Graham
T eeth gnash and tongues tangle, my fingers gripping Casey’s tight ass beneath her flouncy skirt as we stumble out of the elevator. We’re returning from a night out in a dimly lit movie theater where I played with her pretty pussy and swallowed her sweet moans as we sat in the very back row alone.
It was such a normal thing to do. Something I haven’t experienced in years and the first actual date I’ve been on since college. And after I made her come twice in that dark theater, all I could think about was getting her back to her apartment so I could bend her over and sink balls deeps into her tight cunt.
“I should’ve put you in the penthouse,” I grumble as I reach up to remove the pins holding her hair, needing those golden strands wrapped around my hand.
Her fingers fumble with my belt buckle as we reach her door. “If you’d done that, we’d still be in the elevator.”
I grip her thighs, pulling her up my body until those legs wrap around me. Holding her tight with one arm, I reach behind her and enter the code on the keypad. “But if you were in the penthouse, I could already have you naked.”
I grip her thick hair, tugging her head back, giving me better access to the soft skin of her neck as we step through the door. Her soft moans make my cock pulse against the confines of my jeans as she grinds against me. I kick the door shut and spin us, pressing her against the cold metal.
“Dear God, please let me fall and hit my head so I can develop amnesia and forget I ever saw this.”
Casey yelps, and I growl as I set her to her feet, ensuring her skirt is back where it belongs, then turn and meet my brother’s green eyes as he stares at us from the white, overstuffed sofa. “What the fuck are you doing here? And how did you get in?”
“So, big brother doesn’t know everything. I figured you had the apartment wired.” He smirks as he shifts on the sofa, looking around me at Casey. I glance over my shoulder with a lifted brow. She bites her lip, looking anywhere but at Jagger or me. “I didn’t realize we’d progressed from stalking to… Well, I guess you caught your prey.”
Casey sucks in a breath behind me. I glare at my brother who’s being an ass, noting how glassy and red his eyes are. He’s either drunk or high. My guess is both. “Jagger, I’m seconds away from removing your tongue. How did you get in here?”
“You want to tell him, Sunflower. ”
“He has the code,” Casey says so low I almost miss it. “H-he started sleeping over once in a while when Lily moved out.”
“Did he now?” There’s no mistaking my irritation. Actually, it’s barely contained wrath. If it were anyone else on that sofa who let themselves in to sleep over , my hands would be wrapped around their throat. Then this little shit has the gall to smirk and waggle his brows at me, and the taut rubber band holding my temper in check stretches to near-breaking tension as I step forward with my teeth bared ready to knock my little brother’s head off. I freeze in my steps when a soft hand wraps around my forearm.
Jagger laughs loudly as he stands from the sofa, raising his arms over his head and stretching. “Calm your fucking tits, . You know there’s nothing…” he pauses, raising a mocking brow at me as he runs his tongue over his teeth, “salacious going on with Casey and me, but watching that vein between your eyes throb is too amusing to let the opportunity pass. I just stopped by to check on Casey like I always have. Nice to see the food problem is resolved.”
Casey stiffens next to me, then shifts on her feet. She watches Jagger for a moment before lowering her eyes to the floor. It’s obvious that she’s uncomfortable, and it fucking irritates the hell out of me. It’s been weeks. My dad has even caught us, yet she’s still bothered. I keep telling myself it’s not about being a secret as much as Casey is naturally timid, not enjoying when she garners unwanted attention. It’s probably true, but in my gut, I know it’s not the only reason.
“I-I’m going to change,” she says.
I don’t have time to respond before she vanished down the short hall and disappeared into her room. Gripping my chin, I twist my head back and forth until I feel the satisfying pops of the joints, then make my way across the room until I reach the kitchen. I’m too rough when I yank the cabinet door open, retrieve the bottle of scotch I keep there, pour three fingers, and then turn to face my brother without offering him any. He looks like he’s had more than enough of something. He doesn’t need extra.
He leans on the counter with his elbows, propping his chin in his hands with a mischievous grin and hazy eyes. “I knew you wanted her. I didn’t realize you were already in love with her.”
I roll my eyes and sip my scotch. Does he think I’d be this goddamn psycho if I didn’t fucking love her? That I would risk her heart if I weren’t certain of my feelings? But I’m not telling him that. He won’t get affirmation or denial from me before I tell the girl. Instead, I growl, “When did you get back?”
“This morning.” He’s been in Florida checking out some prospective artists for a few weeks. “Most of them were shit, but I brought some demos on two or three worth giving an extra listen. I heard you guys are scrambling to rework Lily and Jacob’s Ladder since Ryder decided Sons won’t be touring in August after all.”
“It wasn’t a big deal. Rescheduled them for later in the year and replaced them with Maverick and My Time. It’s not Sons of Sin, but it’s an excellent lineup. Masters’ sister had a meltdown, though.”
“Not surprising. Callie is always freaking out over PR. She forgets this is a record label with musicians not a Fortune 500 company with tech gurus, engineers, and all that shit. These guys are expected to be fuck ups.”
“Hmm,” I turn up my glass, taking another sip of my scotch. “You’re not wrong, but neither is she. A little more walking the line and discretion could go a long way.”
“Good luck getting that,” he snorts, his eyes drooping closed.
My chest vibrates with a silent rumble as I bite back the need to demand he tell me what he’s on. I toss back the rest of my drink and then pour a little more. “You should come see Dad,” I say when I turn around.
That gets some clarity in those green eyes—raging, venomous clarity. “No.”
I look behind him, ensuring Casey is still out of the room. I haven’t told her about her mother yet. Upsetting her is the last thing I want, or scaring her. But also, I know it will raise a lot of questions about her mother being gone but leaving the baby behind. “Krista’s gone,” I tell him, keeping my voice low. “You should come meet…”
“Don’t fucking say it, and don’t fucking ask. I said no. I don’t care if she’s there or not as long as that…” His fingers rip through his hair as his shoulders shake with his heavy breaths. He’s almost hyperventilating. How badly this has fucked him up suddenly slams into my chest like a sledgehammer when he lifts his hand and points a shaky finger at me. “I-I didn’t ask for any of this. I want nothing to do with…” He drags his hand over his mouth, looking sick, as he leaps off the stool and starts for the door.
My hand clamps on his shoulder before he gets very far. He tries to shrug me off, but my grip tightens. “You’re not leaving.” I keep my voice firm and steady but low so Casey doesn’t come out because I know Jagger isn’t ready for her to know. He definitely doesn’t want her to find out like this. “Not now. Not in this condition.”
“I don’t need this.” His jaw ticks with anger—with pain. “Not from you.”
My lips press together as I take a deep breath. Words—the right ones elude me because there are none. Everything in me says Jagger will regret his decisions down the road, but I can’t say that because I’m not in his position. The entire situation is beyond fucked.
“Jagger, I know you didn’t… Fuck,” I hiss. “You were fucked up. You didn’t know, but…” My words trail off and my lips clamp shut when his nostrils flare. I swear his eyes fill with tears. It’s the confirmation I need to know this goes beyond that one night. “Just go to Lily’s room and sleep it off. Please.” I add the latter, the word tasting bitter on my tongue when he hesitates.
He nods once, and I drop my hand from his shoulder. He walks past me, his head hung low as he stumbles across the room. “Jag,” I call out when he reaches Lily’s door. He glances over his shoulder, eyes full of so much pain I feel like an ass for not seeing it before. I drag my hand over my mouth and compose myself. “I’m sorry I was a shit brother.”
“You weren’t a shit brother, . You just forgot whose brother you were.” With that, he disappears into the room.
My gazes moves from the door Jagger just vanished into to Casey’s. I rest my hands on top of my head and groan. I guess I’m lucky he doesn’t resent her. The jury is still out on me, but I know I’ve earned that one.
I tried to protect one and failed both.
I roll my head over my shoulders with a deep inhale, shoving the guilt away. I can’t change the past, and dwelling on it keeps it alive.
For tonight, I’m at a standstill with my brother, but the girl—the woman of my obsession…
The knob to her room clicks as I turn it. She sits cross-legged at the foot of the bed wearing an oversized t-shirt that I thought I lost years ago. I’m learning most of the clothes I thought I lost were actually stolen.
Blond strands a shade darker than her usual color hang over her shoulders, damp from a shower. Her head rests in her hands, not lifting though I know she heard me come in.
I toe off my Ferragamo sneakers, then dig my fingers into the hem of my t-shirt, pulling it over my head. I toss it and my jeans over the bench at the foot of her bed like I’ve done every night for weeks, refusing to sleep anywhere but here since the first time I had her. She made a few weak attempts at first to deny me, but they never worked.
The bed dips with my weight as I crawl behind her. I brush her damp tresses aside and pull the collar of the shirt away to give me room to skim my lips over her shoulder. Her head tilts giving me better access. The scent of orange blossoms and pomegranate clings to her soft skin, and my dick twitches with how sweet she smells.
Reaching around, I wrap my fingers around her hands and lower them to her lap. My fingers cup her jaw, turning her face toward me. Pink spreads across her freckled nose and cheeks. Her pretty complexion always gives her away. It’s endearing and adorable, and something I hope never changes.
I stroke a thumb over the flushed flesh with a grin. “What’s this about?”
“Jagger saw us,” she whispers as if someone might hear, then her lashes close. “He saw me climbing you like a tree.”
“So?”
“He saw us, .”
“And I repeat: so ?” With quick maneuvering, I pull her back, then climb over her body. “I told you he knew.”
“Him knowing and seeing aren’t the same thing. He even said he didn’t know about…” She gestures between us with her finger as her cheeks turn another shade brighter.
“Why does it bother you? I know you don’t still believe I’m simply making a statement with you.”
“No, but… I…” Her bottom lip tucks between her teeth, saying more than words ever could.
She’s still hesitant about us—wary about me. I’ve made my intentions clear so many times, and I’ve given her time. I realize it hasn’t been that long, but I thought we’d be past it more than this by now.
My patience is getting thinner and thinner with each passing day. It’s made worse knowing how she feels. Casey has never hid her feelings, especially her affections, well. At least, not from me. She adored me as a child, looked at me like a savior as a teenager, and now… Now she stares at me with devotion and worship. As if her next breath is dependent on mine.
I know because I feel the same. She the air I breathe, the blood pumping in my veins—the reason my heart beats.
Yet, she’s still denying herself what she wants.
I roll to the side of her and prop myself on my elbow. “What are you afraid of, Casey?” I ask, pushing my frustration aside as I remember she’s not me. She doesn’t take what she wants, consequences be damned. She cares what people think, even if only because she’s terrified of being rejected or letting someone down.
Those blue eyes lock with mine, confirming what I know. “Everything.”
My heart stutters, the anger fading into nothingness as I stare into those fathomless depths filled with unshed tears. The need to slam my lips to hers burns. The desire to kiss away her fears and her torment consumes me. But I control myself. We need to talk this out, not brush it under the rug with sex. “People will always have opinions about what they don’t understand, baby. They don’t need to understand or accept us because they don’t matter. They’ve never seen anything like you and me, and they never will. Let them live their black-and-white lives. The only thing that matters is us.”
“Dad,” she whispers.
Is it wrong that I wish Krista would’ve taken him out?
Okay. Okay! I don’t really wish that. He’s not a bad guy. I don’t even hate him. Besides, losing a parent isn’t something I’d wish on anyone. Especially Casey.
But goddamn, the man has become a pain in my fucking ass.
“He’ll get over it and get used to it.”
“But what if he doesn’t?” Her lips quiver as she plays out the worst scenarios in her head. “What if he’s so disappointed and angry that I lose him? He’s all that I have.”
“You have me,” I bark, then immediately regret it. My lids drop, squeezing tightly as I blow out a breath. I push away the blow to my ego and heart. Swallow the hurt, knowing she doesn’t mean it how it sounds. The backs of my knuckles graze her cheeks and trail a path to her collarbone. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. But, Case, you know you have so many more people that love you, right?” I press my fingers against her lips when she starts to argue. “I know what you meant, and my point remains. You have your grandparents, Henry and his girlfriend, Lily, Jagger, Dad… me. But, baby, even if he gets upset, he will get over it, and you won’t lose him because he’s your dad. Besides, didn’t you forgive him for sneaking around with your best friend?”
“Of course,” she huffs. “I just want him happy. He’s sacrificed so much because of me. If Lily makes him happy…” She shrugs and pulls her lip between her teeth.
“Why do you always say that?” I ask, slipping my hand beneath the t-shirt and stroking the skin of her stomach. Her abs contract with each brush of my fingers. Dark lashes flutter against her sharp cheekbones. It’s probably unfair to tease her—to trick her like this but distracting her never fails to lower those walls so she speaks her heart. Prevents her from getting lost in her head. “Why do you call it a sacrifice?”
Her breath catches when I glide my thumb over the underside of her breast. “Be-because that’s what it was. He didn’t choose to become a dad. Having me changed his life. He had to alter everything for me.”
I hum as I circle her nipple, feeling it pebble beneath my touch. “Most people don’t plan to become parents, baby, but I thought was the definition of the job when you decide to take on that role.”
“Well, yeah but he didn’t decide to take on the role. I was an accident, and my grandparents made him…”
I remove my hand from her body and push myself up. My legs swing over her hips until I’m straddling her. Wrapping both of her wrists in my hand, I push them over her head and lean down until I’m hovering inches above her. I nip at her neck as I whisper in her ear, “Casey, you do realize, Liam could’ve walked away at any time?”
She shakes her head. “Dad would never do that. He would never walk away from his responsibility.”
There is it. Responsibility.
Just like when she says she’s a burden.
That’s all she sees herself as. Not someone who’s loved because they’re chosen.
My free hand reaches for her jaw, gripping her a little harder than necessary. “You are not a fucking responsibility, Casey. You are not a burden. You were a choice. He might not have planned for you, but he chose to be your dad. Sharing DNA didn’t force him to love you. Even your grandparents couldn’t force him to be a father. He chose to be that for you. The sacrifices he made were because he wanted to do that for you. He chose you, Casey.” My fingers loosen around her jaw, and my thumb tugs her lower lip from between her teeth before brushing over it.
Devotion and desire overtake the frustration thrumming in my veins as I stare into liquid pools and allow vulnerability to seep from me. I need her to see as much as hear what I am about to say.
My tongue peeks through my lips as I take a breath and inch closer, pressing my forehead to hers. “I chose you, Casey. I didn’t come back to New York for a job. I came back for you . Because staying away was too fucking hard to do anymore. I missed you too fucking much. I needed you. The job was the excuse. You were the reason.”
Her breath hitches as a single tear slips from her lashes. I catch the salty emotions with my tongue, then press my lips to hers. Long and slow, our tongues tangle as I swallow her pain and confliction. But soon the sweet exchange turns greedy. The throbbing need pulsing against her turns to steel when she rocks her hips against me. My name tumbles from her lips like a plea.
“What do you need, Sunflower?”
“You,” she breathes against my lips. “I need you, .”
“You have me, baby.” I skim my fingers over her bare pussy and hum. “So wet and warm.” I tease her entrance with my middle finger. “But we have a problem.”
“Wh-what?” she gasps as I dip a finger inside her.
“You’ve been a naughty girl.” I bite the soft skin between her neck and shoulder, then run my tongue over the mark to soothe the sting. “First, you gave my brother the code to your apartment and never told me. Then I find out you’ve been having sleep overs with him.”
Her eyes struggle to stay open as she clenches around my finger, already teetering on the edge from nothing more than a bit of teasing. “I-it wasn’t… isn’t like that.”
Ignoring her, I curl my finger and stroke her pleasure. “If that weren’t enough, you’ve insulted the woman I am insane for, and no one speaks about what’s mine like that.” I rip my finger away from her just as the first spasms begin. Her lashes part, desperation filling the bright oceanic blues. I slide the finger that was just teasing her between my lips with a grin. “So it seems you have a decision to make.”
“Wh-what decision?”
“Do I punish you for your sins?” I lean over, swiping my tongue over her lips, then breathe, “Or do you apologize?”