Page 21 of Deserving Cora
And she hadn’t been wrong.
Pipe held the plastic key card up to the sensor on the door and it clicked open. He pushed open the door and held it for her. Taking a deep breath, and praying she hadn’t been mistaken in her evaluation of Pipe, Cora walked into the room.
It was nothing fancy. Just two queen beds like he’d said, a dresser with a TV, a small, uncomfortable-looking chair in the corner, and a typical hotel bathroom. Pipe shut the door, threw the dead bolt and the little thingy above it that would prevent the door from being opened, then walked past her to the bed by the window and put her duffle bag on the surface. “You want the bathroom first?” he asked almost nonchalantly.
Cora shook her head. Pipe nodded and headed for the small room without another word.
When he’d shut the door, Cora wandered over to the bed that was obviously going to be hers for the night, and sat on the side. She should be doing something, planning, thinking of things to tell Pipe and the others that would help them get Lara away from Ridge…but suddenly she was exhausted. She hadn’t been sleeping well because of her worry for her friend, and the stress of trying to make as much money as she could before the auction.
She flopped to her back, and her eyes closed as she waited for Pipe to be finished in the bathroom—then jerked awake when she felt someone touch her arm.
Cora threw herself to the side out of reflex, immediately embarrassed at her over-the-top reaction when she saw Pipe backing away from her with his hands up, as if showing her that he wouldn’t hurt her.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, running a hand over the back of her neck. “I’m not a fan of people touching me to wake me up. Bad memories.”
She wasn’t scared of Pipe when he scowled at her words, and actually made a growling sound in the back of his throat. Instead, she was…turned on?
No, that couldn’t be right.
But it was. It had been a long time since someone had been pissed off on her behalf. And this man didn’t even know the half of it.
“Someone hurt you when you were sleeping?” he bit out.
“Well, not when I was sleeping, but…after they woke me up. Yeah,” Cora said, not meeting his gaze. “It was a long time ago. And no, he didn’t get to do what he wanted. I didn’t…cooperate.”
“Good for you,” Pipe said, though still not sounding happy.
“Right. But as a result, I was kicked out of that house the next day, after the asshole made up a story about me stealing money out of his wife’s purse.”
“Wanker,” Pipe said under his breath.
For some reason, Cora smiled.
“What? This isn’t funny.”
“I know, it’s just…wanker?”
His lips twitched. “I’ve been here in the States a while, but sometimes my Britishisms come out.”
“Yeah.”
“Anyway, I’m sorry I touched you without your permission. I’ll remember next time. I’m done in the bathroom.”
For the first time, Cora noticed that Pipe had changed out of the black slacks and white dress shirt he’d been wearing all night. Lord help her, he had on a pair of gray sweatpants and a black tank top that showed off the tattoos on his arms and upper chest.
But it wasn’t his tattoos that had her attention. The outline of his cock was prominent in the sweatpants, and she swallowed hard at seeing his size. She tried not to stare, but it was difficult.
She’d had her share of sex, but she’d never instantly craved a man like she craved Pipe at this moment. It wasn’t just the fact that his dick was above-average in size, it wasn’t the tattoos…it was the entire package that was Bryson Clark.
He’d been pissed on her behalf when he’d heard Eleanor talking shit about her, open about listening to what she had to say, empathetic, protective, understanding…and generous. It wasn’t exactly surprising for Cora to realize she wanted him. And not just sexually. She wanted to know everything about him. Why he’d chosen the tattoos he had. What put the shadows she’d seen in his eyes. Why he’d left his country and moved to the US. How he’d gotten involved with The Refuge. All of it.
“Cora?” Pipe asked, his brows furrowing as he looked at her. “You can trust me.”
She hated that he thought her silence meant she was second-guessing staying in the room with him.
“I know,” she said, forcing herself to tear her gaze away from his crotch. “I’ll just go and do my thing now…” she said a little lamely, picking up her bag.
Pipe stepped into the space between the two beds, giving her room to pass without having to worry about brushing against him.
