Captivated (Whiskey Run 2)

And then Sophia came knocking at the front door.

Then it’s like all of a sudden, everything I dreamed about all day long was shot to hell.

I don’t have time to think about why Brett agreed to let Sophia stay. I felt bad for her in a way. She’s not very smart for doing what she did to him, and a part of me hates her for it. But she acts like she’s in pain, and I hate to see anyone in pain.

“Go unlock your car. I’ll be out there in a second to get your bag,” he tells Sophia.

As soon as she walks away, he turns to me. “Move your stuff into my room.”

I swallow. “Your room?”

“Yeah, honey. You’re going to have to stay with me tonight.” He smiles real big, and it’s then I realize why he gave in to her staying here.

“Brett Barrett, did you agree to this...”

He interrupts me. “To hold you in my arms all night? Yeah, honey. That’s the only reason I’d let that woman in my house again.”

He then smiles and kisses me before walking off.

I could watch him all day, but I turn and go quickly to grab my things. I have everything in one bag already, since I didn’t want to unpack, so moving me to his room is just me carrying my one bag in there.

I walk out of the bedroom just as they’re walking in. “Wow, something smells good,” Brett says, inhaling deeply.

I blush. “Thanks. I made chicken tacos in the crockpot.”

He rubs his belly. “You know what I like, honey.”

Sophie starts to walk to Brett’s bedroom, but he stops her. “You’re staying in the guest bedroom. That’s my and Emma’s room.”

She stumbles a little on her feet and walks into the guest bedroom.

The meal around the table is quiet, except for Brett talking about how good everything is. “I took out Raymond and Peter dinner earlier. They enjoyed it.”

Brett smiles. “Thanks, honey. I’m sure they really appreciated it.”

Sophia keeps watching Brett. The further into dinner we get, the more she flirts with him. She keeps trying to touch his arm, but when she does, he always moves it.

The third time she tries, I decide to put a stop to it. It’s obvious Brett doesn’t want her attention.

“Sophie, I said you could stay the night. That doesn’t mean you can flirt or touch my fiancé. You had your chance and blew it, but I’ll be damned if you’re going to come in here and take what’s mine.”

I’m leaning across the table now. The more I say, the louder I get.

Brett clears his throat. He reaches across the table and squeezes my hand. “You have nothing to worry about there. I’m yours.”

He looks at me with a hard stare. I know this is all fake. I know that tomorrow when Sophia is gone, it’s all going to go back to me being the housekeeper and him being my boss, but I definitely got caught up in the moment. I don’t know if he’s mad or what, but I’m wondering if I took it too far.

Brett pushes his chair back and stands up, grabbing his plate and mine too.

He washes the plates and stacks them in the drainer and comes back to the table, holding his hand out to me. “Sophia, ya know how ranch life is. We’re going to hit the hay.”

I push my chair back and let him lead me into the bedroom. As soon as the door closes, I slap my hands to my face, mortified. I whisper to him, “I’m sorry. I went too far, didn’t I? I just got caught up, and she kept touching you.”

He puts his hands at my waist. “You didn’t like her touching me, did you?”

My head whips up to his, and I stutter, “I thought—” I clear my throat and try to calm myself. “I thought you didn’t want her to touch you. If that’s not the case, you can go back out there.”

I put my hand on my hip and stare at him, waiting to see what he’s going to do. I have no doubt that my heart will rip into a thousand little pieces if he goes out there. Surely he knows what kind of girl Sophia is, but if he doesn’t, that’s on him at this point.

“I don’t want her to touch me, but that wasn’t the question. You.” He points a finger and gently presses it to my chest. “You didn’t like her touching me.”

“It doesn’t matter what I want.”

He laughs, and I start to walk away, but he stops me. “It matters a lot to me. I know you didn’t mean what you said out there, but fuck, Emma, after last night and today, there’s a part of me that hopes one day you’ll say those words and mean them.”