Stepbrother Broken (The Hawthorne Brothers Book 2) (29 page)

And
with that, my sister grabs my champagne flute and gives me a gentle shove
through the doorway. I step out into the warm July night, a granite terrace
stretching out before me under a canopy of white string lights. I
’
m sure that the waterfront view is absolutely stunning
in the gathering twilight, but I can
’
t say for sure. My gaze has been
arrested by a sight that's far more breathtaking.

His
form is backlit by the wide expanse of sky and sea beyond the terrace. That
familiar shape I
’
ve come to know so well
—
from memorizing the feel of it, and feeling the hole
it left in my life upon departing
—
is here once more. Close enough to
touch, but only if I dare.

Hearing
the door close behind me, Luke glances up across the space, turning his face my
way. His eyes alight on me, and I feel my body come alive under his gaze. It
’
s as though I
’
ve just woken up for the first time
in weeks, but only to find myself in the middle of a fabulous dream.

“
I hope you don
’
t mind my cutting in,
”
Luke
says, his voice rich and full as it draws me across the terrace,
“
But I didn
’
t think this was a moment that
should go down on the dance floor.
”

He
stands there in a perfectly cut charcoal suit, his hands tucked into his
pockets. His chestnut hair is a bit longer than when we last met, its slight
wave pushed back away from his sculpted face. Those green eyes that memorized
every inch of me just weeks ago shine like lighthouse beacons now, filling me
with hope that my days being lost at sea are over.

“
You
’
re
here,
”
I say softly, drawing to a stop
within paces of him.

“
You sound surprised,
”
he says, taking a swinging step toward me.

“
I just
…
I wasn
’
t sure. I guess I was afraid to
hope I
’
d see you here,
”
I breathe.

“
Well, once I had official marching
orders from your sister, there was no backing out,
”
he says, the corners of his lips lifting.

“
Oh god,
”
I laugh nervously, wishing I still had a drink in my
hand,
“
I hope you weren
’
t manhandled into coming here tonight.
”

“
Are you kidding?
”
he replies, raking his eyes down along my form,
“
Once I knew you
’
d be here, nothing could have
stopped me.
”

“
But
…
You
knew where I was, Luke,
”
I say,
“
I was right where you left me. All these weeks
…
You could have just come back if you wanted to see me
again. I thought
—”

“
It
’
s
not as simple as that,
”
Luke says, his brow
furrowing,
“
I couldn
’
t have just stayed in that place, Sophie.
”

“
Why not?
”
I ask softly, clasping my hands,
“
Why did you have to leave, just like that?
”

His
mouth straightens into a hard line. No amount of engineering by our siblings
could have made this a seamless, perfect reunion. There
’
s too much we need to work out. Too many grievances to
air. But I
’
ll stay out here all night if I
have to. I won
’
t risk another word going unsaid
between us.

“
That place, Sheridan, is a part of
my past,
”
Luke begins slowly, turning to look
out across the water,
“
The person I was there
—
the brochure-perfect track star, the MBA-grubbing suit
—
that
’
s not the person I really am. Just
like I
’
m not the responsible, family-man
of a son that I
’
m forced to be in my hometown.
After everything that happened to us that last night at the lake, I needed to
go some place where I could find out which version of me is the honest one.
”

“
And did you?
”
I ask, taking a small step forward.

“
I did,
”
Luke murmurs, swinging his gaze toward me,
“
But not during these past few weeks. I realized I
’
d already found it. I found it the first time we were
alone together. When I finally met someone that didn
’
t need me to be anything different
—
anything
more
than I am.
”

“
I sure as hell hope you
’
re talking about me,
”
I
whisper, heart pounding,
“
Otherwise this is going to be
awkward as fuck
…”

“
Of course it
’
s you, Sophia,
”
Luke laughs roughly, grabbing
hold of my hand and tugging me toward him,
“
It
’
s been you this whole time. I was too much of a
fucking idiot to see it.
”

“
At any other point these past few
weeks, I would have agreed with you
…”
I laugh, resting my hands on
the panes of his chest,
“
But I
’
m
having trouble being even the slightest bit mad at you right now, to be honest.
”

“
Oh no,
”
he grins down at me, circling his hands around my
cinched waist,
“
Does that mean makeup sex is off
the table?
”

“
Why don
’
t you kiss me and we
’
ll
find out together?
”
I say, lacing my fingers
behind his neck.

Luke
lifts a hand to my chin and tilts my face toward his, beneath the twinkling
string lights.

“
I feel like we
’
re in one of those shitty teen movies,
”
he laughs, shaking his head.

“
Well, that just won
’
t do,
”
I reply, pressing my body to
his.

“
Hold on,
”
he says, glancing over my shoulder,
“
I
’
ve got it
…”

I
gasp as Luke grabs hold of my hips and lifts me effortlessly off the ground. I
circle my arms around his shoulders, my caramel hair falling across my face as
Luke strides across the terrace. The coarse brush of brick against the bare
skin of my back makes me shudder with delight as Luke presses me up against the
warehouse wall. I hook one leg around his waist, letting my dress slip
dangerously high as he lowers me down, pressing his perfect body to mine. My
eyes flutter closed as he pins me to the wall with his hips, letting me feel
the glorious length of him pressed up against my thigh.

“
That
’
s
better,
”
he growls, running his hands down
my smooth sides.

“
Much,
”
I
breathe, catching his face in my hands.

His
mouth finds mine in the shadow of the warehouse, and I fall open to him as I
have so many times before. I bury my fingers in his chestnut hair as his tongue
sweeps against mine. The taste and smell of him bombard my senses, filling me
with such longing and relief that I nearly lose it right there. Not until this
moment have I let myself confront just how much I
’
ve
missed him, missed
this
.

“
I fucking hated leaving you,
”
Luke growls, kissing down along my bare throat as he grinds
his hips against mine,
“
But I have to say, I
’
m a big fan of coming back.
”

“
Then we
’
d better make this reunion count,
”
I laugh, running a hand along that staggering desire
testing the strength of his slacks,
“
Because the leaving part nearly
killed me.
”

“
I
’
ll
make it up to you,
”
Luke vows, suddenly serious
as his green eyes lock on mine,
“
Trust me when I say that I will.
”

“
Well, I know a pretty good way you
can start,
”
I grin back at him, feeling him
growing harder in my hands.

“
Oh, that
’
s a given,
”
he smiles back, his eyes
closing as he savors my touch,
“
But aren
’
t you on the clock, Miss Asphalt Denim?
”

“
I
’
m
sure I can take a fifteen,
”
I say, my voice dipping low
as I bring my hands to Luke
’
s belt buckle,
“
Union rules and all.
”

“
Christ, I
’
ve missed you
…”
Luke breathes, bringing his
mouth swiftly back to mine.

Let
’
s hope our sentries stayed by the
doors
…
I think briefly, tugging down my
black lacy panties and bracing myself against the brick wall. It
’
s the last coherent thought I have before I feel Luke
’
s throbbing cock pressed against my slick sex. I bury
my head against his shoulder as he drives up into me, my ecstatic cries muffled
by the fine Italian wool of his suit.

How
’
s
that
for function and fashion?

***

“
Well,
”
I
pant, pushing my hair out of my face as I tug my dress back into place,
“
That
’
s my new favorite way of saying
‘
hello again
’
.
”

“
In that case,
”
Luke replies, shrugging back into his suit jacket,
“
I vote we say
‘
hello again
’
three times a day, every day, for the foreseeable
future
…”

“
There
’
s
a foreseeable future for us then?
”
I ask, straightening up on my
sky-high heels. We got so distracted by our much-needed makeup, that the
question of our future flew straight out of my mind. I almost don
’
t want to think of it, now. Out here, away from our
friends and families, it
’
s easy to imagine that Luke and I
are the only people in the world. If only it were that easy.

“
Is that still what you want?
”
Luke asks.

“
Well, to be honest, I don
’
t think any future between the two of us would be at
all
foreseeable
,
”
I reply,
“
We can
’
t predict anything that
’
s going to happen, or plan for what might go wrong.
”

“
I know that,
”
Luke cuts in, running his hands down my bare arms,
“
And I
’
ve hated the thought of that,
Sophie. I hate the idea of not having control over what happens to us next.
That
’
s what I
’
ve been wrestling with these past few weeks.
”