by T. L Smith
6
Rose
He doesn’t stir all night, several times I have to check to ensure he’s still breathing. I’m dressed in my black dress and haven’t moved. Liam comes in several times bringing me a coffee or just to check on me. I can feel his anger and his need for revenge leaching from every single pore in his body. But I don’t want him to leave, I don’t want him to go down that path. I thought he had gone down it once before and I can’t risk him actually succeeding this time. Last time it took him away from me for five, long and painful years, he missed all of little Liam’s milestones. Risking something like that would kill me. This time for sure.
“Mom.” Hayden sits up, and my legs automatically take me to a standing position to move closer to him to make sure he’s okay. “I’m fine, Mom.”
I shake my head as he pushes my hand away. “What happened, Hayden? I was so worried.”
He grabs the bottle of water next to the bed and drinks it before he answers. “I was nervous, about how Dad would handle it. I went for a drink… then, nothing. It’s all just sort of blank.”
“You were drugged, Liam found you.”
“Dad saw?” I nod my head. One thing Hayden never wants to do is disappoint anyone. It’s just who he is, around us at least.
“What did he do?” The other kids don’t know much about what Liam does, or has done. Hayden, though, he knows it all.
“Nothing. He brought you home.”
He shakes his head and attempts to stand, then sits back down when his head spins. “And, did she come?”
I nod my head slowly. “She did.”
A look of pain comes over him. “She saw, didn’t she?”
“It doesn’t matter what she saw. Hayden, you need to rest. How about a shower and some breakfast?”
“Where’s Dad?”
Looking over my shoulder, I can see Liam in the kitchen. He’s watching us, waiting for us to come out. He knows Hayden’s awake.
Before I can say anything, the bedroom door is pushed all the way to the wall as Jake walks in. Anger written all over his face. “What the fuck were you thinking? You know not to accept drinks from strangers. What the actual fuck, Hayden. I know you’ve become accustomed to the bad guy routine since you’re used to us scary motherfuckers. That doesn’t mean you should let your damn guard down.” Jake steps forward, grabs hold of Hayden’s head with both hands and pushes it. “You need to think with this… all the fucking time. How do you think your dad stayed alive for so fucking long? Hey? Because he’s one smart motherfucker.”
“Jake,” Liam calls out.
Jake stops talking and walks straight out of the room.
Hayden hangs his head.
“It’s because they care.”
“I fucked up, Mom. I knew something was off with that man. I was on edge.”
My arms wrap around him tightly. Jake and Liam are talking softly in the kitchen. Pulling away and shutting Hayden’s door behind me they both go quiet when I reach them.
“Addy’s waiting for me,” Jake says then quickly tries to escape.
“You’ll stop him, won’t you, Jake?” I can’t see Jake as my eyes are trained on Liam. But I hear his footsteps come to a halt.
Liam shakes his head at me. “Jake can’t stop me from doing anything,” Liam says watching me.
Jake’s footsteps start again and I know he’s walking out.
“It’s almost Christmas, Liam. I want this year to be perfect. Hayden’s leaving, it’s our last one with him living here. The kids are growing so quickly. Soon they will want to spend more time with their friends than us. So stop this madness, because I know what you’re thinking, I know what you want to do. You want to harm that man who hurt your child. And even if I do as well, I won’t, because that’s not the way the world goes. It’s not what a normal person does.” My breathing’s harsh as I stare at him.
“I’m not normal.”
My head starts shaking. “That’s all you got from that conversation?” My eyebrow raises in question.
“Mom.” Spinning around, I see Hayden standing at his door. His eyes flicking from me to Liam. “Sandy wants to come around for Christmas.”
“Ummm… okay. Is that something you want?”
Hayden’s eyes flick to Liam again. Turning around, Liam’s watching Hayden with intent. “Stop it.” Liam looks to me. “Stop that. I know what you’re doing. Stop it.”
Liam places his coffee mug down and calls out Isabelle’s name. She comes running ready to go to the movies as Liam grabs his keys and walks straight past us and out the door without saying another word.
“He doesn’t mean to do it,” Hayden says. His muscles in his arms bulge and I realize he isn’t my little Hayden anymore. It’s hard to let them go. Even harder when it’s the exact moment you realize it. “He’s come a long way,” Hayden says dropping his hand from rubbing his jaw. I walk up to him, touching his face.
“So have you, and no going back.”
He nods, agreeing. “There’s someone else…”
“Hayden?” I ask in question.
“I want you to meet her. Today.”
“Liam?” I ask, but he shakes his head.
“He would scare her, she doesn’t understand him.”
I nod. Many people walk the other way when they see him coming toward them. His reputation is still intact, even if he isn’t the killing machine he once was.
“Are you up to that? You need to rest.”
“I’m fine, Mom.” He turns walking back to his room, stops with his hand on the door and looks back. “Thank you, Mom.”
I smile, the tears threatening to leave my eyes. When he closes his bedroom door the tears drop.
7
Black
My foot taps impatiently as I wait out the front in my car.
I’ve tracked him down.
Gotten as much info on him as possible.
Name: George Cunner
Age: Fifty-two
Occupation: Trauma doctor
Other Details: One kid. No wife. Presumed to like young boys. No sufficient evidence.
He’s a doctor—that made me cringe. This man who drugged my son is a damn doctor, someone who’s meant to help people. He’s actually someone who has too much time and money on his hands and has decided to drug and potentially rape boys. That’s the sole reason I was onto him in the first place. A mother suspected and wanted him gone. Her son—the same age as Isabelle—was treated by Dr. Cunner. Woke up with his pants undone, and Dr. Cunner doing his up. No evidence was found of foul play, but the boy knew he did something. It happened on more than one occasion.
The hit was made.
The money paid.
And I can honestly say this one will make me undeniably happy. To take someone like him from this world, maybe with a little torture to begin with, I live for that shit.
His house is over the top. It screams money, so much so it’s ostentatious. That’s the only word for it. From the BMW sitting in front to the perfect lawns and the size of the house, it’s certainly grandiose. I notice him through the window, sitting in a large wingback chair with not a clue in the world that I’m watching his every move. Not a hint I’ve come to end his life. And the one thing that ticks me the most—no remorse for what he did last night.
My cell starts ringing, and Rose’s face flashes on the screen. It’s been a few hours and I haven’t ventured back to the house. Seeing Hayden in that state made my blood boil. Jake wanted to be with me to end Cunner’s life. But that victory lies solely within me. I’m not even doing it for the money. No. That money will be sent back. I’m doing this for me. And Hayden.
“Rose.”
“He’s got a girlfriend, and she’s sweet, Liam. I think he loves her. Maybe. He brought her around today. Wanted me to meet her. A girlfriend.”
“Uh-huh.”
“You can’t scare her, he’s afraid you’ll scare her. Try to smile when he tells you about her. Try to smile when you meet her.”
Turning away from Cunner I get back into my car while I listen. “Actually, don’t smile, your forced smiles come off as serial-killer like.”
“I would lean towards hitman.”
“You used to be…” she says quietly.
“Yes,” I answer her back.
“You’ll come back tonight, won’t you? You aren’t working late? I need you, Liam Black. I need you, now.” The car starts before the last word leaves her mouth.
“I’m coming.” I hang up, looking up one last time and seeing him sitting exactly where he was, not moving watching television.
Scum like him should die slowly.
And he will.
Before I even get in the front door, her hands are on me. She pulls me in, tearing at my shirt as I kick the door shut. Pulling her to me her lips slam on mine, then she talks into my lips. “Jake has the kids.” I smirk on her lips and pick her up by her ass. She giggles and her lips leave mine. She leans back tearing her shirt from her body, exposing herself. My lips beg to bite her nipples.
Her hands stop me by grabbing my face and lifting my head as we reach our room. “Tell me you love me, Liam Black.” Placing her on the bed, she wiggles free from her shorts so she lies in front of me completely naked.
All fucking mine.
Mine.
My head screams.
My fingers touch the inside of her calf, slowly dragging my fingertips up until I reach her inner thigh. She takes a deep breath letting it go slowly. Her eyes scream lust, her hands stay at her side careful not to move as I track my way up her body.
As I reach her sweet pussy, she flinches from anticipation. Leaning down, my breath touches her inner thigh.
“You have too many clothes on,” she mutters.
“You have just the right amount off.” She laughs at my words. She’s naked and perfect. In every way. My tongue licks high on her inner thigh. Her breathing becomes even deeper.
“Liam.”
“Rose,” I say then kiss the other thigh, licking my way up and lifting as I get to where she wants me to be.
“Stop teasing me, Liam Black.”
I chuckle at her. Then give her what she wants—my mouth on her pussy. Her hands come to my hair and she doesn’t dictate where she wants me. She holds on, combing her fingers through it, as I take from her all she will give. Inserting two fingers, she clenches hard around them. The power I have over her is enticing. But the power she has over me is the most addictive drug on this planet.
I often wonder if others feel the same way we do. Feeling like we are made for each other and her love knows no bounds. She loves with all she is, and I take it like the selfish prick I am. Because I want it. I want all she is—every breath, her very life. I want her. I choose her.
She comes on my fingers. Pushing me away she tells me to undress. “Too many clothes,” she says. She’s right. But her pleasure is my first priority. Always has been and always will be. I’m hard. Have been straining in my fucking trousers since I saw her waiting at the door for me. It’s what she does even after all this time. That attraction will never change.
She watches me as if she’s eagerly waiting for her next meal, that I am the last meal she will ever eat. And I am, I will be her last. In this life and the next.
Climbing up the bed, she wraps her legs around me as I hover over her. Her hand slides between us, she grabs hold of my cock and inserts it herself. Straight into her wet fucking pussy. She moans loudly, her hand coming up and gripping my back.
One movement inside of her, and I’m fucking done. I become something that’s so hungry for it, I’m a starving animal. And it’s all I need to survive. She’s all I fucking need to survive.
She screams my name as I fuck her, as I take everything. Her nails dig into my back, hard. She’s angry. How did I not notice that before? Because I was so fucking invested in all things Rose and I in this bed right now, I didn’t notice.
Pulling out of her and standing, she shakes her head.
She now realizes I know. She turns and gets on all fours. Taking her hips, I do what any fucking man would do to the woman they crave, love, admire, want. I pull her to me, hard, and slide straight in. Then I fuck her until we can both no longer talk, let alone move.
8
Rose
I’ve been watching him sleep. Liam’s hand lays possessively on my stomach, as his head faces toward me while he lays on his belly. He’s still naked, lying there in all his perfect glory.
“Go to sleep.” He pulls me closer, so our bodies are touching again. My pussy’s sore. He didn’t stop at one, no, we then went to the shower then back to the bed. And now I can’t stop thinking about Christmas Day.
“It has to be perfect. I want it to be perfect.”
Liam grumbles next to me, laying his head on my boobs, kissing them softly before he answers me. “It will be. Everything you do is perfect.”
Sometimes, just sometimes the words that leave his mouth knock me back. He puts so much thought into his words. He doesn’t just share them with anyone. They are given, and if you’re lucky to receive them then you’re fortunate to know him. He doesn’t even think when he says them to me. They mean so much. Lifting his arm off me, I climb onto his back and lie on him, he smirks with his eyes still closed as I kiss his back. He’s naked, I’m naked and I’m sore, but touching him seems to make it go away.
“You make me so happy,” I say kissing his back. “Never change, Liam.”
He shakes his head, his smirk still in place. “I can feel your pussy on my back. Now I’m getting hungry again.” He turns, flipping me, making me giggle.
“Mom, Isabelle’s being a cow.”
He stops and pulls the blanket up fast to cover us just as little Liam walks in. It’s always him catching us in ways he shouldn’t. He groans about it every chance he gets. But I’m never going to complain about Liam having his hands on me, it’s one of my favorite things.
“Really?” Little Liam slams the door walking out.
Getting free from Liam’s grasp, I get up, throwing on my silk robe. Liam’s already up sliding on his trousers as he goes to the door. He looks back to me before he opens it. “Get back in bed. Naked. We have plans for today…” he grins, “… to do nothing but fuck.” He walks out shutting the door behind him.
See what I mean? Sweet words.
It didn’t last. Isabelle came back, and Liam was angry that she followed him. And Hayden ended up coming home, this time with his girlfriend, Miranda. Liam hasn’t met her yet, and to be honest, I wasn’t sure if Hayden was ready for that. But apparently, he is. Liam’s cooking in the kitchen when Miranda comes over and says hello. Hayden grips her hip as if she needs him to stand. She’s quiet, much like Hayden if you don’t know him.
“Dad.”
“Liam.”
Hayden and I both call him at the same time. He comes out with tongs in hand as he stares at us, then to Miranda who looks up once then back to the floor.
“This is Miranda.” Hayden doesn’t let go of her. She looks up offering him a small smile. She has a short pixie hairstyle and she’s tinier than me. Almost the same size as Isabelle.
“Hi, sir.”
Liam nods to her, then turns and walks back into the kitchen.
Hayden looks disappointed.
“Staying for dinner?” Liam asks.
Hayden’s frown turns into a small smile. “We are.”
“Hayden… Mom and Dad were doing it again. Kicking us out and getting naked.”
Hayden ruffles little Liam’s hair, who’s currently trying to grow it like Hayden’s. “Next time, stay out.” He winks and Miranda blushes next to him. She places her hand on his chest and looks up at him. The way she looks at him I can see it, she loves him very much. Looking at Hayden, I’m not sure he loves her in the same way.
“So good to see you again, Miranda,” I tell her. She smiles, staying glued to Hayden. “Hayden, why don’t you go and help your dad. Miranda can help me set up.”
He pulls away from her, and her eyes linger as Hayden walks away.
“You really like him?” I question, starting to set the table.
Her eyes leave him, as she looks at me. “Very much so.”
“He’s a good kid.”
“He’s quiet, he thinks before he speaks. I like that about him. Most boys just try to sleep with you, Hayden isn’t like that.” I want to correct her, that Hayden is a man and that he is like that. Well, was. I’ve known of some of his girls. They’ve come here begging to see him. He’s the ladies’ man, which makes Jake extremely happy. Not so much, Liam, he hated that girls would come over for study dates. They talked too much and wouldn’t leave. But Hayden hasn’t brought any girls here for a long time. Not since he started university. We assumed he’s been too busy with work and his studies, but maybe we were wrong.
“That’s nice,” I say. She sits at the table, folding the napkins. “If you’ll excuse me.”
Miranda nods her head lost in her own thoughts. Walking into the kitchen, I find Liam and Hayden laughing at something. Liam knows I’m there before Hayden, and he turns around, leans down and kisses me on the lips before he goes back to cooking.
“She’s very smitten with you. Do you love her?”
Hayden looks past me to where she’s sitting. “Not in the way she loves me.” His honesty is brutal, it’s one of my favorite traits about him. “But maybe I will.”
“Maybe…” I answer him. Liam listens but doesn’t say a word. He stopped stirring though, so I know he’s listening.
“Isabelle is about to arrive home. Do you want to leave her alone with Miranda? Maybe you should go and hide her first.”
He chuckles under his breath knowing full well what his sister is like. She’s loud, obnoxious, and where she gets that from we don’t know. Liam likes to blame Jake.