Do you know how many times I wished I’d made it to you first?
Had he really just said those words to her? Her body tingled with a growing sense of excitement.
“I don’t know what to believe, Alex.”
“Believe this.” Gently, he framed her face. He stared deeply into her eyes as if trying to convince her without words just how he felt about her. And then he lowered his face to hers.
Brianne thought he would kiss her lips. Instead, he pressed his soft lips to her forehead.
How could such a soft touch elicit such a heated reaction in her body?
“How can I want this?” she asked. The question was rhetorical. “How can I want you when I held on to my love for Carter for so long?”
“Maybe because you knew that one day I would come back into your life.”
God, was he right? Had she always known this day would come? And had she been so unable to face the reality of her attraction for Alex that she had always hidden behind anger when dealing with him?
She didn’t know what to think. All she knew as Alex circled his arms around her waist and softly kissed her cheek was that there was a part of her that felt like she was finally right where she was supposed to be.
But that niggling doubt returned. The doubt of her feelings. How could she have been in love with Carter and now falling for his best friend?
Brianne started to pull back, but Alex tightened his grip around her. “No,” he said softly. “Don’t pull away.”
She stared up at him, looking into eyes that were heated with the kind of desire for her she didn’t ever remember seeing in Carter’s eyes.
“I…I…”
“Do you want me to stop?”
A challenge. The kind he knew he would win, given the way his fingers splayed on her back now. “I don’t want to get hurt,” she told him honestly. Because he had the power to hurt her far worse than Carter ever had.
“I meant what I said,” he told her. “You don’t know how many times I wish I’d made it to you first that day in the store. In fact, I’ve never stopped wishing it.”
What was he saying? And why was she loving the way she felt in his arms?
She could dismiss last night’s actions as desperate need, but how did she explain that right now she wanted nothing more than to sleep with him again?
“I loved Carter like a brother and would never have fought him for you, even if I thought he would hurt you. But that was then, Bree. He’s not a friend anymore.”
Brianne tried to digest what he was telling her. That he’d always been attracted to her. But that because of his friendship with Carter, he had never dared to pursue her. But that the stakes had changed and there were a whole new set of rules.
“If you really want me to let you leave, just say the word,” he continued. “Say the word, and I will.”
Brianne parted her lips, but no sound came. The truth was, she didn’t want to protest anything. Instead, she wanted to give in to the wild urge telling her to slip her hands into the edges of Alex’s briefs and drag them down his legs.
“You asked why I haven’t dated seriously,” Alex said softly, lowering his face to hers. “Because I’ve never felt as strong an attraction to another woman as I did to you the first day I saw you.”
His words were a potent aphrodisiac, turning her on,
making her wet. If he was lying, then he was one of the most skilled liars on the planet.
Right now, she didn’t care. The only thing she wanted was to get naked and make love to him again.
She placed her palms on his muscular chest. Beneath her fingertips, she could feel the pulsing beat of his heart.
She stroked one of his flat nipples and was rewarded with a low groan. Leaning forward, she planted her lips on his smooth, hard chest. She let her lips linger there a moment before flicking the tip of her tongue over his skin. He tasted salty, a mix of his own perspiration and the sweat both their bodies had created together while making love.
“Come here,” he growled. Lifting her chin upward, he brought his mouth down on hers. Hard.
Lord, the sensations that filled her were oh, so wonderful. How was it that she had been betrothed to Carter, and yet she had never felt this electric thrill whenever he kissed her, much less touched her.
Alex slipped his hands beneath Brianne’s buttocks and urged her upward. The next thing she knew, she was wrapping her legs around his waist and he was carrying her to the nearby bedroom.
He lowered her on the bed, his mouth locked with hers. He kissed her while he slipped his hands beneath her shirt, his touch sending shivers of delight all over her skin. He kissed her as his fingers found her nipples. Kissed her as he tweaked them into hardened peaks.
“I can’t get enough of you,” he rasped and moved his mouth to her neck, where he suckled her flesh until she was whimpering.
“I want you naked,” he told her.
Brianne had never been particularly comfortable with her body and always preferred making love in the dark
with Carter. But with the sunlight spilling into the room, Brianne sat up and pulled off her shirt. Then she unsnapped her bra. All while Alex’s eyes were glued to her body.
She didn’t feel self-conscious. She felt beautiful and desirable.
As she shimmied her jeans over her hips, Alex took his briefs off. Brianne stared at his body without shame as he put a condom on. He was large and hard and the definition of sexy.
And he was about to be hers once more.
The moment she was fully naked, Alex moved to her, reaching for both of her breasts at the same time. He kneaded them gently, squeezed them together, flicked his thumbs over her sensitive peaks. Brianne gripped his shoulders for support, knowing that if he continued to please her this way she would be weak with desire and unable to support her own weight.
Alex lowered his head to her right breast and grazed her nipple with his teeth. She threw her head back and cried out from the sweet sensation.
Alex pleasured both breasts with his fingers and his tongue, until Brianne was digging her fingers into his flesh and on the edge of falling into a pit of endless bliss. Then Alex kissed her, got on the bed on his back and pulled her on top of him. He guided their bodies together, and Brianne whimpered, knowing she was close. He held her hips as he thrust upward, filling her body and also her soul.
“Open your eyes,” Alex said.
Brianne did.
“You’re beautiful, baby.” He stroked her nipples, heightening her pleasure. “So beautiful.”
His words were her undoing. Brianne tumbled into the abyss, lost in a whirlwind of delicious sensations.
As her entire body savored the wonderful climax, she became aware of one undeniable fact.
She had fallen for Alex.
She was in love with him.
Chapter 18
B
rianne and Alex spent the rest of the morning in bed, making love until they both had no more energy. They napped in each other’s arms and this time woke up together.
Brianne wasn’t running anymore.
As much as she wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of the day making love with this incredible man, she knew that it was time to get on with the business they had to deal with. She wanted to move on past Carter once and for all, and that meant finding him, confronting him and getting the closure she deserved.
“When I knew Tracy, she worked for Marriott,” Brianne told Alex as she trailed her fingers over his chest. She was lying in the crook of his arm, a place she could comfortably stay forever. “Her full name is Tracy Salmon.”
“Like the fish?” Alex asked.
“And just as slimy,” Brianne couldn’t help saying.
“Think of the bright side,” Alex said, and Brianne made a face as she looked at him. “If not for Tracy, you and Carter might still be together. And we most certainly would not be here like this right now.”
Brianne grinned from ear to ear. “And you are definitely the hottest silver lining I’ve ever known.”
Alex ran his fingers through her short hair, and Brianne curled her face into his palm. Suddenly she became serious. “Why do you think he did it? I mean, it can’t be just because he wanted to be with Tracy. All he had to do was dump me.”
“I’ve been thinking about that ever since I saw him on television. There was the robbery, but we only had about a hundred grand in the safe. Carter was worth more than that. There was also my mother’s ring, but again, it wasn’t worth seven figures or anything. Ultimately I figured it must have been a scam to capitalize on a major insurance policy.”
“In seven years? There was no body. Doesn’t it take at least seven years for a person to be declared dead when they’re missing?”
“Normally. But I did some investigating, and it turns out that there are times when the court will declare a person dead based on imminent peril—if the family petitions the court for a death certificate.”
Brianne considered something. “Do you think Tracy was the beneficiary of Alex’s life insurance policy?”
“I wouldn’t doubt it. Especially if he’s down here with her.”
Brianne sat up, and again she was struck by just how comfortable she was being naked in front of Alex. “What do you say? Should we start calling the Marriott hotels in Daytona and seeing if we can track Tracy down?”
“There’s no time like the present.”
After checking the Marriott hotels in the Daytona area with no luck, Brianne and Alex extended their search to Orlando, which was only an hour away. And they struck pay dirt, finding that a Tracy Holden worked as a manager at a hotel in North Orlando.
It was the only Tracy in a managerial position, and since it made sense that she and Carter had likely changed names to create new identities, they assumed that Tracy Holden was the Tracy they were seeking.
She was due to finish work at 6:00 p.m., and Alex and Brianne hit the road with enough time to make it to the hotel before she left.
At five-thirty, after killing time at a local bookstore, they drove into the hotel’s parking lot. Brianne’s stomach danced with nerves.
She stared toward the front entrance as Alex parked the Navigator in an available spot. “So,” she said, the word heavy. “Here we are. What’s your plan? To go inside and talk to Tracy? See if she’ll tell us the truth about Carter?”
“Naw,” Alex answered. “I think the better idea is to wait for her. When she comes out, we follow her. It’ll be the end of her workday. I’m sure she’ll be heading home. So we follow her and find out where she lives.”
Brianne nodded. “I guess that makes sense.”
“Brianne, if you’re not sure you can do this, I can take you back to the bookstore and pick you up later.”
“No way,” Brianne said. “I am
so
ready to confront Carter. And Tracy as well.”
Alex reached across the front seat and covered her hand with his.
She drew in a heavy breath. He knew she was nervous.
He was nervous, too. He had no clue how things would play out when he saw Carter again.
Once, he had loved Carter like a brother. He should be elated to know that his old friend was alive. Yet what he felt was a deep sense of betrayal and anger.
“I hope you get your mother’s ring back,” Brianne said softly. “If Carter was motivated by greed, he could have pawned it.”
“I know.” Alex gritted his teeth and gazed forward. “I’m not sure what I’ll do if that’s the case.”
“You really loved your mother.”
Alex met Brianne’s gaze. “She was the most important woman in my life. Every time I told her that, she would joke that a hot young woman would come along who would snag that title. I always told her no. That she’d always be number one.”
A soft smile touched Alex’s lips as he talked about his mother, but there was also pain in his expression. Brianne’s heart ached for him. She had always heard the saying that a woman should go for a man who loved and respected his mother, because he would love and respect her. Carter had barely talked about his mother. The two obviously weren’t close. Ultimately, he had disrespected Brianne. On the other hand, Alex clearly adored his mother, and Brianne could tell that he believed in treating women with kindness and respect.
Yes, he had lied to her, but no one was perfect. And she understood his motive, given that it was driven by the love for the mother he’d lost too soon.
“I still remember the day we learned she only had a few months to live. For so long, I’d held out hope. My dad, too. We both believed that our love could save her.” Alex sighed softly. “The doctors tried everything, but in the end, nothing worked to save her. It’s hell to see someone
you love go through something like that. To know you’re going to lose them, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”
“I’m so sorry,” Brianne said. Her eyes misted with tears. “I can’t imagine losing someone you love that way.”
“She was ready. She’d made peace with her illness and with God. But I wasn’t ready. Not even close. I wanted her to keep fighting, to try alternative treatments. And then I realized that I was being selfish. She was tired of it all. She knew there was no hope, and she was ready to let go.”
Brianne squeezed Alex’s hand.
“One of the last things she did was give me that ring and tell me to make sure I gave it to the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I vowed that I would.”
“And Carter knew this?”
“Yeah,” Alex said softly. “He knew.”
“Oh, Alex.”
“I’ve never been the kind of guy who was into dating woman after woman, just for the sake of having a warm body in my bed. More than anything I just want to find that special person my mother always wanted me to find, and spend my life having the kind of relationship my parents had.”
Want to find…
As if he hadn’t found it already. Brianne’s stomach twisted.
“Bree, is that her?”
Brianne jerked her head around, following Alex’s line of sight. And there was Tracy, the tall, thin, pretty woman who had once been her best friend. Her hair had blond highlights and was pulled back in a ponytail.
“Yes,” Brianne said, nerves making her skin tingle. “That’s her.”
She walked to a sleek, black BMW, and if Brianne had had any reservations about Tracy’s identity, they were
gone now. The car was exactly the kind that Carter would drive.