Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
SUTTON
Iwake up to Declan's mouth on my neck.
"Mm, what time is it?" I mumble, still half-asleep.
"Early." His hand slides under my tank top. "But I couldn't stop thinking about you."
I'm immediately more awake. "You’ve been beside me all night.”
"Shh." He kisses down my collarbone. "Let me take care of you."
His hands are everywhere—sliding up my sides, cupping my breasts, trailing down my stomach. I arch into him, already forgetting why I should protest.
"I have practice," I manage.
"Skip it."
"I can't skip—oh." His fingers find me through my panties, and I lose my train of thought completely.
He pulls my tank top over my head, his mouth immediately finding my breast. His tongue circles my nipple, and I thread my fingers through his hair, holding him there.
"You're wearing too many clothes," I breathe.
He pulls back long enough to strip off his shirt and boxers. Then he's back, his body covering mine, his weight pressing me into the mattress.
I love the feeling of him—solid muscle, warm skin, and the slight roughness of his jaw against my neck.
"I need you," he says against my ear. "Need to be inside you."
"Yes. Please."
He positions himself between my thighs, his eyes locked on mine as he pushes inside slowly.
We both groan at the sensation.
"God, you feel so good," he breathes.
He starts to move at a languid pace, like we both don’t have to be anywhere. I love mornings with him. I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him deeper.
His hands cup my face before he kisses me. My hands slide down his back, reveling in the feel of his muscles.
I can feel myself getting close. That coiling tension is building low in my belly. He pulls back, pushing up on his arms like he’s doing a push-up. The shift in position hits just the right spot. I see stars dancing in front of my eyes.
The orgasm crashes through me. I cry out, my body clenching around him.
He follows immediately, groaning my name as he finds his release.
We stay like that for a moment, both breathing hard, foreheads pressed together.
"I love you," he says.
"I love you, too."
He kisses me softly before rolling away.
I stretch, feeling deliciously satisfied and completely relaxed.
Then I see the clock.
"Shit!" I bolt upright. "I have practice in twenty minutes!"
I'm already scrambling out of bed, looking for my clothes. Then I realize I’m in his room. I grab the top sheet, wrap it around me, and rush out of his room and nearly take out Holden.
He grins. “In a hurry?”
“Move!”
I dash around my room, throwing on clothes and snatching my bag with my gear. I’m out the door and running down the stairs.
Declan catches my hand by the door and pulls me back for one more kiss. “See you later.”
“See you. Love you.”
Turns out, early morning sex is one hell of a performance enhancer. I kicked ass at practice, breezed through the test in one of my classes, and was headed home to take a good shower before my shift.
I showered and still had thirty minutes before I had to leave. The house was quiet. All the guys were at practice. I did the dishes, made myself a cup of noodles, and was scrolling through social media when I heard a knock at the door.
I open the door to find Declan’s father. He doesn’t look happy.
“Declan is at practice,” I say.
"This conversation doesn't involve my son. This is between you and me."
Every instinct I have is screaming at me to slam the door in his face.
“I have to go to work.”
He looks me up and down, sneering at the sight of my uniform.
"I'll be direct," he says. "I want you to break up with my son."
"Not happening."
"I'm prepared to make it worth your while."
“What does that mean?”
"Compensation.”
“Compensation?”
Was he saying I needed to be compensated for dating Declan?
“For your absence and discretion." He pulls an envelope from his jacket pocket. "One hundred thousand dollars. Cash. Deposited into an account of your choosing."
My brain stutters. One hundred thousand dollars.
That's—that's more money than I've ever seen in my life. More than my dad makes in two years.
"You're serious."
"Completely serious." He holds out the envelope. "All you have to do is end the relationship. Move out of this house. Stay away from Declan. Let him focus on his career without distraction."
"I'm not a distraction."
"You are, whether you mean to be or not.
" His voice is matter-of-fact. Clinical.
"Declan has an opportunity that most young men would kill for.
A chance to play professional hockey at the highest level.
But he's losing focus, making poor decisions, and getting into fights.
Breaking bones. All because of his emotional attachment to you. "
"Those things aren't my fault."
"Aren't they? He's jeopardizing his entire future because he thinks he's in love."
"He is in love. We both are."
"Love is a temporary emotion that fades when reality sets in.
" He steps closer. "Do you really think this relationship has a future?
He's going to be traveling constantly, making millions of dollars.
Surrounded by beautiful women. And you'll be what—working at a forensics lab making fifty thousand a year? "
The words hit exactly where he intends them to.
"You don't know anything about me."
"I know you're on a full scholarship. I also know you're smart and ambitious. That you want to work in forensics. That you have a job offer at the state lab in Boston."
"How do you know that?"
The hairs on the back of my neck are standing on end. This is wrong.
"I make it my business to know about people who affect my son's career." He pulls out his phone and shows me the screen. "But what if I could do better than Boston?"
I look at the screen. It's an email chain between him and someone at the FBI.
"Quantico," he says. "They have a forensic science division that's the best in the country. I have connections there. I can get you an interview. Potentially a position."
My heart stops.
Quantico.
That's the dream job. The job that would set me up for life. The job that would make everything my dad sacrificed worth it.
"You're lying."
"I'm not. All it takes is one word from me, and you have an interview scheduled for January."
I stare at the screen, my mind racing.
One hundred thousand dollars.
A job at Quantico.
Everything I've ever wanted, handed to me on a silver platter.
All I have to do is walk away from Declan.
"Think about what this money could do," his father continues. “And the Quantico position? That's a career-making opportunity."
"Why would you do this for me?"
"I'm not doing it for you. I'm doing it for Declan. Getting you out of his life so he can focus on what matters." He puts the phone away. "But in the process, you get everything you want. A prestigious job. Financial security."
I stare at him. I’m waiting for him to tell me he’s joking.
But he doesn’t.
"You're a smart girl, Sutton. You know this relationship is doomed. Long distance never works, especially not with the kind of demands his career will have." He softens his voice slightly. "Why not end it now, on your terms, and walk away with something that will actually benefit your life?"
I look at the envelope in his hand.
One hundred thousand dollars.
I could have the security I've never had.
And Quantico.
Maybe the kindest thing I could do is walk away. Give Declan the chance to succeed without me holding him back.
"I need time to think," I hear myself say.
"You have two days. Think carefully, Ms. Webb.”
He walks down the steps and gets into a black Mercedes parked on the street.
I think about my dad. About how hard he's worked. How he's sacrificed everything for me.
I think about myself. About my dreams. My ambitions. My career.
I think about Declan. About how much I love him. How much he loves me.
And I think about his father's words.
This relationship is doomed.
You're a distraction.
He's jeopardizing his future because of you.
I don’t know what to do. My heart hurts. My brain is a mess. Love and logic are at war in my head.
Love or security?
It should be a simple choice—but it isn’t.