Page 43 of Playing with Forever (Players Club Sinners #1)

Chase

T he police arrived and I was able to hand Brandon off and finally, finally take Andrea into my arms. She trembled like a leaf, but didn’t cry. My girl was strong and resilient, holding herself together like the badass she was.

I held her all through the interview process with the police, glaring when some of the cops tried to get me to step back. Andrea wanted me there, and I wasn’t all that inclined to let go of my girlfriend after she’d nearly been assaulted and God knew what else by that man.

Finally, things wrapped up, and I was allowed to take Andrea home. Brandon was being charged with a whole list of offenses, starting with aggravated assault, and even if the district attorney’s office only found a couple of infractions, I’d find a lot more. Our company had fantastic lawyers.

“C’mon,” I murmured, kissing the top of Andrea’s head. “Let’s get you home.”

She gave me a tremulous smile. “I like the sound of that. Home.”

Once we arrived back at my place, I insisted that Andrea sit on a stool at the kitchen island while I started making dinner—baked chicken, seasoned potatoes, and broccoli.

She watched me prep the fresh ingredients, decompressing after everything that had happened. “No take out?”

I glanced over my shoulder at her and grinned. “You deserve better than take out.”

“Look at you, being all domestic,” she teased.

“Speaking of domestic,” I said, retrieving the pots and pans I needed. “You deserve a home that’s not just white walls and boring furniture I bought from a catalogue. What do you say we take this weekend and go shopping? Pick out some paint colors, stop by some furniture stores?”

Andrea looked at me with wide, searching eyes. “Are you asking me to… properly move in with you?”

“Yes,” I said, meeting her questioning gaze. “If you’ll have me.”

Her lips parted, like the words stunned her. Then she softened, the shock melting into relief. “Of course I’ll have you, always .”

She stood up and walked around the island to kiss me, slow and sweet, like she wasn’t just saying yes to the idea of moving in. She was saying yes to me. All of me.

I wrapped my arms around her and held her tight, as if I could somehow absorb the fear and trauma she’d just been through. “I’m sorry it took me so long to figure out it was him.”

She leaned back just enough to look up at me, fingertips brushing my jaw. “You have nothing to be sorry for. How did you figure it out?”

I explained about his juvenile record. “I should’ve figured it out sooner. You were almost hurt. That’s on me.”

Andrea shook her head, fiercely. “No. You saved me. You’ve been saving me from the beginning, whether you realize it or not.” Her hand slid down to my chest, resting over my heart. “You’ve been there every time I’ve needed you, even when you were hurting. You’ve gone above and beyond.”

“You did a little saving yourself.” I thought about the way she’d stood her ground in the conference room, refusing to cower, even when he’d cornered her. I’d heard the statement to the police. I’d heard the tremble in her voice when she recounted how she’d defended herself.

“That guy never stood a chance,” I said, gently tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “That’s my girl. Brave as hell.”

“Well,” she said, eyes glinting as a smile curled her lips. “After dealing with you , he was a piece of cake,” she teased.

That made me laugh, a sound that felt damn near foreign after the day we’d had. But then the amusement faded and the serious moment returned. I cupped her face in my hands again, gentle, loving. “I mean it, Andrea. I will always keep you safe. I promise. You are my everything.”

She nodded, eyes shining. “I know. I always feel safe when I’m with you.”

God, I loved her. And the moment I thought it, I realized I should say it out loud, for the first time ever to a woman. “I love you, Andrea Corbin.”

Andrea stared at me for a moment, a bit in shock, then a smile spread over her face, one I’d never seen before. I realized it was because I had never seen her this happy. So elated and content.

“I love you, too,” she said.

I kissed her, soft, lingering, like a vow I didn’t need words to make.

We ate dinner quietly. Andrea didn’t say much, so I didn’t either. I just sat with her, letting the weight of the evening settle. When we finished, I stood and gathered the dishes.

“I’ll clean up.” I told her. “Why don’t you go take a shower? Get warmed up and relax.”

Andrea nodded gratefully, her expression soft, eyes distant, but not vacant. Just…tired. She’d been through a lot and all I wanted to do was take care of her.

While I rinsed the plates and loaded the dishwasher, I kept an ear out for her. The sound of the water turning on was oddly reassuring. A reminder she was just down the hall. A reminder that she’d survived.

When I finished, I wandered toward the bathroom, the need to be close to her pulling me like a tether. The whole room was filled with steam, and I could just make out the shape of Andrea through the frosted glass door.

My mouth watered and my dick stirred. My hands flexed at my sides. I wanted to worship every inch of her skin. Not just because I craved her, but because I needed her to feel everything I couldn’t say in words. I needed her to feel cherished. Chosen. Safe .

Andrea was mine to love, and protect, and honor. She’d let me lead her in the bedroom, at The Players Club, in our dynamic. But this…what we were building now…this had to be different. This needed to be the beginning of everything real. It was time I finally let someone in all the way.

I raised my hand and tapped gently on the glass door. “Mind if I join you?”

There was a pause, then the glass door creaked open slightly. Steam swirled around her. She was bare, glistening, flushed pink from the heat of the water, but it was her expression that undid me. Open. Vulnerable. Trusting.

“You don’t even have to ask,” she said, smiling, almost shyly, like this was our first time.

Maybe, in a way it was. All the emotional barriers between us were finally gone, and what was left was raw and honest. Something more intimate than anything we’d done before.

This wasn’t about sex. It wasn’t about dominance or submission.

It was about trust. About choosing each other in the aftermath of fear, in the quiet space where love was louder than lust.

I stripped off my clothes and stepped inside, pulling her gently into my arms, letting the water rush over us both as I held her close, skin to skin. I could hardly believe I got to have this, her , for the rest of my life.

Andrea lifted a hand and placed it flat on my chest. I covered it with mine.

“I was scared today,” she admitted, looking up at me. “I haven’t let myself say that yet. Not to the cops, not even to myself. But I was scared, Chase.”

“I know,” I said, my voice hoarse. “I was, too.”

My cock was already hard, and her breath caught when she felt my shaft pressed against her. I wanted her, that was a given, but whatever happened tonight was up to her.

“What do you want?” I murmured, seeing the lust in her eyes, but also something deeper. Something aching and raw. A need to reclaim something that had been taken from her.

“You,” Andrea whispered. Her voice trembled, but never wavered. “I want…I want to stop feeling him. He put his hands on me. I want you to wash it away. Make me forget.”

I exhaled slowly, gently brushing a hand over the bruises on her arm, then over the faint red marks lining her lower back. She was lucky she wasn’t bruised on her throat, too, but he hadn’t grabbed her tightly enough for that, thank God. He hadn’t really been trying to choke her, just scare her.

Each mark made something dark stir inside me, something protective and violent, but I didn’t let it show. Tonight wasn’t about him. It was about her. That bastard wasn’t ever going to touch her again.

I turned off the water and we dried off together, her skin warm and damp and smelling like my shampoo and soap, smelling like me . “I want to do something different tonight,” I said.

“Oh?” she murmured, looking up at me curiously, her lips parted slightly in invitation.

I just smiled, lowering my head and brushing my mouth across hers.

I tugged her along, walking backwards and continuing to kiss her until we got to the bedroom.

When we hit the mattress, I turned and pulled her down with me, over me, her body sliding over mine like warm silk.

My shaft prodded her stomach, but I didn’t rush things. I wanted to savor this, and her.

We’d never fucked like this before. Taking our time and enjoying the moment and each other. There was always some fun goal involved. I loved doing our scenes, but I also wanted us to have this…just sex, for the pleasure of being together. No other reason.

Her hand reached down to my cock and wrapped around me, her touch featherlight but purposeful, her fingers gliding over my piercings like she was remembering exactly how to unravel me.

“Stop teasing me,” Andrea murmured against my lips. “I want you inside me.”

“If you want me,” I said, my voice low and rough. “Then take me.”

I guided her to straddle my lap, and when she hesitated, I looked into her eyes, seeing the surprise and confusion there because I was clearly giving her all the control and power, and I didn’t do that often.

“Tonight, you lead,” I told her, my hands sliding down to her hips. “I want you to take exactly what you need.”

Desire sparked in her eyes as she slid her hands over my chest, bracing her palms flat, then raised herself up and slowly sank down on my cock.

I groaned as I filled her, that tight, warm heat pulling me under.

She gasped softly, and once she was completely seated on my shaft, she began to move.

She kept her eyes locked on mine as if she didn’t want to miss a second.

Her rhythm was deliberate, like she was reclaiming her body, her pleasure, her power.

Every slow grind of her hips, every hot clench of her pussy taking me in again and again, threatened to send me over the edge.

Holding back, waiting for her, took every ounce of restraint I possessed.

It was basic sex compared to the other things we’d done together, but it felt like the most connected we’d ever been. She moved with growing confidence, her breath catching as she rotated her hips, and I bit back a curse. She was stunning like this, flushed, glowing, alive.

Her fingers slid into my hair and tugged me into a kiss that was deep and messy and perfect. Then she pulled back and whispered against my lips, “Take what you need, too.”

“I need you ,” I rasped. “Just like this. Don’t stop.”

My girl rode me like she was claiming every inch of me, body and soul. She didn’t ask for control, she took it, and I gave it willingly. Her moans turned breathless as she neared the edge, her movements losing that rhythm.

She clutched at me, panting. “I love you, Chase,” she whispered. “I love you, Chase, love you love you,” she chanted.

I felt her coming around me and I gave myself over to the pleasure, climaxing right along with her. She collapsed on top of me, gasping, trembling, holding on.

When the shaking stopped and the world came back into focus, I whispered into her ear, “He doesn’t get to leave a mark on you. But I will. Every kiss, every touch, every mark, will be mine.”

Andrea lifted her head to look down at me, tears shimmering in her eyes, but her smile was the most powerful thing I’d ever seen. “Good,” she said. “Because I’m yours.”

And I knew, deep in my bones, that I was hers, too. Forever.