Command: An Everyday Heroes World Novel (The Everyday Heroes World)

by Amélie S. Duncan

  “You want my dress off? Take it,” Shana teased and leaned against the hood, letting the material rise up again to show me how close to naked she’d been in public. She pushed because she wanted me rough, and I damn well would oblige.

  I grabbed her and yanked off the rest of that stupid dress, leaving her naked in her heels. My dick jumped at seeing her sexy body. I gripped her perky tits and squeezed them like they were begging me to do. But that was all the foreplay I gave her. My cock throbbed to get inside her. I turned her around and ordered, “Bend over.”

  She pressed her body on the hood and lifted her tight ass up, her legs opened for me to take her. I quickly undid the front of my jeans. A brief stop for a condom, then I pressed her down with my hand and grabbed a fistful of her hair.

  I grunted. “Don’t scratch the paint.”

  She raised her middle finger to defy me. I thrust my dick in hard to the hilt. I wasn’t small, and she cried out. But I knew she wouldn’t make me stop; she would take me. Just like I’d repaint this whole damn car. Getting inside of her was fucking worth it. I stilled to savor her, enjoying how hot and snug her cunt felt around my dick. God. It was her. Always her. Always Shana I wanted.

  “Fuck me hard, Nathan. Please.” Not about to deny her, I swiveled my hips and ground my dick in good and deep.

  “Don’t rush me.” I squeezed her ass cheeks. I thrust in and out. Hard and fast. Taking out all the shit about her that bothered me. How she hid and put up walls to shut me out. How tonight she was ready to throw all her work and her whole life away. How I wanted her around and didn’t want her to leave me again, but I knew she would.

  How I hated that she’d crush my heart.

  Shana took everything I gave her. She also didn’t even try to wait. I felt her spasming around my dick and almost lost myself, but I wasn’t done.

  “Damn, Shadow, when did I say you could come?”

  I picked up the pace, then slowed down. Over and over again. Then I became drunk on her.

  She panted and sweated but stayed with me. Surrendering herself over and letting me have her how I wanted. I reached around and stroked her hard clit to bring her to orgasm once more, until I felt her pussy sucking my cock again.

  “Shana,” I called out and came hard.

  The condom was in one hell of a state when I pulled out and worry shot through me.

  She hit my arm. “Shit, Nathan, you look spooked. I’m clean and on the pill. Check my jail checkup . . .” She made it a joke, but I could see she still hurt.

  “I’m not scared, baby. Hell, I hope I knocked you up,” I half-joked.

  “Good, now bring that big dick back over here. You’re not done.”

  I laughed and threw her over my shoulder, and she screamed in delight. “I’m in charge.”

  I got the ride of my life and the workout to match. We fucked until we were both covered in sweat, and then some more. We would finish and reach for each other again. She was as insatiable as I was and challenging as fuck.

  “Don’t you dare fucking come,” she demanded.

  I squeezed her tits hard, grabbed her hips, and rocked her up and down my cock. She screamed and scraped her arms, and damn, I’d never seen a woman so wild and uninhibited.

  “Shana, look at me.”

  She met my eyes and the look in her eyes bore into my fucking soul. Whatever she saw in my own made her want to withdraw, but I wasn’t letting her. I clutched her face to keep her in place.

  “Stay with me or fucking come.”

  Damn, she stirred her hips and squeezed my dick hard, and I fucking came apart. She watched me and rode until she joined me. Then she swung her leg over and lay on her back, breathing hard.

  “Tired, copper?” she mused, propped up on her arm.

  “Yeah, I am. It’s late, and I have to work in a few hours.”

  “I should leave, but I have nothing to wear.”

  I heard the laughter in her scratchy voice.

  “Then sleep here,” I said.

  I tensed because I felt the wheels turning in her head, like she wasn’t sure she wanted to do an overnight. Then she cursed, got up, and went into the bathroom. When she appeared again, she had the new toothbrush I just bought and hadn’t opened hanging out of her mouth.

  “I need a sleepshirt, or you need to turn on the heat.”

  I shook my head laughing, got up, hit her butt, and fetched the old toothbrush I hadn’t thrown away yet.

  After we cleaned up, I turned on the heat, and we settled back in bed. I wanted to sleep, but something was still bothering me. “What happened tonight?”

  She chewed on her lip. “I was upset. Mom was being Mom. Dad may have a mistress. Cathy and Maeve said you were with Melody. I didn’t know what to do about that. But then, Kylie said you had a date—”

  “Kylie lied, and I’m not with Melody,” I interrupted to assure her.

  She nodded. “I know now. But some other stuff happened. The drug stuff. It’s all too much. I wanted to not feel so much . . .”

  “But you’d feel someone else.” My jaw ticked. Rich touching her still fucked with my head. Cool down, she came back with you.

  She lowered her eyes. “I went to Hooligan’s because you were there. I wanted you.”

  She wanted me jealous. You got it, baby.

  “Good. You’re in my bed now.” No one else.

  She chewed on her lip. “We’re not back where we were. I mean. I’m happy, but I don’t know what we’re doing.”

  The hell Shana didn’t know. She was mine.

  I pulled Shana under my arm.

  She huffed. “Nathan, I don’t feel like cuddling.”

  She twisted her body to turn over, but I took her waist. “Stop moving around and give in. I’ll wrestle you all night, but I’m not letting go.”

  I kissed the back of her neck. “Give me this.” My words came out like a plea.

  We were both vulnerable now, but she wanted to close herself off and put up a wall for me to try to climb over again. I went still as I waited for her to give in and let me hold her.

  She cursed but pushed her body back into me and held my arm.

  “I’m sorry about your parents. I know it’s not easy, but you worked too damn hard to give up. You’re not alone. You have me and Maeve.”

  “But—”

  “No buts. No matter what, you have us.”

  She didn’t say anything else, but she did relax in my arms. And for the first time in a long time, my life felt right. Because for the first time, I had the right woman next to me, and I never wanted to let go.

  Shana

  THREE YEARS, ELEVEN MONTHS EARLIER: COLLEGE GOING-AWAY PARTY

  CALLAHAN HOUSE 2:53 AM

  “Night swim at Fox Point. Who’s with me?” Jackson’s rally cry reaches up to the mezzanine floor, where Nate and I kiss in the hallway. The cheers of our friends are louder. They are the last to leave our going-away house party. I break away and join in with the chant. “Fox Point! Fox Point!”

  “Your bed. Your bed,” Nate chants.

  I playfully cover his mouth with my hands. “He’ll hear you.”

  Nate kisses my palm, then pulls my hands down. He traces a circle on my thigh, and I shiver. “Jack’s cool now. You’re the one nervous about us.”

  “Yeah. I don’t want to leave Jackson alone,” I mumble.

  “He’s not. He doesn’t want a girlfriend. He wants to ‘enjoy’ college.”

  I peck his lips. “What about you?”

  I move to stand, and he captures my lips again. “You’re my home girlfriend.”

  I hit his arm. “See how you feel when I go to college.”

  “Stay back with me, Shana.”

  I stare at the photo of Jackson and me hanging on the wall wearing matching sailor-suit outfits, hugging each other in Mom’s flower garden.

  “No, I can’t, and we shouldn’t. I’m not leaving Jackson all by himself.”

  Nate groans. “He’s twenty, not two.”
<
br />   “True. But if I go, we can come back quicker . . . what a mess.”

  I rise to my feet and shake my head at the cups, bottles, and food plates littering the floor. “Shit. Jack and I made a promise we’d start cleaning before the housekeeper comes in.”

  “How about I go and watch over him; you stay here,” he says. He runs down the stairs before I answer. “Let’s go.”

  “Not without my shadow,” Jackson yells. “Shana, come on.”

  Jackson’s call makes a lasso that wraps around my heart. Whenever he needs me, I follow. I rush down the stairs and throw my hands in the air at the bottom.

  “Here I am.” We are a pair, perhaps co-dependent to some, but we just love each other’s company. He is my best friend.

  “There you are.” He points back with a grin. I laugh as he jumps off the couch with a silly twist of his legs in the air. I climb on the sofa and do the same. We slap our hands together and scream. “Let’s do this.”

  Our friends cheer and jump up and dance in place. “Let’s do this.”

  Jackson, Nate, and I leave the house doing handstands and cartwheels on the way. Our laughs join the late summer breeze and the night.

  We reach the rest of our crowd on the beach and we all strip to our underwear. Jackson grabs my hand and swings it high, and we run into the lake. I scream at the cold water hitting my skin.

  After a while, I swim to the shore, shivering. My eyes stare back at the road home.

  Jackson appears and elbows me in the side. “What’s up?”

  I elbow him back. “Maybe we should just head back home. We need to pack, and Mom and Dad said they want us early for some special goodbye brunch.”

  I’d spied Mom spending so much time picking out special care packages for Jackson to take back. Dad had plans for another family photo to share, but they gave us the house tonight to celebrate with friends.

  He pushes his hair back and frowns. “Boring. Snore. We just got here, Shadow. I mean, come on. We’re leaving soon. We need to memorialize this night . . . How about we do a drop off the Fox?”

  Drop off the Fox—jumping backward off Fox Point Bridge.

  I glance over at the bridge looming high above us. The sky is dark and overcast. Only a few lights illuminate the arch. The beach recedes near the exposed outcrop of rock below.

  I frown. “It’s too dark. How about tomorrow morning?”

  He groans. “It’ll be dawn soon. We could wait, but we’re all here. The jump takes a few minutes, and you can’t beat the rush.”

  He takes my hand and tugs me to walk with him. “Come on. I’ll leave with you right after, okay? When the twins activate, there is no stopping us.”

  “We can all jump tomorrow,” Nate says, walking up to us. “Shana said she’s feeling sick.”

  “Shadow’s not sick,” Jackson says to Nate. “You just want to have sex, but you’ll just have to wait until later when I don’t want to kill you. I’m kidding.”

  “Or is Jackson really kidding?” I mused.

  Jackson headlocks me playfully. “I’m not sure.”

  I wrestle away from him, laughing.

  He grasps Nathan’s shoulder. “Too bad Maeve doesn’t like me, or I’d show you how it feels.”

  My stomach sinks. “Is that how you feel, Jack?”

  “I’m high. I’m joking,” Jackson says, placing his arm around our shoulders. “We stay together. That’s all I ask.”

  “I’d never hurt Shana,” Nate says.

  “I know, and you can’t take a joke. You’re both too serious and boring now.” Jackson yells to the crowd, “Drop the Fox. Twin style.”

  “Jump. Jump. Jump,” our friends chant.

  “We can’t disappoint our fans,” Jackson says and laughs. “Jump after us, Nate. Let’s go, Shadow.”

  I let him half drag me up the hill to walk on the bridge. Nate and a few of our other friends follow behind us.

  We reach the narrow open space between the arches on the capstone edge. Jackson and I prepare to jump first. We lace hands, and the rush of anticipation and fear fills me. My heart pounds so hard it fills my ears.

  “Chill, Shadow. You’re acting afraid. We do this all the time,” Jackson reminds me. He’s right. This bridge jump is everyone’s thing, and we jump together every year.

  “Let’s do it,” we yelled together.

  Jackson and I jump at the same time and scream as we fall. The lake rises like we are pouring into a cup, swallowing us whole. We hold each other’s hands until the rush of underwater current separates us. The water is so dark I’m blind, kicking and moving my arms around to resurface. I swim toward the beach.

  Nate appears close to me, and we kiss. Jackson pushes on my head, and I go under. I swim to catch up to him in the water. We laugh as I hit water toward him, making a splash.

  “That was fucking great,” Jackson yells. He swims to the shore.

  Nate and I swim around and kiss.

  “I love you,” he screams.

  My heart soars. “I love you, Nate.”

  “Jackson! Jackson!” Another chant starts.

  I tilt my head back and see him high above, not in our spot but a shallower, rockier area farther along the bridge. No, he shouldn’t. The spot is too dangerous to do in the dark.

  Our friends’ chants ripple across the water. “Jackson! Jackson! Jackson!”

  “Shut up. Don’t jump, Jackson. Wait,” I yell.

  “Here’s one for Jackson Hall of Fame.” I hear Jackson’s voice booming across the water.

  “Jackson, no. Wait for me.” My scream echoes back.

  “Here I come.” He leaps with his arms out and drops.

  “Jackson,” I scream.

  I peer at the bridge and water. What happened? Did he drop? I don’t see him.

  I hold my breath, waiting, watching the water.

  One minute? Two?

  I wade in and Nate floats next to me.

  Where is Jackson?

  He’s playing a trick on us.

  One-one thousand . . . five-one thousand . . .

  He’s a great swimmer.

  “Jackson.” Many octaves fill the water. All our friends calling for him.

  “He’s hiding,” someone yells.

  “Yeah he’s fucking with us,” another person shouts.

  My heart hammers against my ribs and blocks my ears. I can’t count.

  No Jackson.

  “Nate, do you see him? Do any of you see Jackson?”

  I dive in and swim.

  Swim. Surface. Swim.

  My arms and legs throb in pain.

  My pulse races faster than my breath. Go back in again. Find Jackson.

  “Jack . . . Jackson,” I gurgle in the salty water.

  Gulping in the air again, I crawl toward the bridge. You rest later. You need to find Jackson.

  My head breaks the surface and peers into the night. Where the hell did he go?

  Search. Surface. Search.

  Maybe he’s already back?

  Turning around in the water, my body pushes against the waves to return.

  My knees scrape the sand as I crawl on the beach.

  My head lifts to the wide eyes and screams of my friends.

  “You didn’t find him, Shadow?”

  “I’ll go in.”

  “I’m going.”

  My throat feels scratched raw. My arms and legs burn like they’ve been set on fire.

  I must go back. Please, Jackson, be okay.

  I run in, and I swallow water, my arms and legs move like they have sand weights.

  I kick and strain my head above the water. I can’t go on.

  Go back.

  I wash back on the shore, like a beached fish, on my stomach, gasping.

  Jackson.

  I blink, and there are my friends standing in a circle. I wobble to my feet.

  Jackson. He’s here.

  “I called 911. An ambulance is coming,” Amber yells.

  I spy Jackson in the mi
ddle on the sand. I rush forward and break through, just as Nate checks, places his hands on the center of his chest, and starts to perform CPR.

  “Jackson, it’s Shadow. I’m here. Wake . . . wake up.” My voice catches.

  My knees burn as they hit the hard, wet sand next to Nate. Someone’s put a T-shirt around the top of Jackson’s head. It is soaked in red and covering one of his eyes. His stare is sightless and fixed, like a painted doll.

  Someone screams. Over and over.

  The someone is me.

  Hot tears flow like a hole in a water pipe, wild streams running, escaping without direction in the wind. Some hit the chilled skin of my cheeks. My vision blurs, I can’t, I don’t want to see. My throat feels chewed raw and sputters broken sounds.

  “Jackson, wake up, wake the fuck up. What’s happening, Nate?”

  “Jack, breathe. Come on . . .” Nate chokes, pushing on his chest.

  Jackson doesn’t move or blink.

  He’s as white as the sand on the beach.

  Nate crumbles in a ball on the sand and howls, “Jack, no, no, no. God . . .”

  “Keep going,” I cry.

  I move to compress Jackson’s chest and breathe into his mouth.

  Something metallic coats my lips.

  My hands are red.

  “Don’t leave me. Keep . . . trying. Nate . . . Jackson.”

  The pounding of boots close by alerts me that the paramedics have arrived. They have a gurney and medical case with them. They check Jackson’s pulse and tilt his head back for CPR.

  They take out the defibrillator and place it on his heart and under his arm.

  A jolt moves his body.

  Jackson doesn’t move. His eyes are open.

  No blinking.

  Still.

  My heart leaps. “Jackson’s all right. He’s just . . . unconscious.”

  “He’s gone.” Nate howls and takes hold of my waist and holds me in his arms.

  My eyes are pouring.

  My soul is drowning.

  “Jackson. You can’t go without me.” I push Nate and run toward the water and jump in.

  I’ll swim until I see Jackson.

  I’m Shadow. No life exists without him.

  Something grabs my waist; I flay in the water, as I am pulled.