CHAPTER 14
Reagan
“Kevin Bacon!” A bleached blonde in a tube top and jean skirt lifted her arms in excitement and I was worried that she might have a wardrobe malfunction. “Can you take our picture?”
I stood and she handed me her phone, giving me specific instructions on the angle and filter she wanted me to use. It took several attempts before she was satisfied with the end result.
After her came half a dozen other people asking me to do the same. I was more than happy for the distraction. If not for the steady stream of pig photo op seekers, I’d have been left alone to overthink all the poor decisions I was about to make. No one wanted that.
By the end of the impromptu photo shoot, I actually appreciated the magnitude of the smooch Kevin had laid on me earlier in the night. Turns out, he really didn’t just hand those out to everyone.
I’d just sat down next to Cheyenne when Billy appeared at the table. “Ready?”
All I could do was nod. My throat had closed without warning, thinking about all of the things that mouth was gonna do to me tonight, and how that smooth-as-whiskey voice would sound as he growled my name against my ear while he was buried deep inside of me.
Not that I knew any of that was going to happen, but I was beginning to see that a girl could dream. More specifically, this girl could dream.
With ease, Billy scooped Cheyenne up as if she weighed nothing at all, which was not far from reality. She mumbled something but then rested her head on Billy’s chest.
Unlike her brothers, she was tiny. She was also the only sibling to have blonde hair. Almost everyone that had stopped by the table to see Cheyenne had commented that she was the spitting image of her mom. I’d seen a picture of James Sr. and all three of the brothers looked like versions of him. But I had no idea what Sabrina Comfort had looked like. Or, how I was going to find out whether or not she’d had a trust. I’d done some preliminary research at the firm today, but had come up with zilch. My alcohol-laced brain was in no condition to plan my next step, but tomorrow I’d figure it out.
Billy maneuvered easily through the crowded space. This was made easier because everyone parted like the Red Sea for him. I followed behind, clutching Cheyenne’s purse to my chest, holding onto it both literally and figuratively as my “reason” for leaving with Billy.
Each person we passed said goodbye, some slapping him on his shoulder others waving from across the room. It felt like being with some sort of celebrity. A celebrity with broad shoulders, whose sculpted blades were visible through the thin cotton stretched across his back and an ass you could bounce a quarter, no, a half-dollar off of.
He led the way down a hallway with offices on each side, then out a back door with a green neon exit sign above it. He stopped and held it open for me with his elbow. As I walked through, my heart dipped in a swoon. Him holding the door open for me, even though he was carrying his sister, may not mean anything to some. But it meant the world to me.
Blaine had always been the perfect gentleman when the situation presented itself and there were people around. But when we were alone or if it inconvenienced him in any way, it was every man for himself—and yes, I was a man in that analogy.
It hadn’t really bothered me because I prided myself on my independence. I didn’t need a man to take care of me. I am woman, hear me roar and all that. Before I was even old enough to have homework, I’d promised myself that I would never depend on a man thanks to the steady stream of losers that my mom had dated.
But, I had to admit; a little bit of chivalry wasn’t bad. Not bad at all.
We walked across the gravel and dirt to a large, black Chevy truck parked under a large tree. I had to grin to myself. I’d been right about his mode of transportation.
For whatever reason, thinking of him behind the wheel of this beast of a machine only served to up the arousal ante. I had no doubt that he would look sexy driving anything, even one of those tiny electric cars, but the image of him navigating this massive machine made my insides go all gooey.
Billy opened the door and smoothly settled Cheyenne in the center of the bench. She mumbled something I couldn’t make out.
“Is she okay?” I asked, craning my neck so that I could see past his impressive frame.
“She’s gonna be in a world of hurt tomorrow.” He turned back around so he faced me. I still wasn’t used to the power of this man’s attention being directed solely on me and my knees weakened under his stare. “But she’ll be a’right.”
We stood, our eyes locked in a stare with barely a foot of distance between us. My skin tingled and goose bumps rose on my bare arms as awareness settled over me that this was the first time we’d ever been alone. Well, technically Cheyenne was there, but she wasn’t in any condition to be a chaperone. I swallowed over a lump that had formed in my throat and my chest rose and fell in shallow breaths as the reality of what I was getting myself into sunk in.
He shifted to the side and held out his hand to help me get into the truck. I stared at it for a moment. This would be the perfect time to give him his sister’s purse and leave. If I got in that truck, I knew where this night was going to end. Or at least, where I wanted this night to end.
Could I really do it?
Was I actually capable of being so reckless?
“Havin’ second thoughts?” The rasp in his voice sent my goose bumps into overdrive as a shiver scurried down my spine and my decision was made. If just his voice could make me feel like this, what could his lips, hands and other parts do to me?
“And third and fourth,” I admitted as I placed my hand in his and stepped up into the cab.
The strength in his gentle grip sent a silver ball of arousal pinging through me like I was a pinball machine. It hit my chest, my belly, knees, my toes, before landing in the apex between my thighs causing my entire body to light up like I’d just got a perfect score.
“Don’t forget to buckle up,” he instructed, adding with a wink, “Safety first.”