Submission: Guilty Pleasures #3 (BBW Erotic Romance) (7 page)

“Abby, what are you doing here?”

I whirled around, almost colliding
with Jake. He was behind me, the door to the tower room open, light spilling
onto the driveway, casting his face in shadow. He was shirtless and barefoot,
wearing the cotton sweat pants that were so familiar to me. I blinked in
confusion.

“Jake. You scared me. I...” I
stopped. There was movement behind Jake.

Over his shoulder, in the doorway
to the tower room, I saw a flash of scarlet. Jane was leaning against doorframe,
with her ever-present cigarette, thin wisps of smoke caught in the wind.
Wearing nothing but the short silk robe she’d worn when I saw her in her
apartment, not more than a couples hours earlier.

My eyes flew back to Jake’s face.
“You have her here? Now? I just left her apartment!” I felt tears welling in my
eyes.

“Abby, it’s not what it looks
like...” Jake took a step closer, the light from the house catching his features.

I looked up at him, at the man I
thought I loved, the man I had been willing to give up everything to be with.
Even the love of another good man...even willing to give up Chase.

Jake’s beautiful face was a
kaleidoscope of emotions. I watched as he fought down fear and shock...shock, I
suppose at seeing me, at being caught with Jane. Fear...of being caught in a lie?
I wasn’t sure. Things were happening too fast.

Then something else took over
inside Jake. His face softened and he moved toward me, reaching out to touch my
arm.

“Abby, honey. You’re here, that’s
all that matters. I love you. Whatever else you think, it’s not important. I
love you, and you love me. There’s nothing else that matters.”

He took another step closer. I
backed up, my shoulders hitting the door behind me.

“Stop, Jake. No...don’t...” I put my
hands up, no idea what his intentions were, wanting to ward him off, push him
away. But I ended up with my hands on his chest, the warmth of his bare skin
beneath my fingers. Instinctively I clenched my hands, trying to pull my
fingers away.

But Jake grabbed my wrists,
holding me fast, his grip like steel.

“Abby, you have to understand. I
love you. She’s...” he looked over his shoulder at Jane “...she’s nothing.”

He pulled my hands up to his lips,
kissing my knuckles. “I was scared, scared that you were gone. I was desperate,
needed someone...she was the only one I could think of to use...” His voice trailed
off.

“You’re lying. I’ve had enough.
Let me go, Jake. You have what you want. You have Jane.” I felt anger,
pain...fear...welling up inside of me. But mostly anger. Something snapped.

“You’ve been with her for the past
week, Jake. Or didn’t your little fuck buddy tell you that I knew that?” I
craned my neck, looking past Jake’s shoulder.

Jane was still standing in the
doorway watching, smoking her cigarette, or her second or third cigarette.
There was a smile on her full lips, something terrible that didn’t quite reach
her eyes. I shuddered with the realization she’d set this whole thing up,
knowing exactly what I’d do after I left her. Knowing I’d confront Jake. She’d
played me for a fool.

I looked back to Jake. His face
had changed, something dark behind his eyes. His fingers dug into my wrists.

“I talked to Jane...today. I left
you here, last Saturday morning. And the next thing you do is go find her and
sleep with her. And now...” I stopped for a breath.

“You’ve been sleeping with her for
the past week.”

Something changed in Jake’s
expression. A calculating look passed over his eyes.

“I love you, Abby. You know that.”
His voice was low, that husky sexy voice that did...had...done things to me. But
now it scared me.

“I’ve loved you since the first
time I saw you.” He pulled me close to him, his body against mine. I felt the
heat of his skin against me and then the pressure of his erection, pressing
against my stomach. I pulled hard, wrenching my wrists from his hands, pulling
away. I was disgusted now, angry and scared. I stumbled from beneath the
portico roof toward my car, cold rain hitting my face, mixing with the tears
that were running down my cheeks.

Jake was right behind me, his bare
feet slapping on the wet pavement.

“I love you. We can fix
this...whatever is wrong. I just made a mistake...I love you. You love me. We can
fix this...”

I spun around, my anger flaring,
pushing back the fear. I pointed back to the tower room door. I could see Jane,
silhouetted against the light from the portico, watching us.

“She said it...Jane said something
to me the first time I met her...that some things just can’t be fixed with love.
That’s us, Jake...this. Nothing can fix us, not all the love in the world. It’s
over. It’s ended. You ended it, Jake, when you brought her back here. If you
can’t see that...”

The rain was coming down harder
now, sharp drops stinging my face. I reached for the car door, had it open,
when Jake reached past me, slamming it shut.

“No! This isn’t how it ends. Not
like this.” The rain was running down his face, flattening his hair. He pulled
me against him, hard. He forced his mouth against mine in a brutal kiss. I
pulled away in revulsion. I wanted to gag.

“I’ll make her leave. I’ll send
Jane away.” His breath was harsh against my face.

“Jake, stop!” I took a deep
breath, to bring myself under control. The fear was back, a panicky feeling
bubbling up inside. Everything was spinning out of control.

I twisted out of his grip,
wrenching the car door open. I scrambled inside, slamming the door, hitting the
locks, fumbling with the key in the ignition.

The shower of broken glass,
followed by a gust of cold wind-blown rain made me scream. Jake’s hand jutting
through the broken driver’s side window, blood dripping from cut knuckles. He
made a grab for me, my hair or arm, I wasn’t sure. The car roared to life and I
threw it into gear, jamming my foot on the gas, careening down the circular
driveway.

I glanced in the rearview mirror. Jake
was still standing in the rain, silhouetted against the light from the portico.

––––––––

I
rang the bell, and then knocked
on Chase’s door. He opened it, took one look at me and folded me into his arms.
My knees gave out, the last of my energy draining away, and I crumpled against
him.

He scooped me up, taking me down
the hall to his bedroom. With infinite care, he set me on the bed, fingers
swiftly working to pull off my sodden clothes.

“Just a minute.” He went to the
bathroom, quickly back with a towel. He wiped my face, pushed the dripping hair
off my forehead.

“Can you tell me what happened?”
The calm sound of his voice, his sure and gentle touch brought me back from
where ever I’d been during the drive over.

“It was Jake...” That was all I
managed to get out. All the fear and anger washed away, leaving me shaking uncontrollably.

Chase had my blouse and skirt off
in seconds, pulling back the covers, helping me lie down, the blankets tucked
around me. He lay down next to me, fully clothed. Even though I was cold and
shaking, I pushed the blankets aside, reaching for Chase, wanting his warmth,
not the warmth of the blankets.

“Hold me, Chase, please.” He
pulled me against him, his fingers smoothing the damp tangles of my hair away
from my face.

He held me for a long time, saying
nothing, just cradling me against his body. Slowly the shaking stopped. I
struggled to sit up and he shifted next to me, pushing himself up against the
head of the bed.

He sat up suddenly, leaning over
the side of the bed. He turned back to me, just as suddenly, pulling the
blankets away from my body.

“There’s blood on your clothes, Abby.
Did he hurt you?” His voice was low, but urgent. He held me away from him,
searching my face, my body, and a look of alarm on his face.

I shook my head, stilling his
hands. “No, Chase. It’s Jake’s. He broke the window on my car, cut his hand I
guess. He grabbed at me, but I drove away.”

Anger flashed in Chase’s eyes,
deep and intense. I remembered the anger I’d seen in Jake’s eyes earlier
tonight, anger directed at me, and I tensed in Chase’s arms. But when he spoke
his voice was still calm.

“I’m not angry with you, Abby.”
His arms tightened around me, pulling me back against him. I rested my head on
his shoulder, taking a deep ragged breath.

“Can you tell me what happened?”
He repeated the question he’d asked before.

“I went to see Jake, went to his
house.” I heard him draw a sharp breath.

“You said I shouldn’t, that it
wasn’t safe. But I couldn’t just talk to him over the phone.”

“I know, Abby. I know.” His hand
rubbed my arm.

“Chase, he was...he really scared
me.” I shivered, closing my eyes.

He drew me even closer. I thought
if he could, Chase would somehow pull me inside of him, if it would make me
stop shivering.

“I parked the car and got out,
went to the house door. But he came out of the tower room, dressed in...well,
dressed for a session. Wearing what he wore for our sessions.”

Images of Jake, the first time we
had a session, wearing nothing but those thin gray sweatpants, riding low on
his narrow hips, his lean body moving gracefully around the tower room...his
arousal so very obvious. Before he blindfolded me, leaving me with only my
imagination.

Seeing him tonight, in the same
sweats he wore when he was with in session with me, coming from the tower...where
Jane was. The betrayal was complete; he’d taken her back as his sub, and as his
lover.

I sighed. “And then, well, it got
ugly. Jane was there. He tried to tell me he loved me, told me that he’d send
her away.

“He grabbed me, held me, pushed me
against the door.” Chase was still rubbing my arm. He kissed the top of my head
softly.

“And all the while, she was
watching, standing in the doorway. Smoking a cigarette, watching us fight.” My
voice had gotten loud, the anger I’d pushed down finally coming to the surface.

I turned to look up at Chase. “How
could anyone do that? How could he betray us...me. Just like that? I don’t
understand.”

“I can’t answer that, Abby. And
honestly, I don’t suppose he can either.”

––––––––

C
hase sat with me until I started
to fall asleep. I felt him pull the covers over me, his hands brushing the hair
away from my face. He left the room, leaving the door open, the dim light from
the hall spilling across the floor. I thought I heard voices, but I was too
tired to care. I drifted into an uneasy sleep.

It was a long time later when I
felt the bed move, Chase’s scent, leather and hay, and him, washing over me as
he crawled beneath the sheets. His hands went around my waist, pulling me
against him, my back against his chest. The hall light was out, the room dark.

He held me a long time but I knew
he wasn’t sleeping. Finally I squirmed around, facing him.

“What is it, Chase?” I reached
out, touching his face in the dark.

“Just thinking.” He shifted,
rolling on his back, pulling me to him, my head finding that same safe
comfortable place on his chest. I rested my hand on him, his skin warm beneath
my fingers.

“It’s been hard, hasn’t it? I’m
sorry, Chase. I’ve put you through a lot. I never meant for any of this to
happen.” I felt him sigh, his chest rising and falling beneath my hand.

“Abby, it is what it is. Can’t
change that, just like I can’t change my past.” He shifted, reaching to turn on
the lamp by the bed. He looked down, tipping my face up to his.

“Where does this leave us, Abby? I
don’t want to be the default choice here. I’ve never liked being second in
anything.”

I met his gaze, the uncertainty in
his eyes making my heart hurt.

“Chase, you’re not. I went to Jake
to tell him it was over, that his lying wasn’t something I could handle.” I sat
up, reaching out to touch his face.

“I love you, Chase Thomas.” I
leaned over, kissing him hard.

He pulled away, his eyes serious.
“I love you too, Abby Phillips. But where are we with trust? Do we have enough
here to keep this going?” There was hesitation in his voice.

“I told you before, Abby, my past
is my past. It’s not pretty. It’s who I was...not who I plan on being...not with
you.”

“I know, Chase.” I put my head
back on his chest, idly running my hands over his skin.

“I loved Jake. Or...I thought I
did.”

I felt him take a deep breath.

“And your past is your past. It’s
not your past I fell in love with; it’s the man I know now. The man who’s here
with me.” I placed my palm flat on his chest, over his heart.

“The man who loves me, even though
I put him through hell.”

His laugh was there, that familiar
rumble that I felt more than heard. I smiled.

“You know, the better the horse,
the harder they are to break.”

I swatted at his chest. “I’m not a
horse!”

Chase laughed, rolling me onto my
back.

“It was meant as a compliment.
Some of my best friends are horses.”

He leaned down, kissing me hard
before pulling away. A smile played around the corners of his mouth.

“You know, someone’s going to have
to tell Celeste that she’s not first in my heart anymore.”

I returned his smile. “Well, she’s
your horse. I suspect if I tried, she’d bite me.”

His smile deepened. “I suppose she
would at that.”

I ran my fingers over his lips.

“It’s good to see you smile,
Chase. It’s been a long time.”

“And it’s been a while since I’ve
seen a smile on your pretty face.”

He buried his face in my neck,
still smiling, his lips warm on my skin, kissing me softly, nibbling my
earlobe, tracing a gentle trail down my neck.