We finally left, and Blue opened my door for me, then went around the front of the SUV to get in the driver's side. He grabbed my seat belt and clasped it shut, and then did the same to his. We drove away from the restaurant with one of his hands resting on my neck and the other on the steering wheel. He had the radio set for country with the sound down low.
“I love you so much, darlin’. I hope you know that,” Blue murmured. “I'm afraid I might have gotten you out of the pan and into the fire. I couldn't stand if anything happened to you or our little Bug. I need to make sure you're safe, if this work stuff blows up in our faces."
“It's going to be okay, Blue. We keep each other safe. I'll do whatever you say. You've never let me down, and you won't this time, either.”
Just as I finished talking, we pulled up in front of our house. I undid my seatbelt and reached over, kissing my Blue on his mouth. His lips were soft and full, and our kiss started gently, before Blue slanted his lips over mine and pushed his tongue into my mouth. It swept the inside of my mouth, then started dueling with mine. I moaned and wrapped my arms around his neck, leaning even closer to the man who meant everything to me.
He pulled back and chuckled. “Stop now, baby girl. We need to get into the house. I'm not planning on doing this in the front seat of the car, I'm no teenager.”
“But Blue," I half moaned and half growled, “I AM a teenager. I've never been parking with a boy before.”
“And you'd better not, girlie. You're mine. I'll be the one deciding if you go parking, and if you do, it'll be with me. You understand?”
Suddenly, he wrapped my hair around his hand so he could pull my head back. It stung a bit and sent chills from my core into my stomach. I felt my pussy getting moist and hot with desire. I wanted him to take me then, that moment, in the car.
“Take off your panties and leggings, Flower." Blue commanded me, “Then come sit on my lap.” Happily, I did exactly what he said, struggling to unlace my Converses. Blue laughed and helped me pull my shoes off my feet. Then, I slipped my panties and leggings off and I wriggled in between the steering wheel and his hard stomach.
Even with him moving his seat back, it was a tight fit with our Baby Bug adding to my width. My drenched center was right on top of the large bulge in his pants. When I rubbed against the fabric that separated me from him, I felt his bulge twitch. It felt so good, I moaned. I loved how decadent I felt, with my naked clit rubbing against his blue jeans in an open car. Blue was going to have a moist spot on his jeans for sure.
I couldn't help myself. "Blue, please. Give me your cock. I need it in my pussy. I want to come. Please Blue, please.”
The devil with blue eyes chuckled darkly. Then, he reached under my body and unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. His cock sprang out, beautifully thick and long. I lifted my body off him, then found the head of his cock with my aching slit and slid down until his balls hit my skin.
He started lifting me up and down his penis. He would lift me until I was almost to the top of him, and then slam me down until we slapped together with a resounding noise that reverberated throughout the car. My excitement rose over my head and out through my fingers like streams of electricity. I was just a conduit to Blue’s masculine force streaming through me. Suddenly, I was free from my body, whirling gently end over end until I was floating in the black space of an orgasm that had no beginning and no end. I felt rather than heard Blue’s hoarse groan and the spurting thickness of his release at the same time as mine.
Samuel
I sat with my precious tiny girl in my lap, still impaled on my half-erect penis. I wrapped my arms around her and she snuggled into me as if I were the sun to her planet. I started petting her hair and she made a sound, just a tiny hum of completeness and peace. She was out of it, so I figured I'd be carrying her up to our bed tonight without her ever waking up. I put my other hand down to her side and tapped against Baby Bug’s home, hoping he or she could hear me to somehow know I was there.
This tryst of ours, like high schoolers on a make-out date, was incredible. Every time Flower gave herself over to me, I was so grateful. She had no reason to trust me. After all, I was a man, and look what those dirty bastards of the Rattler Kings Motorcycle Gang did to her. She was still in hiding from other men who had promised to kill her because of her testimony. She had only a very slight involvement in the death of a relative of the Favoloras Cartel leader, Aaron Favoloras. Why he would target her was beyond me. She was a victim, and while I was proud as shit of her refusal to bow down to her fears, she would never be a fighting force for justice except in her own peaceful way. She wasn't looking for revenge. It was always about keeping other people safe, as far as she was concerned. Perhaps drawing pictures that brought joy and comfort to those who saw them would be as forceful as anything I could do as an officer of the law. She was just 100 lbs. of immovable mountain, that was for sure.
As I carefully disconnected myself from Flower, I reached down and kissed her head. I slipped out of the car and pulled my pants up over my package, zipping them but not buttoning them. I reached in the car to carefully pull Flower out and into my arms. As I walked quietly up the steps to the porch, Derick opened the door and held it for me. He spoke softly. “Get her situated and come down to the kitchen. I've got some news,” he whispered.
I took Flower to our bedroom and placed her on the bed. I pulled the comforter from under her, tucking it around her. She curled into her standard little ball with her nose and mouth hidden under the covers. Her breathing steadied into a slow in and out that showed me she was deeply asleep. Ziva had moved off the bed when I had come into the room but now she jumped back on and crawled under the covers so her back was against Flower’s. “Keep watch, Ziva,” I whispered as I left the room. I heard her give a chuff of agreement, so I felt better leaving Flower in bed without me.
I went into the kitchen where Derick had already poured both of us a black coffee. He held a flask where I could see it and as I nodded he poured a liberal splash of whiskey into both our cups.
Derick took a drink of his coffee and said, “I got some news, today. Some members of the Cartel have been seen in Knoxville.”
I tensed. This was not good news. It either meant that our hideout was found and they were keeping watch, or that they had gotten close. We might soon be discovered.
“Do you think this has anything to do with the stove company?” I asked, all the while crossing my fingers and hoping Derick would say no.
Instead Derick looked at me soberly and spoke quietly, “We can't rule it out.”
“Well fuck” I muttered. “Now what do we do?”
“It depends on what you want to do, Sam. I haven't turned in my report. We could just forget about the stove company and move you back to Louisville with bodyguards. We can report this shit after we move you back and let someone else take care of it. After all, you and your Flower have already gone through a lot of trouble and pain. I hate to think that anything else might happen to her, or even you. I know it’s your job, but you could use a break, and I know she could.”
I thought for a while until I finally looked at him. “Derick, I appreciate the thought for both Flower and me, but I can't in good conscience do that. If one person died of a drug overdose or was shot because of drug trafficking because I let it go, I could never forgive myself. I think Flower would agree with me. We just have to keep her safe.”
Derick looked at me soberly. Then he just nodded his head once and got up so abruptly that his chair almost fell over. He ignored it, walked out of the kitchen and out the front door. Usually Derick was graceful, and his body acted like a well-oiled machine. I’d seen him be this way a few times before, usually related to him feeling torn between two decisions that were equally bad, as far as he was concerned.
I couldn't let him sway my decision. I knew Flower would agree; she wouldn't want anyone hurt because I backed away from what I knew was the right thing to do. I would ask Derick to call in some more gua
rds to watch Flower and Maeve when we couldn't be with them. Meantime we would plan on taking down these drug runners at the stove company.
Chapter Seven
Krystal
I stood in front of the classroom door with my sketch pad, pencils, a gessoed canvas and my box of acrylics and brushes. I was so excited. I might not be getting college credit, but I would be getting mentored by a very successful artist. That was worth being here, away from my home, at least a little bit. One of the new ATF guys that were watching me, Jack, liked to draw, so he was right behind me with his art gear. Ziva was standing next to me because Blue had decided he felt better if she was an extra layer of protection.
I took a deep breath and opened the door, hoping I could slide into the classroom without being noticed. Jack, who was following me, ran into me, pushing me against an easy chair that was in front of the door. I fell against it, windmilling my arms, almost falling. Ziva, who had slipped inside the classroom through Jack’s legs, started barking, and Jack’s balance was upset so he went crashing to the floor.
I groaned inwardly. So much for a quiet entrance. I glanced up and saw Carl Santino walking toward me, noticing at the same time, Ziva moving to stand between me and him. She was no longer the least bit interested in Jack; all of her attention was focused on the artist. Carl came up to me and, with amazing smoothness, captured my hand. Ziva crowded close to me in between our bodies and broke the contact. I was glad, because it made me uncomfortable for anyone but Blue to touch me.
“You came. I’m so glad. Tell me your name again, sweetheart. Come, let me get you settled at a table and get you an easel. You can leave your canvas here each week, because no one uses this classroom except me. Guys, this is the girl in the park I was telling you about. Exquisite, yes? I can’t wait for her turn to model.” Then he turned to me, looking down and smiling. “We take turns.” Finally, his focus shifted for a moment from me to Jack. “You can pick a desk anywhere and there are easels in that closet. You can get one for . . . what is your name dear?”
I was a bit overwhelmed with his nonstop talking but I managed to remember to say ‘Naomi Blue’ instead of my real name. I looked around anxiously. Like Carl had said, there seemed to be six other students. They ranged from a pretty woman to a boy who looked like a young teenager. There were three men, which surprised me, but I set my easel up at a desk as far from them as possible. The classroom itself was small, but the whole western facing wall was almost completely windows, giving the room plenty of natural light in the afternoon. There were small desks or tables scattered around, with an easel placed by each one. Each easel and desk had its own attached gooseneck lamp.
Finally, Jack and I got situated, and Carl announced we were going to talk about perspective. He started lecturing and as I scribbled notes, I was so happy. I finally felt like I was an art student. Then, when we pulled out our sketch book to practice what he had talked about, it seemed as if he again focused on me more than the other students. Even though I was pregnant and wore a wedding ring, he seemed to be flirting with me.
Blue loving me, and telling me I was beautiful so frequently had raised my self-esteem. Pregnancy had given me some curves, and I loved the fact that my breasts were larger. However, I still didn’t think I was particularly noticeable in the beauty department. I would never actually be interested in someone other than my Blue, but if I had to admit it, even though it made me uncomfortable, Carl’s attention was interesting.
The class lasted two hours. The other students invited Jack and me to go to have coffee with them, but I turned them down, telling them I would go the next week if I could. Blue was picking me up, so I encouraged Jack to walk out with the pretty woman he had seemed interested in talking to. Carl insisted on helping carry my stuff out to the parking lot.
Blue was already there in the parking lot, so when he saw Carl walking next to me, carrying my red knapsack, he hopped out of the car and carefully positioned his body in between Carl and me. He thanked Carl for helping me carry things and just as seamlessly relieved him of my stuff. He then lifted me into the car and put my things at my feet, Ziva hopping into the backseat. Only then did I see Blue relax. He actually spent a few minutes talking to Carl and thanking him for volunteering to teach the class.
Blue got into the SUV and slammed his door closed. When I looked at him, his face was red. He turned towards me and said in a soft voice, “What was that about? Where is Jack? I need to know you’re safe, Flower." His voice was suddenly that deep, smooth baritone which meant Blue was in his dominant headspace. I rarely heard that voice anymore. Both of us had changed so much; we trusted each other with absolutely no boundaries.
I suddenly worried that he could no longer trust me, that he thought not keeping Jack with me was such a stupid decision, meant he could no longer trust or even love me. I realized this thinking had to be totally wrong. It was connected to the same part of my brain that made the decision to stop talking to save everyone. I looked at Blue and whispered his name, my voice shaking and tears suddenly brimming in my eyes.
Samuel
I was pretty upset about Flower acting as if she had trusted this artist, enough to encourage Jack to go with a girl he was interested in knowing, rather than staying with her. I was even more angry at Jack. As a matter of fact, I was furious with him. He was a younger agent than me, but surely he should be able to realize that his job was guarding Flower, no matter what she said to convince him otherwise.
I felt the need, for the first time in a while, to command Flower to obey me. Nothing bad had happened; Flower hadn’t been kidnapped or murdered. But she could have been. Santino seemed innocent. We had run a background check on him before I ever agreed to letting her go to the class. I hadn't told her we had checked him out, because I didn't think she needed to know how concerned we actually were about her safety.
Santino had no criminal background and was a well-known artist. Cleveland was lucky to have him as an artist-in-residence. But if the Cartel came after her and he was the only person with her, I doubted he could provide any protection.
My voice deepened and I said, “I need to keep you safe, little girl. If you don’t follow the rules, I can’t do that.” I looked over at Flower, sitting in the passenger seat, and I saw her eyes were full of tears. She whispered my name and I realized that I had maybe scared her, or at least upset her. She seemed so strong now, but I should not forget that she had endured unspeakable trauma less than a year ago.
My heart broke for my girl. I hadn’t meant to hurt her. I knew she still depended on me to feel safe, both physically and emotionally. I knew that pregnancy hormones made her more easily upset. Maeve had drilled that into me over and over. I couldn’t believe I had lost my calm with her. I put my hand on the back of Flower’s neck and squeezed her gently. “I’m sorry, Flower, I didn’t mean to speak so harshly. I just got scared for a minute. Please forgive me?”
She looked at me and the tears started falling down her face. “I’m sorry, Blue, I was having such fun. I just forgot for a minute who we are. I was just talking about art and colors. I won’t forget anymore, just please let me keep going to the class.”
Then I felt even worse. She was only eighteen years old. She just wanted to have something normal in her life. “Flower, of course you can keep going. I’ll talk to Jack. To be honest, I’m way more upset with him than you. He should have known better than to leave you alone.”
“Oh, Blue, please don’t be too hard on him. It was partly my fault. I encouraged him; I had Ziva with me so I felt safe.”
I smiled at her, and when we came to a stop sign I reached over and kissed her deeply. “I love you so much darlin’, I want you to be happy . . . and safe. We can work this out. Remember, we don’t know if Ziva would actually attack someone to protect you.”
“I know, Blue, but I think she would. She is such a great dog.” She smiled at Ziva sleeping in the back seat, looking like anything but a guard dog. Flower reached over and put her hand o
n my knee and sighed, what I hoped was a contented sigh.
Once we got home, I helped Flower carry her portfolio and her book bag inside. She was happy again now that she knew I wasn’t angry at her and she could continue her class. I was happy, because I knew she would not make the mistake of blowing off her bodyguard again.
On the other hand I needed to have a serious talk with Jack. Even for a greener than grass rookie, that was a pretty stupid mistake. How could he have thought in any world that it was acceptable to leave my Flower’s side? I would discuss his behavior with Derick as well. Jack might be the agent that had some art talent, but if he couldn’t keep Flower safe I’d stay with her myself.
That evening, when Maeve came in the door with Derick following after her, I looked at him with a glance that he knew meant I wanted to talk to him without the girls knowing. Flower and I had made soup in the crockpot and were sitting on the couch watching TV. I got up and moved to the front door. “Derick, come outside for a minute. I want to talk to you about the new guards and their rotation.”
Chapter Eight
Samuel
Derick and I sat down with Jack at the kitchen table late that night. He had agreed with me that Jack had not acted professionally and needed to be reprimanded. Maeve and Flower were finally asleep. I hadn't gone to bed so I could sit with Derick during this meeting.
I wanted to make sure that Flower was never left alone again. Derick looked very serious, and I knew he wasn’t going to brush this away or make light of what Jack had done.
Derick started. “Jack, we wanted to talk to you about what happened tonight after Krystal’s class. It concerns both Sam and I that you thought it was acceptable to leave her alone.
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