I was stirred awake by Lincoln’s thick, huge length working into me. His arms were braced above me, and his half-lidded gaze was filled with desire as he slowly pushed his way in. My hips tilted instinctively as he eased out and back in, over and over again.
Finally, he sank in all the way, and his groan of pleasure sent a jolt of electricity up my spine. ‘I had to be inside you, baby. I’m sorry,’ he murmured, pressing in deep then slowly pulling out to the tip before sliding back in leisurely. ‘I have to make love to you.’
His words didn’t register all the way in my sleep-fogged mind. All I could do was bask in the sensation of him filling me.
‘I love you,’ he whispered, nuzzling into my hair. ‘You feel so good, dream girl.’
A tightness coiled inside me, and my hips shifted, trying to find relief.
‘Monroe,’ he rasped, his breathing turning labored.
But I couldn’t help myself. My hips pumped of their own accord, my body responding to him without thought or hesitation. Lincoln groaned as he pushed into me, his pace picking up fractionally.
‘I fucking knew it,’ he grunted, his breaths coming out in ragged gasps. ‘Every damn time I’m inside you, I go insane.’
His pace continued to increase, and I felt that delicious pressure building inside me. I clenched his length as I tipped over the edge. He buried his face against my neck, his tongue coming out to lick the sensitive spot behind my ear. His movements became tender and intense as he fucked me through my orgasm.
‘I’m gonna make you fall in love with me,’ he murmured, his breath skipping across my skin, sending starlight shooting across my soul.
With a handful of final thrusts, his body shuddered and stilled as he licked down my neck, whispering, ‘I’m so fucking in love with you. I’m going to make you as fucking obsessed with me as I am with you, Monroe.’
My mind struggled to catch hold of his words, to comprehend the urgency that seemed to imbue them. But it slipped through my grasp like sand, and I sank back into the hazy abyss of sleep before I could make sense of any of it.
I woke up to the shrill sound of my phone ringing. The sky was just beginning to blush with the early colors of dawn. I groggily fumbled for it and answered.
‘Monroe, it’s Dr. Kevin. We need to talk,’ he said in a serious tone, no sign of his usual flirtatious demeanor.
I sat up in bed, suddenly wide awake. ‘What’s going on?’ I asked, heart pounding in my chest. Despite his attention at work, he’d never called me before.
‘Our accounting department discovered some money missing from the office’s accounts, and unfortunately, all signs point to you,’ he said, his voice heavy with accusation.
My mind was racing. Missing money? How could they think it was me? I would never do anything like that.
‘That’s not true! I swear, I would never steal from the company. I’ve always put the money exactly where I was taught,’ I protested, my voice shaking.
‘We’ve already done an investigation, and the evidence is clear. We could turn you over to the police, but we’ve decided to terminate your employment instead. Consider it a small mercy, a chance to turn your life around.”
My heart sank. I couldn’t believe what was happening. I was going to lose my job, and I probably wouldn’t be able to get a new one, because I wouldn’t be able to use them as a referral. How would I even explain this to a potential employer?
Tears welled up in my eyes.
“Please—”
“We’ve made our decision. Don’t push us to turn you in by making trouble.”
My lips quivered as I struggled to find words.
‘Have a good life, Monroe,” Kevin finally said, and there seemed to be an edge of…sympathy in his voice.
I felt numb as he ended the call. My mind was racing, trying to make sense of what had happened. I couldn’t believe I was being accused of stealing. I’d never stolen anything in my life. I was always careful to follow the rules and do things by the book. I didn’t even pick money up off the street, in case it belonged to someone else and they came looking for it!
It seemed like everything I had worked so hard for was slipping away from me.
First, I’d gotten evicted from my apartment, and now this. It was like I’d been cursed. I sat on the bed, feeling lost and overwhelmed. How was I going to make it? How would I pay my bills, support myself? I was living here now…but how was I ever going to be able to get my own place?
Not that I ever wanted to move out…
Flashes of last night’s hot dream sex filtered through my head. His whispered promises that I wasn’t sure he’d even said…
I hadn’t been totally cursed.
I stumbled out of the bedroom, barely registering the sound of Lincoln making coffee in the kitchen. As I approached him, he turned and saw the expression on my face. ‘What’s wrong, baby?’ he immediately asked, stopping what he was doing and rushing towards me.
I was fucking tired of falling apart in front of him, but it was my life at the moment.
I knew I had to tell him what happened, but I was embarrassed and humiliated. What if he didn’t believe me? What if he thought I was lying? I couldn’t bear the thought of losing his trust and respect.
‘I was fired,’ I finally whispered, barely able to get the words out. ‘They think…I stole money.’
Lincoln’s face darkened with anger. ‘That’s ridiculous,’ he snarled. ‘You would never do something like that.’
Relief immediately flooded my insides as he came to my defense. It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, and I was finally able to breathe again. A part of me, despite everything, had believed he would think the worst of me. But his unwavering support and faith in me made me feel so grateful to have him in my life. It was like he was my own personal champion, always ready to stand up for me and protect me from the world.
“We should sue those fuckers. This has to be about something else. Maybe that shit head doctor is afraid you’re going to sue him for sexual harassment and he’s getting the jump on it before it happens,” Lincoln mused.
I frowned, thinking I hadn’t gotten that vibe. ‘I think I should just drop it,’ I murmured. “He said they wouldn’t press charges if I walked away quietly. I don’t have the money for a long lawsuit—or any lawsuit at all.”
Lincoln immediately opened his mouth to object.
“And I’m not taking any of your money to pay for a lawyer.”
He frowned at me. “Come here, dream girl.” Lincoln pulled me into a tight embrace, holding me as if he never wanted to let go. After a few minutes, he led me back into the kitchen, settling me down on a barstool.
“I know what this calls for,” he said confidently, striding towards the massive Sub-Zero fridge and grabbing a foil wrapped item. “One of Mrs. Bentley’s famous breakfast burritos.”
I wasn’t sure I was in the mood to eat, but I nodded and watched him carefully heat it up and arrange it on a plate with some sliced strawberries and pineapple. The smell of chorizo and eggs filled the room, and wouldn’t you know it—but my stomach actually growled. He placed it in front of me and then lifted me up before sitting down and depositing me on his lap, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips because he knew how ridiculous our arrangement was.
I didn’t give him a hard time about it, though. I needed to be close to him. I tried to take a bite, but my eyes filled with tears. It was crazy how he understood me. How he was so willing to be this steady, perfect force for me.
“You kill me when you cry,” he murmured, rubbing my back.
I sniffed.
“Sorry I keep doing it. I’m not usually this much of a mess.”
He tangled his hands in my hair and lifted my head up to look at him. “Hey, you’re not a mess. You’re just in a transition period. And I’m just lucky to be here with you.”
“Fuck,” I laughed, a hitched sob sneaking its way in. “You’re ridiculously perfect. I can’t think of anything I don’t like about you.”
His gaze flickered, a shadow passing over his beautiful face. He was probably thinking of what he’d told me about his brother.
But that had made me fall harder for him. It comforted me to know that he’d experienced heartbreak. It was the only way he could understand mine.
He cut into the burrito and fed me as he told stories about the pranks they’d pulled on the rookies that year. I found myself laughing at his jokes and funny anecdotes, forgetting about everything else for a moment. The tension in my body eased, replaced by a sense of wild connectedness that made it hard to breathe.
How had he become this necessary part of my life so soon?
It was terrifying.
By the end of breakfast, the weight on my shoulders was gone.
And somehow, I’d agreed to go with him to Boston for his away games…that afternoon.
