Dirty Little Mistake (Dirty #2) (19 page)

“Have I shown you that I do know what it means to hurt and to be stuck and to do things for someone else every single day even though you’d rather not do them for even one?”

“Yes,” I whispered.

“So go.”

“Go?”

“Leave. We’re done. This
week is over. The three dates with Ian are through. We. Are. Done.”

With a feeling in my throat that was a
s thick as the clouds above me, I tore from Ridley’s house.  I raced across our adjoining lawns to my place and reached the porch just as the first rain drops splattered from the sky.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Ridley

I waited until I was a hundred percent sure that Brenna was gone before I opened my eyes again.  When I did open them, they found the framed card immediately. 

I missed my Aunt
Penelope.  All the time.  The influence she had on my life was monumental.  It was also deeply personal and I rarely – if ever – talked about it without being prodded. 

The other part…The events leading up to bringing her and Ian into my life…I’d
never
spoken that aloud before.  Not in a forced counselling session, not to Ian, not even to my Aunt Penelope herself.

With Brenna, it all came out.  Of course, I’d said it to be mean.  To hurt her the way she was hurting me.  It didn’t matter that she didn’t know what kind of pain she was causing me.  I just wanted to build a wall to protect myself from getting in any deeper.

Only it backfired. When I told her the story, it didn’t feel cruel.  It didn’t feel like a wall.  It felt like the
tearing down
of a wall.  Like, for the first time in my life I had someone to share my darkest secrets with.

What did I want her to do with them, though?  What had I expected her to say when I confessed the thing I kept closest to my heart?  What had I thought she would do?  Sink to her knees and beg to be with me instead of Ian?

No.

Maybe.

Yes.

No doubt about it, yes.

Why the hell hadn’t she?

Yeah, I’d acted shitty and pushed her away, but…But what?

I was damned sure she liked me.  Maybe more than liked.  This past week together had been as close to perfect as my life had ever been.  She felt it too. I knew she did.

The only thing standing between us was Ian and
I still didn’t see what kind of hold he had on her.  So why had she run off so easily?

“Too many damned questions,” I muttered.

It took me ten hours too long to decide that the only way to get answers was to ask Brenna herself.

***

I rang the doorbell three times in a row.  Just as I raised my fist to pound on the door, Brenna’s roommate answered it.

“
Afternoon, Lisa” I greeted in as cheerful a voice as I could muster.

“
It’s Risa,” she corrected.

“Sorry. Good
afternoon, Risa.”

Brenna’s roommate gazed at me flatly. “It’s
night.”

Shit.

What had Brenna told her?

I smiled and cleared my throat, but her expression didn’t change.

“Can I help you?” she asked coolly.

I decided to drop the pleasantries. “Is Brenna home?”

“No.”

“I can see her car in the driveway.”

“So?”

“So…I only have a few minutes before I leave for work and I want to talk to her.”

“Well,
she
doesn’t want to talk to
you
.”

“I know.”

“What makes you think you’ve got the right to make Brenna’s decisions for her?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She crossed her arms over her chest defensively. “I’m not going to spill Brenna’s secrets to you.”

“What
secrets?”

“I’m not going to tell you,” she repeated insistently. “I just want to know why the hell you’d send her back to Ian.”

My blood went cold. “I didn’t.”

“Did you, or did you not give Ian some kind of all-night pass for that stupidly fancy hotel you work at?” she demanded.

“Yes, but—”

“Do you think Ian would make a good husband?” she almost-yelled.

“What?”

“Brenna has spent her whole life running! From the things her mother did, from the things her mother said she’s become, from everything! And now she thinks she’s got herself backed into a corner with no way out and she’s freaking out. For fuck’s sake! Help me show her she’s not
stuck! Help me show her she’s about to make the biggest mistake of her life.”

“Risa, please. Back it up. Did you say Ian took her to my hotel?”

“Yes. Thanks to you.”

Sonofabitch.
How had that happened?

“How long ago did they leave?”

“Ten minutes?”

Ten minutes.

I grabbed my keys from my pocket and turned to go.  Risa grabbed my arm

“Where are you going?”
she asked.

“To do what you said,” I replied. “To stop her from making the biggest mistake of her life.”

***

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Brenna

The second Ian closed the hotel room door behind us, I
took a deep, steadying breath and kissed him hard on the mouth.  He pulled away, surprise clear on his face.

I’d made my decision the moment Ian suggested the hotel as a place to talk.  I’d give us both a night to remember.

This time.

And it would seal my fate.  Sleeping with Ian on purpose would take away any illusion I had of choice.  And it was something Ridley would never forgive.

I dropped my jacket, exposing the sheer negligee I wore underneath.

Ian turned toward me and his eyes widened.  He took a step back. “Whoa. Brenna. What’re you doing?”

I plastered a sultry smile onto my face. “What does it
look
like I’m doing?”

I moved toward him, reaching my hand for his chest.  He stumbled backwards and landed on the bed. 

“You said you wanted a private place to talk,” he reminded me.

“I did. I do. But you can’t tell me you brought me to a hotel room to
talk
.”

“I – Listen, I
– Okay,” he stumbled over the words. “Brenna…Have you thought this through?”

“Do I
look
like I haven’t thought it through?” I countered, and twirled so the negligee danced up to expose my rear end.

“You look delicious.” He eyes raked up my body. “But I don’t think this is really what you want.”

“Ian, I’ve done nothing
but
think about this for the last week. The last month and a half. I’m tired of thinking. I’m ready for doing.”

I bent down and pushed my lips against his softly.  For a second, he kissed me back, but then he groaned and pushed me back.

“Can I just have a second?”

“Sure,” I agreed.

He jumped to his feet and walked to the bathroom.

I
climbed into the bed and adjusted the sheets.  I slid one leg out from under the satin covers and hung it across the bed in a way that I hoped was sexy. 

Ian dropped something in
the bathroom and cursed loudly.

I looked down at my expo
sed leg doubtfully and spied a scrape on my knee.  Crap.  Wrong leg. 

I moved the sheets again, but when I stuck the other leg out, it slipped off the bed altogether.  It also pulled the lace of my thong straight up my rear end in a decidedly unpleasant way.

I didn’t feel even close to sexy.

I gave up on the
pose as I relieved myself of my wedgie and tucked the blankets up my body.  I reached over to the lamp and hit the dimmer just as Ian came back into the room. 

He stood at the end of the bed awkwardly.

“Did you and Ridley have a fight?” he asked.

My heart squeezed and I forced it to harden against the feeling.

“Do you really want to talk about Ridley?” I replied lightly.

“You don’t?”

“No. Why would I?”

“Because…I don’t know. I guess I thought that
he might have something to do with why you wanted to talk to me.”

“
It has nothing to do with him. Less than nothing.”

“You don’t sound so sure about that.”

Didn’t I?

“I’m sure.” But it felt like a lie.

Ian sighed. “I’m not that bright of a guy, Brenna. I let my dick lead me around most of the time and that gets me into all kinds of shit. But I can tell when a girl isn’t into me. And you…You’re not into me. You don’t want to be here.”

He
was right.

I didn’t
want to be there at all.   

T
he only place I wanted to be was with Ridley.

“Brenna? Why don’t you just tell me what the fuck is really going on?”

I brought my eyes up to meet Ian’s.  And I opened my mouth to tell him everything.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Ridley

The twenty minute drive to the hotel did nothing to calm me down.  I spent the whole trip wondering just how long it was going to take for Ian to work his web of charm over Brenna.  Especially factoring in her own eagerness.

Not long at all.

When I reached the staff lot, I had to force myself to keep from jumping out of the truck before I even had it in park.

I sprinted across the pavement, only slowing when I reached the front door.

Jen, the evening concierge grinned at me as I approached her counter.

“Rid! Isn’t it your day off?” she asked.

I shrugged and launched as casually as I could into my explanation. “I was pretty tired at the end of my last shift. Think I left my coat behind.”

She gave me a scrutinizing once over. “You sure you want your coat? You look a little war
m.”

I touched my damp brow and feigned a chuckle. “Just in a hurry.”

“Hot date?”

“Something like that.”

“Whoa.” Jen’s eyes widened curiously. “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say yes to that question.”

“Wasn’t quite a yes, was it?”

“Wasn’t quite a no either.”

I glanced up at the clock above her head.  How long had Brenna and Ian been in their room?  There was only one answer.  Too long.

“Ronaldo on?” I asked, knowing perfectly well that he was.

Jen nodded. “Yeah. And he won’t be happy if he finds you in the staff room.”

I forced a smile. “That’s where you come in, I guess.”

She sighed. “What’s in it for me?”

Dammit.

I didn’t have time to bargain with her.  I needed to get to Brenna.  Before Ian did.

“What do you want?” I asked, masking my irritation.

“That easy?”

“I
really
need that coat.”

“Hmm. Maybe I should think about it,” Jen teased. “I was expecting a bit of a fight.”

“Name your price. Please.”

She blinked at my short tone. “Geez. Relax, Rid. Sneak me a plate of food the next time the restaurant caters a wedding. And promise me gravy.”

“Done.”

“What does your damned coat look like?”

I handed her a bullshit description and she warned me, “If Ronaldo catches me, I’m going to go ahead and hand him your head on a platter. And I’ll still want that gravy.”

The second she took off, I jumped behind the counter and navigated to the reservations screen.  I tapped my fingers impatiently as I waited for it to load. 

“C’mon,” I muttered.

Finally, the fill-in-the-blanks popped up.  I typed in Ian’s name and his room number flashed in front of me.

602.

A suite on the top floor.  Of course the bastard had squeezed out an upgrade.  Every room up there need
ed a specially coded key card to get to them, making my life a little harder.

My eyes darted between the computer and the door to the backroom that adjoined the hotel and the restaurant.  I had no idea how quickly Jen would give up looking for my non-existent coat, but I figured it wouldn’t be long.

As quickly as I could, I slid open the drawer under the counter and grabbed one of the blanks cards from inside.  With sweaty fingers, I fumbled through the process of linking it to the room.  The computer beeped angrily each time I made a mistake, but at last I found the right spot.

I swiped the card, cleared the screen, and slid back to the front of the desk just as Jen returned.

“You sure you left your jacket in the break room?” she asked.

I forced a grin. “No. I guess it could be at home.”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re a tool.”

“Thanks for checking.”

I turned to go.

“Hey, Rid!”

I paused, wondering if she’d somehow spotted my subterfuge.

“Yeah?” I called back cautiously.

“Don’t forget my gravy!”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

I slipped down the hall that led to the elevators and swiped my stolen card in the slot. 

I needed to get Brenna out.

I wanted to avoid confronting Ian.  At least for now.

By the time I reached the top floor, a plan had formed in my mind.  An idiotic, career-risking plan, but a plan nonetheless.

The second the doors slid open, I flattened myself against the wall.  I knew for a fact none of the ceiling cameras were in working order, but that didn’t mean I had to advertise my intentions either.

I made my way to the nearest utility closet, flicked the light on and ducked inside.  I rifled through it quickly.  I had no trouble finding the tools I needed.  I grabbed a feather duster and sprayed it lightly with stain remover.  Lastly, I snagged a pack of hotel-logo matches. 

In under two minutes, I was standing outside Ian and Brenna’s room with the duster held as far away from my body as I could manage.  I lit a match and touched it to the feathers, which obligingly burst into flames.  I raised my arm to the sprinkler sensor above my head.

The accelerant on the duster caused a billow of smoke to snake along the ceiling.

Too late, I realized what was about to happen.

“Shit.”

My intention was to set off the single sprinkler out of room 602 using the concentrated heat, which would automatically set of the alarm in their room, which would in turn force them out.  With the smoke travelling the way it was, though, every alarm on the floor would be tripped.  It was hell of a lot more than I’d bargained for.

“Shit,” I said again, and stared up at the duster in growing horror.

Reckless.  Stupid.  Dangerous.

I couldn’t settle on the best descriptor.

Fucked.

Yep.  That was the one.  I was totally fucked.

What the hell were you thinking?

My juvie record already included counts of assault, possession, and a bit of petty larceny.  I couldn’t toss the duster unless I wanted to add an arson charge to that.  In adult court this time of course.

I needed to put the fire out.

I ripped my shirt over my head and dropped it over the smoking feathers.  I wrapped it up as tightly as I could in hopes that I would smother the heat.  Instead, the synthetic fibers in the shirt crackled and began to melt.

I struggled to maintain my grip on the handle but it was growing warmer by the second.  I eyed the window at the end of the hall.  It was sealed, but smashing it sounded a like a hell of a better option than banging on Ian and Brenna’s door and asking to borrow their sink.

A snap above my head made me jerk my eyes up. A second pop and a hiss told me the sprinkler had finally – belatedly - reacted to the heat.  Water cascaded down on my face and bare chest and over the feather duster too, sending a plume of smoke up and out.

In reply, the first alarm sounded from within room 602 and then the second and third one from down the hall.  In about five seconds, the hotels guests were going to start rushing from their rooms.

Including Brenna and Ian.

Their door handle rattled.

Clutching the offending, still-smoking incendiary device in my hands, I bolted.  I took the staff stairs in order to avoid the crowd that would be descending on the regular ones, and when I got to the first floor, I was glad I’d done it.  The lobby where the main stairs and elevators led was swarming with people in varying state
s of dress.

The whole hotel echoed with the sound of smoke alarms and I realized my little stunt must’ve set them off on every floor.

I hugged the wall as a family of four in matching hotel bathrobes scurried past me.  The little girl in the group stared at me, eyes wide. 

“Time to get out of here,” I said out loud to myself.

I spun to go, and that’s when I caught sight of Brenna.

She stood off to the side of the lobby and looked like she was doing her best to become invisible.  No way in hell was she going to go unnoticed for long. Not dressed like that.

She was wearing nothing but a filmy piece of fabric.  Its frilly bottom barely covered her ass, and the ribbons fastened over her chest drew immediate attention to her pert nipples.  To top it off, she was soaked.  If the nightie had been enticingly translucent before, it was positively see-through now.

Jesus H. Christ.

She folded her arms as though she could sense that she was being stared at.  She glanced around nervously and I knew she must be seeking Ian.  He was nowhere to be seen.

For my own sake, I knew I had to leave her there.  Running across the room and scooping her in my arms like some damaged knight wasn’t an option.  Someone would see me.  Someone would make the connection between how I looked and what was going on in the hotel.  I’d get fired.  My ass would get tossed in jail faster than I could plead not guilty by reason of lovesick insanity.

I took a step backward toward the emergency exit behind me.

But then she shivered, and I was done for.

My feet moved on their own.

I didn’t know if anyone saw me cut across the lobby and I didn’t care.  I just kept going until I reached her. 

I wrapped my arms around her.  She let out a tiny gasp of surprise.

“Ridley! What are you doing here?”

There was no point in lying. “I came for you.”

She sun
k into me gratefully. “Thank God.”

“Let’s go,” I said gruffly into her damp hair.

She remained wordless as I guided her out into the cool night air, clinging to me as we weaved through the parking lot.  When we reached my truck and I sought to untangle her from my waist, I realized she was shaking.

“Hey, hey. You’re okay,” I murmured as I stroked her hair.

“I’m not,” she sobbed.

“It’s all right, PC. You’re out here, there’s no fire, and I’ve got you.”

She shuddered and relaxed her hold on my waist but she didn’t let me go.

“I did this,” she whispered.

I held very still for a moment before I remembered that she couldn’t possibly know I’d set the alarms to get her away from Ian.

Where is that fucker, anyway?

“I did this,” Brenna repeated.

“You did what?” I asked carefully.

Her confession came out in a rush of words. “I was here with Ian. I had it all planned out. Or at least I thought I did. I was going to sleep with him. And then I was going to talk to him. Or maybe the other way. Oh my God. I’m an irresponsible idiot. There is something so wrong with me. This is my punishment.”

Very gently, so I could look her in the eye, I pulled away.

“You didn’t do this,” I told her.

“I did,” she insisted and
hung her head. “I’m so ashamed. I should have just told him the truth from the beginning…But I was so damned selfish and this whole time I’ve only been able to think about one thing.”

“What’s
the one thing, PC?”

“
You,
Ridley.” She said my name like it was being ripped from her chest. “Always you.”

A hundred thoughts, a hundred questions rolled through my mind as her heartbroken eyes met mine.  Some, I wasn’t sure I would be able to deal with. Like how she could she fit so much sadness and so much adoration into one look.  And why the two things seem inseparable to Brenna.  Others made my heart soar. 
Me.
  She wanted me.

So I did the only thing I could do.  I slipped my arms around her once more and crushed my lips to hers.

She tasted sweet.  Like dessert wine.  Like home.  Like there was nothing else in the world but her.

Her hands found the back of my neck as mine trailed down the curve of her waist.  I settled my fingers into the small of her back for just a moment before I dragged them across her hips and then lower to cup her perfect ass.

I buried my mouth against her throat and then I lifted her from the ground.  As her legs closed over my hips, I didn’t bother to disguise the deep moan that escaped my lips.

I cemented her in place with one hand while I flipped down the tailgate of my truck with the other.

I set her on the bed liner and she gasped as her bare skin hit the molded plastic. 

“Cold?” I asked, and when she nodded, I added, “Not for long.”

I ran my palms up the goose bumps on her arms, paused at her shoulders, then slid down the straps of her little nightie.  I placed a kiss on each collarbone before I deftly undid the ribbon that held together the fabric in the front.

A breeze wafted through the air, bringing her nipples to perfect, pink attention.  I stroked each reverently with my thumb and forefinger, loving that they got even more firm under the attention.

I kissed her again, this time gently.  I teased the corners of her mouth with my tongue and her lips parted obligingly.  With my hands on her thighs, I explored the rest of her mouth, marking it as mine as thoroughly as I knew how.