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Striking

Page 17

by Lila Felix


  His rough hands were tight against my waist, gripping me to him, holding me prisoner. His soft but firm lips were hot and wet against my mouth. I whimpered as he moved from my mouth, down the column of my neck. He pushed me back further, taking a step with me and lifting me easily onto his work table.

  He stepped between my legs and our kiss intensified. I slid my hands through his cleanly shaven hair, relishing the feel of the soft spikes beneath my fingers. His lips trailed along the lines of my collar bone, his fingers inching higher whether he noticed or not.

  I wanted to kiss him forever.

  He was that good.

  And it didn’t hurt that while I was kissing him everything else seemed to disappear-my problems, my life, my insecurities, the messed up part of my brain that liked to hurt the people that I loved. While I was kissing Stockton nothing else mattered in the world. It was just him and me and I felt loved and accepted for the first time in my entire life.

  “Cami,” he rumbled into my ear. “There is…. I mean…. What I’m trying to say is-“

  “Stock, time for dinner!” Will’s loud voice sounded from just the door way. “I made your favorite, I think you’re going to really-“

  “Go away,” Stockton growled at her.

  “Aren’t you supposed to hang a sock on the door handle or something?” Will asked casually while I burned up with embarrassment.

  “Who taught you that?” I all but screeched. “You’ve been watching way too much TV lately or something, girl! You can’t just assume that about people. For your information your brother and I haven’t-“

  This time I was cut off by Stockton’s big, giant hand over my mouth. “Those are things we don’t discuss with my little sister ever. Got that? Ever.”

  “Sure I got it,” I agreed quickly, removing his hand from my lips and dropping it unceremoniously. “Probably shouldn’t show her those things either.” I winked at him and then hopped down from the table. I grabbed my purse and followed after Will.

  “We’re not done here,” he called after me while he gave me a swat on the ass when I passed him.

  “Believe me,” I turned back to look at him over my shoulder. “I know.”

  He smiled at me and it was so big and genuine on his face I wondered if I had ever seen that expression before. I didn’t think I had, which made me wonder how often in his stressful life he got to smile. Pride and amazement swelled my heart when I reminded myself that was me who put it there-me who made him so happy.

  “Hey, Will,” I called after her since she was already to the screen door. “Need any help with supper?”

  Since when did I become so helpful?

  Probably since that boy walked into my life and helped me find a better version of Camdyn Montgomery.

  I liked this Cami much better. But most of all I liked that boy who was stealing my heart whether I was ready for that to happen or not. He was taking it and I was helpless to hold onto to it. And when I really thought about it, when I allowed myself to be honest, I was more than happy to let him have it. Somehow I knew he would take much better care of it than I had.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Stockton

  She’d had dinner at my house for the third time this week and every time I saw her hand touch the handle of the screen door, I pleaded with it not to obey—to disregard her pushing arm—to trap her with me if only for one more hour. She’d relaxed around me. Cami now laughed freely and with everything her lungs and soul had to give. And I thought I’d smiled and laughed more in the past week than I had in years.

  Than I had in my life.

  I had to confront her with something now so foreign to me that I almost didn’t remember how

  to do it. I knew how to do it, I was just out of practice. And I didn’t even know if she wanted to. I knew I wanted to, and we’d been talking through her window and hinting at it long enough. And the need for it bubbled in my blood.

  I needed to ask Camdyn Montgomery on a real date.

  And just the thought scared me to death.

  It’s not like I thought she’d say no, but this was more than courting outside of her bedroom window. There would be no window sill keeping me bound. No female siblings threatening to interrupt. And honestly, I was concerned about keeping my hands to myself—she was just too irresistible for her own good. Note to self: wear pants with deep pockets. They would be your saving grace.

  I waited until the violet hour and then went to her window. But tonight would be quick. My plan was to restrain myself from kissing her—make her miss it—make her desperate for it tomorrow. When I approached the light coming from her bedroom something burned deep in my chest, knowing that she was waiting for me, no longer trying to hide. I’d seen her hide, almost cower in front of Preacher Wife and sometimes Henry. She conjured the same posture in front of Mallory at one time but the last few times I’d seen them interact, they’d both thawed out substantially.

  “Pssst!”

  “Oh my, is it my gentleman caller this late? I surely am glad I hadn’t changed into my night clothes, I’d be right embarrassed.” She strangled out some hick accent, a cross between Ellie May Clampett and Dolly Parton.

  It was awfully endearing—and a little offensive to Dolly.

  Ok, a lot offensive to Dolly.

  “Am I too early? If I’d known your gentleman caller was coming, I’d waited. I don’t want to interrupt your tryst, Duchess.”

  “Ha. Ha. Ha.” She said and smiled at me.

  “Where’s your chair, Stock? Or are you planning on finally jumping through this window?”

  She waggled her eyebrows.

  God, even her eyebrows were amazing.

  “Actually, I’m not staying long. I just wanted to ask you one thing and then I’m going back home. I want you to get a good night’s sleep.”

  “Hit me.”

  “Do you want to go on a date with me?”

  She giggled and leaned her head and torso completely out of the window, “I’d love to.”

  “Good, ok, great, um, tomorrow night…” I leaned in and made sure my mouth was as close to hers as I could get without touching hers. It was torture. “Wear a dress, but bring a swim suit.”

  “A bikini, Stock? Oh man, you are in so much trouble now.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Because there won’t be a house between us. And my bikini has exactly four strings. Keep that in mind, Hillbilly.”

  I didn’t know what was worse, the anticipation of kissing her before our lips had ever met or my desire to now that I knew exactly what they felt like. Each was its own form of pain and pleasure.

  I backed away and nodded. “Oh, I will. But I don’t think it’s me you’ll have to worry about.”

  “Oh yeah, you think I have no restraint? As I recall it was you that nearly devoured me in your shop earlier today.”

  I chuckled, it was the truth. But I had to leave her wanting—and me too. I moved my head to her left side, and made sure that my lips were on her ear as I spoke next.

  “You loved it, Duchess. You loved my hands on your tiny waist. You started it with those perfect lips on my jaw. And I loved the way you let your fingers run over the top of my head. You wanted me to park your ass on my workbench and … “

  I felt her weight shift forward against me, her hands were fisted in the shoulders of my shirt and her chest was heaving in heavy breaths.

  Mission accomplished.

  “And what,” She whispered.

  I pressed a quick peck to her forehead and some ice on our fire.

  “Will you listen to me? The hillbilly must’ve forgotten his manners. I’ll see you tomorrow, seven o’clock.”

  I backed away from the window after making sure she was going to be able to hold herself up. I forced my feet to move one in front of the other and focused on the sound of the twigs breaking under my boots. It was all I could do to leave her there wanting—when wanting was how I’d set out to make her feel in the first place.

&n
bsp; Not to mention, the fact that she wanted me made me tremble in the very best way.

  “Didn’t you forget something?” She asked.

  I turned around and shrugged. I knew what she meant. I’d kissed her goodnight every night this week.

  “Not that I know of. Be careful, Cami.”

  She groaned louder than she should’ve and I decided to make a break for it before the Macon’s woke up fully.

  There wasn’t a bit of sleepiness in me on the ride home and I decided to finish up the rest of the filing and polishing on my knives for the flea market on Saturday. I parked the truck, went to check on Will one more time and found her door ajar—I could hear her soft snore and knew she was long gone.

  I didn’t have to heat up anything by fire that night, so I ignored the apron and heavy jeans in favor of the cargo shorts I had on. The shop had been left a little messy from earlier, since I put off everything when Cami showed up. Not to mention, I’m sure a few brain cells burned in a flame of lust when she was here, where I worked, where a lifetime of memories clawed at me. Just one appearance in this cavity and it seemed as if the demons willowed into the dirt floor, their fires and gnawing snuffed out by the simple presence of her goodness and light. The whole place seemed less like a dungeon, my chains no longer dragging on the floor, my head no longer hanging from the confines of the stockade and more like, well, a workplace.

  Like I was no longer face down struggling for a breath of life.

  The air was mine for the taking again.

  I was still reeling on the current that sparked in my veins, the one that fizzled out when she wasn’t around, the one that I’d tried to manifest in her absence only to be disappointed. It was Cami, pure and simple. She was the light at the end of my tunnel and I would wrestle even myself to get to her glow. She’d come into my midnight, dismal existence and made the creatures come alive.

  And someone I once despised, had now become someone I couldn’t live without.

  I wouldn’t live without her.

  If she left, the laceration would be irreparable.

  The incision too deep and too gaping ever to be mended.

  Because the wound of my parents’ death was still not full scabbed over and there was just so much a man could take.

  I looked to the Father above and begged for affirmation that I’d had enough.

  That I’d endured my quota of pain and regret and deserved just a sliver of happiness.

  But no affirmation did I find.

  Set to get all of my work finished for the night, I set up my files and polishing tools at the workbench and had to smile at the two almost perfect round imprints on it. That was where she’d been and I wanted to put a glass case on top of it to preserve the memory of Cami in this place, her heavenly mouth driving me near to madness. Not wanting to taint it just yet, I moved my tools further down the bench, pulled up a stool and reached under the workbench for my box of newly made knives. Its weight was far lighter than I’d known it to be and I shucked it from its resting place to inspect.

  “What the hell?” I shouted to no one. I knew that no one would borrow these knives. I lived in a place where all men, both burly and benign carried pocket knives like most women carried purses. It was just the way we did things. So why would someone come into my shop and take something so well hidden—so common? I spent well over an hour raccooning and jackaling through every metal scrap, every fragment of discarded saw blade and iron alike. I jettisoned through unfinished blades and projects and still came up empty handed. And if I was an unorganized person, a reckless worker, I wouldn’t be surprised—but I was as, if not more meticulous than my father. It just didn’t make sense.

  It took me most of the pre-dawn hours to clean up and get everything back to pristine. But my missing things wrestled through my thoughts, coming up with scenarios about where they’d gone and when they were coming back. As I exited the thoroughly trashed and cleaned shop, the sun was just nodding to the morning in hello and bidding goodbye to the night. I heard the rooster greet the morning and decided to get Will’s chores done for her. Because at this point, if I tried to go to sleep, even for a few hours, I’d never recover. I’d spend the rest of the day with a major night-owl hangover.

  I decided to treat Will and jumped in the truck and ran to town for hot glazed donuts. She loved them but we tried not to eat out much. I also picked her up a pint of chocolate milk, another one of her favorites. Our mom used to take her to the donut shop on her birthday and buy her one chocolate sprinkled donut. After three boys, she made sure Will knew she was special.

  I got home and left the donuts and milk on the table and knocked on her door early. I knew my sister. She would want to sit at the dining room table in her pajamas and take her time with the warm, sweet morsels. My sister was a goon.

  I nearly fell asleep in the shower, leaned against the tiles. I would have to spend the day re-forging and trying to recoup the loss of my knives. There were only three left in the box. I knew I had at least seven, but I’d try to make as many as I could before seeing Cami that night. A little extra in my pocket would make me feel better about our finances.

  I changed into work pants. Opening the dresser, I grabbed a black t-shirt and as I pulled it over my head, I glanced at the black and gray tattoo on my chest and smiled. I bet that would be one surprise the duchess wouldn’t see coming from the blacksmith.

  When I got to the kitchen, I could see Will putting away her third donut, licking the flakes of sugary film from each finger.

  She took one look at me and ceased, “Good grief, you look like Hell.”

  “Watch it, Missy.”

  She shrugged, “You look haggard, how about that?”

  I sat at the table and made her giggle by shoving an entire donut in my mouth and then bowing as she applauded.

  After I finished chewing, I dug deep for some tact and asked her, “Have you been in the shop?”

  “Your shop?” She didn’t even look at me, she was too enamored by her fourth donut. The kid was gonna go into a sugar coma.

  “Yeah.” I slid the box away from her and she whined like a puppy.

  “Eeew, no. That place is filthy. Why?”

  “Some of my knives are missing.”

  “Somebody probably just borrowed them,” she shrugged.

  “Will, it was at least three or four brand new knives. I made them to sell. They were in a box under the workbench. It’s not the same as someone borrowing a tool or the lawnmower.”

  She looked to the ground and shamefully mumbled, “Maybe someone else was in the shop.”

  “Like who?”

  “Cami. Maybe she moved them or was looking at them. She probably just put them in the wrong place or something.”

  “Well, I’m not even gonna say anything to her—I don’t want her to think we don’t trust her. Cami may have been a likely suspect when she came but she has earned our trust. You don’t say anything to her either. Are we clear?”

  Even I heard the phantom of my father as I bellowed orders out to her.

  “Yes, Sir. I’m gonna go do my chores.”

  I cleared my throat, “I did them already. Thought you deserved another day off. I was gonna let you sleep in a bit but I knew the donuts would take precedence over sleep.”

  “Thanks, Stock.”

  I nodded. She slumped back to her room, the sugar hadn’t fully hit her yet.

  I hogged down two more donuts and a cup of the strongest coffee I could make. Scenarios whispered to me as I sat at that lonely table. Unmade memories of seeing Cami’s silhouette in the shower first thing in the morning. Being able to kiss the back of her neck while she stood at my sink. Retiring to the same bedroom at night—I’d let her hog the covers and she could have any side she wanted—as long as she was with me. I’d buy her yellow rubber boots for the rainy days. She could write to her heart’s content on the front porch.

  As long as she loved me, she could do whatever she wanted to.

  Loved me
?

  Loved—me?

  Will slouched back into the kitchen, again knocking the cloud of thought from my forecast.

  “OK. I’ve got an English paper to turn in on Sense and Sensibility, an Algebra pop quiz and that’s it.”

  I huffed out a laugh, “Not very much of a pop quiz if you already know about it.”

  “Well, Mr. Anderson’s daughter is a freshman now. She gives out info to the Seniors for twenty bucks. Of course, only one of us pays and the rest spread the word. And I don’t ask for the information, I’m just a really, really good listener.”

  “Still, not very honest.”

  “I’d ace it even if it was a surprise, Stock.” She brushed off her shoulder, “I’ve got this.”

  I simply rolled my eyes and waved her off.

  I started out the screen door towards the shop and spent the day scrambling my mind for the whereabouts of those knives and making new ones to replace them. As the afternoon wore down, I’d made five more and even my gloves couldn’t protect me from the new layers of callous on my hands. I was filthy and exhausted—and there was a Duchess who would be waiting on me soon. Will said she was staying in since Jesse was always busy now.

  After a thorough shower and throwing clean clothes on, a light blue button down shirt and some dark washed jeans, I jumped in the truck and headed towards the Macon’s.

  I was more nervous than I’d ever been—yet I’d never been more solid in a resolve in all my life.

  This wasn’t just dating some random woman.

  This was Cami.

  This was a step towards seeing if she could love me.

  But I didn’t have that much to give.

  All I had was my heart.

  But she could have it all—every damaged piece of it.

  I knocked on the front screen door like my mother had raised me to and waited. Mallory answered the door and asked me to come in. I stepped inside and rocked back and forth on my heels waiting for her to get ready. I thought maybe she’d be one of these women who take an hour to primp but she emerged just minutes later but even if she’d taken hours, she couldn’t look better than she did.

 

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