Keeping Him

by Kennedy Fox

  “Yes, I swear. I love you. We can repair our relationship, can’t we?” I look into his cold eyes and try to find the faintest glimpse of the Trent I once knew, but he’s nowhere to be found. He’s gone completely insane.

  I take the final step to reach him and slowly ease his arm down. “Put the safety on, baby.”

  He obliges and watches me. I nod to give him reassurance. Just when I reach for the gun so I can slowly remove it from his hand, a piercing siren screams in the distance along with gravel crunching under tires. We both turn to look, and my heart drops when I see Jackson’s truck racing toward us. The deputy is speeding behind him.

  Fuck, fuck, fuck.

  Before I can move a muscle, Trent roughly grabs me and pins me against his chest, holding me hostage in his firm embrace. He presses the barrel hard into my temple and hisses.

  “Don’t fucking move or your boy toy gets the first bullet,” he threatens, and my body shakes with sobs.

  “Trent, don’t…”

  “If you really love me, you’d want him out of the picture once and for all.” His voice is completely void of any emotion, and I’m terrified by what that means. I have no idea what he’s actually capable of, considering who I thought he was just a few months ago was entirely wrong.

  “You’ll go to jail,” I tell him. “Then we won’t be able to have any kind of future.” I hope it’s enough to make him think clearer.

  “Get your hands off my—” Jackson stops mid-scream when he realizes Trent has a gun to my head.

  “Laken, drop the gun!” Deputy Pettigrew shouts, pointing his weapon right at us.

  Oh my God, this cannot be happening.

  I feel like I can’t breathe. The air is being completely sucked out of my lungs as I try to process what’s happening right now. One click and Trent could end me. End Jackson. End all of us.

  I’m more worried for Jackson than myself, knowing he’s not just going to stand back and watch Trent threaten me. I know how to play into Trent’s trap and ease us out, but Jackson won’t. He looks like he’s ready to plow Trent down, regardless of the consequences.

  “Take another step, and I’ll blow her fucking head off,” Trent shouts. I cringe, the pain slicing through my body as he pushes the gun harder into my skull.

  “Trent, I’m warning you…” Deputy Pettigrew says calmly. “I’ll shoot you if you don’t drop your weapon.”

  I feel his chest rising and falling with evil laughter. “You think that’s going to scare me? You’ll shoot Kiera before the bullet hits me, so I know you’re full of shit.”

  “Put your weapon down,” Pettigrew tries again, but honestly, it’s no use. Trent’s at a level where he doesn’t care about anything, including his own life.

  “I’m taking my woman and leaving…and you’re going to let me.” Trent forces me to walk toward Jackson’s truck. “Bishop,” Trent spits his name out like it’s lava. “You’re going to give me your keys, and we’re driving out of here.

  “Not a fucking chance!” Jackson’s ready to attack, but Deputy Pettigrew holds up his hand to signal him down.

  “Otherwise, I’m going to make you watch me fuck her and then put a bullet between those sparkling green eyes. Once I’m done with her, you’ll be next. Except I think I’ll be aiming lower on you…” Trent pushes me forward. His lips graze my ear, and the touch sends shivers down my spine. I swallow. “You better cooperate, or you’ll be responsible for four deaths, sweetheart.”

  “Trent, please don’t do this…” I whisper, pleading for our lives. “I’ll go with you willingly, just leave them alone.”

  “You hear that, Jackson?” Trent cackles. “Your girl wants to come with me. Guess your magic dick wasn’t so satisfying after all.”

  Jackson’s eyes narrow into deathly slits. He knows exactly what to say to work Jackson up, to give him one reason to shoot.

  “Jackson, don’t!” I shout without thinking. Trent growls, and when I hear the safety click, I panic. “I want to go with him,” I force out of my mouth. “Trent and I are going to be together. Just let us go.”

  I speak with my eyes, knowing Jackson will be able to read between the lines. Deputy Pettigrew, on the other hand, isn’t allowing it. I find myself wondering if he’s already called for backup, and if so, why aren’t they here yet? Did he call them off? If Trent hears them coming, he’ll shoot for sure.

  “Alright, fine,” Jackson says, digging into his pocket and retrieving his keys. “Here.” He tosses them to the ground, and they land halfway between him and us.

  “Stay back,” Trent warns. “You too, pig.” Deputy Pettigrew has his gun out still but hasn’t moved a muscle. I hope to God one of them has a plan, and they aren’t going to actually let me get into the truck with him.

  Trent pushes me forward until we’re within reach of the keys. “Bend down with me on three,” he whispers in my ear, and I know exactly why. If I cover him, Pettigrew won’t be able to get a clean shot on him since I’ve been his personal body shield. “Grab the keys and hand them to me.” He’s holding me with one hand and pressing the cold metal to my head with the other. I swallow again, unable to get the razor blades out of my throat. I can’t think of anything else but Jackson and how Trent won’t think twice about shooting him.

  “One…two …three …” I lower my body with his, slowly extending my arm out to reach for the bundle of keys. My adrenaline peaks as I lean my body forward just enough where he has to loosen his grip on me to allow me to pick them up.

  Once I hold them securely in my palm, I fist my fingers to keep them in place.

  “Good girl. Now put them in my left hand,” he orders. Looking up from my eyelashes, I stare at Jackson and hope he can read me to understand what I’m about to do next.

  I love you, I mouth.

  When I lean back, Trent’s focus is on grabbing the keys. His left hand slightly opens to take them, but instead of handing them over, I muster up every ounce of my strength and jab my elbow directly into his gut, exactly how Jackson taught me when we were younger.

  He jerks back with an oomph, falling to his ass, making me fall with him. Then the whole scene unravels within seconds. Jackson tackles Trent, fighting for the gun. I want to scream, beg for them to stop, but I can’t find my voice. I open my mouth, but just like in my dreams, nothing comes out.

  Deputy Pettigrew grabs me and pulls me to my feet. “Get inside my squad car. Now!” he orders, but I can’t move. I’m frozen as I watch Jackson and Trent wrestling on the ground. Jackson’s easily stronger than Trent, but that doesn’t matter when Trent is in this state of mind. He’s gone completely psychotic.

  “Kiera, get out of the way…” Pettigrew warns, but my gaze is glued to Jackson. I feel so helpless and want to know why no other officers are out here to help control the situation. “Cover your ears.”

  My eyes snap to him as Pettigrew raises the gun over his head. Just when it dawns on me what he’s planning, I step back, unsure of how this will turn out.

  “Laken, this is your last—” The gun goes off before the deputy finishes his threat. He lowers his arm, then looks back at me then at his gun.

  Oh my God.

  He’s not the one who pulled the trigger.

  “Jackson! No! Jackson!” Screams pour out of me, and just as I run toward him, Pettigrew grabs me and pulls me back.

  I hear muffled sirens in the distance, but all I can see is my whole world crumbling around me. Falling to my knees, Pettigrew loses his grip on me, and as soon as I’m free of his hold, I stumble to my feet and rush over to where Trent is lying on top of Jackson.

  “Jackson! Oh my God! Please, God no!” I scream and sob as I reach for him.

  Jackson slides out from Trent’s lifeless body and grabs me with one arm. He manages to sit up and holds me to his chest as I bury myself in his neck.

  “It’s okay, baby. It’s over. It’s all over. Shh…” Jackson’s voice is calming, but I’m anything but calm. Everything happened so fast, I can�
��t even think.

  “Are you hurt?” I pull back to examine his face and body, inspecting every inch. There’s blood on him. “Are you bleeding?”

  “No, baby.” I turn to look at Trent, but Jackson blocks my view with his hand, pulling my gaze back to him. “Don’t look, Kiera.” It’s all he needs to say because I already know.

  Half a dozen squad cars pull up with their guns raised as they rush over toward Trent. Jackson holds me tightly in his arms as I sob. He pets my hair and kisses my face.

  I know I’m in complete shock, but nothing could’ve prepared me for when they took Trent’s body away. Deputy Pettigrew gave his statement explaining that Jackson was only acting in self-defense and protecting me. There won’t be any charges pressed, but it needs to be said for the record. They want my statement next, but I’m too shaken up to even speak. They allow Jackson to take me home as long as I agree to come in the next couple of days.

  Once I agree, Jackson carries me to the truck, and we drive home. We shower in silence together, kissing and holding each other. Once we’re clean, he puts me to bed and holds me as I cry myself to sleep.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Jackson

  ONE MONTH LATER

  My eyes lazily open, and I blink when I feel the warm wetness between my thighs. Looking over, I see the empty side of the bed and realize Kiera didn’t wait for me to wake up to start our morning tradition.

  Smirking, I rest both arms behind my head and arch my back as I feel her mouth consume every inch of me. Fuck. She’s so goddamn good at this. Her hand is wrapped around the base of my shaft, rotating up and down as her tongue licks circles around my tip. She knows that drives me fucking insane.

  “Baby…” I groan desperately. Arching my hips, she gets the hint and speeds up. She’s a master at getting me off in minutes due to the quickies we squeeze in between our work schedules. Speaking of which, today is a special day, and there’s a lot to do for my plan to properly work. “Get on your knees,” I demand, reaching for her.

  She finally brings her head up, gasping for air. The corners of my mouth tick up in a pleased grin, and I notice how breathtaking she is.

  “Turn around,” I tell her, getting to my knees so I can take her from behind. She happily obeys and sticks her plump ass out for me as she arches her back low to the mattress. “Fuck, this view is perfection,” I say, talking about her backside. I give it a little slap, and she moans. She has no idea what’s in store for her—right now and later.

  I stroke my cock a couple of times before positioning myself at her entrance and thrusting inside her. I love it when she’s at this angle because it allows me to be so damn deep and it gets her off within minutes. Feeling her bare makes me lose it usually after she does, but it doesn’t stop us from going back at it shortly after. We’re completely insatiable for each other, never able to really feed that hunger for long before we’re both starving for more. Every day I get to wake up next to the love of my life is another day I won’t waste without making love to her.

  “Jackson…” she whimpers, widening her hips and pulling me impossibly deeper inside her.

  I squeeze her hips tightly, moving her back and forth on my dick. The fading bruises on her waist are from the countless times of giving in to her demands to go harder and faster.

  “What do you need, baby?” I ask, grabbing her ass cheeks and opening her wider.

  “Harder,” she begs. I smile wide. My girl likes it rough, and it’s my pleasure to give her whatever she wants.

  Instead of holding her hips and bruising her all over again, I have another plan.

  “Straighten your legs,” I tell her. “So I can straddle you from behind.”

  Kiera does exactly that, her pussy putting my cock in a deathly vise grip between her clenched cheeks. I cover her body with mine, wrapping a hand around her throat and pulling her head back until my lips touch her ear. My other hand lies flat on the bed next to her shoulder, holding me up just enough to slide in and out of her.

  “Wanna know how many times I’ve jerked off to the image of your luscious ass?”

  “Hmm?” She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth. “A billion?” she teases.

  “Pretty fucking close.” I chuckle.

  Slowly, I pull back, and without warning, I push inside her in one hard thrust. I repeat the motion, tightening my grip on her throat. “I want to fill you up, sweetheart. Put all my babies inside you then fuck your tight cunt again with more.”

  Kiera shivers underneath me and gasps. “Yes…please.”

  I thrust—no, ram inside her over and over, plunging my hips against her as hard as I can until she’s clasping my dick so tight it sends us both over the edge in a sweaty, heated daze.

  Rolling over, I pull Kiera to my chest as we both gasp for air. After several minutes, Kiera looks up at me with a frown.

  “What’s wrong?” I furrow my brows, brushing my fingers lightly over her shoulder.

  “Are you concerned that I haven’t gotten pregnant yet?” Her question catches me off guard, and I’m not sure how to answer. I don’t know much about what it takes to knock a girl up besides the obvious, but considering I’ve spent half my life trying not to get a girl knocked up, I haven’t a clue what the average timeframe is.

  “Well, it’s only been a few months. Don’t these things take time usually?” I try to offer some kind of comfort.

  She shrugs, lowering her eyes. “Sometimes, yeah. But we do it like…every day. Sometimes twice. You’d think if I were capable of even getting pregnant it would’ve happened by now. Maybe my eggs are all dried up, and my window of opportunity has come and gone. I’m an old lady.”

  I hate the sadness in her voice and want to offer any kind of encouragement I can. Rolling her over so she’s on her back and I’m halfway on top of her, I tilt her chin up so she looks into my eyes.

  “I’ll do whatever it takes to knock you up. Day and night of hardcore fucking if I have to.” I grin, and that gets a laugh out of her.

  “Oh, what a sacrifice,” she taunts, wrapping her legs around my thighs.

  “Yeah, but for you, I’ll do it.” I wink. “Seriously, sweetheart.” I lean down to kiss her gorgeous pink lips. “Don’t worry, okay? It’ll happen when it’s supposed to.”

  “How do you know?” she asks with doubt in her tone.

  “Because I just have a feeling, okay? Trust me.”

  She groans, rolling her eyes at the way I waggle my brows at her. “The last time I trusted you, it took over fifteen years.” She deadpans, but I see the slightest smirk on her lips.

  “I’m never going to live that down.”

  “Oh hell no. Never ever.” She wraps her arms around my waist and slides her hands down to squeeze my butt. “I’m just glad you finally came to your senses.”

  “Ya know…” I give her a look. “I’m getting an awful a lot of blame here when you could’ve at any time told me how you felt. So I think you deserve half the blame too.” I dip down to her neck and inhale her sweet scent. “You were single for a long time before…” I linger, not wanting to say his name aloud. “So…what made you just stand around and keep quiet?”

  Kiera narrows her eyes at me as if she doesn’t appreciate being put on the spot. “For starters…” Her tone lowers, sounding accusatory, and it makes me laugh. “I appreciate the upheld tradition of a man asking a woman out, so for the most part, I was just waiting and hoping you were getting my signals. However, when you started dating all the single women in town, I figured you weren’t asking me out because you didn’t think of me that way.” She pauses, thinking for a moment. “Also, you’d make random comments that made me believe you just didn’t see me as anything more than a friend, so instead of making a fool of myself, I kept my feelings buried.”

  “I’ll be the first to admit I was a selfish dumbass who pushed you away anytime I felt you getting too close. I still believe you deserve better than me, but now that I’ve had you, I’m not ever letting you go
. You had your chance to find a rich lawyer, so you’ll just have to settle for me now,” I tease, plucking her bottom lip with my thumb.

  Kiera places both palms on my cheeks and forces me to look up at her. “Being with anyone else besides you would’ve been settling,” she tells me sweetly. “This is exactly the life I wanted, Jackson Bishop. I love working with horses. I love living here. I love your family. I love that I’m still close to my parents. I love everything about you and me. There is absolutely no settling, and if I have to remind you of that for the rest of our lives, I will. Do you understand me now?”

  Fuck, she’s adorable when she gets all serious. Gets me hard all over again.

  “I do, baby. You’ve never given me a reason to doubt you. I just wanted to be able to give you the world.”

  She squishes my face, pulling me in for a kiss. “You already have. I love you.”

  “I wove you too,” I mutter between my smooshed lips.

  It makes her giggle. She drops her hands and wraps her arms around my neck. “We should get ready for work.” She sticks her bottom lip out and pouts. “Though I’d much rather stay in this warm bed with you all day.”

  “Hmm…I could make that happen.” I wink, rolling to my back and taking her with me until she’s on top.

  “Sorry, Cowboy. Horses need to be fed.” She gives me one more peck before crawling off me, and as soon as her feet touch the floor, I’m off the bed and racing her to the shower. “Dammit, Jackson!” she squeals when I wrap my arms around her waist, pick her up, and set her down behind me.

  I’m in the shower seconds before she is, but it doesn’t even matter because I have her pinned to the wall as soon as she gets in.

  “You’re relentless.” She laughs against my mouth as I kiss her.

  I help her wash her body and rinse her hair, and she does the same for me. It’s more than just being together naked. I cherish these moments, and it still feels like a dream that she’s mine.

  “So do you have a busy schedule today?” I ask as she finishes getting ready.