The bedroom door opened, and I dreaded looking over at it. Another day of Shiloh being in this room with me sounded like hell. The heavy footsteps weren’t Shiloh’s. Thank fuck. I turned to see who was here.

  Huck was putting my breakfast down on the rolling table that had come with the hospital bed.

  “What time is it?” I groaned.

  “Seven thirty,” Huck replied.

  “What time does she get here?” I asked.

  “She quit. Doc will be here by eight.”

  “What?”

  “What are you confused about—the Shiloh quitting thing or Doc being here at eight?” Huck asked.

  I scowled at him. “You know what the fuck I’m asking.”

  “You wanted her gone. She told the doc you weren’t going to get better if she was here. Her presence was clearly not helping you, and he is closing his office to come stay with you.”

  This was good. I didn’t want to see her again. She had made it so I didn’t have to. So, why the fuck was I pissed? I glared at the food Huck had rolled in front of me.

  “You gonna eat it or kill it?” Huck drawled.

  The urge to throw the fucking plate across the room was strong. She had thought she could just walk back into my life, remind me of shit I had worked a fucking long time to forget, then just walk right back out.

  “Fucking bitch might have lost her memory, but she hasn’t changed any,” I growled.

  Huck sat down in the leather chair where Shiloh had sat and read yesterday. “Oh, I don’t know. The Shiloh I remember would have thrown something at your head for leaving a bruise on her wrist. No way she would have nursed that fucking wound on your chest. Or quietly accepted the hatred you seethed when you spoke to her. I was fucking rude to her, and she didn’t react at all.”

  I glared at him. “Are you fucking kidding me? That bitch almost destroyed me. I had to join the motherfucking Marines or rot behind bars.”

  Huck shrugged. “Yeah, I remember. But did you ask her why she came back here? Why she didn’t marry her boyfriend? Why she’s working for her uncle when we both know her parents are loaded and she was never expected to work a real job in this lifetime? I don’t think the Shiloh that woke up from that coma is the same person we knew.”

  No, I hadn’t asked her that shit. I didn’t care. Her fucking perfect life she’d planned had fallen apart.

  “She didn’t get something she wanted. About fucking time.”

  “I guess that’s one way to look at it,” Huck replied. “But if she doesn’t remember that she wanted those things, then I think that cancels it out. There’re probably new things she wants now, and clearly, with the new Shiloh, you didn’t make the wanted list. Lucky you.”

  Seven Years Ago

  One more hour, and I was out of here. Huck needed to hire more employees. The damn motorcycle repair shit had been his idea. I wanted something with less manual labor and more women. A strip club had sounded like an excellent idea. But, fuck no, we were running a damn bike shop.

  I shoved open the door to the garage, ready to send whoever had just pulled up away. We didn’t have enough manpower for any more business this week. The bikes were backed up as it was. Stepping through the door, I swung my gaze to the guy walking inside. The words we don’t have fucking time were on the tip of my tongue when Shiloh Ellis walked up beside him and I forgot what I was saying.

  It had been a year since I’d seen her last. She’d stopped showing up everywhere once her boyfriend was off at college. But this was not Jackson she was with. I watched her wrap one of her arms around his when our eyes met. A corner of her mouth lifted up, and, fuck me, she’d somehow gotten even more stunning. The crop top and tiny shorts she was wearing left little to the imagination, but I wasn’t fucking complaining. Had her tits gotten bigger? Shit.

  “You work here?” the guy asked. He was tall, lean, and looked like another fucking high school jock.

  “Yeah,” I replied, annoyed that I wasn’t sending him away simply because I wanted to look at her.

  “I, uh, wrecked my bike, and I need it looking new before my dad sees it,” the guy said. “I’ll pay whatever I need to get it done ASAP.”

  I shifted my eyes back to Shiloh. She was studying her fingernails, as if she were bored. No flirting these days, it seemed. She had given up on me and left it alone. Just like I had wanted, but if she didn’t let go of him, I was going to take his fucking arm off.

  “We’re backed up right now,” I told him, shifting my gaze back to his.

  “Dude, please. I swear I have the money. Whatever it takes to get this fixed,” he pleaded.

  Shiloh lifted her eyes again and looked at me. I smirked, thinking about how pissed she was going to be before turning back to the guy.

  “Shiloh might be able to convince me,” I told him.

  He frowned, the confusion on his face clear before he looked at her. She was looking at me, wide-eyed, and, damn, I wanted to laugh. I also wanted to throw her over my shoulder and get her the fuck away from that kid. The fact that this didn’t seem to piss her off only made me want to push it more.

  “Uh,” he said, still looking at her.

  She finally turned to him.

  “You know him?” the guy asked.

  She lifted a shoulder, then nodded. “Kinda.”

  “Uh, how could she convince you?”

  He was nervous now. I could see it in his eyes. He needed the bike fixed, but he also didn’t want to piss off the hottest piece of ass he’d ever touched.

  “Shiloh.” I said her name, and her gaze snapped back to mine.

  There was defiance gleaming behind those depths, and I wanted to pull those little shorts down and spank her ass.

  “Yes?”

  That voice. Jesus Christ, the sound of it went straight to my dick.

  “He leaves, you stay,” I replied.

  “Whoa, dude,” he said, but I ignored him, keeping my eyes on her.

  She narrowed her eyes, and I couldn’t keep from grinning. I’d tossed it out there, and she was wanting to take it.

  Not studying your nails like you’re bored now, are you, sweet baby?

  “Fine,” she replied, letting go of the guy’s arm.

  He looked down at her like she was crazy. “What? No. I’ll drive to Orlando or some shit. I don’t have to use them. Just go get in the truck.”

  She glanced up at him, then back at me. “I’m staying,” she said, and that dimple flashed.

  Damn.

  “Shiloh? What the fuck? Are you serious?” His voice took a tone I didn’t like.

  When he reached out and grabbed her arm, I moved. I took his arm and twisted it, and he let out a shout.

  “She’s staying, and if you don’t want me to snap your arm, you’ll walk back to your truck and leave.”

  I could see the moment he decided his life was more important than a girl. He nodded, and I let him go with a shove that caused him to stumble.

  “You got ten seconds,” I warned him as he looked at me, then Shiloh.

  “I gotta get my bike out first,” he said. “It’s in the back of my truck.”

  I laughed and shook my head. “Not fixing your fucking bike. Not after you put your hand on her.”

  “What? Dude! Are you serious?”

  I took a step toward him, and he took off running to his truck.

  When he was inside of it, I turned back to Shiloh. “You can do better,” I repeated her words she’d once said to me back to her.

  “Is that so?” she asked.

  I nodded and walked toward her. She was still too young, but I just wanted a taste. I wouldn’t fuck her, but I wanted to see how she tasted and felt. That should get this thing I had for the girl out of my system.

  When I reached her, I ran a finger along her jawline, and she shivered. Those blue eyes staring up at me. Fuck, this was probably a mistake. I just didn’t seem to care at the moment.

  “It’s been a while,” I whispered.

  “Ten months and two days,” she replied.

  I paused. She knew the exact number of days since I’d seen her last? If any other female had said that to me, I wouldn’t be able to get away from her quick enough. But this one? She could admit whatever she wanted with that pretty mouth, and I would stay.

  “You miss me, sweet baby?” I asked, liking the idea she’d thought about me enough to know something like that.

  “Yes.”

  How was I not going to fuck her? Who was I kidding?

  “What happened with Mr. Football?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “He got on my nerves.”

  He had gotten on my fucking nerves too.

  “Come inside with me.”

  She nodded, and I put my hand on her bare back, then led her back through the door I’d exited earlier. Huck was upstairs in his office, but everyone else was gone. I took her to the meeting room and closed, then locked the door behind me.

  She walked farther in, and my eyes went to her ass as I thought of the many different things I wanted to do to it.

  I came up behind her and pulled her hair back off her shoulder, then leaned down to her ear. “Why did you come in here with me?” I whispered.

  Chill bumps appeared on her arms, and I smiled. Fuck, I’d bet her pussy was wet.

  “You brought me here,” she said softly.

  I ran a finger down her neck. I loved her skin. It looked like porcelain but felt like silk.

  “It’s not a good idea to follow a man like me to a room alone,” I continued to whisper close to her ear.

  She inhaled sharply, and I could see her eyes close.

  “You’re still too young for me to fuck.” I slid a hand around to her stomach and moved it inside the front of her shorts.

  She tensed, and her eyes opened as she looked down at my hand.

  “Unbutton them, Shiloh.”

  There was no hesitation when she went to the button on her shorts and undid it, then pulled the zipper down.

  “Good girl,” I whispered, keeping my mouth near her ear as I slid my hand inside the silky panties and over her smooth mound. Then, I ran a finger through her slit.

  She jerked and let out a small cry.

  “Damn, that’s a wet pussy.”

  She made another little sound. I pressed my erection against her back and shoved the rest of my hand between her legs.

  “I’m gonna need to play with it and taste it now that I know it’s wet.”

  The short, quick breaths she was taking made her tits bounce. Hard nipples pressed against the fabric of her top. I was going to have to suck on those too. Get them out of my system.

  This wasn’t good enough. I had to see this hot little cunt. Fuck knew I’d gotten myself off, thinking about it enough. I pulled my hand out of her shorts and spun her around to face me. She tilted her head up to look at me, and I let her watch as I sucked her juices from my finger. Her eyes were driving me crazy, watching me with fascination.

  Damn, she might fucking ruin me, but right now, I didn’t give a shit. I bent my head and claimed her mouth, licking at the seam, then thrust my tongue inside once she opened. Her hands went to my chest, and her fist held on to my shirt as she pulled me against her. A groan came from deep in my chest, and I cupped her face with my hands. She tasted like sunshine and peaches. I was fucking jealous of every stupid boy who had gotten to kiss her. Hold her. None of them had been worthy of this. She was fucking delicious.

  Pulling back, I looked down at her dazed expression and felt her pulse in her neck against my hand.

  “A good guy—the kind of man you deserve—would stop at that, but, sweet baby, I’m not a good man,” I told her, then took her shorts and panties and jerked them down.

  When I knelt in front of her, the slick pussy was so close to my face.

  “Open your legs for me.”

  She did it without question. Not smart. Someone should have taught her better than this.

  I opened her up and leaned in to lick the wetness coating the inside of her upper thigh. Her knees slightly buckled, and I grinned as I began to lick along her sensitive folds. If her mouth tasted like peaches, then this pussy was fucking cream. Her little cries of pleasure had my cock throbbing against the zipper of my jeans.

  “I can’t,” she panted. “Gage, I can’t stand up.”

  Standing, I picked her up and sat her on the conference table. “Lie back and bend your knees.” My words came out in a growl. The need to taste her some more was clawing at me.

  When I buried my face between her legs again, she instantly cried out my name and pulled at my hair as she lifted her hips off the table. Her body was shuddering as I continued to indulge in the sweetest fucking pussy I’d ever had.

  “Please, I can’t,” she cried, jerking under me.

  When she stilled, I lifted my head to look at her. She gave me a content, happy smile. Fucking dimple.

  “Did you just orgasm?” I asked. I’d barely even gotten started.

  Her blush colored her pretty skin, and she nodded her head.

  Fucking hell.

  “I need more of this cunt. I’m not done yet.”

  She bit her bottom lip. “Okay. I didn’t—I mean, I’ve just never …” She looked embarrassed.

  What had she never done?

  “No one’s ever done that to me before,” she finally said.

  That was when I found out there was a fucking beast inside of me, roaring to life. The fact that no other mouth had tasted this sweet pussy was messing with my head. I didn’t want anyone else to know what she tasted like or looked like when she was like this.

  She shifted her hips slightly, and I forgot about all the other shit. I just wanted some more of her. Kissing my way down the inside of her thigh, I inhaled deeply, soaking in her scent.

  “So sweet,” I whispered against her clit, then licked it and pulled it into my mouth to suck.

  “OH,” she cried out, and her hands went back to my head. “That feels so good.”

  My cock swelled in my pants, to the point that it was painful. I reached down and unzipped my jeans and freed myself. I wrapped my fingers around my rigid dick as pre-cum leaked from the top. Using it to lubricate, I slowly began to pump it in my hand as I continued eating her hot little cunt.

  “Please,” she moaned. “Gage, AH!” I pumped harder, listening to her cries.

  “Oh! Oh! That’s—oh! Gage.”

  “Ride my face,” I told her as I stuck my tongue inside her.

  “Oh God,” she moaned and began rocking her hips. “That’s so good.”

  I flattened my tongue and let her rub her clit against it as she grabbed my head, holding me there. My hand jerked my dick in hard, fast pumps. Every moan and cry of pleasure sent me closer and closer to my own release.

  “GAGE!” she cried out, lifting her hips off the table and shoving my face against her pussy as she trembled.

  I groaned as my cum erupted.

  Her hands fell away, but I kept my face pressed against her hot pussy as I continued to spurt out more than I ever had before.

  Nine

  Shiloh

  Present Day

  Waking up early was something that only new me did—or at least, that was one of the few things I’d learned from Isaac before I broke things off with him. I liked being up to watch the sunrise and watch the day awaken. People getting out to go to work, walking their dogs, running, just being alive. I took another sip of my coffee while I sat in my window seat that Wilder had made and given to me on my birthday last year.

  My gaze went to my wrist and the purple-and-blue bruise that had come from Gage’s tight grip yesterday. Luckily, it was winter, and most days, that meant I needed long sleeves in Florida. I didn’t want Uncle Neil or Wilder to see the bruise. It would fade away, although I doubted the memory from the day I’d spent being hated would leave me.

  I wished there were someone not associated with Gage who knew what I’d done to him. It bothered me. I’d apologized to him for it, but whatever it was went far deeper than an I’m sorry could fix. I was truly sorry though. The things I was learning about former me weren’t any better here than they had been in Boston.

  My cell phone rang, which wasn’t normal this time of day. Uncle Neil must have thought of something I needed to do in the office today. He’d left me a list, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t add to it. I stood up and walked over to the kitchen counter to get my phone. His name lit up the screen. My life was predictable.

  “Good morning, Uncle Neil,” I replied, happy to do whatever he needed me to.

  “Good morning,” he replied, although his tone sounded more like an apology. “I’ve been to visit the patient today, and we seem to have encountered an issue.”

  That didn’t sound good. My grip on the phone tightened, and I sat down slowly on the barstool. “What is it?”

  “Gage is refusing my help. He demanded that you return,” Uncle Neil replied. “I’m aware you don’t want to be there, but as we spoke about before, these aren’t people you refuse.”

  This didn’t make sense.

  “He wanted me gone. You were looking for a replacement,” I pointed out.

  “Yes,” Uncle Neil sighed. “I said the same thing. He isn’t being cooperative, and frankly, I’m not thrilled about you going back there. However, it is safer for you to obey him and go than to refuse to go.”

  “But I told you, he didn’t even want me touching him. I can’t help him or take care of him if he’s unwilling to allow me to.”

  This was crazy. I didn’t want to go back there.

  “He said he would be easier to deal with,” my uncle replied.

  I let out a laugh. “What is wrong with this man?”

  I heard my uncle sigh again. “The thought that you two have some sort of past is bothersome. Not just because of who he is. You left here when you were barely nineteen years old. Whatever happened, it had to have been when you were a teenager.”