Stranded with My Stepbrother Chapter 155

McKenzie

The car ride home was silent, mostly because of me. Officer Pence showed up at the gallery with Officer Edwards. I was beginning to think he was stalking us.

He glanced at Will and I once—just once—and I knew he knew. I knew he knew that we knew he knew. But instead of coming over to question us himself, he sent Officer Edwards.

Officer Edwards brought us to a corner of the gallery that smelled like hundred-year-old socks and just shrugged. “So. What’s the official line?”

“Line?” I repeated.

“We were just here and some crazy lady showed up and threw acid on poor Bran,” Will said without missing a beat. “We have no idea what could have motivated the attack.”

It sounded genuine, like he’d rehearsed it in front of a mirror several times before we came. And maybe he had. If I’d known, I would have done the same. “Yeah, what he said.”

“Uh-huh.” He didn’t believe us. I didn’t blame him. “Then the fact he attacked Miss Kent last Saturday had absolutely nothing to do with it.”

“Can’t imagine how. We’ve been recuperating at home since then,” Will said.

I leaned into his side, trying to absorb his confidence.

“These things can be hired out, you know,” Officer Edwards pointed out.

Will’s eyes widened. “Who would do such a thing?”

“Terrible, terrible thing,” I added.

Officer Edwards snorted. “Fine. Detective Pence told me to get your statements for the record. I’m going to pretend like I believe you because I already know how this is going to go.”

“Detective Pence?” I asked.

Officer Edwards nodded. “We both got promoted for a job well done. But mostly for keeping our mouths shut. You understand how these things work.”

“We do,” Will said. “And thank you for your hard work on this case. Hopefully, the woman is brought to justice.”

“She’ll be brought to the same justice Mr. Lockwood was brought to. Official justice, anyway.” He sighed. “I don’t even know why we’re here.”

“Keeping up appearances,” Will replied.

“Exactly.” Officer Edwards took a step back. “You two enjoy the rest of your evening. I’m sure you’ve got a lot to discuss.”

Will hugged me closer to his side. “Thank you for all that you do, Officer.”

“Doesn’t feel like a whole lot these days,” he muttered while making his way back over to Detective Pence.

“Hm.” Will frowned after him.

“What?” I asked.

“It’s just a shame. He and Detective Pence are good cops. If they’ve got our beat, they’re going to be frustrated a lot,” he said.

I was confused. “‘Our beat’?”

“I like to call it the society beat. Where they’ll be dealing with high society crimes for the most part,” he explained.

“Oh.” I gave it some thought. A lot of money was probably spent keeping a lot of crimes—minor and major—swept under the rug. “I can see where that would be frustrating.”

Will rubbed my back. “How are you doing?”

“I… think I’d like to go home now.” My emotions were such a riot of contradictions I couldn’t nail one down to examine it before another bubbled up. It was exhausting.

“I like that idea.” He guided me to the gallery door and out onto the sidewalk.

I wasn’t even surprised to see our chauffeur already there, holding open the door to our sleek, black Mercedes.

Will helped me into the back seat then slid in beside me. He draped an arm across the back of my seat after we were buckled up, playing gently with my hair.

“Home?” the chauffeur asked.

“Yes, please, Rafael,” Will said.

Rafael nodded and put the partition up once we were underway. I liked that he tried to give us the illusion of privacy, even though whatever was planted in the car were recording our every word.

“How are you feeling?” Will asked again.

I clenched and unclenched my fists in my lap. “I’m not sure.”

“I kind of figured. I’m not sure how I’m feeling, either,” he admitted.

Tears stung my eyes, and I leaned on his shoulder. “It was truly horrifying. I’m never going to forget it. But on the other hand, I feel like I needed to see it. Like now I can sleep better at night.”

“I understand. Trust me.” He kissed the top of my head. “I feel satisfied. Like justice has been served. Not an inch of me thinks it was too much or that he didn’t deserve it. I’m trying to reconcile that with being a moral human being.”

“Exactly!” I exclaimed. “That’s exactly how I feel! I mean, what kind of person am I when I feel good about that kind of suffering?! Bran’s an asshole. No, he’s a monster. But he also hurt Gwendolyn and could have killed you with the drugs he put in your tea—”

“Not to mention the small matter of beating you unconscious and trying to rape you,” he reminded me.

I blushed. “Yes, well, it doesn’t seem as important as you nearly getting killed. I mean, what would I do without you?” I shivered. “I think my whole soul would be ripped from my body.”

He tilted my chin up and kissed me. “I love you, and you know I feel the same way. Which is why your getting beaten half to death is not a small matter to me.”

“True,” I reluctantly admitted.

“I like the selflessness, but I for one, will never forgive him for what he did, and I hope he loses an eye,” he said darkly.

“See? That’s what I’m talking about! What kind of people are we when we’re wishing that kind of misery on another person?!” I responded.

Will cupped my cheek. “Do you think I’m a monster for wishing him ill?”

“No! But….”

“I don’t think you are, either. Like I said, we’re human. And he’s a very, very bad man. I’m glad we’ll both sleep better knowing Grandfather has his eyes on Bran. There’s not a lot I feel I can thank my grandfather for, but this? Yes,” he said.

I chewed my lip. “I just feel like I’m not supposed to feel this… good. I felt relieved. I mean, I felt a lot of things watching that acid eat him up. But ultimately, I felt relieved. Like, closure.”

“Me, too. I didn’t feel as though I had this all-consuming anger anymore. I didn’t have to carry it anymore because Grandfather took care of the situation—without having to drag either of us through court and the media’s muckraking. I… just hated the idea of you being subjected to that after everything Bran already did. He would have insisted you asked for it—all that crap.” He rubbed his hand over his face. “I know we’re probably going to get burned by the media over this, that, and the other thing. It comes with the territory of being a kind of social celebrity. But that wasn’t how I wanted us to start.”

“What ‘this, that, and the other thing’?” I asked, frowning. “Did we do something wrong? I mean, I know Bran would have been an absolute dickhead, but what else is there?”

“Well… I’m eleven years older than you.” He winced.

I rolled my eyes. “Seriously? We’re beating that dead horse again?”

“It’s something they’re going to latch onto. I don’t think it’ll become a big deal, considering men in their seventies in high society are still marrying twenty-year-olds, but they’ll poke a little fun at it,” he said.

“Let them. I know what I want. I know who I want. And I hope you do, too.” I gave him a long look, our unspoken code for we’re leaving, anyway.

He nodded. “I do know who I want. I can’t imagine my life without you. That being said, I am going to find a way to propose properly without Ike’s scheming and five hundred reporters watching. It’ll probably be something small….”

“Thank God for that. I like small.” I smiled at him. “If it’s just the two of us sitting on the patio, I’d be completely happy. Over the moon, even. I might even go modern and propose to you first!”

“Don’t you dare,” he scolded me. “I only get one chance to do this right.”

I gave him a soft kiss. “Okay. I was only kidding. Mostly.”

“Yes, well, stick with the ‘mostly’ part.” He stared off into the distance, idly playing with my hair.

“I don’t want you to give yourself an ulcer trying to decide how to propose to me,” I said.

Will smiled slightly. “It’d be a badge of honor. But no, I’m just trying to figure out how to get you an engagement ring without Ike’s input. I know the monstrosity of a ring he’s going to foist on us. It was my grandmother’s. It’s ugly as fuck.”

I burst out laughing. “That’s what you’re worried about?!”

“You haven’t seen this ring,” he replied solemnly. “The best thing I can say about it is if we got lost at sea, we could use it as a boat anchor.”

I laughed harder. “Oh my God, you’re going to make me pee!”

He grinned. “Challenge accepted.”

I swatted him. “Even if I had to wear the boat anchor, as long as it told the whole world I’m yours, that would be fine by me. Too bad men don’t get engagement rings.”

“Will a wedding ring do?” he asked softly.

My mouth went dry, and my heart pounded. I framed his face with my hands and kissed him thoroughly.

When we came up for air, I managed to gasp, “Yes. That will do nicely.”

Will swallowed, his eyes burning with passion. “Rafael, I think you need to take the long way home.”

“Very good, sir.” The driver’s voice came over the intercom.

Will undid his seatbelt then leaned over and did the same to mine, kissing my neck and collarbone hungrily.

I burned all over. It had been nearly a week since he’d touched me. I understood—I had a concussion, after all—but I still missed our physical connection desperately. We’d never gone so long without having sex.

“How are you feeling?” he asked against my skin, his hand massaging my breast through my cocktail dress.

“Needy,” I answered, reaching down to open his fly. “How are you feeling?”

“Same. I just don’t want to cause you too much strain….” He unzipped the back of my dress while he spoke.

I could have been half dead from the concussion and still wanted this. I knew I wasn’t supposed to do anything really strenuous for at least a week. But the Masterson doctor had come to check on me daily and said I was healing well. “Will, if we don’t make love this instant, my poor concussed brain is going to explode.”

“Well, we can’t have that.” He drew me into his lap.

I finished freeing his dick from his pants and boxers. He was hard as a rock and leaked a little on my hand.

He groaned and pulled down my dress, exposing my breasts. I gasped as he began worrying my nipples with his teeth, first one, then the other.

I stroked his shaft. “Will?”

“Yesss?” he managed, bringing his head up from feasting on my breasts.

“I’m still wearing underwear.” I pouted.

His lips parted, and he licked them slowly, sending a thrill of desire through me. “I can fix that.”

“Good.” I widened my thighs, knowing what he was about to do.

Will pushed my skirt up and snapped my panties right off. Then he took my hips and guided me down onto his cock.

I moaned as he pushed up into me, filling me to the brim. It seemed like the length of him would never end!

“That’s it, honeybee. Take it all. It’s been a while, but I know you still can,” he whispered hotly in my ear as he rubbed my clit while giving me the last two inches of him.

I had to take several deep breaths. I gripped his shirt and buried my face in his neck.

He danced his fingers up and down my bare back, not moving, letting me get used to him again. He was a lot to handle, even when we were going at it regularly.

Now, I felt like I was climbing Mt. Everest without oxygen.

Will kissed my temple. “You okay?”

I nodded. “Just need… a minute… damn… keep forgetting… how big you are!”

He chuckled. “You always give the best compliments.”

I squeezed my inner muscles, and he groaned. “Don’t make fun.”

“Okay. Lesson learned.” He touched me everywhere, light, loving little touches.

Soon enough, I was ready. “Sit still,” I told him. Then I started to ride him.

Will threw his head back against the seat, his hands on my hips, trying to ‘help.’

I pulled his hands off my hips. “No, no. You’ve been bad. You’re going to have to sit there and let me screw your brains out. No touching.”

“What?!” His voice was strained. “Honeybee, I said I learned my lesson.”

I gave him an impish smile. “I don’t think you’ve learned it well enough.”