Smolder, page 1
Smolder
Steel Brothers Saga: Book Twenty-Two
HELEN HARDT
This book is an original publication of Waterhouse Press.
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.
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Copyright © 2022 Waterhouse Press, LLC
Cover Design by Waterhouse Press, LLC
Cover Photographs: Shutterstock
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All Rights Reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic format without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Continue reading the Steel Brothers Saga with Book Twenty-Three
Message from Helen Hardt
Also By Helen Hardt
Acknowledgments
About Helen Hardt
For my father
Chapter One
Rory
I’ve always loved kissing.
My favorite part of a new relationship is the first kiss. Nothing compares to that first taste of another person, the passion and excitement it brings.
That first kiss is when I can tell whether I’m really into someone. I’m twenty-eight years old, and I’ve done a lot of kissing of both women and men, but still… Kissing always mesmerizes me.
Especially that first damned kiss.
I can still get wet from that first kiss. That’s how I know something more is brewing, that the physical chemistry is there even if the emotion isn’t yet.
I don’t like to generalize, but men are usually more aggressive kissers than women are. Must be a testosterone thing. I enjoy the primal passion of a kiss from a man as well as the soft gentleness of a kiss from a woman.
But a kiss from Brock Steel?
Seriously in a category all its own.
I didn’t plan on making out with Brock behind the band’s van at Talon Steel’s welcome home party. I’m damned lucky my brother didn’t catch us. He’s already on edge now that Callie is engaged to Donny Steel, his high school rival. At thirty-two, he ought to leave high school rivalries behind him, but men are different from women.
No one knows that better than I do. Perhaps that’s why I love them both. I love masculinity, and I love femininity. I love everything in between. The similarities and the differences.
As much as I love masculine men, I also love feminine women. I appreciate what’s different between the sexes. I’m not attracted to overly masculine women or overly feminine men.
What sets them apart is beautiful to me.
I accepted my bisexuality long ago, and it makes sense for me. I honestly don’t know whether I’ll end up with a man or a woman as my life mate.
But there’s one thing I do know.
I want to be a mother.
And my biological clock is ticking away.
I can always adopt. Or perhaps I’ll get involved with a younger woman who doesn’t have the biological clock problem. Truly though? I’m ready now. I don’t want to be one of those women having babies in her late thirties and early forties. I want to be young and energetic as I raise my child.
So what’s this got to do with Brock Steel being an amazing kisser?
I’m almost afraid to put it into thought.
Maybe if I say it to Callie, I’ll be able to accept that I’m actually thinking it.
Last time I saw her, she was headed into the house with Donny. They’ve been in there for a while.
I know what that means. They’re somewhere having a quickie. Why not? They just got engaged. Plus, with both of them living at their parents’ houses, they probably haven’t had a lot of alone time lately.
I know my sister. She marches to the beat of her own drummer. She won’t have an issue with a quickie while a big party is going on outside.
And Donny? As one of the original Three Rake-a-teers, he won’t either.
Still, I head to the deck. Maybe I can find her.
Bingo. In the kitchen… She throws a half-eaten piece of cake into the garbage. Unusual for her. Callie hates waste, but then again, neither of us has had much of an appetite lately, with all that’s going on. Pat Lamone has seen to that.
I walk through the French doors and into the kitchen. “Callie! There you are. I need to talk to you.”
My sister raises her eyebrows and glances at her fiancé.
“Go ahead,” he says. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
Callie nods and follows me back out onto the deck. I grab her arm and pull her over to a secluded part of the yard.
“Cal,” I say, “I have an idea, and don’t say anything until you hear me out.”
Chapter Two
Brock
An hour earlier…
She’s tall, with gorgeous dark-brown hair and big milk-chocolate-brown eyes fringed in long black lashes.
Rory Pike.
She’s singing with her brother, Jesse, and the band tonight, so she’s dressed like a rocker. Skinny black jeans, leather boots with silver adornments, and a tight lacy T-shirt that accentuates those tits that could kill a man.
I’ve been with a lot of women, but I swear to God, Rory Pike is the hottest thing walking. She always has been.
Her sisters, Callie and Maddie, are also beautiful, but Rory? She’s something special for sure. She lights up a room. Hell, the whole freaking yard. Every eye is on her when she’s on stage. She’s like a magnet for men and for women.
I should leave her alone. I should listen to Donny. She did just break up with someone—a gorgeous woman, no less.
Can I compete with Raine Cunningham? She’s also a hottie, but she’s all girls all the time from what I hear…though I admit a threesome crossed my mind more than once while they were together.
David Simpson, my cousin from Uncle Bryce and Aunt Marjorie, stands beside me.
“It’s never going to happen, bro,” Dave says.
I feign innocence. “What’s never going to happen?”
“You and Rory Pike.”
“She likes men.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about. She’s out of your league.”
I have to stop myself from erupting in laughter. “Out of my league?”
“Prom queen, homecoming queen… Not to mention all the men here—and quite a few women—have their eyes on her.”
“Have you forgotten who you’re talking to? I seem to remember beating you out for prom king our year.”
“By one vote.”
“One vote is all it takes.”
“This isn’t high school anymore, cuz. Most of her serious relationships have been with women, from what I hear.”
“Do I look like I’m planning for a serious relationship?”
Dave laughs. “That’s my point. Everyone knows you’re not looking for a serious relationship. But Rory Pike is older. Closing in on thirty. She most likely is looking for something beyond a quick fuck at your place. That’s why she’s out of your league.”
“So that’s what you meant. I knew you couldn’t mean I’m not good-looking enough for her.”
Dave rolls his eyes. “You are the absolute worst.”
“Yeah? I never denied it, man. I’m going for it.”
“Not if I get to her first.” Dave smiles.
My cousin looks exactly like his mother—with his chiseled face and dark-brown hair—except he’s got his father’s blue eyes. Me? I’m a dead ringer for my father, Jonah Steel. Nearly black hair and dark-brown eyes. Dave and I have been fighting over women since we were big enough to toddle up to the swings on the playground.
We even shared a woman once back in college. Yeah, a threesome. It was hot, but we never did it again. Too weird seeing each other naked. But damn, the woman had a great time. Two men focused solely on her. Her moans alone were worth the effort.
I’m sure as hell not going to share Rory Pike with anyone—especially not my male model cousin. He’s too fucking pretty. Me? I’m more ruggedly handsome—according to women, anyway. Chicks like that. At least that’s what they say.
Of course they like pretty boys like Dave too.
Which is why I’m not letting him near Rory Pike.
Last I saw Rory, she was headed behind the stage. The band is probably getting ready to do a set.
Not only is Rory a looker, but she also has the voice of an angel. She’s classically trained, but damn, the girl can rock as well as Joan Jett herself.
I’ll have to get past her brother, Jesse, and the rest of the band, which includes her cousin as well. Jesse and Cage might not look too kindly on me hitting on Rory. Jesse already lost one sister to a Steel boy tonight when Donny got engaged to Callie.
Yeah, I should stay away. Definitely.
Or…definitely not.
Rory Pike is here, Rory Pike is available, Rory Pike is the hottest thing walking, and I’m horny as hell for her.
I walk behind the stage. Jesse and Cage aren’t around, which is a good thing. The drummer, Dragon Locke, is messing with some electrical cords.
“Hey, Dragon.”
“Hey, Brock.”
“Where’s Rory?”
“She went out to the van to get some stuff.”
“Yeah? Where are you all parked?”
“Out front.”
“Perfect. Thanks.”
The front of the house. No one will be at the front of the house because everyone’s back here enjoying the party. Pretty much the whole town is here to welcome my uncle Talon home from the hospital.
His shooting is always on my mind—along with the fact that my father may have been the intended target. I’m trying like hell not to let it consume me. At least not tonight. And Rory Pike could well be the soothing salve I need to get my mind off our family trouble.
I skate the perimeter of the house, head out front, and sure enough… There she is.
Rory Pike.
Her gorgeous ass in those skintight black jeans is sticking out from the back of the van.
Jesse and Cage are nowhere to be seen. I couldn’t have asked for a better setup. The time is ripe.
“Hi there,” I say.
Rory looks over her shoulder. “Oh. Hi, Brock.”
“Can I help you with anything?”
“No, I’m good. I’m looking for an extra cord.”
“What for?”
“One of the cords to our amplifier system seems to be missing. I’m not sure what happened.”
“We could probably find one inside the house.”
She sticks her head again in the back of the truck and paws through a box. Then she pulls out a cord. “No need. I found one.”
Shit. That means I won’t get her alone in the house.
“Excuse me.” She fumbles with her phone. “I have to get this back.”
“You calling someone?”
“Yeah. Jesse and Cage are on their way into town to try to find a cord. I need to let them know it’s time to come back.”
Perfect. Jesse and Cage are off the premises. I can come on to Rory without her massive brother and cousin hanging around.
“I can take it for you,” I say.
Rory smiles. “That’s not necessary, but you can walk with me if you want.”
“How far away are Cage and Jesse?”
“I don’t know. They left about fifteen minutes ago.”
So they’ll be fifteen minutes. Nice. A lot can happen in fifteen minutes. I’ve been known to rock a woman’s world several times in fifteen minutes. Just call me the orgasm king.
Rory’s lips are so red. Red and parted and saying kiss me. Her hair—thick, dark, and beautiful—floats around her shoulders and curves over her gigantic breasts. Her high cheekbones are pink with a natural blush, and those eyes…
“I could get lost in your eyes,” I say.
My words surprise even me. Sure, I was thinking them, but I didn’t expect to say them out loud.
She widens her eyes, making them even bigger, deeper, more intense.
“You’re beautiful, Rory.”
“Where is this coming from, Brock?”
“What? Me saying you’re beautiful? Is that a surprise to you?”
“Coming from you it is.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? You think I don’t have eyes?”
“You know what I mean. You don’t say stuff like that.”
“What makes you think I don’t tell women they’re beautiful?”
“That’s not what I mean. I just know who you are. You’re one of the Three Rake-a-teers.”
“So’s my cousin, and I think he just got engaged to your sister tonight.”
She parts her lips slightly farther. God, I could slip my tongue right between them.
She doesn’t seem to have an answer for that.
Good. Point one for me. Fifteen minutes until her brother and her cousin get back. I reach forward, stroke her soft cheek.
Damn. Her skin… It’s like crushed silk. My groin tightens. Just from touching her.
This isn’t like me. This isn’t like me at all.
She doesn’t back away, so I go for it.
I kiss her.
When her lips remain parted, I take that as an invitation. I slide my tongue between them.
A soft moan escapes her throat, vibrates into me, and I find her tongue with my own.
She’s kissing me back, and boy, can this woman kiss.
I wrap my arms around her as she slides her own around my neck. She threads her fingers through my hair, and I slide one of my hands over her gorgeous ass.
My God, I could kiss her forever. She tastes of honey and peppermint, and I’m hard. Hard enough that I could drop my pants and glide into her right now.
Not enough time for that, though.
We kiss. Hard and raw and passionate.
Until—
She pushes me away, our mouths releasing with a smack.
She wipes her lips.
“You okay?” I ask.
“We shouldn’t be doing this.”
“Why not? You’re unattached. I’m unattached.”
“That’s not what I mean. Jesse and Cage…” She gestures.
I turn around. Sure enough, Jesse’s beater Mustang swivels up the drive.
“Meet me later,” I say.
“I have to sing a few numbers. We’re already late getting started for our first set because of the missing cord, which I should’ve gotten to Dragon by now.”
I grab her hand. “Come on. We’ll take it together. That way you don’t have to explain what you’re doing here with me.”
“You read my mind.” She smiles a dazzling smile.
And damn…
I’m afraid I might be a goner.
The clincher is that, for the last several moments, I haven’t given a thought to the predicament my family is in.
Chapter Three
Rory
I can’t believe I’m actually going to vocalize my thought. I hastily look around, making sure Callie and I are alone. Everyone in town is at this party, but the yard is so vast that there are plenty of private enclaves.
“I’m aging here, Ror,” Callie says.
