Four Letter Word

by J. Daniels

  Stitch was standing at the grill with his back to me, stirring up something in a sauce pan.

  He turned his head after hearing my question, registered it with a jerk of his chin, then went back to staring at the sauce pan.

  I leaned my elbow on the steel.

  “I have no idea what that little chin jerk means, you know that, right?” I asked.

  Stitch said nothing.

  I turned my head to look at Shay.

  She had moved on from filling salt and pepper shakers at the bar and was now passing time between tending to her patrons by sitting at a vacant table and rolling extra sets of silverware.

  No one ever volunteered to roll silverware. You only did it when Nate asked you to.

  I looked once again at Stitch, rolled up on my toes, and added for only him to hear, “She’s upset with you and she has reason to be. You bailed on her. And when girls are excited about something and that one thing they’re excited about falls through, they get disappointed and sometimes get quiet.”

  I watched the silent man, all messy edge and lawless looks, leave that sauce pan and turn to face me. His eyes were hard and his nostrils were flaring with irritation.

  “Never said I’d go,” he clipped, saying more than he’d ever said to me at once before, and if that didn’t make me highly interested in listening, it was the topic and tone of his voice that kept me invested and not ducking behind the bar. “She just assumed ’cause I didn’t say different when she was talkin’ about it, and that’s on her. I got no business bein’ at a party like that and she knows it, just like she’s got no business invitin’ me to one. What the fuck would I do there?”

  I was staring and I was doing it with my eyes wide and my mouth dropped open.

  Whoa.

  Stitch had an extremely sexy voice hiding behind that beard.

  Nice.

  “Uh,” I stammered, then stated as if it was obvious, “You could’ve hung out with Shay.”

  He shook his head and looked down at the prep station.

  “Got no business doin’ that either,” he muttered. “Girl like that with that kinda light…” His voice trailed off, then he lifted his eyes, tensed his jaw, and said curtly, “Not talkin’ about this.”

  My brows shot up.

  I absolutely wanted to keep talking about this. What Stitch was saying was incredibly interesting and something I would definitely share with Shay.

  He thought she had light. He also thought he wasn’t good enough to touch that light. I was hearing that loud and clear.

  Shay was right. Stitch was sweet.

  I wanted to jump through that window and hug the crap out of him.

  But before I could do that or urge him into further conversation, he reached out and slammed his hand down on the steel, swiped the ticket, read the order quickly, then tacked it up along with the others before he turned around and supervised the sauce pan.

  “Not much I can do with the clams,” he informed, facing away. “Droppin’ them on the floor ain’t gonna do what you’re lookin’ for it to do.”

  I nodded at his back, deciding to be generous and letting Jamie off easy today. Mainly because Stitch seemed in the mood to get creative if I asked and I was scared to think what he’d come up with while standing back there alone and pining over Shay.

  “It’s okay, don’t worry about it,” I told him, rocking back onto my feet. “But if it’s not too much trouble, could you make those Southern stuffed shrimp extra yummy for my boy? He’s here.”

  “Whatever,” he muttered, his arm moving as he stirred.

  “With lots of love,” I added. “Not that I’m telling you how to cook, but maybe slip in an extra hush puppy?”

  Stitch shook his head through a noisy exhale.

  “Jesus Christ, I need a new fuckin’ job.”

  I left that remark alone and stepped in front of the coffeemaker, grabbing a mug for Brian.

  As long as Shay worked at Whitecaps, I had a feeling Stitch wasn’t going anywhere.

  * * *

  I was running my tongue along the underside of Brian’s cock as I knelt between his knees on the floor of his living room in front of the couch.

  He’d dropped calling me “nut” so I was making good on my promise to suck him off, starting on that as soon as I got to his place after my shift ended.

  I was moaning and taking him deep while fighting off the urge to press my fingers between my legs, knowing the second I did that I’d go off, enjoying the feel of his long, thick cock in my mouth so much that I was getting there without even trying. And Brian was fisting my hair and thrusting his hips, saying some of the hottest stuff to me as I worked him.

  “Wild,” he groaned.

  “Fuck,” he snarled.

  “Jesus, babe. Never been sucked this good,” he confessed.

  Hot.

  We had the house to ourselves for the rest of the night because Jamie went to look at some bike he was interested in buying two hours away, an investment Brian found hilarious for some reason he hadn’t shared with me yet, which led to the fooling around on the couch instead of in the privacy of Brian’s bedroom.

  I loved it. I wanted to be out in the open with Brian everywhere.

  Let everyone see our crazy.

  Rising up on my knees, I swallowed him until my lips touched the top of my hand squeezing his base, then I started sucking and jerking in slow, wet strokes, twisting my wrist and keeping pressure.

  “Shit,” Brian muttered as his legs tensed. “Wild, get up here.”

  “Un-mm.”

  I shook my head a little and kept sucking and jerking as my other hand cupped his balls.

  “Syd,” he growled.

  Concentrating on the head, I swirled my tongue and flicked it as my hand pumped firmer and faster.

  I wanted him to come. I wanted to taste Brian and I knew he was close, but before I could push him over the edge, hands gripped with impatience under my arms, lifting me off and then up until I was on my feet, standing in front of Brian and gripping his shoulders for stability as he tore savagely at my uniform shorts. He peeled them down my legs along with my panties, tossed them on the floor, then gripped the back of my thighs, took my weight, and somehow spread my legs and lowered me at the same time until I slid down onto his cock in one perfect, fluid, oh, my God, how am I this wet motion.

  “Brian,” I gasped as he stretched me.

  His hand slapped my ass and I yelped, lurching forward until our bellies and chests were touching and I could feel the rapid pounding of his heart against mine.

  “Ride me ’til I come,” he ordered with fire in his eyes.

  “I wanted you to come in my mouth,” I shared, leaning back and settling in his lap.

  “I was getting that.” His lip twitched, then he held my hips and started shifting them, urging me to move with his hands and pressing me, “Come on, babe. Fuck me. Let me see what my girl can do.”

  My skin tingled.

  His girl.

  No way was I saying no to that.

  I started taking over, grinding down and forward while my hands gripped the back of the couch, going from slow to fast to slow again, then circling my hips instead of rocking them, pulling deeper, dirtier noises out of Brian.

  “God, Wild.”

  “So good,” I moaned, popping my booty and bouncing in his lap. “You feel…so good.”

  His hips started driving off the couch as his fingers dug into my back under the white polo I was wearing and quickly peeling off so he could get to my breasts. The second the material hit the cushion beside us, Brian had my bra pushed down and his mouth latched around my nipple, sucking it hard and hungry when the doorbell sounded with a charming pitch.

  I gasped and froze like a stone.

  Brian froze, too, releasing my nipple but keeping his mouth against my flesh, his arms tight around me, waiting.

  If we didn’t move or make a sound, they’d leave. This was apparently the train of thought we both shared.
<
br />   Seconds passed.

  “False alarm?” I guessed, then felt my spine tighten when the unmistakable sound of metal sliding against metal and unlocking alerted us of someone entering the house.

  “Fuck,” Brian hissed, shifting me off his lap until I fell backward onto the cushion beside him.

  He grabbed my shorts and panties off the floor and tossed them at me, both of us frantically pulling on and sliding up clothes, tucking and zipping and covering as best we could before the door pushed open and little excited voices filled the house.

  “Uncle Brian!” a boy yelled.

  “We’re here! We’re here!” another voice cried animatedly, this one sounding like a girl. “And we brought our iPads! Wait ’til you see my Minecraft now, Uncle Brian. It’s so awesome!”

  Uncle Brian?

  Panic raced through me.

  “Oh, my God, your family is going to see me naked and know exactly what we were doing. My first impression is going to be horrible,” I whispered, pulling on my polo now that my shorts were fastened, which turned out to be a chore doing on my back but I had no other choice. It was the only way I could stay concealed.

  This was so embarrassing!

  “Did you know they were coming over?”

  Brian stood to zip his shorts.

  “I forgot,” he replied quietly, looking me over while pressing a hand to the front of his shorts. “Fuck, I was so close.”

  “Get over it,” I snapped softly, struggling to get one arm through my shirt. “And hold them off from coming in here. I still have a boob out.”

  Brian smirked, which I totally could’ve slapped him for but he looked really cute doing it so I let it go. He moved around the couch to hold off our company but halted only a couple of feet away when quick footsteps padded into the room.

  “Uncle Brian!” the little girl shrieked. “Guess what? I chopped down Ollie’s tree!”

  “Livvy! Why did you do that?” the boy asked, sounding angry. “I just put that up.”

  “Because it was the only other tree I could find,” she replied meekly. “I’m sorry, Ollie. Don’t be mad. You can chop down my tree.”

  “Would you both stop talking about Minecraft for five seconds and go give your uncle a hug?” a woman suggested.

  Teeth clenching, I finally got my arm through the second hole and pulled my shirt down, double checking I was covered then sitting up slowly and stretching my hands above my head while forcing a yawn.

  “Oh, wow. That was the best nap ever,” I lied, then rubbed my eyes and blinked fake sleepily between the two kids who were peering around Brian’s arms wrapped around them and the young woman standing a few feet away who I assumed was their mother.

  She had Brian’s high cheekbones and full lips, which she was turning up into a knowing smile as she looked at me.

  I didn’t think she was buying my nap story.

  “Uncle Brian, who is that?” the boy asked.

  The girl blinked with round eyes the color of melted chocolate.

  Brian released them, stepped back, and turned his body halfway, giving them full view of me as I stood from the couch.

  Both with blue-rimmed glasses and dark hair that looked playground messy, they were the same height and looked to be the same age.

  Were they twins?

  “This is Syd,” Brian said.

  The girl took a step closer and tilted her head.

  “Are you Uncle Brian’s girlfriend?” she asked, giving me a once-over and, when she was done, smiling big. “I know you are. He said you were super pretty and you are so super pretty. Your hair looks like Ariel.”

  My cheeks warmed.

  “Thank you,” I replied, moving around the couch and stopping in front of her. “I’m Sydney. I go by Syd, too. Is your name Livvy?”

  She shrugged.

  “That’s what Ollie calls me. It’s Olivia. You can call me Livvy or Olivia. Uncle Brian calls me Liv sometimes. He also said he loved you.”

  My eyes widened. I turned them to Brian and watched him pinch his shut and drop his head, shaking it.

  “Olivia,” the woman hissed behind her. “He didn’t say that, I said it.” She lifted her eyes to me and softened them, adding, “Not that it isn’t true. If my brother told you already, then I’m sure he means it.”

  Brian groaned, clearly uncomfortable.

  “Why did I give you a key?” he asked, turning his head to her.

  The woman smiled, telling him, “Because I used to live here, remember?”

  “Duh, Uncle Brian,” the boy, Oliver, added, looking up with tight brows.

  Olivia spun around, her pretty dress fanning out as she giggled.

  “Yeah, duh,” she echoed.

  Brian’s sister turned back to me, keeping that smile but notching it up in brightness as she stepped forward and offered me her hand.

  “I’m Jenna, by the way. It’s so good to meet you, Sydney.”

  She knew about me, I was sure of that, but I didn’t know the extent and I really wanted to know what all had been said about me.

  Especially the whole love business.

  “It’s good to meet you, too,” I replied, dropping her hand and looking down at her shoes. “Cute booties.”

  Really cute.

  They were camel-colored leather with a chunky wooden heel that had to be four inches.

  I wondered what size she wore.

  “Thanks. I have a date tonight and he’s six-five. Needed some height.” Jenna turned her head and looked at Brian. “Did you forget?”

  Brian shoved his hands in his pockets.

  “Nope.”

  “You forgot.” Jenna sighed. “It’s fine. I can reschedule.”

  “No way!” Olivia cried, stomping her foot.

  “Oh, man. This sucks.” Oliver crossed his arms over his chest and huffed out a breath. “I don’t wanna go back home. It’s boring there. I wanted to walk on the beach.”

  “Oliver, don’t say sucks. That’s not nice,” Jenna scolded.

  “Well, it does,” he whispered, ducking his head.

  “I don’t care. You’re not allowed to say that word.”

  “Fine. This is stupid.”

  “You aren’t allowed to say that either,” she snapped, sounding on the verge of losing her temper. “Do I need to take away your iPad privileges?”

  Oliver looked up at her, quickly shook his head, and muttered, “No, ma’am.”

  I decided to cut in before the poor thing said something out of panic and got his iPad privileges taken away. I felt bad.

  “You don’t have to reschedule. We didn’t have plans tonight. We’d be happy to watch them,” I told Jenna, seeing her smile then looking over at Brian to confirm and watching his brows lift in surprise. “Right?”

  He stared at me, face stuck in that expression.

  “Right?” I probed.

  “We didn’t have plans?” Brian asked incredulously. “’Cause I thought we were sorta in the middle of somethin’—”

  “That can be pushed back until later,” I cut in, bringing my hands to my hips. “Obviously.”

  He cocked his head.

  “Not sure it can, babe.”

  “It totally can.”

  “You understand what I’m dealing with right now?”

  “Um, should we step out?” Jenna asked hesitantly.

  “No. Please stay here,” I replied, eyes narrowed as they sliced back to Brian.

  Brian narrowed his back.

  This was so not the time or place to have this discussion, and seriously, how painful were blue balls anyway? I was certain men played that shit up.

  “Really?” he asked.

  I nodded hard. “Really.”

  Brian looked to the ceiling and breathed in deep.

  “Well, it was a good run. Sweet while it lasted.”

  He was talking about our relationship.

  “Very funny,” I quipped, catching the smile he was fighting before looking between the kids. “You two
wanna hang out here for a while?”

  “Yes!” Oliver punched his fist into the air and jumped off the floor. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

  Olivia shook her hips with a little dance, then cutely high-fived her brother.

  “Are you sure?” Jenna asked, concern in her voice. “I don’t wanna put you two out.”

  “You won’t be. Go enjoy yourself. We got this.”

  She smiled again.

  “I like your girlfriend, Uncle Brian. She’s cool,” Oliver said, taking the two small duffles out of his mother’s hand and giving the one decorated with pastel circles to Olivia. “And I guess she’s pretty.”

  “She’s super pretty!” Olivia shouted, looking up at me and clutching her duffle against her chest. “Wanna play hair salon? I brought my accessories.”

  I smiled big.

  “Absolutely. I love accessories.”

  “Awesome,” she whispered excitedly, then turned her head. “You hear that, Ollie? Syd is gonna play hair salon with me, and she loves accessories, too!”

  “Yeah, whatever. Me and Uncle Brian are gonna play Road Blocks.”

  Oliver rounded the couch with his duffle and climbed on, heaving the bag up on the cushion and unzipping it.

  Olivia scrambled after him.

  “I have my cell if you need me. We shouldn’t be that late so you won’t have to put them to bed,” Jenna said, stepping in front of Brian and laughing quietly at the frustrated expression he was still holding, then wrapping him up into a hug. “I love her,” she whispered, loud enough for me to hear. “Don’t mess this up.”

  “Don’t you have a date to get to?”

  She leaned away and stuck out her tongue, then gave me a wave, smiling.

  “Have fun!” I said, waving back.

  Her heels slapped against the wood floor as she exited the room, then the front door closed behind her.

  I stepped in front of Brian and grinned up at him.

  “Hey, Trouble.”

  He didn’t grin back.

  “Wild.”

  I rolled up on my toes and whispered a promise. “I’ll make it good.”

  His cheek twitched, then he wrapped his arms around my back and pulled me close.

  “Countin’ on it, babe,” he said against my hair.