He’d done his best to put it out of his mind, but it had done him no good. She’d been on his mind all evening long, and he knew deep in his gut that there was more to this evening then just a “girls only” evening. So here he was, just after eleven at night sitting outside of Carly’s house trying to get up the nerve to go up and knock on the front door.
It was probably nothing but his imagination, but he knew he wouldn’t sleep tonight if he didn’t check on Erin in person. She’d probably get mad at him and accuse him of being as bad as Jackson, but it couldn’t be helped.
Then there was Carly. Just the thought of her name made him sweat. With her short brown hair, pale blue eyes, and gamine face, she looked like a combination somewhere between an angel and a pixie. She was short, but she was rounded in all the right areas, especially her breasts and her ass. Nathan ate at the diner almost every day just so he could watch her ass as she walked away from him. He’d lusted after her for years, but had kept her at arm’s length, because Carly was what was known as a good girl, and Nathan’s taste in sex would probably shock her to death. Plus, she was his sister’s best friend. There were unwritten rules about dating your sister’s best friend, and a smart man avoided all contact if he knew what was good for him.
Nathan swore at himself and heaved himself out of his truck. For a man who had faced down drunks and armed men during his career as a deputy sheriff in this town, it was ridiculous for him to be nervous about facing two women. His boots echoed on the cobblestone walk as he strode purposefully up the driveway, climbed the three steps to the porch, and pounded on the front door.
A moment later, the outside light went on and he could see Carly’s face in the window beside the front door. She looked shocked to see him. “Open up.”
She hesitated for a moment before turning the locks and pulling the door open a crack. “What do you want?” A silky blue robe was wrapped around her body. She was obviously ready for bed.
Not exactly the warmest welcome in the world, but he hadn’t really expected one. “I want to talk to Erin.”
She shifted and stared directly at the center of his shirt, not meeting his eyes. “Erin’s not available right now, but I’ll let her know you stopped by.”
The door started to close in his face and it was only instinct that made him shove his boot inside the doorframe to keep her from closing it. She glared at him, but said nothing.
“I want to see Erin. Now.” The hairs on the back of Nathan’s neck were standing on end, a sure sign that something wasn’t right. If that wasn’t enough to warn him that something was wrong, then the guilty look on Carly’s face convinced him he was right.
Using his left shoulder for leverage, he muscled his way through the front door, and forced her to back up. He automatically scanned the entryway before closing the door behind him. The silence was deafening as they stood there and stared each other down. Nathan was determined to know what was going on, and Carly was staring at him with her arms crossed under her chest, a mutinous look on her face.
It really wasn’t fair of her to cross her arms like that. The action pushed her sizeable breasts up even higher, distracting him from his goal. He could easily imagine himself uncovering her extraordinary tits and burying his face between them. Nathan groaned as his cock swelled and jeans grew far too tight for comfort.
“Are you okay?” Her soft words freed him from his enthrallment and he raked his hands through his hair, trying to regain control over himself and the situation.
“Where is Erin?” All signs of her concern for him vanished in the blink of an eye, and she once again appeared perturbed with him. His own temper began to flare. “If you won’t tell me, I’ll just look for her myself.” Without waiting for a reply, he brushed past her and began a methodical search of the small bungalow.
“You can’t do this.” She was close on his heels, tugging on the back of his shirt.
“Watch me.” He pulled away from her grasp and went through her home one room at a time until he reached her bedroom. The door was closed, but as he started to reach for it, Carly threw herself in front of it. Nathan barely managed to keep the grin off his face as he knew that would only infuriate her further. But it was ridiculous, almost to the point of being funny that this small woman thought she could keep him out of the room.
“You can’t go in there. I forbid it.” She stamped her small slippered foot against the hardwood floor as she spread her arms wide to block the door. Her robe slipped open slightly at the neckline and he caught a glimpse of her milky white skin and her bountiful breasts. When she widened her stance, the robe slipped away, exposing one of her firm, pale thighs.
It was far too easy to imagine wrapping his hand around the belt of her robe, and tugging until it came open. Instead of indulging his fantasy, he bent over, gripped Carly by the waist, picked her up, and deposited her out of the way before opening the door. He strode into the room and came to a dead stop. Never in his life would he have imagined that her bedroom would look like this, and he had indeed imagined it many times in his life. In his dreams, it was soft, white, and feminine. This room was a study in rich vibrant colors and sensuality.
The four-poster bed was covered by a lush burgundy spread, which was turned back to expose matching sheets, and loaded down with pillows in a rainbow of jewel tones. The walls were a rich cream color, and a plush burgundy rug lay atop the hardwood floor. The furniture was all a dark cherry tone and the drapes were the same material as the bedspread.
Carly rushed over to him, grabbed his arm and tried to haul him out of the room. “Get out of my bedroom before I call the cops.”
“I am the cops,” he said. Nathan didn’t budge and finally she stopped pulling on him and threw up her hands in defeat. He was two inches over six feet and he wasn’t moving until he had answers. “Where is my sister?”
Carly gave up all pretenses. “I don’t know.”
Her simple answer knocked the wind right out of him. “What the hell do you mean, you don’t know?” he yelled. “She was supposed to be spending the night with you.” Concern for his sister made him crazy and before he even realized what he was doing, he’d backed Carly up against one of the bedposts. Wrapping his hands around her shoulders, he shook her slightly.
“Stop it.” She clawed at his hands. “Stop it.”
The fear in her voice brought him back to his senses and shook him to his very core. Never in his entire life had he ever frightened a woman, and the fact it was the woman he’d wanted for years shamed him. He wrapped his arms around her and stilled her frantic struggles while crooning in her ear. “I’m sorry, honey. It’s all right. Everything’s fine.” It took a minute, but finally she settled down in his arms.
She felt so good in his embrace, with her breasts pressed against his chest. His cock was nestled against her silky stomach, but there was nothing he could do about that. The fact was around this one woman, he had no control. It bothered him, but there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. He’d tried for years, but had long ago given up the struggle. He thought he’d died and gone to heaven when instead of pulling away from him, she snuggled tighter against him.
Unable to resist, he placed a small kiss on the top of her head while he took a deep breath, inhaling her unique scent. She always smelled of a combination of vanilla and something uniquely Carly. He gave her one more hug before forcing himself to step away.