“Yes.”
We walk into the kitchen and Brody sets the box on the table. I don’t sit down yet. Brody opens his mouth to say something, but I take hold of his neck and pull him to me. His eyes widen with surprise, but soon close when I press my lips to his. My tongue forces its way into his mouth desperately. Brody groans, gripping my hips to tug me closer. Oh, I’ve missed this. He kisses me relentlessly, devouring me as if I could disappear at any second. I slow us down a bit before pulling away, my lips buzzing.
“What was that for?” he asks in a breathy pant.
Honestly, I say, “I missed you.”
Brody smiles. “I missed you too, Selene. C’mon, let’s eat.”
We sit down, begin to eat, and Brody asks how it’s been with his brother around. He seems a little concerned about it for some reason.
“I like him. It took a bit to get used to having him around, but now he feels like an old friend. Bradley is funny too. He must have gotten the jokester gene between the two of you.” I stop because I don’t want to make Brody feel bad or anything that I am spending so much time with his brother and not him. I know that he rather be here, and I don’t want to rub in his face how his brother has been able to keep me sane since he’s not here to do it himself. Bradley truly feels like an old friend or in some cases, a protective, caring, older brother.
“Yeah,” Brody rolls his eyes, “he’s hilarious.” There’s a faint smile on his lips. “I have home games this week, so he won’t be around as much. Plus, your hockey date is this week. Bradley can come with you or if you want to bring Allison, I’ll get him a ticket.” Brody takes a moment before he adds, “Do you want me to get him a ticket in the 300s with you for the other games?”
I can’t fathom sitting elsewhere, much less having Bradley sit in Stacy’s seat. The mere thought of going to a game and not sitting there makes my heart squeeze as if it’s about to burst. I love that he’s offering an additional ticket for Bradley. Shaking my head, I quietly tell him, “I don’t want the glass seats, Brody. Give them to Kris for his wife or something. Maybe if it was an away game at a different arena, I could do it. I just don’t think I can, so we’ll sit in my regular seats. I’d love it if you would get him a ticket on the other side of me.”
He smiles and nods. “That’s fine.”
“Does this mean you’ll be spending the night with me then?” Part of me hates that a reason I’m asking is because I don’t like being home by myself anymore. She ruined that for me and having a Ross around 24/7 doesn’t help me overcome my fear. Not that I particularly want to anytime soon. Not until this is settled. There are too many unknown possibilities of what might happen. Being here by myself without the security of Brody or Bradley isn’t an option.
Brody grins. “Yes, I am. Wouldn’t miss an opportunity to wake up next to you.”
My heart skips a beat at his words. “Good. Is Bradley going to stay here too?”
“Yeah, might as well. As long as you’re okay with that,” he hastily adds.
“I don’t care. I would feel bad if we kicked him out and made him stay at your house though.” I can’t believe I’m bringing her up, but I want to know. The initial shock is gone, and I’m much more relaxed now, thanks to Brody. “How soon until we find out?”
The stress never left his tense shoulders or the fisted hand on the table, but now it’s back in full force. Damn it, I shouldn’t have asked.
“Within the next couple of days, I’m assuming. I don’t know. I guess it depends on when she goes to the doctor.”
He frowns and I don’t want to see that, so I change the subject. “What do you want to do tonight? I kind of want to get of the house, but you’ve been on the road, so do you want to stay here?”
“If you want to go out, we can do that, Selene,” Brody says, but he looks tired. I decide I don’t want to leave the house tonight.
“How about we stay in and go out later this week? As long as I’m with you, I don’t care where we are or what we do.”
Brody finishes off his slice, smiling. “Good because I really didn’t want to go anywhere.”
I laugh. “You should have said that,” I playfully scold.
We’re done eating, so Brody puts what’s left of the pizza in the fridge while I let Bonkers outside, staying by the door to watch him. Suddenly, Brody’s arms wrap around my waist as he kisses my neck.
“You know, we’re alone only for a little while.” His lips move over my neck. Brody pulls me flush against him, so I can feel his hard cock through his jeans against my backside.
“What got you so hot all of a sudden?” I ask curiously, wishing Bonkers would hurry and finish.
“You did,” he mumbles. “I looked at you, and here I am.” Brody pushes his hips against me as evidence.
“Here you are,” I agree.
Bonkers comes to the door, so I let him in and then Brody is hauling me up the stairs to my room. Our sex starts out frenzied, passionate, and full of the sense of feeling out of control with the situation we’ve found ourselves in. Brody’s thrusts are hard as he brings me to the brink, but skillfully holds me there until he’s ready to fall over the edge with me. Afterwards, there’s nothing but a calm love in his actions. He kisses me sweetly, runs his hands over my body with loving care, and with his lips and touches, he silently assures me that everything will be fine.
He’s not going anywhere. He’s not going to hurt me. In fact, he wordlessly promises to take care of and protect me. Brody shows me that he loves me too much for anything less. He glances up at me, coming to a rest next to me.
“Sometimes, I feel like I’m waiting for you to kick me out like you used to,” he chuckles.