Pretty Shameless, page 22
part #2 of Deputy Laney Briggs Series
“It’s pink,” I choked, feeling the floor wobble beneath me. “The room is pink.” I chased back the tears blurring my vision with a gulp. “This is just too damn much.” I swallowed down a sob. “You need to explain all this.” I waved a hand around the empty space. “I need to know the truth, cowboy.”
“Understandable,” he said in a reassuring tone. “Do you trust me?” Gunner pulled both my hands in his, squeezing tightly. Desperate? Maybe controlled? I looked at him. And hard. No, definitely urgent. And trust? Well, that opened a whole new can of worms. Laying on that tempting smile, he continued, “This could be the baby’s room.” He sounded calm, but I picked up on the hope in his deep, smooth drawl.
I slipped my hands from his, eyes flashing upward. “Please tell me what all this about?” I asked and took another step in his direction.
Gunner shook his head and pulled me against him by the waist of my jeans. “I can’t build a home with you in the old farmhouse.” With that painful smackdown he got to work unbuttoning my jeans and slicing open my zipper fly. Deep breaths, girlie. I knew better than most, love bites. “I killed a man in our living room.” He kissed my neck. “I brought shame into our bed.” He dug both hands beneath the waistline of my jeans and shoved them down my legs, sending the denim into a pile around my ankles. Eyes filled with pain and his mouth forming a grim line, he gave me the final blow of the night. “Burying our baby.” He gulped, then looped his thumbs under my cotton panties and pushed them to the floor as well. “I want us to start a family. I’d like to try again.” He swept a piece of hair off my cheek. “I want to grow old and gray with you, Laney. And it should be here, not at a place that holds so many unpleasant memories.”
Tears began to well in my eyes, and my throat tightened as I tried to grasp what he was saying. Was I ready for such a life-altering change? It only took one look at the man pouring his heart out standing before me to know my answer. But I let him continue since it seemed he needed to prove a point, to make me believe in him again. “Okay, I’m listening.”
“I…we need to move forward, and to do that you are going to have to accept my terms.” He ran a hand underneath my shirt, flesh burning against flesh. And I melted. He had the ability to hurt me, and yet I couldn’t outrun our heart-wrecked love affair. “Can you do that for me?” Gunner asked, mischief dancing behind those handsome eyes.
I’ve never been good at decision making; my life was testament to that. So I gave him the one promise I couldn’t break. “Make love to me.” My gaze fell on the scratched wooden floorboards. “Right now.” I reached out and touched his lips, skimming the pad of my thumb along his full bottom lip. “Prove your point to me, Gunner. Show me that all those years of pain, regret, and broken promises were worth every damn penny.” I so hoped I hadn’t bitten off more than I could chew. My heart wouldn’t be able to take another beating.
And then, before I could break and run, I found myself caught in the crosshairs with a pair of lethally charming Wranglers and a skintight black T-shirt that had the capability to render me helpless.
“I can be the guy,” Gunner whispered in my ear while he snaked a muscular arm around my waist and skimmed his fingers up and down my back, outlining the traces of my spine. The moment was pure perfection. He nuzzled my neck and placed a kiss just below my earlobe. “We’ve been given a second chance to right all the wrongs.” He nibbled beneath my chin, and I felt the heat soar through me like a wildfire blazing out of control.
Damn, do that again. Make me believe in your again, Wilson.
Fuck, we deserved a break in life.
I nodded, trying so hard to see things his way. “Give me a sign, Gunner.”
When my back got cozy with the floor, I knew the question-and-answer session had come to a halt. I lay paralyzed, watching the cowboy strip show. Gunner’s hard abs flinched when he shrugged the black T-shirt up over his head. He shucked off one boot, then the other, and got to work on those Wranglers. As good as they looked on him, I couldn’t wait for him to yank them off.
I squirmed on the cold wood plank boards and carelessly let my legs fall apart. Warmth sparked my skin, radiating in spurts from the small space heater Gunner had turned on in the far corner. Stepping between my legs, Gunner casually moved a hand up my inner thigh as he positioned himself above me. Then he kneeled and placed a quick, simple kiss on my bare midriff. Just old-fashioned instinct alone, nothing more, and both my hands were gripping his wide shoulders. The longing to have him inside me grew with each new kiss. He touched his mouth to my stomach again, sucking and biting his way slowly south toward the delicious sting driving me completely insane.
“It has always been you,” I told him, cupping his face in my hands. “No other man has held the key to my heart.”
A throaty groan rustled against my bare thigh. “Darling, I plan on losing my quick draw before I’d risk losing you again.” He kissed the trimmed patch of hair concealing me from his naughty mouth, only to make me gasp with desire when his thumb and forefinger pinched my throbbing clit. “Tonight I plan on showing you just how obsessed I am with you,” he said, and in one fluid movement he freed me of my shirt and bra, tossing them to the side.
Maybe I’d been too quick to point the finger. Neither one of us really understood each other that well, but hell, we deserved a peaceful relationship.
Love was blind. Love was fierce. Most of all love was accepting of flaws.
And Gunner Wilson was my everything.
“A baby, huh?” I placed a finger under his hard jawline, bringing his taut face into better light.
“Exactly,” he replied, pulling my tender nub between his fingers, then slipped his thumb inside me. Slick, wet, and needy. Right now I would’ve been satisfied with the pain. Right now I would’ve basked in the pleasure just to have Gunner tangled up in my arms. This man was what dreams were made of…and every delicious, smoking-hot inch of him was mine.
I intended on taking full advantage of the situation. Getting burned was the least of my worries.
I arched my back, laying myself out as an offering. On cue his thumb sunk deeper inside me, spreading me wide open and ripe for the taking. We locked eyes; remorse, lust, and devotion flashed between us. There were no barriers anymore. I desired to be marked by him. Tipping my head in his direction, I smiled and tenderly stroked a hand through his messy locks. “I need to feel you inside of me.” I squeezed those buns of steel as tears burned my eyes.
Gunner pulled me toward him, pushed my legs farther apart, and stepped up to bat, straddling my thighs. “Give me a chance to fix things, sweetheart. Let me give you that dream of having a ‘real’ family.”
Was I sure? Uncertainty always plagued our relationship.
“There’s one tiny problem.” I pushed at the solid wall of his chest.
One corner of his mouth tilted up, and that million-dollar smile returned. “Well, I’m a grown man, so dish it out.”
I ran a finger over his six-pack, getting drunk on his small intakes of breath as I homed in on those tempting dark curls spilling from the waistband of his black boxers. My fingers pranced across the elastic lining, gaining myself such an intoxicating sound: Gunner Wilson desperate for release. I tugged at his boxers. “But tonight we play by my rules. I get to ride you.” I cocked my head at the bulge in his pants.
Gunner shucked his jeans and stared back at me like I was a shiny new plaything. He gestured for me to move aside and make him room. The warm touch of his hand met the small of my back as he passed by and took a seat in my old spot.
I couldn’t have asked for a better proposition.
Gripping his hard and primed-for-action cock, he gave it a slow and steady stroke. The sight of him sprawled out on his back and open to being taken made every ounce of control I had left fizzle away. “Now take a seat, sweetheart. I’m ready to watch you lose control. I want to hear you gasp,” he said, fondling his balls. “Let me pleasure you like no other man has done or ever will.”
Straddling his toned thighs, I eased onto him, feeling the sweet pain of him spreading me wide open. “Shit.” I relaxed over his thick, hard dick. “I need you deeper.” My nails dug into his shoulder blades, and my hips rocked back and forth, bringing him deeper inside me inch by inch.
“That’s it, baby,” he coaxed me on, his voice low and raw. A slight hum cut through the sound of ass cheeks slapping balls. “Lean forward, Laney.” His arm wrapped around my waist and smashed my breasts into his wide chest. “Perfect, sweetheart,” he said, then planted an urgent kiss on my lips. The tip of his finger poked the dimple above my butt cheeks. And then Gunner’s big, strong hand spread both cheeks before he pushed a finger against my puckered entrance.
I lifted up slightly, then slammed back down and hard on his cock. He enjoyed temptation way more than he’d ever let on. And I was hell-bent on driving him to the edge, breaking that bad-boy control.
“Fuck,” Gunner growled and gently slid the digit a smidgen deeper. The tightness felt heavenly. “Damn it, Laney, I don’t want to hurt you.” He dug his other hand into my hips, trying to secure me in place. “Please let me make this feel good.”
I stared into his lust-filled eyes and said, “You already feel damn good, Gunner.” I adjusted my angle, my slick folds fitting him like a glove. He hissed and slammed me back down on his penis in a rough race to prove who was in charge. Smiling, I leaned in close and bit his bottom lip, drawing it between my teeth before giving him that needed release he sought so much. On a suck, I let his lip fall from my mouth, adding, “Although you’d feel a helluva lot better if you showed me exactly what you wanted to do to me.”
“Goddamn it, Laney,” he ground out and worked another inch farther inside, stretching the tender ring of my anus. The bitter sting was a delicious parting to our all’s-fair-in-love-and-war evening. I reared back, allowing him to slip further inside. “There you go,” he soothed, reaching behind me to push my ass cheeks farther apart. “Ride my cock, sweetheart. Drive me insane.” He pulled his finger halfway out of my backside, and then gently drove it back in. Heat soared from the tips of my toes all the way up to top of my head. This must be love. I’d never fathomed feeling so alive, consumed, and fragile in the span of my entire life. No man had ever possessed my heart like Gunner Wilson.
No other man was ever given the chance.
Breasts butted muscled pecs. Thighs intertwined. And teeth clashed while we frantically tried to devour each mind-numbing sensation.
If he hurt me again, I’d crumble. I couldn’t take being wrong a second go-around.
With a thrust of his hips, Gunner jutted upward, seizing the moment to break me in two. “Let me hear that sweet sound of you coming.” The winter wind whipped against the windowpane. My head fell back, my nipples thrust forward within licking distance of his wickedly tempting mouth, and I knew even if his heart wasn’t fully in…I didn’t care anymore. He owned me—body, mind, and soul.
Pressing my forehead to his, in a breathless pant I told him my truth, “You’re the love of my life.”
That had been all he needed to hear. Gunner began to move faster, sliding in and out as his arm secured around my waist tightened in a possessive hold. Warmth flowed to my belly. As I latched on to his black rattlesnake-inked forearm, I became certain that we’d never be torn apart again.
Chapter Nineteen
Snowflakes whirled outside the bedroom window. Overnight a midwinter storm had blown in, bringing with it sheets of ice. Gunner and I had barely made it home last night before the roads became hazardous. I was willing to try to give Gunner what he desired…a fresh start.
He had been pretty damn adamant on our drive home from the newly acquired property that he wanted to work together on tracking down leads on the Molly drug and finding out who had killed the swinger-party couples, which was still an open case, telling me no stone would go unturned. And I trusted him. Actually I couldn’t have been happier with the man in my life. Finally, after all these years, he’d taken the initiative to move our relationship in the right direction. And maybe once we could tie a neat little bow around all the loose ends flooding the streets of Pistol Rock the two of us could look ahead and plan our family home.
In the wee morning hours my phone vibrated, dragging me awake. I reached out, grabbing it off the end table. The screen was lit with a text from Luke asking me to swing by his place before my parents’ lunch date. No “Merry Christmas” or “you won’t believe what I just heard” just a quick and sweet “I need to see you.” After ten minutes of staring at the clock I concluded why not give Luke a few seconds of my time. I quietly slid out of bed at the break of dawn and tiptoed across the cold wood floor. Gunner was out cold, lying stomach down and snoring. I shrugged a black sweater over my head, tugged on my jeans, and slipped on my red cowboy boots. When I reached the bedroom door, I turned to gaze back at the man who’d stolen my heart years ago. I couldn’t explain why I always ran head on into danger, especially when all signs pointed in the opposite direction. Still, I dreamed of the day when nothing stood in our way.
My gaze lowered to watch his toned, muscular back rise and fall with each breath he took. Those narrow hips shifted slightly when he tossed to his side, causing the white cotton sheet to slide a little lower, exposing his sinfully good-looking ass to the morning light. I stared a second longer, pondering where this twisted road would lead us. I’ll shamelessly admit that it scared the shit out me to be building a new home with Gunner.
He rustled beneath the bedsheets, then reached out his inked arm and felt around my side of the mattress. “Laney, are you up?” he mumbled, running his hand across my pillow as he rolled onto his back, eyes straining through the dimly lit room. He blinked, spotting me standing in the doorway.
I gave him a small smile and kicked off the doorjamb. “Go back to sleep, Gunner,” I said, and threw him a you’re-the-one-for-me wink.
He pushed back on his elbows, head butting the headboard and drawing the sheet dangerously low on his ripped six-pack. Dark curls poked from beneath the white bed linen and a drowsy grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. If I didn’t have plans already set into motion I could’ve stayed wrapped in the comfort of his strong arms until dusk.
“Sure you don’t wanna come back to bed?” He patted the space next to him. “I can make it worth your time.”
“As much as I’d love to waste away the morning hours playing hide-n-seek under the sheets,” I told him, “I gotta see if the Filler-Up is open for business.”
One eyebrow quirked. “I thought we were going to exchange our gifts before heading over to your parents,” he countered, voice still doused in sleepiness. “It’s Christmas Day, and with all the shit from the last few days I wanted to spend some quality time with my girl. Maybe even head over to the new property and start making plans where you’d like the kitchen to be.”
Slapping my straw cowboy hat on, I tugged my ponytail over my shoulder, saying, “I’ll only be an hour at the most. We’re out of sugar, and if I’m gonna attempt to prove to my mother I can cook by bringing a pumpkin pie to Christmas lunch, I need to pick some up.”
Probably time to rewrite my New Year’s resolutions and put no more fibbing to the boyfriend at the top.
He ran a hand through his brown bed head. “Well, since you aren’t going to be long, I’ll be sure to make it a quickie in the shower and have the coffee brewing,” he said with a sly grin.
“Smart decision, honey.” I grabbed my car keys off the dresser, drank him in one last time, then pulled the door shut and hurried down the stairs.
Five minutes later, daylight broke over the horizon as my cruiser roared up the paved drive of Arrowhead Range, the Wagner’s newest addition to their immense wealth. Mitch Wagner had seized the property after Bosley Conrad’s untimely death. He’d been murdered by Nathan, my now-dead ex-fiance, a few years back when he’d gotten mixed up in the ketamine case. Even though there wasn’t a tear shed in the whole damn town for the old coot, folks were still perturbed at the Wagners for taking over the Range before the dirt had time to settle on Bosley’s coffin.
Not exactly the happiest place on earth.
My nerves were on fire, I was clammy, my stomach was tighter than a virginal bride’s canal, and thoughts of what Luke needed to tell me had me in a tailspin. There really wasn’t a chance to break and run, since Luke was watching my idling cruiser from the front porch of his ranch house. A bead of sweat dripped past my nose. I tugged at the neckline of my sweater, sucked in some air, and kicked open the driver’s side door. I was a big girl. Well, practically. Suck it up. Not the time to pull a chickenshit move. Because I knew it as sure as I knew what that smug smile slowly spreading across Luke Wagner’s face meant. This morning’s meet and greet was going to be a showstopper.
Luke was slouched against the banister, sipping at a steamy mug of coffee.
I smiled tightly, peeked over the car door, and wiggled my fingers at him.
“Nice morning, huh,” I shouted across the lawn.
He took another sip of coffee and stared at me.
“You said you needed to talk?” I asked, closing the car door and scooching closer to the porch.
I positioned a boot on the bottom step and tilted my head up to look directly into those heart-stopper blue eyes.
