Hornet's Nest (9 page)

I nodded as the elevator arrived to his floor. I followed him down the hallway to his door. He opened it wide for me to enter first. I was surprisingly shocked that it wasn’t a typical bachelor pad. The place was pretty amazing. The open floor plan was surrounded by walls of brick with one solid wall of windows peering over the city. I walked over to the window, tossing my clutch onto an end table. I gazed out of the window and my eyes widened at the sight of the Panthers’ football stadium.

“Wow! Was Tom jealous of this view?”

“Yeah, the loft is small, but this view is pretty awesome.” He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around me.

I took in the city skyline and lightly nudged him with my elbow. “Country boy is doing well then.”

He nuzzled his head in the crook of my neck and whispered, “Country boy is doing very well.”

He held me tighter as his breath brushed against my skin. “Thank you for giving me a chance, Katherine.”

I turned around in his arms and pulled his lips down to mine. His tongue made every nerve ending on my body ignite. His hands traveled down my back to hold me close. I hugged him tighter. He just wasn’t close enough. I slid my hands through his hair, deepening the kiss. A moan escaped from the back of my throat, and he broke away, leaving me wanting more.

“You need to stop that moaning or I’m taking back what I said.” He kissed my forehead, and then held my hand as he led me over to the bedroom area. We stood next to the bed, and he said, “Sit.”

So, I smiled and sat. He went over to his dresser and pulled out a t-shirt. As he walked back over to me, he said, “I’m going to go in the kitchen and get us a couple of bottles of water. Go change in the bathroom and get into bed before I jump you.”

I bit my lip, and then said, “Okay, I’ll be quick.”

I hopped off the bed and ran into the only enclosed room in the apartment. I took off my clothes and changed into this overgrown t-shirt. I smeared some toothpaste on my teeth for a little relief and washed my mouth out with water. I stared at my reflection in the mirror and exhaled. Nothing was going to happen. Nothing at all. Just my heart falling for Lance Walton, but other than that . . . nothing was going to happen. Nothing at all.

I pushed myself away from the sink and hurried out of the bathroom, hopping under the sheets. Not a moment after, Lance came out of the kitchen wearing only a pair of pajama pants.

Dear. Lord.

I sat in the bed with the sheets covering my legs as he walked over to the night stand and put down two bottles of water. His eyes met mine with only the glow of Charlotte lighting up the room. He placed one knee on the bed and crawled on top of me, nestling himself in between my legs. My heartbeat echoed in my ears as I lay back on the pillow, his perfect face hovering over mine.

“You’re on my side of the bed.”

I grazed my fingertips against his face. He closed his eyes briefly as he inhaled. When he opened them, I whispered, “Well, I can’t very well move, now can I?”

His lips slowly met mine, and I wasn’t sure if
all
I wanted him to do was hold me. He pulled back just before the point where my hormones took over.

He whispered, “You are the most gorgeous woman I have ever met.” 

He leaned down to kiss me again and then rolled off to lie beside me. He wrapped his arms around me, planting small kisses on my neck. I intertwined my fingers with his, loving the way he made me feel.

“I’m not going to mess this up. I don’t want to lose you again.”

I turned in his arms and met his eyes. His brow wrinkled as his smile faded. I cupped his cheek and whispered, “You won’t lose me again because I won’t let you.”

In that brief moment, I gave him my heart. It was going to hurt when he gave it back. I couldn’t worry about it now. I gazed into his eyes and he back into mine. The blinks became heavier as I drifted into sleep. But I dreamed of his eyes. The same dream I had every night.

A WELCOMING ACHE pressed on my chest as feathers swept across my face. The sun glowed as my eyes flittered open into the morning light. My vision blurred each time I blinked until I could focus and stare at the most beautiful auburn haired woman I had ever seen. She straddled me while wearing my green John Deere t-shirt. Her hands rested on my chest as her lips pressed to my neck. This was the best goddamn dream ever.

I readjusted myself, wanting to enjoy this dream to the fullest as I touched the silkiest skin.
I’m dreaming of her skin now.
This is ridiculous.

"Good morning."

My eyes widened as a tickle of hair grazed against the stubble of my chin. I reached my arms around her and my breath caught in my throat when I realized this wasn't a dream. This was real. She sat up, causing me to wriggle. God, she felt so good. I gazed over her beauty as her cheeks flushed.

"I need to wake up to your beautiful face more often."

She bit her lip. I wrapped my hand around her neck, pulling her to me. I gently pecked her lips as she responded with just as much need.

She pulled back and said, "I made breakfast." I cocked an eyebrow. She swatted at my chest. "I can cook, country boy."

“Well, what did you cook for me?” I held her hips in place, enjoying her squirm against me.

"Well, if you'd let me go, I could show you." She leaned down and gave me a lazy peck, obviously not wanting to be released. I wrapped my arms tightly around her and flipped us over. Her squeal turned into a soft moan as I kissed up her neck and nestled myself in between her legs. I propped myself on my elbow while my other hand grazed her silky skin up her bare thigh. I pulled away from her neck and caught her wild gaze.

“I’m never letting you go.”

Her mouth slacked and I stole her lips. She moaned, sending me into a near frenzy. I was so close to having her again. She pulsed against me as I deepened the kiss. Her fingers threaded though my hair. God, I wanted her so bad. I had to stop. She would hate me if I didn’t stop. I couldn’t let her hate me. I couldn’t lose her.

I pulled out of the kiss and stared into her eyes. Her lips were plump and dark. Her cheeks flushed with need. I couldn’t believe I was about to do this. I scooted off her, and when my feet touched the hardwood, I extended my hand to her and said, “Okay, beautiful, let’s go eat.”

She exhaled while grabbing my hand, and she didn’t let go until we reached the kitchen. I sat down in front of a breakfast sandwich of eggs, cheese, and bacon. It was the best damn breakfast sandwich I had ever had; probably because it was made by the hottest chef. I wished I had been awake to watch her prance around my kitchen wearing nothing but my t-shirt.

“How is it?” she asked, which broke me away from my hungry thoughts… not of food.

“This is really good,” I said taking another buttery bite, and with a half full mouth of food, I added, “This was a nice surprise to wake up to.”

“Well good. I have another surprise for you.” She smirked. I had a feeling this was payback for last night. This girl was something else. “Go get showered while I clean up the kitchen. A car will be here in about thirty minutes.”

My eyes widened at the thought of a car coming here. I still haven’t adjusted to city life. I nodded and said, “Yes ma’am.”

I kissed the top of her head as I headed into the bathroom to take an ice cold shower.

When I came out of the bathroom, a towel hung over my hips as I gazed at my beautiful girl laying on my bed tapping away on her cell phone. Looking up toward me, her eyes raked over my almost naked body. If she kept looking at me like that, I would have to take another cold shower. She gave me one of her sexy smiles as her eyes met mine. She placed down her phone and tossed a t-shirt at me. “Wear that. I think it’s appropriate for today.”

I opened up the t-shirt and stared at the Panthers logo. My eyes narrowed at the shirt and then gazed over at Katherine. She smirked. “Hurry up now. We don’t want to miss kick off.”

After she dressed back into her outfit from the night before, a Town Car met us downstairs from my loft. We snuggled in the seat on the way back to her apartment with my arm slung around her and her hand resting on my thigh.

“Have you talked to Jordan this morning?”

“I did while you were in the shower. They were headed back to her parents’ house. They missed the girls.” I covered her hand on my thigh with my free one. She looked down and intertwined our fingers. My chest warmed from her touch. She gazed up at me and whispered, “You have no idea how badly I needed my friend. Thank you for getting her down here.”

I squeezed my arm around her and kissed the top of her head while breathing in her scent. My chest warmed again with an ache, a welcoming ache. I didn’t know what was happening, but I liked the sensation of it so much that I just didn’t give a damn. We climbed out of the Town Car when we arrived to her apartment. Our hands remained together the ride up the elevator and down the hall to her door. Everything was so comfortable around her. I didn’t have to charm her. She had seemed immune to my charms in the past. Maybe I just had to break through those walls. I did it before and I would make sure to break down every brick she had built up between us.

Katherine let go of my hand when we walked through her door. Emptiness consumed my chest again, so much so that I rubbed my hand over it. It missed the warmth. Katherine went over to the TV and turned it to ESPN. After tossing the remote on the sofa, I gazed at her while she walked into the kitchen and grabbed a beer. She twisted off the cap and tossed it in the trash as she came back to me. She handed the beer to me and said, “Give me thirty minutes.”

She turned to go, but I grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to me. A beer in one hand and her waist in the other, I slowly grazed my lips over hers. Kissing along her neck, I whispered, “Hurry back.”

She turned to walk away and I couldn’t help but slap that sexy ass of hers, which resulted in a squeal as she disappeared down the hall. Sitting on her leather sofa, I took a pull of my beer. Nothing was better than beer before noon. I watched NFL Countdown as the Carolina Panthers prepared for their game today against the New Orleans Saints. I assumed we were going to a bar to watch the game. The fact that a sexy, beautiful woman liked football was fucking hot. I needed to get her in nothing else but a Panthers jersey one day. I could wake up to that beautiful creature straddling me every morning. There would be nothing wrong with waking up to that for the rest of my life.

My arm stopped in midair with the beer halfway to my mouth.

For the rest of my life?

As soon as that thought crossed my mind, Katherine emerged from the hallway wearing a snug black v-neck tank top with the Panthers logo on it. Tight skinny jeans showed off her glorious curves with black knee high boots. Her long auburn hair cascaded down her back. She was stunningly beautiful.

Yeah, I could do this forever.

My chest—and my hand—was warm again as we walked outside and back into the waiting Town Car. After watching that sexy ass scoot across the leather seat, we snuggled again as we were driven through the streets of Charlotte. “Where are we going, beautiful?

Her eyes lifted up as that smile of hers crinkled her cheeks. She closed the distance between us as her lips met mine. Her tongue flicked my bottom lip and I was a goner. A small hum echoed in the background. I pulled away as Katherine pushed a button, drawing up a partition between us and the driver. A sexy smirk graced her lips as she pressed them to mine once again. I grabbed her hips, pulling her on top of me. She straddled my nearly painful bulge. Her fingers threaded through my hair as I kept one hand firmly on her ass and the other at the base of her neck. She broke free from my kiss, and in a sexy silky voice, she whispered, “Surprise.”

I opened my eyes and just stared at her lips, craving more. They eased into a smile and I pecked them one more time.

“Come on, country boy. It’s almost kick off time.” She cocked her head to the side and I followed her motion. My jaw dropped as I looked out the window. Looking back at her, my eyes widened at this amazing person still straddling me.

“Are you serious?”

She nodded as she scooted off. “Are you ready for some football?”

Katherine reached for the door handle, but I pulled her flush against me. “You’re taking me to the game?” She nodded, and I continued. “Did you know I’ve never been before?”

Her eyes flickered with warmth as she shook her head. I coddled her face and pulled her lips to mine. This woman was going to kill me. I would love every minute of my death. She pulled back as she released a shaky breath and squeezed my hand, opening the door. I followed her. We stood in front of the VIP entrance. She was taking me to the Panthers game. I couldn’t believe this girl. I rested my hands on my hips as I stared up at the immaculate sight of the stadium.

“Surprised?”

My gaze found hers and I cradled her face in between my hands. “You have no idea.”

After giving her a long, lingering kiss, we both smiled as she grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the VIP entrance. The entrance hallway was lined with photos of the former Panthers players. I stared in awe. It was like fucking Christmas. Not only was I going to my first Panthers game, but I was going with a beautiful woman who hadn’t let my hand go since we gave the attendant our tickets. We entered a private elevator with no one else coming along for the ride. As soon as the doors closed, my hands reached for her face, and I smashed my lips over hers, thanking her the only way I could. Caressing her cheeks, I pulled out of the kiss and rested my forehead against hers.  My lips grazed her skin, and I whispered, “You amaze me, Katherine. More than I thought any woman could.”

“Don’t thank me yet. You haven’t met Geoffrey and Diana.”

She grabbed my hand, leading me out of the elevator as I asked, “Who are Geoffrey and Diana?”

“My parents.”

I immediately froze in my tracks.
Her parents?

She laughed, tugging me along. “Come on, player. We have a game to watch.”