scent of her hair and skin as her body relaxed around mine.
"Good morning," she said, sounding only half-awake, her voice husky and low.
"Morning."
"What time is it?" she asked.
"Probably a little after seven," I answered. I hadn't looked at my phone or my watch, but I didn't need to. I could tell by the light outside the window. "What time is the security team getting here?"