by Rue, Rebekah
“Sweet baby Jesus!”
Time moves in slow motion, and I can’t keep those words from tripping off my tongue. She’s hotter than any bitch you’ll find in any porn or sexy pinup magazine. Her lean body looks fucking incredible in a suit I envy. As Lo descends the stairs, the peanut gallery of assholes behind me lets loose a series of fucks, damns, and good Lords. I want to turn around and karate chop each one of those assholes in the throat, giving them something else to think about.
For the next hour, I painstakingly watch from shore as Lo rides on the towable tube and asshole after asshole cops a feel every time Finn manhandles the boat, causing it to swing back and forth across the bumpy water. The longer I watch, the more pissed I get. At one point, two chicks come up to me and try to get my attention. I have no idea what their faces look like and I don’t care, but I swat them away like the annoying gnats they are. My focus is elsewhere.
After another damn hour, the boat finally idles up to the dock and lets a couple people off. I strain my eyes, praying one of those people is Lo, but sadly, to my dismay, it’s only Maggie. Damn you, Lo. Now she’s the only female on a boat full of guys. My chest is on fire and I rub it, digging my knuckles into that spot, willing it to ease off. I’m going to need a good cardiologist after all this is through. Maggie approaches, taking a seat in the recliner next to me. “Whew brother, I’m pooped,” she says, flopping down. Her boobs bounce with her movement, and she adjusts the tiny metallic green top.
“Thanks for texting me this address earlier.”
“Yeah, no problem, I was hoping you’d come. I really want you to meet my brother Micah.”
Her brother? Towel guy? How convenient. I don’t know if it’s a good idea to put us face-to-face; his face may not come out so lucky.
I don’t want to encourage that idea, so I push up from the chair, giving Maggie a side glance. “I’m going to head inside and get another beer, you want anything?” If deep breathing doesn’t work, alcohol will.
“Nah, I’m good. If I eat anything, I might pop one of my flimsy strings.”
I eye her lack of coverage, and usually that’d result in an instant boner, but lately my boners have been very selective. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate her efforts, but a woman doesn’t need fancy hundred-dollar lingerie or heavy makeup that makes her look like an exotic cat. Please, we think about sex all day everyday as if it’s man’s natural obligation to knock women up and continue the human race. “Good idea, wouldn’t want to make all the other chicks here jealous,” I say, looking down at her. Maggie just shrugs, watching the lake, and I head back inside. I need a break from my slow death.
Chapter 10
Lo
Ouch! It hurts everywhere.
Maggie and I sit lakeside in blue plush recliners, enjoying the last bit of the descending afternoon sun. She rambles on about something I’m not following. My eyes are shut while I recover from the battle I just put my body through on the water. It hurts to move, as if I had been in a fight and lost. One minute I’m squeezing my eyes together from the brightness of the sun, and the next a large shadow is cast over me. One curious lid peels open, focusing on a whole lot of sexy muscle. Talon. His silhouette glows like an angel descending from heaven, except this angel is a bad angel.
He pulls off his sunglasses, charming me with his deep blue eyes as he holds out his hand. His rough voice is a bit unsteady but always confident. “Lo, will you come with me? . . . Please.” I should have known he’d be here.
I exhale, taking a moment to stare at his big hand, knowing the body attached is drop-dead gorgeous and how he probably worked that girl over a couple of nights ago with that same hand. The thought makes me angry, and I stand without accepting it, tensing at the jolt of pain in my muscles. It’s easier to keep things simple if we don’t touch.
Touch is powerful. Look what ET did with that one finger or that guy on death row in The Green Mile. I mean come on.
My response catches him off guard, and he rubs the sexy stubble on his jaw as I walk by.
“Lo.”
I keep walking.
“Lo, wait up,” he yells, catching up to me, keeping my pace. “Are you mad at me?
Yes, I’m pissed. “No, why?”
“Because I feel like you’re giving me the cold shoulder.”
Okay, I am. I can’t help that. I’m a girl and we hold grudges. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, not looking at him. We walk to the far end of the yard, away from everyone, near a cluster of trees that’s supporting a swing. The swing is big, but Talon sits right next to me. Wrapping my arms around my middle, I take a couple of deep breaths to calm myself, wishing I grabbed my cover-up because right now I’m way too exposed and sitting way too close. This is what I get for getting involved with him. Minutes pass full of silence and Talon clears his throat, leaning a few inches forward to face me. I avoid his gaze, looking out over the lake at everyone having a good time. He doesn’t need to know that he has to the power to hurt me. I don’t want to give him that.
“First, I’d like to say you look absolutely beautiful. I can’t keep my eyes off you.”
I roll my eyes at his words, disgusted, twisting my head to scan his face. The player never stops playing. It disgusts me how he thinks it’s okay to be with one person one night, forget about her, and then jump to someone else the next. God, I wish I had my cover-up. With one leg, he pushes off the soft grass, jiggling the chains above, creating a rhythmic swing of the chair.
When his knuckles gently stroke across my cheek, I startle and move away. Seeing my discomfort, Talon doesn’t try to touch me again. “Babe, you need to stay out of the sun. Your cheeks are getting red.”
Or maybe that’s anger. More importantly, why does he even care? Still, I ignore him.
“Lo, I’m sorry.” It’s the way his words come out that catches my attention. They sound wounded. He cups my cheek and successfully draws it back to him. “I’m sorry.” He says softer. His apology feels sincere, but if he can so easily hurt me without thought, who is to say he won’t down the road as well. We’re locked in a stare when his intense eyes bounce once to my lips then back up. They bounce twice then back to my eyes; each time our faces draw closer. By the fourth time, we’re nearly touching. I reach out and press two fingers against his lips, halting his progress, shaking my head. I have to get off this swing. Digging my feet in the grass, I jump off, but Talon snags my wrist before I can get away. My eyes slide down the length of my arm to this broken man and I sigh. His gaze begs for forgiveness, using all his strength to say he’s sorry. He doesn’t say it very often, but when he does, he means it. I can’t stay mad at him; he does the puppy dog look so well. But it’s only fair to tell him how he hurt me, even if it does make me seem like a jealous girlfriend. Which I’m not. “You want the truth?”
He nods. Here it comes.
“I’m not your girlfriend, and I can’t tell you what to do, but I am your friend, and the way you dabble in women is gross. I’m sad for you because, when you really find the one who truly matters, you’ll regret all the others that came before her.”
His eyebrows pull together, and he stands, standing taller than me. “What women?”
I sigh and roll my eyes, snagging my hand back. He must have fallen and bumped his head because the boy has amnesia.
“What women? Really? Okay, for instance, the drunk girl who came into your bedroom while we were talking Saturday night.” I wait.
His face scrunches up and he shrugs. “What about her? I never touched her.”
“Really? You’re saying you didn’t have sex with her? Because you sure made it sound like it was definite.”
“No, I didn’t.” I give him a disbelieving stare. “I sent her home in a taxi. She was a sloppy mess after I got off the phone with you.”
All my tension releases with his declaration, making me strangely happy. I feel so immature now that I brought it up. I try to stop it, try to stop my lips from smiling, but I ca
n’t, so I try to hide it instead. Talon notices. He notices everything and curls an arm around my waist, pulling me closer, smiling, his mood lightening before my eyes. “What? What’s that funny look you’re giving me?”
That only makes me smile more and gently paw at his chest to break free. Though I don’t try hard, I like where I’m at. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He catches my chin in his hand, forcing my attention back to his suddenly serious face. “Now tell me you don’t know what I’m talking about.”
My pores blush. I have to get control of myself. “Friends?” I say, resetting boundaries again.
“You know you’re the only girl I want,” he coos, deathly serious, not breaking his stare.
I shove him, breaking loose and walking away backwards, stuttering nervously. “Stop it. Now you’re being stupid.”
He follows, seriously concentrating on me with an intimidating look. A carnal look. A look that doesn’t say “friends.” He continues to close in; his size makes me feel smaller by the minute. “You’ll always be my friend.”
He moans, grazing his teeth over his bottom lip still stalking me. I love when he does that; it drives me crazy to watch his flesh blanch and fill back up with blood. I bite my lip, fantasizing about licking and nibbling playfully at his. I shouldn’t think this way, but my heart starts to race, and his playful mood is making me nervous.
“Do you remember the last time you bit that beautiful lip? I warned you.”
I see it in his eyes before it happens. “TALON, DON’T!” I yell, bracing myself with extended arms to stop him. His mischievous smile grows just as he rushes me, effortlessly picking me up and over his shoulder, ass high, feet dangling in front.
“Put me down!” I yelp, tickling his hips with my hands in the hopes I’ll hit the spot and he’ll set me free. I do. He does a little wiggle spiny dance to shake my hands loose. My arms and legs swing about; the world turns to a blur. His punishing hand comes down across my barely covered behind, delivering two not-so-gentle spanks. Next, he softly rubs the burning area, taking off running towards the lake. I try to yell. I try scream, but the bouncing keeps all oxygen out of my lungs. His large hand is back, coasting under the material covering my bottom, fully cupping the left cheek that is on fire. That big pinkie finger repeatedly brushes along my slit, teasing to take a dip inside. Every bump, every jostle it rubs. Everything in my line of sight is shaken up, and I have no idea where we are. Then I hear fast hollow footsteps beating off the wooden planks of the dock, and presto, we’re airborne.
Weightless, only for a minute.
SPLASH!
I come back up, flopping around on the surface, pushing my hair out of my face. Talon’s laughter is all I can hear. “That’s it, Baylor. Your ass is grass. Watch your back because revenge is mine.” His smile grows bigger than ever at my threat. He swims up to me, but I push him away, hauling myself out and walking back towards the house. A low groan rumbles from behind me, and I peek over my shoulder at Talon standing a couple feet back, eyes locked on the perfectly rosy outlined handprint on my left butt cheek.
“That is fucking sexy!” He practically moans, transfixed on that spot in pure caveman satisfaction.
Me? I’m appalled. I rub over it a couple of times as if I can brush it away. “Sexy? You’re not going to think it’s sexy when a girl kicks your ass,” I challenge, encroaching on his space, randomly jabbing a little finger into his stone abs, pecs, and hips, and making him laugh while he blocks each one. I’m doomed when he catches both of my wrists in a tight pull.
“Oh, yeah, well, I’m pretty certain this is one fight I can win.” He draws one of my wrists to his mouth and takes a bite out of the delicate skin from the underside. I draw in a sharp pull of air, getting turned on from having his mouth on me.
“You know I’ve been training, and I have the power to bring a person to his knees,” I brag, tugging at his grip.
His smile is nothing short of cocky. “Really! That’s wild because I have that same superpower.”
I pause and pull back, scrunching up my nose. Yuck. Talon took that moment to pay back what I did to him earlier. Tickling fingers attack, sparking a flare of giggles. I curl myself into a ball, blocking my ribs and hips, but his hands are too big. Laughing so hard I can barely breathe, barely stand, I feel my legs give and my body crumple into him. He gives me a minute to catch my breath, holding me up. Except being pressed skin to skin isn’t helping; it’s too much. Our skin is hot, and I can feel every contour, every bulge. Yes, even that one; that one isn’t hard to miss. One of his hands swipes across my shoulders, pushing away my hair, exposing my ear. His mouth moves so close I can feel his lush lips whisper the words around its rim, and each syllable funnels into my ear canal. “Beg me, Lo. Beg me to stop. Tell me to let you go.”
I let the last couple laughs trickle out, and then we both become very still. Only our strong attraction moves through us. I don’t want him to let me go. I would beg if things were different, but they’re not. I still have my issues and insecurities that threaten me. They’re hard to control when Talon sometimes blankets them and at other times fuels them. Calmly, I break free of his hold and walk away. I have to walk away from this, from him. The reality is making me uneasy, knowing he thinks of this as a game. I wish he wouldn’t say those things to me. His attempts to flirt are damaging and certainly don’t lie in the friend territory.
“Lo, where are you going?” He throws his hands out.
Away from you. “I’m just going to head in; I’m feeling overheated. I think I need a drink.” Maybe it’s the crazy cocktail of emotions or maybe it’s too much sun. Regardless, I avoid him for quite some time after that.
The sun is completely down, and we haul out sheets and comforters from the house, anything we can sprawl out on to watch the impressively sketchy variety show of fireworks the boys are setting off over the water. I drink and drink some more, until my liver is as drunk as my brain. Maggie can always drink me under the table then function freakishly normal the next morning. I don’t have another run-in with Talon since our earlier encounter, and a part of me wants to curse him for shaking up my day to unwind and have a little fun. Subconsciously, I keep tabs on him, needing to see if my opinion means anything or if he’s moved on because I didn’t fall for his words that I wish were real. But now the alcohol has sedated me enough to where I don’t care if he’s gone or how pretty that exploding ball of powder is above me. Maggie, a few others, and I are lying on our backs. Maggie is singing the “Star Spangled Banner” at the top of her lungs, her right hand over her heart. The two girls at my feet are laughing hysterically, and I’m a pile of feathers: completely relaxed, ready to blow away.
Amongst the chaos, it doesn’t bother me one iota when Talon sneaks up behind me, lifts my head, and positions it to rest in his lap. Why thank you. Your lap is way more comfortable than this hard ground. He pulls the rubber band from my hair and gently brushes his fingers through its length, twirling it about. I couldn’t stop him if I tried, so I watch the sky and let Talon blatantly watch me. His hand lightly runs over my cheek and caresses the span of my throat until he reaches the notch at the bottom. Slightly squeezing, he restricts my air but not completely. Lazily, my eyes find his, and a palpable sense of trust surfaces. I don’t know why I’m having a sudden change of heart, but it feels natural. I’ll surrender. He draws that hand back up over the side of my neck and back to the side of my face. His breathing is sporadic, and a worry line I never noticed has appeared between his brows.
Then the sky detonates in a siege of colors, and a downpour of sparkles appears bigger as it mirrors off the glass surface of the lake.
It takes a tenth of a second for the brain to perceive what’s happening around you, but in my case, two seconds is more fitting. I lose sight but not sound of the show as the best set of hands frames my face and the best set of lips takes my lips in an upside-down kiss.
What’s in a kiss you ask? Well I’m prett
y sure one component is firework powder.
His kiss is sure and slow with just the right amount of pressure, and it makes my head spin. My body vibrates with every boom, my heart bangs against my chest wall, and the dull ache in my core instinctively throbs. With the final explosion, our lips hesitantly part, and my head rises slightly from his lap in an effort to catch his mouth again, but I’m too slow. Cheers and a round of applause erupt all around us, neither one of us breaking the other’s bound stare.
I don’t want to move, but then I feel something. It’s not a good something but a bad something. Like the contents of my stomach wanting to expel. Cautiously, I sit up, and a wave of nausea hits me as I support myself with one hand on the ground and rest the other on my unsteady stomach while blowing out a slow breath.
Maggie immediately notices and crouches down, pulling my hair out of my face. “Are you okay? You’re not looking so hot. Maybe you should head home. Want me to drive you?” she says, slurring every word.
My body lurches with the need to vomit, but I quickly press my fingers over my lips.
“NO! I’ll take her home, Mags. You can barely hold your head up.” She has no room to argue and doesn’t try. Maggie smears a wet kiss on my cheek and turns to Talon, giving him a military salute good-bye.
He wraps his arm tightly around my waist and helps me to his truck. With every step I take, I’m reminded of the ache in my muscles and the looming need to vomit perched in the back of my throat. Just hurry.
His truck makes it unscathed. The hall of the condo makes it as well, but the bathroom isn’t so lucky. Talon stays close. After holding my hair back while I puke, he cleans me up with a warm moist washrag from the closet, medicates me, and artfully transfers me into a pair of soft pajamas he finds in my dresser. With gentle hands, he tucks me into bed.