What He Wants (Second Chances #1.5)(11)

Chuckling, he took my hand and pointed in the direction behind us even though we were going the opposite way. “I didn’t. My car is parked a few blocks over at my condo building.”

“So we’re not going to your place right now?”

Shaking his head, he smiled and peered up into the sky. “I told you … there was somewhere I wanted to go.”

I looked up and all I saw was the midnight sky and the lights adorning the tallest buildings of the Charlotte skyscrapers. “And where exactly is that might I ask? The sky?”

When my gaze landed on his, he nodded and pulled me down the street. Oh hell, what have I gotten myself in to?





WHEN HE MENTIONED the sky, I had no idea he literally meant the sky … well, almost. We were at the very top of the tallest building in Charlotte, gazing down at the lights of the bustling city. I had lived in Charlotte all of my life and never once had I been able to see the beauty of it at night. Daniel never cared about such things.

“It’s so beautiful,” I murmured. “How did you get permission to come up here?”

The floor we were on wasn’t at the very top, but it was close. The large room he took me to was basically a suite of sorts, with a large boardroom-style desk, accompanied by couches and chairs off to the side. Placing my knees on the couch, I leaned over the edge and peered from the tall expanse of the building down to the street below. My stomach dropped at how high we were, but the excitement was exhilarating.

Brett joined me and looked out the window. “I have some connections around here,” he confessed. “It pays to know the right people, or in my case sometimes the wrong ones.”

Furrowing my brows, I turned to look at him but he kept his stony gaze focused on the city beyond. “Like who?”

Sighing, he smiled halfheartedly and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I think we all have people in our lives that we don’t exactly care for.”

I snorted. “Tell me about it.” That got his attention.

Moving closer, Brett lifted his hand to my cheek and rubbed his thumb along my bottom lip. “Do you ever get tired of never finding what you’re looking for?” he asked softly.

“All the time,” I answered, leaning into his touch. “Sometimes I feel as if it’ll always be like that.”

Not expecting him to kiss me, I froze when he closed the distance and brushed his lips against mine. His lips were soft yet hard as he pressed into me, opening my lips with his tongue, tasting me. His hand wrapped around the back of my neck, pulling me closer while the other one stayed firm on my cheek, holding me in place. My insides tightened, and my skin broke out in chills, but in between my legs was on fire, throbbing. It was the first real kiss I’d had since my ex-husband and I wanted more … a lot more.

Holding me to his body, I could feel his cock pushing against my stomach as he lowered me down on the couch. It was a huge couch, too; brown leather and spacious enough for us both to lie side by side on. However, Brett had other plans because he stopped and looked down at me, his gaze guarded.

“What are you looking for, Melissa?” he asked. “I can tell you’ve been hurt before, and that’s the last thing I want to do to you. What do you want from me?”

What did I want? I wanted to forget about the last few years of my life and move on. He couldn’t give that to me.

Sighing, I closed my eyes and licked my lips. “I just want a night where I can forget it all.”

He leaned down and kissed me again, rubbing his body against mine. “What if I can give you more than that?”

Moaning, I wrapped my legs around his waist, my dress falling down to my sides. If he meant more by giving me his body then I’d happily comply, but if he was talking about the heart I had to pass. I couldn’t go down that route again.

“I don’t want more,” I admitted nervously. “I don’t want to get hurt.”

Slowly, Brett pulled away and gently fixed my dress, helping me up off the couch. His gray gaze was serious as he looked down at me. “No one wants to get hurt, but you can’t live your life in fear. Give me a chance to show you that I’m not like the other guys you’ve been with. Can you do that?”

Sighing, I nodded my head and took his hand. He wasn’t like anyone I’d ever met, but I wasn’t about to get my hopes up. “Okay,” I whispered, “but only for the night. That’s all I can agree on.”

He brought his hands up to cup my cheeks. “Then it’s a night I won’t let you forget.”





IT TOOK ALL I had not to jump in his arms and demand he take me in the elevator as we descended the fifty floors down to the bottom. Brett kept his calm, circling his fingers on the small of my back the entire time, driving me insane. He didn’t say where we were going next, but I had a feeling it was going to be his condo since he lived a few blocks away.

After we left the building and started down the street, I wanted to ask him questions and get to know him, but if I did that it would make us closer; I couldn’t have that.

“I know what you’re doing, Melissa. Mentally pushing me away isn’t going to work.”

Rolling my eyes, I shook my head and sighed. “It’ll work for tonight. That’s all that matters.”

Chuckling, he opened the door to his condo building and ushered me inside. “Keep telling yourself that. Just remember, it’s not just you in this. I’m in it as well.”