Page 28 of Never and Always
I shook my head. “I can’t.”
“It has to do with your brother.”
My head jerked back to him.
“It was a guess, but you just confirmed it.”
“I’ll deal with it,” I whispered.
“And maybe get your damn throat slit next time?”
I jerked.
Everett cursed. He gripped one armrest of my chair and leaned in. “Dammit, Piper, let me help you.”
“I help myself.” The words burst out of me. “My dad left when Chance and I were young. My mom worked two jobs to feed us, money was tight. Dad was a ghost. He never came back, never sent child support. I helped out with Chance. Got him to school, fed him, helped him learn his times tables. I went to bed every night worried if the electricity would be on in the morning, or how I’d cook dinner when the fridge was empty and Mom was at work.” I was sharing stuff I’d never shared with anyone. It just kept coming. “It got better when we moved in with my grandmother. And now, I keep his messes from my mother and Gram. They raised us, worked and sacrificed for us. They get to live easy now.”
Everett’s face was unreadable. “And you take on all the responsibility.”
I leaned in closer, our faces only an inch apart. “Yes.”
I saw his face soften, something working behind his eyes. “I’m going to help you.”
“I don’t need help.”
“Yeah, babe, you do.”
I swallowed, feeling things trying to punch out of my chest.
“Fuck, you smell good,” he murmured.
“You always smell like citrus, spice, and wood.” The words tumbled out and then my chest hitched. I clamped my lips together.
His mouth curled in the sexiest smile I’d ever seen. “You like how I smell, huh?”
“No, yes, um…” Why couldn’t I think? I was Piper Ellis, COO, I never stumbled with my words.
His fingers gripped my jaw. “Right back at you, big city. I like the way you smell, like an expensive bunch of flowers. And I’ve been wondering for a damn long time how you’d taste.”
Then, his mouth pressed against mine.
His hand cupped my jaw, and he tilted my head, his tongue sliding across my lips. My mind went blank of everything except the taste of him and the rush of heat through every part of me.
I made a sound, leaning into him. With a low growl, he deepened the kiss. I could feel his hunger, a match for my own.
He pulled back and I wanted to yank him back. Or throw myself at him.
Oh my God, this wasEverett Murray.
I wanted to climb Everett Murray like a tree.
His lips quirked. “I like seeing some color in your cheeks.”
“You’re annoying,” I muttered.
He grinned. “But I think you like it.”
“The kiss was not a good idea.”
