Page 7 of Finding Forever

She hadn’t been certain she liked how vulnerable it made her, or how she felt like she’d lost a vital part of herself in the process.

And—while singular—there had been none of the expected symphonies or crashing waves or shooting stars. Nothing but short, harsh, impatient exclamations from him and quiet, uncomfortable moans and sighs from her. Followed by pain, a dull, confusing throbbing… then a sharp burst of profanity from him and a quick withdrawal just as she was starting to feel something profoundlyhedonistic.

The whole incident had been bewildering and a little anticlimactic.

Yet, as soon as he’d withdrawn from her body, she’d missed the heat of him, the hardness inside and around her. Missed his breath on her face, his delicious, fresh scent, his invasion of her every sense.

He’d been unable to meet her eyes afterwards. Making her feel like she’d done something wrong. He’d apologized—quietly, quickly, almost fiercely—and had fumbled to check his phone. Then he’d bowed stiffly and left her there feeling distinctly undone, unfinished, and unraveled. She’d felt an inexplicable sense of loss and grief after he’d gone.

Fern had remained hidden in that room for hours, before gathering up the remnants of the tattered pride that had lain strewn all around her and leaving. The gala had still been in full swing. Of Cade Hawthorne there’d been no trace, and Fern tracked down Toni and Allie to inform them she was leaving. They’d mocked her of course, called her a boring nun who couldn’t even stay up past midnight, and Fern had fled with the sound of their grating laughter ringing in her ears.

Now, months later, she stared down at the man who’d—unbeknownst to him—become the source of her dreams and nightmares, her most secret desires and deepest fears. The prospect of facing him again was terrifying. She did not know how he’d react to what she had to tell him—toofferhim. All she knew was that she had no other choice.

With time running out for her, Cade Hawthorne had become heronlyhope.

Fern wasn’t sure she’d get the opportunity to have a private conversation with him. Not when Allie and Toni would attempt to dominate any spare moment he had. He didn’t seem too interested in either of her stepsisters, but they were determined women who usually got what they wanted. Even though they were both preening for Cade’s attention, Fern knew that they’d come to a mutual agreement that Allie would be the one to try and win him. But that didn’t mean the plancouldn’t change in an instant if he showed more interest in Toni.

It chilled Fern’s blood how utterly ruthless her stepsisters could be when it came to getting what they wanted. She’d seen them in action before, seen them grab their prize with impunity, regardless of whether it belonged—and was precious—to someone else.

She turned away from the window, sickened by their display, but also unable to look at Cade Hawthorne a moment longer, when her stomach was churning with anxiety at the sight of him and the knowledge of what she would have to do once she had him to herself.

Chapter

Two

“Aah James, Niall, welcome to my humble home,” Granger Abernathy greeted them a few hours later in the overly formal drawing room where Cade and his father had been left to cool their heels for nearly half an hour, with forced bonhomie and a huge smile.

The rest of the Hawthorne team had been asked to make their own dinner arrangements, because Abernathy had insisted that this night be only for family. No attorneys, assistants, or advisors. Which had been damned rude, considering they were all his guests.

Now, Cade watched in distaste as Abernathy spread his arms, as if to embrace James Hawthorne, but Cade’s father’s expression and general demeanor exuded so much hostility, the man wisely thought the better of it and dropped his arms. He settled instead for a thump on the taller, broader man’s back, as if they were old chums happily reuniting.

Cade nearly laughed at his father’s glare… his dad was about five years the other man’s junior, but looked at least a decade younger, and a hell of a lot fitter. Granger Abernathy was skeletally thin, with an oily gray combover that fooled absolutely nobody, hunched bony shoulders, and a pallid skin tone. Cade privately thought he looked like Mr. Burns fromTheSimpsons. A sentiment he hadn’t realized his father shared, until the old man had referred to Abernathy asthat Mr. Burns looking cocksuckerin a voice note a couple of weeks ago.

“I trust you’ve both made yourself at home? My home is your home and all that. I heardyouput on quite the show for my girls earlier, young man,” he said, directing a lewd smile in Cade’s direction, while nudging his glowering dad suggestively in the ribs. “They’re quite taken with your boy. Allie is especially infatuated. We might have ourselves a little romance blooming, hey James?”

Cade had barely exchanged half a dozen words with the two women after exiting the pool. He’d been appalled to discover them both topless, and while he was by no means a prude, he’d found the entire scene distasteful and off-putting. Romance had definitely been the furthest thing on his mind when he’d grabbed up his towel and fled the scene with indecent haste.

Cade was a man of few words, and one of the reasons he’d always enjoyed having his younger siblings around was because they were chatty and sociable to the extent that people didn’t notice that Cade rarely spoke.

Nox was especially brilliant at filling awkward silences, and because he knew that Cade didn’t enjoy socializing and forced chitchat, he’d always picked up the conversational slack for him. And while Cade knew Nox needed this time away, he still felt a bitter pang of betrayal every time he found himself in situations like these without his brother there to act as a buffer.

He froze when Abernathy slung a chummy, skinny—surprisingly strong—arm around his shoulders, using his free hand to pat Cade on his chest with a familiarity that made his skin crawl.

“What do you say to that, Niall? Imagine uniting our dynasties. We’d be a force to be reckoned with, right? What do you think, James? One of my girls with one of your boys? I’d even knock a hundred million off the Lambecrete price tag. An engagement gift for the youngsters.”

Cade couldn’t tell if he was serious, and he slanted a narrow-eyed glance at his dad, as he tactfully stepped out of Abernathy’s grip.

“I’m happy with our agreement as it stands,” his father gritted out, his voice frigid. “I don’t see the need to sell one of my children like livestock to get a better fucking price on a deal I signed off on half a year ago.”

Abernathy’s smile faded to a grimace and his eyes went cold as he shrugged.

“Never say never. They’re young and attractive. Stranger things have happened. Anyway, why don’t we join the rest of my family for dinner? I’ve invited my sister’s son as well. You’ve met him—Richard Wilson?—my right-hand man.”

Yeah, they’d metDickWilson alright. He was very much a younger version of Abernathy. Lanky, weedy, slimy—and every other negative adjective Cade could possibly think of. Cade always had the irrepressible urge to wipe down every surface that oily fucker touched every time he sidled into Cade’s office.

The thought of sharing a meal with that guy was frankly nauseating.

They lagged behind Abernathy as he led the way to the dining room, and Cade exchanged another look with his father, wondering how the old man would take it if he cried off and instead joined the rest of the team in whatever plans they’d made for the night. He swallowed down a derisive snort, imagining his dad’s outrage and incredulity if he did exactly that, before swiping a hand over his face in an attempt to neutralize his expression.

---