Harkham's Choice (Harkham's Series Book 2)

by Chanse Lowell

  “I hope you like it here. I’ll find you first thing in the morning after I give Mari a kiss.” He kissed his new pet’s head, looked at her with longing, and then stepped back inside.

  His hands shook as he shut the door.

  His dad wasn’t a dog person. He wasn’t a pet person, for that matter. They never had animals in their home before. Adam really liked it a lot.

  Warm hands ran down both his arms as Mari settled in behind him.

  “It’s hard to let go and trust our friends to take care of themselves, isn’t it?” she asked.

  He nodded and could feel his bottom lip protruding. “I want to be there for her. What if she gets scared? This is a new place to her. She’s not even used to being in the desert. What if she figures out a way to escape so she can go back to her old home?”

  She turned him around. “Victor wouldn’t do that,” she teased.

  “I’m talking about Choppy!”

  “I know—bad joke. Sorry. I’m worried about Vic the way you’re worried about Choppy, but at least Choppy we can check on more often. She’s right outside our back door. And we can make sure she’s eating well, has plenty of clean water and a good place to sleep. She’ll be really happy here.” She rubbed his arms with her palms.

  “If she cries, do you think I’ll be able to hear it?” he asked, his heart heavy.

  “I don’t know, but I hope so.” She smiled.

  He brushed a kiss slowly across her lips. Maybe if she loved him a whole lot tonight, it would hurt less to leave Choppy out in the cold.

  “Come on. I missed snuggling with you and getting ahold of that skin of yours,” Mari said, her eyebrows dancing.

  That caught his attention. He took her hand, and she strung him along behind her.

  They closed the door and changed in front of each other—breaking rules.

  As soon as they were under the covers, Mari’s hands were all over him, along with her mouth.

  For a time, he was able to focus only on her soft, comforting warmth and how wonderful it was to be home again where everything made sense.

  The numbers were his constant companion on that trip, and several times he thought he’d erupt in a fit with them, breaking things as he went.

  If it hadn’t been for Mari and Choppy’s attentiveness to him, he probably would’ve failed in making it out of there without embarrassing her.

  He came away victorious in more way than one—he found that picture Michelle wanted, and not even Mari knew he had it.

  He was getting good at keeping sneaky, fun secrets.

  Giggles rippled out of him.

  Pop!

  Her mouth opened. “Adam, if you tell me my mouth being on you is making you laugh, I may have to bite you.”

  She sat up and pushed the covers aside.

  “I wasn’t laughing at you. I was just thinking about something that happened on the trip,” he said, grinning.

  She lay down next to him. “Sounds like you’re not in the mood. Maybe we should just go to slee—”

  “No! No! I want to. Believe me, I do. I’ll concentrate and behave. You’ll see. Get back down there,” he said, shoving her shoulder where he wanted her to go.

  “I’m not your dog you get to order around,” she teased, nipping at his side.

  “Oh, sorry. I already have one bitch.”

  “Ex-cuse me?”

  “Zach told me a female dog is a bitch. I never liked that word before, but if it’s the proper term, then I should probably use it,” he said.

  She grabbed his face and pulled it to hers. Their noses almost touched. “Zach’s being a . . .” She rolled her eyes. “Never mind what he’s being—ignore him this time. You don’t want to call your dog that. It’s a derogatory term, and nobody actually uses it on their pet.”

  “Oh. Okay,” he agreed. “I won’t do that, then.”

  “Good boy.”

  “Hey, I’m not your dog,” he teased.

  “Then how come I can get you to heel?”

  “Oh, you’ve done it now! I get to show you who’s the master and who’s the pet!” He tickled her until she was giggling uncontrollably, then rolled her onto her back as he settled himself between her thighs. He rubbed himself all over her, sighing each time she bucked her hips up or tried to break her hands out of his hold.

  “I’m paying attention now,” he growled.

  “I can see that. It looks like I’m your prisoner. What do you intend to do with me?”

  “Break lots and lots of rules,” he said, peeling her pajama pants off with one hand.

  His fingertips whispered along her silky thigh, garnering a long, quiet moan from her.

  He did it over and over until he could feel the bumps and ridges from her gooseflesh there.

  His touch got firmer and firmer until he was almost digging into her flesh.

  She told him repeatedly how sexy he was, how much she wanted him and how good it would be when they married.

  It kept him from begging—her little reminders of what they were waiting for.

  Eventually, they both got enough satisfaction to give in to sleep.

  Only . . . He slept poorly, waking with every tiny sound.

  If Mari’s mouth smacked together, he startled, thinking it was Choppy begging him to help her.

  If the walls creaked and popped, his eyes flew open.

  The tiny increments of sleep he got were worthless.

  A few hours in, Mari sat up and got out of bed.

  “What are you doing?” he whispered.

  “You’re keeping me up with how alert you are. You’ve been tossing and turning all night.” She stepped toward the door with her pajama bottoms in hand, slipped them back on and she left.

  Was she sick of sleeping with him? Did the couch seem a better option?

  She wouldn’t possibly go back to her bed or Sam’s, would she?

  He pulled the covers up to his chin, sniffing away the impending tears.

  She left.

  Go after her!

  His tummy rumbled and shook as he got up and looked for his own missing pajama bottoms.

  When he found them, he was fumbling and falling, losing his balance, his nerves so high.

  Numbers floated in his mind, but then he heard footsteps on the stairs and an animal whimper.

  Choppy!

  Mari stepped back in with his good friend in her arms. “Shhh . . . We’re breaking almost every rule tonight. We have to put her back outside before Dad wakes up.”

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” he whispered in a loud cheer.

  She put one finger up to her lips to silence him.

  He drew both lips inside his mouth and pressed them together.

  She shut the door quietly, and he reached for Choppy so fast, she knocked into him a little.

  “Come here,” he said in a soft, happy voice.

  Choppy wagged her tail and yipped.

  “You have to be quiet, or we’ll get caught,” he said.

  Mari climbed into bed with a smile on her lips and in her eyes.

  He wore it in his heart.

  He loved both of them so much he could probably fly with the wings he was given.

  Very carefully, he climbed into bed too. He was respectful of Mari, leaving Choppy on top of the covers, settled on top of his legs.

  Mari yawned, said good night and closed her eyes.

  Adam stroked Choppy with his left hand, Mari with his right, and his soul was stroked for over an hour as he felt nothing but softness in his hands and love in his heart.

  * * *

  Adam and Mari giggled all during breakfast. They’d pulled it off.

  Choppy slept with them, and once Adam settled in, he slept great. He also made sure to wake up before his dad did so he could put the dog out in the backyard. Somehow, he managed to get a little more sleep after that.

  Adam ate his breakfast as quickly as he could and went out to greet his backyard buddy. He gave her some water in a metal dish, the
n pulled out some cold, leftover chicken from the fridge. He had to make do with what they had, and he watched her gobble it all down, his heart glowing with satisfaction.

  Good Choppy. He smiled.

  Mari tapped on the back door and pointed to her wrist, though it was absent of a watch, to say they needed to leave soon.

  Oh yeah . . . school.

  Ugh. Choppy would be lonely.

  “I’m gonna go away for a little bit, but I’ll be back soon,” he said, waving.

  Choppy ignored him and sniffed at the bushes off the back porch.

  He stepped back inside, locked the back door and found Mari waiting next to the front door with his backpack set at her feet.

  “Sorry you had to carry that,” he mumbled, ashamed he had her do it.

  “It was awful! What do you have in there? Bricks and mortar? ‘Cause I swear I thought my arm was gonna break.” She kissed her bicep as she flexed it, trying to fight off a grin.

  He shoved her playfully.

  “I’m not a little girl,” she mocked and shoved him with the heel of her palm on his bicep, making a smacking noise.

  Something came over him—like a beast was woken up.

  He slammed her into the wall, pinned her with his thighs and kissed her so hard his lips hurt.

  Her hands gripped into his hair, and she wound her left leg around his.

  A feral moan tore at his throat, and he gasped when she grabbed his backside—hard!

  “Hey, you two, didn’t you get that all out of your system last night? All I heard was you two groaning.”

  “It was Choppy you heard. Mari didn’t make a peep,” Adam said. “The dog snores and makes a lot of noise, but I didn’t mind, though.”

  Zach laughed. “That’s lame—I thought you were finally gettin’ some.”

  “Not yet,” Adam grumbled, “but soon . . . I hope.”

  “Only four and a half more months,” she said, sounding thrilled.

  “That might as well be seven years from now,” Adam said, picking up both their backpacks.

  “What, are you comparing your timelines to dog years now?” Zach snickered.

  He opened the front door and when Adam stepped through . . . Clink!

  His foot knocked into something, and glass cracked into the sidewalk.

  Adam’s eyes focused on flowers strewn about on the threshold.

  “What’s that?” Zach asked.

  “A bouquet.” A note lay to the side and somehow avoided getting wet. Adam opened the little envelope and saw Mari’s name on it. It read:

  Sorry for your loss. Hope you can forgive me.

  There was no name from the sender.

  “They’re for you. Sorry I knocked them over,” Adam told her, handing her the note.

  “Wonder who they’re from . . .” Zach said.

  “I don’t recognize the handwriting.” Mari studied it.

  She ran the flowers back inside.

  “I think they’re probably from her mom. We need to go visit her tonight so we can tell her about the trip.” Adam went to car, popped the trunk and tossed the backpacks in.

  “Want me to drive?” Zach offered.

  “No, it’s okay.” Adam waited for Mari to return.

  When she took longer than he expected, he started to go back to the house to find her.

  “Hey, I know that handwriting. I looked at it closer,” she said, appearing at the front door and locking the house back up.

  “Whose is it?” He followed her back over to the car and helped her in the passenger’s side.

  “I don’t know, but I know I’ve seen it a lot of times,” she said.

  On the drive to school, she kept guessing at names, then answering herself, saying she was wrong and that it would eventually come to her.

  It drove her nuts most of the day, and him, too, because he was starting to think he’d seen that handwriting somewhere before as well.

  * * *

  After school, they went and bought all the dog food and accessories they’d need to make Choppy the happiest female dog—not a bitch, because that was a rude word—on the block.

  Adam played with Choppy while Mari called her mom to see if they could stop by tonight and have dinner again. Michelle said yes.

  Adam was excited to see Michelle and surprise her with his gift, but was still a little sick in the gut over leaving Choppy behind.

  Couldn’t she come along? It would be more fun to take her with them.

  Mari was on the phone when he came inside to get something to snack on.

  “Shut up! You’re such an idiot. He did not!” she said, laughing.

  He grabbed a glass of water and leaned against the counter, smiling simply because she was so lit up.

  “You showed him that move, huh? And he didn’t fall for it? That’s sick!” Mari roared with laughter, gripping the counter for support. “Well, you were always good at that, Vic.” She paused. “I’m telling you—he likes you. I swear he does.” She smirked as she listened to Vic say something in return. “Based on the things you’re telling me, you dope . . . Just kiss him—he won’t be able to resist. Nobody can resist those lips of yours.”

  Adam’s entire chest and face inflamed, and his teeth ground together. Was that how Vic got her to have sex with him? Was Adam a bad kisser? Was that the real reason she wouldn’t have sex with him?

  He glared at her.

  Her head snapped up, and she looked at him with a rainbow of colorful emotions crossing her face. She abruptly ended her call with a, “Hey, I gotta go. Good luck with that.”

  Adam’s insides stormed so much, he could barely stand still. His legs were jittery, and his hands were trembling.

  “Oh God, I just realized how that sounded.” She padded her way over to him, set her phone down on the counter behind him and gripped his hips. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I was talking about his appeal on other men, not on me. I never really thought he was that good of a kisser.”

  “Then you shouldn’t have said that. It could give him hope.” He settled his forehead on hers, took a deep breath and a calmness moved through him—kicking out those shaky wiggles inside him.

  “Hope of what? That I’ll grow a penis and somehow find him charming?” She snorted quietly. “I don’t think so.” When she shook her head, it made their noses kiss.

  “I feel deep in my heart he wants you the way I do, but since he can’t have you, he’s giving up.”

  “God, don’t say that to him. It sounds like some anti-homosexual campaign.” She smacked the side of his thigh and stepped away. “You ready to go see my mom? She should be home in about ten minutes.”

  “Yeah. Let me go get my shoes and we can go.” He smiled, knowing he had that picture tucked in his jacket pocket.

  Mari was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs when he came down. She hugged him, kissed him and pulled his hair for fun.

  He tossed her on his back and ran to the door.

  She laughed until he opened the front door and . . . Clink!

  Not again!

  He groaned. Another flowery mess was on the doorstep.

  Mari wiggled off his back and grabbed the note.

  Similar message with no name, but different handwriting.

  “What the hell is going on?” she said in that tone that told him she was speaking to herself.

  “Somebody’s playing tricks?”

  She shook her head, biting her lip. “It doesn’t really feel that way. This seems sincere, but then I thought Samara was . . .”

  “Don’t,” he said.

  He refused to talk about her anymore, unless his dad brought it up to say where she was possibly spotted last.

  As far as he was concerned, she was an invisible torpedo aimed directly at Mari, and it was his job to deflect it and make sure nobody else got hurt when it erupted.

  Mari set the flowers inside on the kitchen table next to the other one, and they left without another word.

  She stare
d out the window on the drive to her mom’s, motionless and silent.

  He, on the other hand, was dancing in his seat with excess energy. If Sam had been here, she would have accused him of having a soda.

  Well, he didn’t have one, and he would have told her she was not the boss of him anymore!

  He tightened his hold on the steering wheel. The sound of Sam’s voice counting was in his head, making his teeth grind.

  Where was she? What was she doing?

  His knuckles popped, and there was an almost gritty, chalk scraping sound in the car.

  “Sweetie? You all right? You’re gonna pulverize your teeth and tear the steering column off.” Mari’s hand ran down his knuckles and to his wrist on his right hand.

  “Oh, I, uh . . . It’s nothing,” he said, his voice drifting off.

  “You sure? If you don’t want to see my mom, we can turn around and I’ll drop you back off at home.”

  “No, I want to see her. I’m excited about it,” he said.

  “Then what is it? The mysterious flowers?” Her hand rested on his forearm.

  “No.”

  “Then what? You’re worrying me that you’re going to have a number attack. You’ve been mumbling numbers the last few minutes, but it sounded creepy—like you were mimicking a woman’s voice.”

  “Samara.”

  “Samara? What’s happened? Did she contact you and you forgot to tell me?” Her voice was urgent, tying a slip-knot around his stomach and then choking it off.

  “I think I want to kill her.”

  His knuckled popped on the wheel as he gripped it even harder, but he kept driving. What else could he do? It wasn’t nice to talk about killing a family member when going to visit one of hers. So, he would be quiet and polite. His knuckles would be blanched white while he drove on, but silent and polite nonetheless. He could do that much.

  Chapter 14

  Michelle just about tore the door off the hinges to get at them when she answered their knock. She hugged Adam first but gave a thrilled hug to Mari, so it was all good.

  Her mom sat them down at the table and fed them some Mexican food she’d brought home for dinner.

  They ate and chatted about what kind of bizarre stuff her dad had kept in the house.