Faithful to a Fault (6 page)

If a person couldn’t die from humiliation, they could come damn close. “With your finger, the thing. You know.”

He didn’t say a word and she was tempted to peek and check to make sure he wasn’t horrified.
But really, how did you discreetly ask someone to put their finger up your butt?

She felt his touch, but it wasn’t where she expected. One, then two fingers entered her pussy, swirling and twisting, reaching every crevice. The feeling was relaxing and exciting at the same time. But then he pulled back. Too soon.

Except he came right back to her, this time his fingers tickled her tight hole. The surprise made her flex.

“Not good. Relax.” As if to help, he made a languid lap up her pussy, pressing into her clit.

She moaned and thrust up with her hips, then felt one finger slowly push in behind.

“Focus here,” he said and bit down gently on her clit for emphasis.

Yeah, like she could ignore that. A second finger joined the first in her ass, scissoring and moving with utter slowness. The feeling was the same from the night before, only more. More full, more sensitive, more everything.

Pete’s tongue picked up the pace and she couldn’t concentrate on anything but her body vibrating, stretching, reaching for the climax that hovered so close.

His teeth captured her nub once more and he sucked hard. That was all it took. She flew apart, stars floating behind her eyelids. He managed to keep her hips still though they tried to buck him off, but her head tossed and turned on the pillow like a mad woman as she groaned with the release.

Finally he let her go. With one last soothing lick that had her shuddering, he crawled back up until he was nose to nose with her. His hot length was heavy against her hip and she wondered where he’d stashed the box of condoms.

Turning to see if he put them in the nightstand drawer, she caught sight of the alarm clock and froze.

“Oh fuck!”

Sarah rolled out from underneath Pete and ran for the bathroom.

“What? What’s wrong?” Pete’s deep voice called after her.

“I’m going to be late for work!”

“But I thought you didn’t work!” he yelled through the door.

She hurried through her morning bathroom routine, feeling like she was going to miss something in her rush. Brush hair, check. Brush teeth, check. Deodorant, check.

A knock at the door had her finishing up faster.

“But I thought you didn’t work today,” he said again.

“I didn’t.” She opened the door, hands busy pulling her hair into a ponytail. “But someone asked me last night to cover this morning. And since you left and I thought I’d be sleeping alone…”

“Say no more.” He had the good grace to flush a little. And apparently he’d dressed while she did her mad bathroom dash.

She slowed down long enough to give him a kiss.

“Do you want to get together tonight?”

“Yeah. I like that idea.”

So did she.

Chapter Five

Pete took the long way home to give himself some time to think. And wasn’t that a first? Great sex usually went a long way in clearing his mind, not making it more confused.

Maybe that’s because it wasn’t great sex. It was phenomenal sex. And it wasn’t
just
sex. After all that shit he gave Sarah about understanding that he was temporary and not to let her emotions take over, he’d done the exact thing.

He wanted her. That wasn’t a new thing for him. Tag chasers, one-night stands, bar bunnies. When he’d been with them, he wanted them too.

No, that wasn’t true. He wanted the release, and as much as it made him sound like an ass, they were a vessel to the end result. Not that they’d likely mind hearing that one bit. He fulfilled his temporary duty in their lives as well. Filled part of a lonely night or a minute or two of security. He doubted any of those women wanted him for more than a fuck any more than he wanted them.

More than that, he
liked
Sarah. Those other women had never stuck around long enough to know whether
like
would enter the picture. God knows love was never even possible before.

And that one little kernel of truth stopped him colder than the bitching wind. Love. No, definitely not love. He wasn’t in love. He barely knew Sarah.

But was there a possibility there? Is that why he was fighting the thought so hard? Because this time, it might actually be an option?

Pete’s phone rang and a quick check showed it was Trav, his best friend. His family. He debated it for a moment then decided he would welcome the respite from his own mental ramblings and flipped the phone open.

“Hey, man, what’s up?”

“Goodwin. What’s up in the wilds of Montana?”

“Minnesota,” Pete corrected.

“Uh huh. How goes the break?”

Pete’s mind went back to where he was only an hour before. Warm, sated, completely content in bed with his arms around Sarah. “It’s going. The Millers are solid people.”

“I remember Miller. Good guy. When do you head back?”

“Couple of days. I want to make sure I have some time to relax before I have to sign back in to the battalion. How are things out on the homestead?”

“We’re doing well. We’re— Stop that. Hush.”

“What?”

“Sorry,” Trav said. “
Someone
over here is trying to speed the convo along.”

Pete smiled as he opened the door to the guest house he was sharing with Tony. That someone could be none other than Trav’s girlfriend, Ariel. Sweet, sassy and an overall awesome woman, she’d snared Trav on a trip home the year before and Trav hadn’t looked back since. “Tell Ariel I said hi.”

“Pete says hi. Anyway, one of the main reasons I was— Yes, I’m telling him! Shush!” There was a thump, a muffled curse and then a resigned sigh.

“Pete? Hi!” Ariel squealed.

“Hey, sweets. What’s going on?”

“Well, we have news. Which is what Trav was attempting to lead into with the speed of a three-legged turtle.”

He chuckled and dropped down on the sofa. No sign of Tony, which meant he likely was at the main house talking his mom into cooking him brunch. Pete’s stomach rumbled, reminding him he needed to make a trip inside for food himself.

“What’s the news?”

“We’re getting married.”

Married. His best friend was making the ultimate commitment. He didn’t doubt Trav’s choice of bride. Ariel was as solid as they came. But the permanence… He had zero experience with it and wouldn’t even know where to begin. But if Trav was willing to take the leap…

“I’m happy for you guys. Thank God Trav is ready to make an honest woman out of you.”

Ariel laughed. “I wasn’t in any rush. Anyway, we’re keeping it pretty low-key, having the ceremony in the gardens at the camp and the reception in the dining hall. Small crowd.”

Ariel’s family owned a summer camp for children, which they also rented out during the off-season to companies who wanted a corporate retreat location. The extra revenue from those went into scholarships so more underprivileged children could attend summer camp.

“Sounds just like you guys.”

“If all goes well with looking for Trav’s sister, it’s going to be some time in the spring. Before the major push to prep for summer campers gets started. Will you be here in the country in the spring? Oof!” Another grunt and then Pete heard Trav’s voice.

“Are they going to give you that instructor spot like you hoped?”

“Nothing’s sure yet, but fingers crossed. I’ll find out more when I get back. How goes the great sister search?”

There was a long pause, and then, “Might have a lead. The investigator found out she got married. My baby sister is married.” His voice was partially awed, partially blind shock.

“She’s like, twenty-four now, isn’t she?” Pete reminded him gently.

“Twenty-five. Doesn’t matter. I’m her brother. I should have been there when she got married. How could I not even know my sister was married?”

“Trav…” There was nothing he could say to alleviate his friend’s grief and guilt. “You’ll find her. And it’ll be all right.”

Trav cleared his throat. “Right. Well, it’s a lead anyway. Which is a plus. So are you coming to see us any time soon?”

Pete didn’t question the quick shift in topic. “Maybe in a few weeks, for Thanksgiving.”

“Thanksgiving sounds good. You’re always welcome, you know that.”

“We love you, Pete!” he heard Ariel call out in the background.

“Yeah, that,” Trav added with a chuckle. “Enjoy the rest of your leave. And call us more often, you dickhead.”

“Hey,” Pete said quickly. “Did you get a name for your sister? The married name, I mean. I could get into the system and see if I could find him. You know, if he was in the military. Probably a long shot but—”

“He’s not. I already had it checked. Seems like he joined some sort of band or something. Anyway, it’s Cassidy. How crazy is that? Sarah and I don’t even share a last name anymore.”

Trav droned on but all Pete could hear was a buzzing noise. A high-pitched ringing. No. No fucking way. There was no way. His life could not be that fucked up.

“Yeah, listen buddy,” Pete interrupted. “I’m going to have to call you back later. Something came up. Out.” He closed the phone with a snap, knowing Trav would be pissed, but wouldn’t call back.

It couldn’t be. There was no way. No way in hell that something that random could possibly match up.

Of course it did. Look at Trav and Ariel. A freak wrong number turned into an engagement.

But Sarah was such a common name. There were hundreds of thousands of Sarahs across the country. And Cassidy wasn’t that abnormal either. It was all one big mistake. One misunderstanding. He would call, she’d set it straight and they could laugh about it later.

He dialed her number, the one she’d given him before he left, and then remembered she should be at work. He almost hung up when he heard her breathless, “Hello?”

“Hey. Sorry, forgot you should already be at work.”

“I am, but it’s dead right now. I ducked back into the storage to answer when I saw it was you.”

Pete’s stomach clenched with dread, but he soothed it by repeating his for-the-moment mantra.
It’s not her. It’s not her.
“I won’t keep you long. I just had a question.”

“Okay, what is it?”

Pete could hear a pot clang in the background, someone yelling something. She must be near the kitchen. He started to say he would call her later, but that would make him chickenshit. “I was just curious. Is Cassidy your maiden name?”

“Uh, no. No it’s Donovan. I wanted to change it but I didn’t have the time and then it just sort of slipped my mind. Wait, why?”

Pete opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

“Is this about my divorce? I told you, that was years ago. I haven’t even talked to the jackass in forever.”

Sarah droned on, but the buzzing sound was back. Pete forced his voice to remain calm, something he didn’t feel. “I was just curious. I’ll let you get back to work.”

“Pete. What’s going on? Why the sudden curiosity in my marriage? It’s over. Do you believe me?”

Pete paused. He shouldn’t. But he had to figure out what to do. It might not be a bad idea to feel the situation out.

“Yeah. I do.”

* * * * *

Sarah wasn’t sure what to expect that night, waiting for Pete to come over. The phone call she took during work had shaken her confidence. He’d sounded so quiet, so reserved. So not the Pete she’d met in the last week. But he had agreed to come over.

Sarah pushed the milk back, inching it over just a little in the fridge. After working her butt off at the bar, she still hadn’t relieved the stress from his call. So she did what always soothed her. She cleaned. Deep cleaning the small kitchen gave her a sense of accomplishment, a sense of control. This, at least, she knew would stay nice and neat.

The knock sounded just as she finished washing her hands. Perfect. She wiped her hands on the towel and walked to the door. She was determined to get them back to the same high they ended the morning on. And she knew how to do it.

She smiled—one she didn’t have to fight for—when she saw Pete standing on the porch. Hands in his pockets, he looked uncertain. Maybe he was just not sure how she would react after their evening together.

Sarah threw her arms around his neck and squeezed. After a moment, he returned her embrace. He nuzzled into her neck, breathing deep, as if he were trying to keep her scent with him.

“Hey,” she said. “What’s going on?”

He didn’t answer, just stepped over the threshold still holding on and closed the door behind them with his foot. Sarah didn’t say another word. For who knew what reason, he needed this comfort, and she would give it.

Finally he pulled away and sighed. “One of those days.”

Sarah could have questioned him, but his clenched jaw, the weary look in his eye told her he was on lockdown. So she would do the next best thing. She took his hand and led him to the bed. They sat together and she rubbed a hand down his arm. Taking a chance, she said, “I missed you today.”