“Good night,” I say.
He flicks the light off, and in the dark I listen to the rustle of his pants as he removes them. “You’re staying?” I ask, wishing I was better at hiding the joy in my voice.
“Yeah.” The bed dips beside me, and I lay there staring at the ceiling in the dark. Even though I’m tired, my mind races, wants to relive every minute of tonight. I just had sex—the best sex of my life—with a man I barely know. A man who is going to pretend to be my boyfriend to protect me from whoever is sending threatening letters.
He shifts and his voice falls over me. “Go to sleep, Haven.”
“You’re awfully bossy.”
He effortlessly moves me around with powerful arms, until I’m the little spoon and he’s the big one. “You don’t know me,” he says as I melt into his warmth. “But know this. We’ll be doing this again.”
“This?” I ask, as we snuggle, and try not to get my hopes up. “Do you mean snuggling or sleeping together?” Yeah, I need to clarify.
“I’m talking about fucking. We’ll be doing that again,” he says, a statement not a question. “I’m not nearly done with you, Haven.”
I bite down on my lip and resist the urge to scream, YAY!!
5
Tyler
The early morning sun shining in through the crack in my curtains slants on the wall and pulls me awake. I’m about to stretch when I realize there’s a hot body next to me. I peel one eye open and my heart beats a little faster as memories of last night come racing back, pushing the early morning fog from my brain, allowing lust to take its place.
I want her again.
“Jesus,” I murmur silently. You’d think I’d be sated this morning, but nope, my cock is up cock-a-doodling, ready to go another round. Footsteps sound in the hall, and by now, my brothers and cousins will have figured out where I slept last night. Good. At least now they all know Haven is hands off. The first one to say a word about me sleeping in here—or rather my bed—for the night, I’ll take out back for a goddamn beat-down. Yeah, it’s true I don’t spend the night, but the circumstances are different here. Haven is in some kind of trouble.
Yeah sure, Tyler. Go ahead, just try to convince yourself that’s why you stayed all night.
I shift to take in the way her blonde hair is falling over her face, one wispy strand moving back and forth as she breathes. A ridiculous, village-idiot grin spreads across my face. With the slightest touch, I pull her hair away so she doesn’t snort it into her brain.
She stirs under my touch, and I lightly graze my fingers over her delicate shoulder, take pleasure in her soft skin. That’s when I notice the teeth marks on her flesh. I chuckle slightly, but I hope the damn bites don’t interfere with her filming today. She’s probably supposed to be blemish-free for this sweet romantic comedy she’s starring in.
She rolls toward me and I take a breath as her eyes open and meet mine. A part of me expects to see regret lingering in those baby blues, but instead I’m met with pure satisfaction. She gives a lazy, cat-like stretch.
“Morning,” she says softly, and my chest squeezes, a strange little tug around my heart as I take in her pretty eyes.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“I don’t mind you waking me.” She shifts to see the clock on my side of the bed. “What time is it?” she asks.
I brush her hair back and she leans into my hand, her cheek warm and flushed from sleep—maybe still from sex. “Still early. Why don’t you try to get a little more sleep.”
She nods and stretches. “Why are you up?”
“I’m headed to the gym.” In the summers I start my weekend classes early, before the heat of the day, and before I’m required to check in for work. Yeah, in the summer, the Blue Bay Crew Construction company works around the clock, seven days a week, and I’m okay with that, considering I put all my money into the company to get it back in the black. We all did. It’s healthy and thriving now, and we’re all going home with a damn fine paycheck, which I only touch for basic necessities.
The truth of the matter is, I’m good with my hands and I don’t mind helping out in the family business. Big brother Sean has really done a great job filling Dad’s shoes. But as I think of my Dad, and how we all up and left as soon as we were old enough, my throat tightens.
He was such a hard-ass man. None of us could ever do right in his eyes, but he was still our father, and not one of us was here when he died. All he ever wanted was for us to be together, working in the family business. He got what he wanted. Unfortunately, it came after his death. As the oldest, Sean was the first to leave and first to come back. I think he took Dad’s death the hardest. He blames himself for setting an example for the rest of us.
“Of course you’re going to the gym,” she says sleepily. “You don’t get a body like yours from sleeping all day. I should probably go too.” She reaches out and a hard quiver cuts through me as she races her fingers down my chest, to my abdominals.
“Want to join me?” I grin as I think about putting her through one of my workouts.
“Yes,” she says, and a smile touches her face as she puts the pillow over her head and gives a muffled, “No.” She laughs, and I laugh with her.
I tug the pillow away and drop a soft kiss onto her lips. “You don’t have to come.”
“Maybe another time.” She goes quiet for a second, her gaze dropping to take in my bare chest. “So this,” she says, her questioning eyes lifting to me. “We’re doing it again?”
I chuckle at that, and I don’t even have to ask if she’s game. Nope, the second my lips touched hers, I tasted the hunger, the need lingering below the surface. I’m not being an asshole here. I’m not even being a narcissist—I’m the furthest thing from it. In fact, I’m a realist and I understand women want me for my body. Back in the day, everyone wanted to sleep with the Hammer. The Hammer is a great guy to have fun with and nothing more. I used to be okay with that.
Wait, what?
I’m still okay with it, I guess. I don’t know, like I said already, I’m getting a little played out. Haven though, she needed me last night, and I jumped on it. I’m not going to lie and say it was only to give her what she wanted. I damn well wanted it too, and I’m not going to forget for one second that she wants me for my body, and for protection. It’s ridiculous for me to think she might want more. Hell, I don’t even want more. I just met the woman. Yeah, sure it’s like I know her after listening to her brother, but still, she’s basically a stranger.
“That’s the plan.” I touch her face, run the pad of my thumb down her soft cheek until I get to that hollow spot on her neck she liked me kissing. She frowns and my fingers still as I study her tightening face. “Do you have a problem with that, Haven?”
“A big one, actually.”
Shit, no way did I read her wrong. I’m an expert at body language. A guy doesn’t win a title fight if he can’t read his opponent—although she’s anything but the enemy. I go up on my elbow, wanting to know what’s going on inside that head of hers. Everything in her body says she wants this with me. Why the hesitation all of a sudden? “Talk.”