Laid Out

by Sidney Halston

  “I don’t kn—” His fingers began to move. “Oh!”

  “Be quiet or I’ll stop.” He kissed her softly. “Oh, and keep your eyes open and make sure no one’s coming.”

  She bit her lip and looked forward, keeping her eyes wide open. His mouth was on her neck as he began to pump his fingers in and out of her hard and fast, just as he’d promised. She held on to the table, white-knuckled, to stop it from shaking. She could feel how wet she was. Thank goodness they were in a loud restaurant.

  Then, as if the assault wasn’t intense enough, he used his thumb to add pressure to her clit as he continued to pump into her with two fingers, over and over. “Fuck. You’re coming,” he whispered into her ear. “I wish it was my cock you were squeezing. Don’t fucking make a sound, Violet.” And with that warning he bit down right below her ear where her neck met her shoulder—hard. Very hard. She whimpered, careful to keep her voice down, and parted her legs further as she came, her entire body trembling and pulsating. She slumped down and rested her head back against the booth as he soothed the bite with a gentle lick. Gently, he slipped his fingers out and moved her panties back in place. He moved slightly away and brought his fingers up to his mouth…and licked them one by one.

  She was so sated she closed her eyes. “You may have to carry me home.”

  He chuckled. “Here, have some water.” He lifted the glass to her lips. “How was that? How do you feel?”

  “My cup runneth over.” Her eyes were still closed, and her head now rested on his shoulder instead of the booth. She wanted to cuddle up with him and sleep.

  “You need to stop saying that,” he laughed. “It’s as outdated as that Minnie Mouse shirt you always wear around the house.”

  “Do you really do this with your dates?”

  “Truth?”

  She nodded.

  “I’ve never done that before,” he answered. “I just couldn’t help myself. I needed to touch you.”

  She blushed, embarrassed.

  “Don’t do that.” He lifted her chin up. “It was the hottest fucking thing I’ve ever done or seen.”

  Later, after they’d eaten and Cain was paying the bill, he asked, “You want to go for a walk?”

  “I wish you’d let me pay. I haven’t spent a cent since I got here.”

  “No. I always pay on dates.” He extended his hand to her and helped her out of the booth.

  She blew out a gust of air. “But…”

  “But nothing. Walk? Yes or no?”

  “Yes.” He laced his fingers with hers and they left the restaurant.

  “Oh, look.” Violet pointed to a small shop with a line outside. “You used to make us come here for ice cream all the time. Remember? You said that the chocolate everywhere else was watered down.”

  “It was.” He smiled and pulled her over to the end of the line. “I forgot all about it. It’s the one thing worth cheating on my diet for.”

  “Hell must’ve frozen over. Cain Sorenson has a weak spot? I don’t believe it!” she teased.

  “I have a few weak spots,” he said with a smirk directed at her. When they got to the window he said, “I’ll have a large double chocolate banana split with extra chocolate sauce and extra whipped cream. Oh, and throw in some Reese’s Pieces and chocolate chips.” Then he turned to Violet. “What would you like, sunshine?”

  “When you cheat, you go all out, don’t you?” She laughed. “I’m not hungry. Can’t I just have some of yours?”

  “Nope. I don’t share.”

  She thought he was joking, but when she realized he was serious she turned to the lady in the window. “I’ll have a strawberry sundae,” she said.

  As he took out his wallet he said, “I never did understand the whole strawberry thing. Why would anyone order strawberry?”

  “It’s the best flavor.”

  “You’re crazy,” he said as they waited for the lady to make their order. “Why don’t you go grab a table outside and I’ll wait for the desserts?” He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckle before she walked away.

  As he waited, he looked over to find Violet sitting at a small table, her eyes watching the people walking by. Her hair was loose and she kept having to push wayward curls off her face. She was so beautiful, all milky white with a few freckles peeking out from under the straps of her dress. She’d been so responsive, so sensual, and so unrestrained at the restaurant, he couldn’t wait to get her home. He had not planned to touch her so brazenly, but she did that to him—made him feel lighthearted, uninhibited, and…happy.

  Happy. It was a foreign feeling to him.

  He was beginning to feel himself getting lost in her, and he wasn’t sure how he’d be able to handle going back to Tarpon Springs and a life in which she was dating other men. Maybe it was time to let go of the past, he mused. There were moments where it felt as if this wasn’t part of their game—that they could possibly have a future together. He wanted to say fuck it and just tell her how he really felt. How absolutely in love he was with her. How he’d always been in love with her. Maybe, just maybe, he could be the one to get her to move on from Jeremy. The thought of another man with her made him see red.

  “Cain Sorenson?”

  Cain squinted as the man approached. “Jim? Jim Lockwood?” Cain and Jim shook hands.

  “Shit, can’t believe it’s you. I thought you moved,” Jim said.

  “I did. I’m just here for a few days,” Cain said as he grabbed his tray.

  “I was just headed to a bachelor party. Why don’t you come along? A lot of the old gang will be there.”

  “No thanks, man,” Cain said as Violet walked up to them.

  “Hi,” Violet said shyly to Jim. Then she turned to Cain. “I need to use the restroom. I’ll be right back.”

  “Yeah, sure. Violet, this is Jim. He was in high school with us.”

  Violet extended her hand. “Hi. Nice to meet you.” She tilted her head slightly. “You look familiar.”

  “I have one of those faces,” he said with a wink.

  “You want to join us?” she offered.

  “I was actually headed out to a party. Just asked Cain here if he wanted to come along.”

  “Oh.” Her face seemed to fall. “Uh, well, I’m headed to the restroom, and I left my purse at the table, so if you could wait a few minutes before you go anywhere…Be right back.” She turned and left.

  “That your girl?” Jim asked, his brow furrowed. “Wait! Wasn’t that Jeremy’s girlfriend?”

  And that was the precise reason he didn’t know what the hell to do with Violet. “Yeah. She was Jer’s fiancée. We’re friends,” he added as he walked over to the table and placed the tray down.

  Jim laughed. “Makes sense.” When Cain’s eyebrows knitted together, he added, “If I remember correctly, we had similar tastes in women: tall, thin, and blond. You wouldn’t touch a girl like that with a ten-foot pole. Jer always was a chubby chaser. Can’t see what—”

  And before he could finish his sentence, Cain snapped.

  —

  They’d been having such a wonderful time together. Fake or not, it was the best date she’d ever had, and not just because she’d never had an orgasm in the middle of a restaurant before. It was because Cain was conversational, sweet, and funny. Maybe even a little silly. She hadn’t seen this side of him in so long, it made her heart full. And now he was going to leave for a party. She didn’t want the disappointment to show on her face and risk losing whatever the hell it was they were doing. If she knew one thing, it was that men didn’t like clingy.

  As she rounded the corner she heard Jim say, “If I remember correctly, we had similar tastes in women: tall, thin, and blond. You wouldn’t touch a girl like that with a ten-foot pole. Jer always was a chubby chaser. Can’t see what—”

  And just like that, Cain’s hand was wrapped around Jim’s throat. Violet rushed over. “Cain, don’t! It’s not worth it.”

  Jim tried to fight back, but Ca
in’s grip tightened. The man’s face was red and his eyes were bulging. Violet grabbed Cain’s hand and tried to pull it away from the man’s throat. “Cain!” She’d never seen him so angry. His eyes were focused solely on Jim, his jaw twitched, and the vein on his temple pulsed. At that moment, he looked like a killer. All the hand-to-hand training he’d received from the Army Rangers was about to be tested right there in the small ice cream shop. Even when he fought in the cage, he’d never looked this deadly. “Cain, please. He isn’t worth it.” She shook him. “You’re scaring me. Please!”

  That seemed to snap him out of it. He turned his face to her and shook his head as if he was releasing himself from a deep trance.

  “Cain, honey. Please. You’re really scaring me.” She squeezed his forearm. “Let him go. It’s not worth it.”

  Finally something registered, and he pulled Jim closer, still holding him by the neck. “Apologize to her, motherfucker.”

  “Cain…,” she pleaded.

  The man gurgled something that sounded like an apology, and Cain finally let him go. Jim immediately gripped his neck and bent over, coughing. Cain took the tray and tossed the uneaten desserts away, then grabbed Violet’s hand. She was too stunned to say anything as he all but dragged her back to his motorcycle. Quickly he put the helmet on her, and as she tried to fasten it, he pushed her hands away and did it himself. He put on his own helmet, then helped her onto his bike. He didn’t say anything, and she wasn’t sure what exactly had set him off and why.

  It had been years since she’d had her feelings hurt by a weight comment. More than anything, she felt embarrassed because it had happened with Cain around. Her skin was thicker than it had been when she was younger; she wasn’t exactly hurt and she certainly didn’t feel sorry for herself. But it did make her wonder if he would ever really be interested in someone who looked like her. Regardless, she wished the stupid comment hadn’t ruined their perfect evening.

  When they reached his house, he tapped her knee like he always did to indicate she should climb off. She undid her helmet and handed it to him as he climbed off as well.

  “What are you thinking, Vi?” He wouldn’t make eye contact as he opened the door for her.

  What was she thinking? There were so many things in her mind, but none she wanted to say out loud. So instead she blurted out, “I really wanted that ice cream.”

  He looked at her, stunned. His eyes wide and his jaw slack.

  “What? I did. I haven’t been there in years.”

  Slowly his lips tilted up and he smiled a beautiful smile that reached his clear blue eyes. He reached forward and pulled her to him. “C’mere.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek on his chest. He kissed the top of her head. “You’re the only person who can change my mood, sunshine. I never know what’s going to come out of your mouth.” He stroked her hair for a few minutes, and she felt the tension slowly leave his body.

  At last he said, “I’m so sorry you had to hear that.”

  “It’s okay. It doesn’t bother me.”

  “It’s not true, you know. I’ve told you before, I like the way you look. I think you’re sexy and your body’s perfect. That guy’s blind and stupid.”

  “I’m never going to be thin. It’s just not the way I’m made. I’ve come to terms with that. It took a long time, but I’m okay with the way I look. I know I’m not your ideal woman—I’m not under any illusion that I am. I can’t fight everyone who’s cruel, and neither can you. I just…” She closed her eyes for a moment, still enveloped in his arms. “I just don’t want what he said to change things between us. I want to keep doing what we’re doing the next few days. I know it’s just pretend, but I want to keep pretending for a little while longer.”

  I know it’s just pretend…

  The words kept replaying in his head over and over. He kissed the top of her head again. “Yeah. Of course. Didn’t change a thing.” Suddenly he needed to get some distance. “I’m going to get in a workout.”

  “Now?”

  “Yeah, now. Why don’t you head on to bed?”

  It seemed as if she was about to say something, but he didn’t give her the chance because he turned and left to the garage. He hadn’t been in the garage for years, but luckily his father had been very organized, and in the corner still hung the old punching bag and a rack with some free weights. He unbuttoned his shirt, pulled it off, and tossed it aside. Without bothering to wrap up his hands or at least look for his old boxing gloves, he began to hit the bag. He had so many things inside, he didn’t know of a better way to get them out of his system. He really had been on the verge of killing that asshole earlier today. He’d never felt so out of control before in his life. If Violet had not said she was scared—something he’d never want her to feel, especially not if he was the cause of it—he’d probably be in jail right now. But that comment had made him snap out of the rage that had consumed every single cell in his entire body. Well, snap out of it in the sense that he was more concerned for her than interested in breaking Jim’s neck. But the anger was still there, which was obvious from the fact that sweat poured out of him as he pounded his fists against the bag.

  Every time Cain threw a punch, Violet could hear the chain clang. The grunts he made as he exhausted himself made her feel anxious. He was obviously upset, and she didn’t know what to do to fix it. He was working his body too hard and the fact that he’d been at it for over an hour already was making her nuts. An hour ago she had decided on a nice hot bath in the hopes that by the time she was finished, he would be back inside and they could pick up right where they’d left off.

  She hadn’t brought any nice lingerie—well, she didn’t own any nice lingerie—and since this little tryst hadn’t been planned, all she had was her old PJs. She slipped on the nicest pair of panties she had, ran to his room, and pulled out one of his shirts—a white button-down—and decided to try her hand at seduction. She sat on his bed and waited, unbuttoning all the buttons on the shirt and crossing her legs, then buttoning them all and lying down, then undoing all but one and standing casually by the foot of the bed. She tried every combination until she got tired of waiting, all the while feeling completely ridiculous. By the grunts and the clangs, it didn’t seem as if he would be finishing anytime soon.

  Normally she’d want to help him. She wanted to fix everyone’s problems. Hell, she was a nurse. Fixing people was her profession. But now she didn’t feel the need to help him or to coddle him. She wanted to yell. To be angry. If he didn’t want her, he didn’t need to hide out, damn it! And if there was something else that was bothering him, they were close enough that he should confide in her rather than disappear into the garage.

  Then it hit her. She wasn’t going to be anyone’s doormat—especially not Cain’s. After putting up with his bad attitude for the last year, she’d officially had enough. Fueled by rage she stormed to the garage, flung the door open, and yelled, “You know what, Cain Alexander Sorenson? I don’t appreciate your nasty attitude. It’s past midnight. Why are you still working out? Why don’t you want to spend time with me? I mean, at the very least you must want sex! All men want sex. What the hell is wrong with you?” Her hands were on her hips and she was breathless. “And don’t think I haven’t noticed how you seem to conveniently need to work out when you’re upset.”

  He rubbed sweat off his brow with the back of his hand, trying to make sure he was seeing correctly. His eyes roamed slowly down her body as he tried to memorize the way she looked at that very moment. Her messy long curly blond hair was loose forming a halo around her face. She had on a white button-down shirt, white lace panties, and nothing else. The shirt wasn’t buttoned and even though he couldn’t see her nipples, he could see the traces of her ample cleavage. The fact that she was just a little bit covered up made it all the more enticing. He wanted to run the palms of his hands under her shirt, up her shoulders, and down her arms as the shirt fell to the floor. Those light freckles on her chest and he
r red cheeks—he wasn’t sure if they were red from anger or because she was horny—begged to be kissed. She absolutely took his breath away.

  He held the old worn-out punching bag as he listened to her cute tirade and stared at her—sultry, innocent, mad.

  Fuck!

  He had to have her. Right fucking now.

  He was just staring at her. Did he not hear her? She took a minute to study him. He was sweaty, possessive, mad.

  Holy shit!

  The anger quickly morphed into need. She wanted him. Now.

  “What are you wearing, Violet?” he asked. His voice was controlled, but she could tell by the twitch in his jaw and his fisted hands that he wasn’t the least bit under control.

  She looked down at herself and quickly closed his shirt, feeling stupid for having thought she could seduce a man who at his worst looked like that.

  “It was dumb. I took your shirt. I thought I’d show you how confident I’ve gotten. I was going to maybe seduce you,” she said, cringing a little. “Or try to, at least. But, you never came to bed. I was in your bed, by the way, and now…” She clutched the front of the shirt even tighter. “Now I just feel embarrassed and stupid.” And so turned on. Why did he have that effect on her? She knew she was rambling, but she just couldn’t help it.

  He let go of the bag and walked toward her. “Already told you not to feel embarrassed with me. It pisses me off.” He took a predatory step toward her.

  She stood her ground. “Pfft! Everything pisses you off.”

  Another step. “You need to release your death grip on that shirt if you’re going to seduce me.”

  “I said was. Past tense. I’m done waiting,” she said boldly.

  “You want me, sunshine? You don’t have to seduce me. You just have to say the words.” Another step closer.

  “I can’t say the words if you’re not around.”

  “I’m here now.” He was about to pull her hands free from where she had them crossed over her chest when she shrieked.