Chapter 23: Chapter Twenty-Three

Trenton turned onto the quiet street about seven miles east of downtown D.C., a suburban neighborhood of small, modest, two-story dwellings situated in well-kept shady landscapes.

They got out and he followed Kennedi to the door. The dome light beneath the portico shone down upon a rather large box sitting on the stoop. She went to lift it, but he picked it up. “Says Tabitha Seils.”

“She’s staying with me for a while.” Kennedi reached out. “I got it.”

“It’s pretty heavy. And before you accuse me of undermining your ability as a woman, I’m not.” Her lips twitched, curving at one corner, the first semblance of a smile he’d seen on her.

She fished out her keys and opened the door. “Set it anywhere.”

He placed the box just inside, against the wall. “Have a good night.”

“Would you like to come in? I could use some company.” But then she shook her head. “It’s late. I’m sure you’ll want to head home.”

“No, I’d like that.” He stepped into a comfortable-sized living space with bold red furniture and glass tables perched upon glossy, light pine hardwood floors that continued up the stairs to his left. Boxes towered to the right of the wall-mounted flat screen. Looking up toward a loft, he could see white shelves holding stacks of books. Across the room, a white granite-topped island, pine wood cabinetry and stainless-steel appliances separated a spacious kitchen from the living area.

“Have a seat. Can I get you anything to drink? I have a couple bottles of red if you’re interested.” She crossed the room while slipping out of her sandals, dropping one then the other as she moved.

“That’ll do. Mind if I take off my jacket?”

“Go ahead.”

He removed his suit coat and loosened his tie, then sat back upon the deep-cushioned couch, finding it exceptionally comfortable. A rustling sound pulled his attention and he met two sets of alert eyes staring back at him. In a cage tucked on the side of the couch, a pair of small rabbits huddled close at the corner.

Kennedi returned with filled glasses of wine and a couple of celery sticks that she slipped between the bars of the cage before handing him a glass and taking a seat.

“Bunnies are your thing?”

“They’re Tabitha’s dwarf rabbits, Dixie and Percy. She got them in the separation…sort of. Long story, but basically the guy was an unfaithful prick, and that’s being mild.”

“Betrayal can be rough.” Trenton knew all too well.

“Are we still talking about my friend’s cheating ex?”

“Let’s just say I know what that kind of perfidy feels like.” He grabbed his glass and downed a good portion. Now that she’d chosen to look at him dead-on, he wished she hadn’t. Staring into those warm eyes, he fought his conscience not to spill his soul at her feet.

“Misery loves company. I’m listening.” Sitting back, she shifted to face him while straightening her dress, the wrap-style splitting and riding up her thighs, offering a tantalizing view as she prepared for an interesting account.

“I caught my ex-wife in bed with an old boyfriend of hers.” The words boomed between his ears like grenades. He’d never before voiced it aloud to anyone outside of Dom and Vincent.

He was also still working out a settlement with his now-pregnant ex who carried a child that might or might not be his as a result of his stupidity.

“That’s awful.” Her hand rested atop his on his thigh. Tenderly, she brushed her soothing, soft palm back and forth.

The affectionate, sympathetic gesture had Trenton’s heart pounding against his ribs. “Have you ever been married?”

“No. I was dating this guy before my mom got sick, but he couldn’t handle me not being around. When I found out it was terminal and all I could do was cry, he told me tears were weak emotions that solved nothing.” She glanced up, her pain evident in her gaze. “A hug, an anchor to say ‘it’ll be okay’ would’ve gone a long way. And now my fa—” She turned away.

Trenton gently caught her chin, forcing her to face him. He couldn’t reveal that he knew about her father’s illness, not without explaining how he knew. Instead, he took hold of her hand. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.” He brushed away the wetness beneath her eyes, his heart aching excruciatingly for all she’d suffered.

“What’s her name?” she asked.

He blinked. “Pardon?”

“Your ex-wife. You haven’t said her name.” She shrugged a shoulder. “I’m just curious.”

“Claudia.”

“Did her ex-boyfriend just pop up out of the blue or did you know him?”

“She attended a college reunion where they became reacquainted. I didn’t care to know more of the details. She said I worked too much, that I never had time for her.” He felt uncomfortable that he’d shared much more than he’d intended. “I’m sure you don’t need to hear my life story.”

“No, I want to know you.” Her voice was soft, eyes full of compassion. The hand still linked with his lightly squeezed. “Was she right? There are always three sides—yours, hers, and the muddy truth in the middle.”

Trenton flinched. “I was trying to build a company.”

“Throwing no shade. I understand the grind. I haven’t been in what I would call a decent relationship in over five years. I don’t bother counting the last two I dated because my involvement hardly lasted long enough to even give either one the boyfriend label. I don’t have time nor the energy to meet anyone, let alone date.”

“My mother—well, actually she’s my stepmother. My mother died in her sleep when I was five—”

“No!” she gasped and squeezed their still-linked hands while thoughtfully stroking his forearm. “Trent, I’m so sorry. That must’ve been devastating for you.”

“Yes, it was difficult, but about a year later my father married Dom’s mother. They divorced when I was around fifteen. He retired to Iceland.”

She nodded. “You and Dom are obviously close.”

“We’ve always been, but partially because, for the most part, our mother treated Dom and me the same. She’s your typical assertive, Greek mother…always loving, but pestering.” He grinned lightly. “Poor Dom gets it worse than me now. She’s been trying to set him up with pretty much any woman she meets. Just last week she struck up a conversation with a florist’s delivery carrier and discovered the woman’s family was from a small town in Greece where the Balaska family is from. She sent a selfie of herself with the woman to Dom along with the woman’s phone number for him to set something up.”

Kennedi laughed. “That’s cute.”

“Cute, huh? I’m sure Dom would disagree.” Seeing her try to mask a small yawn, Trenton stood and scooped up his jacket. “I should probably head out.”

Her eyelids fluttered at the abruptness. “Uh, okay.” They moved to the door. “I never thanked you for my bike. That was extremely kind and generous.”

“Tabitha told me you favor it.”

“I do. Thank you. I appreciate all you’ve done for me. I may not always show it, but I do.”

With a nod, he pulled open the door and gave a look at her over his shoulder. “Kennedi, you’re a rare, precious, exquisite jewel. Any man would be lucky to have you.” He wasn’t sure what made him say what had been swirling in his head from the moment he’d looked into her kind eyes tonight but felt it simply needed to be said.

She pushed the door shut, grabbed him by the arm and pulled him down to the softness of her mouth before he could take in a stunned breath. Fingers latched onto the back of his head as her tongue prodded past his lips and snaked within, kissing him with a deliciously deep, wet, open-mouthed exploration in between nips on his lips. Top, then bottom. She soothed the sting with a gentle caress of her warm tongue before dipping back in, resuming the assault.

He dropped his jacket as her hands went to work easily unknotting his tie, then unbuttoning his shirt, dragging it off his shoulders, only for it to stall on the cuff links at the sleeves. Aggressively tugging, she moaned into his mouth, a hot, sexy, arousing sound that set his cock throbbing.

With swift hands she hiked up her dress, hooked a leg at his hip and rubbed her hot center against his full-blown erection as her tongue tunneled to the far reaches of his throat. Well, damn. The woman was fierce with white-hot passion and it drove him wild for her.

He let her take what she wanted for a long moment. Then, cradling that perfectly round, tight ass, he lifted her, intending to move them to the couch.

But she drew away and came to her feet. “We could acrobat it there or,” she gestured with a nod toward the stairs, “make use of my California king.”

Quickly removing his cuff links, he dropped them upon the center glass table. “Lead the way.”

Upstairs, she flipped on a table lamp. They wasted no time stripping out of their clothes and climbing upon lavender-tinted sheets.

Trenton indulged himself at her breasts, savoring, suckling and gulping one while toying with the pearling nipple of the other. He tasted a path down the length of her body, brushed his lips along her ivy tattoo, kissed and caressed her smooth, lusciously long legs, wanting to enjoy every inch of her as he settled between her spread thighs.

The slightest touch of his tongue on her clit had her hips writhing wildly against his mouth, and she took a stranglehold of his hair, squeezing tight. He gave the swollen knot another lick followed by another, and kept it up, devouring her until she arched sharply on a long, throaty moan of his name.

Studying her ink, he traced the tastefully done, intricately patterned design lightly with his tongue and felt her body shiver. “Why an ivy vine?” He looked up, and she released a breathy sigh, looking completely satiated. “Just curious.”

“Tabitha, Evie, and I have the same tat. We had it done for Tab after…ur, to symbolize our sisterhood.”

“Oh.” Noting those carefully chosen words, there was obviously more to that story, but he left it there. Though she’d said more than she likely realized. In essence, the ladies held a bond that couldn’t be broken.

He kissed his way on his crawl up her body and stared down into those trusting eyes that always drew him in, simply admiring her features. It astounded him how beautiful he found her. Feeling that tug on his soul once again, he left the bed to grab his wallet from his pants pocket. “Shit.”

“No condom?” She came up on her elbows, her taunting breasts stiffly, beautifully pointed upward as a result of his mouth and hand’s aggressive efforts. She reached into the nightstand drawer, rummaged, and emerged with a black square wrapper that she handed him. As he ripped into the package and rolled the thin latex down his achingly erect shaft, she dug back in but came up empty-handed. “Let me check Tab’s room.”

It would seem she expected a round two. He liked that she was always ready, so sexually charged—no games, and never shy about expressing what she wanted. Watching that cute little ass leaving the room, Trenton was categorically on board with that.

Moments later, she returned and joined him upon the bed. “No luck.”

“All good.” He’d damn sure make the best of this one. Settling between the silky glide of her thighs, he fingered her sex and met acute wetness. “You’re beautiful. Everything about you amazes me.”

“You mean when we’re not fighting.”

“Woman, the more you fight me, the more I want to fuck you. It sits with me all damn day.”

She laughed. “Call me a sadist then, because that makes two of us.”

Gentle fingers slipped into his hair and brought him down to her parting lips, their tongues dueling. Then she eased up, kissing him more tenderly, her hands soft and warm on his face.

Sinking fully inside her, he closed his eyes, working through a shuddering moment, then they fell into a measured, controlled thrusting of bodies.

He lifted his head enough to gaze down at her, and she stared intently back at him, neither saying a word. He could see the chance for that heart-stopping kind of love with her. His gut clinched.

I love this woman.

It was as if his heart simply took over, the feeling coursing throughout his entire body, striking every nerve ending. Within that same moment she reached for his hand, entwined her fingers with his and kissed him with full-on passion. Their easy pushes and pulls built momentum, hips pumping, limbs moving together in an intoxicating dance and tongues mating in a fevered rush.

Her back arched through a long shudder, her pants hurried, and Trenton felt her channel constrict around his shaft in deliciously warm waves. His release came with such force, the pulsing of his cock so intense, that he experienced a momentary haziness from the enormity of pleasure that shot through him. With one final thrust he collapsed, the full bulk of his body cocooning her slender frame as his heartbeat thumped almost in chorus with her racing pulse.

Sucked into a heavy lethargy, their bodies hot and bathed in perspiration, she took his near dead weight crushing down upon her. After long minutes he managed to roll off onto his back. He tried to open his eyes but his lids felt weighed down. Forcing himself to move, he dragged out of bed and crossed to the bathroom, then clicked off the lamp and brought up the sheet over them on his climb back into bed.

“Trent?” she called on a hoarse whisper, then curled up close and hooked an arm across his waist. Her cheek pressed against his damp, heaving chest. A warm thigh came to rest atop his.

“Yes?” When she didn’t answer, he looked down and smiled with weary contentment at the simple sound of her leveled breathing. She’d fallen asleep.

It’d been so long since he’d allowed himself to feel, to simply let go. He wasn’t sure why the vulnerable part of him had chosen Kennedi Chase, but she’d reawakened that organ pumping viciously in his chest, and it felt damn good.

Gently, he pulled her closer into the shelter of his embrace, relishing the feel of her warm, nude body, and let the rhythm of her pulse drag him under.