by Lori Foster
Apparently through with waiting, Clay jumped over the fence and started toward her. “Willow!”
She whipped around, stunned at his persistence—and secretly pleased. “Go away, Clay. I don’t want to talk to you.”
“Then just let me talk.” His long legs ate up the distance between them.
“I don’t want to listen to you either.”
He drew up short, frustrated, embarrassed. “C’mon, Willow. You won’t take my calls, you won’t visit with me.” His face was red, but he continued, determined. “I … I want to tell you that I’m sorry.”
Shock rippled through her, but Willow did her best to hide it. She crossed her arms and glared. “For what?”
He scowled right back, his hands on his hips, his gaze direct. “For everything. For … being mean and saying nasty stuff to you.”
Willow’s heart raced, shaking her so badly she sneered, “Why did you?”
“I dunno.” His gaze was locked on hers, troubled by her loss of control. He shrugged in helpless confusion and took two more cautious steps toward her. “You went out with that guy and—”
“And he told lies on me.” She took two steps toward him, squaring off. If he insulted her again, she’d pop him right in the nose. “And you believed him, Clay Owen.” Then, choking on her hurt, she added, “I hate you.”
His shoulders fell. Very softly he said, “No, you don’t.” He inched closer until he stood right in front of her. He had his hands tucked into his pants pockets, his head down. She heard him swallow. “I’m sorry, Willow.”
Willow turned her back on him. “Fine. Apology accepted.” She sniffed, hating the stupid tears. They’d never gotten her much. They certainly hadn’t gotten her mother back or returned their lives to normal. For the longest time now she’d faced each new day with grim acceptance, just wanting to get through it but not quite enjoying it. She’d hated Patricia, but she’d been afraid to say so. Dinah had often told her that if she and Austin didn’t behave, they could be split up and put in foster homes. Patricia didn’t abuse them; for the most part, she just ignored them. And Willow had considered that better than some of the alternatives.
But there’d been no love, and she felt so hollowed out inside, it sickened her.
And Clay … He’d deliberately added misery to her life when she couldn’t understand why. The tears clogged in her throat, and she started away from him, refusing to let him see.
He caught her arm. “Willow.”
He sounded ready to cry, too, but she didn’t care. “Let go.” Darn, her voice had been all wavery, not at all earnest.
“No.” Very gently, he brought her around to him. He tried to see her face, but Willow kept her head lowered, her face averted. “I’ve been an awful jerk, Willow. I don’t blame you for not wanting to talk to me. I was just so jealous, and I liked you so much … more than any other girl I know.”
A humorless laugh erupted. “Good thing you didn’t hate me then, huh?”
“I could never hate you.” He tucked her long hair behind her ear. “Can we start over, Willow? Please?”
Filled with suspicion, Willow forced her head up. “Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why are you being so nice now?” She didn’t understand his sudden turnaround, and she sure didn’t trust it.
His mouth twisted in a wry grin. “I got the impression that big guy at your house would never let me near you again otherwise.”
“Joe? You’re being nice to me only because of Joe?”
“No.” He hurried to reassure her, stumbling on his words. “I was really mad when he told me to get lost, and I was thinking of ways to get to you, how I could still see you without him knowing. And that got me thinking about why I want to see you so bad that I’d risk getting in trouble with him.” Clay cleared his throat. “He’s kind of an intimidating guy.”
“I know. But he’s real nice. At least to me and Austin.” She wasn’t ready to let him off the hook and added with a hint of menace, “I don’t know how he feels about you.”
Clay’s Adam’s apple did a dive when he swallowed hard. “You know, since your mom died, everyone has said bad things about you and Austin. Everything changed and I hated that.” He chewed his bottom lip, thinking. “I guess I, um, took it out on you.”
Clay had been one of the few familiar things that remained in her life, and he’d so easily destroyed that. “Real nice of you, Clay. Thanks.”
He tipped his head back and groaned. “God, I’m sorry, Willow. Really.” He held both her hands. “Please give me another chance.”
Still not trusting him, she asked, “A chance for what?”
“We could just be friends—if that’s what you want.”
He sounded as if he wanted a whole lot more, but Willow wasn’t about to forgive him so quickly. Still, she wanted, needed, a friend more than anything else. Her chest hurt, but she said, “Yeah, all right. But you’ll have to be nice to Austin, too.”
He grinned, and Willow felt her heart flutter and her stomach flip. He was just so cute. “Can you keep him from pounding on me?”
“As long as you’re nice, Austin will be nice. At least, I think so. He doesn’t like you much more than Joe does.”
Still grinning, Clay said, “I’ll win Austin over.”
“What about your friends?”
“To hell with ’em. If they’re mean to you, then they can get lost. I don’t care.”
Happiness started to bubble inside her. A smile twitched, but she bit her lip to hide it. “What about your stepdad?”
Suddenly Clay looked older than sixteen. He straightened his shoulders like a man and turned serious. “I’m sorry that he’s never liked you. I don’t understand it except that he takes his duties to the town real serious, and he thinks the fact that you and Austin don’t have a dad is a bad influence or something. But he’s wrong about you, Willow, and I don’t care what he thinks anymore.”
“He might get mad at you if he knows we’re … friends.”
Clay shook his head. “He doesn’t have to know, but even if he does find out, it won’t matter.” He tugged her closer, dropping his forehead to hers. “We’ve been friends a long time, Willow. You’re the only one that matters.”
He started to kiss her, but Willow turned her head and his mouth brushed her cheek. It was enough to make her flush, to cause her toes to curl inside her new sandals. Very few guys had ever kissed her, but she felt ready to give it a try. After she knew for certain that Clay was sincere. “I should go back in.”
Clay released her. “Okay.” He drew a big breath. “If I call you later, will you talk to me?”
“Sure.” Willow started backing toward the school. Though she tried to contain her smile, her cheeks hurt. Things seemed so different now, better, promising.
And then she saw the scratches on Clay’s arms. Her stomach dropped into her feet and she swayed.
“Willow?” Clay trotted toward her. “What is it?”
He started to touch her, but she reeled back, sickened by a barrage of suspicion. “Your arms.”
He glanced down. “My arms?”
“How did you get those scratches?” She stared at him with accusation, with fresh heartache. “How, Clay?”
“They’re nothing.” He stared down at the scratches with indifference. “Quincy brought a stray kitten home and it’s still trying to get comfortable settling in. It’s more wild than not—sort of reminds me of Austin if you want the truth.” He tried a teasing grin that only made Willow feel more hollow.
“A cat?” Disbelief swept through her. Quincy Owen was not a pet lover. Willow didn’t know how she knew that, but she did. “You expect me to believe that your stepdad brought home a cat?”
Now Clay frowned. “Why would I lie about it?” And when she still frowned at him, he shrugged. “Come by the house and see for yourself. We made it a real nice bed in the mudroom. I’m going to take it to the vet’s tomorrow for shots and stuff.”
; She hated the pleading in her tone when she whispered, “Don’t lie to me, Clay.”
“I’m not.” He searched her face, worried, sincere. “I won’t. I swear it, Willow.”
She stared at him a long time, and finally believed him. “All right.” Her heart still raced, as much with hope as dread. Should she tell Joe? God, she just didn’t know and she felt sick with trepidation. “I … I have to go in now.”
“Wait.” He reached out for her, but she ducked away. “Willow, why were you asking about—?”
Willow didn’t let him finish. She turned and ran for the school. She believed him, she really did. But … What if Clay was lying? His scratches looked an awful lot like the ones Joe had. What if Clay was the one who’d done those awful things to her home, taunting her, trying to force her to move away? What if he was the one calling her trash? His stepfather disliked her; everyone in town knew that.
Shaking from the inside out, Willow ducked inside the school and leaned back on the wall. Please don’t let it be Clay. Please. But she knew she had to tell Joe. Whoever it was, they not only hurt her, but Austin, too. And she couldn’t allow that.
If it was Clay, she had to know.
But maybe it wasn’t. And then one small part of her life could return to normal.
Luna curled into Joe’s side, replete, exhausted, madly in love. Damn, he was good. With his hands, his mouth, his whole body. She shivered with a small aftershock of pleasure and kissed his chest.
Joe raised his head from the mattress and glanced down at her. “Now what was that for?”
“What?”
“That small shiver.”
“Oh.” Luna smiled at him while smoothing her hand through his dark chest hair. His muscles glistened with sweat and he still breathed too hard, yet he’d felt her shiver. Joe stayed so aware of her that she couldn’t sniff without him noticing. She’d never known a man to be so attuned to a woman. It was both comforting and disconcerting to have all that masculine focus directed her way. “I was just thinking how incredibly talented you are.”
“In bed?”
She nodded.
He grinned and dropped his head back with a groan. “Glad you noticed. And for the record, I get better with age, okay?”
That made her laugh and feel a bit melancholy. She wouldn’t get to sample Joe as he aged; he’d be long gone by then, working his magic on numerous other women. The cad.
“I’m sure you will. I can see you even as a grandpa, tottering around and grabbing for some poor woman’s behind.”
Eyes closed, expression composed, he murmured, “Well, your ass is so fine, babe, I don’t doubt it for a second.”
It was Luna’s turn to rear up and stare at him. He said that as if she would be growing old with him.
Joe slowly opened his eyes, revealing smoldering heat and sexual intent. His attention dipped to her breasts.
“Come here.” His gravel-deep voice almost made her lose track of her thoughts. When Joe wanted her, it made her want him, too.
“No wait.” Luna attempted to hold him off. Surely, Joe didn’t think he could drop a suggestive statement like that, hinting at a future for the first time, then just carry on as if he hadn’t said it? “What did you—”
“I thought you were done telling me no.” With laughable ease despite her efforts, Joe brought her forward until her breast was close to his mouth. “We can talk later.”
“But, Joe … oh, God.” His mouth was hot, gently tugging, speeding her toward arousal. She closed her eyes and relished the pleasure.
Joe idly licked her before switching to the other breast. “I love how you taste, sweetheart. All over.” He caught her hips and levered her over him. “Come on top so I can get my hands on this sweet ass we’ve been discussing.”
“You’ve been discussing it, not me.” But Luna found herself sprawled over him, her legs open around him, his greedy mouth back at her nipple while his hands squeezed and palpated her behind. Already Joe grew hard, and she knew what that meant. Since she’d said yes, he’d been unstoppable and insatiable.
For days now, he’d generously overwhelmed her with so much pleasure she hadn’t had a chance to reciprocate. But Joe had such an incredible body that she wanted her turn at giving. She wiggled free and scooted down his chest to his washboard abdomen. Fingers spread wide, she reveled in the textures of crisp body hair, sleek flesh over hard bones and bulging muscles.
Before she could move too far south, Joe’s hands clamped on her waist in protest. “Come back here.”
Luna raised up on stiffened arms. “Hush, Joe.” While speaking, she visually explored his body. His small copper nipples were drawn tight, barely visible beneath his chest hair. His shoulders glistened with sweat. His inky black hair was mussed.
She stroked his chest down to his hipbones and smiled. His penis, soft only minutes ago after a grinding release, was now long and hard again, twitching for attention. “Just lie there and enjoy yourself for once, okay?”
His nostrils flared; his gaze brightened until the blue of his eyes burned like a flame. In a sexy, very interested rumble, he asked, “What are you going to do?”
“Nothing that you haven’t already done to me.”
A long, husky groan escaped and he squeezed his eyes shut. “Lord, help me.”
Powerful and in control, Luna laughed. “A big, strong guy like you can handle it, right?”
He twisted his head to glance at the clock. “We have two hours till we have to leave to get the kids. I’ll need at least one of those hours to recoup, okay?”
Joe had such a dry, sincere sense of humor that he kept her grinning. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
She moved to the side of him, then rested one hand high on his thick, hair-roughened thigh. “Where to start?”
Sounding choked, Joe asked, “Do I get to make suggestions?”
Using one fingertip, Luna traced the length of his cock. “Here?”
“Oh, yeah.”
She laughed and swatted at him. “Turn over.”
“Turn over?” He slanted a very dubious, cautious glance her way.
“You look just as uncertain as Austin with that expression.”
Joe grunted and rolled onto his stomach. “I am never uncertain in bed.” Arms folded beneath his head, he attempted to look relaxed, but Luna saw the stiff set of his wide shoulders, the tensed muscles in his legs. Oh, Joe Winston was far from relaxed. “Have at it, woman.”
“Have I ever told you that for some insane reason, I kind of like it when you call me woman?”
Momentarily distracted, he said, “Yeah?”
“That’s right.” Luna dragged her fingertips down the long length of his spine. His back was broad, silky smooth and taut. Well-defined muscles at either side of his spine caused a deep groove that she found ultimately male and appealing. “I like butts, too. Course, with this silly tattoo on yours …” She again read the words, I Love Lou, and shook her head, bemused.
“I’ll have it removed.”
“I thought you said that’d hurt?” She stroked the colorful design on his firm bun and felt her breath catch. “It doesn’t bother me.”
Joe twisted to his back again. “Yeah, well, it’s starting to bother me.”
That surprised her. “Why?”
He rolled his eyes and growled. “Are you going to keep teasing me or are you going to get down to business?”
Biting back a smile at his impatience, she snaked her hand lower and cupped his testicles. They pulled tight. “You’re so hot.”
“You’re in bed naked with me,” he rasped. “What did you expect?”
She continued to fondle him. Very softly, she asked, “Is this the kind of business you anticipated?”
“Oh, yeah.”
Without warning, she curled her fingers around the very base of his erection to hold him steady, bent down, and drew the broad, sensitive tip into her mouth. Joe went rigid on a long, vibrating groan.
It was a heady thing,
pushing big, badass Joe Winston past his control. She drew him deep and was rewarded with another, harsher growl. He smelled delicious, of heated male flesh and the unique smell of Joe. This close to his sex, his scent was intoxicating. She moved her tongue around him, teasing the underside of the head where he was most sensitive, then slowly drew back.
Joe’s hips lifted off the bed, following her retreat.
“Relax, Joe.”
He grunted, but his hands went behind his head, locked there, and his biceps swelled and hardened and flexed as he visibly restrained himself.
Pleased with his efforts, Luna treated him to a long, slow lick. “You look in pain, Joe.”
“Yeah,” he rasped, eyes squeezed tight and teeth on edge, “it feels so fucking good I almost can’t stand it.”
“Perfect,” Luna purred and drew him in again while cradling his balls, gently kneading. She fell into a satisfying rhythm, taking him deep, slowly withdrawing, licking the head and then swallowing him deep again.
Among raw groans of encouragement, Joe started to tremble. After three minutes, he was stiff enough to break. “I ain’t gonna last, babe.” Every big, hard muscle in his body wound tight. “Luna?”
She loved the desperation in the way he said her name.
With a curse, Joe halfheartedly tried to pull her away. He caught her hair and tugged gently, but Luna made it plain that she wanted all of him. Finally, with a long moan of surrender, Joe came. He still held her head, showing her what he needed, gently guiding her. His tempered strength was exciting.
Luna waited until he collapsed back against the mattress, laboring for breath and still giving low, sated sounds of pleasure, then she cuddled up to his side again. A limp arm came around her, but other than that, he didn’t move.
“Joe?” She touched his chest, stroked his crisp hair, then flattened her palm over his galloping heartbeat.
“Yeah?”
I love you. No, Luna wouldn’t do that to him, wouldn’t make him feel awkward during the time he remained with them. She knew how Joe felt about settling down, so she swallowed the surge of emotions and kissed his right pectoral. “Thank you for everything you’ve done and everything you’re doing. We all appreciate it.”