by Bijou Hunter
“Are you feeling jealous that my man is totally into me, and you’re alone lying to your kid?”
Ruby hits me in the face with a throw pillow. I try to duck the second strike and fall off the couch. Laughing, she tackles me and pins my arms to the floor.
“You’re so weak,” she teases.
“I ate a lot of salad these last few months.”
“That’ll do it.”
“I’m sorry about tonight.”
Ruby nods. “I like that you stood up for me.”
“I was pretty awesome.”
“Can you imagine if someone called your bluff?”
“I’d get my ass kicked, and then I’d whine to Camden. I wonder what he’d do.”
Ruby slides off me and smiles. “Maybe you should find out.”
Sitting up, I consider siccing my criminal boyfriend on the stupid bitch. “What would you want to happen to Mylie?”
“I meant Brittany.”
“Oh, I won that. She’s a lonely, bitter poop stain who smells like semen. I’m dating a hot guy and have great sisters and a fun mom and three cats who worship me as their maid.”
“You truly are living the dream.”
“Should I ask Camden to do something to Mylie?” I whisper, feeling evil for even suggesting it.
Ruby shrugs. “Probably not. Mom says it’s bad to owe rich people things.”
“Mom also claims her dog cries when she does.”
Laughing, Ruby falls back on the floor. She giggles wildly until the night’s tensions wash away. I hang out with her for another hour, watching TV and eating popcorn. We take turns checking on Harmony, who never stirs.
The night feels overwhelming yet anti-climatic. Walking to my trailer, I miss Camden and wish he was sleeping over tonight. I even think to text him to ask him to come over. I feel guilty for expecting him to drop everything for me and decide to shower rather than making the call.
Midnight arrives with me watching House Hunters International with the cats. I’ve replayed the night’s events a million times. I imagine saying different things. I also imagine getting my ass kicked. In the end, I can only think of Ruby and Bonn.
If Camden dumps me, I’ll end up no different than my sister. I’d never recover. I’d never date another guy. What would be the point? I’d compare any man to Camden. No one would live up to him.
He’s ruined me, and I’m okay with that. Life doesn’t always end with rainbows and flowers. Sometimes, an amazing journey is enough. I know without a doubt how Ruby wouldn’t change her time with Bonn even knowing how things ended. All of her pain was worth it. Whatever happens between Camden and me, I will never regret every moment we’ve spent together.
Thirty One - Camden
I promise Daisy I’ll give her another night of freedom. She calls me clingy. I call my behavior good old fashioned possessiveness. She says I want to keep my secrets, so I need to allow her a few of her own. I don’t agree with her, but she pulls off her shirt and wins another argument. This new tactic of hers is killing me, and I need to get the hang of seeing her perky tits without losing my brain.
So while she spends Saturday at a bachelorette party with her sisters, I need to keep myself busy. A few weeks ago, I was capable of being alone at night. Now I’m restless like a cranky baby. Eating out alone, I watch a fussy kid at the next table and feel his pain. Why is it so difficult for people to just give us what we want?
Later, I spot Dayton at Salty Peanuts, but he gives me a dark glare when I make a move to join him and his lady friend. He’s restless lately too, but not because he has a woman on the brain. Or maybe he does.
Dayton and I are currently on the outs. He thinks I’ve lost my mind by wanting Daisy. I think he’s lost his for thinking we can spend a life single like Dad. I doubt he even wants to be single forever, but his worship of our father knows no bounds.
After Salty Peanuts, I make my way around town, checking various businesses and looking for anyone in the mood to cause trouble. For years, Hickory Creek hummed along without any sign of trouble. Then Common Bend lost their sheriff and gained a new rogue one. Suddenly, the nearby town was in play. Mojo and Howler regained their hard-ons for taking over Common Bend. When that didn’t happen, they remained restless. They want something, but I suspect nothing will satisfy except the little shithole next door.
With the club’s top guys radiating unease, the rest of Hickory Creek feeds on it and reacts in small ways. The pimp slaps his girls in public. The dealer skims a little more off the top before handing over profits to the Brotherhood. Businesses get slower about paying protection funds. Mom says people never stop being children. When kids sense weakness in their parents, they test boundaries.
I sense this testing when I show up at one business after another. The owners are slow to acknowledge me. They claim they’re busy and ask me to come back another time. I know that bullshit didn’t fly in my father’s heyday, and it won’t fly with me.
“Are you hoping I’ll bend over so you can fuck me?” I ask the owner of Barry’s Spaghetti House. “I only ask because you’re looking at me like your bitch.”
Barry’s bored expression shifts into one of pure terror. He’s like a kid after Mom and Dad yank off the belt. Yeah, I’m not playing, and the Brotherhood isn’t going soft. Not while I’m one of the soldiers and certainly not when I become president.
Tonight, I make a lot of bitchy kids shit their pants. Working distracts me from thoughts of Daisy for only so long. I need to know where she is right that moment. Who is she talking to? Are men at the party? Is anyone flirting with her? Who do I need to kill?
By eleven, I’ve threatened enough business owners to make them at least scared of me even if they think my old man is a big softie. They’re reading him wrong, of course, but I’m not his PR person. He can scare them himself.
I end up back at Salty Peanuts because I don’t know where else to go. Bonn is working tonight. Dayton is acting like a douche. I think to hang out with Mom, but she spends Saturdays watching chick films, and I can’t sit through Fried Green Tomatoes again.
I notice JJ enter the bar, but I play blind. He’s my least favorite person these days. I spot his guys hanging around every place I visit tonight. Apparently, JJ ran a crew out of Birmingham. When he came to meet his long lost daddy, he decided to bring all of his buddies. This setup reeks of bullshit to me, but avoiding JJ is my current game plan. Unfortunately, avoiding me doesn’t occur to JJ.
“Hello, cousin,” JJ says with a level of familiarity I’m uncomfortable with.
I don’t know this guy, and nothing about his demeanor makes me want to. He’s a slimy common thug. I bet at least some of his early work involved stealing old ladies’ social security checks. JJ isn’t my kind of guy, and nothing is bound to change my mind about him.
“How is Hickory Creek treating you?” I ask in a voice devoid of interest.
“Very well indeed. I can see why Dad loves it here so much.”
His overly familiar vibe with Howler feels all wrong. What kind of tough guy melts over a man who fucked and abandoned his mom? Howler never did shit for Bonn, who lived in Hickory Creek. No way did he do shit for JJ. Just because this fucker’s mom was stupid enough to name him Jude Junior doesn’t make him Howler’s favorite, yet somehow this dumbass runs around town acting as the heir-apparent.
“Good to hear,” I say rather than throttling the asshole.
“I’m planning to stick around. I’m sure that’s obvious, but I wanted to make it clear just in case you weren’t in the loop.”
In the loop? This guy is begging for a broken face.
“No offense, man, but you hanging around isn't newsworthy. Howler has a bunch of kids, and they show up occasionally. I’m all for you bonding with your dad, but I have a business to run.”
JJ never loses his smile, and I realize this guy is a stone cold killer. No way does he look into my irritated eyes without flinching unless he figures he’s capable of taking me down.
“Speaking of business, Dad is talking about having me patched into the club.”
“Based on what?” I ask, ordering a drink and stomping down my temper. JJ wants to be chatty, and I think for the first time that I better listen up. “Guys get patched in for the work they do for the club. You haven’t done any yet.”
“Oh, I know about loyalty.”
“Then why is your old crew around?” I ask, glancing at one of the fuckers sitting at a table in the back. “If you want to join the Brotherhood, you need to cut ties to any group that could divide your loyalty. Then you need to break a sweat for the club and prove yourself worthy. I didn’t get patched in because of my daddy. I had to work like everyone else. Grunt shit at the start. No one gets patched into the Brotherhood based on a DNA test. That’s just not how it’s done.”
“Fair enough,” JJ says, giving off a dangerously friendly vibe.
“You have experience with busting balls, I’m sure, so you ought to have no problem embracing grunt work. Cut loose your old ties, settle in here, and shit ought to work out fine.”
JJ nods at the false friendship bullshit I’m selling. He thinks I’m threatened by him, and he’s right. The guy shows up and wants things handed to him. Things that I had to hustle to earn. He sees me as a threat, and I see them the same fucking way. I just wonder which one of us will pull the trigger first.
“Thank for the advice, Dayton,” he says patting my shoulder. “I’m gonna see if I can find something pretty to warm my bed tonight.”
“You do that,” I reply as if he didn’t use the wrong name.
I want to believe he purposely fudged the names to put me in my place, but I think he really can’t tell Dayton and me apart. Most people can’t.
Daisy isn’t most people. She knows me and willfully ignores the parts that don’t fit what she needs. That’s how a club old lady needs to be. Asking questions lead to unhappy answers. Daisy doesn’t care about the club. She only wants me, and I want to hook up with her tonight.
Keeping my promise, I look at my phone but never call her. I leave the bar and head to my place. Finding the condo too quiet, I wish I had a pet except I’m never around enough to enjoy one. Fuck pets. I’m craving one thing, and only that one thing will do. I bet she’s home from her party by now.
I want nothing more than to knock on Daisy’s door, wrap her in my arms, and have us spend the night naked together in bed. JJ pisses me off, and I feel the town changing. Daisy makes that bullshit fade away. I don’t know how she does it, but she just fucking does, and that’s what I need right now.
Since I’m a man of my word, I don’t show up at her door. I do end up driving over to the trailer park with my SUV. Parking, I crawl into the backseat, play tunes on my phone, and doze as close to my woman as I can manage without breaking my promise.
Thirty Two - Daisy
I take forever to fall asleep. My mind reels with the image of Bonn in his cop stripper outfit. I keep seeing Ruby’s horrified expression. I also freak about how I faced down two bitches as if I could do much more than fall on my ass if they took a swing at me. Mostly, I miss Camden and wonder where he’s it and is he thinking about me.
Just after dawn, I hear a knock at the door and force my exhausted ass up. I stumble over a freaked Tokyo, who shares my horror at such an early wake-up call. I check out of the window next to the door and discover a sleepy Camden on my porch. Throwing open the door, I stare in surprise.
“I kept my promise,” he mumbles, entering the trailer and shutting the door. “Now it’s morning.”
Wrapping my arms around his waist, I hug him with relief. “I missed you so much.”
Camden smiles, seeming surprised by my reaction. “Of course, you did,” he says and cups my face.
“Two nights without you is too damn much.”
Kissing me, Camden nods at my statement. His lips are possessive, but I sense he’s tired. As soon as our tongues disengage, I pull away and take his hand.
“A quickie and then we nap, yes?”
“Fucking A, yes.”
Smiling, I nearly trip over Seoul. “The cats do not respond well to early wakeups.”
“I know how they feel.”
Once in my bedroom, we race to see who gets naked first. Considering I’m only wearing a nightgown, I win before crawling onto the bed.
“How was the party?” he asks, smiling at my butt facing him.
I flop on the bed and stretch out. “Crap. I hate everyone except my family and you.”
“Sounds about right,” he says, crawling over me. “People piss me off.”
“Not me, right? Never me.”
“Oh, never you,” he teases and then covers my mouth with his.
Even sleepy, Camden consumes me. He nips and licks my naked flesh until I’m soaking wet. He knows I can’t survive his size unless all of my engines are firing. Once I’m running hot, he slides into me, filling me until I wonder how I will ever walk again. The fullness sends me over the edge, and I make a noise that sends the cats running.
Camden doesn’t laugh at their reaction or my cry. He’s a man possessed, and I understand how our time apart hurt him too. We functioned alone for a long time, but those days are over. Now we need each other to be happy. No more days apart or forcing promises on a man only desperate for my touch.
Thrusting wildly, Camden takes his frustration out on my jubilant pussy. I wrap my legs around his muscular hips, grab hold of the head post, and try to survive this passionate man.
“Don’t look at other men,” he grunts after coming hard enough for me to worry about his health. “No other man.”
“Okay,” I murmur, catching my breath even if his request is silly. “All other men make me sick. I only want to look at you.”
Camden smiles and rolls off me. As quickly as our bodies part, he presses himself against me again. A sweaty and relaxed Camden yanks a sheet over us and smiles again.
“I slept in my SUV out in the trailer park’s lot. Just thought I’d tell you since your neighbors probably spotted me. Nothing’s private at Lush Gardens.”
“You should have knocked earlier,” I whisper, caressing his stubbled cheek. “I couldn’t sleep well without you.”
“I’m your man.”
“Fucking A, you are.”
Camden’s smile grows, but we’re both tired. A nap offers relief from the fatigue. It also recharges my man who rides me hard when we awake hours later. I ride him once too, but damn if I’m not a lazy lover. I’d rather just stick my ass in the air and let him fuck me doggy-style while I do nothing more than hold on for dear life. Oh, and orgasm. I do that a lot too.
After a quick breakfast since my fridge is nearly empty, we sit on the couch and watch each other. I have things I want to tell him but fear saying them out loud. Camden might want to tell me things too, or he might just want to stare at me. His peaceful expression is unreadable.
“Why was the party so shitty?” he asks when I say nothing for too long.
I rush through the details about Bonn, Mylie, and Brittany. His peaceful expression shifts a few times. Anger, confusion, shock, and back to anger before he finally just grunts, “Well fuck.”
The Bonn info likely freaks him out since he has a rather idealized view of his cousin. Watching Camden process everything, I realize I love him so much I’d endure nearly anything to be his woman forever.
“Even if you lost your money and ended up working at Burger King, I’d want you,” I blurt out. “And even if you had to cut off your hair and lost all your sexy muscles and ended up with a gut and acnes, I’d want you. If you went to prison, I’d wait for you.”
I pause a moment, afraid to continue, but his appearance at my door this morning gives me courage.
“The way I feel about you isn’t about your money or power or how fucking hot you are. If it was, I could exchange you for Dayton. There’s something about you specifically that makes me feel like no one else can. It’s like all the best fe
elings I have with my family but also with these extra needs. I’m not saying it right, I guess. I just know I love you because you make me a better person while also making me feel like I don’t have to be better. Like I’m okay being me and that’s a liberating way to feel.”
“If another man touches you, I’m cutting off his hands.”
“I’m okay with that. What if I touch another man?”
“I’ll cut his hands off too.”
“What about my hands?”
Camden takes my hands in his and kisses each one. “Keep your hands off other guys, Daisy Bourbon Crest.”
“I’ll try, but I’m a slut so no promises.”
Even smiling, Camden has no sense of humor about me and other guys.
“No one has ever made me wet except you,” I say, kissing his hands. “I could barely deal with hugging other guys, but with you, hugging will never be enough. I’m only a slut for you.”
“Fucking A, you are. I saw you wiggling that ass for me this morning.”
Smiling, I think about his response to my saying I love him. I lose my smile and lift an eyebrow.
“Well?” I ask when he only stares at me.
“Let’s get married.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to knock you up.”
“You're weird,” I say, standing up.
Camden takes me by the wrist and tugs me across his lap. I frown at him, but he only smiles.
“I loved you before you loved me,” he says casually. “If anyone gets an award for loving, it’s me. I’m the champion of love. Am I still weird?”
“More so than ever,” I say, smiling.
“Let’s get married.”
I open my mouth to be rational, and he does the key thing. Rolling my eyes, I close my mouth and consider yanking off my shirt.
“Don’t think. Just feel, Bourbon Babe. In your heart, you know we match up perfectly. We are meant to be, and no amount of shit rumors or misunderstandings can stop how we feel. Why wait so that you can feel rational? Rational is fucking overrated. We should just be. Just do what we want. Don’t wait for others to give approval or for things to make sense. They already make sense in our hearts. Our brains are just filled with society’s bullshit.”