Chapter 3

3

MALCOLM

I t's 2 am, and Adam still isn't home.

Most of me doesn't give a fuck, but the part of me that is still his father, and always will be, cares. The blizzard is still raging, and while he has places to stay in the city, it's a far enough drive that I wouldn't want him making it in the middle of the night if I have a choice.

So, despite being tired and wound up so tight that I might snap, I pour myself another two fingers of whiskey and settle onto the couch facing the large bay window. The house is dark and quiet.

I have to stop myself from remembering that Melody is just upstairs, just the guest suite door separating the two of us. The way she licked her lips when I almost kissed her, the feeling of her warm breath on my face…damn, this woman makes me feel lost, and that isn't something I'm used to dealing with.

She's making me crazy. I'm having these wild thoughts, like locking her in the house and never letting her go. Or providing for her every want and need, laying her down on the softest cashmere blankets and, starting from her feet, tasting every single inch of her.

I want to possess Melody in all ways, but she might just be the one woman on the planet I can't have.

Well, can't is a strong word. Shouldn't have. But, if I want something bad enough, I'm going to take it, and I want Melody pretty damn bad.

Is she worth ruining my relationship with my son? The hard truth is that Adam and I already have a strained relationship. He's a lazy freeloader and seemed shocked when I made it clear he was going to have to become his own man if he wanted to continue getting my help.

Hell, maybe losing Melody to me would be the final thing to make him realize that he has nothing to offer the world right now. It might be enough to make him change.

Even if he did change, though, I can't give her up. Even now, with there being nothing between us but something combustive, I feel a possessiveness, and ownership even, of her. Melody Coolidge brings out the protector, but also the animal, in me.

She's such a sweet little thing, too pure for this world almost, and that just makes me want her more. Up until now, someone like Melody was nothing but a fever dream for me. Yet, here she is, in the flesh, sleeping somewhere on the second floor above my head.

I guess Adam is just going to have to fucking deal with it. She's mine, even if I'm the only one who knows it right now.

The whiskey is sharp and burns down my throat, but when I lower the glass, I see a set of headlights coming up the drive, the SUV that they're attached to struggling through the snow.

It's Adam, either come to apologize or for a confrontation. Now that I've admitted I intend on having Melody for my own, I don't really want either one for him. He should have just stayed away, and just called to let me know that he made it through the storm.

He takes his time coming inside, and I hear him stomping the snow off his boots and unzipping his coat. I'm in the receiving room, and as he passes, I call his name quietly. "Adam."

My son freezes and turns around. "Can't believe you're still awake right now, old man."

This old man is showing your girlfriend what a real man is, you little fucking prick, I think but restrain myself from voicing this out loud. "Well, I am. Where exactly are you going?"

There's a single answer he can give me that's wrong, and of course, it's the one he blurts out. "The guest suite."

"You mean Melody's suite," I correct, fighting to keep my features in check.

"Yeah, but Melody's my girlfriend, so…" He shrugs. "Sorry about the commotion earlier. I don't know what's wrong with her right now. Stress from her eviction, I guess."

I'm shocked and then, just as quickly, furious. How could he pretend to apologize while dropping all the blame at Melody's feet? It's unbelievable. "She has nothing to feel sorry for, and I'm sure she doesn't need you apologizing for her, either. You fucked up, Adam. And you're not going to the fucking guest suite, either. Your normal room is ready for you if you intend to stay."

He barks a laugh, crossing his arms. "Sorry, but I'm not apologizing for trying to kiss my girl. Just because she feels like being an ice queen right now doesn't mean she shouldn't at least act grateful for being able to stay here. And yes, I intend on staying. In the guest suite."

"Like hell you are." I can't keep sitting here anymore, with Adam hovering over me. Surging upwards, I stalk towards him. "Last chance. Apologize and go to your old room or get the fuck out."

His features twist with rage, but my son knows he's no match for me and has no choice except to back down. "Fine. Whatever. Sorry."

I snort. "Since you're still being a prick about it, let me lay down some rules for you, you fucking child. You can sleep here and nothing more. I don't want to see you in my house during the day, ever. You don't speak to Melody at all. She's your ex now, and you're going to respect her decision. If I find out that you've been messing with her, then I'll not only throw your ass out, but I'll also cut off the inheritance before you even get a chance to smell it. Got it?"

Adam swallows, looking stricken, but he nods after a minute. "Yeah…got it."

I pick up the carafe of whiskey and pour another glass for myself only. "Good. Now get to bed and be out of my sight by 8 am."

His lips tighten, like he's trying to hold in more complaints, and with his eyes flashing, my son turns to leave.

There, he's finally gone, and he knows in no uncertain terms that Melody is done with him. Just because he knows this fact doesn't mean he'll respect it, and I don't love the idea of him and Melody both sleeping under the same roof with the way he tried to force himself on her, but this is the best solution for the time being.

I pick up my glass and finish the whiskey, thinking that as soon as this snow lets up, I'll hire someone to install a lock on Melody's door for her, one that only I have the key for.

Unless she moves into my room sooner rather than later. Of all the options, that's the one I like the most.

Despite being up late as hell, I'm up early as always, working out harder in the home gym than usual to burn off some of the need. It helps, barely, but at least I'm not going to be rock-hard at breakfast.

Just like I commanded, Adam is long gone by the time I make my way to the dining room, his SUV gone. The snow has stopped, and while it's high as hell, at least we aren't trapped. Not that I plan on leaving with such a delicious distraction existing right within these walls.

Melody comes to breakfast with her hair still mussed from sleep and a matching yoga set that leaves little to the imagination. It's a dark pink, and it makes the blush on her face stand out when she sees me.

"Good morning," she says, her voice almost a whisper.

"Good morning, Melody," I wave towards the chair next to me, where she sat just last night. "Join me."

She does, and I ask her what she'd like, loading her plate with fresh fruit and pancakes, along with a glass of fresh orange juice. She protests that she can serve herself, but to hell with that. I want to serve her, to take care of her, and I feel a fierce pleasure when I see her take her first bite and smile in joy.

"It's so good," she admits, taking another huge bite. "I haven't had fresh fruit in forever."

I frown. "What? Why?"

Shame flashes over her face, and she sits her fork down. "I'm sure Adam told you I got evicted…well, it obviously sucks, but I could barely afford food anyway. I ate a lot of ramen and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, so this is really nice."

When she sees how my expression darkens, she quickly adds, "I got hot meals when I was working at the diner, of course! But it isn't exactly a fresh fruit sort of joint, you know."

"The diner?" I pick up my own fork and cut into my egg with it, spilling yellow yolk. Melody watches me and follows suit, taking another bite of her own. Good.

"Maple Leaf Diner," she explains. "I usually cooked in the morning and waited tables at night, but sometimes, I'd switch it up and do the opposite."

I struggle with what she's saying, imagining this sweet girl working hours upon hours in a greasy, rag-tag diner. "You worked both shifts?"

"Well, yes…" I watch Melody look around the dining room and the impressive spread of food, and it's like she remembers where she is and who I am all at once. It crushes her. "I can't believe I'm sitting here telling Malcolm Mayfield that I work in a greasy spoon and eat ramen for dinner. "

The sunshine is coming through the tall windows, and it sparkles in her hair and her eyes, which are now full of embarrassment. I hate seeing it, and I won't tolerate it. Not for a fucking minute.

"You're quitting the diner, and you're not eating fucking ramen anymore, Melody. You'll stay here with me and find something that you like to do. School, whatever. But you're not going to bow and scrape for another damned day, do you hear me?"

Her eyes go as wide as saucers, her pretty pink mouth opening in a surprised O. "What…what in the world do you mean? I'm not even with–"

I cut her off. "I don't give a fuck about Adam, either. You aren't with him, you are with me." When I see her flinch, I quickly add, "You're my guest, and as such, I want you to have everything you need to thrive. Everything, anything, Melody. So quit the damned diner. Today."

Melody is in complete shock, and I can't help but feel a little bit of satisfaction at how easily I can change everything for her. I take care of what is mine, in every way, shape, and form.

She will never want for a single thing ever again, she just doesn't know it yet. She'll see that she belongs to me soon enough, though, but I hope at that point, she'll have grown to love her silk bindings.

Shit. Now I'm thinking about her tied to my bed, silk ropes around her small wrists and attached to the headboard. Naked, and that pretty flush spreading over her entire body…fuck. So much for not being hard during breakfast.

"I…" Melody takes a drink of her orange juice, puckering her lips at how tart it is. I want to kiss her so damn bad. "I need that job for when I get my own place, though."

"Melody…" I grumble. "Don't argue with me. Quit the job and spend the afternoon looking at online classes or whatever else you'd like to do. Price is not a concern." There's an orange, irresistible drop on her bottom lip, and I reach out to swipe it off, licking the drop from my thumb afterward and making her suck in a sharp breath. "There's a solar on the second floor that is nice to work in. I'll have a laptop sent up for you."

"Why are you doing this?" Melody's voice is so small that it makes my chest tight.

"Because the world made a big fucking mistake by putting you in such a hard spot, so I'm correcting it."

"Oh…" She pushes a strawberry around her plate. "It wasn't the world, exactly. I didn't really want to tell you this because it's sort of humiliating, but…I got kicked out of my apartment because my own mom stole all of my rent money. For gambling and booze. She's…an addict. It isn't her fault, but on the other hand, it is, so…" Melody shrugs, a world of hurt on her pretty face. "I tried to support us both and failed. So quitting the diner also means giving up on saving her, and that's…well….it's really hard for me, you know? She's still my mom."

I thought seeing Adam forcing himself on Melody was the angriest I'd ever been, but hearing what she's telling me right now, I reach an entirely different level. And the worst part is I can't let it show because I don't want to scare her when she's telling me something so vulnerable.

In her body language and the way she's looking down at her plate, I can tell that it's taking a lot out of her to admit these things. So even though I want to tear the world apart over what she's telling me, I won't. I can't.

This poor girl has never been nurtured, has never been loved in any sort of way where she could just relax and live her life. From what she's telling me, it sounds like she's been working herself to the bone at just twenty years old to support herself and her mother, and got nothing for it except fucked over and stolen from.

Melody has never felt secure, has never felt safe. And that changes today. Right fucking now.

I'm already making plans in my mind, mental notes to find the best rehab facilities around. After that, an apartment for her mother far away from Melody so she can heal from the trauma of being fucked over by the one person who should always be there for their children.

None of this is going to be told to Melody yet because I'm still skirting that line of drawing her closer to me without scaring her away, but I know that she will never be able to truly let herself enjoy her life here with me if she knows her mother is still out there suffering. Even if her mother sounds manipulative.

I've paid for worse things than rehab and an apartment for someone, though, and it's for a good cause. Not to help Melody's mother—that's a cause I don't give a damn about—but to help her. Sweet, innocent Melody.

I realize that minutes have passed since her declaration, and she's all but shut down because I've taken so long to answer. My hand shoots out and grabs her chin between my thumb and forefinger, and I make her look at me, her gorgeous eyes shining.

"Listen to me right now. That life of yours is over. Don't argue, don't tell me it isn't necessary. Melody, do I look like a man who gives up on something he wants?"

Color rises in her cheeks again as she shakes her head. "N-no…"

"Correct. And right now, what I want is to change your life for the better. Do you think I get everything I want, when I want it, Melody? Do you think I have the resources, and the will, to make things happen?"

She nods. "Yeah. I do."

"Then you know how pointless it would be to try and change my mind on this. Finish your breakfast, do whatever else it is that you need to do, and then head up to the solar." I release her reluctantly, letting my hand slide down her soft cheek as I do so.

Melody is silent, but she turns back to her breakfast, just like she's told. There's a sheen of tears in her eyes, but I don't mention it, figuring that it will just be another thing to embarrass her in an already humiliating morning for the poor girl.

But I still feel an intense satisfaction watching her eat, knowing that even something as small as this is nourishing her, body and soul, and I've been the one to provide it.

We keep the conversation surface-level for the rest of the meal, and then I have to let her go so I can get my work done for the day. It will be easier, knowing she's warm and well-fed, searching for something to do in the future that fulfills her.

What won't make it easier, though, is how fucking hard I still am and how the need coursing through me just grows with each minute I'm with her.

As Melody leaves the dining room, I have to reach down and adjust my cock, hissing at the contact of my own hand. I don't know how much longer I'm going to last without having her, but I will only really be satisfied when she comes to me on her own, as desperate for me as I am for her.

My little Melody, the girl who is going to make me insane and the most important person to ever walk through my doors. There's no way forward that doesn't end with her in my bed.

I just hope the road is short because I can't spend many more days with the majority of my blood in my cock twenty-four-seven.

It's been a long fucking day, taking care of my normal work while also hiring someone to track down Melody's mother and the perfect place for her to be taken once she is found. Finally, it ends, and I'm free to seek out the woman who has been haunting me ever since the morning.

I find her in the solar, right where I told her to be, surrounded by the floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking my estate. She's napping, a throw blanket on her lap and her head pillowed on her hands. It's sunset, and it paints her in shades of red and orange.

There's a tray from lunch off to the side, and I'm glad to see that she's been eating. The Macbook I had sent up for her is shut and on the side table, and I resist the urge to open it and see what she's been doing.

What I don't resist, though, is kneeling next to the couch and pushing her hair out of her face, letting my fingers linger on her cheekbones and lips.

God, she's so beautiful. Flawless, even. It's incredible that someone so small, so delicate, could be as strong as Melody is to have survived this long, living the life that she has.

Her lashes flutter, and she pushes herself to a sitting position. I lean back, giving her space, but neither of us speaks. Melody is warm and soft from sleep, her lids heavy, and I have the briefest thought that she might think this is a dream as she loops her arms around my neck.

"I quit the diner," she says finally, her voice so quiet.

I hum in satisfaction. "Good. What else?"

Her mouth quirks up at the corner. "I think I might take classes for social work. After everything that I've been through, it would be nice to help others out."

"Ha. I'm not surprised. You seem like a giving sort of girl."

Something passes through her eyes, and I watch her throat bob. "I just wish I could give you something in return."

A million possibilities cross my mind. Her bent over this very couch, her bare ass in the air for me. Or Melody on her knees instead of me, my cock sliding in and out of her full, pink lips as she sucks my cock. Not yet. Soon but not yet.

But I'm a selfish man, and if she's offering, I will take something at least.

"Kiss me, then," I rumble. "That's what I want."

She hesitates. I'm sure she's going to tell me no, but then my little Melody surprises me by moving forward with aching slowness. Her breathing is shaky, but she's brave and pushes through until her lips finally touch mine.

I am a strong man. I am not a beast. But good fucking god, it takes everything in me not to take control and claim her mouth.

Instead, I let Melody be the one to kiss me first. It's chaste and quick, but she comes back for another, this time longer and more confident. I feel the tip of her tongue poke out, and right as I'm sure that the kiss is about to deepen, she pulls back.

No. That's not enough. I cup the back of her head, my other hand grabbing her jaw and tilting her head to the perfect angle as I slant my mouth over hers. She gasps, her hands going from around my neck to flat on my chest, but she doesn't push me away.

I give her a few seconds of a closed-mouth kiss before I alter my grip, and she opens her mouth, allowing me to sweep my tongue inside. Kissing her is making most of my clear thoughts disappear. All that's left is want and need. Driving, undeniable need.

She tastes so fucking good when I circle her tongue with my own, delving in and out in a mock representation of what I want to do to her pussy with my cock.

Melody is still at first but comes alive bit by bit, clutching my shirtfront and kissing me back until her tongue is battling mine, and she's whimpering into my mouth.

I have two options—push her back into the couch and kiss down her neck to her full, perfect tits or slow everything down before this goes from kiss to something a lot dirtier, right here in front of these unobscured windows.

Then I remember what she's already been through yesterday and today, and I can't bring myself to push her any further. If she gives me one sign that she wants more than just this kiss, then all bets are off, but she seems perfectly content to let me kiss her deeply and kiss me back.

I'm so hard at this point that I know I'm leaking pre-come, and if I shift even the slightest bit, my erection is going to brush against her stomach.

But I'm her ex-boyfriend's dad, and she's supposed to be off-limits. I have to give her some space. Even if it's the hardest thing I'll ever do.

Slowly, I wind the makeout session down to smaller kisses and separate our now-smashed together bodies. When I see her face and the way her lips are swollen from kisses and her pupils blown wide with lust, I almost dive back in.

I know that if I do, I won't be able to stop, and I have to have some fucking patience. It's a word I'm barely familiar with, but for Melody, I'll learn.

She blinks slowly and utters a surprised, "Wow," which makes me smile despite everything else.

"Are we bad people?" she adds, and my smile disappears. "I mean, Adam…"

"Fuck Adam," I growl, and she seems stunned. "He's a grown man, and it's not my fault if he couldn't be what you need. I can."

"I just…" she starts, but I'm not hearing this right now. Not when I finally got her to touch me of her own volition.

"Enough, Melody. We're not talking about Adam when we're together, do you understand? What's happening between you and me is private, and I don't need to be reminded about my freeloading son when I'm with you. Understand?"

Some of the tension leaves her shoulders. Telling her to drop the subject completely has freed Melody in a way, I think. It's taken away any reason she has to feel guilty.

I search her face, seeing the dark circles under her expressive eyes and the way she sways toward me. I probably shouldn't have woken her from her nap because she still looks exhausted. I'm sure recovering from the life she's been living is going to take some time.

What I want to do is carry her to my room, put her in my bed, and not let her leave until she's totally refreshed. I want to feed her with my fingers and pleasure her until she falls into a restful sleep. Damn, it's so fucking hard not to push her, knowing that I know exactly what she needs better than she does.

"Let's skip formal dinner tonight," I tell her. "I'll have food sent to your suite."

"You don't want to have dinner together?" Melody sounds a little hurt, and I curse internally.

I can't fucking tell her that I need some space because the longer I spend close to her, the closer I am to pushing her boundaries. She's so warm and soft and willing that I can almost feel what it would be like to slide into her.

Fuck fuck fuck. I have to get some space to breathe or I'm going to rush everything. I'm too old to be acting like a horny teenager right now.

"I do," I tell her, trying to sound reassuring. "I just have a few more things to do for work. But we'll have breakfast together, sweetheart. Promise."

There's doubt in her expression, but she pins a smile on. "Okay. I understand."

I almost kiss her goodbye, but I think it will be the thing that breaks the last string holding me back from claiming her completely.

I leave Melody in the solar and, with a single-minded intensity, rush to my suite and into the shower. I crank the water as hot as it will go—hopefully hot enough to cleanse these desires I'm having such a hard time resisting, even if just for a few hours.

Stripping as fast as I can, I throw my clothes onto the heated tile floor and bolt into the water, turning my face to the spray. The rainfall shower head doesn't give me the intense pressure I need, but the heat and the water making it hard to breathe at least lets me focus on just existing.

It's no use, though. I can't burn, or drown, Melody out of me. Resigned, and with no other options, I reach down and grab my cock in my fist and start to work it, my other hand fisted on the wall.

I hang my head low, stroking, Melody occupying every single thought. Her ass in those yoga pants, her tongue on mine, the little sounds she made as I kissed her. She's fucking irresistible, and just out of my reach. Not for long though…not for long.

I let my mind play out the situation if I had pushed her back onto the couch in the solar. I imagine stripping her top off and burying my face in her tits, sucking her nipples till she's frantic.

Working my way down her belly, rolling her pants down her long, long legs, and licking a searing swipe over her panty-covered pussy. I can just imagine how she would taste—like honey and sunshine, the complete opposite of the snow-covered world outside.

When I think about pulling her panties aside and tasting her fully, my cock jumps in my hands, and I cover the tile wall with my seed. Clenching my teeth, I ride out the orgasm, feeling unsatisfied but finally able to think coherently. It's going to be a long fucking night, I just know it.