Fall for You

by Angela Verdenius

  Oscar snuffled the doona, walked around and settled in a ball near the pillows.

  Climbing up the step ladder, she braced her hand on the top of the wardrobe and moved higher until she could easily reach over it to wipe the dust from the top. After swiping it through the dust, she ensured it was clean and climbed back down. Turning, she saw Oscar watching her through half closed eyes.

  “Okay.” Exasperated, she flung out one hand. “Okay, he was nice. I’ll admit to you that he was nice to me. He didn’t laugh, didn’t tell me off. He held my hands and listened, and he reassured me and he was nice.” She pointed at Oscar. “But he’s still one of those alpha male types.”

  Oscar laid his head on the doona and closed his eyes.

  “Glad you agree.”

  ~*~

  He kept his cool. He did his job, he filled in his paperwork, he clocked off, and he maintained his calmness the whole time.

  Until he got home. Then he put his fist through the inside wall of the garage. The gyprock never stood a chance.

  Glaring at the hole, Kirk cursed. Foully. Never one much for swearing, he peppered the air with it, his fury at what had happened to Molly coursing through him, enraging him so much that he punched the wall again just for good measure.

  “Know the feeling,” said a tight voice behind him.

  Hands on hips, Kirk tipped his head back and closed his eyes. “Jesus, Scott. That bloody bastard deserves to be strung up and quartered.”

  “Even that would be too good for him.”

  Tipping his head forward, Kirk rolled the tense muscles in his shoulders while casting his friend a glance. Scott looked as furious as Kirk felt, his normally happy expression grim.

  But it was different for Scott, Kirk thought. He was her cousin, her blood, and he’d be furious. But Kirk…well, he was so enraged that he had to forcibly stop himself from discovering who the bastard was that hurt her and beat the living shit out of him. Then do it all over again. And once more for good luck.

  Because while no woman should ever be abused like that, the knowledge that it was Molly, that the marks still crossed her back - Jesus, that made him want to…

  “Keep punching that wall and you’re never going to be able to patch it up properly,” Ryder said from the doorway.

  “Shit.” Simon looked over his shoulder at Scott and Kirk. “What happened? You two look mad enough to kill someone.”

  “If it wasn’t against the law,” Scott growled, “I would.”

  Kirk wasn’t so sure that anyone could stop him if the bastard, Hal, was to suddenly turn up and announce himself. He was pretty certain, in fact, that right now he could bury him deep with no problem.

  Which never helped anyone.

  His commonsense might have been yammering that, but deep inside himself it still churned savagely.

  “Maybe we better go in and crack a tinnie before you two stroke out.” Ryder looked from Scott to Kirk. “Especially you.”

  Picking up the motorbike helmet, Kirk passed his friends, still so angry he didn’t even notice Ryder and Simon exchanging glances.

  Stomping up the back veranda steps, he opened the door into the kitchen and walked through, dropping the helmet on the kitchen bench on top of a load of newspapers he kept meaning to put out and forgot. With a muttered, “Gonna change, help yourselves to the ‘fridge,” he stomped off down the passage.

  By the time he’d changed into cargo shorts and t-shirt and tossed his uniform into the wash basket in the laundry, he didn’t feel any better. More in control of himself, sure, but it was taking effort to keep the rage battened down.

  Sitting on the kitchen bench with a tin of light beer in his hand, Ryder took one look at him and whistled. “Holy shit, mate. You and Scott just gotta tell us what happened.”

  “Yeah.” Simon studied him in concern. “Man, I’ve never seen you so mad. You look like you could chew nails and swallow them, never mind spitting them out.”

  “That’s because you didn’t hear what we did.” Scott popped the tab of his can.

  Almost ripping open the ‘fridge door, Kirk swept his gaze over the drinks. Light beer, Coke, orange juice, iced coffee. Grabbing a light beer, he ripped the tab back and proceeded to down half of it in several hefty gulps. Lowering the can, he swiped his mouth with the back of his hand and swung around to find Simon, Ryder and even Scott staring at him. Granted, Scott’s expression was understanding but also a little surprised, whereas the other two were completely astonished.

  “What?” he almost snarled.

  “Hoo boy.” Simon looked uneasily at Scott. “What the hell happened?”

  Scott looked from Kirk to Simon, though his gaze kept sliding back to Kirk. “Molly was beaten by her boyfriend.”

  “What?” Ryder’s attention snapped from Kirk to Scott.

  “What the hell…?” Simon straightened. “When? Today?”

  “No.” Scott shook his head. “Sometime before she came here.”

  “It’s her ex.” The tin in Kirk’s hand started to crumple under his tightening grip. “Her ex. She’s not seeing him anymore.” God, he could just about feel the steam come from his nostrils, he was so wild. “She’s not ever seeing him again.”

  Simon looked warily at him. “You okay, mate?”

  “Fine. Why?”

  “Because you’re a little…uh…”

  “You’ve lost it,” Ryder stated bluntly. “Calm down before you blow an artery.”

  Calm down? Kirk took a deep breath, a second one, his grip on the can easing a little. Yeah, calm down. He had to calm down. No use to anyone if he blew his top.

  He took another deep swallow of beer, felt the cold liquid slide down his throat. Lowering the can, he closed his eyes, wishing he could get his hands around that bastard’s throat and squeeze, make his eyes pop clean out of his head. Yeah, that would feel good.

  A hand landing on his arm jerked him out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes to see a concerned Scott standing before him.

  “If Molly saw you now, she’d freak out,” Scott said quietly. “You’re no good to her if you let her story get to you.”

  “He hurt her, Scott.” Kirk could barely speak from between gritted teeth. “He hurt her. Goddamn beat her with his belt.”

  “I know, and there’s nothing more I’d like to do right now than reach down that prick’s throat, grab hold of his nuts and pull him inside out. But you’re not like him, I’m not like him. As much as we’d like to beat the living crap out of him with his own belt, it’s not who we are.”

  “Says who?” Kirk glared at him.

  “Says me.” Scott looked steadily at him. “Says Ryder and Simon. Says Del and Dee and Ash. Says every person who knows you. You’re better than that.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure.” Not when it came to sweet little Molly.

  “What do you think Molly would think if she saw you right now?” Simon asked quietly. “She’s been hurt by one idiot who couldn’t control his vicious urges, you want her to think you can’t control your darker desires?”

  “Good grief,” Ryder said. “That sounds freakin’ kinky. Are you sure that’s what you meant?”

  “For crying out loud. How can you think like that right now?”

  “Hey, you’re the one talking about dark desires.”

  The absurdity of the words struck Kirk, drawing a reluctant laugh from him. Dropping his head forward, he rolled the cold can across his forehead, drawing in deep breaths, regaining control of his fury.

  His friends spoke quietly between themselves, giving him time, and for that he was grateful. As his usually calm nature started to overcome his rage he relaxed, the tension seeping from his shoulders enough to allow him to cross to the kitchen table and perch on the edge of it. Taking a smaller sip of beer, he sighed inwardly.

  “How you doing?” Scott asked.

  Kirk looked up to see the concerned gazes of his friends trained on him. “Better. Thanks.”

  “Good. You had me worried
there for a minute. Never seen you go off the deep end in all the time I’ve known you, not even when Old Man Dawson bashed his wife. You were furious, yeah, but you never lost control like you did today.”

  “I think I maintained pretty good control considering.”

  “There are three holes in your garage wall that indicate otherwise.”

  “Yeah, well…”

  “It’s because it was Molly,” Ryder announced.

  The three men looked at him.

  Kirk wasn’t going to deny it. Hell, no. He wasn’t ashamed of it, no bloody way, not when it was Molly, so he just met their gazes without flinching.

  “Oh boy,” Simon said, “he’s had an epiphany.”

  “A what?” Ryder queried. “Speak English.”

  “I am, you drongo. It means he’s had a revelation”

  “You mean about Molly? Took him bloody long enough.”

  “Look who’s talking.”

  “Huh?”

  “Never mind.” Simon shook his head. “So, Molly told you two about it? About what happened to her?”

  “No,” Kirk replied. “She was telling me and swore me to silence. But Scott was in the hallway, he overheard everything.”

  “She didn’t see you?” Simon looked at Scott.

  “I went over to see if there was anything heavy that needed shifting, saw that Kirk was there and went in. Heard voices, followed them to the kitchen but before I could let her know I was there, I caught a drift of what they were saying, knew she didn’t want me to know. So I just listened.”

  “How very noble.”

  “Don’t give a shit. I’d never have found out otherwise.” Scott jerked a thumb in Kirk’s direction. “You know what dickhead here is like when it comes to confidentiality.”

  Kirk looked calmly at him. “It’s my job.”

  “She’s my cousin.”

  “She’s my woman.”

  There was a startled silence in the kitchen.

  Oops. He’d said what? Recovering himself, Kirk amended, “I mean she’s a woman under my protection. Because she’s part of the town. And I’m a cop. Of the town. That she lives in.”

  “You poor bastard.” Ryder clucked his tongue. “You can’t even speak a straight sentence.” He turned to Simon. “He’s a goner.”

  Kirk met Scott’s amused gaze blandly. “As a cop, I have to keep confidential information confidential.”

  “She’s still my cousin.”

  This time he didn’t let his tongue run away with words he hadn’t even thought properly about. “Confidentiality.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “But you heard anyway,” Simon put in. “Man, I’m surprised you didn’t just leap in and start demanding answers.”

  “I wanted to but I could see how upset she was.” Scott sighed. “I know Molly, if I’d gone barging in there demanding answers she’d have clammed up, there’d have been a huge row and she’d have stormed off. Might even have driven right back to the city.”

  “Really?” Simon’s eyes held a glint of speculation. “Yet she told Mr Tight Mouth here all about it.”

  “I’m a cop.” Kirk hid a little spark of inner satisfaction.

  “And he’s not related to her,” Ryder pointed out. “Big difference. She probably knew Scott would go off breathing fire.” His gaze switched to Kirk. “What she didn’t know was that calm and collected Kirk would come home to punch holes in his walls because he can’t punch them in her ex.”

  That was the truth so Kirk didn’t even try to deny it.

  “So what happened to Molly?” Simon asked.

  Scott scowled. “Her dickhead ex was a control freak who tried to rule her life in every way and used some kind of lifestyle thingy as an excuse to indulge his viciousness.”

  “Pass that last bit by me again?” Ryder scratched his head.

  “Her ex was into full obedience, wanting her to obey his every word and do as she was told at all times, including punishment. He wanted her to live like that with him, but he wasn’t worried about her consent. She didn’t agree but he still took a belt to her.”

  “Shit.” Simon’s face was grim. “I hope he got a stretch in gaol.”

  “She wouldn’t report him because she was too ashamed.” Scott tapped the side of his can against the kitchen bench. “Friends of hers tried to warn her when they saw the signs. Because she couldn’t see it, she blamed herself.”

  “So he got away with it? That piece of shit!”

  “Actually, her friends apparently gave him a taste of his own medicine. Shake their damned hands if I could.”

  Kirk silently agreed.

  “Now she’s sworn off men.”

  “Really?” Ryder’s eyebrows shot up.

  “Well, men she thinks are dominant.”

  “I don’t know of any dominant men around here.”

  “Men who expect people to do as they’re told, who command respect, who she thinks will try to control her.”

  They all looked at Kirk.

  “What the hell?” His head jerked up. “What’re you looking at me for? I don’t do that!”

  “Really,” Ryder said dryly. “Who made her ride home with him on his motorbike?”

  “I was going her way.”

  “Who made her confess?”

  “I’m a cop.”

  “Mate, that answer doesn’t apply right now.”

  Kirk flipped him the bird.

  Scott grinned. “Ash thinks you’re dominant.”

  “Ash?” Kirk was astonished.

  “Yeah. And Del and Dee.” Scott rubbed his chin. “Actually, they say we’re all dominant to a certain degree.” He looked at Ryder. “Stop flexing your non-existent muscles, numb nuts.”

  “Hey, I can’t help being an alpha male.” Ryder pointed to his admittedly impressive bicep. “I’m an in-charge kind of bloke. It’s why they all flock to me.”

  “Who? The doves? That’s to shit on your head.”

  “Don’t be bitter, Scott. You might be shackled, but I’m still sowing my wild oats.”

  “Sure that’s what you want to do?’ Simon looked at him.

  “Yeah. Why not?”

  “You dumb bastard.”

  Ryder frowned. “What?”

  Simon rolled his eyes before redirecting his attention to Kirk. “So, what’re you going to do?”

  “Do I need to do anything?” Kirk was formulating some ideas, he just didn’t want to share them right then and there. Unfortunately, his friends weren’t of the same mind.

  “You gotta woo her,” Ryder stated.

  “I’m shocked,” Scott said. “Coming from you, I expected ‘you gotta shag her senseless’”. He paused, grimaced. “Oh shit, did I just say that?”

  “About your cousin?” Ryder smirked. “Yeah, you did.”

  Placing the now empty can down, Kirk braced his hands on the edge of the table and pictured Molly’s face.

  Fear. Sadness. Definitely a tiredness that he doubted she even realised. A lost look as though something was missing and she couldn’t find it. Angling his head, he studied his bare feet. Did she think she’d lost who she was, that because she’d been taken in so skilfully by Hal that she’d lost a part of herself? Self respect, perhaps? He frowned. Damn, the woman was amazing. She’d picked herself up and started anew, that took guts. Unfortunately, she had also taken on a determination of avoiding men she deemed dominant or some such shit. He could understand that she didn’t want anyone to control her, but hell, like he’d said to her, not all men with a dominant streak were like Hal. Hal wasn’t dominant, he was an arsehole.

  Man, Kirk’d just wanted to wrap her up in his arms, cradle her close, but she would have freaked if he’d tried, he was sure of it. But he’d had to tell her, had to get close actually, wanted to be as near to her as she’d probably allow at that moment, and all he could think to do was keep hold of her hands and lean down to talk to her.

  He’d leaned down, all right, unable to stop himself from inhaling her s
cent, feeling her warmth close to him. He’d almost kissed her neck when her voice had gone all soft, all husky, those magnificent breasts rising and falling with every deep, uneven breath she took at his nearness. He’d actually touched that little shell-like ear when he spoke.

  Talk about being a saint, not to mention it had taken a Herculean effort to stand up and smile at her, move away. Couldn’t resist kissing that smooth brow though, man, he just couldn’t resist. Every time he saw her he wanted to kiss that brow, every protective instinct in him rising up so that he just wanted to pull her close, kiss her brow and then lay his cheek on top of that silky-haired head.

  God, did he ever want that. Not to mention taking that sweet little mouth in a soft kiss, taste her, slip inside and kiss some more. Take a whole lot more, in fact. He could just imagine it, bet she tasted as sweet as she looked. Her lips sure were appealing, plump little pillows of pink that begged to be licked and explored, right before he explored her further, kissing and tasting her from her lips to her rounded shoulders and down to those plump breasts, further down - oh Jesus, yes, further down to where-

  “Kirk!”

  “Oy, dipstick!”

  Snapped out of his increasingly erotic thoughts, Kirk looked up and blinked. “What?”

  “Cripes.” Ryder rolled his eyes. “You’ve got it bad.”

  “Got what bad?” Not about to share his thoughts, but fearing it was too late, Kirk raised his eyebrows.

  “Nice try,” Scott said dryly.

  Kirk looked blandly at him. “Want another beer?”

  Scott just smirked.

  “So what’s the plan?” Simon demanded.

  “Plan?”

  “You going to sweep Molly off her feet? Show her what a caring and sensitive bloke you are?”

  “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I hear the Dawson brothers think she’s pretty hot.”

  “They touch her, I’ll rip their heads off.”

  “Oh, going for the macho man way. Not sure that’s advisable, but hey, what do I know?”

  “Yeah,” Ryder agreed. “What do you know?” He pointed his beer can at Kirk. “You go up to that chick, you tell her she’s your woman, you’re her man. You let her think she has some control, but you just guide her right where you want her. The trick is to control them subtly. You know, in a nice way. But remain the boss, never give them that.”