Chapter 23: Admit One

When we arrived home, I was the one carrying the dress. Brennan and his dad were sprawled on the couch, engrossed in a basketball game.

“My dad would fit right in here,” I said, chuckling to Jaq.

Hearing my voice, Brennan sprang up from the couch. His gaze darted between Jaq and me, then landed on the large black dress bag I was holding. His eyes widened in surprise.

“You found one?” His smile was infectious. He sauntered over to me, wrapping his arms around my waist. He tried to snatch the bag from me, but Jaq was quicker.

“Hold on there, Mr. Wolf!” she chided. “Should I hide this in the guest room?”

I shook my head, standing on my tiptoes to plant a kiss on Brennan’s nose. “Brennan will behave,” I assured her.

I wriggled out of his hold and reclaimed the dress bag. I carried it into Brennan’s room and hung it up in the closet. It would stay there until Jaq left, blending in with the rest of the room.

As I was leaving the closet, Brennan entered his room.

We stood there, a room’s length apart, for what felt like an eternity. The tension was so palpable, I felt like I was drowning in it.

I took a deep breath and flashed Brennan a smile. That was all the invitation he needed to close the distance between us, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into a kiss.

The awkward tension evaporated, replaced by the simmering sexual tension that had been building since our vineyard trip. Brennan pulled my shirt over my head, letting it fall to the floor.

“Your parents are in the next room,” I whispered.

“So? Mom’s busy making lunch and Dad’s glued to the basketball game.”

“Brennan,” I protested. “I don’t think I can.”

His smile faded and his hold on me loosened. “Don’t you want me anymore? Has the spark died?”

I shook my head, fighting back a smile. If Brennan knew the real reason I was holding back, he’d probably laugh.

“Of course not,” I assured him.

Brennan leaned down to kiss me again, and for a moment, I almost let myself get lost in it. His kiss was so intoxicating, so capable of making me forget everything else, that I feared nothing else would ever compare.

“What’s wrong?”

“Well, I’m not exactly quiet,” I confessed, my cheeks flushing. As expected, Brennan’s response was a wide grin. He chuckled and kissed me again.

“I know, and I love it.” He paused, glancing over my shoulder at the dress bag in the closet. “Will you try the dress on for me?”

I shook my head. Even though we weren’t really getting married, showing Brennan felt wrong somehow.

“Your mom would kill me if she found out.”

“She won’t know. Please?”

I rolled my eyes and turned away.

“Fine,” I conceded, laughing as I retreated into the closet. I stripped down to my underwear, unzipped the bag, and slipped the dress on. It felt just as amazing as it had in the store.

I zipped it up and stepped back into Brennan’s room.

“Ta-da!” I twirled around, showing off the dress.

Brennan was silent for a moment, his gaze sweeping over me from head to toe. He took a deep breath, then stepped closer, his fingers lightly brushing my hip.

“You look…” He trailed off, pulling his hand back. “I’m sorry. I need to go.”

Without another word, Brennan turned and left the room, closing the door behind him. I wrapped my arms around myself, blinking back tears.

Feeling defeated, I returned to the closet and took off the dress, carefully placing it back in the bag. I pulled my pants back on and picked up my discarded shirt from the floor, then sat on the edge of Brennan’s bed.

This was it, the beginning of the end. Not that we’d ever really been an “us.” I’d let myself get carried away with the fantasy of romance—I could see that now. We couldn’t be a real couple, for more than one reason.

I pulled myself together and left the room. Jaq was setting the table for lunch, so I helped. Brennan and his dad were back on the couch, engrossed in their game.

Brennan was unusually quiet throughout lunch, while Jaq and Sam chatted about their upcoming trip to Paris.

“It’s been wonderful visiting your home and spending time with both of you!” Jaq gushed. “We won’t wait so long before our next visit, right, Brennan?”

I watched Brennan as he turned to his mother, who was looking at him with hopeful eyes. He nodded and offered her a smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Grace will make sure of that, won’t you?” She smiled at me, placing her hand over mine.

“You bet,” I echoed, forcing a smile to match the one on Brennan’s face. Our eyes met, and for a moment, it looked like he wanted to say something. But he didn’t.

Instead, he turned to his dad and suggested they go to his office. I chose to stay behind. Once they were gone, I changed into a pair of black underwear that could pass as a swimsuit and headed to the hot tub. The warm water and pulsing jets were soothing, and I found myself on the verge of dozing off.

“Room for one more?” Brennan’s voice startled me out of my near-slumber. I gasped and sat up, suddenly alert.

“Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he apologized, genuine regret in his voice.

“I’m fine,” I assured him. “It’s your hot tub, of course there’s room.”

I watched as he stripped down to his black boxer briefs and climbed into the hot tub.

“Where are your parents?”

“Mom wanted to go shopping, and Dad went with her. They’ll catch a cab back later.” He chuckled.

I grinned, “The city’s allure can be pretty captivating.” I paused, my mind drifting back to the vineyard. It was tucked away from the city’s constant commotion, but it held its own charm.

“But Wolf Wines vineyard has its own allure too.”

The space between us was physically empty, but it was filled with a simmering sexual tension that was impossible to ignore. I wanted him to touch me. I wanted to touch him.

“~You’re~ captivating,” he finally whispered, his hand brushing against mine. I looked at him and shook my head.

“Brennan Wolf, you shouldn’t say things you don’t mean.”

“I do mean it,” he shot back instantly. “You’re smart, funny, quick-witted, and fucking beautiful. You’re captivating.”

He paused, pulling on my hand until I moved closer, molding my body against his. I rested my head on his chest, listening to the rapid thumping of his heart.

Before I could respond, Brennan lifted me up, positioning me on his lap in the spa. His hands traced up my back, pulling me closer until our skin was touching. His lips found the soft curve of my breast.

“I’ve been thinking about that first night in the hot tub ever since,” he murmured, his fingers deftly unclasping my bra.

“How I wanted to just kiss you, touch you, and forget the rest of the world existed when I was with you.”

He smoothly removed my bra, discarding it outside the hot tub. His mouth found one of my nipples, sucking gently before showering kisses across to the other one.

“And how I feel right now,” he said, pulling back. His hands left my back, moving up to my neck. His eyes were wide, his body trembling.

We kissed, and I forgot we were in his hot tub, where his parents could walk in on us at any moment. I lost myself in him, his touch igniting a fire of love and desire within me.

I couldn’t figure it out. I needed him, I wanted him. I reached down, beneath the water, and ran my hand over his length. He groaned and arched.

“Shit, Grace.” His hands gripped my waist as he ground against me. I freed him from his briefs and moved my panties aside, positioning myself until there was nothing separating us.

Like two pieces of a puzzle, we fit together perfectly, and I felt whole. I moved against him, every nerve in my body alive with desire.

“Fuck,” Brennan muttered. His grip on my waist tightened, one hand moving to cup my cheek and draw my face to his. We kissed again, this time with more intensity.

I could already feel the pressure building deep within me. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold back much longer.

I’d been fantasizing about Brennan in ways I’d forbidden myself to for the past two weeks. I wanted to feel like this...always.

I started to tremble, lost in him and this moment.

“Brennan,” I begged, though I wasn’t sure what for.

“It’s okay,” he reassured me. “Let go.”

I let go. I stopped thinking. I felt like I would float away if Brennan didn’t keep me anchored. My climax left me defenseless, exposed.

Brennan called out my name, and we collapsed into each other. Completely spent.

When we finally climbed out of the water, Brennan set the spa to filter. We went inside and changed into dry clothes. I walked out of Brennan’s room into the dining room and sat across from him.

“I really messed up with how I treated you at work,” Brennan admitted, breaking the silence.

Confused by his confession, I looked at him and frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I knew,” he confessed. “I knew I was leaving you to clean up my mess. I knew I was making you avoid my family. I let you do it because I was a coward...and a jerk. I guess I still am.”

His confession wasn’t a surprise. Brennan was never a fool.

“It’s okay,” I replied, even though it had never been okay.

“No. It’s not,” he retorted. “Don’t try to shield me, Grace. I know I was an asshole. I did things I can’t ever ask you to forgive.

“You know me better than anyone else in the fucking world...and I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”

I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

“I love you, Grace!” he nearly yelled. His voice softened as he said my name, his eyes pleading. “I love you.”