The Bully (Calamity Montana #4)(61)

“I haven’t,” I confessed. “Been with anyone.”

In four years, the only woman in my bed had been Nellie. Why would I need or want anyone else?

“W-what?” Her mouth parted. “Charlotte was four years ago.”

“Yeah. I’m aware.” I tossed the diary onto the table, framing her face with my hands before she could take it and disappear. Then I dropped my lips to hers, kissing the shock from her expression.

She molded to me, her hands sliding up my chest as she stood on her toes.

I banded an arm around her back and held her close, trapping her to me so she couldn’t escape. My other hand roamed up and down her spine, my fingers finding the silky strands of her hair. My tongue plundered her mouth, exploring every corner like I had that first time.

She held nothing back, her lips as desperate as my own.

I swept her off her feet and carried her down the hallway, dropping her on the mattress. A breeze carried through the bedroom, a caress on my skin as I yanked off my shirt.

Nellie must have come to the camper from work. Her green blouse was tucked into a black pencil skirt. Thank fuck that skirt had some stretch because I shoved it up her thighs, bunching it at her hips as she spread her legs.

My shorts were off in a flash, dropping beside her heels onto the floor. Then one quick tug and her panties were history.

I fisted my shaft, holding her gaze as I stood at the foot of the bed, naked and hard and desperate for this woman.

Her hair was spread on my pillow. Her eyes hooded and wanting.

“Have you? Been with anyone?” Say no. Please, say no.

“No,” she whispered.

“Thank fuck.” I dropped a knee to the bed, hovering at her entrance to drag the tip of my cock through her folds. “Are you on the pill?”

A single nod was all I needed before I thrust forward.

“Cal.” She gasped, her back arching as she stretched around me.

I groaned and dropped my forehead to hers. “God, you feel so good, sugar.”

For once, there was nothing between us but the sins of my past.

“Move.” She held on to my shoulders, a leg curling around my hip. “Hurry.”

I pulled out and slammed inside once more, studying her pretty face as ecstasy spread across her features. The blush of her cheeks and throat. The perfect o of her mouth. Her eyes squeezed shut as her inner walls fluttered.

Sunlight streamed through the windows, illuminating her sheer beauty.

I ran a fingertip across the bridge of her nose, rubbing away her makeup to see her freckles. My freckles.

Then I braced myself on an elbow and showed her the strength of my body, the control and the restraint. I worked her up, higher and higher, as her hands flowed like water over the muscles of my arms, chest and back.

Her nails dug into my shoulders as her breath hitched.

“Come, Nell.” I bent and took a nipple into my mouth, sucking so hard that she unraveled.

She came on a cry that echoed through the room and carried beyond the windows. She pulsed around my length, her orgasm triggering my own.

I poured myself into her body, marking her as mine, then collapsed beside her, my breaths ragged as we stared at the ceiling.

Birds chirped as they flew outside. The sound of traffic carried from beyond the motel. Nellie’s panting was as heavy as my own.

“Why do we always end up here?” she asked.

I propped up on an elbow, staring down into her emerald eyes. In bed, we were fire. We could block out the rest of the world. It was easier here.

“Why did you come here today?” I twirled my finger around a lock of her hair before tucking it behind her ear.

Neither of us answered the other’s questions. We simply let them hang in the air until I brushed my lips to hers.

The kiss was too tender. I realized my mistake as my lips moved lazily and my tongue swirled with hers. But I didn’t push to give it an edge. I didn’t quicken the pace or touch her anywhere else. I simply savored the woman who’d consumed my damn life.

And I crossed a line with that kiss.

When I broke away, there was genuine fear on her face. Like I’d shattered an unspoken rule. There’d been feelings beyond hate and resentment in that kiss. Shame on me.

“Be back.” I stood from the bed, giving her a minute as I strode to the cramped bathroom.

I heard her footsteps on the stairs before the water in the sink had turned hot.

“Damn,” I muttered.

No surprise, when I came out, she was gone.

And so was her diary.





CHAPTER EIGHTEEN





NELLIE





Don’t stare at Cal. Don’t stare at Cal.

My gaze found him instantly. He was pushing Elias on the swing set in Pierce and Kerrigan’s yard, and my traitorous heart melted as they shared a smile.

Damn it, Nellie.

“Here you go.” Larke appeared at my side with two cold White Claws.

I took mine, popped the top and chugged.

She gave me a sideways look. “Are you okay?”

“Great! Just hot,” I lied as the smell of smoke and burgers wafted from the grill.

Pierce and Kerrigan were hosting a summer barbeque at their house today, and their sprawling deck was crowded with happy people.

I’d showed up, expecting not to know many, but I’d made quite a few acquaintances during my time in Calamity. Nearly all the faces were familiar. Kerrigan was sitting on a lounge chair beneath a patio umbrella with the baby in her arms. Constance’s sleeping face was shaded by her floppy pink hat.