Sarasota Bride (9 page)

Dylan removed his fingers and Avery carefully turned her, easing up her dress until it strangled her waist. He leaned forward and slid his tongue over her clit, taking over Dylan’s finger fucking.

“She’s a sight,” Dylan groaned, his choppy breathing turning her inside out. The knowledge he was getting off on the sight of her body — extra curves and all— without even touching her, sent her to the brink.

“See the way he watches you, Payton?” Avery whispered over her nether lips. “His scalding come will shoot in his hand, the way mine shot in your throat.”

He swiveled his wrist while moving a slow, calculated tongue over the tip of her clit, circling, circling, circling until her lights went completely out. Her sex started clenching, fisting, releasing, clenching, fisting, releasing. “Ummmm!”

“That’s it, baby, ride it out with me,” Dylan pleaded, his head going back, his lips parting as he sucked in air. Then a long satisfying groan left him. “
Shit
.”

Payton shuddered through the aftershocks as Avery gently brought her down with his mouth and fingers. He never left her hanging, always caring for her as she descended back to reality from her orgasms. Her thighs were still tight around his arm, but she managed to loosen them. “I really needed that.”

Chapter Eleven

Avery brought his passion-slicked mouth to hers, giving her a taste of her essence. “I don’t know how I’m going to explain this to Gilda, particularly since we’re late.” He held up his hand, displaying her fresh nail marks.

“Sorry.” She sat up with his help and adjusted her dress. “Maybe she’ll understand.”

“She understands most things except tardiness,” Dylan said, nodding to the SUVS. “We have extra security around us, so no more playing in the parking garage.”

She watched as several cars pulled in, one blocking the exit. “Do I look presentable?”

Avery wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and pocketed it. “Now you do.”

They stepped out of the car, all three enjoying their sudden relaxation thankful to their orgasms.

“Okay,” Payton said, as she held their hands, “let’s discuss my bucket list.”

Dylan’s laughter echoed in the garage. “I guess after this week, anyone would have a bucket list.” He slid his card key into the elevator. “Hit me with it.”

She dropped their hands and counted off one finger. “I’d like to see the world a little bit.”

Avery wrapped his arm around her lower back as they stepped into the elevator. “I’d love to show you the world, Payton.” The doors slid closed, cocooning them. “What else?”

She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks as the elevator descended, but she counted off the second finger. “I relinquished college to invest in the firehouse, and I always flipped my nose up at taking classes, but I think that’s because I had to choose one or the other.”

“So you want to take some classes,” Dylan replied, his smile radiant, “we’ve got you covered. What else?”

“Our marriage is the most important thing to me.” She choked up on that, her hand covering her mouth. Visions of Avery and Dylan tied in the back of that truck with flames heading straight for them flicked through her mind.

“Shush, now,” Dylan said gently, rubbing her back as Avery pressed kisses to her cheek. The elevator stopped, the doors opening into a private corridor. “Where’d you go?”

She could smell steak cooking over an oak-fired grill. “Where do you
think
I went?”

Avery whispered, “Let’s go somewhere else and talk about it, or perhaps you want me to phone your therapist, maybe take the sedative now instead of later?”

She shook her head no. “I want to tell you the last thing I have on my list, though I’m sure I’m going to be adding more every day.”

“You can add as many things as you want, sweetheart.” Avery encouraged. “Go ahead.”

“I want to go home.”

A line formed between Dylan’s eyebrows. “Home?”

“Yes, home.” She swiped at her tears, the incredible aroma suddenly stoking her appetite. “Your estate off of Vanderbilt, the one with the iron gate and front yard full of Magnolias.”

Dylan faced her now, stopping just outside of the restaurant. “You’re saying you want to live where you almost died?” He adjusted the front of her dress. “I don’t know if you’re thinking clearly.”

“I’m thinking clearly,” she assured. “But I’ll go wherever you are. From this night forward, I sleep wherever my men sleep.”

Avery sighed, tugging her through the open kitchen where chefs were hand cutting thick steaks and shrimp sizzled on long skewers. “Sleeping wherever I sleep sounds perfect to me.”

“And home to you is my estate?” Dylan’s eyes twinkled as they passed a line of arched windows overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. “Where I grew up?”

“The place Michael and Marla tried to burn down,” she replied with a nod, “but it’s still standing, just like we are.”

“I’m all for it. How about you, A?”

“Of course, I’m for it.”

A thrill shot through her. “I’m so excited. Can I decorate some of the rooms myself?” She didn’t have to spend a lot of money. Payton only wanted to put her stamp on the place, making it feel like home.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way, honey. I’ll have one of our interior designers work with you.” He sighed. “But the outside is now in worse shape than the inside. We have some serious replanting to do. Outside structures are toasted. Not to mention the perimeter fence,” Dylan was speaking more to himself than to her.

“So use the crew that finished up the firehouse.” She studied the restaurant’s atmosphere, absorbing the nautical feel from the knotty-wood pine floor to the tiny lanterns dotting the tables. “Thank you, by the way. I can’t believe how all the finishing touches finally came together.”

“You’re ours,” Avery whispered, “anything for you.”

She may not have the money backing her, but Payton would do anything she could for them, too.

They entered a private dining room, the long oval table draped in white linen, the tiny lanterns flickering with candles scattered over the top among gleaming silverware and crystal. Servers dished out prosciutto wrapped scallops and steaming bowls of conch chowder. Eastons filled the chairs with Julian poised at one end of the table, Gilda at the other.

Going to Gilda first, Avery tugged Payton along. “Good evening, beautiful,” he said with a kiss to her cheek. “Look who’s feeling well enough to join us.” He pressed Payton’s lower back, and she kissed Gilda, too.

The woman Avery truly thought of as his mother beamed at her. “You look much better than you did yesterday.”

Payton saw the worry in her eyes. “I feel much better. Thanks for including me.”

“I will always include you,” she said, lifting her wine glass, “whether you stick with these overbearing men or not.”

Payton couldn’t believe how easily Gilda accepted their unorthodox relationship. She might never get the same acceptance from her mother, though she’d finally been honest, phoning her mother the day after her accident. “I’m sticking with them.”

“Everyone.” Dylan cleared his throat, lifting a glass to the group. Libby looked a little uncomfortable sitting next to Trey, but she lifted her wine. “Payton has agreed to become our wife.”

Gilda stood, tears swimming in her eyes, and proposed a toast. “I always heard that when children find their true love, their parents also find their truest happiness.” She touched her chest over her heart. “I’m feeling it, too. You deserve to move on from the ashes. God bless.”

“Here! Here!”

Thrown in a sudden whirlwind, Eastons bombarded Payton from all angles, kissing and hugging, relaying their congratulations on a personal level as they truly invited her into the fold. Trey and Libby were the last to congratulate her, Libby holding onto his arm with tears in her eyes. “You seem really happy. Congratulations.”

Payton wished she could say the same to Libby, but her friend looked positively miserable. “I am.” She kissed her. “Thank you.”

Trey leaned and placed a kiss on her cheek. “Welcome to the family.”

She wanted to strangle him with his tie, but Gilda was watching. “I’m glad to be a part of it.”

Avery pulled out her chair, helping her to sit. “Let’s get some food down you.”

The scallops didn’t look bad, but she was passing on them and the conch chowder. “Sorry to steal your birthday thunder, Julian.” Payton took a sip of wine. “I didn’t know Dylan was going to announce our engagement tonight.”

Julian’s green eyes glinted in the candlelight; his hair seemed as golden as Dylan’s tonight. “You’ve done me a service.” He raised a brow at Gilda. “I asked that no one remind me of my birthday.”

Gilda spread her napkin on her lap, clucking her tongue. “Because he swore to me he’d find a wife by the time he hit thirty-five.” Her black brow lifted as she pointed a bejeweled finger at him. “That was last year.”

Julian scoffed. “You’re mistaken. I’m thirty-five this year.”

Evan rolled his eyes, Drake joining him. “You’ve been thirty-five for two years now.”

Gilda shook her head in dismay. “Bring in the steaks, darling,” she directed a server. “Payton isn’t touching her soup.”

Payton flushed, but Dylan patted her leg underneath the table. “She keeps an eye on things.”

“Speaking of things,” Trey said quietly, sitting a manila envelope on the table. “Our outside security team met with me right after you left the office.”

“Tell me they found Michael’s accomplice,” Dylan demanded, his fingers tightening on Payton’s leg.

Trey held up a hand. “Security has a significant lead, but no apprehensions have been made.”

“Yet,” Drake insisted. “Give them a little more time. We pay them enough not to take any other jobs.”

Payton could see them walking outside the windows, suited men not trying to look casual for any onlookers. She gripped Dylan’s hand to loosen his hold.

“Sorry,” he whispered in her ear.

“Tell us about the lead,” Avery prodded, his arm slid behind her, his thumb stroking her shoulder.

Trey tensed. “Though we’re waiting for DNA confirmation from Michael’s body. All reports coming from our team lead to him being Dylan’s half brother, Miles Easton’s illegitimate son.”

All the breath left Dylan and Payton hugged him carefully, mindful of her shoulder. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “I’m right here.”

He kissed her then, a desperate joining of the mouths in front of his entire family. When he lifted his lips from hers, he made it clear that he was only thinking of her. “Do we need to change the subject, honey? Is this too much for you to listen about Michael?”

“I think it would be too much if we didn’t get to the bottom of things,” she countered.

Dylan nodded and then redirected his attention to Trey. “Keep going.”

Trey stretched his arm possessively over Libby’s shoulders. “Our attorneys and the security team have poured over old family documents, discovering a small amount of correspondence yet significant wire transfers from your father to Jeanette Martin.”

Gilda dropped her spoon. “What did you say?”

Trey’s eyes looked a little unfocused, but he repeated for her benefit. “Jeanette Martin. Did you know her, love?”

“Did I know her?” Gilda twisted her napkin in her hands. “She started as my house manager and then went on to work in the tower as some sort of manager there.” Glancing at Payton, she explained. “The locals call it Tower
Amore
.”

“I see.” Payton held back her smile. If only Gilda knew where she’d met Dylan and Avery.

“But I thought Jeanette died in the fire.” Gilda gave Dylan a heartfelt look of sympathy. “The night Dylan’s parents were taken from us.”

“She did die in that fire, which is when the wire transfers ended.” Trey took a deep breath, staring directly at Dylan. “Jeanette wasn’t married, but she had two other children besides Michael. Joslyn Martin, who is unmarried and twenty-six. She lives in Ontario. By the records coming in, she hasn’t set foot in the states for years. We don’t think she has anything to do with Michael.”

Dylan nodded. “The other child?”

“Brace yourself.” Drake lifted the envelope, opening it, and pulled a picture of Dylan out. Or it looked like Dylan, only a little thinner.

Dylan rubbed his temple. “Well, I don’t need any DNA tests for that. Hell, looks like Dad led a duplicitous life.”

Trey offered gently, “Jeanette named him Miles. I guess after your father. He lives just outside of Sarasota, but he’s not home, hasn’t reported to work for days. Security thinks he’s in hiding, which is a reasonable assumption if he was the one who helped Michael. I’m really sorry, Dylan.”

He tossed the picture back to Drake, dismissing it completely. “I’m all right.”

Silence immediately filled the room, when the servers brought in platters of steaks accompanied by roasted potatoes and whiskey-soaked mushrooms.

When they were served and once again had privacy, Dylan asked, “Does Miles have any sort of a criminal record?”

“He’s clean.” Trey’s fingertips curled in Libby’s hair, making no move to touch his food. In fact, the entire group seemed to have lost its enthusiasm for the delicious meal. “But the team is also pouring over Payton’s police report.”

“My report,” she asked curiously, “why?”

“You said Marla told you and I quote: I was told not to harm you like the last idiot did.”

“Things are fuzzier now, but I remember her saying that.” A shiver went up Payton’s spine, and Dylan pulled her closer. Then the pieces clicked. “Oh,
oh
.”

“Yeah, oh,” Drake said. “The man who attacked you inside your firehouse could have been Miles.”


She cleared her throat. “H-how old is he?”

“Two years younger than Dylan, Miles is twenty-seven.”

“If you find out that all he did was attack me, are you going to prosecute him?”

Avery gaped. “If all he did was attack you…What are you talking about? Do you recall your firehouse was rigged for a small explosion to go off, which would have set off another fire? Of course, we’re going to prosecute him!”

She held up her hand. “I want to know something…from Dylan.” Payton blocked everyone out, hoping Dylan could, too. “If all Miles did wrong was attack me and follow some stupid shit Michael may have put in his head, could you work with a living brother you never knew you had, and get him on the right path?”