Page 31 of Sweet Surrender
“Taylor, this shit is serious. This is more than just our history. Think about what I had to bury last week. Think about how much worse it could get. We’re going and that’s that,” he said and then walked away, leaving her alone on the dancefloor.
He was right. She was being selfish and spiteful; this was too important to mess up but she just couldn’t let go of her hurt and anger. She made her way back to the bar and began prepping for the intermission.
During the interval Blake came over to speak to her. “Beau said that Dale’s left. I’ve done a search inside the bar and the parking lot, and I can’t see him.”
“Thanks, Blake,” she replied. He frowned at her but didn’t say anything. Then Beau came over, his face still like thunder.
“Justine said she’ll see us. She’s going to have a look at her schedule and let me know when she’s free.”
She opened her mouth to reply but no words came out. How could she tell him she was scared? His eyes hardened when she didn’t say anything, then he just shook his head and walked out of the bar.
Chapter 9
Beau stared out the window of his cabin like some obsessed creeper as everyone filed out of The Rusty Bucket Inn at closing time. Some sober people were going to cars, some not so sober people were getting into cabs as they’d had their car keys confiscated by Taylor. Dean had mentioned to Beau a few times that intoxicated customers hadn’t been as appreciative of her efforts as they should and the thought of her facing the wrath of drunk people made his blood boil. It was just another sign of her big heart and how much she cared about people.
The woman was tying him in knots. One moment she was writhing in his lap, her lush ass rubbing against him so perfectly he’d had to fight to stop a moan slipping out. The next she was so snarky with him that the only way he envisioned getting her smart mouth to stop running was to put her over his knee. He wanted to bite her head off but mostly just bite her. These aggressive urges were getting out of hand. He had nearly reached for her earlier, then had to tear himself away before he made a move he regretted.
He needed to get control over his instinct to dominate her, but he had no idea how to handle it. He’d never had this problem with anyone else. Taylor was the only woman who pulled all kinds of impulses from him; he was all over the place tonight. When he spotted Dale slithering closer to them, his protective instinct had roared into life, and he had been ready to tear the man apart. Only he couldn’t do that, he was supposed to sit back and play the doting boyfriend to an unwilling and resentful girlfriend.
Her refusal to kiss him had sparked something in him. He couldn’t deny that he wasn’t going to take full advantage of the opportunity. Hewantedto kiss her. His memory was well-worn and patchy but he remembered how their first kiss had felt, even if she had been faking it at the time.
He hadn’t had a kiss like that ever since, and tonight, with the tension boiling between them, he felt like he needed that kiss more than air to breathe. He’d tried to force her hand, knowing Dale was watching them so closely but she hadn’t gone for it, choosing instead to belittle him and insult him, shoving them back into their destructive pattern.
They needed help, fast, or this whole thing would come crashing down. Justine’s therapy was the best chance at getting them more in sync with each other and maybe even finally resolving their past.
He watched until the customers had all left, followed by Kayleigh, which meant Taylor wouldn’t be far behind. He waited. And waited. He was reaching panic-mode, ready to go into the bar to look for her when her red hair caught his eye even in the dark. She strolled around the side of the bar, the blue sequins on that sexy outfit glittering in the moonlight. A sharp ache pierced his chest.
Then she stopped in her tracks, staring at her cabin.
“What’s she doing?” he murmured, trying to look out of his window to see what she was staring at. He couldn’t see anything so he moved across the cabin to peer out of the window that looked directly into hers. Then he saw the glow of light coming from her kitchen. There hadn’t been any lights on when he’d come back. A shadow was moving inside the cabin.
“Fuck!”
He raced for the door, wrenching it open. Glancing across the empty parking lot, his eyes met hers for a split second, then he ran across to her porch.
“Beau, no!”
Her door was ajar, a light shining inside. He kicked the door open, and there was Dale. Fear flashed in the man’s eyes briefly as he took in the towering frame of Beau, not the slight redhead he was waiting for. Beau took advantage of his surprise and grabbed him by the shirt, hauling him out the door and across the porch. Dale grunted and swung for him, but Beau ducked. He shoved Dale, watching as he tripped over his own feet and fell backwards into the dirt. He popped up quickly and swung for Beau again, his face twisted with rage.
“Beau, stop!” Taylor cried, wrapping her arm around Beau’s bicep, trying to pull him away but she couldn’t move him. Dale tried to duck around Beau to get to Taylor, but Beau blocked his view with his body.
“Get the fuck out of here!” he shouted.
Dale laughed. “Seriously baby, this meathead is my replacement?”
“Sweetheart, let’s go inside.” Her gentle voice couldn’t penetrate his anger, her hands were fisted in his sweater trying to tug him away, but Beau refused to move until this asshole was gone.
“I guess I knew you wouldn’t wait long to welcome someone else into your bed. Gotta get through all the men in town like the little slut you are,” Dale sneered.
Rage detonated inside Beau’s mind and he lunged for Dale, drawing a fist back and letting it fly at full force. Dale’s head whipped back from the impact, blood pouring from a split in his cheek. Before Beau could strike again, Taylor stepped between them.
“Beau, please, stop! Let’s just go inside,” she begged, and his rage cooled at her fear. Dale spat a mouthful of blood on the ground then grinned up at Beau before hauling himself up. Waving at them both, he sauntered off like he hadn’t a care in the world. Beau let Taylor lead him back to her porch.
“I’m sorry, I just got so angry. I’m usually more controlled, it’s just that… When he called youthat, I saw red.”
“Excuse me?” she said, her tone hard. He looked at her, her expression so blank he couldn’t read her at all. She stepped towards him, not stopping until she was pressed up against his hard body. She ran her hands up over his chest, his muscles bunching under her touch. Muscles that he knew hadn’t been there the last time she touched him like this. Muscles he had built with the shallow hope that one day, this would happen between them.
Her emerald gaze pierced him, her hands trailing all over his body, setting him alight, his adrenaline still rocketing through him. He could hardly breathe as she stood on tiptoes and brought her mouth to his ear.
