Craving (Steel Brothers Saga Book 1) (15 page)

“You’re wet, baby. You’re so wet for me.”

She attempted her nod again.

“I’m going to slide my cock into you, baby,” I said. “Keep your legs together like that, and I’m going to slide right into that sweet cunt. It’s going to be so tight, and it’s going to feel so good.”

I gave her a gentle slap on the ass. She jerked but didn’t say anything. I had told her to tell me stop if she needed me to, so I continued. I slapped her ass again, a little harder this time. It turned a luscious shade of pink. Then I leaned down and spread kisses over her pink cheeks to soothe the sting.

“You like that, baby? You like it when I slap your little ass?”

“Y-Yes,” she stammered.

I would go easy this time. As much as I wanted to smack her cute little butt until it was bright red, I couldn’t. She would need to understand me better before we could go there. And she would never understand me fully. I couldn’t let that happen.

I climbed on top of her and rubbed my cock between her ass cheeks. I dipped the head into her slit and then slid it between her ass cheeks again, lubricating with her wetness.

“Keep your legs together, baby,” I said again. “I’m going to slide into that tight heat just like this.” I knelt, my knees on either side of her thighs. I notched my cock at the entrance to her pussy, and slowly, achingly slowly, I slid into that wet paradise.

She let out the softest, sweetest sigh as I entered her.

That sound was better than the sweetest music I’d ever heard, better than the soft patter of rain on the roof, better than a baby’s laugh. And with that sigh, something opened inside me. A tiny bit of my heart that had been hard as stone for so long broke free.

A tear slid out of the corner of my eye. I didn’t know why. I had no idea where it came from. But something inside me broke, if only for that single moment. I pulled out slowly and slid back in, letting her warm suction surround me, take me, make everything okay.

Was this the person I had been looking for? Was this the person who could take all the bad away? Did such a person even exist? She lay still, not resisting, letting me take what I needed from her.

And even though she knew nothing about my past, what I had been through, something inside me, something on a deep carnal level, knew that she understood.

I slid back into her one more time and let my orgasm take me. More tears fell down my cheeks as I moaned and released.

I poured everything inside me into that release, into her. She lay beneath me, moaning into the comforter, her hips bucking, her hands tied behind her back. Taking me, trusting me, and giving me so much in return.

If only I were worthy.

H
e convulsed into me
, and although I hadn’t had an orgasm, something about this joining of our bodies was more special and sweet than any before.

When his cock stopped pulsing, he withdrew. He released my hands, and I turned to face him. His dark eyes were sunken and wet, and moist trails lined his face where tears had fallen.

I cupped his cheek, thumbing the remainder of a tear away. I longed to ask him what was wrong, why he was crying, but I knew he would not respond. So I said nothing, and after cupping his cheeks for a few more seconds, I crawled into his arms.

He held on to me, and I burrowed my face into his chest. I inhaled the salty cinnamon masculine aroma. I loved his scent. I loved how I smelled like him for hours after we’d been together. I sometimes hesitated to shower so I could keep the scent on me longer.

He didn’t say anything, didn’t offer any explanation as to why he had been crying. I didn’t ask for one. I just held him, and I let him hold me.

And we came a little bit closer that night.

“
I
f you just drop the
charges, I can get him to pay restitution. I’m almost sure of it.”

“Why should I? The jerk beat the shit out of me. If you’re the new city attorney, aren’t you supposed to be on my side?”

I pushed my chair back and sighed into the cell phone. “I’m on the side of the city, Colin. Taking this to trial would be a waste of the city’s resources. You told me yourself that you’re okay. That you didn’t have any lasting effects from the incident.”

“He damn near broke my nose.”

“But he didn’t.” I was surprised he hadn’t. Colin’s nose had been bleeding pretty badly.

“He could’ve broken my ribs the way he was kicking me.”

“And again, he didn’t.”

“Only because I knew how to protect myself by getting in the right position.”

“We can all be thankful that you knew how to protect yourself.” I let out another sigh. “Don’t you need to get back to Denver? You really want to hang around here to testify?”

“I can fly out here anytime to testify. Has your office filed charges yet?”

“Yes, my boss did this morning. But, Colin, this is a misdemeanor assault. He didn’t use a weapon, and you didn’t sustain any lasting injuries.”

“I’m not dropping the charges.” Colin clicked the phone off.

Now what? I’d have to talk to Talon’s attorney and come up with a plea bargain. Would Larry object? I smiled to myself. He couldn’t possibly. He had given me this case. If he objected, I could easily go to the judge and tell him that Larry had given me in this case in spite of all the conflicts. It was my case. I would handle it as I saw fit.

I perused the Colorado criminal statutes. Reckless endangerment carried a maximum sentence of six months in prison and a maximum fine of five hundred dollars. I could probably get Talon to plead down to that and get him a fine instead of prison time. God knew he had the money.

I laughed out loud. I was the prosecution, for God’s sake. The defense should be pleading down the case. Where was O’Keefe? He should be taking care of this.

I pulled his business card out of my briefcase and punched in his number.

“Peter O’Keefe please.”

“May I ask who is calling?”

“Jade Roberts from the city attorney’s office.”

A few minutes later, “Peter O’Keefe here.”

“Mr. O’Keefe, hi, this is Jade Roberts at the city attorney’s office. I’m calling about Talon Steel.”

“Yes, what can I help you with?”

“I’ve been going over the file, and I don’t think there’s any reason to take this to trial. The people are willing to plead down to reckless endangerment and a five hundred dollar fine plus restitution to the alleged victim.”

“That’s a generous offer, Ms. Roberts. I think I can probably sell that to my client.”

“Great. Let me know.”
And please do sell it
, I added myself.

Now, to convince Talon. I checked my watch. It was almost five. Larry had left an hour ago to take his grandkids for dinner and ice cream. I’d put in a full day, so I gathered my things. I said a quick good-bye to Michelle and left.

When I walked out of the building, there stood Talon.

My breath caught. I would never grow tired of looking at him. He wore a black cotton shirt, short-sleeved, his forearms tanned and sinewy. His denim jeans hugged his hips and thighs. He was rugged through and through, all the way down to his black cowboy boots. A black felt Stetson sat on his head, and I thought I might swoon. He looked every bit the cowboy today, and I wanted to launch myself into his arms.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I came to plead guilty.”

I let out a sigh. “Haven’t we been through this?”

“I changed my mind. I want to plead guilty to a lesser offense. I…don’t want to be locked up.”

“Well then, you’re in luck. I just talked to your attorney on the phone. I’m offering a plea of guilty to reckless endangerment and a five hundred dollar fine, plus any restitution Colin demands.”

“Your boss will go for that?”

“My boss has no choice. He gave this case to me even when I told him I shouldn’t take it.”

“Why shouldn’t you have taken it?”

“I have a major conflict of interest. The alleged victim is my ex-fiancé, and the defendant—that’s you—well, you’re my best friend’s brother, and you and I are…”

His lips trembled a bit. Only a bit, but I noticed. He looked down and mumbled something I didn’t understand.

“What? I can’t hear you.”

He looked up, his dark eyes burning into me. “Thank you,” he said softly.

Those two words permeated my soul and lifted me high. Instinctively, I knew saying them had been difficult for him.

“You don’t have to thank me, Talon. I’m doing my job.”

“Blue eyes, your job is to prosecute me, not get me off.”

“Actually, you’re wrong. Colin is not my client. The city is. My job is to do what’s in the best interest of the city of Snow Creek. And quite frankly, it’s my professional opinion the interests of the city are best served if we don’t spend the taxpayers’ money to prosecute this case.”

“What if you’re wrong? What if I should be prosecuted? What if I beat the shit out of someone else?”

“You won’t.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because, Talon, I won’t let you.”

To my surprise, he nodded. “What do I do now?”

“Your attorney will call you and give you the details. There will be a hearing sometime soon, and we will present the plea to the judge.”

“All right.” He dug his hands into his pockets and looked down again. “For what it’s worth, Jade, I’m…sorry.”

I smiled. More difficult words from him. “Sorry for what? For beating Colin?”

He let out a chuckle. “Only for taking it as far as I did. The jerk deserved a good ass whooping for what he did to you.”

“I can’t say disagree with you there. And Talon, I’m sorry too. I’m sorry that Colin put you in a position to do what you did. He should never have come here. I didn’t want him to. It’s over between us. I hope you understand that.”

He didn’t respond. Not that I thought he would.

“Well,” I said, “I guess I’ll get back to the ranch.”

“I thought maybe…”

“What?”

“You might like to have dinner or something?”

“Are you asking me out?”

“Well…you’re here, and I’m here, and it’s almost dinner time…”

I couldn’t help a laugh. He was something else. “Talon, I would love to have dinner with you. Where do you want to go?”

“Follow me.” And then he smiled.

My heart nearly burst right there. The man had a beautiful smile. I just wished I could see it more often.

We walked a couple of blocks to the greenbelt area. A path of bricks led about a quarter mile into the park under a big shaded oak tree. A red-and-white checkered cloth had been set out along with a picnic basket and a bottle of wine. My breath caught, and I silently thanked God that I had worn pants instead of a skirt to work this morning.

“Did you do all this?” I asked.

“Well, no. Felicia made the food. I just brought it here and set it out.”

Tears emerged from my eyes. Talon Steel was a man of many facets, and I liked almost every single one of them.

To keep him from further embarrassment, I walked forward. “What’s for dinner?”

“Good ol’ country food. Felicia’s famous fried chicken, potato salad, and fresh fruit salad.”

I laughed. “No Steel beef?”

“Steaks don’t make for an easy picnic, unless we grill them here, but grills aren’t allowed in the city park.”

Talon opened the basket and pulled out a corkscrew. He deftly opened the bottle of red wine and poured two glasses, handing one to me. He looked at me for a moment, and I almost thought he was going to propose a toast of some sort, but he didn’t. He simply took a sip, so I followed suit.

Then he opened the basket and pulled out a couple of plates.

“Here, let me help you.” I pulled out the container of fried chicken and opened it. “I like thighs. What do you like?”

“Thighs? Really? You mean you’re not a chicken breast girl? The leaner cut?”

“Do I look like I try to be supermodel thin? I may be Brooke Bailey’s daughter, but my figure comes from my father’s side. Besides, once it’s battered and fried, the leaner cuts really don’t matter.”

He laughed. A happy laugh. “I actually do like the breast, but not because I’m worried about my weight.”

I scanned his beautifully sculpted body. Nope, he sure didn’t need to worry about his weight. I placed a breast on his plate and a thigh on mine. He scooped some potato salad and fruit on my plate. I smiled and thanked him. We began eating, and we didn’t talk much, but oddly, the silence didn’t seem awkward. I laughed when he dropped a piece of potato salad on his shirt. I wiped it up with my napkin. For a few fleeting moments, we were almost like a couple, and I wanted to enjoy it. Appreciate it.

My feelings for Talon had grown deep. I wasn’t ready to say I loved him, and I knew he didn’t love me, but some of the emotion I was feeling went beyond anything I’d ever felt with Colin, someone I’d supposedly been in love with. Something infected Talon, and I wished I knew what it was so I could help him. Since I couldn’t, I wanted to just enjoy this simple meal with him. Maybe he was enjoying it too, and maybe we’d have another one sometime.

“Do you want another piece of chicken?” I asked when I saw he had finished his breast.

He nodded. “Yeah, let me try the other thigh, unless you want it.”

I shook my head. “Nope, it’s yours. If I want more, I can have a drumstick. I’m pretty easy to please.” I cursed myself the moment after the words left my lips. I didn’t need him to take that the wrong way.

But he went right on eating, sipping his wine, spearing a strawberry or a chunk of pineapple with his fork. He seemed…comfortable, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him comfortable.

I finished my thigh and decided I didn’t need a drumstick after all. I was getting full. “Felicia is a great cook. I’ve really enjoyed my meals since I’ve been here.”

“She’s the best.”

“Did you know Marj would like to go to culinary school?”

He shook his head. “Really? She is a good little cook, that’s for sure.”

“I’m surprised she doesn’t cook more often.”

“She’s not used to working hard. She’s so much younger than the rest of us, and she was the baby and very spoiled. So she just lets Felicia do most of it.”

I nodded. I loved Marjorie dearly, but she
was
a bit spoiled. Four years of living with her as a roommate in college had taught me that. “Maybe I can get her to cook more often. I’ll tell her how much I enjoy her cooking. In fact, why don’t you, Jonah, and Ryan tell her, too? It might mean more coming from her brothers.”

“Jade…”

I looked up. His eyes had darkened. I had the feeling we were done talking about Marj’s cooking.

“Yeah?”

“I don’t want to…”

“What?”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

I cupped his cheek. “Do I look hurt to you?”

“You’re good at that, aren’t you?”

“Good at what?”

He let out a tiny laugh. “At asking a question instead of making a comment. You’ll make a good attorney.”

“I hope so. And Talon, you haven’t hurt me.”

“I don’t understand what it is about you. Right now, I’m hard as a rock just sitting near you. Something in you calls to me, and I’m powerless to resist it.”

Even in the warm sun summer evening, my cheeks heated further. I was wet for him too. “If you’ve noticed, I haven’t been resisting you either.”

“I guess that’s what I mean. Maybe you should be resisting it.”

“Why? If we’re both enjoying ourselves, why not do it?”

“Because, like I said, I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Do I look hurt?”

He huffed. “Would you stop doing that please?”

“You won’t hurt me. I won’t let you. If I think I’m going to get hurt, I’ll end this…” This what? I had no idea how to finish that statement. “This…” I said again. “What the hell is this thing between us, anyway?”