Unworthy (The Worthy Series Book 1) Read online

  “Ian?” she murmured.

  “Yeah. It’s me.” He pressed a kiss to the bare skin between her shoulder and neck. His body went on alert and all his sleepiness transformed into need.

  She burrowed deeply against him, but her deep breathing told him she was still sleeping. Not wanting to wake her, he held her, keeping as still as he could. He was definitely going for sainthood tonight. No sex and he’d handled her drug addict of a brother. Admittedly, Danny was his former best friend so there was an obligation there. One he needed to heed.

  Eventually he drifted off and woke with the hot Miami sun pouring through the window, but that wasn’t what was heating him up. Cat’s mouth and hands were all over his body, focusing on where he wanted her most. He released a groan.

  Her head froze and she glanced up to smile at him. “Good morning, sleepyhead. Sleep well?”

  “Better now.”

  She smiled and ducked her head again. It was his last coherent thought. Her warm, wet mouth suctioned his hard cock, rendering him brainless. He gently rubbed a palm over her scalp, letting her know how much he appreciated her efforts. Her silky blonde hair tangled then brushed easily through his fingers.

  He wanted to wake up this way every day for the rest of his life: with access to a naked and sexy Cat.

  Everything was different with her. He’d had his fair share of blowjobs before, but knowing it was Cat’s mouth on his cock ramped up his need and control.

  As he felt the tension building up his spine and through his balls, his pressure on her head increased until he was gently thrusting into her mouth. Faster and harder until his release burst through him with some serious force. He let himself lay pliant against the pillows while Cat caught her breath and cuddled against his side.

  When they were both breathing normally again, he flipped her to her back and rested on his elbows over her. “Your turn.”

  Cat rang the doorbell of a house she’d never thought to enter again. Ian had offered to pick her up, but given that he had to drive past his parents’ house to get to her, she’d told him she’d meet him there. Her fingers crinkled the plastic bag that held the bunch of flowers she’d picked up at Publix on the way here.

  Ian had assured her he’d be there early to watch football, but she wasn’t one hundred percent sure he was in the house yet. She took a deep breath and raised her hand to knock, but the front door flew open before she could make contact.

  “Catherine.” Ian’s dad, Michael, pulled her into his house and into a bear hug. “Long time no see. Happy Thanksgiving.”

  “Thanks. Same to you.” She offered him the bouquet, but he waved her off.

  “Joy will know what to do with those. She’s in the kitchen. Remember the way?”

  She nodded, knowing she had no choice but to walk to the kitchen without saying hello to Ian first. Where the heck was he, and why wasn’t he opening the door alongside his father?

  “Cat!” Ian’s mom looked up from mashing potatoes by hand. She dropped the masher and scooted around the kitchen island to hug her. As they hugged, Joy whispered, “I’m so glad you’re with Ian. I’d always wanted you for him.”

  She lifted a radiant face to Joy. “Really?”

  “Absolutely. Now let me grab you a vase and you can set those gorgeous flowers in water. And then I need you to make the ceviche with platanos. I’ve never been able to replicate your mom’s recipe, but it’s not Thanksgiving without it.”

  Cat froze. It had been years since she’d had a Thanksgiving with her own family, and she’d dimmed the memory of a Cuban American Thanksgiving feast, but it was as if she’d been slapped in the face, like her parents’ death had happened yesterday. Tears filled her eyes, but her hands were too occupied with flowers to make a good show of hiding them.

  Ian’s mom was nothing but sympathetic as she yanked the flowers from her hands, tossed them onto the counter, and pulled Cat in for another hug.

  “Mom? Cat?” Ian’s voice came from behind her.

  Joy stepped back from the embrace and spun her into Ian’s arms. “Take her on a walk, honey. I mentioned her mom without even thinking.”

  “It’s okay, Joy,” Cat managed. “Holidays can be hard. I haven’t really celebrated one in more than five years. Of course I want to help with the ceviche. I can do it.” The last bit was said more for her benefit than anyone in the Lawrence family. As a young girl, she’d spent hours in the kitchen with her mom learning how to make some of the traditional foods from her mom’s native Cuba. Making ceviche and platanos was done on every special occasion, and Cat probably could’ve done it blindfolded, but it had been a while since she’d made them.

  Ian gave her another squeeze. “You good, baby? I can go back to football now?”

  She nodded then leaned up on tiptoe to give him a warm kiss on the lips. Then she gave him a gentle shove toward the doorway. “Go. I’ve got this.”

  Hastily she wiped her wet cheeks with a tissue from the box Joy had discreetly put on the counter near her elbow.

  An hour later, the turkey was carved, the potatoes mashed, and the shrimp ceviche in a large glass bowl looking almost identical to the way her mom made them.

  Ian sat on her right, but there was an empty seat on her left. His parents sat at either end of the table, and across the table sat a friend of Mr. Lawrence’s with his wife, and next to her was Ian’s brother, Kyle, who’d given her a very friendly hello. A little too friendly in Cat’s opinion. If she hadn’t turned her head, his greeting kiss would’ve touched her lips. She hoped Ian hadn’t noticed, because he’d confessed there was already tension between him and his brother.

  “Catherine, what have you been up to since high school?” Kyle asked.

  Cat looked up from her mouthful of mashed potatoes. Was he being facetious? “This and that,” she said, hoping he wouldn’t dig more. Not that she was ashamed of her poverty, but it wasn’t exactly holiday dinner table conversation.

  “Actually,” Ian said, “Cat’s working for I.D. Productions now. She’s one of our highest money generators.”

  Cat gave him a sharp glance. Was that the truth, or was he boasting about her in front of his parents?

  “For doing what?” Michael asked. “Looking cute on the dance floor?”

  “Dad, shut up,” Ian said with an angry look on his face.

  “Michael,” his mom said at the same time.

  “What?” Michael asked. “It’s not as if it requires a college degree to do what Ian does.”

  Cat felt her cheeks heat on Ian’s behalf. She was about to defend him when the doorbell rang three times in quick succession and then came loud knocks that spoke of someone trying to fight their way in rather than waiting.

  She leaned over to ask Ian. “Who’s missing?”

  “Your brother,” was Ian’s terse reply.

  “You invited Danny?” Before he could confirm, the doorbell rang again.

  Ian leapt from his chair and hurried to the door, with Cat on his heels. They opened it to see Danny looking awful. His clothes were stained and hung from his body as if he were a hanger rather than a human with muscles underneath. His skin looked grey, sallow, and paper- thin. His beard was a tangled mess as was his overly long hair. He wasn’t holding a hostess gift, and he hadn’t bothered to put on a clean outfit appropriate for a holiday gathering.

  Ian took one look at him and said, “Invitation rescinded. Get out.”

  “Ian, don’t be ridiculous,” his mother said. She reached to embrace Cat’s brother. “Danny, I’m glad you made it.” She took Danny’s arm in such a way and marched him to the table. Ian’s dad’s friends gave him suspicious looks, and Kyle had narrowed eyes and looked revolted.

  Cat found her seat and attempted to act as if it was a normal occurrence for her brother to show up looking like a drunk, homeless man. On her right, Ian was downing his glass of pale ale and not looking at anyone else at the table.

  Cat was aware of cutting and chewing food, but it had ceased to have
taste. Conversation was dead and only the clinks of forks was heard. Even Danny had a plate of food piled and was eating as if he hadn’t in weeks. It was possible he hadn’t.

  “Ian, how are Art Basel plans coming along?” Joy asked.

  Cat looked to her gratefully.

  “Fine,” Ian responded tersely.

  Cat shot him a glare. His mood wasn’t helping the awkward situation.

  “There’s going to be some great events,” Cat said. “There’s a salsa merengue night at Bridget’s.” She turned to Ian. “Right?”

  “Yeah.”

  She gave him an elbow jab to his ribs, but he didn’t take her pointed hint and continued to drink beer silently.

  “Dad, I’m showing the Pinecrest property on Monday,” Kyle said, obviously making an effort at diffusing the situation.

  Cat could’ve kissed him. Except for some reason, Kyle’s innocuous comment made Ian tense even more.

  Before she could change the conversation, there was an awful retching noise, and she swiveled her head in time to see her brother lose the contents of his stomach onto the floor between their chairs.

  She jumped up and back, then ran to the kitchen without realizing that tears were streaming down her cheeks. She was totally and utterly humiliated. She grabbed a roll of paper towels and a wet cloth. “I’m so sorry,” she kept repeating as she mopped up the vomit.

  Ian, his dad, and his brother worked together to drag Danny out to a lounge chair by the pool. In case of more vomit, it could be hosed off.

  “Cat. It’s okay. It’s not your fault,” Ian’s mom kindly repeated, but Cat was deaf to her words. Her insides felt hollow despite the softball size amount of stuffing and heaps of turkey she’d consumed. The Rosses were bringing this family down. First, she’d involved Ian, and now his mother. It wasn’t fair. She could’ve told Ian that Danny promised a lot and delivered a little. Yet she always held out hope that this time it would be different.

  It had seemed a little different this time around because Ian was Danny’s best friend. Or used to be. If anyone could get through to him besides her, it had to be Ian, right? Now she once again was faced with her naiveté.

  Ian reemerged from the living room, holding up Danny who could barely stand. “Your brother’s out of here.”

  Cat involuntarily gasped. “Where will he go?” She looked at her older brother. “Did you drive here?”

  Danny gave an ugly grin. “Don’t have a car. Can’t drive.”

  She inwardly sighed. “I’ll drive you home.”

  Ian put a restraining hand on her arm. “You will not.”

  “He’s my brother, Ian. You should stay with your family on Thanksgiving.”

  He scowled at her and she felt an argument coming on, but Ian’s mother intervened before things devolved any more. “Ian, Cat. Calm down.” She turned to Danny. “Daniel Ross, I’m disappointed. Go lie down outside.”

  Cat winced in sympathy and in jealousy as her brother stumbled back to the pool area. She hadn’t had a parental figure to disappoint in a long time. It had been stolen from her before she’d even grown old enough to resent and rebel against authority.

  Ian stood stiffly. “I’m sorry I invited him,” he announced. “He promised to sober up.”

  “Don’t be sorry,” Cat said. “This is on Danny, and the sooner we accept that, the sooner we can move on.”

  He gave her a fierce look. “I’m glad we’re starting to see eye to eye,” he said.

  The relief in his voice made her wonder. “See eye to eye on what?” she asked.

  “On distancing yourself from your brother,” he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

  She felt her eyes widen. “Ian. I know you’re not stupid or deaf, so why can’t you comprehend that I will never distance myself from Danny?”

  “But you just said you’re ready to move on.”

  “I meant ready to move on from blaming myself and taking responsibility for his actions. I will never give up on him. He’s my only relative. Without him, I’d have no one.”

  Ian shook his head. “Wrong. You’d have me.”

  At his simple powerful statement, her heart pounded. His statement was overwhelming. She was stunned at how simple he made it seem and that after all her years of dreaming and craving a relationship with Ian Lawrence to no avail, he’d reentered her life with the force of a NASCAR driver hitting a barrier wall. “I’m going to finish cleaning up,” she said, unable to deal with anything else at the moment.

  Ian looked angry but didn’t offer to help. Instead, he shrugged, opened his mouth as if to argue more, then left the dining area to the living room to watch a football game, despite the fact that his father, brother, and other company were watching the same game in the family room.

  From her viewpoint in the dining room, she could see both parties in their separate areas. It was wrong that Ian was putting up a wall between him and his father, but that wasn’t a problem she could solve today. “One mess at a time,” she muttered and helped Joy clean.

  When the dining room was spotless and smelled like Lysol, Cat apologized one last time, then headed outside to grab her brother and drive him to wherever he’d been sleeping. Ian was still hiding out in the living room watching football.

  “Danny. She gave him a nudge. Wake up. We’ve gotta go.”

  He opened one eye. “Cat?”

  She gave him a harder nudge. Some might call it a punch. “Yes. Still me. Your only sister.”

  “Sorry, Cabbage Patch. Stomach’s messed up.”

  “No shit,” she said. “Let’s go. We’ve overstayed our welcome.” She dragged him up as best she could. Luckily, he’d come down enough to lean slightly against her and allow her to guide him around the patio and out the side gate. She didn’t bother to reenter the house to say goodbye to Ian. After tonight, she doubted this thing between them would continue. Who wanted a broke girl with a mess of a brother?

  Ian looked up from the Gator’s football game and realized he’d abandoned Cat for a rude amount of time. He’d been so pissed about her brother and her blind support of him, he needed space. Confident that his team had the score locked up, he rose to face his girlfriend. Except she was gone and so was her brother.

  “Where’s Cat?” he demanded of his mother.

  “She left.” His mom looked both annoyed and sad at the same time. “Which you would’ve known if you’d paid attention.”

  He felt guilty enough without having his mom dump on him. “I’m leaving.” He leaned to give her a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks for dinner.”

  “Go get your girl, but say goodbye to your father first.”

  He didn’t respond and headed to Cat’s house, ignoring the command to say goodbye to his dad.

  Cat’s piece of shit car wasn’t in the driveway when he pulled in. Neither was Amy’s. He pulled out his phone to call her, then put it away. She was probably pissed at him and calling her meant she could ignore the call or hang up on him.

  He pushed the driver’s seat back to a reclining position and prepared to wait for her to show. Luckily, he didn’t have long to wait. About fifteen minutes later, headlights blinded him until the car turned off.

  “What are you doing here?”

  Ian had stepped out of his car the moment Cat exited hers. He couldn’t tell if she was happy to see him or pissed. “What the fuck, Cat? Why did you leave without saying goodbye?”

  “Why did I leave?” She started walking toward the house, keys in hand. “That’s rich coming from you. You left me alone at the table with your parents and my brother. Who you invited by the way.”

  “For the record, my mother invited him. She sees you two as her adoptive children.”

  Cat pushed her key into the door. “Not after tonight she doesn’t.”

  “What happened?”

  “You mean besides the vomit all over Thanksgiving dinner? Or the fact that I was ambushed by having my brother there in the first place?”

 
“I’m sorry, Cat.” He followed her to the house, surprised she didn’t slam the door in his face. He deserved it. “I thought it’d be a good surprise. He told me he was getting clean. Clearly I was wrong, and I was already tense from dealing with my father. I never meant for you to have to deal with your brother alone.”

  Her expression softened when he mentioned his contentious relationship with his dad. But then she shrugged. “Alone is how I always deal with my brother. I’m used to it.”

  “You shouldn’t have to be used to it. I don’t want to start another fight, but you need to give serious consideration to cutting off your relationship with your brother until he’s clean.”

  “No,” she said as she collapsed onto the living room couch. “I shouldn’t have to deal with him alone, and my parents shouldn’t be dead, and I should’ve gone to college, and woulda, shoulda, coulda.”

  He sprawled on the couch next to her. “You can’t live like that. Too many regrets. Live in the now.”

  “Is that what you do?” She’d kicked off her shoes when she’d arrived and now she put her bare feet onto his lap. “Can we not talk about my family for one day? Let’s talk about anything else. The weather? Work? Your family? What’s the deal with your father?”

  He groaned. “Diving right into the deep end, are we? As you saw, I can’t be with my father for too long without things getting bad.”

  She nudged him with her big toe. “Why?”

  Since she seemed to have forgiven him for the Danny debacle, he decided to confess a little. “My dad is disappointed in my career choices.”

  “Yeah, I caught on to that. Would you ever want to go work for him? Kyle does, right?”

  He massaged her feet before answering. “I used to think I’d run I.D. Productions for a year or two and then shut it down to work for my dad. But now…I don’t know. Don’t see it happening. I like being my own boss too much to work for my father. Especially with all the shit he’s said.”

  “Makes sense.”

  “We’ve been scouting for a location to open our own place,” he said and hesitated as he waited for her reaction.