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“I’m here for you,” I said. “Always. I love you, Brad.”
“I love you too, baby. So fucking much.” He thrust his hips upward, ramming into me.
My own hips seemed to move on their own, meeting Brad’s thrusts and creating a rhythm that touched every millimeter inside me. I closed my eyes, and his warm hands found my breasts, my nipples. When he tugged sharply on one, a blast of pleasure hit me.
I came.
I came hard.
I came fast.
I came with a fierceness I’d never known.
Words left my throat—unintelligible words that were a jumble of coiled emotions. I soared above the mountaintops for a few blissful seconds, reveling in Brad’s thrusts. When he finally released, I fell onto his chest and pressed our mouths together.
We kissed as our climaxes ended.
Together.
Then a knock on the door.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Brad
Daphne froze on top of me.
“It’s okay, baby,” I said.
“But what if someone finds us together? In bed?”
Normally I’d have chuckled, but laughter seemed out of the question given all the circumstances. “We’re married. Remember?”
She gasped. “Of course. Still, I’m naked, Brad, and your pants are around your knees.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
I rolled off the bed and adjusted my trousers. Then I threw Daphne her pajamas. She hastily scrambled into them. I walked to the door and opened it.
My mother stood there. “I’m sorry to interrupt, darling, but Daphne’s parents are getting ready to leave, and they want to say goodbye.”
“Sure. Of course. You ready, Daphne?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m so sorry about Sean,” Mom said.
I simply nodded. I couldn’t think about that right now. I had to put on a brave face for Jonathan and Lucy.
Daphne and I followed Mom to the kitchen. My father was at the head of the table drinking coffee. Jonathan and Lucy sat silently.
I cleared my throat.
Jonathan stood. “I’m sorry about your friend, Brad.”
“Thank you.” I wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Could I speak to you alone for a moment? In private?”
I looked to my father. He nodded slightly at me.
“Of course. Follow me.” I led him to my father’s office.
We entered, and he and I sat opposite each other in two leather chairs.
“What is it?” I asked.
“I’m concerned. Your father told us that Sean was drugged and poisoned.”
I nodded.
“I’m trusting you to take care of my daughter.”
“Of course. I already promised I would.”
“You didn’t take the greatest care of your friend. Someone drugged and poisoned him at your wedding.”
A sliver of anger coiled in my belly but quickly dissipated. I didn’t have the strength to be angry at the moment. I was too fucking sad. “It could have happened in town,” I said. “We just don’t know—”
“Brad, listen to me. I’m a patient man. I’ve had to be, to deal with Daphne’s issues and now Lucy’s. I’ve had to be loving and patient when sometimes I didn’t want to be. Sometimes I wanted to scream and punch something and run away from it all. It can be a lot to deal with.”
“I understand.” He had no idea.
“Do you? Because I didn’t succumb to those urges to punch walls. To run away. I stayed put, I maintained composure, because my family needed me.”
“I’ll do the same.”
“You’re a young man, Brad. So young yet.”
“I assure you my father and I—”
“Daphne isn’t your father’s responsibility, young man. She’s yours.”
“That’s not what I meant.” The anger threatened to coil once more. I liked Jonathan, but he was treating me like a child.
“Look. I like you. I do. But a man is dead, Brad. Can you tell me with certainty that my daughter is safe here?”
“With all due respect, Jonathan, she’s my wife now. I’ve told you I’ll take care of her, and I’ll tell you again. She and the baby are my first priority.”
“You’re going to see to her needs, then? Not go off avenging your friend?”
I don’t see why I can’t do both. I didn’t voice the words, though. “My father and I will investigate Sean’s death, of course. Would you rather we not? I can’t believe that of you.”
“I expect you to investigate. We all want to know what happened to prevent it from happening again. But you’re young. Don’t forget. I was young once too, and I know how easy it is to go off half-cocked when you’re angry.”
“You and I are two different people, Jonathan.”
“Maybe. I’m not so sure, though.”
I’m not so sure, though.
What the hell did that mean? Was there a side to Jonathan I wasn’t seeing? Something my father was looking into?
Maybe, but I couldn’t deal with the possibility at the moment.
“This conversation is over, I think.” I stood. “I will take care of Daphne and the baby. You have my word.”
He rose as well and nodded. “You take care of your wife, and I’ll take care of mine. Deal?”
“That was always the deal, Jonathan. Nothing has changed.”
Except that it had. Murph was gone. Dead.
