When Dex texted Hattie the next afternoon while she was at work, she let out the breath she’d been holding for what felt like a full day. After the way she’d freaked out the previous night, before finally coming back—and they’d had the hottest sex of her life on the hood of a car—she thought he might not contact her for a few days. After all, she had told him they needed to slow things down.
She was glad he had anyway.
Yes, the reasons she’d taken off in the first place were still there, but then the call she’d gotten from her mother yesterday morning and the twenty-minute lecture on what a failure she was to her family had probably contributed to her extreme reaction to Dex’s suggestion that they take things beyond the bedroom, in part at least.
That call had also reinforced her reasons to keep things casual with him. Thankfully, they were on the same page now.
She couldn’t deal with complicated, not at the moment. She had enough of that in her life already. Having fun with Dex, though, as often as possible, she could handle.
Her gaze moved back to her computer screen and the email she’d received from her parents earlier. The calls weren’t getting them the expected results, so they were applying more pressure.
Their immense disappointment was a heavy theme, as were their feelings of betrayal. Their betrayal? Seriously? Of course, they’d added how they had paid for her to go to law school and this was how she’d repaid them for everything they’d done. And at the bottom, the not-so-subtle threat of cutting her out of their family. But if she came back now, they could move past this little indiscretion. And if not? Well, she’d gotten the whole this is not Sutton behavior. If she couldn’t act like a member of this family, then perhaps she didn’t belong in it.
That hurt the most. It always did. How could you threaten to cut someone out of your life because they didn’t fit some preconceived notion they had of you? Why didn’t they just want her to be happy? They’d always wanted her to fit into some mold they’d created, an ideal they’d come up with when she was born, and they refused to waver.
Yeah, that definitely hurt most.
“You okay?” Shay said from the couch on the other side of the office, Gracie in her arms. Gracie spent a lot of time in the office with them since Shay was still breastfeeding. Hugh and Shay had help during the day with the other kids, but Shay liked to be close.
“I got an email from my parents.” Hattie had filled Shay in about their messed-up relationship. She’d had to when she’d first started working there, because her mother had called almost nonstop, demanding she come home.
“You okay?”
Hattie smiled, or tried to. “I will be. I just never thought it’d come to this, losing my parents completely, and that’s how it’s looking.”
“Oh, hon, that’s awful.” She looked furious on Hattie’s behalf. “I really don’t get what the hell their problem is,” Shay said, adjusting Gracie in her arms now that she was asleep. “Is there anything I can do?”
Hattie shook her head. “Thanks for asking, though.”
Shay came over and squeezed her shoulder. “I’m here, okay? If you ever need to talk.” Shay gave her another shoulder squeeze and left the office, taking Gracie into the house and to bed.
When she was alone, she pulled out her phone and looked down at the message from Dex.
Dex: Free tonight?
There was nothing anyone could do to make this okay, but there was one person who made her feel amazing whenever he was near. She needed another dose of Dex. Was desperate for it, for him.
Hattie: Sure am. Just tell me where and when.
Hattie stood at Dex’s door and ran her hands over her hips. For some crazy reason her palms felt a little clammy and nerves were flapping around like demented hummingbirds in her belly.
Not to mention excited. She’d looked forward to seeing him all day, especially after the phone call she’d had with her father that afternoon. The increased frequency of their calls and emails meant they were getting desperate.
The fury in his voice had proven it. His anger and disappointment were still ringing in her ears. There was no happy ending on their horizon, no compromise.
And now she just felt more determined to prove him and her mother wrong.
Hattie pushed that from her mind and knocked.
The garage was locked up for the night, but Dex had ended up working late so she’d told him she’d come to him.
The door opened and she bit her lip, almost moaning out loud. Dex stood in front of her in only a damp towel, his hair sticking up all over the place, the huge expanse of his tattooed upper body on full display, and a sheepish expression on his face.
God, he was lovely.
Everything about him, inside and out. It was the word that sprang to mind most often when she thought of him.
“Won’t be a minute. Let me just get dressed.” He walked to his dresser and whipped off the towel, giving her an eyeful of his insanely gorgeous ass, before covering all that glory with a pair of cheek-hugging boxer briefs followed by jeans.
Clothes? Who needed clothes? She wanted him to lie on the bed at her mercy so she could worship every bit of that enormous body slowly.
“Takeout? You okay with pizza?” Dex asked as he tugged a shirt on.
Hattie frowned. “Pizza?”
“Gotta eat, sweetness. Haven’t had time to buy food this week. Worked through lunch. I’m ready to chew off my own arm.”
The sudden desire to cook for him hit her like a foreign object hurtling through the air. She had never in her life wanted to cook for a man. She barely cooked for herself. But the idea of feeding Dex, of watching him eat, moan in pleasure, and sit back satisfied after devouring a meal that she’d prepared, had warmth washing over her.
“Yeah, of course. Whatever you’re in the mood for,” she said distractedly, stunned by the direction her thoughts had taken her.
He turned to her, and his gaze was suddenly dark and hungry. “I’m in the mood for you, and I’d already have you on that bed, my mouth on your pussy, if my body hadn’t started cannibalizing itself.”
She swallowed at the way he growled those dirty words at her and forced a chuckle. “Let’s get some food in your belly. Then we can come back and indulge our, um…other cravings.”
“Yeah?” he gritted out.
“Most definitely,” she said, a needy pulse building between her thighs.
He strode across the room, his long legs eating up the space between them, and tugged her into his arms. “Haven’t kiss you hello yet.”
Hattie stared up into his gorgeous brown eyes and felt a little weak at the knees. “No, you haven’t.”
His mouth came down on hers, and he kissed her thoroughly, sucking on her lips, her tongue, wet and deep and in a way she felt everywhere within seconds. Every time they kissed it was the same: a full body experience, mind-blowing, earth-shattering. God, fireworks.
Dex finally pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. He was breathing heavily. “Fuck,” he said.
Hattie’s thoughts exactly.
“Screw it, let’s stay here,” he growled out at the same time as his tummy rumbled so loud there was no hiding it.
She bit her lip to hold back her laugh, but it escaped when she got a good look at Dex’s expression. Kind of annoyed, kind of embarrassed.
Shaking her head, she took his hand and led him to the door. “Let’s get you fed. You’ll be no good to me if you swoon from starvation.”
“Don’t swoon, sweetness. I’m a man.”
“Okay, faint.”
“Don’t do that either.”
“Collapse?” She was giggling, and the sexy grin on Dex’s face was irresistible.
“Nope. A man passes the fuck out.”
“Well, if you pass out, I’ll have to go home, and Bob and I will be forced to have fun without you.”
Dex paused at the bottom of the stairs and, God, he looked devastated. “Bob? What the fuck, Hattie? You’re seeing someone else?”
Hattie’s eyes widened and she quickly shook her head. “No. B-O-B. My battery-operated boyfriend.” When Dex just frowned harder, she said, “My vibrator.”
He sucked in a sharp breath. “Jesus, for a minute there I thought…” He shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled out the keys to his truck. After a couple of slow breaths his gaze slid back to her. “Vibrator, huh?”
Was he blushing? He was. He totally was. Or maybe the idea of her using it while she was on her own made him hot under the collar?
“I have a couple.” She didn’t comment on his reaction to the thought of her seeing someone else, or how horrified she was at the thought of him thinking she’d do that. They were casual. No one had said the word exclusive. She’d already told him she didn’t want serious, and right then she didn’t want to look too closely into the way they’d both reacted to the idea of Hattie dating another man, so she added, “Maybe next time you can stay at my place and I’ll introduce you to Bob?”
He tugged her in close and kissed her again. “Yeah, fuck, I’d like that.”
A short time later, they pulled up outside Abella’s. Hattie grinned to herself when Dex rushed around to open her door and all but dragged her into the place.
Dex asked what she wanted, and Hattie hung back while he went up to order their takeout since they didn’t do deliveries. He was talking to the guy there for a couple of minutes, then came back to her.
“They have a table available if we want it. Someone canceled,” he said, unable to hide how happy this made him. “They have these breadsticks when you eat in.” He licked his lips like he could already taste them. “They’re really fucking good.”
How could she say no to him? His excitement was insanely adorable. Also, he looked like he was about to start eating the furniture. “Okay. Sure.”
He grinned, and her breath got stuck in her throat.
He took her hand and hustled her through the restaurant, following a server to their table. They took their seats, ordered drinks, and Hattie sat back as Dex made short work of the famous breadsticks. She had one as well, and he was right—they were ridiculously good.
“How did you find out about this place?”
“Hugh, Joe, and Adam, all of them, they come here a lot. Joe wouldn’t stop going on about it, so I came and checked it out.”
Their drinks arrived and they ordered their meals. For a minute, Hattie thought Dex had ordered for her as well, considering all the dishes he rattled off, until he looked up at her expectantly, waiting for her to do the same. She had no idea how excited Dex could get over food. It was oddly endearing.
“So how are you liking your new job?” she asked him when they were on their own again.
He leaned forward, resting his solid forearms on the table. “Good. Different. But good.”
“Have you always liked working on cars?”
He took a sip of his beer. “Yeah. Before my dad fucked off, we used to do that stuff together. My first job was in a garage, a good one. Learned a lot more. Always thought I’d come back to it one day.”
“And working with family? How’s that going?”
His expression was a mix between exasperation and humor. It looked very good on him, the way his lips curled up a little on each side. “Hugh’s a little like me, I guess, which makes things easy. Adam is straight up, no fucking around. The guy’s preoccupied with Lucy and the baby they’ve got coming. And Joe…” He scrunched up his face. “Fucked if I know.”
Hattie laughed. “He’s different.”
Dex chuckled, and she loved it. Loved anytime she could get Dex to laugh or smile. It warmed her somehow, made her heart beat a little faster, sent zaps of pleasure through her belly.
Dex took a sip of his beer and sobered. “They’re good people. I didn’t know what to expect, but yeah, I like ’em. All of them.”
Before she knew what she was doing, she curled her hand over his and squeezed. His own family was crappy, like hers, and she was so happy he’d found this one. She was happy they’d made space for her as well. “I’m so glad.”
His gaze lifted, locked on hers. “They’re not the only people I met when I moved here that I like.”
“No?”
“No,” he said in his deep, rough voice.
“I’ve met a few people I really like as well,” she said, finding it hard to breathe with her pulse racing like it was.
The giant broody man across from her kept her locked in his sights, and she couldn’t look away. Didn’t want to.
“How about you? The new job? Working with Shay?” he asked.
She leaned forward as well. The restaurant was dimly lit, cozy, and she couldn’t help but try to get closer to Dex. When she was with him, she always wanted to get closer. “I love it.” The smile that curled her lips was involuntary. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.”
Dex’s Adam’s apple slid up and down his thick neck. “Yeah?”
She shook her head. “I went through law school and started at the family firm straight after. It was what was expected, what had been expected my whole life. I guess I never thought of arguing or fighting for what I wanted.” She toyed with her napkin. “Suttons don’t do that, fight against each other like that. A united front is expected at all times.” Her belly tightened at the sympathy in Dex’s eyes. “I hated it,” she whispered. “I hated every moment of that life. I felt like I was…God, like I was drowning, dying slowly.”
“Sweetness.” Dex looked pained, sad for her.
She shook her head and smiled. It felt shaky. “I finally did what I needed to. And it will hurt like hell if my family cuts me off because I chose happiness over duty, but I won’t go back to that. Not ever. And I’ll prove them wrong.”
It was then she realized she was still holding Dex’s hand, that she’d been toying with his thick, rough-skinned fingers the whole time she talked. But he was so easy to talk to, to open up to. She started to let go, but he turned his hand palm up and curled his fingers around hers, holding on.
“You don’t know how fucking glad I am to hear that, Hattie.”
The food arrived and they were forced to let go of each other.
As Hattie ate her own meal, she couldn’t help but watch Dex work his way through the food he’d ordered. It was as enjoyable as she thought it would be.
“So, your brother’s wedding—are you going?”
His fork paused halfway to his mouth and his gaze lifted to her. He dipped his chin.
Hattie could have kicked herself for bringing up such a painful subject when they were having such a good time. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned it.”
“Nah, it’s all good. I’m fine.” He shrugged his big shoulders and dipped his gaze. “Probably more than I should be.”
Why did that make her feel so relieved? “Still, the actual wedding—surely they don’t expect you to go?” Why was she pushing this? What did it matter to her if he went to the wedding, where he’d see his ex-girlfriend and possibly have a whole lot of feelings resurface that he thought were buried?
“I’m over it, Hattie. Honestly, Chloe and I had been drifting apart long before she ditched me. It was only a matter of time before it ended between us. And I think not going would say more than just sucking it up and sitting through it. Zane’s my brother, and despite being a fucking dick most of the time, I’d like us to get through this shit and move on. I don’t want it hanging over our heads whenever we see each other, and going will help get us there.”
“That’s very big of you,” she said, not sure if she could do the same thing.
He took a sip of his beer and glanced up at her. “Be a whole lot better if I had someone to come with me.”
She stilled when he aimed his brown eyes at her, all hopeful and gorgeous.
“What do you say?” he said.
“You really want me to come with you?”
He nodded.
“Are you trying to guilt me into it?” she said, amused when he attempted a downcast expression. He was actually pulling it off.
“I wouldn’t mind the company.”
Did people who weren’t actually dating, who were casual, go to weddings together? But the thought of him going on his own and having to sit through that with everyone looking at him, thinking he was hurt, or angry, or in pain, while he watched his ex marry someone else—his brother—wasn’t something she could tolerate.
“As a friend?” she said.
He grinned. “Sure. Friends who fuck.”
Her face heated.
The grin got even wider. “So you will? You’ll come with me?”
“I’ll come with you,” she said, wondering if she’d lost her mind, but at the same time kind of looking forward to spending more time with Dex. Spending time with him was kind of becoming the highlight of her day, which was saying a lot when she loved her job so much that she couldn’t wait to get there every morning.
When Dex finally finished his meal, he paid and took her hand, leading her toward the door.
“Enjoy the rest of your date,” the server called as they passed by.
Hattie tensed, and Dex’s hand tightened around hers, like he was worried she’d try and pull free and run. She glanced back at the table they’d just been sitting at and the other couples seated around the room and bit her lip.
God, they’d just had a date, hadn’t they?
“Don’t freak out. Tonight is whatever the fuck we say it is,” Dex said.
Hattie relaxed instantly. Maybe it was a date? Maybe it wasn’t. But she realized, whatever it was, she’d loved every moment of it.