Truth Read online

  “We were just leaving to try a couple on,” I said. “We don’t have a wedding date, but we’ve got to get this dress, apparently.”

  “Well, I don’t think Damien and I are going to do anything big,” Anna said. “Something small. Just you guys. Casual.”

  “Do you think I could tag along?” My father was usually anxious for lunch every single day, and it was the first time food didn’t seem to be his priority. If he wanted to tag along, he’d have to skip the meal.

  Anna looked surprised by the question. “Of course…”

  “I know it’s not traditional,” my father said. “But my wife would be there if she were still alive, so I thought I’d step in for her.”

  My father was the sweetest man on the planet.

  “I would be honored,” Anna said, placing her hand on his.

  “Does that mean you’re going to help me pick out a dress too, Dad?” I asked playfully.

  “Definitely,” he answered. “Wouldn’t miss it.”

  I wanted to keep smiling, but that was hard to do. When I pictured the man I was most interested in marrying, I couldn’t imagine my family being supportive, couldn’t imagine my father being thrilled enough to join me in picking out a dress. And the thought made me sad.

  Anna came out of the dressing room in a long-sleeved gown made of thin lace. The dress narrowed around her waist then flared out again, elegant and perfect for a winter wedding. “What do you think?”

  “It’s nice,” I said, reacting neutrally to everything so she could pick what she really wanted without being swayed by my opinion.

  “Is this the 1800s?” my father asked. “It looks like my grandmother’s wedding dress. You’re too beautiful to wear something that covers so much of your nice skin.”

  She chuckled. “Alright, I’ll try another. Cat, could you help me?”

  I walked with her into the dressing room then started to unfasten the miles of buttons down her back. “Don’t listen to my dad. If you like it, get it.”

  “No, he’s right. It’s hard to pick out a dress Damien will like when he can’t even see it on me.”

  “Well, he’ll like anything you wear. I promise you that.”

  She looked at herself in the mirror as the dress slowly became looser and looser, relaxing off her shoulders and arms so she could eventually slip it off.

  I glanced at her from time to time, thinking about the one subject that was usually on my mind. “Anna, I was wondering if you could do me a favor…”

  “Sure. What is it?”

  “Well, Heath and I talked.”

  She stiffened at the subject.

  “I think I’m going to hope for the best, hope Damien changes his mind…eventually. I was wondering if—”

  Anna turned around when the last button was unfastened. “Catalina, I’m going to be honest with you. I want to help you because you’re my friend. I want you to be happy. But Damien is set in his ways, and I don’t want to upset him. We’re really happy right now, and anytime that subject comes up, he gets angry. I feel like I’m stuck in the middle, and I just…don’t want to be.”

  She was the perfect person to meddle on my behalf because he might actually listen to her, but I understood her request, understood why she wanted to stay impartial and not stick her neck out for me. “No, I understand.”

  She dropped her gaze in sadness. “I’m sorry, Cat.”

  “I know.”

  “And to be honest… I’m not sure if I like you being with Heath either. I’ve become so fond of your father. He’s so sweet. I can forget what happened with Liam because that was my ex who orchestrated all of that, but I’m not sure I can forget about what happened to your dad.”

  “You’ve never met Heath. You might feel differently if you did.”

  She shrugged. “Maybe. But I do agree with what Damien says, that you deserve the best. You’re such an amazing person, Catalina. I just imagine you being with the perfect guy.”

  I pictured myself with a handsome man my family loved, but I also pictured that staleness, the nonexistent fire, the lack of excitement. “I’m not sure if perfect is what I want, Anna. I’ve been with a lot of guys, and he’s the only I’ve ever loved. That’s got to count for something.”

  Her eyes softened, like she really felt my pain. “You’re going to stay with him, then?”

  “For now. He said, in time, he would make Damien feel differently. I just need to be patient.”

  “Well, you’re going to have to be really patient, because I don’t see that happening for a very long time.”

  I sat at my vanity backstage, taking all the pins out of my hair before letting it fall down and relax around my shoulders.

  My phone lit up with a text message. Baby. He was short with me over text, like he wasn’t obligated to say much since I was officially his, like a simple word could convey his need to see me.

  Just finished a show.

  And now what?

  Girls want me to go out with them.

  Out where?

  For drinks.

  He went silent, like he expected me to text more.

  Want to meet me?

  About time you asked.

  Are you sure you’re able to do that?

  Baby, I’m fine.

  We hadn’t spoken since he went back to work the other night, but I assumed he was fine because he continued to go. I’ll let you know where we end up.

  What are you wearing?

  I smiled when I heard his voice in my head. You’ll just have to see.

  I kept looking at the door as we sat at the table together. Most of the girls found other people to talk to, but Tracy was still with me.

  “Why do you keep looking at the door?” she asked. “Expecting someone?”

  I never told her we’d gotten back together. She was a close friend, but I didn’t confide all the details of my life. I doubted she would believe me if I did. “Heath and I got back together.”

  “Really?” she asked. “After that fight you guys had?”

  “Yeah, he won me over.”

  “I think that’s great news. You aren’t going to find another man like that. He’s Grade A, top choice beef.”

  “Oh, I know.” That was why I was still there, why I was going against everything I believed in just to be with him. “But he is more than his looks. He’s sweet, thoughtful, loyal…a lot of things.”

  “Sounds like you love him. I’ve never seen you with the same guy for so long.”

  Because I never had been. “I do.”

  She gave me a surprised look, as if she didn’t expect me to admit it. “And he loves you?”

  I nodded.

  “I guess that’s obvious just by the way he looks at you.” She spun her olive around in her glass. “Man, why does his brother have to be married…?”

  I chuckled. “You’ll find someone, Tracy.”

  “Not like that,” she said as she flipped her hair. “He’s one in a million.”

  Yeah, he was.

  My eyes went to the entryway when I saw a six-foot-three hunk walk inside. All eyes turned his way, cataloguing all the features that were impossible not to notice, his massive build, the way he stretched the fabric of his long-sleeved shirt over his strong pecs, his scorching blue eyes, his hard jawline sprinkled with a shadow of hair.

  He headed to the bar first and ordered his drink.

  I stared at his ass, liking the snug fit of his jeans.

  It didn’t take long for a woman to make a move, to touch him on the arm and make a pass. He didn’t smile playfully, didn’t say more than a few words with an annoyed expression, before he walked across the bar to me, like he already knew where I was without checking.

  I felt my stomach tighten with excitement, looking at the sexiest man I’d ever seen. It was hard to believe he was the man who’d assaulted me months ago, took me captive by choking me out. Now, he was everything to me.

  I got to my feet because anything less than a deep kiss wasn’t
good enough to greet him—according to him.

  He looked me up and down subtly, liking the tightness of my red dress, his blue eyes flashing in approval. When he reached the table, he set his drink down without taking his gaze off me. Then his arm hooked around my waist, his hand flattening against the arch in my back. He looked down at me as he pulled me close, giving me a much different expression than he gave to that admirer at the bar. He held his lips there as he stared at me, like he expected me to do the rest.

  I was in high heels, so it was easy for me to move into him, to plant my lips against his, to smear a drop of lipstick against the corner of his mouth. My hand slid to his chest, and I almost forgot he still had injuries under those clothes. I kept my touch gentle but my kiss hard.

  He kissed me like we were alone, even though we were in public. His hand squeezed my ass as he gave me a little tongue. His deep voice whispered to me. “So sexy in that dress.” He lowered himself into the chair I’d just been occupying then patted his thigh, as if he expected me to sit there.

  I wasn’t sure if he could handle it, but I didn’t want to ask in front of Tracy, so I lowered myself across his lap, my feet dangling above the floor.

  His arm hooked around my waist, and he supported me like the back of the chair, his eyes all over me like his hands in the bedroom.

  Tracy stared at us, like she didn’t know what to say.

  I looked at my friend and tried to ignore the way Heath looked at me, with a gaze so hot, it burned my skin like a tanning bed. I grabbed my drink and sipped it, letting the fruity tang splash across my tongue along with the tequila.

  Tracy continued to stare. “So…do you have any friends you could set me up with?”

  Heath directed his gaze to her. “All my friends are assholes.”

  “Like, assholes like you or…”

  He smiled slightly. “No. As in, bad assholes.”

  She sighed. “Oh damn.” She sipped her drink until it was empty then headed to the bar to get another. “I can’t watch this fine piece of man be all over you. I need to go find me a man.” She walked off.

  With my arm around his shoulders, I turned to him. “Thanks for chasing off my friend.”

  “I’m not the problem. You are.”

  “Me?” I asked incredulously.

  “Yeah. She’s jealous of you. Not me.” He grabbed his glass off the table and took a drink, not showing a wince or any sign of discomfort. When he was done, he set it down and placed his hand on my thigh. “How was the show?”

  “Good. Nothing new.”

  “Every time I watch you, it feels new.” He looked at me, his fingers lightly touching the soft skin of my thigh. “In any capacity.” He stared at me, his blue eyes taking in my expression like I was prey he was able to take home to his cave.

  I loved the way he stared at me. I loved the way he was eager to claim me in front of everyone in the room, even though he was the more desirable one. I loved the way he needed to touch me with both hands, to make me feel worshiped in every way imaginable, with his look, his touch, and his words. “How’s work been?”

  “Fine.” He’d never said much about his job before, so his silence wasn’t that odd.

  “Was it difficult to adjust?”

  “Balto brought me up to speed.”

  “And no one figured out it was Balto for the last month?”

  He shook his head. “A bit insulting, isn’t it?”

  “Or maybe your brother just knows you really well.”

  “Maybe.” His fingers traced a circle around my knee over and over, his callused fingertips slightly abrasive against my softness.

  “You’re feeling okay?”

  “Yes,” he said with confidence. “I’m getting better every single day.”

  “Just don’t want you to have a setback…”

  He shook his head. “No. I’m practically brand-new at this point. I’m young and healthy—I heal fast.”

  “Thank god for that.”

  His arm tugged me a little closer, bringing my lips to his so he could kiss me as he stared into my eyes, his coarse hair rubbing against me just like his fingertips did. “Anything new with you?” He released me, talking to me like we were home alone, not in the middle of a crowded bar.

  A few things had happened that I hadn’t mentioned. “My brother asked Anna to marry him.”

  He had no reaction to that. “And did she say yes?”

  “Of course she did. Why wouldn’t she?”

  He shrugged. “She could do better.”

  I knew he was joking, so all I did was narrow my eyes in response. “We went shopping for a wedding dress this afternoon.”

  “Did she find anything?”

  “No, actually. My dad came along and was very opinionated about everything.”

  He grinned. “Your dad is passionate about wedding dresses?”

  “He’s trying to stand in for my mom, and in his defense, that’s exactly how she’d act.”

  He chuckled. “That’s kinda cute, actually.”

  “Yeah, he’s adorable.” Now that I’d forgiven Heath for what he did, I didn’t always think about his actions whenever I mentioned my father. I gave Heath a clean slate, saw him as a different man.

  “I’m sure he’ll do the same for you.”

  “Yeah, and we’ll scream at each other.”

  “You think he won’t like your dress?”

  “Not sure. I know I want something more scandalous, so I’m not sure how he’ll feel about it.”

  He gave a slight nod in approval. “Yeah…that’s what I want to hear.”

  I rolled my eyes playfully, but I felt the smile move into my lips. “Well, we chased my friends away, so I guess there’s no point in sticking around.”

  “We didn’t chase them away. They’d watch us have sex if they could.”

  “Whoa. What did you say?”

  He grinned. “Come on, they would. I’d do it too, but I don’t need to.”

  I rose to my feet and smoothed out my dress so my ass wouldn’t hang out.

  He gave it a playful spank as he stood up. “What are you wearing underneath?” He grabbed his glass and finished it off before he wiped his mouth with his thumb.

  “Nosy, aren’t you?”

  His arm curled around my waist, and he walked me out. “Want to be prepared when we get home.” He opened the door for me, and once we were outside in the cold air, he wrapped his arms tighter around me, keeping me warm in the fog. “Black thong? Red panties?” His truck was up ahead, so he fished out his keys and hit the button so the engine would start and the interior would warm up for me.

  “No.”

  “Hmm…” He cocked an eyebrow as he opened the passenger door for me. “Pink? Purple?” He had my panties memorized pretty well, because he seemed to be thinking of pairs he’d specifically seen on his bedroom floor.

  I used his hand for balance to get inside without toppling. “No.”

  He stood with his hand on the door, subtly frustrated that he couldn’t guess correctly.

  I pushed his chest so he would back up and I could grab the door handle. “I’m not wearing anything.” Then I shut the door in his face.

  He stood there, frozen to the spot as he stared at me through the glass. Then his eyes focused harder on my face, and his jaw turned tight like he pictured screwing me right there. His chest rose and fell with the deep breath he took, and he shook his head slightly as he walked away. His voice was audible before he moved around the truck. “Baby…”

  He usually undressed me completely before he took me, but he was too anxious to be patient. He shoved my dress to my hips, left my heels on, and sank into me on the bed, his jeans gone but his shirt still covering his torso.

  It was the first time he’d been on top of me since his injuries—and he seemed ready for it.

  He moaned once he was fully buried within me, his fat and long cock occupying every inch of me, claiming my pussy so aggressively it hurt a little. His face res
ted above mine, his lips just inches away.

  My hands slipped underneath his shirt, and I pulled it up as he started to rock into me, lifted it to his chest so I could feel his strength, see his display of black tattoos.

  He reached one hand behind his neck and tugged it free, tossing the fabric to the side so I could enjoy him the way I liked, see his naked strength on top of me. He moved slowly inside me, rocking me with an easy pace, like just being inside me was enough. “Baby…” His forehead rested against mine as he struggled to get used to this, as he controlled himself to keep from letting go right away. Our abstinence had ruined his threshold, and now he had to start over, get used to his cock surrounded by my heat, my wetness.

  I didn’t care that he couldn’t last. It was hot watching him struggle, watching him lose the battle with every thrust. Watching him come apart instantly the first time we were together had been a turn-on, because it proved that he’d really been alone, that he really had no exposure to pleasure at all. That my pussy was the last thing his cock had touched.

  And when he came inside me, I could feel it; I could feel the heaviness, feel the heat, feel it spread with the movement of his shaft. He could always keep going with a semi-hard dick because he was big enough, and it only took him a minute to get rock-hard again.

  So, it didn’t bother me in the least.

  He wasn’t one of those boys who walked away the second he was finished. He could keep going…and going, his desire for me so great that it forced his dick to full mast within minutes.

  He came with a groan, his cock pulsing inside me as he filled me with his load. He looked me in the eye as long as he could before he had to close them, his hips bucking slightly as the feeling overcame him.

  I grabbed his ass and pulled him hard inside me, my head rolling back as I felt his seed fill me. The experience was still new to me, to have this kind of connection with a man, nothing keeping us apart.

  When he finished, he breathed close to my face, his lips barely touching mine. His dick was still hard, still thick and defined, like nothing happened at all. Then he kept going, this time harder, like he could handle a pace that would make me come in seconds.