by Blair Grey
I gave him a watery smile, and his thumb stroked along my cheekbone. “I made a promise to you, remember?” he asked quietly. “I promised you that everything was going to be okay. That I was going to find a way to make things right.”
I sighed and shook my head. Now wasn’t the time for promises. I didn’t want him to say something that he would regret.
“Do you want me to leave again?” Landon asked carefully, pulling out and hovering there at the edge of the bed.
I shook my head and rolled away from him onto the bed, giving him plenty of space to stretch out next to me. “Stay,” I whispered. “Hold me. Please.”
Landon smiled brilliantly at me and climbed back onto the bed, obediently curling his body around mine.
“Is this okay?” I asked suddenly, worried. “With your shoulder and everything.”
It was the “and everything” that I was really concerned about, not that I wanted him to be in any pain. But what I really meant was, was it okay for me to ask him to stay with me, knowing full well that this thing between us was going nowhere? Was I just letting both of us get our hopes up?
Landon brushed my hair to the side and kissed the nape of my neck, right where my spine met my shoulders. "I feel better than I ever have in my life,” he said.
“That can’t be true, what with the shoulder,” I said, rolling my eyes, but I couldn’t help grinning.
“No, I’m serious,” Landon insisted. He paused. “I love you, Anne. And I know that you’re not in a place where you’re ready to say that to me, but—”
“I love you,” I blurted out, surprising both of us with the words. Not that I hadn’t thought them often enough over the course of the past week.
Landon hummed contentedly, giving me another soft kiss. “I need to get some sleep,” he said, and he definitely sounded exhausted.
“I’ll still be here when you wake up,” I promised him, sliding my fingers into his. Landon squeezed my digits tightly for a moment, and then his breathing evened out in sleep.
39
Landon
Just like she had promised, Anne was still in bed next to me when I woke up the next morning. “What time is it?” I groaned, realizing that it was bright outside, and Anne was reading a book, a clear sign that she had been up for a while.
Anne glanced over at the clock. “Almost half past eleven,” she informed me, sticking a bookmark in her book.
I shook my head. “These painkillers really take it out of me,” I told her.
“It’s just the painkillers?” Anne asked innocently. “I thought it was the massive orgasm that I got out of you.”
I laughed. “If it was to do with orgasms, I think you would still be sleeping as well,” I told her, my eyes twinkling. “Since if I’m not mistaken, you got not one but two good ones out of last night.”
Anne giggled. “You’re probably right,” she said.
I curled toward her, pressing my forehead against her warm thigh and kissing the soft skin there. “Good morning,” I told her, nuzzling her side.
She carded her fingers through my hair. “Good morning,” she responded. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” I answered honestly. My shoulder was throbbing, a sure sign that I needed to eat and take my painkillers sooner rather than later, but I felt deliciously contented. And I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my day.
I rolled away from Anne. “Can you bring me over to my place?” I asked. “I should have brought some of the painkillers over here with me so that we could spend the whole day in bed. I don’t think I’m fit to walk all the way home feeling like this, though.”
“Of course,” Anne said, looking concerned. “I have some ibuprofen if that would help. I know you need something stronger than that, but maybe it would take the edge off for now?”
I shook my head. “I’ll be fine until we get to my place,” I told her. “It’s not that far away.”
“All right, if you’re sure,” Anne said.
We stopped at a drive-through on our way over there, picking up some hearty breakfast sandwiches and coffee so that I wouldn’t have to take my pills on an empty stomach. Anne pulled up in front of the house. “Well, here we are,” she said, sounding uncertain. Again, I could see that misty look to her eyes.
She thought she was losing me. Still, after how perfect the previous night had been, she was afraid that she was losing me. The poor girl. I was never going to leave her, not like that asshole of an ex that she had told me about.
“You want to come in?” I asked quietly.
Anne looked relieved when I asked that. “Okay,” she said. She trailed after me into the house, shutting the door behind us. Braxton was there in a heartbeat.
“I’ve been calling you for hours,” he said angrily. “We thought you must have died on the walk home or something.”
I gave him a mild look. “I spent the night with Anne.” I gestured toward the woman. “You remember her, of course.”
Braxton rolled his eyes. “Of course I remember,” he said. “Hi, it’s nice to see you again.” His tone was significantly friendlier toward her. But when he turned back to me, his eyes were still flashing with anger. “I figured that you spent the night there, but where have you been all morning?”
I blushed and ducked my head, even though I knew it had nothing to do with laziness. “Asleep actually. We came over here right after I woke up, minus a quick stop for breakfast to go.”
I headed into the living room—where I thought I had left my painkillers on the coffee table after getting home from the hospital—and was surprised to see Neil sitting in there in addition to Ray. That worked perfectly into my plan, though.
“Hey, guys,” I said, popping open my pill bottle and dry-swallowing the recommended dosage. I sat gingerly on the couch, careful not to jostle my arm too much, and when I noticed Anne was still hovering uncertainly, I patted the spot next to me, inviting her to join me. “You’ve met Neil and Ray, haven’t you? At the hospital?”
“Yeah,” Anne said, and I could tell how nervous she was by how stiff her posture was. I put an arm around her shoulders and tugged her toward me a little, trying to get her to relax.
“How are you feeling today, man?” Neil asked.
“Better,” I told him, just like I had told Anne. “It’ll be even better once the painkillers kick in.”
“Good night?” Ray asked, smirking at me. “Your brother has been freaking out that you haven’t been answering your phone, though. I have to admit, I was a little nervous myself. You should have let me drive you.”
“And what would you have done, camped out in your car all night?” I asked, rolling my eyes. “Or are you saying that you would have come inside with me and totally harshed my style, Dad?”
I expected Ray to laugh, but instead, he gave me an all too serious look. “If sleeping in my car is what it takes to make sure you’re safe, you can be sure that I’ll do it,” he said without hesitation.
I had to smile at that. “Thanks,” I said. “But I was all right. Just exhausted. I didn’t wake up until after eleven.”
Ray frowned. “Well, we can put off the ride back to New Mexico for a little longer, or you can sleep in the car for the whole trip. We could get you set up comfortably in the back seat so that you could spread out.”
I glanced over at Anne, and again, I could see that telltale hurt in her eyes. I reached over and squeezed her knee lightly. “Actually,” I said, trying to sound casual, like this was no big deal. “I think I’m going to stay here in Sarasota.”
There was silence in the room, all four of the others gaping at me with open mouths. Anne was the first to recover. “Do you mean that?” she asked, and I could hear the desperation in her voice. Before I could respond to her, though, Braxton was speaking.
“Hell no!” he said. “There’s no way you’re staying here without me to protect you.”
I shook my head. “I have to,” I told Braxton. “I can’t leave Anne behind. And any
way, I’m sure we’ll do just fine without each other. You know I’ll come visit.”
“That’s not the point,” Braxton said. “I just watched you get shot once, and once was enough. And that was when I was here looking out for you. If I hadn’t been there last week, that guy probably would have finished you off.”
“It’s a good thing we don’t have to worry about the Mambas anymore then,” I told Braxton. “Or Jason.” I shrugged. “No one’s ever going to have my back the way that you do. But maybe it’s time that we stopped relying on each other so much.” When that still didn’t convince him, I continued, “I’ll make you a deal. As soon as things start to get interesting around here again, I’ll give you a call, and you can come out here to be my backup. And vice versa.”
“I think it’s a great idea,” Neil said, but I could tell he was looking at Ray to see what he thought about all of this. When Ray nodded his head, Neil continued, “Actually, I was just telling Ray here that I could use a new vice president, in light of everything with Jason.”
“I’d love that,” I told him. Then, I looked at Anne. “Of course, this is all assuming that you want me to stay. That you’re willing to put up with me.”
Anne laughed and gave me a resounding kiss on the lips. “Yes,” she said. “I want you to do whatever makes you happy, but if that’s staying here in Sarasota with me, then I am all for it.” She was absolutely beaming, and I knew that I had made the right decision.
As much as I hated the idea of living on the opposite end of the country from my family, I knew that this was something that I needed to do. Besides, I could always take a ride back to Las Cruces to visit. It wasn’t like we would be on opposite ends of the world or anything.
“There’s a part of me that doesn’t like this,” Ray said. “But there’s another part of me that can tell just how miserable you would be if I dragged you back to New Mexico with us.” He smiled at Anne. “You’re a very lucky lady,” he told her.
Anne grinned. “I am,” she agreed, beaming at me.
That was it, approval from Ray and Neil. The two approvals that I really needed. But I didn’t want to leave things on bad terms with Braxton. “Come on,” I told him. “Let’s have a beer out back.”
“You can’t drink on these,” Anne said, holding up my painkillers.
I rolled my eyes. “Then I’ll have a water, and he can have a beer,” I said. “God, I can’t wait until this thing heals up.” I caught Anne’s hands in mine and pulled her up to her feet, giving her a kiss. “You want to hang out here or head back to your place, sweetheart?” I asked her, the endearment falling from my lips just as easily as the rest of the question.
It made Anne smile, though. “Actually, I have some errands that I need to do,” she said. “Maybe I can do those and then come back here to spend more time with you?”
“Sounds perfect,” I told her, kissing her again. Then, I spun her back toward the door, giving her a little swat on the ass as she went. She smirked over her shoulder at me, and I could feel my whole body react with a low-level hum of interest. More time for that later, though.
For now, I needed to smooth things over with Braxton. I didn’t want him to feel like I was abandoning him. First and foremost, he was always going to be my twin. I might love Anne, but my bond with Braxton was one of a kind.
“I knew you should never have gotten involved with her,” Braxton said angrily as we sat on the back porch. He took a healthy swig of his beer and then pointed the bottle toward me. “I knew this was going to cause trouble. Why can’t you just bring her back to New Mexico with us?”
“Because,” I said patiently. “She has a house here, and her pharmacy, and her friends. Her whole life is here.”
“And your whole life is in New Mexico.”
“I’m starting to make friends out here, though, aren’t I? I have a place here, with the Red Eyes chapter. With Neil and his guys.”
“You don’t think she’d be able to make friends in Las Cruces?” Braxton challenged.
“It’s not that.” I sighed, rubbing my temples. Why didn’t he seem to understand? I needed to try a different angle.
“Things are going to be okay, you know. You’re still going to be my annoying little brother.”
Braxton snorted and took another, less angry, sip of his beer. “I guess so. I’m just worried about you.”
“Ray would murder Neil if he let anything happen to me,” I pointed out. “Anyway, this gives you the perfect reason to come back and enjoy the beaches and babes at least a couple times a year.”
Braxton grinned. “Guess I hadn’t thought about that,” he said. He shook his head. “You’re right. I know you have to do this. I’d feel guilty as all hell if we dragged you back to New Mexico without her. But I’m going to miss you.”
“I’m going to miss you too,” I said. “But we’ll see each other. All the time. And I promise to answer my phone each time you call to check up on me. Unless I’m sleeping of course.”
Braxton rolled his eyes and gave me a hug, patting me on the back. “If there’s even a rumor of a new group like the Mambas, I hope you know I’m hauling your ass back home where it belongs,” he said.
“Deal,” I said, shaking hands with him. “I don’t think I could handle getting shot again. That shit hurts.”
Braxton laughed. “Maybe next time you should try to disarm the guy before he gets a shot off,” he suggested.
I snorted. “If only,” I said, then looked over at him. “We’re going to be okay?”
“Yeah,” Braxton said. “We’re going to be okay.” He paused. “Besides, I think she’s good for you. You’ve been a lot more relaxed since we got here. A lot less stick-up-the-ass.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m going to pretend that that’s a compliment,” I told him.
Ray came out onto the back porch with us, a beer in hand. “Well, have my two favorite sons made up yet?” he asked, putting an arm around each of our shoulders.
“Yeah, Sugar-Daddy-Ray,” Braxton said, winking at me. “We’re all good.”
I watched Ray’s face go through a complicated series of emotions. He finally looked darkly at Braxton. “Now you listen here,” he said, leaning in close. “If you ever call me that again, I will personally see to it that you never have children of your own.” With that, he turned and walked back into the house.
Braxton and I waited until he had shut the sliding door behind him before we both burst into laughter.
Epilogue
Anne
Two Months Later
Two months after Landon had moved in with me, I was still getting used to waking up next to him. It was like every morning we were together was another pleasant surprise. A gift that I never thought that I would get. He made me feel like the most special, beautiful woman in the world. And I cherished every soft touch of his skin against mine.
I brushed Landon’s messy bangs back off his forehead and kissed him lightly. He groaned and pulled me closer, his morning wood pressing into the cleft of my ass as I wiggled around trying to escape his grasp. “We have plans for today,” I reminded him, giggling. “Wake up so I can make some breakfast. You can no longer use the excuse that you’re not lazy, you’re just on serious painkillers.”
Indeed, his shoulder had totally healed up over the past couple months, until now the only reminder of that incident with the Mambas was a patch of scar tissue marring his tattooed skin. A small price to pay, though, considering that there had been no problems with any other MC since. As I understood it, Red Eyes was doing quite well again, having regained most of their lost business.
Not that I really kept track of what the guys were up to. I figured the less I knew about it, the better. If the club made Landon happy, though, who was I to drag him away from it? Besides, he had taught me to ride a motorcycle, and now I could go out with the guys when they went on some of their more scenic rides. We had a ton of fun, and I was glad that he had friends out there.
Speaking of w
hich, our plans for today included a long ride down the coast, so it was time to get up.
I rolled around to face Landon again, and he kissed me on the tip of the nose, just like he did every morning. “Good morning, beautiful,” he said.
“Good morning,” I said. “Now let me go so I can get the coffee started.”
I wiggled away from him and threw on one of his old shirts to pad downstairs in. I had breakfast halfway ready by the time he finally emerged in the kitchen, but he helped with buttering the toast while I finished up the eggs and fruit bowls.
“Have I ever mentioned how lucky I am to have you?” Landon asked as I handed him a mug of coffee.
I grinned at him over the rim of my own mug. “You might have,” I said. “But it wouldn’t hurt to hear it a few more times.”
“Or maybe you’d rather I show you how much I appreciate you in the shower after we finish eating?” Landon suggested, waggling his eyebrows at me.
I laughed. “I thought we were going to go for a ride today,” I reminded him. “You know that if we do it in the shower, we’re not going to make it out of bed before this afternoon.”
Landon sighed, but his eyes were twinkling. “I guess you’re right,” he said.
I grinned at him. I was actually still surprised at how well things were going between us. It seemed like a lifetime ago that we had had our secrets, that we had failed so desperately at communicating with each other. In reality, it had only been a couple months, but it seemed like Landon had been living with me for a lot longer.
Things were perfect. There were some things he did that drove me nuts, and I was sure there were things I did that drove him crazy. We had a terrible time picking out movies that we wanted to watch together. But all in all, things were wonderful, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.