“If you need to talk. I’m there for you. I hope you know that.” Hudson cleared his throat, and Wyatt could see he was struggling. It was hard for them. Hard to be here. Hard to be open. Hard to be honest.
“Don’t worry about me, Huds. I’ll be fine. I always am.”
“That’s the thing, Wyatt. I don’t think you are.” His eyes narrowed. “Did the nightmares ever go away?”
Jesus. Fucking. Christ. Did Hudson always have to bring that shit up? Why couldn’t he just let things be? The anger that rolled through him was hot and furious and absolute. It took his breath away, and he had to take a moment to calm himself.
It was the kind of anger that could be a game changer. The kind that stayed with him.
Wyatt needed to shut this shit down. He backed away and attempted a smile. “Give my best to Darlene and Rebecca. I’ll see you around.” With that, Wyatt headed for the door and grabbed his coat along the way. He didn’t bother putting it on; in fact, he got out of the house so fast, he was surprised the door didn’t slam shut and hit his ass on the way out. He drove away, not caring that his tires squealed. He headed not toward the mountain and the cabin he’d claimed as his, but to town.
Ten minutes later, he was parked in Regan’s driveway. Her car was there, but her place was in darkness. Even though it was barely ten, he couldn’t be sure if she’d already gone to bed. Her work hours made his head spin.
He thought of her text message. Of her urging him to come by. But was it fair to her? To come to her home when his head and his emotions were all over the place? Shit. What to do.
Screw it, he thought.
Quietly, he let himself into the house, shedding his boots and coat at the door. A lamp was on in the family room, its muted glow casting barely a shadow. With stealth, he made his way to the back, to where her bedroom was.
Bella hopped from the bed, her odd gait bringing a smile to his face as she came for some loving. He gave her a scratch and then leaned against the doorjamb, drinking in the sight of the woman fast asleep. She was on her back, her hair spilled across most of her face. Her chest rose and fell evenly, and bare legs peeked from underneath the covers. She looked so damn relaxed and warm… so damn right. In this moment, she was everything he needed.
Quickly, he tossed his shirt and jeans and socks onto the floor beside the bed. He eyed his boxers, but, with a wicked grin, decided getting naked right off the bat wasn’t exactly fair. He slipped into bed and under the covers, gathering her close to his body.
Wyatt wasn’t sure how long he lay in the dark, listening to her breathe, watching her lips move as she had some imaginary conversation with herself. But it was a long time. Long enough for him to get lazy. Long enough for the demons in his head to fade away and for him to fall asleep.
More importantly, long enough for him to finally find some sort of his own peace.
Chapter 14
Warm. So incredibly warm.
Slowly, Regan came awake with a smile on her face and a feeling inside that made her feel strange. It was unfamiliar, and at first, she wasn’t exactly sure what it was.
The only thing she did know was that she didn’t want it to end. Didn’t want to open her eyes. Didn’t want to do anything to stop this feeling. She sighed and stretched—or at least tried to—and it was then that her eyes flew open and she found herself staring into the face that had haunted her dreams.
Her sweet, hot, erotic dreams.
Wyatt was on his side, facing her, one of his arms tucked around her midsection, the other flung above his head. Her legs were caught between his (hence the not being able to move bit) but she didn’t mind. At all.
She relaxed against her pillow, enjoying the sensation of another human being in her bed and the warmth that came with it. This was nice. So nice.
He looked much younger asleep, more like the boy she remembered from high school. But the body, well, that didn’t go with a teen boy. Hell no.
She bit her tongue and lifted the blankets for a peek.
He was naked, save for a pair of plain black boxers, and her eyes traveled the length of him. My God, he’s beautiful. She watched him closely, her tongue caught between her teeth as she leaned back a bit in order to see better. The thin line of hair below his belly button disappeared under his boxers. And those boxers did nothing to hide a bulge that made her hot.
And bothered.
And horny as hell.
Already she throbbed between her legs, and gently, she traced his pectorals, down his chest and lower, until she hovered over that delicious bulge. A quick glance up told her Wyatt was still asleep, but she hesitated. It wasn’t her nature to be bold, to throw caution to the wind and just do what it was she wanted to do.
Normally, her brain didn’t work that way. But right now? In this moment? A new kind of Regan took over. She threw back the covers all the way.
His eyes were still closed, and that was probably a good thing, because if they were open, he would have seen the uninhibited glee on her face as she eased her hand inside his boxers.
He was semi-hard, and as her fingers closed around him, he swelled beneath her touch. It was amazing, really, how men were so hard, and yet, as her fingers rolled over the top of his penis, so silky soft.