The Lucky Bullet

by H. S. Strickland

  I looked at him with my mouth opening and closing without a clue as what to say. I shrugged and pulled the curtain back and stepped into the warm water. It felt heavenly against my worn out muscles. I groaned and lifted my hair of my neck so the water could beat down on it.

  Mace got in the shower and saw me massaging my neck. He spun me around so my back was facing his front and my breasts were under the spray. He moved my hair to hang over my shoulder and worked magic on my neck and shoulders.

  After he massaged me for five minutes he grabbed my shampoo and rubbed it in my hair. He grabbed the head of the shower and rinsed my hair out. He snagged my conditioner and massaged that in my hair as well, while that sat in my hair he soaped up the loofa and began rubbing my body down.

  He started at my collar bone and worked his way down. He got to my breasts and slowly soaped them up, getting my nipples to a hard peak. He got down on his knees and massaged my belly, careful not to catch my jewelry on the loofa. Since he was on his knees his face lined up perfectly with my sex.

  He looked up at me and his eyes had darkened to a mossy green and I knew he was turned on again. If his eyes weren’t enough evidence of his arousal, his hard cock was. He dropped the loofa on the shower floor and rubbed his fingers between my pussy lips.

  “Oh, God, baby,” I moaned. I was still sensitive from my last orgasm.

  He chuckled, “Not God babe. Thanks for the compliment though,” he smirked.

  I was about to reply but he brought my thigh up to rest on his shoulder and licked me, cutting off any reply I had. My head flew back and hit the shower wall with a thud. He nabbed my other thigh and threw that over his other shoulder, holding me up completely.

  I tested his strength and grinded my pussy down on his face. He had no problem holding me up so I rode his face, searching for my release.

  “Look at me, Ray,” he growled.

  I looked down at him, getting more turned on watching his tongue lap up my arousal. I looked further down and saw he was stroking himself. There was a bead of pre-cum on the head and I wanted to lick it off. He saw me staring at him and groaned, causing vibrations to shoot up my pussy, sending me over the edge. I came around his tongue, finding that cloud and floating on it again.

  I vaguely heard Mace’s roar because I was so far away. After I came down from my high, Mace set me on my feet and grabbed the shower head and finished rinsing me off. He lathered his head in his shampoo and quickly rinsed himself off.

  He turned the knobs off and stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around his waist and handing me a towel. I dried off quickly and wrapped the towel around me. I looked at Mace and noticed there was a tent in the towel around his waist. I kept staring until he spoke.

  “Araylia, if you keep staring I’m going to have to fuck you on the bathroom counter,” he growled. I felt a shiver run down my spine at the low tone of his voice.

  “Ray,” he repeated. I snapped my eyes up to his and blushed. I hadn’t realized I was still staring at his tent.

  Liam chose that moment to run into bathroom. He looked at Mace then swung his gaze back to me; he tilted his head to the side, obviously confused.

  “Mom, why are you naked with Mace?” He questioned.

  “Come on, bud. You hungry?” Mace asked him, trying to avoid the subject of why Mace and I were just in towels.

  “Yeah I am. My tummy won’t stop growling. I think that’s why I woked up,” Liam said, bobbing his head up and down.

  Mace grabbed his sweat pants off the sink counter and slid them on under his towel. After removing the towel he took Liam’s hand in his and walked out of the bathroom. Before shutting the door he looked over his shoulder and gave me a wink.

  I threw on a plain black T-shirt and some cut off jean shorts. I blew dry my hair and added a quick swipe of mascara and eye shadow. I walked back into Mace’s bedroom and put our dirty clothes and dirty towels in the hamper.

  I walked through the house headed for the kitchen when I heard my phone go off. I walked to the front door where I through my keys and phone down when I walked in the door.

  I picked it up off the table and saw there was a missed call from my brother, Matt. I hit the green call button and put the phone to my ear. Matt answered on the second ring.

  “Hey little sis, what are you up to?” He asked sounding innocent.

  “Matty, you do realize that I’ve known you my entire life, I know your calling for a reason,” I said as I walked away from the front door and into the kitchen.

  “Alright, I’ll cut the shit. Michael called and told me what happened today…,” he trailed off waiting for my reply, when I didn’t give him one he continued, “he feels like shit, sis. He knew you wouldn’t answer so he recruited me to be in your bullshit,” he finished on a rush.

  I blew out an exasperated breath. I didn’t want to deal with this. I sat down at the island and Mace slid me a drink. He was fixing Liam some sandwiches and Liam was bouncing in his seat.

  “I’m sure he feels like crap but I’m not ready to forgive him yet, Matty. He really hurt me,” I said.

  “Well then I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news but you have until tomorrow night. I’m having a barbeque and he’s going to be there, along with Bryan,” he told me happily.

  “Matthew! I’m not going-,” I tried saying but was cut off.

  “Yes you are! Bring Mace with you. Love you sis!” Matt yelled before I heard the line go dead.

  “Arrgh!” I huffed before putting my head in my hands on the island.

  Mace came behind me and moved my hair of my shoulder and kissed up my neck. I arched my neck to the opposite side to give him more access.

  “What did he want baby?” Mace whispered.

  I lifted my head before replying to him.

  “He called to tell me that I had until tomorrow night to forgive Michael because he’s having a barbeque and I’m being forced to go. Oh yeah, you’re going too,” I told him.

  I turned my head around to get a look at his face. He was shaking his head no.

  “Oh yes you are going! If I have to go then you do too. Matty told me to bring you anyway. So it’s not just me,” I retorted.

  He rolled his eyes and cleaned up the plate that Liam had his sandwiches on.

  Later the next night…

  “Do I look okay baby?” I turned and asked Mace.

  He raised one dark eyebrow at me as if the question was stupid. I spun back around and looked in the mirror one last time. I was wearing a pale pink strapless sundress that came to my knees. I had on a pair of black heels that came up to my ankle and strapped there. I thought I looked cute; I wanted Mace’s opinion though. I guess his face said it all.

  “Liam, are you ready?” I yelled down the hall.

  “Yes mom! Can we go now?” He replied back to me.

  “Yeah one second baby,” I said.

  I went to turn back around but hit a hard wall. I tried to right myself but ended up tripping over my foot. I was waiting to make contact with the floor but an arm went around my waist and caught me.

  “Gotcha babe,” Mace said in a deep drawl.

  He pulled my body flush against his and my hands came up to rest on his chest.

  “Thank you honey,” I said breathlessly.

  I tried moving out of our embrace but Mace had other ideas. He snagged me again and grabbed a fistful of my hair and tilted my head back. He kissed and nibbled up my throat along my jaw until he reached my lips. He bit my bottom lip hard then sucked it in his mouth to soothe the sting of the bite.

  I moaned then shoved my hands in his hair and tugged. He complied to my silent wishes and devoured my mouth in a scorching kiss. He licked my mouth and sucked my tongue. I knew if we didn’t stop, we weren’t going to be able to stop.

  I ripped my mouth off his and pecked his cheek. I grabbed my purse off the nightstand and looked back at Mace. His hair was a disaster. He had that ‘just got fucked’ tousle to it. It looked sexy as hell but he coul
dn’t go to my brother’s house like that.

  I walked over to him and attempted to fix the mess I had made.

  “Why are you trying to fix my hair, babe?” Mace questioned, confused since he just got out of the shower.

  “I…uhm…messed it up a little bit,” I admitted, stumbling over my words.

  He smirked and shook his head. He ran his hands through his hair. He held his hands out as if asking if it was better. I nodded my head and walked down the hall to get Liam.

  Mace, Liam, and I walked in the garage. We looked between Mace’s truck and my ‘Stang.

  “Why don’t we just take my car? It already has Liam’s booster seat in it,” I asked.

  “You want to let me drive?” Mace asked back.

  I bit my lip and thought about it for a minute. I really didn’t want anybody else driving my baby. That was the only thing I had left of my papa. It was the last project we worked on together before he passed away. I looked at Mace skeptically.

  “You promise to be easy on her?” I asked.

  “I promise Ray. You can trust me,” he looked me in the eye, making sure I saw the truth in his words.

  I dug in my purse until I came across my keys and reluctantly handed them over to him. I got Liam in his seat. I climbed into the passenger seat, for the first time since the ‘Stang became mine, and buckled up. Mace was already buckled and had the key in the ignition.

  We pulled into Matty’s stone cobbled driveway. Michael’s truck was in the driveway along with Nanny’s old car. I hadn’t known she was attending, but I was glad she was. Bryan wasn’t there. Hmm, I wonder what he was up to.

  We walked into Matt’s house and Liam ran off to find his Nanny. He always missed her when he wasn’t there, like I used to be. I stepped in the kitchen to set my purse down. Mace was in tow behind me with a hand at the small of my back.

  Michael and Nanny were sitting at the island in the middle of the kitchen. I walked up behind Nanny and wrapped my arms around her slender shoulders. She jumped slightly then swiveled her head to see which of her kids was behind her.

  “Girlie, one of these days you are going to scare a heart attack out of me,” she told me, “now where is that tall drink of water I met not too long ago?” She asked looking around for ‘that tall drink of water.’

  Mace materialized at my side and kissed Nanny’s cheek.

  “Hello Nanny, how have you been?” Mace asked politely.

  “Oh sugar, enough with the pleasantries. Come give me some more love,” she told him merrily.

  “Nanny!” I scolded her, “you can’t ask him to give you love!” I continued.

  “Well, why the hell not little girl?” She retorted.

  “Just…ugh…never mind,” I mumbled.

  I went to the fridge and nabbed two beers for Mace and me. I really wanted to get away from Michael, I could feel the tension between us, but I didn’t want to leave Nanny.

  When I got back to the island Matty was standing next to Nanny with an arm thrown around her shoulders and Mace was glaring hard at Michael.

  “What’s this I hear about you and your brother fighting?” Nanny asked. She had stepped back into her mother shoes, preparing to patch things up between Michael and me.

  “Why don’t you ask him?” I nodded my head to him.

  He hung his head and blew out a breath. He launched into what happened and avoided making eye contact with me. He was obviously torn up about what happened. I felt bad that he was upset, but I wanted him to know how badly he hurt me.

  When he finished talking Nanny got out of her chair and slapped him upside the head. He tried ducking to avoid her hand, but Nanny was faster and made contact with the back of his head. I shoved my hand in front of my mouth, trying to stifle my laughter. Michael finally made eye contact with me and glared. He softened his face and opened his arms, inviting me in. I rushed into them and he closed his arms around me.

  He bent his head and put his mouth to my ear.

  “I’m sorry,” he whispered softly, “I didn’t mean it that way,” he finished apologizing.

  “I know Michael. It’s okay. Don’t do it again though, you really hurt me,” I told him, pulling back to look in his eyes.

  He nodded his head and looked behind me. I turned to see what he was looking at; it was Mace approaching us.

  He held his hand out to Michael and they did that weird man hug thing. When they pulled away from each other, Mace came to my side and hauled me close to him. I wrapped my arm around his waist and gave him a subtle squeeze, letting him know I was grateful for his support. He looked down at me and gave me a small smile.

  “So I see my big bro and lil’ sis made up,” Matty said, coming over to our little group and slung his arm around my shoulder and the other arm around Michael’s shoulder.

  “Yes and I really appreciate the meddling, Matthew,” I told him, while glaring.

  “Well you two always did fight the most. I was glad to help,” he replied with a wink.

  I rolled my eyes at his silly banter.

  “So you guys are coming to my big fight next week, right?” He asked, jumping up and down on his toes excitedly.

  I groaned.

  “Matty, you know I hate going to your fights. I hate to see you get beaten half to death,” I said, hoping I didn’t offend him.

  “Well Ray, it’ll be your lucky night then. I will be the one kicking ass, as usual, so you won’t have to see me beaten half to death,” he replied cockily.

  One of these days his cockiness was going to get him killed. He acted as if he was untouchable in the ring. I admitted he was really good but he was going to pay for thinking he was the shit.

  “Matty, I don’t know. I really don’t like all that violence,” I said timidly, biting my lip.

  “Aww sis, it’s not that bad. If you decide not to go though, I understand completely,” he told me as he leaned into me and kissed the side of my head.

  I looked up at him and gave him a smile of gratitude. I knew I loved him for more than just one reason. I glanced around the small space in the kitchen, still trying to figure out where Bryan was. I couldn’t find him in the kitchen so I excused myself from the man huddle in search of my brother.

  I looked in the spacious living room, the back patio that had a grill in the far left corner, and the small bathrooms. I couldn’t find him anywhere. What the hell? I thought to myself.

  I stormed back in the kitchen where I left and stopped dead in my tracks. The infamous brother I was searching for had now joined the man huddle. I huffed while I walked back to them. I was surprised to see Bryan with the guys. He was the quietest out of all four of us. He wasn’t quite shy, just reserved. I didn’t know if it was because he was a lawyer or simply because of whom he was, but he commanded your attention as soon as he stepped into a room.

  I glared at him when I reached him, waiting for him to look down at me. Finally Mace saw me standing there and cleared his throat. He nodded his head in my direction after he had Bryan’s attention.

  He looked down at me and raised an eyebrow.

  “What?” He spoke in a deep gravelly voice.

  “Well, where have you been mister?” I asked him impatiently, as I tapped my foot.

  “Since you must know, I had a long day at the office, not that it’s any of your business though,” he told me as he glared.

  “Don’t get all snippy. You’re like an hour and a half late. You’re a recluse, so excuse me if I want to see my brother every now and again,” I said feeling exhausted with all the fighting.

  Bryan’s eyes got soft as he understood why I was upset. He drew me into his arms for a bear hug. I linked my arms around his tapered waist and squeezed hard. I missed my brother so much.

  I’ve always felt more of a bond with Bryan. I thought it was because we were closer in age and we were both reserved. We would always sit in a room together and read when we were younger. When we got in high school, Michael and Matt would always go out to parties whil
e we sat at home to study. I loved our time together. I hated that as we got older we drifted farther apart.

  “I missed you, Bry,” I whispered in his chest.

  “Missed you too, girl.” He whispered back in my ear.

  We pulled apart and I smiled up at him as I stepped in Mace’s waiting arms. Mace pulled my back to his hard front. He wrapped one arm around my waist and held the other out in front of us, toward Bryan.

  “It’s nice to meet you again, in better circumstances this time,” Mace said politely.

  “Same, man.” Bryan said while shaking Mace’s hand. They had a stare off until Bryan had a look of approval flash through is eyes. As quickly as it came to his eyes, it left and he dropped Mace’s hand.

  I gave Bry a warning look and he nodded.

  “So why don’t you invite over the guys, Mace?” Matty asked to kill the tension that was still lingering in the air.

  Mace nodded his head and kissed the side of my head before he walked in the direction of the patio. He had his phone pulled out by the time he reached the sliding glass doors.

  I turned on the guys.

  “Would you guys be nice? I really like him,” I pleaded with them. First it was Michael then Bryan.

  “It’s not like he can’t handle himself, girl.” Bryan said.

  “It’s my job to protect you. I won’t ever stop. You should be used to it by now,” Michael replied.

  “I haven’t said shit to him, sis. You can exclude me from this conversation,” Matt chimed in.

  “I know he can take care of himself, Bryan. That’s not the point. You can say it’s your job to protect me Michael, but it’s my job to protect him from y’all. And Matty obviously this wasn’t directed at you!” I huffed and walked away, leaving my brothers with dumb struck faces.

  I stepped out on the patio and closed the sliding glass door behind me. I found Mace manning the grill which had steaks, hamburgers, chicken, and hot dogs on it. I trekked up behind him and splayed my hands across his flat stomach. He jumped slightly causing me to chuckle.

  “When I’m not even trying to scare you, I finally do,” I said trying to muffle my laughter in his back.