Cold Hard Cash Read online

  He doesn’t get to act this way. Not with me.

  “Dude,” Holden says, raising his hands, not understanding the depth of any of this. I don’t know if I do either. “It’s all good here.”

  “You shouldn’t have hung up on me in New York,” I say, tears suddenly in my eyes. I’m not holding back. I have a heck of lot of emotion rising to the surface. “It was a really dick move, Cassius.”

  “Maybe you two should take this.…” Tess says, looking around.

  “That’s what I was thinking,” Jude says, touching my shoulder. “Hey, Evie, let’s get you somewhere, sweetie.”

  “No,” I say, pushing him away. “There’s nothing to discuss. I’m perfectly cool. So freaking cool.” I smile at Holden, who seems to consider his next move, who seems to realize what’s going on between Cassius and me.

  “We’re just gonna give you guys a sec,” JoJo says, grabbing McQueen. “If you need any backup, honey, I’ve got you covered.” She leans over and kisses my cheek.

  Jack and Tess follow them, and so do Elle and Sasha.

  I’m left with the most unlikely group of men: Cash, Holden, Jude.

  A motley crew, if I’m being honest.

  But, in some weird way, I feel like all three of them are in this with me, even if Cash currently hates my guts.

  “She’s living in my guest house, bro,” Holden says, looking Cash in the eyes. “Jude and I go way back. Evie and Jude are cousins. I was just helping a brother out.”

  Cash looks fierce, the same way he did outside my garage when he punched his fist against it, drawing blood. I want to soften his hard edges, like I’ve never wanted to do anything else in my life.

  I’m drawn to this bad boy with a dark past, and I just want to crawl into his lap and kiss his lips, and let him rest his head against my chest.

  “You’re not together?” Cash asks, and I know how hard asking that question must be. It reveals his desire—his desire for me.

  Holden just claps his hands together, grins. “Shit, man, I asked this girl out. You know what she told me? That she still wasn’t over some other guy.”

  Relief washes over Cassius’s face, and I feel the room expand with the realization that there doesn’t need to be a brawl tonight to lay claim to me.

  Jude runs his hands over his jaw. “Shit, that was fucking tense.”

  The four of us laugh nervously.

  “You cool, Evie?” Jude asks, watching out for me.

  I nod, then I look at Cash. “Will you please take me home?”

  He stands, grabs my hand.

  I have a feeling this time he won’t let it go.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Cassius

  I was ready to fight. Anyone. Everyone. Fuck. This girl causes me to lose my fucking mind, and I can’t let her out of my sight.

  But I’m not throwing any punches, not tonight.

  Instead, I’m taking this girl back to my hotel room, and I’ll show her why she never needs to look anywhere but into my eyes.

  I swear, if she wants, I’ll show her my fucking soul. I’ll give her everything.

  We get in a limo. I don’t stop to ask if it’s what she wants. I know it is. The only person who needs to speak right now is me, and those will be apologies.

  The rush of running through the club and jumping in the car has us breathless. Now the car is moving, but the limo is silent. It’s just Evangeline and me, facing on one another on the bench seats. There’s too much quiet. Too much we need to say.

  Too much I need to say.

  She’s in light blue jeans and a plain white tee-shirt, her hair in a messy bun. She was completely out of place in that high-end nightclub.

  Somehow, she’s effortless, and just as wholesome as she was when I left her—when she left me.

  What happened back at her father’s house, when I knew what we had was real and she was willing to walk?

  This time, I won’t let her go.

  “Can it wait?” she asks, softly. “The conversation. The words we need to say?”

  “I won’t be able to keep my hands off you, if that’s what you’re asking me to do.”

  “I don’t want that.”

  “What do you want?” I ask her, not understanding this gentle angel at all.

  “I want to make love with you.”

  I close my eyes; my head falls back. “Girl, you are so aggressive with the sex. Do you remember last time?”

  “I remember. I asked you to sleep with me about an hour after we met.” She lets a small laugh escape her lips. “I’m never aggressive like this, not with anyone else. I swear.”

  “I believe you.” And I do; I pull her into my lap. She fits so well.

  “Later,” she says, “we’ll talk. But for now … let’s just be Cassius and Evangeline, the believers.”

  “What do we believe in, baby?” I ask her, running my hands under her hair, my fingers wrapping around the base of her neck as her chin tilts toward me, her lips close enough to envelop.

  “One another,” she says in nothing more than whisper. And the words are lost anyways, because we’re lost in one another.

  Her tongue presses against mine, as we take hold of what we both want. She sinks into me, her arms wrapping around my neck, and all the desire I stored up for her while I was on tour is unleashed.

  I pull her face to mine, tugging on her bottom lip, letting her know what is to come.

  All of me.

  My hands reach her ass as the limo pulls to a stop. We pull apart, knowing we need to get out of the car and make our way to my room.

  We get out of the car, our fingers laced together, and walk through the lobby. My eyes are on Evangeline.

  As we walk into the elevator, I feel like I see a familiar face out of the corner of my eye, reflected in the mirrored walls.

  But the doors close, and Evangeline wastes not a moment, pressing her body against mine in a way that gets me so fucking hard, so fucking ready. Her tits are against my chest, her hips hitting against mine, taunting me with the future.

  If my past is haunting me, I can’t see it. I only have eyes for her.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Evangeline

  In his room, Cash closes the door and begins to strip me from head to toe. He starts by lifting my shirt over my head and dropping it to the floor. He unbuttons my pants, his body so close to mine, and I can’t help but reach toward him, run my hands over his chest. I’m moaning as he unsnaps my jeans, as they slide over my butt and drop to the floor.

  His hands run over my tits, tugging down the lacy cups of my white bra to roll his tongue over my nipples. A shiver runs over me as he sucks my tits. His hand reaches back, unclasps the hook, and he runs both hands over my breasts, his face buried in them as if he can’t get enough.

  Every second he spends nuzzled against them causes my pussy to clench in desire and my core to expand, as I remember being filled with Cash’s massive cock.

  I’ve been dreaming of it for weeks. And now … I can have it, no questions asked.

  “Cash,” I groan. “I need all of you.”

  He smiles down at me. “And this time there won’t be sand getting in your cunt.”

  I laugh, blushing at the memory of the beach.

  “What will be getting in my cunt this time?” I tease.

  “Me. Only me, baby.” He pulls off his shirt and his jeans. His cock is hard under his briefs, and I can’t help but slide my hand under the waistband.

  I need to feel his hardness, need to know that it’s real and it’s mine for the taking.

  His thick cock is in my hand, and he pushes down his briefs so I can have better access. I move my hand up and down his shaft, my pussy dripping with excitement.

  “Let me suck you, Cash. I know you’re going in my cunt, but I need you in my mouth first. Let me taste you, please.”

  He pulls me up, kisses me hard, cradling my face in his hand. “Oh, girl, you never need to ask permission for that.”

&
nbsp; I follow him to the bed, where he lays down. He tells me to take off my panties, and I stand before him. His massive cock is at attention—and, my God, it’s so fucking big. The lights are low, and everything in the room seems to glow.

  And everything in me just aches, wanting him now.

  But first, I do as he says. I take off my panties, stand before him completely bare.

  “Evangeline,” he says, looking at me head-to-toe with hooded eyes. “You are a fucking goddess.”

  I blush, lowering my face.

  When I raise my eyes, the mood has shifted between us. There’s nothing here besides deep desire and open souls. There are so many things we need to say. But right now, with us both naked before one another, there’s no space for anything but slow exhales and slick skin and hands running across the complicated spaces of our hearts.

  I fall on top of Cassius, kiss his lips tenderly before he guides me around, so my mouth is on his cock.

  Exactly where I wanted to be.

  I can’t be self-conscious or insecure about the fact that my ass is in his face, my pussy right on his mouth. I’ve never been in such a vulnerable position in my life.

  But with Cash … I just feel safe. Which is wrong, logically. I didn’t fight for him, he hung up on me. He has a past full of fights, and my heart is bruised. Both of us are broken, but both of us are on the path of healing.

  The path of being whole.

  Being here, with my mouth widening around his pulsing cock, seems to fill an unmet need I’ve been craving for so long, unknowingly.

  When I’m with Cash, I feel like myself. This is the second day I’ve seen him, in my entire life, and within the hour, we’re once again undressed, shedding down to our skin—because when we’re together, there isn’t room for clothes and pretenses and small talk.

  He and I, we cut straight to the chase.

  I move my mouth up and down over his cock, my hands running lower to his tight balls. Just touching them turns me on, causes my sucking to slow so I can savor every single thing about this night.

  His mouth is on me, and oh my God, I knew logically what was coming, but when he starts sucking my folds, his tongue circling my clit, I can’t help but release a deep moan.

  “Don’t stop, Cash,” I beg. “Whatever you’re doing, don’t stop.

  He doesn’t. He licks up and down my slit, over and over again, and I know I’m just dripping all over his face, but he doesn’t stop. It makes me suck harder, stroking his hard shaft as his mouth fucks me.

  He smacks my ass, causing another low moan to escape my mouth, and he must like the reaction, because he raises my ass again, smacking it again, before pressing a finger into my dripping gap.

  In and out, over and over, he flutters his finger inside me, loosening my tight pussy. I keep sucking, knowing he’s getting closer. His cock is throbbing in my mouth, and I press my face against him, so I can take him as deep as possible, until my throat burns. It takes the edge off, because my cunt is so close to climax that I can’t think straight or see straight.

  I feel another finger inside me, going in and out, and my pussy is just gushing with release. I never knew I could come so much, but fuck, Cash knows how to work my pussy over.

  I can’t suck anymore, because I’m losing my mind, delirious with this overwhelming sensation of his fingers fucking me so hard.

  Cash nudges my ass, and I roll over, onto my back. He spreads my legs, pressing his hand over my wet pussy, his eyes so full of desire, like he wants to devour me whole.

  I would let him. I want him to take any piece of me he wants. There is nothing I would deny this man. Ever.

  He presses his cock into my pussy, and my back arches, because he doesn’t move gently. He fills me hard and fast and it takes a moment to get my bearings, but soon enough I’m gripping the sheets with tight fists, and he thrusts deep into me.

  I scream out as the orgasm crashes over me. There’s no gentle wave of pleasure. No, this is hard and fast, and everything.

  “I want to taste you, though, baby. Let me taste you,” I beg him. My tits bounce as he thrusts again and again, pounding my pussy in a way I never thought I would like, but that I love.

  “You want to taste my come?” he growls.

  I whimper a yes, and he pulls out of me, his hard cock in his hand.

  I sit up, wanting to take his come in my mouth. He pumps his cock, and ropes of his creamy come rush out, covering my mouth, my tits. Watching him come turns me on, and I need more.

  I press my mouth against his cock, letting his release fill my mouth, so I can taste his salty manhood, so I can swallow his seed.

  So I can be filled with him, completely.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Cassius

  Evangeline is nestled in my arms, both of us exhausted. The lights are low, and the night sky is dark.

  “We should talk,” I tell her. Holding her like this feels so intimate, and I can’t imagine anything either of us could say that would break this spell.

  “I know.” She runs her hand over my chest, tracing the tattoos on my skin. She sighs, then sits herself up, and surprises me by straddling me.

  I smile, shake my head. “How are we supposed to talk if your tits are in my face?”

  “I thought it might keep things light … less intense.” She takes my hand and presses it on her left breast. “See? Happy.”

  I roll her breast in my hand. “Girl, are you a dream? Is that why you disappeared from my life? Did I just wake up?”

  “I’m not a dream,” she tells me. “I was scared my dad would hold me against you, take away your contract. I couldn’t let that happen. So I pushed you away.”

  My fingers run down the length of her ribcage, settling on her hips. “You could have told me that, Evie. This whole time, I thought I was a fucking joke to you. A game.”

  She arches her back, looking down at me. “You really thought that, deep down? That I was playing you?”

  “I’m used to people turning away from me.”

  “I’m sorry I ever made you feel unwanted.” She takes my cock in her hand, strokes me softly as her body sits above me.

  I nod my head, nearly imperceptibly. “I know that now.”

  “How, how do you know?”

  “No one who wanted to hurt me could make me feel so damn good.”

  “You hung up on me, Cash. And I know that sounds petty, but if this is real, whatever you and I are … I need you to hear me out. Always.”

  “I hear you now. And I won’t let you go so easily, ever again.”

  She nods, leaning over and kissing me softly.

  “You think you and I could be something?” She asks me. “I mean, sure, my dad got over his threats, and I quit school and I’m living here now, but you’re just starting your career. You hardly know me. And I don’t want to get in the way of your life.”

  “In the way of what? Concerts? Fuck, Elle had Sasha with her the whole time we were on the road. A relationship can work, if we want it to.”

  She kisses me again. Her lips are so soft and send shivers over my skin. “I want it to,” she tells me.

  “Me too. I’ve missed you like crazy. A kind of crazy I’ve never experienced before.”

  We both smile, staring at one another in the low light of the hotel. We laugh, shaking our heads at this weird turn of events. I never expected to have Evangeline in my arms again.

  “You were amazing on tour, Cash.”

  “Not now,” I tell her. “I hate talking about my music. Elle always tries, too, and … I don’t know. It feels weird. It’s like, my music isn’t anything I do. It’s just who I am. I don’t need a pat on the back just for being myself.”

  “But you’re really special. And I don’t know what the guys you grew up with did to you, to get you in jail—”

  “Prison.”

  “Okay, prison. I don’t know what they did to put you there, but I’m glad it happened—because, Cash, now you have this raw emotion, this hea
rt. The ability to tell a story with your lyrics that is powerful.”

  I don’t think Evangeline is ready to go here with me. I’m not sure I’m ready to go here with her, either. “Girl, I think this territory isn’t anything you should be walking into. At least right now. It’s complicated.”

  “Try me.”

  “Evangeline, your life has been this sheltered, peaceful—”

  “No, you don’t get to say that. You don’t know me, either,” she says.

  I feel her retreating, pulling away from me. We’re both vulnerable, naked and open, both wondering if maybe we can’t really see one another.

  “Then tell me.” I grab her wrists, not letting her off the bed, away from me. I keep her in place.

  She sinks back into my body. It’s a relief that she wants to stay close.

  “Tell me what I don’t know, Evangeline.”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Evangeline

  I bite my lip, falling on the bed beside him. His arms wrap around me, and our gazes meet.

  “My mom was a mess. I know I said my issues were with my dad, but my mom … she was an alcoholic, a controlling one. And so, so insistent. I believed what she wanted for me was what I wanted for myself. And so, yeah, I didn’t go to prison. Or grow up in East Heights. But, Cash, my life wasn’t some sheltered thing because we had money. It was messy. And more than anything, it was lonely. So lonely.”

  He kisses my cheek, his lips brushing away my fears.

  “She went on a binge, took a bunch of pills, ended it all by shooting herself with a gun no one even knew she had,” I tell him, realizing I’ve never uttered that truth to anyone.

  “Oh, girl,” he says, his eyes full of tears—and oh, my heart, seeing him cry over my story is just too much. He seems to know the intensity of what I’ve been through. He must understand loss, too.

  “I’m so sorry, baby.” He pulls me closer to him, and I sink in his arms, grateful to be held. He promised not to let me go.