Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
“Oh, Brooks… I’m so sorry. I had no idea. I know you two weren’t close, but, I’m sorry.”
“I was oddly equipped to clean out Clay’s place,” I said, speaking my thoughts out loud. “Did my Pops place the year before.” And I hadn’t found a single picture of me, any proof at all that my father even had a son at all. “And two years before that, I did it for my ma.”
“Your mom too?” Cali asked, pressing a hand to her chest.
“Yeah. She… choked alone in her apartment,” I said, my heart crushing in my chest at the idea.
“Oh, my god,” Cali said, face crestfallen. “I’m so sorry. She was such a nice lady. And your father, ah, well, he… he sure kept the house nice and neat,” she said, clearly struggling to find something nice to say about him.
That had a little laugh bursting out of me.
“That he did,” I agreed.
“So, you have no one left?” she asked. “No family?”
“I have this family,” I said, waving toward the club. “But, no, no bio family anymore.”
There was something heavy in the air between us then, all of it seeming to emanate from Caliana, but I couldn’t quite figure out what it was.
“I promise I will look into the watch thing, Cal. If I can, I’ll try to get it back for you.”
“I should probably apologize for accusing you,” she said.
“Are you gonna do it?” I asked, lips tipping up, then spreading to a full smile as she smirked at me.
“I’m sorry I jumped down your throat,” she said, dropping down on the edge of my bed, suddenly looking completely fucking spent.
She had a day job. And it seemed like she spent every single night out on the town, likely until the wee early hours of the morning. She had to be running on fumes.
“It’s no big deal. I can take it,” I told her, shrugging it off.
“This bed is stupidly comfortable,” she declared, lying back, staring up at the ceiling.
This was definitely not the time for me to start imagining climbing in that bed with her, running my hands and lips and tongue…
Fuck.
Enough.
“Take a nap if you want,” I offered, watching as she turned her head on the mattress, looking at me with some strange, faraway look I couldn’t place.
“I’ve been nothing but nasty to you,” she said. “Why are you being nice to me?”
To that, I sucked in a breath and pushed off of the door, going to sit on the bed too, but reaching down to pull her legs up, so I could remove her shoes.
“Because I care about you, Cal,” I told her, feeling a little shiver move through her as my thumb grazed her instep. I tried really fucking hard to tell myself that it wasn’t desire, that it was just her being ticklish. Even though I knew she wasn’t, thanks to countless trips Clay and I had taken to bring her to get pedicures in the summers. “No amount of snapping at me is gonna change that,” I said, removing her other shoe, and placing it on the floor.
I couldn’t tell her the full truth. That I understood she was acting out due to her grief. I had a feeling that would only start another fight. And things were finally decent between us.
“I might take a little nap before I go home,” she said, scooting up toward the pillows.
“Okay,” I agreed, moving to stand, only to find my wrist snagged in her hand.
“Will you stay with me?” she asked, suddenly sounding so small and soft. Then, even though my cock was getting thick at the very idea of being in the same bed with her, I found myself kicking off my shoes, and settling back next to her.
“Yeah, I’ll stay,” I agreed, folding my hands over my chest, trying to make sure no part of me was touching her.
That did no good, though.
Because once she was asleep, she fucking climbed all over me like a goddamn vine, filling my nose with vanilla and rose, and taking me from semi to fully fucking hard in minutes.
Still, I didn’t try to untangle myself.
Because, as much as I would never admit this aloud, I wanted nothing more in the world than to be wrapped up in her.
“What the fuck were you thinking, man?” I asked the sky.
CHAPTER TEN
Cali
I woke up slowly, my body in its usual position—on my side with my leg cocked up, my arm thrown out, and my head on a pillow.
Except, of course, pillows didn’t breathe.
And whatever was below me was definitely moving up and down.
It took less than a second for it all to come rushing back.
The fight, the watch, accusing Brooks with no good reason, hearing about how he was all alone in the world just like I was, feeling like the past several weeks of lack of sleep had suddenly hit me all at once.