Tucker Read online

  Abby undressed, down to her tank top and undies, but before she could slide onto the bed, he stopped her, his hand on her hip, yanking the top of her boy shorts down.

  “There it is,” he said huskily, bending over and closing his mouth over the small orange dragonfly that was there.

  “So fucking hot,” he whispered against her skin. “But babe?” He was pushing her onto the bed now.

  “Yes?”

  “Sexytimes are gonna have to wait. I’m dead tire,d and all I want is to hold you so that I can finally fall asleep. God, I can’t remember the last time that I slept.”

  Abby slid up against him, her back to his chest, clutching his arm where it rested just below her breasts. For the longest time, she just held him, loving the feel of her man back in their bed, and like a cat, she stretched into his warmth. Listened to the slow, steady beat of his heart.

  I love you.

  Three little words that meant so much.

  “That sounds perfect,” she murmured.

  But he was already asleep.

  ***

  >Abby woke up moaning, her body hot, Tucker already inside her.

  “Good morning, Miss Mathews,” he rasped in her ear as he slowly moved in and out, long thrusts that spread liquid heat. Her back was still flush to his chest and his hands gently massaged her nipples.

  She was naked, clothes tossed who knows where, the covers bunched up at their feet. Not surprisingly, she was totally okay with that.

  “Good morning, Mr. Simon.”

  A slow, satisfied grin fell over her face as she began to move in tandem with him. She’d missed sex a lot over the last few weeks, but more than that, she’d missed the feel of him beside her in bed. Behind her. Against her. Inside her.

  She missed the connection that only Tucker Simon gave her.

  “You feel so fucking good,” he said close to her ear. And she arched her back, stretching her neck so that when she turned slightly, she was able to nip at him.

  “So good,” he groaned, thrusting in and out.

  One of his hands slid down her stomach, long fingers trailing over flesh that quivered. When he settled his hand between her legs, she was ready. Angling her legs open slightly, she held her breath when his fingers slid into her slickness, the rough pads finding her clit almost immediately.

  “There she is,” he said, rubbing her in a slow, torturous motion.

  “Oh, Tucker.”

  She covered his hand with one of hers, pressing him into her harder as their tempo increased.

  “Hold on, babe. I need this to last.”

  He bit her shoulder, a gentle nip, and then kissed his way along her neck. “I need to feel you,” he whispered. “I need to love you.”

  Abby closed her eyes, fighting the tears she felt pooling in the corners again. “I want you to love me,” she said softly as they moved together.

  Their bodies strained into each other, and Tucker held her as if he was never letting go. His hands drove her crazy. His fingers and tongue. His mouth was everywhere. And through it all, he murmured over and over again, how much he loved her.

  Tucker Simon loved Abigail Mathews with a fierceness she’d not felt before. But it was a fierceness that was to be embraced, not one to fear.

  His body fit into hers perfectly. Their rhythm could have been a song.

  And as Tucker made love to her that morning, so tenderly and passionately that it brought tears to her eyes, she knew that this was the true beginning for them. Tucker had finally let go of his past. They had faced the darkness and won.

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  “Did you cancel the rest of my appointments?”

  Tucker popped his head into his assistant’s office on his way back to his own. He’d just come out of a breakfast meeting and was itching to get the hell out of there. It was the last Friday in March, and he had places to go and one woman to see.

  “I did. And I’ve transferred your ticket information to your phone.”

  “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

  “Also, you’ve got company.”

  He glanced at his office door and tried not to groan. “Who is it?”

  “It’s uh…” Watching his assistant stumble over her words and blush like a freaking school girl told Tucker one thing. His visitor was a Simon.

  “Which one?” he asked, trying not to laugh. She was one hundred percent professional with any of the high profile athletes who walked into the office. But when a Simon popped by? She was all kinds of flustered.

  She cleared her throat. “It’s um, Beau and,” her blush intensified. “Jack.”

  Ah. So her Simon crush was Jack. Interesting.

  “Thanks. Why don’t you knock off early, and remember I won’t be in until Wednesday next week, so anything that’s pressing is gonna have to wait.”

  Beau and Jack stood in front of his office window, gazing down at the busy streets below. They were talking, but the voices were so low Tucker couldn’t hear a thing. Both of them were dressed casual, though Beau was tanned, just back from a vacation in the Bahamas with Betty Jo.

  “Nice surprise boys. I wasn’t expecting to see you.”

  Both men turned around, and it was obvious that they hadn’t heard him come in.

  “What’s up? You got a premiere or something I forgot about?” he asked Beau. His mind was turning, already chugging ahead.

  He had plans. And as much as he loved his family, appreciated a visit from his brothers, Tucker wanted the hell out of the city.

  “Nope,” Beau replied. “I flew in because I’ve got something to ask you and Jack here,” he poked their older brother. “Well, he’s got his own shit storm to deal with and was looking to get away.”

  That got Tucker’s interest. “Shit storm, huh? What did you do? Walk across Monique’s white carpet with muddy shoes? Accidentally drown that sorry excuse that she calls a dog?”

  Jack scowled. “Watch it. That sorry excuse of a dog belongs to me.”

  Tucker glanced over at Beau, but Beau was trying real hard not to laugh.

  “I don’t get it,” Tucker said. He had a feeling this was gonna be good.

  “Monique and Jack are no longer a couple.” That was Beau and now Jack’s scowl was reaching epic proportions.

  “Okay,” Tucker replied. “But I still don’t get it.”

  “Apparently our brother here,” Beau poked Jack again.

  “Watch it, pretty boy,” Jack warned.

  Beau chuckled. “Our Jack here was caught leaving a night club in Miami.”

  Huh. Tucker’s eyes were on Jack. His oldest brother wasn’t exactly the club type.

  “And?” Tucker asked.

  “At three in the morning,” Beau continued, his grin nearly as big as Jack’s scowl. “Looking like crap with his shirt unbuttoned, tie undone and accompanied by none other than Donovan James.”

  No. Shit.

  Jack shoved his hands into his front pockets. “Don’t ask,” was all he said.

  “I can’t help it,” Tucker laughed. “I gotta ask.”

  “Don’t,” Jack bit out.

  “Where the hell does the dog figure into all of this?”

  Jack stared at him, mouth half open, and then he shrugged. “That is a long story.”

  “I bet,” Tucker replied. “Look I’d be all over the family drama, but guys, I’m heading out of town with Abby.”

  “Blackheath?” Jack asked.

  Tucker nodded. “It’s time.”

  For a few moments, all three brothers were quiet and then Beau spoke quietly. “I’m glad for you, Tuck. She’s a lucky girl.”

  Something shifted between the three of them. Some understanding that things in the past, things now finished, were finally gone and buried. These guys had seen Tucker through a lot. God, Jack had done his damnedest to facilitate a quick recovery of the wreckage.

  The media frenzy and subsequent mania had died down, but not until a painful goodbye. All three members of Marley’s team, including Mar
ley, had been found. No one knew why they were so far from where they were supposed to be. Was it pilot error? Mechanical error?

  Those were questions that would remain unanswered.

  Beau slapped him on the shoulders. “So, the reason I’m here.” He cleared his throat. “I’m getting married, and I want you up there with me.”

  “Married.”

  Beau nodded. “Yep.”

  “To who?” Tucker asked with a chuckle.

  “Funny,” Beau replied.

  Tucker embraced his brother. “I’m there. When’s the big day?”

  “I wanted to tie the knot when we were in the Bahamas, but she’s insisting it be a family thing, and since she’s got a film to shoot and I’m producing another after that, looks like it will be a winter wedding. We’re hoping before the end of the year.”

  “Sounds good,” Tucker said. “I’m really happy for you bro. I’d go and have a drink to celebrate but—“

  “Yeah, we know. Tell Abby I said hello.”

  “Will do.” He glanced over to Jack. “So, Donovan James?”

  “It’s nothing. The papers will make a big deal out of nothing.”

  Tucker didn’t say anything, but he recognized the look in his brother’s eyes. He had a feeling Jack’s life was about to get a whole lot complicated.

  But he wasn’t going to worry about it right now. Right now, he needed to see his woman in the worst way possible.

  Blackheath. What the hell was she going to say to that?

  Tucker said his goodbyes, told his brothers to let themselves out of his office and less than five minutes later, he was outside hailing a taxi.

  Guess he was going to find out.

  Chapter Thirty

  Old Joe leaned over the bar. “Your boyfriend is here.”

  Abby glanced up and watched the sexiest man she knew walk into the bar. Just like that, her heart took off, and she just took the time to watch him. He strode through the bar with the confidence of a man who was in charge. A man who knew where he was going and what he wanted.

  A man who was used to being in the public eye and didn’t give a crap. Which, was something Abby was still getting used to. Or at least trying to get used to. But America sure as hell loved the Simons and there was always one of them in the news.

  She thought back to the piece that had just run on the TV a few minutes ago, and she was relieved because it looked like, at least for the time being, it was going to be Jack’s turn.

  Tucker had changed and was in jeans and leather.

  “That’s a good look for you,” she said, voice a little husky when he bent over the bar and kissed her.

  A few wolf whistles erupted around them, but she didn’t care and neither did Tucker. He kissed her for so long that her insides turned to mush, and if they weren’t in the middle of The Black Dog, she would have had him naked and inside. That’s how intense her need was for this man.

  “Guys,” Mick said roughly. “This is a public bar. Can you save that shit for later?”

  Tucker slowly let her go and nodded to her brother. “You have her stuff?”

  Wait. What?

  She glanced at her brother, but Mick was handing over a large bag. Her bag. Her travel bag.

  “Where did you get that?”

  “I dropped it off last night,” Tucker said.

  “Okay,” Abby replied, not understanding.

  “You have her shifts covered?”

  “What’s going on?” she asked. But Mick was edging her out.

  “Here’s your jacket,” he said, giving her a quick kiss before turning back to Tucker. “I’ve got it covered.”

  “Good.”

  “No,” Abby said. “This isn’t good. I don’t like surprises. What the hell is going on?”

  “Come on, Miss Mathews.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “I guess you’ll find out when we get there.” Tucker nodded to Mick. “Thanks for everything.”

  “You just take care of my sister.”

  “I plan on it.”

  “Mick?” she asked, taking a step toward the door.

  “Just go, Abigail. Be happy.”

  Something in the tone of his voice brought her up, and she slipped out of Tucker’s grasp, running back to her brother and hugging him fiercely. “I love you,” she whispered.

  “Ditto.”

  She turned around, and Tucker grabbed her hand, leading her outside, her bag thrown over his shoulder.

  It reminded her of another time. That first time she’d gone away with him. And she let the warmth of those memories wash over her. They kept her company all the way to the airport where she finally found out their destination.

  Florida.

  Tucker was being way too mysterious, but she loved this side of him and didn’t press the matter even though she was dying to know what all the secrecy was about. Her first thought was that they were visiting his parents, but then she was pretty sure they were still in Europe.

  At one point, she opened her mouth to ask a question, and he pressed his lips to hers, kissing her senseless.

  “That’s sneaky,” she said, out of breath.

  “I know.”

  “This is killing me.”

  He grinned. “I know that too.” And then he held her hand until they landed in Miami where a car was waiting for them.

  “Not much longer,” Tucker said as they settled in the back. “We’re headed toward the Keys.”

  “That’s not a lot of information, Mr. Simon.”

  “I know.”

  She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, deciding to just go with it and enjoy the fact that they were together.

  Abby must have dozed off because Tucker shook her, and she came awake with a start.

  “Hey,” he said in her ear, dropping a kiss on her nose. “We’re here.”

  It was late afternoon and the sun was low in the sky. Abby stretched and glanced out the window, but all she saw were overgrown trees.

  “Where are we?”

  Tucker tugged on her hand and after instructing the driver to wait, he opened the car door and waited for her to join him.

  Something was up. Something big. She could see it in his eyes.

  “Abby,” he said quietly.

  Tucker bent down and kissed her so sweetly, his mouth so gentle and so giving, that like the emotional baby she’d been lately, tears immediately sprang to her eyes.

  “Hey,” he said pulling away. “Don’t cry.”

  Something about the tone of his voice and the look in his eyes pulled at all sorts of stuff inside her.

  “I can’t help it. What’s going on, Tucker?”

  They were leaning against the car, and she had no idea what the driver was thinking, but at the moment, she didn’t care. She could have been standing there buck naked with a basket of bananas on her head, and she wouldn’t have cared.

  Something important was about to happen. She could feel it.

  “I love you. You know this.”

  She nodded, but didn’t speak.

  “I want us to be together.”

  Again she nodded, though she frowned. They were sharing an apartment. They lived together.

  “This here,” he motioned in the air around him. “This place is called Blackheath. It’s kind of infamous around this area you know, considering the house was built by a pirate.”

  “A pirate?”

  He grinned, and that flash of the young boy he must have been made her want to hug and kiss him silly.

  “Yeah. A pirate.”

  “I still don’t understand.”

  His hand slid to hers once more, and he pulled her away from the car, leading her a few feet away. And then he turned her around. And Abby’s mouth fell open.

  Several hundred feet away stood an old antebellum mansion, though from her first quick glance, it looked in need of some serious love and attention.

  “It’s beautiful,” she whispered, the artist in her visualizi
ng what it was. What it could be.

  “Come on.”

  Tucker led her down an overgrown path that led to the house, and when they got closer, she saw that the windows were all broken and missing, the paint was peeling and the general condition was much worse than she’d originally thought.

  “It’s amazing, Tucker.” She turned to him. “But I don’t understand what we’re doing here.”

  “I grew up in Florida, and no matter where I am, it will always be home. I only moved to New York to…”

  Her heart turned over.

  “I moved to New York to get away from the memories, and for the most part, it worked. I think for a while there, I needed to get away. Needed to put some distance between myself and everything that Florida represented to me. But…”

  He glanced away, and for the first time, a bit of fear took hold.

  “But?” Abby prodded, suddenly desperate to know where all of this was going.

  “It’s time for me to come back.” He gestured toward the house. “I bought Blackheath last year. Just before I met you. It was a spur of the moment thing, and I didn’t tell anyone because I was pretty sure my family would have thought I’d gone off the deep end.” He chuckled. “Hell, for the longest time, I thought I’d gone off the deep end. But then I met you, and things got better.”

  He put his hands on her shoulders and gazed into her eyes so intently that Abby felt as if he could see into her soul.

  “The thing of it is, I didn’t know until recently that I bought this place for a reason. This is my future, Abigail, and I guess I’m hoping that…”

  His hands crept up to either side of her face, and he cradled her, his eyes never wavering. “I’m hoping that you’ll consider sharing this future with me.”

  “What are…you…what do you mean exactly?”

  Oh God. Think Abby. Think.

  “I love you Abigail Mathews, and I want to grow old with you. I want to watch you paint. I want to watch you sleep. I want to watch your belly grow large with our kids. I want a family. I want a dog. Hell, I’d even consider a cat, because I know you like the one in the office. For you, I’d do anything.” He shrugged. “That’s all I got. I want you, and I think that this could be our home.”