Page 28

Chapter fourteen

Gage

“That’s it. Hold it right there.” I steady the beam so Penn can drill in the bolt that will hold the structure together. “Perfect.”

Reaching up, I wipe the sweat from my brow with the back of my hand. “Fuck. It’s hot out here.”

It’s a sweltering Saturday in July and I’m helping the Sheppard men build the jungle gym for Hazel’s nephew, as promised. The girls started their bachelorette day for Cashlynn early this morning at a spa a few towns over, and later they’re going out drinking at a pub.

When Hazel left this morning, she barely said two words to me, which has been our norm since last weekend—when she went off on me and then asked me to spank her.

The number of times I’ve jacked off to that mental image is probably unhealthy, but fuck if I didn’t want to color her ass red for calling me on my shit.

I shouldn’t have left those drawings on her bed. But I worked on them in my spare time at the tattoo parlor last week—when all I could seem to think about was her. So I guess I wanted to give her something that would make her think of me.

And that’s the fucking problem. I told myself I wouldn’t let my feelings get involved, but here we are. And I think it’s safe to say that Hazel is developing feelings too—the most prominent of which is lust.

God, I want nothing more than to fuck her and finally release all this pent-up energy between us. Giving in would solve a lot of my immediate issues—sexual frustration being the main one. But the aftermath would be messy, and Hazel doesn’t deserve that.

She doesn’t deserve the lack of a real future she’d have with me. Because she deserves everything.

“You sure you don’t want a beer?” Dallas holds out an ice-cold Coors Light.

“Nah, I’m good.” I pat my stomach. “Trying to watch my figure.”

Part of me wants to say the hell with it and give in, but I’ve already had more alcohol than I’m supposed to since I moved to Carrington Cove. If Miranda found out, she’d give me the lecture I’d deserve.

“You have to have a few beers with us next weekend while we’re in Blossom Peak.” Parker comes up behind me, slapping me on the back.

“I’m not a big drinker, but I’ll probably have a couple.” The Sheppard brothers stand side-by-side, studying me now. “What?”

“Shall I go first?” Penn asks his brothers.

Parker shrugs. “Sure. I’ll follow your lead.”

Dallas doesn’t say anything, so Penn continues. “What are your intentions with our sister?”

My pulse spikes. “Excuse me?”

Penn takes a step closer to me. “Look, I’m going to be the first one to admit that I wasn’t pleased with the circumstances of this marriage.

But after seeing you two together and getting to know you these past few months…

You fit in well with our family and you’ve proven that you have Hazel’s back, so continuing to have you as a brother-in-law wouldn ’t be so bad. ”

Parker nods. “Yeah. What he said.”

Dallas clears his throat. “But you two have obviously not talked about what’s going on between you.”

“And what’s going on between us?” I ask, crossing my arms and hating how transparent our issues are that even her brothers are picking up on them.

Parker smirks. “At dinner last weekend, she looked like she either wanted to murder you or jump your bones.”

Penn smacks Parker on the back of the head. “Don’t say shit like that about our sister.”

Parker scoffs. “Are you seriously na?ve enough to think that those two haven’t already fucked?”

I decide that’s my moment to chime in. “Don’t fucking talk about our sex life, all right? Mainly because we don’t have one…not that it’s any of your business.”

Dallas takes a few steps toward me. “Look, I’m not a moron.

I see the way you look at our sister, man.

All I’m saying is don’t fuck with her feelings.

If this is just platonic for you, keep it that way.

Hazel feels shit hard, and the last thing I want is to watch her try to pick herself up after you tear her down.

” He pauses for a second before making sure I hear his threat fully.

“Because if you do? I’ll make damn sure you feel every ounce of that pain. ”

“I see.”

“As intimidating as my older brothers are trying to be, take it from the three of us,” Parker tosses his thumb at his brothers.

“We all had moments with our women that required us to make some fucking decisions. I recognize that same look on your face, man. Just make sure whatever you decide that our sister knows where you’re at mentally.

She’s going to get hurt in this no matter what, but the level of that hurt can be diminished if you figure out what you want. ”

I n od, not sure what else I’m supposed to do.

Parker claps his hands. “Good. Now, before we can accept you fully into our family, we have devised a way for you to prove your loyalty.”

Penn shakes his head. “I wasn’t in favor of this, but apparently I’m being dragged into it anyway.”

I turn my attention to Dallas. “What the hell is going on?”

He rolls his eyes as Parker speaks again. “What’s going on is that we need your assistance for a little…payback.” He rubs his palms together, a mischievous grin on his face.

“Payback?” My eyes dart between the brothers. “For what?”

Parker wraps his arm around my shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll explain everything.”

Penn rolls his eyes and hikes up his tool belt on his waist. “Now that that’s settled, let’s finish up this jungle gym so I can actually put my feet up for a bit today.”

We get back to work, and I try to keep my heart rate under control for a multitude of reasons.

***

I’m in my room, grabbing some clothes on my way to take a shower, when I hear the front door open and shut.

“Blueberry! Oh my God, I missed you!”

Fuck. My wife is home .

I make my way down the hall, coming to a dead stop when I find Hazel sprawled on the floor, letting Blueberry cover her face in slobbery kisses.

As my gaze tracks lower, I realize she’s wearing the most pathetic excuse for a dress I’ve ever seen—strapless, barely grazing her mid-thigh, and so sheer it hides very little of what’s undern eath.

Fuck me.

“Oh look, it’s my husband!” she exclaims. She pushes up off the floor, straightening her dress and batting her hair from her face while trying to maintain her balance. In other words, drunk as a skunk.

I fold my arms and lean against the wall. “Well, you look like you had fun.”

Hazel snorts. “Um, yeah. You could say that.” Winking, she kicks off her heels and stumbles toward the fridge. “I need some pizza.”

I follow her, watching her dig through the fridge like she might manifest a Domino’s order from thin air. “We don’t have any pizza, Hazel.”

Her frown is instant. “Ugh. That’s dumb!”

I watch her open and close cabinets until she finds a bag of Doritos. “Jackpot!”

I bite back a laugh. It’s been a long time since I’ve tamed an intoxicated woman, but seeing Hazel like this makes me more than a little curious as to how bold she might be with a little alcohol in her system.

“Let me get you some water,” I say, rounding the counter.

Hazel groans as I reach into the cabinet for a glass. “God, why do you have to be so hot?”

Twisting to face her, I try to contain my smirk. “You think I’m hot, huh?”

She rolls her eyes, a reaction I’ve come to expect from her by now. “Oh, come on, Gage. You have eyes. Surely you’ve seen me checking you out.”

I flex my bicep mockingly. “It’s the tattoos, isn’t it?”

Hazel sighs. “The tattoos, the pierced tongue…” She falls into my chest, gripping my shirt. And fuck, she feels amazing pressed up against me like this, her soft to my hard, her smell directly under my nose so that I have no choice but to soak it in.

“Do you have any other piercings?” she asks breathlessly, her eyes darting to my mouth and then back to my eyes.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I tease, but my dick is swelling in my pants, eager to show her the other jewelry on my body.

No, Gage. This is dangerous and she’s fucking drunk .

Eyes wide, Hazel licks her lips. “I would. I really would.” She runs her hand down my chest, slowly working her way lower.

My brain finally kicks in, and I grab her hand. “You’re drunk, Hazel.”

“Duh.” Stumbling back, she brushes her hair from her eyes. “Did you just realize that?”

Walking around her to the fridge, I fill up a glass of water and grab a few ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet. “Here. Take these.”

Reluctantly, she takes the pills and water from me, downing them in a few seconds before placing the glass on the counter. “There. Happy, Dad?”

“I don’t have a Daddy kink, but good to know that you do.”

She groans, pushing her hair behind her shoulders. “Ugh, you’re infuriating.”

“So you’ve told me.”

I take her by the shoulders and steer her toward her room. When we step inside, she turns around and runs her palms over my chest. The heat of her touch makes me burn for her even more.

“Come on, Gage…” Her hands keep climbing and she runs her fingernails up the back of my neck. “You know it would feel good to take out some of this frustration on each other.”

“Fuck, Spitfire.” Closing my eyes, I fight to control my pulse—because she’s not wrong. “You know that’s not a good idea.”

“I think it’s an amazing idea. No one would have to know. We can scratch this itch and…”

I e xhale hard and catch her wrists, pulling her hands from my neck as I take a step back. “You should go to sleep.”

I can see the hurt in her eyes, the sting of rejection lingering there before anger takes over. “You’re an ass.”

“You’ve said that before too.”

“God, I guess I’ve been reading this all wrong.” Spinning away from me, she heads toward her bathroom.

I can’t let this woman think I don’t want her. Because I do—even though I shouldn’t.

I stalk behind her, pressing my rock-hard cock into her back and pinning her against the wall, trapping her wrists above her head. Her breath hitches, the warmth of her skin feels like fire under my hands, and the thin line I’m teetering on feels like it’s about to break.

“Does this feel like you’ve been reading this all wrong?”

The gasp she lets out makes my dick twitch. “Gage…”

“You have no idea how close I am to snapping, Hazel.”

“Then do it.” She pushes her ass back into me, rubbing it against my cock for good measure. “Show me what happens when you do.”

I drag my nose up the column of her neck, watching her skin pebble under my touch. “I want to,” I murmur against her pulse, “but it’s only going to make things more difficult.”

“That’s not true,” she mewls, arching into me. “It’s going to feel so good, Gage. So fucking good.”

I bite her shoulder softly, and her moan sends a lightning bolt straight to my cock. “God, woman, you’re maddening.”

She wiggles her ass against me again, making me groan. “I learned from the best.”

I grip her hips, pulling her ass tighter against me. “The only reason I’m telling you this right now is because you’re drunk, and the likelihood that you’ll remember it is slim.”

She exhales sharply. “Telling me what?”

I drag my lips along the shell of her ear before telling her all the thoughts I shouldn’t say out loud, but at this point, I don’t fucking care.

“The number of times I’ve dreamed about burying my face in your cunt, Hazel, is fucking obscene. I fantasize about how you’d taste, how you’d scream…” I trail my hand down her stomach, slipping between her thighs to cup her there.

Hazel moans, sharp and needy, her head falling back against my shoulder.

“I think about how pretty you’d be on your knees.

Sucking my cock, licking each barbell on my shaft as I slide down your throat until you gag.

But most of all?” I press my fingers against the damp fabric of her thong, curling them slightly, feeling just how soaked she is.

“I think about how this pussy would feel wrapped around my cock, sucking in every inch of me.”

“Oh my God…”

I move my hand from her pussy to her ass, palming the soft flesh before delivering a sharp smack.

She gasps, jolting in my arms, pressing back into me instinctively.

“I’ve dreamed of fucking this ass too, Spitfire.”

Hazel stills. “I’ve—I’ve never done that.”

“Fuck,” I growl, grinding my cock against her ass and sliding my hand back between her legs. “That would make it even more of a dream.”

She whimpers. “Gage, I can’t take it anymore.”

Tilting her hips, she presses her pussy into my hand. “ Please touch me.”

Snatching my hand away, I take a step back and fight to get my breathing under control.

“ That isn’t going to happen, Spitfire.”

She spins to face me, chest heaving, her eyes full of fury. “You want me just as much as I want you.”

“I do.”

More than you know.

“Then what’s holding you back?”

The words are on the tip of my tongue—the truth.

But Hazel was right. I am a coward.

“Go to bed, Hazel.”

“Fuck. You.” She tugs her dress down in one swift motion, letting it pool at her feet, leaving her in nothing but that black silk thong.

Yeah. Fuck. Me.

I scrub my hand down my face as she spins on her heel and stalks toward her bathroom, hips swaying. My dick aches behind the zipper of my jeans, hating me for having a goddamn conscience right now.

But there’s no way I would touch Hazel in the state she’s in. And before I self-destruct, I go back to my room, grab my clothes, and head straight for the shower to unleash the demons inside me.