Beyond Broken(25)

        

To take his mind away from the house, he thought about Maddie. For a brief moment tonight, Caleb had almost said fuck it and kissed her. He wouldn't have stopped there. He would've stripped her down and pushed her back on the floor. He would've found peace between her thighs. He almost imagined that he would've fucked her gently, like how he thought she deserved. Or maybe he'd start out gently, but by the end, he wouldn't have been able to hold himself back any longer and he'd spend himself deep inside, her walls clenching around him, milking him dry.

Caleb squeezed his eyes shut, bringing a hand to his head to pinch the space between his brows. Fuck, he wanted her. He barely knew her, but his cock didn't seem to mind. What worried him the most was that he wanted to kiss her. He hadn't kissed a woman since Victoria, the fourth and last woman to betray him. But, during that strange moment between him and Maddie, he'd wanted to taste her lips, to nibble on them, to explore the heat of her mouth.

Maddie would've let him. Her skin had been soft-so damn soft-when he brushed her cheek. What had possessed him to do that, he didn't know. Now, he wondered if she was just as soft everywhere else. Would her eyes widen like they did tonight if he kissed down her body? Would her breath quicken when he suckled at her breast? Would her cheeks flush when he lapped at her opening, tasting her juices?

With a growl, he backed out of the driveway. He didn't want to go into the house, he realized. Not tonight. What he wanted was to track down Maddie and finish what could've happened in his office tonight.

But he wouldn't. Instead, he headed towards Alex's house. He could stay there tonight.

Alex was one of his closest friends. They'd met years ago and Alex had been the first friend he'd ever willingly told his past to. Instead of judgment and pity, like he expected, Alex had done neither. He'd accepted it and moved on.

Alex didn't seem surprised to see him when he opened his front door a half hour later and saw Caleb standing there.

"You want a beer?" was all he asked.

Caleb nodded and stepped inside.

Olivia, Alex's girlfriend, was sitting on the couch, reading. She looked up and gave him a small smile. "Oh, hi Caleb."

Out of all his friend's girlfriends, Caleb liked Olivia the best. She was curvy and beautiful, with dark hair and clear blue eyes. Caleb and Olivia had gotten off to a rocky start in the beginning of their friendship. Alex told him later that he'd unsettled her when they first met, which had been Caleb's intention. His friends knew all about his strange relationship with women and he didn't want to get close to their girlfriends, mostly because he didn't trust them not to fuck his friends over. Perhaps that was bitterness talking, but Caleb couldn't help it. 

He knew that Olivia would never hurt Alex willingly, in the same way that Alex would never hurt Olivia. It had been a little over a year since they first met and Caleb knew Alex would be popping the question soon. Hell, he already had the ring.

Alex returned to the living room, holding out a cold beer, before settling himself next to Olivia, pulling her close. Caleb took a seat in the dark brown leather armchair adjacent to the couch. Already, he found himself relaxing. He'd come over, unannounced, more times than he cared to admit, but they always welcomed him. Alex knew how hard it was for him to go home some nights. Sometimes, he stayed the night in their guest room. He had a feeling that was where he was headed tonight.

"How's work been?" Olivia asked, bookmarking her book and placing it on the coffee table in front of her. The television was on, playing football highlights.

Caleb shrugged. "I never realized how much administrative work there is. I haven't touched an engine in months." His uncle hadn't realized how much administrative work was required either considering the state of his office. Caleb was cleaning up their records, but his uncle had done a half-ass job. He should've hired an office assistant years ago, something that Caleb planned on doing once the bookkeeping was up-to-date.

"Alex told me you hired someone to help organize the office."

"Not exactly," Caleb said, taking a long swallow of beer. "She's paying off her car repairs."

Caleb hated the way Alex's brows shot up in surprise. "She? How old is she?"

"I don't know. A few years younger than me, I'd guess."

"Since when have you let a woman work closely with you?"

"Since never," Caleb almost growled. "Trust me, I don't know how it happened either."

Actually, that was a lie. He knew exactly how it had happened. Maddie had turned those big brown eyes on him and he'd gone completely stupid in the head. Fuck.

"What's her name?" Olivia asked curiously.