Braden: #5 (Kelly Clan) Read online

  Teagan gave a small smile. It was nice to have someone think she wasn’t a child. Of course, if last night had proven anything to Braden, it should have proven she was all woman.

  She jumped when Ennis placed his hand at the small of her back and guided her to the front door of the cabin. “We need to get you inside immediately,” he said. “You’ll catch your death out here like this. Even with the new therapy, we can’t be too careful.”

  She glanced behind her and found Braden closely following them, a bag in his arms that the driver had passed over. He wore a blank expression on his face, though she thought she spotted annoyance in his eyes.

  Ennis opened the door, and she sighed at the warmth that passed over her. Despite the fact that she wasn’t a child, it had been very cold, and the heat did feel good.

  Heading out with wet hair probably wasn’t the greatest idea. Though she’d sooner go with the Russians than admit that to Ennis.

  “Let’s get you over by the heat,” Ennis said, his voice almost cloying.

  She allowed him to guide her over to the fireplace and took the chair closest to the fire.

  Braden set the bag on the couch and placed a few more logs on the fire. He refused to meet her gaze, and it bothered her. She couldn’t tell if it was because of what they had been talking about or if it was just Ennis.

  “There,” Ennis said. “I’ll get you warmed up.”

  She had to fight every instinct to roll her eyes at the statement. He was nothing if not constant, always willing to take credit for something he didn’t do.

  Ennis nodded toward Braden. “How about a cup of coffee?”

  In silence, Braden stepped into the kitchen as started brewing a cup. His calm obedience to Ennis annoyed her.

  The man wasn’t treating him like a trusted lieutenant. He was treating him like some servant. Finn never treated any of his men like that.

  Whatever the case, it was obvious that Ennis was at least in on protecting her. She did feel some small gratitude for that, but she still needed to better understand the situation since Braden didn’t seem all that eager to share the details with her.

  “So,” she said, bringing her attention back to Ennis. “How long do you think the Russians will be after me?”

  He sighed and leaned back against the couch, his arm stretching out over the back of it.

  “We have a shipment coming in, and once that shipment gets in, they should lose interest,” he said with confidence. He smiled. “But there is one way to be certain they would leave you alone.”

  “Really?” The only thing she could think of is if they all left or were killed, and neither seemed likely.

  “You could become my woman.”

  A spoon clattered on the counter, and she glanced over to where Braden seemed to be trying to busy himself. The corners of his mouth were turned down into a faint hint of a frown.

  Teagan chose her next words very carefully. “Couldn’t you just tell them not to go after me or my family?”

  Ennis gave a harsh laugh. “I’m afraid it’s way past that now. You have to understand these people. They aren’t as reasonable as I am, and they’ve lost men because of my stubborn brother, and, well your stubborn brother. They want blood.”

  She shivered at the words. It was the cold truth of what she was dealing with.

  Teagan jumped when Braden suddenly appeared in front of her.

  He handed her the steaming cup. “The way you like it,” he said, and raised a brow.

  She wasn’t quite sure what he was getting at but was glad to have something else to focus on.

  Teagan took a large gulp. The Irish cream warmed her right down to the bone, and she sighed. He’d given her a shot to get past this.

  Ennis smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. She wondered if he was enjoying this situation. She didn’t know how much he’d resisted the plan to go after her, but maybe he’d allowed it to go forward just so he could try and force her into this situation.

  “So what do you say?” he said.

  “I think that you are always on the move, and I’m still not quite able to be away from my doctor like that,” she said softly.

  Something flashed in his eyes, and for a brief moment, she saw the man behind the one Ennis tried to play, the man who was vulnerable when a woman turned him down.

  She wondered if he was going to get angry with her, toss her out into the cold, and call up the Russians to tell them exactly where she was hiding.

  She knew full well he could but hoped he didn’t. There was no way she could force herself to be with him, even if she hadn’t fallen for Braden.

  Instead, he lifted the bag on the couch and offered her a forced smile.

  “I stopped by your place and picked up a few things,” he said. “Just some things I thought you might need.”

  The idea of him going through her things didn’t set her at ease, but Teagan took the bag.

  She was excited to see her sketch book and computer inside. This time she gave him a genuine smile. “Thank you.”

  Ennis stared at her for a moment longer and then set his coffee on the table.

  She watched with confusion as he stood.

  “Well, I think I’d better be on my way before I’m missed,” he said. “Let’s hope the Russians lose interest, if not, then consider what I’ve said.”

  With a short nod to Braden, Ennis was out the door before she’d even had the chance to say good-bye.

  Teagan stood and made her way to the window. She watched in shock as the limo pulled away from them and rolled down the snowy road.

  Braden moved to stand behind her. The heat from his body filled the space around her.

  “Something isn’t right,” she said, a sense of unease passing through her. “Why would he just leave like that?”

  She looked over her shoulder at him, but Braden shook his head.

  “Maybe your answer was enough.”

  Teagan turned and frowned at him, their bodies just a foot apart.

  “You really think that after months this was the time he would just give up? After who knows how many thousands of dollars of flowers?”

  Braden sighed and looked out the window. “No,” he said finally. “No, I don’t think that. I think something has happened, and we aren’t in the loop.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Teagan paced the floor of the cabin, wringing her hands. “We need to pack everything up right now and get the hell out of here.”

  “I need to know what’s going on.” Braden watched from where he stood by the window, hating the fear he saw in her eyes. The whole point of him being with her was so she could be safe, but the situation wasn’t so simple. He shook his head. “If something is happening, it’s not going to be good, and there’s no way in hell I’m risking our lives by running somewhere blindly.”

  “So we’re just going to stay here when you think something is happening?”

  He sighed and stepped over to where she was. Braden wrapped his arms around her and pulled her hard against his chest. She sighed and wrapped her hands around his back.

  “Please, what are we going to do?” she whispered, resting her head against his chest.

  “You understand, no matter what happens, I won’t let you be hurt, right?”

  She bit her lip and gave a shallow nod.

  “Good.” Braden ran his hands over her nearly dry hair. “First things first, I need to make a phone call.” He sighed. “I can’t do this alone.”

  Teagan pulled her head from his chest. “What? Who could you possibly call? You’re not going to try and reason with Ennis, are you?”

  He considered his options. Everything he’d done to protect her didn’t seem to be removing the main threat. He had no choice.

  He hated to involve her any further than she already was, but there wasn’t any denying that shit was going down. He wasn’t going to lose her from being too careful, and there was only one person that could tell him the best course of action.

&
nbsp; Braden pulled out his phone and dialed Finn.

  “Yeah,” Finn said.

  “We just had a visit from Ennis,” he said. “He tried to get Teagan to let him take care of her, said if she was his woman, the Russians would leave her alone.” He could feel Teagan tense at his words and ran his hand soothingly over her back. “Seemed very insistent.”

  “Oh? What did she say?”

  “She turned him down. Polite and all, but firm.”

  “And he took it well?” Finn asked, a question in his voice.

  “Very well. Too well. Better than I’ve seen him take a lot of things.”

  “That’s not good.” Finn let out a long sigh. “Sounds like he made a deal.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I think, too.”

  “Do you think he made you?”

  “No, if he did, I don’t know why he wouldn’t show up with the other guys right away. After all, he was the one who told me to take care of her. He probably just didn’t want to piss me off until he had to.”

  Finn grunted. “This is bad, but we may still be able to salvage this.”

  “Maybe.” Braden glanced over at the window. Dark gray clouds loomed on the horizon. “Looks like a snow storm is coming in. We should be fine tonight, but I can’t say how it will be when the roads are clear, especially if I don’t know when they might show up.”

  “I’ve got a couple men watching the Russians. Quinn and Conor are keeping an eye on our friend Boris. If there’s any movement, I’ll let you know. That should help a little.”

  Braden gave a sharp laugh. “You think it’s wise sending Conor?”

  Teagan’s head shot up at her brother’s name. She pulled herself from his arms to stare at him. He ignored her for the moment.

  “Why wouldn’t it be?” Finn said.

  “If you’re trying to not start a shooting war, it’s going to be hard for him not to take out Boris.”

  Finn chuckled. “I need a man I can trust on Boris, and Conor understands the big picture.”

  “Are you talking with Finn?” Teagan asked.

  He turned toward her and let out a pained sigh. “Yeah, I’m talking with Finn.”

  “Had to finally let her in?” Finn asked.

  “She’s stubborn like her brother. If it were up to her, we’d be half way to Mexico by now.”

  Finn gave a small laugh. “Still not a bad idea. I wouldn’t be pissed if you did what you need to do, Braden.”

  Braden shook his head, despite Finn not being in the room. “We need those guns if we’re going to win. They’ve closed off nearly all the other suppliers. We need this, and if not that, then we need to make sure they don’t get them.”

  “I’m not disagreeing with that either. We’re all fucked, no matter which way we turn.” Finn sighed. “You know we’ve got your back. Shit gets hot there, you bail. I can’t risk losing either of you.”

  Braden nodded. “Got it.”

  He hung up the phone and waited in silence for her to say something anything.

  Teagan watched him, her expression curious before being replaced by something more like irritation. “So all this time you were on our side?”

  “Yeah, I was.” Braden stretched and made his way over to the couch. He sat down. Teagan followed and picked up the cup of coffee she’d set down earlier.

  He patted her on the shoulder. “Finn needed a man on the inside, and it had to be someone believable. Someone that would likely flip sides for some cash and didn’t have a problem causing waves.”

  Teagan downed half the cup then set it back on the table. “So Finn had this planned all this time?”

  Braden shook his head. “It was a last resort. He never really knew for certain Ennis would leave, but if he did, Finn wanted to make sure he could have the upper hand.”

  She glared at him. “So we’re not here to keep me safe, but to get some guns?”

  “You don’t understand. You were supposed to be out of all of this when Conor came back to Finn.” Braden frowned and moved closer to her on the couch. “We’re here because the Russians put a hit on you, and the only person I trust to keep you safe is myself.”

  He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She turned to look at him.

  “I just don’t know what to believe right now,” she whispered. “I… just don’t understand.”

  “Well, if you don’t believe my words, then believe this.”

  Braden reached out and pulled her in for a kiss. It was just supposed to be a short one, but Teagan responded to him, her mouth hungry for more. He groaned when she slid over his lap and placed her legs on either side. He swelled with need.

  Teagan pulled away from his mouth to stare down at him.

  “I want to be with you,” she said.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Teagan’s words surprised him. He hadn’t been expecting her to say something like that in the middle of all this.

  “What about Ennis?” he said. “I thought you were worried.”

  She shrugged. “He’s not here.” She pointed toward the window. “Besides, there’s nothing we can do, right? You said it yourself, a storm is coming in.”

  He glanced out the window. The snow had already started to fall again. No one was going to be coming for them in this weather.

  It’d give them a little breathing room, and maybe a little time for other things. Still, it didn’t seem right, given the situation.

  “I don’t—” he began.

  She climbed off him, and her expression softened. “Unless the problem isn’t Ennis, but me.”

  Braden shook his head and placed his hand on her face.

  “It’s not you,” he said firmly.

  He could see the worry in her eyes and wanted to kick himself for even putting it there. He just needed to make her understand. If anything, the visit by Ennis made that very clear.

  “I’m not the guy you should be with,” he said. “I don’t do the whole flowers and candy thing. I work for a mob boss and do bad things.”

  Teagan frowned at him. “And who exactly do you think my brother works for? My family is already involved. It’s not like that by not being together I’m going to magically be safe.” She waved a hand. “We aren’t together right now, and I’m still in danger, right?”

  She was right. The Russians weren’t after her because of him, but because her brother pissed some men off. Maybe there wasn’t a point to fighting the idea so much.

  “And I never said I wanted flowers and candy,” Teagan continued. “What I want is something real. I’ve spent all these years just waiting to live, and now that I can, I want to live it my way.” She moved closer to him. “I know what you do for a living, and that’s something I can deal with. You aren’t killing innocent people. The man you killed outside the office was going to kill me. Who knows who else he’s killed?”

  Braden gave a tight nod. The Kelly Clan had a code. They had always had a code. They might have been criminals, but they didn’t kill innocent people. In a way, they liked to think of themselves as guardians of the city. It was one of the reasons he’d always remained loyal to Finn.

  Braden stood up and held out a hand to her.

  She frowned as she stared at his hand. “Where are you going?”

  He sighed loudly and swooped down to lift her in his arms. Teagan let out a squeal as he did so.

  “I’m going to give you what you want. We’re going to bed,” he said and strolled down the hall and kicked open his bedroom door.

  Once inside he placed her on the bed and pulled off his shirt. Since the moment he’d left her body, Braden had longed to return.

  He needed her.

  Teagan stared at him with surprise. Yesterday he had been so gentle, and it had been amazing, but this was different. The sexual tension was raw and excited her. She could already feel her center grow wet as she watched him.

  “Take your clothes off,” he ordered, his hungry eyes fixed on her.

  Teagan stood and watched him as she slip
ped off her shoes and socks. She reached for her shirt and could see his nostrils flare as she did so. The shirt came off and then next the pants. She stood before him in just the purple set he had gotten her.

  His eyes roved over her body. She grew hot under his stare.

  He toed off his boots and dropped his pants to the floor. She was surprised when he pulled off his underwear as well, his thick length already hard.

  “Take it all off,” he said, his voice dangerously low.

  Teagan unsnapped her bra and dropped it to the floor. His lower half twitched as she did so, and something about it gave her satisfaction in knowing how much she affected him.

  When she leaned over to pull down her panties, she could hear him groan a little.

  She stood naked, not sure what to do. He stepped over to her.

  “Touch me,” he said softly.

  Teagan looked up to his eyes and then down to where his great length brushed against her stomach. Gingerly, she reached down and ran her hand over him.

  He grunted at the touch, and the noise thrilled her. There was a sort of power to being able to give a person pleasure. Excited by his sounds, she fisted her hand over him and began to stroke him, her thumb rubbing along the veiny underside and then over the head.

  Teagan knelt down, wanting to taste him like he had her. She’d seen it done in videos before.

  At first she just licked the head. Braden moaned loudly. His hand wrapped in her long hair.

  Slowly, she placed him in her mouth and licked around the head. Then she moved him a little further in, sliding him in and out, just a little deeper each time.

  “Fuck, baby,” he groaned.

  Encouraged by his words, Teagan moved faster over him, loving that she was able to make him feel as good as he had made her feel.

  “Touch yourself,” he said quietly.

  Teagan reached down between her legs and found her juices had dribbled down her thighs. She moaned loudly when she swirled a finger around her sensitive clit. Teagan took him deep into her mouth as she did so.

  His hand guided her now at the back of her head, helping her to bob her head over him as she continued to touch herself.