Page 57 of Caught Up In You (The Monroes 2)

Without waiting for a reply, not that he thought he’d get one, Braxton turned and headed out. Brock was going to be fine, the crazy storm had passed, and Cora was home waiting on him.

Home. Just using that term in the same sentence with Cora was . . . hell, he didn’t even know how he wanted to describe it.

Holding his head down against the evening rain, Braxton raced to his SUV in the drive. Something changed in their relationship tonight, something he hadn’t had time to fully ponder, but knowing Cora, she’d thought of nothing else since he left, which meant she also most likely has talked herself out of letting anything like that happen again.

But Braxton was determined. He wanted her now more than ever and he was ready to deal with whatever she would throw at him once he got home. For the first time in a long time, Braxton was warming to the idea of a relationship and one that lasted for more than one night.

* * *

Cora disconnected the call and sighed. Every call with her mother was absolutely draining. She would’ve ignored the special ringtone indicating her mother was on the other end, but she had already done that for the past day and she needed the distraction. Cora knew she was desperate when she was using her mother as an outlet.

Barbara Buchanan was still requesting her daughter’s presence at the annual New Year ball. Cora used to live for those annual events. When she’d been younger, with a detailed career and life laid out before her, she’d actually embraced every aspect of dressing up, schmoozing the attendees, and discussing shop while sipping champagne and eating decadent chocolates, of course. But now, none of that held any appeal.

Still, she felt a tug of guilt. She was an only child, she had an entire empire at her disposal, and she had to make a decision at some point.

Easing back onto the couch cushion, Cora couldn’t stop her mind from traveling back to only a few hours ago when she’d been lying in this exact spot with the weight of a passionate man settled on top of her.

Her body still tingled and hummed from the experience. Hadn’t she told herself she couldn’t let this happen? Yeah, apparently she wasn’t taking her own advice because now that she’d had a sample of Braxton Monroe, she couldn’t un-sample him. Now more than ever she wanted to ignore every single reason she shouldn’t do something and just take what she wanted. Wasn’t that the whole reason for setting out on her own? To have her own life and do what pleased her?

This fine Southern man most definitely pleased her.

The sound of a car door brought her out of her thoughts. Heidi came to her feet, her tail swishing against Cora’s leg.

“It’s okay, girl.”

Heavy footsteps on the porch followed by a key in the lock had her pulling in a deep breath. Between wondering what had happened to Brock and worrying if the awkward tension would settle between Braxton and her, Cora was a jumbled mess. Hence the acceptance of her mother’s call.

When the door opened and closed, Cora shifted on the couch to face his direction.

“Sorry I was gone so long.” She heard two clunks by the door and assumed he’d taken his shoes off. “Brock was at the hospital, then the police took a report, and then Zach and I . . . never mind. I hope you weren’t too bored.”

“I told you I’d be fine,” she assured him. “How’s Brock?”

The cushion beside her dipped and Braxton let out a heavy sigh. “He’s got a mild concussion, four stitches in his forehead, which will make for a nice scar for him to show to chicks, and his car is in need of some major repairs.”

Cora laughed. “Your nephew has a gash on his head and you’re thinking ahead to him getting chicks?”

Braxton’s fingertips slid against her shoulder, brushing her hair aside. This time, she didn’t jump. His touch was becoming something she not only had gotten used to, but something she’d also craved.

“He’ll be fine,” he assured her with a smile to his voice. “I guess I hadn’t thought of Brock as my nephew, but he is. Blood isn’t always about biology.”

“Your family is much stronger than any DNA. Trust me.”

Silence settled between them as Heidi circled at Cora’s feet and lay down. Cora wasn’t sure what to do or say next. Braxton’s fingertips toyed with the ends of her hair and he may as well have been touching her entire body for the sizzling effect he had on her.

The sexual tension hadn’t disappeared one bit. If anything it was supercharged now because they both knew full well how potent they’d been . . . and they’d barely gotten started.

“What now?” she asked.

“What do you want?”

Thankfully, he didn’t ask her to spell it out, he totally got it. With each accidental brush of his rough fingertips against her jaw or neck, Cora had to fight herself from begging him to whip her shirt off and pick up where they left off.

“I thought for sure you would’ve sat here and talked yourself out of this,” he told her. “I was ready to come in and battle with you over how amazing we could be. I had a speech rehearsed and everything.”

Cora laughed. “A sex speech?”

“Wanna hear it?” he asked with a soft laugh.

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