Forever Burning, page 10
Cady fell into step with Colton as he walked her to his SUV. He loaded Princess into the backseat and helped her and the cats into the front seat.
“That sounds good. Tomorrow, Willa and Tilly are doing a panel about courting women investors at the end of the day and then we’re having a girls’ night. But celebrating the end of this conference would be really nice.” Cady looked across the SUV and smiled. Everything felt so . . . right. “And thank you for bringing dinner. I’ll help you cook if you’d like.”
Cady reached across the console and placed her hand on his thigh. They drove in silence to her house. The sun was setting. Barrel Creek was babbling. And Colton was by her side along with a couple of cats and a hairy dog. She didn’t think the night could get any better.
* * *
She was wrong. The night could get better. Dinner was fantastic. The conversation was fantastic. Colton didn’t even flinch when talking about their relationship or using words like, future, boyfriend, girlfriend, and dating. In fact, once dinner was over and most of the plates cleared, they sat at the table and talked about what their day had been like. It was so domestic and she loved it. It felt so right. Apparently, Colton thought so too. She saw the hunger in his eyes and knew it matched hers. The more they talked about being together, the harder it was to keep their hands to themselves.
Colton leaned across the corner of the table and kissed her. Heat shot through Cady. From the way his tongue moved sure and strong, to the way his hands ran softly up her thighs and teased her. The kiss turned demanding. Cady couldn’t wait anymore. She reached across the corner of the table and grabbed his shirt, holding on as she deepened the kiss. Suddenly she was out of her seat as Colton dragged her into his lap.
Clothes were shed. The remaining plates were forgotten as he pulled her to straddle him. Cady began to move, thinking Colton would take over, but he didn’t. His hands caressed her, egging her on to move faster and faster, but never taking over. Instead, Colton let her take what she wanted from him. He fueled the flames when he bent his head to her breasts. Cady’s head fell back and she moved, harder, faster, and then she ignited.
Chapter 12
Colton woke up to an alarm on his phone, but he wasn’t at home and he wasn’t at the station. The warm body curled up against him definitely wasn’t Flint. He had Princess on one side and Cady on the other. Her head was on his shoulder. His arm was resting between her breasts as she snuggled it to her. Her naked bottom was pressed against his side as she wriggled closer to him. He felt a slight pressure on his chest and then felt kitty paws kneading him.
Colton opened his eyes all the way and was startled at the sight. George was on his chest, but Ginny was sitting on the headboard staring intensely down at him, her tail flicking as if she was on the hunt. No, she wasn’t looking at him. She was staring at his morning wood growing under the sheets as Cady pressed her ass against him. “No,” he warned Ginny, but he knew it would do no good.
Ginny pounced.
Colton liked to think he had fast reflexes, but he was trapped. Princess and Cady were pinning him in place and George was holding him down. There was no moving out of the way. That meant he was left with one option.
Colton yanked his legs up into a ball. Ginny meowed and landed perfectly on his shins. She wasn’t giving up though. Ginny leaned over and batted at the sheet hanging from his curled legs, which did two things. It got George interested in what Ginny was hunting and woke up Princess.
George spun, sticking his cat butt right into Colton’s face as he crouched, ready to pounce on whatever Ginny was hunting. Princess leaped up, barking, which made Cady burst into sitting, thinking they were under attack. They weren’t. Colton’s dick was. But now Colton had two free arms as he pushed Princess from the bed, George from his chest, and picked up the most dangerous of them all—Ginny.
“What’s going on?” Cady asked as chaos ensued in the room with George now batting Princess’s tail, which was wagging, and Ginny eyeing it like her next kill.
“If we ever want children or morning sex, Ginny isn’t allowed in the room at night,” Colton said, keeping Ginny in his arms as she reached a paw out for Princess’s fluffy tail.
“What . . . oh!” Cady’s gaze told Colton she’d spotted the issue. The damn woman giggled. Then she stopped laughing and screamed.
“That’s not how you were screaming last night,” Colton said, frowning.
Cady grabbed the sheet and held it to her. “There’s someone on the patio,” she whispered, pointing to the glass door.
Colton saw the shadow of a man move through the linen curtains. There was definitely a man outside her bedroom. But then, a second outline appeared. There were two of them. Princess began a slow growl. Hell, even Ginny did. Colton set the cat down and slipped from the bed.
“Get under the bed,” Colton whispered as he kept to the walls, sliding around until he was beside the door.
Colton was outnumbered, but he was taught by the best—his father and uncles. Two on one wouldn’t be a problem even if he didn’t have a weapon. Colton reached down and slowly unlocked the door. He placed his hand on the handle and took a deep breath. He would do anything to protect Cady. He didn’t care who was out there. He’d die before letting them get to her.
Colton yanked the door open and charged out. He spread his arms wide and tackled the pair who had been approaching the door.
“Nice hit, son. You were always a hell of a football player. But for the love of all things holy, can you put on some clothes when I’m coming over?”
“Dad?” Colton looked down at the face he was about to smash his fist into.
“There’s nothing wrong with being caught naked with your girl. You inherit it from your favorite uncle,” Marshall told him with a wink before rolling out from under Colton’s arm and looking toward the sound of an engine approaching from the front of the house. “Shit, they’re here,” he whispered.
“Who is here?” Colton asked.
“Our wives,” Marshall hissed. “Katelyn heard Cady adopted Kandi’s cats and wanted to come see how they were settling in.”
“And your mother has senses that Cy would be jealous of. She knows something is going on with you and Cady. It’s an ambush. She wants marriage and grandbabies. And she wants them whether you do or not. We gotta move.” His father grabbed his arm and shoved him back into the house. “Get your stuff. No time to dress.”
Marshall was already pushing inside the bedroom. He grabbed Colton’s clothes and shoved them into Colton’s arms right as the sound of the car door closing reached them. “Tell Cady she can come out from under the bed,” Marshall whispered.
“Cady, you can come out. Everything is good. You have visitors about to ring the bell. It’s just a work thing. Gotta go. I’ll call later and see you tomorrow,” Colton called into the room as his father shoved him out the door.
“Princess,” Colton whispered and the dog shot up from the floor and raced out. His father reached down, put his hand over her muzzle, and had her up in his arms as they ran for the woods behind the house. He was familiar with bearded collies. If they’d just run off, Princess would have happily followed, circling them, barking enthusiastically as if she were herding them. They’d be caught in seconds by Aunt Katelyn and his mother.
Colton followed after them, bare-assed, until they were deep enough into the woods where they could no longer be seen from the house. “Was this really necessary?” Colton asked as he finally put on his clothes. “Besides, my car is parked out front.”
“Yes, it’s necessary. Your mother will get her hopes up and it will crush her when you don’t take this relationship seriously. I love Cady. I’d love to have her as a daughter. But you, Colton, are not a committer. You better not say a word to your mother until you’re ready to get on a knee and beg someone as perfect, smart, and sweet as Cady Woodson to marry you. But we both know that’s not going to happen. You’re not ready for a serious relationship. You’re not ready for love, marriage, children, and a lifetime of friendship and partnership with someone you love to the depths of your soul,” his father told him.
Colton shoved his feet into his boots. “Why would you say that? I’m thirty-two. I’m ready for all of that.”
Cade and Marshall looked at each other and then laughed.
“It wasn’t three weeks ago that you sat at family dinner and told the entire family they had better luck pinning Cassidy down with a husband than marrying you off,” his father reminded him. Oh, yeah, he had said that. Now though . . .
“And don’t worry about your SUV. We moved it. It’s right through the woods. I’m sure the women will stop at the fire station next,” Marshall told him before turning to Cade and giving him a high five. “We haven’t lost our touch, brother. That was a perfect extraction.”
“Um,” Colton said, interrupting their high fives. “What if Cady tells them about us?”
His father actually rolled his eyes. “Cady knows better. She’s smart as a whip. She knows this is just a fling.”
It felt like a punch to Colton’s gut. He didn’t want a fling. He wanted forever.
“Why would you think that?” Colton asked, growing angry with his father and uncle.
His father looked at him as if Colton had grown a second head. “Have you told her you love her?”
“Well, no,” Colton admitted.
“Have you talked about a future together?” Marshall asked.
Colton frowned. “Not exactly. We’re getting together tomorrow after the conference wraps up.”
His father and Marshall snickered. “That’s not the future,” his father pointed out. “We’re talking long-term future. Like, who is living where? You both have houses. What about children? Do you want any? Does she want any? What about family obligations? You know she’ll be expected at family dinners.”
Marshall then took over. “And what about accepting that you are in a dangerous job? Or you accepting that she’s going to put this distillery first? It’s her baby. Are you good with that since you’ve always been the center of attention with your dates? You will now have someone to check in with and to plan things around, like guys’ night. Plus, she doesn’t have family. How does she feel about suddenly becoming part of a very large family with no allowance for personal space? After being on her own for six years, she might not want that.”
No joke there was no personal space. His father and uncle showing up right now proved that. And Colton hated to admit it, but his father and uncle gave him a lot to think about. He’d known Cady for years. He thought he might know the answers to these questions, but now he’d do what a boyfriend should do—talk to his girlfriend about it. But there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d admit that to his father and uncles who thought he wasn’t boyfriend material, never mind husband material. But they were wrong and he was going to not only prove it to them, he was going to prove it to the only person who mattered—Cady.
Chapter 13
Cady crawled from the bed. Colton was gone. Princess was gone. And there was someone knocking on her door. Colton sounded as if everything was okay, but she was definitely confused. She’d been sound asleep after a very active night in bed when Colton had woken her up and she’d seen the outline of a man outside. She went from happy dreams to fear and then suddenly being told everything was good and someone was at the door.
Her heart hadn’t recovered from the shock as she called out for whoever was there to hang on a minute. It was probably Harlan or Joey. She hoped something else hadn’t gone wrong.
Cady pulled on a pair of jeans and an oversized sweatshirt so she didn’t have to bother with a bra and headed to the door. “Who is it?” Cady called out. There was no way she was opening the door to Jordan.
“Hey, honey. It’s Katelyn and Annie,” Cady heard Katelyn call from outside.
Cady frowned. Was that why Colton snuck out? Did he know they were coming and was ashamed to be with her? Cady opened the door and the two women smiled at her. Katelyn was married to Marshall Davies and had two children, Sydney and Wyatt, who both had children of their own now. Annie was Colton’s mother and full of energy. She always had a hint of mischievousness to her. She reminded Cady of her son. Colton had that same little smirk. Colton’s older sister, Sophie, pulled in behind her mother’s car.
“Hey! I’m glad I caught you,” Sophie called out. “Hey, Mom, Aunt K. What are you two doing here?” Sophie asked as she joined them on the front stoop.
Her mother’s eyes narrowed, but then she kissed her daughter’s cheek. “What are you doing here?” her mother asked sweetly, a little too sweetly.
“Nash told me Cady was having trouble with an ex-boyfriend, so I thought I’d bring her some things to protect herself with. What are you doing here?” Sophie asked again.
“Cady adopted Kandi’s rescue cats, so I’m coming to see how they’re settling in and also brought some vaccines for them since they’ll be indoor/outdoor kitties now. I brought your mother with me since we’re going to have breakfast together this morning. But, what’s this about an ex-boyfriend?” Katelyn asked, turning back to Cady.
Well, it looked like she was hosting morning coffee. Cady opened the door and all the women came inside. Katelyn immediately dropped to her knees as George and Ginny recognized her. “Is it okay to give them these last two vaccines?”
“Of course, thanks.”
“Kandi had worked on training them with a harness. If you’re making them indoor/outdoor cats, I have some recommendations to protect them if you don’t mind me lecturing for a minute,” Katelyn told her as she deftly vaccinated both cats as they rubbed against her.
“I’d really like that. I’ve only had full-time outdoor cats, but George and Ginny are so sweet that I want them as protected as possible,” Cady told Katelyn before turning on the coffee pot.
“A kitty door is essential.”
“Got it. It’s in the mudroom.”
“Great. Introduce them to the door. Feed them only in the mudroom. I’d get an automated feeder so they know they’ll get food at the same time each day. You’ll find they will be back each night waiting for their food. Put their favorite toys in there and nice beds and perches too. Make it their safe space they can’t wait to come back to. Feel free to walk them around with their harness so they know where everything is. Use positive reinforcement to teach them their names and to come. Right now, if you need them in a warehouse, I’d lock them in there and then come get them with treats and walk them back home. Also, I would get a quick release GPS collar. That way, if they run off you can find them.”
“Wow, thank you,” Cady said, making notes on her phone.
A text popped up as she was typing the notes.
Miss you already.
“Well, that smile isn’t caused by an ex-boyfriend. Did I get the gossip wrong?” Sophie asked.
Cady blushed and all three women paid very close attention. “No, you’re not wrong about my ex. This was just a text from a . . . friend.”
“So, tell us about this ex,” Annie said, sounding rather like an overprotective mother. It filled Cady with warmth but also sadness. Her parents would never know Colton. Would they have liked him? “I can see this upsets you. I’m sorry, Cady. I can take care of him if you’d like.”
“Take care of him?” Cady asked with a nervous laugh. “Like, kill him?”
Annie laughed. “No, but I can inflict enormous pain without leaving a mark. Or, I can call my friends in the government and turn his life upside down. I doubt the distillery would be happy if one of their federal compliances needed to be investigated because this ex didn’t file the right paperwork.”
“And in the meantime, I have this little guy for you.” Sophie reached into her purse and pulled out what looked like a tube of fresh breath spray. “I’ve been working with Piper . . .”
“Uh-oh. Weapons and nanotech?” Katelyn asked with a cringe. “What kind of trouble did you get into?”
“The best kind. Weapons and nanotech? So, freaking cool,” Annie said, rubbing her hands together. “Do I have a new weapon for my weapons room?”
Sophie smiled at her mom. “This little guy is formulated to only work on men. It’s non-lethal, but the toxin it sprays will cause men incredible pain, thus disarming them and allowing women to run away.”
“Or giving them time to deliver a kick to the balls,” Annie suggested.
Sophie rolled her eyes at her mother. “Fine, kick them in the balls and then run to safety. It’s good for only a minute or so. As soon as they get some good deep breaths it’ll begin to clear from their system and they’ll be up again. As I said, it’s non-lethal and designed to help women escape a bad situation. I thought you might want that. With the taser I gave you, you actually have to press it to the skin. Men can duck it and fight. However, this spray? Just get within a couple of feet, spray it, and you’re good to go.”
Sophie handed her the small tube. “Thanks so much, Sophie. And you too, Annie. Why would you help me with Jordan? He’s just an annoying ex,” Cady asked.
“You’re like a daughter to me,” Annie said at the same time Sophie said, “You’re like a sister to me.”
They both laughed along with Katelyn. “Too bad she’s not dating Colton or you could have her as a daughter and a sister,” Katelyn said with a chuckle.
It didn’t take a genius to spot the trap. Sure, she and Colton were dating. And yes, they were sleeping together. But they hadn’t discussed going public. Why wouldn’t they though? He did slip out of bed and ran out the backdoor when his mother arrived. Wait. Cady glanced out the window. His SUV was gone. When did that happen? How did it happen?
Cady frowned. He must be ashamed of her. That was the only answer.
“Don’t worry, honey, we’ll love you no matter what my son does or doesn’t do,” Annie said, patting her hand. “What would you like is the question.”
“I’m sure you have some time now that things are in full swing here to date. What kind of guy do you like? Maybe Nash or I know of someone who fits the bill,” Sophie asked, trying to innocently make her coffee.
