Badass: A Stepbrother SEAL Romance (8 page)

Asshole. Yeah, I didn’t like it either, but at least I was trying to be nice about it. If people fell in love, they fell in love. There was nothing Mr. Super SEAL could do about that.

Suck it up, Sand-Boy.

Chapter 15—Shane

I ran on the beach to Mr. Bennings’ mansion. On Ocean Boulevard. He had a fucking house on Ocean Boulevard. What the fuck did he want with my mom?

I’d been too busy for this full mind fuck since dinner at the Del. My officer
volun-told
me for a training exercise in Arizona. Away from my mom. And her fiancé.

And Cassie.

Cassie. I couldn’t wait to see her again. The anticipation of fucking Cassie was killing me.

I hadn’t had a girlfriend since high school and I was in no market to find one. My only focus had been getting through BUD/S and becoming the best Navy SEAL I could be without any distractions. No woman to try to make happy, no months in the desert worrying whether or not she was being fucked by someone back home.

My buddies had warned me to stay the fuck away from Cassie—that it would only end badly. They encouraged me to go find someone else, anyone else, but Cassie was the only one I wanted.

But now I was starting to think my friends were right. The thought of another man touching Cassie made me insane. And she wasn’t even mine. What if my mom went through with this wedding and Cassie became my stepsister? Flashes appeared of future holiday dinners with my mom, Mr. Bennings, Cassie and her preppy husband, probably some jackass trust fund baby who never worked a day in his life. I didn’t need that kind of distraction, I didn’t need a constant reminder of our one epic mind-blowing night shoved in front of me for the rest of my life. But the damage was already done, we couldn’t go back in time. We already fucked, so what was the harm in going for a second round?

Tonight was gonna be my first glimpse into a future with Cassie, my stepsister. It was Christmas Eve. My mom insisted that I “join the family” for Christmas Eve dinner and to exchange gifts on Christmas morning. I had an idea for a present for Cassie—my dick in a box.

I knocked on the massive wooden door, painted bright red. This place looked like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Would a butler answer?

Fuck. Even worse. Cassie opened it. She was wearing a fitted green sweater with a white reindeer over her chest and tight jeans. If she was trying to turn me off by wearing an ugly Christmas sweater, it wasn’t working. She was so fucking hot. Her hair was damp, as if she’d recently showered. I could still picture the beads of saltwater on her ass when I’d first seen her.

“Nice of you to show up. Your mom has been trying to get you to come over for ages.”

“I’m busy, Cassie, training the most elite warriors in the world. I’m sure you’re enjoying your winter break—maybe you spend your days at the Del: relaxing at the Spa La La getting a Peppermint Mistletoe pedicure, sipping English breakfast tea while snacking on finger sandwiches, or having Santa serenade you on the gondola. But some of us work for a living.”

I waited for her smart-ass response, but she just bit her bottom lip. I wanted to bite that lip, taste her blood, make her scream as she came over and over again. I glanced up at the door and saw we were standing under mistletoe. I pointed to the doorframe and grabbed Cassie, pressing my lips on hers. My hands cupped her face, my tongue explored her mouth. She tasted sweet and spicy, like cinnamon and chocolate, and I wanted to drink her up.

She twisted her face to the side. “What are you doing?” she said, under her breath.

“What’s going on here?” I looked up and saw Mr. Bennings, a scowl on his face.

Cassie pulled away from me. Her face went blank. I’d handle this. “Nothing, old man. Mistletoe?”

My mom appeared around the corner, glancing around, trying to assess the situation. “Oh that, sorry Henry, that mistletoe is my fault. It adds some holiday spirit.” She hugged me. “Merry Christmas Shane, I’m so glad you could make it.”

“Merry Christmas, Ma.”

Mr. Bennings must’ve calmed down, but he still looked at me funny. “Ahh. I didn’t notice that there. Welcome Shane. Merry Christmas. Please come join us in the living room.” He placed his arm on my shoulder, some type of paternal pat. But I stepped away—I’d never known my own dad, and I was not about to let this guy attempt to take on a fatherly role.

In the living room, one of the frosted white Christmas trees was tucked in the corner, behind the grand piano. I placed the gifts under the tree. It was decorated with blue and white ornaments, very beachy. I missed our holidays in Montana, just my mom and me, a pine cut from the woods, homemade decorations with strung popcorn and cranberries, hot chocolate in our mugs.

My mom handed me a beer, and Henry made small talk with me about a recent SEAL autobiography he’d read. I just rolled my eyes—another one of the fame-hungry former SEALs violating our honor code—we were supposed to be silent warriors. These days, I wondered if our trident came with a book deal.

Dinner was finally ready. Molly and Henry dominated the conversation, alternating between thrilling topics like the economic impact of the recent legalization of marijuana and the looming prediction that California would run out of water due to the drought. Cassie and I mostly stayed quiet. At least my mom had prepared my favorites—stuffed mushrooms, grilled salmon, pumpkin ravioli, apple bread pudding with moonshine crème sauce. I gobbled down every bite, though I noticed that Cassie didn’t touch her salmon. She was weird, and I was sure I made her nervous.

“So Shane,” she said after swirling her glass of wine, “why did you want to be a SEAL?”

Nope, not gonna happen. I was not going to open up to her. “To shoot guns, blow up stuff, and jump out of planes.”

My mom shot a glare at me. “Shane always wanted to help people. He’s a corpsman actually. It’s like a medic for the Teams. He had to go through extensive advanced field medical training. Maybe one day he’ll get out and be a doctor.”

Cassie’s mouth softened and she tilted her head and smiled at me. “Wow, that’s fascinating. What kind of training?”

I didn’t want to answer her questions, but I figured enlightening her that I really wasn’t a dumbass would help me get into her pants later tonight. “It’s pretty intense, almost a year long after you become a SEAL. Rotations for surgery, dermatology, pediatrics, orthopedics, radiology. Even large animal veterinary care—so we can treat sea lions.”

Cassie ignored my last comment and pressed her palms against her cheeks. “I had no idea you guys did all that. I’m impressed.”

“It’s not a big deal. It was a pain in the ass but anything to save my men’s lives.” I fidgeted in my chair. I was done talking about myself. “I’m beat.”

I excused myself from the table and my mom showed me to my room on the main floor. It looked like a hotel suite, huge king bed, view of the ocean, and a marble bathtub. I noticed Cassie slipping by us and heading upstairs.

Tonight, she would be sleeping in the same house as me.

Well, after I fucked her.

Chapter 16—Cassie

I heard a sound at my door—a very slight sound, but it was enough. I sat up with a jerk as the door swung inward and Shane slipped into the room, with a wicked grin on his face and a knowing look in his eyes. Damn him! Somehow he sensed that I wasn’t as immune to him as I was pretending to be.

“What are you doing in here? Get out,” I whispered, afraid to scream it at him. Terrified that anything we did together, our parents would hear. Not that we were going to do anything together. Did he really think I was going to let him touch me again?

He waltzed right over to my bed, all six feet two of his gorgeous rock-hard body, and sat down beside me. “I’ve seen how you look at me,” the arrogant prick said, grinning that soul-softening grin. “I know you want me.”

“I do not want you.” I was trying to forget how good that quick mistletoe kiss had felt. “Are you crazy? Our parents will hear you. My dad is already suspicious.”

With one arm, he flipped me under him, and pressed me down flat on the bed. God help me, but the feel of his body, his muscles, and flesh and his bone brought back sharp memories of how it had felt that amazing night last spring, when he’d catapulted me up into an erotic wonderland. I had never felt such insatiable desire, nor had I ever come as hard or as long as I had with his thick cock inside me.

Stop thinking nonsense, I yelled at my unruly mind. What was wrong with me?

“I don’t care who hears us,” he said. His mouth came down on mine and he kissed me hard and deep. When I fought to turn my face away, his hand slid into my hair. He lifted his lips just above mine and murmured, “God, I love your taste.” He ran his tongue over my lips—sending sparks shooting all through me, and then he kissed me again, more sweetly.

Oh god, oh god. Why did he feel so good? Why was my belly already burning and my core softening and turning wet?

“You’re not my stepsister yet.”

He slid one hand down over my breasts, my waist, my hip and in between my thighs. I tried to squirm away from him, but I didn’t try too hard. He arrowed right in, parting my pussy lips. He made an approving sound as he discovered I was already hot and wet. 

“Stop it! I mean it, Shane. I told you—we can’t do this. We can’t ever do it.”

I slid out from under him and turned on my side. I brought my knees up. I think I was shaking a little. I could feel my hair in my eyes and my heart pounding. He continued stroking me and my traitorous pussy clenched. I was on the verge of tears. What happens when you want something so much, but you know you can’t have it? My heart felt as if it were cracking in two.

“Cassie,” he breathed in my ear. He kissed the back of my neck. “I can’t stop thinking about you. About us. That incredible night we had. It was amazing. It can be like that again. You know it can.” His hand closed over my breast, rubbed, teased, caressed. “It’s so hot between us. You can’t deny it, babe.”

“Oh please. You never even called. You’ve been back from deployment for over a month now. You’ve probably fucked half the sorority sisters in San Diego.” 

He chuckled and said, “Truth is, I haven’t been with anyone since you. You’re the only one I want.” 

I punched him lightly in the arm. “You’re such a jerk. I don’t believe you.”

“It’s true. There’s been no one. Not while I was deployed and not since I’ve been back.”

He sounded sincere, if only because he also sounded puzzled by his own behavior. As if he didn’t believe it himself. What the hell did that mean? It wasn’t as if he cared about me. And, anyway, he couldn’t care about me. Not in that way. Not now.

I tried to pull away and sit up. “It doesn’t matter. We aren’t doing this. It’s wrong. It’s impossible. So please, Shane, just get the fuck out.”

I said it as fiercely as I could, because I was fighting myself just as much as I was fighting him.

“Listen, babe,” he said, the voice of reasonableness. “Enough of the good girl act. I’m not going to beg. Either admit that you want me, or I’ll walk out of here and never ask again.” 

There was something in his tone that told me he was serious. That was good, right? He would leave and this agony of yearning would be over. It wasn’t as if he was going to force me.

I rolled over to face him again. He was right there, lying on his side on my bed, his long body relaxed, his head propped up on one hand, his blue eyes gazing seriously into mine.
Admit that you want me.
I couldn’t do that. I wouldn’t. He was my stepbrother. My father was fucking his mother.

I gathered breath to say the words, “I don’t want you,” but it would be such a lie. And he knew it. How could I lie to that beautiful face that was so close to mine? My body sure as hell wasn’t going to lie to his body.

“I hate you,” I said, because that was, in a way, true. I hated him for making me feel things I didn’t want to feel. That I shouldn’t feel.

His thumb brushed the surface of my bottom lip, and my words turned to an abject moan.

That was all it took. He moved his mouth closer and then he was kissing me. And I gave in. I surrendered. I couldn’t give this up…not now…not yet. I kissed him back with every bit of the yearning that had been dammed up for so long. I’d wanted him so much and now he was here, in my bed.

At last.

Everything happened quickly after that. Clothes were mutually shed and tossed aside. Our mouths engaged, our tongues teased, our fingers explored and our limbs flailed. The first time he rocked his hips against me, the bed squeaked loudly and I panicked.

“Oh no, they’ll hear us!”

He had the nerve to laugh softly. “I doubt it. They’re down the hall, not underneath us.”

“What if they wander by?”

“I locked the door.”

“Stop laughing. You’re talking too loudly.”

“I don’t wanna talk at all.”

“I think you’re getting off on the idea that this is forbidden and we might get caught.”

He laughed at that, too. He kissed me into silence. The only sounds were the gasps of our breathing and the tearing of the condom wrapper before he lifted my hips and impaled me on his cock.

It might have been wrong, but it felt so good, so hot, so right. My legs wrapped around his waist and we slammed together in rough, wild rhythm. I rubbed my clit against him, desperate for more pleasure and feeling it arc through me. When I felt like screaming, I pressed my mouth against his throat to gag the sound. My fingernails dug into his ass. I was probably hurting him, leaving marks. Good. I wanted to leave my prints on his hide.

“Say my name,” he whispered, “and I’ll let you come.”   

I moaned something, but not his name. He had already won one victory tonight and I was damned if he’d win that one.

He laughed softly. “Okay, babe. I’ll let you off easy this time. But only because I want to hear you scream my name, not just whisper it.” 

I think I laughed a little, too. Even when we were both nearly out of our minds with pleasure, he was still a cocky badass.

He lapped and sucked at my nipples, not missing a beat of our rhythm. I was close, so close. As his cock drove hard into my clenching pussy, he said, “Come for me, baby.”