He’s made it seem like he wants to protect me. And I’ve felt things coming from him.
But really, when I give it all a serious look, I can see how I could have misread some of the signs. Maybe Pearce is just biding his time until we can have sex, and then his whole demeanor will change.
Mom warned me about this. She said that older men will pretend to care until they can get what they want.
Then there was that crap she pulled this morning, giving Pearce the death stare before storming inside.
As Bones turns to me, ears perked, I make my decision.
If I’m going to keep this job, if Pearce and I are going to continue our new relationship, I have to tell him the truth.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Pearce
I pull into the driveway, quickly scanning the house to make sure there’s no sign of any more disturbances. I know there haven’t been in the past two hours, since I’ve been checking in with Piper via text, but I need to see for myself.
I’d label this feeling paranoia if it was about anybody else. But already I see Bones and Piper as my family, and nobody gets to threaten that. Under any circumstances. I’d turn feral at the suggestion that somebody might try to harm Piper.
I take a moment in the car, attempting to loosen my grip on the steering wheel. I’ve been tense all day, having to caution myself not to allow my mood to register with the courtroom. The last thing a defendant wants to think is that their judge is angry for whatever reason.
Several deep breaths do little to calm the thumping of my body. It starts in my chest, fueled by my stampeding heartbeat, but then it travels through my body, swelling my muscles until finally, I feel it in my seed. The beast inside riots, constantly amazed, that I haven’t fucked this woman yet, haven’t pumped our future into her body.
Bones runs over as I push the door open.
His wagging tail and his happy face make me forget about the war zone inside of me, at least for a minute. I kneel and say hello to him, letting him lick my face and clamber over me.
Carrying him into the living room, my smile dies when I spot Piper sitting on the couch. It’s the way she looks at me, her lips severe, her eyes panicked like she wants to flee the second our gazes meet.
“Did something happen?” I ask, putting Bones down.
She shakes her head, looking down at her clasped hands.
Is she going to break up with me? The thought surges through me.
She could break up with me.
From her perspective, I’m a man she’s known for a few days. We’ve grown close in that time. I feel like something special is happening here, and she agreed last night.
But those were all just words.
Maybe we’re moving too fast. Maybe her mother’s distaste for me is too much to handle.
“Piper?” I sit next to her, placing my hand on her arm, relieved when she doesn’t flinch away. “You can talk to me.”
“Last night was crazy,” she says.
“It was,” I agree. “And if that bastard ever comes back—”
“Not that,” she says softly. “I mean yes, that. But what we did… was so crazy, so sudden. So amazing. And now I feel like I know you. But maybe you were joking earlier when you said I was your girlfriend—”
“I wasn’t,” I growl. “I mean it.”
The truth is the label isn’t anywhere near strong enough to describe what I feel. It doesn’t include the thunder inside me, the way my heart beats only for her, the compelling way my body screams at me to tear off her clothes, and fucking hammer her until her pussy is soaked with her come. Giving her everything, so she has no choice but to get pregnant.
“Okay, thank you,” she says after a pause. “That’s good to hear. So you agree that something different is happening here, something special?”
“I do,” I say, with the same force I’ll say it at the altar. “I…”
What I need to do is be careful. She could be talking about a crush-level bond or the thrill of a new relationship. There’s no reason to assume she’s talking about the feelings burning within me.
“I felt it last night.” My voice is as soft as I’m capable of making it. “It’s not just the physical side. I feel like I can talk to you, Piper, more than I have… ever. More than I ever have with anyone.”
“I feel the same.” She blinks, glancing up at me, tears threatening to bead in her eyes. “Which is why I have to tell you the truth.”
My mind flashes with an image of her mother, standing in the doorway with that bandana wrapped around her head. All day, my mind has been returning to that. It’s like there’s some significance there, but I can’t figure out exactly what.