Chaos (7 page)

My father and Sebastian launched into a boring discussion about the body shop, mostly technical. I ate, doing my best not to interrupt. At one point, my mother leaned over and nudged my elbow. “I like him.”

Yep, the tears nearly came. I had no idea why that one sentiment could make me feel quite like I’d just won the lottery, but it had. I glanced back at Sebastian, trying to see him through my parents’ eyes. He was confident when he spoke, constantly smiling and laughing at my father’s comments. He looked as though he was as comfortable with my parents as Aaron was when he joined us for dinner.

“I do, too, Mom,” I whispered just as softly. “So much.”

Sebastian

For whatever reason, the idea of meeting Payton’s parents hadn’t bothered me. Not when she’d asked me and not when we’d arrived at their house. Maybe I should’ve been nervous, but the more I thought about it, the more I knew it was a necessary step. Truth was, I’d never met a girl’s parents.

I liked her father immediately. Although he’d greeted me on the porch with an intimidating glare, we had hit it off right away. We had a lot of things in common, besides the fact that we both loved his daughter.

Dinner had been fantastic, worlds different than any family dinner I’d ever had at my house. Unlike in the Trovato household¸ there were no condescending remarks, no irritated glares in my direction. After Hal had asked me about what I did for a living, we’d started in about body shops, and I learned that Hal had actually started his body shop more than twenty years ago. His business was steady, and he loved the work more than he loved the money, which I guess was a great reason to follow that career path.

Payton had seemed a little confused during the conversation, and my guess was she hadn’t expected it to go quite so well. I wasn’t sure why that was, because her parents were great.

After dinner, Payton and I did the dishes, sending Susan and Hal into the living room, where we joined them a little while later. The highlight of the evening was when Susan broke out Payton’s baby book, giving me an inside glimpse into Payton’s early years.

“Are you serious right now?” Payton squealed, trying to snatch the book out of her mother’s hands.

“Quit that,” Susan said sternly, grinning. “I’ve been waiting for twenty-three years to be able to do this.”

“Twenty-three years, huh?” Payton retorted. “Since the day I was born, you’ve been eager to embarrass me in front of my boyfriend?”

I watched Payton, fascinated. The fact that she referred to me as her boyfriend had me wanting to high-five someone. Yes, the little things were what got me most.

“Yes, I have,” Susan stated.

I glanced at Hal, who was laughing at the two women as they fought over the book. I finally managed to get my hands on it, but only after I moved over onto the sofa next to Susan. Payton offered me a glare, but I answered it with a smile.

We skimmed through baby photos, starting with the ones of Payton in the hospital the day she was born. She was a cute, chubby baby. There were more of her as she got bigger, some of her crawling, then when she took her first steps. In all of them, Payton was usually smiling at the camera. Susan continued to flip the pages until we got to Payton’s first years in grade school.

I laughed, placing my hand on a picture, stopping Susan from turning the page. “Interesting outfit.”

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it,” Hal interjected. “I cringed every time her mother took her clothes shopping.”

Payton blushed. She had been a cute kid, but nothing compared to the beautiful woman who sat by watching with an amused smirk as I talked to her mother about her daughter’s choice in outfits. For a brief moment, I actually envisioned this moment in a different setting. It would be Payton and me showing off pictures of our daughter when she brought her boyfriend over to meet us.

I slid my eyes up to meet Payton’s, and I knew, one day, we would be doing this exact same thing.

“Well, we really oughta get going,” Payton told her mother a few minutes later. “I’ve got to be at work by five in the morning.”

“I’m so glad you came,” Susan said, standing as Payton and I did. “It was great to meet you. And now that Payton has kindly introduced us, we’ll expect y’all over for dinner more often.”

“I’d be honored,” I told Susan.

After hugging her mother and father, Payton came to stand beside me. I thanked them both for dinner and told them how great it was to meet them. They walked us out onto the porch, waiting until we pulled away from the house, waving good-bye one last time.

“I can’t believe my mother did that,” Payton said with a huff.

“What?” I asked, knowing exactly what she was referring to.

“Showing you my baby pictures.”

“It wasn’t the baby pictures I found most interesting,” I told her.

“Shut up. There wasn’t anything wrong with the clothes that I wore when I was a kid,” she said defensively.

“No, I guess not. At least not if you were looking for a career that involved dancing around a pole.”

Payton laughed, slapping my arm. “My favorite movie as a kid was Coyote Ugly.”

“Why am I not surprised?” I stated, chuckling. I could totally picture a young Payton dancing as if she were going to be the center of attention one day. It was significantly different from the woman I knew, but still, I could definitely see her as a rambunctious, cheerful kid.

“Are we still on for tomorrow night?” Payton asked as we entered the highway that would take us back to her apartment.

“Yep,” I told her. I’d been thinking about her suggestion to invite our friends over for dinner for the better part of the day. I wasn’t sure how I felt about exposing my suspicions to everyone, but for now, I was going along with it. My curiosity as to why she had suggested we do this now had me nearly questioning her, but I decided that could wait until tomorrow. We only had a few more minutes before we made it back to her apartment, and I didn’t want to get into a conversation that couldn’t be finished.

“I told Aaron and Chloe about it,” Payton said. “They’ll be there. And Aaron asked if Garrett could come. Of course I told him yes.”

I nodded. “Good. I’ll probably order out if that’s okay.”

Payton took my hand, moving closer to me on the bench seat. “My mom really likes you,” she told me.

“The feeling’s mutual,” I said. “Your parents are great. Thanks for inviting me.”

Payton laid her head on my shoulder, neither of us saying anything for the few minutes it took us to get back to her apartment.

After parking the truck in an empty space, I walked her to her door. When we got inside, I noticed no one else was there. Taking advantage of the solitude, I flipped the deadbolt on the door and led Payton to her bedroom. I engaged the lock in there, too. When I turned to face her, there was a brilliant smile on her face.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” I asked her, stalking her across the room.

“Depends. Are you thinking about being naked right now?” she asked, her voice soft.

“I’m thinking about
you
being naked, yes,” I told her.

“I like that idea, too.”

Without hesitation, I slid Payton’s jacket off her arms, placing it on the chair before removing my own. Then I moved in closer, lifting her shirt while I kept my eyes trained on her face.

After ridding her of her bra, I cupped her breasts in both hands, squeezing gently until she was moaning softly. “Have I mentioned how beautiful you are?”

She didn’t answer, but I hadn’t expected her to. Leaning down, I sucked one perfect pink tip into my mouth, loving the way she gripped the back of my head, holding me to her. Alternating to her other breast, I laved the puckered tip with my tongue before lowering myself to my knees and unhooking the button on her jeans.

Payton toed off her boots, and I proceeded to pull her jeans and panties down her legs, leaving them in a puddle on the floor.

“Sit on the bed,” I instructed, not getting up from my knees.

I looked up to see she was studying me intently. She knew what I was after without me having to tell her. It only took one step before she was sitting on the bed. I pressed one hand against her chest, urging her to lie back while I forced her legs wider by inserting myself between them.

“Sebastian.” The soft, sexy way she said my name only encouraged me.

I pressed a kiss to her most intimate spot, sliding my tongue over her and then dipping inside, until she was gripping my hair tightly. I didn’t let up until her body tensed, her climax causing her to cry out. While she relaxed on her bed, I disrobed, crawling over her and finding her mouth with mine.

It didn’t take much before I was sliding inside her warmth, grinding my hips against hers over and over. I linked my fingers with hers and held them on each side of her head while I continued to penetrate her slowly. Ever so slowly.

Making love to Payton was truly the best feeling in the world. The feeling of being inside her, our bodies one, never ceased to surprise me with its intensity.

“I love you, Angel,” I whispered, my eyes locked with hers.

“I love you, too,” she replied, her eyes closing briefly as I increased my pace, thrusting forward hard before withdrawing.

“You feel so good, Payton.” I kept my voice barely above a whisper, my eyes never leaving her face as I drove into her. “So good, Angel. This is the only place I want to be.”

Her fingers squeezed mine, and the urge to claim her overtook my desire to keep things slow and sensual. The next thing I knew, I had flipped her over onto her stomach, only going slow until I was once again lodged inside her. With my chest against her back, I linked our hands, driving into her harder and faster until there wasn’t enough air in the room to fill my lungs. The need to come growing stronger by the second.

I didn’t relent until Payton cried out, mumbling my name as her body gripped me, milking my release from me.

Somehow I managed to keep from crushing her by rolling to my back. She turned to her side, facing me, a wondrous grin on her face. “I think you should stay the night tonight.”

My eyebrow arched in question. We’d had this conversation not too long ago. “Are you sure? The last thing I want to do is keep you up all night.”

“I’m exhausted,” she whispered. “I just don’t want to go to sleep without you.”

I knew just what she was feeling. Pulling her closer, I managed to draw the blankets up over us both before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. I was already getting used to this. So much so, it was difficult to sleep when she wasn’t with me, but I hadn’t bothered to tell her that.

The reassurance that she was feeling the same thing had my brain tossing around so many ideas.

I knew we were in for some rocky moments as we began to unearth what had really happened to my mother, but there was no doubt in my mind that Payton and I would make it through this. Stronger than before.

And with that last fleeting thought, I closed my eyes, giving in to sleep with Payton in my arms.

Payton

Tuesday night

I went to Sebastian’s right after work. Fearing that Trevor would try to walk me to my car again, I actually snuck out early. With Conrad on a business trip in California, I figured what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. And if it did, I just couldn’t find it in me to care.

When I arrived, I found the front door unlocked, so I let myself in. Leif was still in the recliner in the living room as I passed by him, making my way to the kitchen. I found it was empty, so I returned to stand beside him. “Where’s Sebastian?”

“Workout room,” he said, motioning his hand without ever looking away from the television.

Great.

After dropping my purse on the kitchen table and assuring myself that this was a good idea for the hundredth time today, I made my way past the laundry room, then out to the pool area and to the workout room on the opposite end. The door was closed, but I could hear the music blaring. It was a wonder Sebastian still had eardrums for as loud as he always blasted his music.

I didn’t bother knocking; he wouldn’t have heard me anyway. When I stepped inside, he saw me immediately. He looked much as he had the last time I’d found him working out. He was coated in perspiration, hugging the heavy bag, his back muscles flexing and the angel wings moving with every deep inhale and long exhale.

The man was beautiful. Sleek, corded muscle covered by smooth, tan skin. I would never tire of looking at him.

He gifted me with a smile, but even I could tell it was forced.

“I didn’t expect you so early,” he told me.

“I wanted to talk to you before everyone arrived.”

Sebastian nodded, peeling the tape from his hands. Aside from the first time he’d acknowledged me being there, he wasn’t making eye contact, and I knew he was upset. He had seemed just as concerned that morning when I’d reminded him that we were going to get together tonight to talk to everyone. Apparently, his mood hadn’t changed with the passing hours. I knew he probably didn’t understand why I had made the suggestion, but Sebastian had to realize that this was the only way we could figure this out.

As it was, we hadn’t made any strides on our own, but mostly because I had no idea what we were supposed to be looking for. We needed someone who knew what they were doing. Someone like Leif’s mother’s boyfriend. The detective.

Granted, we could’ve just asked to talk to him directly, but after the phone call I had received that afternoon, I was more hell-bent on clearing the air once and for all. As much as it pained me to do so, I had to reveal to Sebastian just why I was making this request.

Leaning against the wall, I kept my eyes on him as I spoke. “Something happened yesterday.”

His head lifted and his eyes pinned me in place. There was concern reflected in his golden gaze, but he didn’t say anything. “Yesterday?”

“Yeah. I didn’t want to ruin dinner with my parents, so I didn’t tell you last night.”

I had debated on how I would tell him about the incident with Conrad, mulling over it in my head for the last several hours. At one point, I had opted not to tell him anything, but I knew I had to. Sebastian had lived with too many secrets his entire life. The last thing I wanted to do was keep something from him.

“Your father confronted me yesterday morning,” I said, keeping my voice even. “Before you get upset, hear me out.”

I noticed his hands were balled into fists at his sides and his eyes had narrowed on my face.

“He asked me if I knew you had moved. I told him yes. Then he asked me if I knew you’d quit your job.” I cocked an eyebrow. Sebastian hadn’t informed me that was happening, and I could tell he realized that. “I told him no.”

“I’m sorry, I—”

I held up my hand. “You have nothing to apologize for. And that’s not the point, anyway.”

Sebastian dropped his head and paced in front of me before stopping just a few feet away. When he was paying attention to me once again, I continued. “I told your father that I was uncomfortable with the conversation. What I do in my personal life is none of his business. And what you do in your personal life does not affect my job.”

Sebastian nodded, apparently understanding.

“I walked out of the meeting with your father without letting him finish. I didn’t want to hear what he had to say.”

“Shit.”

I stepped forward and put my hand on his arm. He was hot to the touch, his skin slick from his sweat. Oddly, I found that incredibly sexy.

“Trevor was there when I left Conrad’s office. He spent a couple of hours behind the closed door with Conrad. I don’t know what they talked about. I don’t care. But there is something else I need to tell you.”

Sebastian was the one to lift an eyebrow in question this time. I couldn’t look at him when I told him the next part. I had informed Lauren that I would not relay her message, but as I’d thought more about it throughout the day, my fear had gotten the best of me. Especially after she’d called me again.

There was something about her. She terrified me.

“Lauren called. Yesterday
and
today.”

That got Sebastian’s attention, and he moved closer to me, lifting my chin and forcing me to look in his eyes.

“What did she say, Payton?”

His eyes raked over my face, and I knew he was trying to figure out if I would lie to him or possibly omit some of the facts. I wasn’t going to do that. I had no reason to.

“When she called yesterday, she said—” I swallowed hard, blinking rapidly to hold back the oncoming tears. I was pissed and the tears were proof. “She said that now that you have severed ties with her family, she wants you to keep it that way. She said your volatile behavior has no place there. In
her
family.”

“
Her
family?” he asked.

I nodded.

“And what did you tell her?”

“I told her I wouldn’t relay the message and I hung up on her.”

“Fuck.”

Yep, in one word, Sebastian had pretty well summed it all up.

“She called again today. I knew as soon as I heard her voice why she had called. She wasn’t looking for your father, because he’s in California for two days.”

“Shit.”

“She told me that Conrad had told her about what had happened. She wanted to check in with me, make sure I was okay. I told her I was fine. She asked if I had told you what she’d said. I told her no. She told me that if I wanted to come to work tomorrow, I had to tell you.”

A minute passed. Long, painful seconds ticked by while Sebastian simply stared at me. I wanted to know what was going through his head, but I was scared to ask.

Finally he spoke. “And that’s why you wanted to talk?”

I nodded again. Putting my hands on his biceps, I met his gaze head on. “Sebastian, we need to figure this out. If you have concerns that your father might’ve somehow played a part in your mother’s death, we have to find proof. Someone needs to be brought to justice. Our friends can help us.”

“How do you figure?” he asked, releasing my chin and turning away from me. My hands slipped from his arm as he did.

“Leif’s mom’s boyfriend is a detective,” I told him firmly. “We might be able to leverage that. Get him to check into the reports of the accident.”

“Okay. That’s a compelling argument for bringing Leif in. But what about the others? Why do we have to tell them?” Sebastian stared at me from across the room.

“If we start digging, Lauren and Conrad are going to figure it out. Especially if there is something they’re trying to hide. We’re gonna need all the eyes we can get to watch our backs. I know this sounds crazy, Sebastian, but I want to figure this out as much as you do.”

“Why?” Sebastian barked. He didn’t move closer, but his eyes were locked on mine. “Why do you want to be part of it?”

“Because I love you, Sebastian,” I said simply, my voice soft. “I love you.”

I don’t think that was what he’d expected me to say, and whether it was the words or my honesty or just the heat of the moment, something had Sebastian stalking me until my back was against the wall. His mouth landed on mine. Hard.

Throwing my arms around his neck, I held him to me, meeting the firm thrust of his tongue in my mouth. When his rock-hard thigh pressed between my legs, I moaned into his mouth. This was the Sebastian I knew. The one who lurked beneath the cool exterior. He was on emotional overload, and when he released some of the pent-up energy, he had the ability to overwhelm me in the best possible way. Without words, he conveyed to me exactly what he was feeling.

He unhooked the button on my jeans and slipped his hand down into my panties, his fingers sliding through my slick folds. I writhed against him, unable to fight the sensations that soon swamped me. I had to break the kiss because I needed air.

“That’s it, Payton. I want you to come on my fingers.”

Well, he was going to get his wish if… “Oh, God, Sebastian.” The words were barely heard, drowned out by the moan that accompanied them as he curled his fingers and thrust two inside me.

Right there, against the wall in Sebastian’s workout room, his eyes locked with mine, his fingers driving me to absolute, perfect madness, I shattered.

And just like always, he was right there to hold me together.

When I said I loved him, it truly didn’t do justice for the feelings I had inside.

Sebastian Trovato was
my everything
.