Body Rocks [The Andersons 3] (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Marie Jermy

  After blow-drying her hair, and with thoughts fixed firmly on Daniel, Samantha opened the wardrobe to pick out something to wear. Nothing really grabbed her attention. She sighed and pulled on an old pair of loose-fit, dark-blue jeans and an equally loose-fitting, crew-necked, cream sweater. She termed them as safe and nondescript.

  Then, in a moment of feminine purpose, she took them off when it occurred to her that it wasn’t her attention she wanted to grab, it was Daniel’s. She wanted to grab his attention so much he wouldn’t want to look at another woman ever again.

  “What am I doing? Am I crazy?” she suddenly asked herself. Wasn’t she supposed to be off men? Yes, she was. But Daniel was different. He was warm and kind, and she’d known him forever. She knew everything there was to know about him. Well, apart from the fact he was mouthwateringly gorgeous. Maybe she should ask Ramona if she’d noticed how gorgeous he was. Though she strongly suspected her sister was too wrapped up in her business partner, Rex Latimer, to notice if there were any other men inhabiting the planet.

  She turned back to the wardrobe and had a good rummage. The black, sparkly, spaghetti-strap dress she came across would have Daniel’s eyes popping out like champagne corks for sure. Suddenly unsure, she decided to wear the dress some other time, opting instead for a pair of beige linen slacks and a white lace top with a scoop neck. It was pretty and hopefully would tease Daniel enough for him to ask her out on a date.

  Actually, thinking about it, and if she were really honest, Samantha wanted more than a date with Daniel. She wanted him to make love to her. Little fizzles of longing spiraled though her body at the thought of Daniel making love to her. She could only wonder what kind of a lover he was. One thing she knew for sure, though, was that Daniel was definitely more experienced than her. At the age of twenty-eight, she often felt she was the only virgin left in Montana, if not in the entire country. And at fifty states, the good ol’ U-S-of-A was a lot of country.

  It wasn’t even as if she were purposely holding onto her virginity—she did want to lose it. However, considered the shy and sensitive twin, she’d never met a man who’d accepted her for who she really was. After a few dates, they thought her too plain and not exciting enough.

  There had been two serious boyfriends, though—James and Max. However, the relationships ended when James had been offered a job in another part of the country and Max had moved to a different country altogether, a different continent, actually. The opportunities had been there, yet she’d never been compelled into taking that leap into the unknown with a man and surrendering herself to his adoring passion.

  “You’re not wearing that tonight, are you?”

  Samantha jumped on hearing Ramona’s voice right behind her. She hadn’t even heard her sister enter the bedroom. She turned and faced her. “Yeah, why?”

  “Hair up or down?”

  “Down.”

  “Then it sucks.”

  Taking a seat at the dressing table, Samantha studied her reflection in the mirror. Over the last week, she’d learned to disregard the angry bruises around her neck that stubbornly refused to fade. Seeing and thinking about them only brought back painful memories. Instead, she turned her attention to her hair. In her opinion, the chestnut tresses brushing her shoulders didn’t make the top suck at all. But one glance at a tutting Ramona in the mirror had her locating a pair of tortoiseshell combs in one of the drawers. She piled her hair on top of her head and pinned it into place. “How’s that?”

  “Too severe. Loosen it up and leave some hanging down.” Ramona nodded in approval as Samantha readjusted her hair. “Much better. Have you left me any hot water for a shower?”

  Samantha stared at her reflection, deciding the top knot really suited her, before grinning at her sister in the mirror. “Sorry. Since you’re living at the vets’, why don’t you go and ask Rex if you can share his shower?” Her grin faltered at Ramona’s gleeful expression and pink cheeks. It had never bothered her that her sister had lost her virginity some years before, but now for some reason it peeved her. “I knew it! You’ve had more than a shower with him, haven’t you? You’ve had sex with him.”

  “Yep, and it was hotter than this weather.” Ramona walked over and placed her hands on her shoulders. “Don’t worry, Sammy. Your time will come.”

  “But when?”

  “With the way Danny Boy was looking at you earlier on, it will be sooner than you think. He has a serious case of the hots for you.”

  “You think?” Samantha bit her bottom lip, surprised to hear that Daniel was interested in her.

  “I know. Need any advice?”

  “Which department?”

  “Take your pick. Foreplay. Erotic massage. Positions. Oral.”

  “Oral.”

  “If you want Danny, or any man for that matter, to be like putty in your hands, then suck on his balls. And for guaranteed explosive results, press your finger up against his perineum while sucking his cock. It will drive him wild.”

  “Mark was wild,” Samantha murmured, casting her eyes downward and shivering at just how wild he had been. Wild and violent. Images of Raven’s hands and body pressing down upon her brought tears to her eyes. But she blinked them back. She refused to allow Raven to have the power to hurt her anymore. Though a romantic at heart, underneath she possessed a steel-edged grit, and by God, she’d use it to show Raven that he meant nothing to her. She would no longer be his victim.

  “Oh, Sammy.” Her sister slid her arms around her and gave her a loving hug. “Not all men are like Mark. Danny certainly isn’t. Remember your description of Rex? ‘Nice, kind, and tall.’ Well, Danny’s got those qualities, too. You know he has. He’s the man for you.” She grinned at her in the mirror. “Who’d have thought it? My big sister is gonna be a cradle snatcher.”

  A bubble of laughter escaped. “He’s only three years younger,” Samantha pointed out.

  “What’s a little math?” Ramona got to her feet and ambled over to the doorway. “I think I will take that shower with Rex.”

  “You will be back for dinner, though, won’t you?”

  “Wouldn’t miss it. And I’ll be staying the night, too. After your first date, I want all the gossip. I’ll bet Danny’s one helluva kisser.”

  “Date?”

  “Yes, date. After dinner. At Rustlers. Danny did say he was buying.”

  “But—”

  “I’m not going to be a third wheel. It will be just you and him. Very cozy.”

  “Oh, right. But he’ll never kiss me.”

  “Then kiss him. And don’t forget what I told you about fingering his perineum.”

  The concept of kissing a man first wasn’t new to her. Unfortunately, the man had been Mark Raven. Samantha suppressed the shudder and rolled her eyes at her sister before turning her attention back to her reflection in the mirror. A spritz of perfume and a touch of lip gloss and she was ready. Not quite ready to finger Daniel’s perineum, but ready to kiss him if he didn’t kiss her first.

  * * * *

  Planting his boot on the running board of his truck, Sam Carrick stared back in the direction of the small town he had just walked from. A trickle of sweat ran down his temple, and he wiped a hand across his forehead. Sheesh, it was hot, even for late afternoon. His cell then vibrated in his jeans pocket, and taking it out, he grinned at the caller’s name displayed on the screen. He punched the answer button. “Hey, Scott,” he greeted with mirth. “How’s it hanging?”

  “Cut the crap. Where are you?”

  The tone was demanding, but Carrick wouldn’t bet that Scott Rafferty, his close friend, protégé, and now the North American Director of the Federation, had a fair idea of his current location. “Yellowstone.”

  “Yellowstone? What the hell are you doing in—” Rafferty’s sigh was deep, his curse curt. “Look, Sam, I know Daniel Ferris is your half brother, but do you know how loco your idea of a family reunion sounds? How loco you sound?”

  Carrick slid a photograph fr
om his back pocket. Ramona Anderson stared back at him with startling emerald-green eyes. He ran his thumb over the Polaroid. She looked really pissed off. There was something else in her expression, too. Shock, maybe. Like she’d just seen a dead man come back to life. The irony wasn’t lost on him.

  Never trust a ghost to do your dirty work. He snorted. The dead man he’d asked to attend Silver Creek’s centenary celebrations almost two months back and take the picture had snapped the wrong woman. Not that it mattered. There was no mistaking the identity of Ramona’s mother. Detective Jess “Foxy” Fox had been his partner and girlfriend, and the last time he had encountered her fiery-green gems was on the day of his faked death thirty years ago. He’d never forgotten her, but apparently she’d erased him from memory, because a few months after his “funeral” she became Mrs. Jess Anderson.

  Carrick sighed and shook himself back to the present. “Just be grateful I’m not in Silver Creek.” He disconnected the call and put the cell back into his pocket.

  Just be grateful I’m not in Silver Creek. Carrick replayed the words in his head and twisted his lips into a wry smile. It wasn’t that he’d wanted to lie to Rafferty, but lie he had. Silver Creek was his exact location. He knew Daniel’s intended destination the moment he’d left Yellowstone. And had he driven in the opposite direction? Like fuck he had!

  But if he’d thought following Daniel to Silver Creek had been a bad idea, then the tour of the town he’d just taken had given him cause for concern. Maybe Rafferty was right. Maybe his quest to reintroduce himself to his family and his ex-girlfriend after a thirty-year absence had made him loco.

  Carrick stared at the town, wondering how Jess survived in such a hick place where everybody no doubt knew everyone else’s business. The town wasn’t without its entertainment, though. He’d witnessed Jess’s youngest son, Matt, arrest the model Stacey Davenport after she’d tried to claw him to shreds. Sheesh, what the hell was Stacey Davenport doing here? It wasn’t as though Silver Creek was the hub of fashion and designer labels. Main Street was no catwalk.

  Then there were those two old codgers arguing with each other outside the B and B on Main Street about whose hotel was the best. Harrison and Thacker, he’d heard their names called, along with a few others that had actually made him laugh. It was his laughter that had drawn Harrison and Thacker’s attention to him, which had then led to some odd looks.

  And it was because of those odd looks that Carrick decided it best to hightail it out of Dodge. Over the course of the years, he’d kept up to date with what was happening with his family. He knew his father, Ray Ferris, was a frequent visitor to Silver Creek. He would bet that every person in the town knew his father. Daniel, too, for that matter. If it weren’t for the age difference, he, his father, and Daniel could be identical triplets. Hence those odd looks he’d received.

  Carrick drew in a lungful of muggy, yet clean, pine-scented air and got into his truck. He could almost smell Jess, touch her presence, and feel the burn from her fiery, emerald-green eyes. Yes, he wanted to see Jess—wanted it so bad he was willing to give up sex—but family would always come first. He needed to meet with his half brother. And he couldn’t do that with the rumor that would no doubt spread faster than a speeding bullet around the town that Daniel Ferris had a doppelganger.

  Carrick knew exactly where he had to go to wait for Daniel. Turning the ignition, he shoved the stick into gear, spun the wheel, and spewed gravel.

  Chapter 2

  True to his word, Daniel returned to the Anderson home in the evening for dinner. His cold shower, the longest he’d ever had in his life, had done its job well. Until he saw Samantha, that is.

  Seated directly opposite her at the kitchen table, trying his hardest to tell Ross Senior about the survey he’d been conducting in Yellowstone, Daniel just couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. Her long chestnut tresses were piled loosely on top of her head, a few wispy tendrils framing her slightly flushed face. Her white lace top was scoop necked and showed a decent offering of an equally flushed neck and shoulders.

  He chose to ignore the ring of purplish-black bruises around her neck. Bruises made by a man’s hands. Raven’s hands. He’d always known Raven was an obnoxious prick, yet Daniel never thought the man would resort to sexually assaulting a woman. Anger coiled tight within his gut. When he saw Raven, a guaranteed certainty in a town as small as Silver Creek, he’d take great pleasure in wrapping his own hands around the bastard’s neck and choking the life from him.

  “Daniel, are you okay? You look tense.”

  At Samantha’s concerned tone, Daniel loosened his anger and gave himself a sharp kick in the ankle to stop himself wondering if the reason for her flushed state was because of a steamy and sudsy shower. Nor did he think a game of footsie was advisable. He might well touch up the wrong person. He turned his attention to that person. Matt was seated next to Samantha and looked as if he was about to indulge in a spot of knife throwing.

  Knife throwing at him.

  If it had been anybody else, Daniel would have risen to the challenge and returned the knives with interest. But Matt was his friend—a good friend—and a friend who was just looking out for his sister. If the roles had been reversed and it had been his own sister, Jessica, who’d been attacked, he would also be giving every man the “You hurt her and I’ll return that hurt tenfold” dagger-eyed warning. He gave Matt an easy grin and complimented Jess on the food. “Mrs. Anderson, nobody makes vegetarian chili as tasty as yours.”

  “Ass-kisser,” Ramona said.

  “Yeah, a real smacker,” Matt added.

  “If you want seconds, then just ask,” Samantha joined in.

  Daniel looked at Samantha and immediately wished he hadn’t. She was running her tongue around her lips. Whether she was doing it unconsciously or not, he didn’t know. What he did know, though, was how he very much wanted to trace the same path with his own tongue. He gave himself another kick and picked up his beer. “What’s for dessert?” he asked her.

  “One of your mother’s English recipes. Sponge pudding with raisins. I believe it’s called ‘spotted dick.’ Do you want cream with it?”

  He nearly spat out his mouthful of beer. The way Samantha’s soft voice curled around the words dick and cream made his cock stand at attention. “Spotted dick with cream? Great, my favorite.”

  “I know.”

  Her green eyes were luminous, and Daniel couldn’t help but lean forward and put his elbow on the table, resting his chin in his hand. “What else do you know?” he asked in a low and husky voice.

  “About you? Everything.”

  “Well, isn’t that a coincidence? I know everything about you, too.” He was openly flirting with Samantha here, in front of her parents, her twin sister, and her brother, but the devil within him thought, what the hell.

  “Dan my man, you’re drooling like a sappy pup. Woof woof.”

  Daniel snapped back in his chair at the warning tone behind Matt’s humor. If he didn’t get a grip on himself soon, he’d end up with more holes than a piece of Swiss cheese. Not to mention a heavily bruised ankle. “I not only drool when it comes to spotted dick and cream,” he said jovially, “I sit up and beg for more, too.” He ducked to avoid the three pieces of French bread that sailed in his direction.

  After that, Daniel managed to keep a grip on himself. He even managed to control his hard-on. Though, at times, that proved rather difficult, particularly when playing Twister. Being bent around Samantha not only tested the crotch of his jeans but his willpower and his ligaments, too. Finally, after being thoroughly twisted out of shape, he collapsed in a heap and called for time-out.

  “These youngsters have no stamina,” Ross said, untangling himself from his wife.

  “No, we’re just not as double-jointed as you oldies,” Matt cheekily told his father.

  “And there was me thinking my youngest was a cop, not a comedian. Who’s for another drink? Daniel?”

  “Yeah. Beer, pleas
e.”

  “Actually, Dad, I was going to ask Daniel if he’d like to go for a walk with me.”

  Daniel stared at Samantha. She smiled at him and smoothed her hands down the front of her slacks. A hot, pulsing beat of desire corkscrewed through him as his eyes followed the action. What he wouldn’t give to run his hands down those trim-looking thighs. To have them wrapped around his waist while his cock fucked her to blissful distraction.

  He scrambled to his feet, cursing inwardly as his lusty thoughts near enough broke his zipper. He was going to have to sort this out or have a rather embarrassing mishap. “Sounds good. I need to walk these kinks out. I’ll just go to the bathroom first.”

  Daniel practically flew up the stairs. Once the bathroom door was closed, he was shaking so much he absentmindedly turned on the shower. It was only when he heard the water gushing through the creaky pipes that it registered what he was doing, and he jerked to attention. He couldn’t take a fucking shower! Well, he could, but how would he explain it? Somehow he didn’t think, “To cure my hard cock, it was either take a cold shower, or fuck Sammy until she was panting and crying out my name,” would go down too well, particularly with Matt. He could almost hear the knives being sharpened.

  “Get a grip,” Daniel told himself as he lifted the toilet seat. He couldn’t stop the smile when he did indeed get a grip, swiftly whacking himself off to a blinding and tongue-biting climax. Thankfully, his cum made direct hits down the john. The wiping of his cock with some tissue and one press of a button and all evidence was flushed away.

  He was as cool as a cucumber when he returned downstairs. Unfortunately, when he held the front door open for Samantha and she brushed up against him, he became as hard as one, too. Shoving his hand in his jeans pocket, he carefully repositioned his hard-on so he wouldn’t be singing soprano and fell in step alongside Samantha as she ambled down the track toward the town.