Chapter 11
Penelope Miles
The entire world vibrates. My head buzzes as Sebastian’s grandmother’s words replay again and again.
Welcome to the family, Penelope.
It hurts. I want it to be true so badly. Even though I know she was just being courteous, my heart yearns for the perfect picture she painted with such pure, simple words.
Welcome to the family.
I want to belong to the Sterling family with every cell in my body. Some people are so easy to read even a socially inept person like me can see their true selves. Sebastian’s mother and nana have the same no-nonsense air about them.
It’s the sweetest yet cruelest thing anyone has ever said to me.
“Are you okay, sweet pea?” Sebastian asks.
“I should be asking you that. Medical scares are… not fun,” I finish lamely.
We step through the double glass sliding doors into the relative darkness of the parking lot. The bright pole lights leave little pockets for shadows between the cars, but not much else.
“I’m much better than I would be if you weren’t here. Thank you so much for staying by my side, Penelope,” he says.
Standing underneath the lamppost nearest his car, I wrap my arms around him and squeeze him as hard as I can.
His nana’s words ring in my head.
What would it feel like to belong to this behemoth? It’s been years since I’ve initiated a hug, and Sebastian is the only one I can fathom wrapping my arms around.
He hugs me as though I’m the most precious person in the world.
“I’d be lost without you, sweet pea,” Sebastian whispers against the top of my head.
I give him an extra hearty squeeze before craning my neck to meet his eyes.
“I’m glad your nana is okay. She’s lovely. So is your mom,” I say.
“Are you sure lovely is the word you mean to say? They weren’t too much?”
“It was very intense, but so was the situation. Hospitals bring out the best and worst in people, so I won’t take their words to heart until—”
“You know what my nana said when I told them I was going to earn a full scholarship to Columbia University and start my own business?”
Despite the intensity in his gaze, unease creeps through me, and I fight the urge to search the shadows along the edge of the parking lot for prying eyes.
“No. What did she say?”
“Only a fool as stubborn and relentless as her grandson would make such lofty goals, but if anyone could make it happen, it would be me.”
His affectionate grin as he recounts his grandmother’s words squeezes my heart with yearning. He tightens an arm around my back and wraps his other hand around my nape.
“No matter how hard things became, I never thought about quitting because those two women supported me every step of the way. They fully believed in me even when it felt like the entire world was against me.” He shifts his hand to the side of my throat and ghosts the pad of his thumb along the underside of my jaw.
“What I mean to say is my nana never says anything she doesn’t mean. ”
The world fades away as he leans down and murmurs with his lips an inch away from mine. His rich brown eyes gleam larger than life.
“Welcome to the family, Penelope.”
Every thought drains from my head as joy erases the pain of my past. The sense of belonging feels so right, I hook my hands over Sebastian’s shoulders, rise onto tiptoe, and kiss him until every cell in my body buzzes with electricity.
A car honks. He rips his face away from mine, lifts me off my feet, and moves us closer to the lamppost.
Awareness prickles at my skin, but before I can turn my head to check the shadows, Sebastian bends and kisses my forehead before whispering in my ear. His breath sends shivers down my spine.
“There’s no escape for you now, sweet pea. No matter what happens between us, my mother and grandmother will consider you theirs to love and cherish.”
I can’t stop the hitch in my breath, but I blink back my tears, clear my throat, and push his shoulders until he sets me back on my feet.
When I shift away from him, unease crawls up my spine. I peel my eyes away from Sebastian’s handsome face and study the edge of the parking lot, but the lights are too bright to see if there’s movement within the darkness.
With my attention torn and my equilibrium wrecked, I open my mouth to tell Sebastian of my suspicion, but his smug smirk awakens the fight in me.
“Wait, no, I said I’d date you, not form a long-term commitment. This is way too fast. You can’t—”
“I didn’t. My nana did. Take your issues up with her…” He dips down and flicks the tip of his tongue over my lip ring. “If you dare,” he chuckles.
I tighten my grip on his shirt and scowl.
“You’re not playing fair,” I accuse.
He smirks. My stomach bottoms out.
When I release his shirt and shove at his forearm, he tightens the arm barred around my back, gently closes his goliath hand around my throat, and brushes his lips side to side over mine.
“I never promised to play by the rules, pipsqueak. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you by my side, even if it means using my nana to win you over.”
Despite my melted insides and aching heart—or maybe because of them—I press my palm against his sternum and turn my face away.
He nuzzles my head and steals chaste kisses to my dermal temple and teardrop piercings.
“There’s no rush, sweet pea. When you’re ready, I’ll make you my wife.”
Time stands still, and I dive into a future of happiness and belonging.
Red light illuminates the side of Sebastian’s face as the car in the next row reverses out of its parking spot.
My spirit shrinks as the bubble of euphoria pops.
My behemoth guides me into the passenger seat of his SUV, reaches over me for my seat belt, steals a maddeningly short kiss, then closes my door and rearranges the driver’s side before wedging his body behind the wheel.
As he maneuvers out of the spot and exits the parking lot, the feeling of being watched recedes, and I relax into my seat.
I freeze as I realize the gravity of what I’ve done. By volunteering to check his security system, I’ve agreed to go to Sebastian Sterling’s home. Alone.
No, he shares his home with his grandmother and mother.
Who won’t be there tonight because his grandmother is in the hospital.
Holy cannoli, I’m an idiot.
His chuckle pulls me from my musings.
“You just realized you have to come to my house to fix my security system, didn’t you?”
I sigh and check my earrings with impatient fingers, using the tugging sensation on my sensitive flesh to center my thoughts.
“I did. Can we skip dinner and get that over with?”
“How about I order delivery while you work, and we can eat at my place after?” he asks.
I send him a side glare and try to pull my hand out of his, but he lifts my knuckles to his lips and kisses each one.
“We can share a meal in my nana’s dining room if you’re worried about my control.”
“I’m worried about my control.”
I freeze. Blink. Replay my words in my mind.
Mortification roars through my veins. My cheeks heat with the worst blush of my entire life. I turn my face toward my window, close my eyes, and pull my lip ring into my mouth.
Sebastian clears his throat and adjusts himself. Intrigue and horror battle within me as I imagine his large, masculine body begging for relief. From me.
Heat blooms between my legs. My clit pulses against my piercing. I shift in my seat and bite down on my lip ring hard enough to sting as pleasure zings up my spine.
“It’s been a long day. I can’t promise not to flirt or tease, but let’s take kisses off the list of possibilities,” Sebastian says.
I inhale deep enough to aggravate the scars on my ribs and nod.
“Okay. Just for this evening, right?” I ask with my face still aimed at the window, still wishing I could erase the last few seconds from my memory.
“Right. We start fresh tomorrow. I’ll expect kisses all day long from my new girlfriend. Understand?”
I choke on my spit and nearly die in the aftermath. With every ragged breath, my nipple piercings catch on my lace bra and my labia rings glide in the slippery coating of my arousal.
When I finally catch my breath enough to speak, I scowl and thump his shoulder.
“You’re the worst, Sebastian,” I say.
His diabolical smirk does nothing to ease my predicament.
I set his expression to memory and turn my face away to relish the lighthearted moment.
After a few minutes of quiet, he kisses the back of my hand and requests my attention with a gentle tug. I turn with one brow raised in question.
“What happened with your dad? Samuel never mentioned an accident,” he says.
Dark clouds gather around me as I recall the worst months of my life.
“Samuel doesn’t know,” I respond.
“What? Why?” Sebastian asks.
I sigh and drop my head back on the seat, but the headrest—even though it’s adjusted to the lowest setting—hits the top of my head in a weird spot and hurts my neck, so I fix my posture and meet Sebastian’s eyes before he returns his attention to the road.
“He borrowed a few thousand dollars from our parents a couple weeks before the accident to fund whatever startup he was fixated on at the time. They didn’t want to distract him, so they agreed to wait until he paid back the loan to tell him. He never did, so they haven’t.”
Sebastian’s broad fingers fiddle with my ring as he digests the information.
“How bad was the accident?” he asks.
I procrastinate long enough for him to change lanes and make several turns before I speak, using the time to formulate a coherent sequence of events.
“A steel beam fell on the top of his head when he was responding to an emergency. Luckily he had his helmet on so his skull was protected, but the impact caused all kinds of spine, nerve, and internal damage. He’d already clocked out and wasn’t supposed to be on the floor, so the company played a bunch of legal games and refused to pay for his medical bills. ”
The muscles in Sebastian’s jaw flex and anger flashes in his eyes, but he weaves through traffic and asks his next question with relative calm.
“Was your dad ever able to go back to work?” he asks.