“It took some doing. I had to find the right person that I trusted with our lovely notes before I could hand them over. They’re precious to me,” Luke rumbled.
My eyes closed and I breathed in Luke’s scent.
He’d been mowing the yard, as he did ever Sunday if he had the day off, for the last ten years we’d been together.
“Mom, Dad!” Katy yelled from behind our closed door.
“Yeah?” Luke called, getting up to open the door.
Katy barreled in, her eyes filled with tears.
Katy had grown into a very beautiful woman over the last ten years.
Now, at eighteen and a half, she was in college nearly four hours away.
Something Luke hated.
However, it was what Katy wanted, and that was enough to convince him to let her do it.
I looked at my watch in surprise.
Twelve in the afternoon.
“Katy…what are you doing here?” I asked as she barreled into the room and fell into my arms.
I wrapped my arms around her shaking shoulders, and looked at Luke in helplessness.
He looked torn.
He was a sucker for tears on most women; on any of his kids, he was a goner.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, brushing her hair out of her face.
“I came home early to visit Luca, and he was with another g-g-girl,” she hiccupped.
Oh, dear.
Luke’s mouth tightened, and his eyes went hard before he stomped out of the room.
Luca was the son of our friends, Gabriel and Ember.
Our kids had met when they were young and had grown up together.
Slowly, over time, that had turned from friends into more.
That more had grown into a young love.
Luca had chosen to go into the army when he graduated early, which had been a major decision factor on why Katy had chosen to go to college so far away. She’d chosen to pursue her degree while she waited for him.
Katy was a smart girl, but every girl goes a little stupid around the love of her life, which even I did on occasion when I was in Luke’s presence.
A soft knock on our door had me looking up in time to see Rowen walking in.
At sixteen, she was a force to be reckoned with.
She was beautiful and had developed into a ravishing young beauty just like her sister, much to Luke’s consternation.
“Mom?” Rowen called, looking at her sister with a sad glance.
“Yeah, honey?” I asked.
“Um, dad wants you,” Rowen whispered.
I nodded and gave Katy a kiss on the forehead. “It’ll be all right, Kit Kat. You’ll see. Rowen, honey,” I said, getting up. “Come sit with Katy.”
She did so, always my good little girl, and the two girls hugged.
I walked out of the room, unsure what to think.
Luca wasn’t the type to cheat.
In fact, he was so much not the type, that it had literally taken my breath away.
When I came out to find Luke in Luca’s face, I sighed.
Our son, Derek, was standing with his arms crossed, watching the altercation.
Derek looked like Luke’s younger clone.
They had the same mannerisms, the same looks. The same hair color and eyes. At times I felt that he was produced by Luke’s DNA alone. Although I knew it was impossible, it was crazy to me how much he acted like his father.
Like now, for instance.
Derek’s muscles were filled with tension, and he was looking at Luca like he was ready to take his head off.
“Mr. Roberts, I swear to God, I wasn’t doing anything with that woman. I just met her today. I was coming home, and she was walking down the road. I only gave her a ride because she looked like she was about to pass out,” Luca explained.
Luca rode a motorcycle like his father.
And that meant that Luca had to have the girl plastered up against him to give her a ride, which I’m sure was when Katy had seen him.
“Luke” I sighed. “It’s time to let Katy fight her own battles. Let him in.”
Luke gave one long look at Luca before he moved to the side.
Not enough for Luca to get in without brushing shoulders with Luke, though.
Luca didn’t flinch as he passed first Luke and then Derek.
He smiled once he got to me. “Where is she?”
“She’s in our room, honey. I’m glad you’re home. You look good,” I patted his shoulder.
He gave me his father’s devastating grin and walked past me after giving me a peck on the cheek.
I smiled as I turned to find Luke and Derek looking at me like I’d betrayed them.
“What?” I asked.
They didn’t say anything, instead walking into the kitchen and grabbing a drink.
Derek, of course, didn’t know how to leave well enough alone, and had to open his big mouth. “You know, you have a large, wide bed in that room…”
I caught Luke’s hand before he made it past me and shot Derek a glare. “Your room, now.”
He tossed back a laugh and walked past us, “Yes, ma’am.”
I pulled Luke by the arm until we were on the front porch.
Then I pushed him down into the swing. “You’re bad.”
He glared at me for all of five seconds before he shook his head and sighed. “That’s my girl in there.”
I kissed him on the cheek and curled up in his lap. “I know, honey. But she’s grown. You’ll have to give her room to make her own mistakes.”
He nodded. “I know. But I don’t like when they hurt.”
I nodded against his chest.
He still, after all these years, had an incredible chest.
He was forty-five now, but no less sexy than the first day I’d met him.
His chest being just as defined now as it’d been ten years ago.
“We’ve raised them right, Luke. Trust them,” I whispered.
He wrapped his arms around my neck, pulling me into his chest.
“I have a meeting in about an hour,” he sighed.
Luke had become the chief of police two years ago when the old chief had retired.
He was loved by everyone. Police and community alike.
He did have a lot of work to do, though, and I rarely saw him.
“So…an hour?” I asked with a raised brow, standing up and walking to the garage.
I walked quickly into the garage and started stripping my shirt as I went.
I could hear Luke’s quick footsteps as they finally became unstuck from behind me.
I giggled and started loosening the buttons on my pants.
By the time Luke finally made it into the garage, I was already naked and sitting on the hood of his GTO, spread out for his viewing pleasure.
The GTO had been upgraded in the past ten years, now sporting a jet-black paint job with cherry red racing stripes down the center.
The scoop on the hood was the perfect spot for me to grasp onto, so I’d found.
Luke’s sharp inhalation from across the room gave away his desire, and he closed and locked the door in jerky movements.
Pulling the blinds on the windows, he flipped on the overhead lights and prowled up to me, slowly working his stiff length out of the front of his sweaty jeans.
“How do you want it?” he asked, need evident in his voice.
I grinned. “However, you want to give it.”
And give it, he did.
Double Tap
Prologue
I want to have enough money to decide for myself if money solves everything.
-E-card
Georgia
Thirteen years old
“Hey,” a girl’s voice called from in front of me, causing me to look up.
The Hispanic girl smiled at me, walking forward.
She’d been at tryouts today with me. I thought her name was Nikki
, but I wasn’t a hundred percent sure.
My brain was still a little foggy from having to run two miles in a time limit I’d never had to meet before.
“Nikki, right?” I asked for confirmation.
I’d meant it to come out a little cooler sounding, but nothing really sounded cool when you had to fight to breathe. I’d at least made it, though.
The poor girls who didn’t make it had to run an extra mile. I’d have collapsed.
She nodded, walking up to me with her soccer cleats in her hand. “Yep. You’re George, right?”
I snorted. “Actually, it’s Georgia. Although, I’ve gotten George before, too.”
She walked at my side through the gym door, laughing when we got an eye full of butt crack when we entered.
There was, apparently, a problem with the ice machine, according to the man’s shirt that said, ‘We’ll always keep you cool, even when you’re hot.’ Under that denoted him as working for Freeze Me.
Classy, I thought.
“So, I know this may sound really weird, but do you wanna go watch a soccer game with me?” Nikki asked as we turned into the girl’s locker room and stopped at our prospective bags.
We didn’t have actual assigned lockers, which was why the room itself looked like thirty-five girls exploded all over it.
“When?” I asked hesitantly.
I had to walk home. If I had to walk home after a soccer game, it’d be even later. Then my dad would probably be really, really mad.
She looked at her watch. “Oh, about fifteen minutes or so. It’s on the soccer field we just got off of.”
I thought about it for a moment.
My parents weren’t expecting me until later and, up until now, I’d never had free time to do anything.
Cattle liked to be fed on time.
But I’d gotten the day to myself because my father had hired an extra hand to help out when I started soccer. I’d begged and begged to start on a club team, and he’d finally agreed.
Although it was only because my mom had begged him until he’d relented.
Mom had convinced him that it’d help with my college tuition.
I, on the other hand, was just doing it for fun. If a scholarship came out of it, cool. If not, no big deal. I was going to bust my ass and get out of this town no matter what it took.
“Sure,” I said softly. “I think I’d like that.”
She smiled. “So, where do you live? I can see if my brother will give you a ride home.”
We both grabbed our bags and were walking out to the parking lot before I replied.
“Off of 31, on County Road 3311,” I answered hesitantly.
We’d just moved in there and I wasn’t a hundred percent certain on the actual address yet.
I caught her gasp and turned to see her staring at me like I’d grown a second head. “You live at the old Pool place, don’t you?”
I nodded cautiously. “Yeah, we moved in last month.”
“That’s where I live! Well… not there, exactly, but down the road from you!” She grinned.
I turned to her. “You’re kidding me.”
I’d never gone further than our mailbox in all the time we’d been there. I literally never got any time to myself. All of it was spent doing chores of some sort. Although, I had noticed all the tractors moving around the land to the side of us, just yesterday, when I was riding the fence line.
She shook her head. “Nope.”
“That’s awesome,” I muttered as I walked to the back of the cars.
My eyes lingered on a really pretty truck. It was an old Ford with a lift on it. If I could have a truck right now, that’d be the one I’d choose.
Nikki sniffed.
“Yeah, this is my brother’s truck,” she said as she saw my eyes lingering on the beauty. She grabbed my hand and led me down the hill that would lead to the field, and I was surprised to see the stands on the opposite sides already filling up.
“Wow, they were cutting it kind of close with our tryouts, weren’t they?” I asked.
Nikki snorted. “Yep.”
“Who’s playing?” I asked as we walked through the gates.
Nikki scanned the rapidly filling stands for a seat and spoke. “Kilgore and Hallsville. My brother plays for Kilgore.”
The whistles started to blow, and both teams spread out to their team’s side of the field.
“Hurry,” she said, dragging me forward.
I hurried or I would’ve fallen on my face. Nikki was strong.
I was on the first row of bleachers and walking directly behind Nikki when I saw him.
Tall, dark, and handsome.
Long, strong legs. Big, broad hands. Narrow hips. Hard jaw.
His hair was clipped tightly to his scalp, and the jersey he was wearing fit him perfectly, unlike the other members of the team.
I watched as, with one swift move, he reared back with the ball over his head and threw it to the referee that was in the middle of the field.
My jaw dropped with the sheer amount of force he was able to put into the throw.
He’d flung it clear across the field.
I’d only be able to do a quarter of that. On a good day. With the wind blowing.
He further impressed me when he scored only seconds after the referee blew the whistle, signaling for the game to start.
His way of celebrating after scoring made me crack up. He was running in circles with his hands above his head, and I wanted to laugh out loud but managed to control it. Barely.
He was walking back when it happened.
My world shifted on its axis.
Nikki yelled, “Yeah, Nico!”
This Nico, the one I’d been practically drooling over since I’d made it here, looked at the girl beside me and smiled.
Then his eyes turned to me, and he stopped, blinking rapidly, before one of his teammates jumped on his back and got him moving again.
He grunted and started walking, but his eyes.
Oh, my God, his eyes.
They stayed on me the entire way.
And I could do nothing less than stay connected with him.
“Who’s that?” I asked, my voice cracking slightly when I said it.
Nikki snorted. “That would be my brother.”
Her brother.
Shit.
Honest to God, the last thing I needed to know, was that that boy lived less than four miles from me.
Sweet baby Jesus.
However, during halftime, when Nikki dragged me out onto the field, I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I had eyes on me.
Turning to chase a ball that’d been kicked off the side of the field, I stopped as it came to a stop at just this side of the home team’s benches.
What I hadn’t expected was for Nikki’s brother to pick the ball up just as I bent to do the same.
I didn’t expect him to hand the ball to me and not let go.
I didn’t expect to fall head over heels in love with him.
I didn’t believe in love at first sight.
But right then, in that moment it took for him to finally let go of the ball, I was a goner.
***
Five years later
“I don’t want to go, Nikki,” I groaned.
“Come on, please? I’ll love you forever,” Nikki begged.
I sighed and got up, slipping my feet into the slippers I’d brought with me from home.
“You totally owe me. Like big time,” I snapped as I walked out of her room and down the hall.
I found the stairs easily, having taken them quite a few times in my five years as Nikki’s best friend.
We stayed over at each other’s houses quite a bit. Today just happened to be Nikki’s day, so we stayed at hers. Her brother had come in on leave this weekend, and Nikki wanted to spend some time with him.
Not that I’d seen him do more than sleep in the past twent
y-four hours.
When I’d come over Friday night, he’d been asleep on the couch.
When I’d woken up this morning, he’d been sleeping on the floor beside the couch.
And when we’d eaten dinner, he’d moved to his room because we were being too loud.
Now, it was nearly midnight, and I fully expected him to still be sleeping.
Not standing at the open door of the refrigerator in his boxers drinking directly from the milk carton.
“That’s gross,” I said as I walked into the room.
He looked up at me over the carton and winked, drinking deeply before he put the cap back on and shoved the carton back in the fridge door.
“I was thirsty and there were no cups,” he explained lamely.
I glared at him. “I’m sure there’re some in the dishwasher if you’d cared to look.”
He wrinkled his nose and crossed his arms over his muscular chest.
My mouth went dry as it only served to bring my attention from his face, where I’d been doing a damn good job at ignoring his near nakedness, to the bulging muscles of his arms.
He looked drool-worthy.
Nicolas, Nico for short, was twenty-three to my eighteen.
He was Nikki’s big brother and so far out of my league that I couldn’t help being slightly depressed about it.
I’d been in love with Nicolas Giuliani Pena for five years and was just as much in love with him now as I was when I first saw him.
He had no clue, of course, because I was incredibly good at hiding my emotions.
I had to be with my father. Otherwise I’d be dead meat.
Well, pulverized meat was more truthful.
My dad liked to hit me. He liked to hit my mom, too.
But that was neither here nor there.
What was here, was Nicolas and his sexy as sin body.
“Yeah, but I can’t see in the dark and I left the light off so I didn’t wake you up,” he countered.
“Oh, Diablo, you’re so thoughtful sometimes,” I teased as I started filling up a glass of water. “I brought my blow-up mattress, though, so I wasn’t out on the couch today.”
There were times that I didn’t necessarily ‘plan’ on staying over, and those were the days I stayed on the couch. It was nice that he didn’t want to wake me up. The man was considerate, I’d give that to him.
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