Bound to Hope: A Forbidden Romance (The Hope Series Book 2) Read online

  I bite my lower lip with my eyes downcast.

  “Hope, please believe me. I don’t want anyone but you. I love you.”

  “I love you too,” I whisper.

  His lips press against mine, and that’s all it takes to make me forget what we were even talking about. Almost.

  I break the kiss and ask, “Does she know about us?”

  “No. How could she? We didn’t get back together until yesterday and between work and being inside of you, I haven’t had time for anything else.” He grins, and it makes my heart flutter.

  I take his hand in mine. “But you are going to tell her, right?” I look up at him from beneath my lashes.

  He lays me down on the couch, covering my body with his. “Absolutely.”

  I wrap my arms around his neck. “Are you still going to go through with this dinner?”

  “If you’re not comfortable with it, then no.” His lips find mine once again.

  “Whoa, still with this shit?” Brad asks, walking back into the room and catching us making out. Holden sits up quickly.

  I look at Brad with a smile. “You’re just jealous.”

  “You know it,” he says, passing through to the kitchen.

  I laugh and look over at Holden. He’s not smiling which reminds me of what we were talking about.

  “I think you should call Jane and fill her in on us. See what her reaction is before mentioning dinner.”

  He looks over at me. “What do you mean?”

  “She could be wanting this dinner to finish what you two started last year. If you tell her about us, and she accepts it, we can have dinner with her. If she gets mad, we’ll know what she really wants.”

  “You’re okay having dinner with her?”

  I think it over. Do I want to see Jane after all the trouble she started? No, but no way would I trust her alone with him. Holden and Jane had been together for twenty years. They raised Dean together. It’s only natural they stay involved in each other’s lives.

  “I will go, for you,” I tell him.

  Brad has a date coming over, so Holden and I leave to grab some dinner. We pick up some Chinese food and head back to his apartment to eat and cuddle on the couch.

  As he gets the plates and forks from the kitchen, I remove the food from the bags and find something on tv.

  While we eat and watch tv, we talk about the wedding.

  “Do you have a date in mind?” Holden asks.

  I quickly look over at him. “Not really. I haven’t given it much thought yet.”

  “Is there a reason?”

  I look over to find him studying me. He knows me too well. “Well, I’m a little sad that I’m planning my wedding, and my parents won’t be there.”

  He takes a deep breath. “I understand.” His hand lands softly on mine as he rubs it back and forth. “What do you want to do about that? Do you want to try reaching out to them again?”

  I look over at him. “I don’t know. I don’t know if I can bear to look in their eyes and see all that disappointment again.”

  “If it means something to you, then you should do it. I’ll go with if you want.”

  “You would?”

  “Anything for you, angel.” He leans in and presses a kiss to my lips.

  We finish dinner and clean up our mess before heading toward the bedroom. I strip off my clothes and walk directly into the attached bathroom. I turn on the shower to let the water warm up and turn to find Holden. He’s leaning against the open door, watching me with darkening eyes.

  “Join me?”

  “I thought you’d never ask,” he says, stalking toward me. He’s lost his shoes and shirt, and his defined six pack flexes as he walks closer. It makes every muscle in my body tighten in anticipation.

  He comes to a stop directly in front of me, pulling me against his bare chest as his lips find mine. My hands fall to the waistband of his jeans, freeing him. I nudge his jeans over his hips, letting them drop around his feet. Then I push against his chest until he breaks the kiss, and I sink to my knees in front of him.

  Taking his already hard cock in my hand, I pump it a few times, licking my lips. The second I have him in my mouth, he lets out a deep moan, and his hand tangles into my hair.

  “Fuck, Hope,” he breathes out. That sound cuts right through me.

  I take him further and further into my mouth, until I can fit no more. His breathing is so loud now, it’s all I can hear.

  “Hope, stop before I come.”

  I don’t listen. I want him falling apart in my hands.

  “Hope, I swear to God, if you make me come in that pretty mouth of yours, you’re going to regret it.”

  I pause. “How are you going to make me regret it? By fucking me into exhaustion again?” I take him back in my mouth, sucking as hard as I can.

  “You won’t get off the rest of the night,” he threatens. “I’ll make sure I push you as close to the fucking line as I can, before denying you your release.”

  I stop, looking up at him, incredulously. “You wouldn’t.”

  His blue-green eyes have darkened. “Try me.”

  I stand before him, and he grabs me, pulling me flush against him. “I want to spend the rest of the night inside that sweet pussy of yours. I don’t want to blow my load in your mouth. That’s something that’s only saved for when we can’t come together. Understand?” His thumb rubs my bottom lip.

  I nod, eager to follow his rules.

  Before I can process, his lips are back on mine, and I’m in his arms as he walks us to the shower. The hot water washes over me as my back gets pressed to the shower wall. I’m already wet and ready for him, so his hard cock slides against my folds with ease.

  “You’ll never know how happy I am that I got you back,” Holden whispers as the tip of his nose skims my jaw. His teeth graze my earlobe. “I’ve been so fucking lost without you, angel.” His lips land on the crook of my neck, where he presses a kiss to my sensitive skin. “I’ll destroy anyone that gets in our way again.” He drops to his knees and sucks my hard nipple into his hot mouth, swirling his tongue around it. My lips part, and my eyes flutter closed with the sensation.

  “I haven’t belonged to anyone but you since the night you kissed me.” He continues his descent down my body, pressing kisses along his path the whole way. “You own me, Hope.” His mouth finds the junction between my legs, and I let out a sigh of relief.

  His tongue moves between my folds before he sucks my hard nub into his mouth. My legs are already shaking, but the second he slides two fingers inside of me, my fingers tangle into his hair, needing so much more.

  As he sucks and flicks his tongue against me, his fingers slide in and out, pushing me that much closer to my release. My breathing picks up, and his name falls from my lips, asking — no, begging for more.

  “Come for me, angel.” He doubles his efforts until I have no choice but to let it flood over me. I pull his hair, unable to control my body while under his spell, and moan until the very last wave has settled.

  Before I know what’s happening, he’s off his knees, spinning me around.

  “Put your hands on the wall,” he orders.

  I reach through the stream of water and place my hands flat on the wall in front of me while he positions himself behind me.

  “Bend over, Hope.”

  I bend at the waist causing the water to rain on my back and my ass to stick out that much more. Without meaning to, I think of the conversation we had before about him not being the infertility problem when he was with Jane. We just got back together, no way am I ready for a pregnancy.

  “Holden, we have to be careful.”

  He thrusts forward, filling me completely. I cry out from the sudden fullness as his hands hold my hips, pulling me against him as he thrusts inside of me with quick movements.

  “I’ll pull out, angel. Don’t worry,” he whispers.

  His hands slide up my wet sides until they’re squeezing my breasts. He pinches my a
lready hard nipples between his thumb and forefinger. It’s painful, but in a pleasurable way. The pain mixes with all the pleasure my body is already feeling, making my climax build again.

  “Are you going to come again, baby?” he asks as my muscles convulse around his cock.

  “Oh, God,” I cry as an orgasm crashes over me more powerful than before. When my release is at its peak, he rolls his hips one last time, then removes himself from me completely. I look over my shoulder in time to see him spill himself onto the floor of the shower.

  I turn to face him, and he brushes my wet hair from my cheeks. “I’m going to have to invest in some condoms.”

  I press my naked chest against his as I hug him to me. A laugh escapes my lips. “I’m going to make an appointment to get on birth control. I don’t ever want something between us.”

  Chapter 4

  Holden

  I can’t believe I forgot about Jane coming to town. Bumping into Hope yesterday on the street has me so overwhelmed that everything else flew out the window. I’d promised myself, if I ever managed to get her back, I wouldn’t let her go again. And that’s exactly what I intend on doing.

  I don’t care what Jane thinks about it, but I am a little worried that this might push her over the edge again. She’s come a long way over the years. She’s been going to therapy and has even started dating. Other than the mishap we had last year, there’s been nothing but friendship between us. However, if she thinks she can come between me and Hope, I have no problem cutting ties with her completely. Hope is what I want. She’s the one I love and belong to. Deep down, I think I’ve always known — even years before anything happened between us.

  In the morning, I have two things to do — tell Jane about Hope and me, and reach out to Hope’s parents, my ex-friends. I’m not looking forward to doing either, but I’ll do anything she asks me to. I’d swim across the ocean if she asked.

  Her back is facing me, so I wrap my arm around her and pull her closer. The feeling of her hot skin pressed against my bare chest almost scorches me, but it’s a burn I crave. Living the last three years without her was hell, and I don’t ever want to go back there.

  On Saturday morning, I wake early. I leave Hope asleep and naked in my bed to go make some coffee. As it brews, I pick up the phone to call Jane. No sense in putting it off.

  She answers after the third ring. “Good morning, Holden.”

  “Morning, Jane. How have you been doing?”

  “Great, and yourself?”

  I pour a cup of coffee and sit at the bar in the kitchen. “Really well,” I reply while tapping my finger on the side of my coffee cup.

  “I have my plane ticket. I should be there tomorrow, but I can’t seem to find a hotel. Do you mind if I stay with you again?”

  My heart begins pounding in my chest. “That’s why I was calling, actually. I have some news.”

  “Good news, I hope.”

  I let out a nervous laugh from hearing her say hope. “Hope and I have gotten back together. We’re engaged.”

  There’s a long silence.

  “Jane?” I ask, wondering if she’s hung up on me.

  “I’m still here, Holden. I’m just processing.”

  I let out a deep breath. “Look, Jane, I didn’t do this to hurt you or to ruin the friendship we’ve been building. But I deserve to be happy too, and she makes me happy. I love her. I hope you can overlook our fucked up past, and just accept that I found someone I love and loves me back.”

  “Okay,” she says with a shaky voice.

  “Okay?” That’s it? I was expecting so much more.

  “Okay, I’ll try to come to terms with it. I guess that means she’ll be joining us for dinner tomorrow night?”

  “Uh, yeah, if you’re still coming, she’ll be there too.” I’m a little taken back. This is not how I expected this conversation to go.

  “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow then. Oh, and Holden?”

  “Yes?”

  “I’m still going to need a place to stay, if that’s okay.”

  “Let me get back to you on that. I think it’s something I should discuss with Hope.”

  “That’s fine. Goodbye.” She hangs up.

  I could tell by the tone in her voice she was holding something back. I just hope she comes to terms with this and doesn’t pull any of her old stunts while she’s here.

  Standing, I pour Hope a cup of coffee and walk back into the bedroom. I crawl up behind her and nuzzle my face into the crook of her neck. She stirs and wakes with a smile from my beard tickling her.

  “Good morning, angel.” I hand her the cup of coffee.

  “Good morning.” She takes a sip. “Mmm, this is so good.” She places the cup on the bedside table and rolls over to face me. Her eyes close as her cheek presses against my chest, and she wraps her arm around me.

  I brush the stray hair away from her face and press a kiss to her forehead. “I told Jane.”

  Her eyes pop open. “And?”

  “And it looks like we’ll be having dinner with her tomorrow evening.” When I look down, I see the fear and worry etched on her face.

  I place my hand on her cheek and direct her eyes to mine. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I’m not here to force you into things.”

  Her eyes bounce around as she thinks. “No, I think it’ll be good for us and her. She needs to see that we’re together, not hiding. And I know I need to face her. A little part of me has always felt bad for her, you know?”

  “Felt bad about what?”

  She bites her lower lip. “Because she lost Dean. Then she lost you. And then there’s that fucked up link that connects all of us. I feel guilty for taking you from her.”

  I shake my head. “You didn’t take me from her. She pushed me away, right into your arms.” I press my lips against hers.

  When I pull away, her lips turn up in a sleepy smile. “There is one more thing.”

  She lets out a long breath. “Hit me.”

  “She also asked if it’d be okay if she stays here Sunday night. She’ll will be leaving

  Monday.”

  Her eyes go wide. “Here? Like here in your apartment, here?”

  I nod. “I told her I’d discuss it with you and get back to her.”

  She swats at my chest. “I can’t believe you did that!” She pushes away from me, wraps the sheet around herself, and starts pacing.

  “What?” I ask, confused.

  “If you tell her no now, she’s going to know it’s because I said no. Like I’m threatened by her or something.”

  Fuck, I never even considered that.

  “You have to tell her she can stay. I don’t want to appear weak and fragile to her. I need to show her that I’m confident in our relationship.”

  “Well, aren’t you?”

  “Of course. It’s not you I don’t trust. It’s her. There’s no telling what she has up her sleeve.”

  I sit up on the edge of the bed. “I really don’t think she’ll try anything. She’s been making real progress lately. She’s not the same woman she was a few years ago.”

  She stops pacing, crossing her arms over her chest. “I hope you’re right.”

  I stand and close the distance between us, bringing her into my arms and against my chest. “Nothing can happen that’ll change anything for us. I love you. I want you. I want you as my wife. Nobody else.”

  With my words, she melts against me, resting her head against my heart. “I love you too, Holden. We can handle this. We’re stronger than we used to be.”

  For the rest of the day, Hope seems more distracted than usual. I get it, there’s a lot going on right now. Mentally, I tick off everything. We just got back together. She’s about to start a new job. We have a wedding to plan. Jane’s on her way. And we still need to find a way to break through to her parents. It’s a lot for anyone to handle. In an attempt to get her mind off it for a little while, I take her out for some fun.

  We go o
ut for dinner where I keep the conversation light, not mentioning anything she could be stressing about, and on the way home, we stop for some drinks.

  The pub is small, only housing a bar, a few tables, a pool table, and a dance floor. But the small building doesn’t stop the mob of people from getting their drinks. The place is crowded, and we’re lucky when we find two barstools together. We sit and have a couple drinks, not talking much because it’s so loud. I finally get too restless to sit any longer.

  “Want to play a game of pool?” I whisper in her ear.

  She smiles and shrugs one shoulder. “Sure.”

  I take her hand and lead her through the crowd and to the pool table. I rack the balls and hand her a stick. “Can you break?”

  “I’ve been in a bar a few times, Holden.” She takes the stick and bends over in front of me to break the pool balls.

  My eyes automatically go to her sexy ass in those tight jeans. A smile forms on its own.

  She shoots and breaks the balls up but doesn’t make any.

  I walk closer to her. “What do you say we make this interesting?”

  She looks up at me through her thick eyelashes. “What did you have in mind?”

  “A little wager.” I smirk. “If I win, I get to tie you up and have my way with that sexy, little ass of yours.”

  “And if I win?” She looks sexy as fuck bargaining with me.

  I shrug. “Whatever you want.”

  She thinks it over quickly. “If I win, I’m going to tie you up and make you watch as I pleasure myself.”

  Just picturing it causes my eyes to roll to the back of my head. I groan. “Are you trying to fucking kill me?”

  She smirks before stepping to the side for me to take my shot.

  I bend over and take aim. I flash her a quick smile because I know there’s no way I can’t make this shot. I take my eyes off her and shoot. The ball falls perfectly into the pocket.