by Bijou Hunter
Reaching around, I grabbed his ass gently and squeezed. “Do you feel that?”
“Bailey, I’m being serious.”
“I’ve had a stressful day. I took that test and nearly shot a loser in the face. I really feel like only a good fuck will settle me down.”
Nick glanced at the bedroom then back at me. “I don’t know if it’ll help, but it probably can’t hurt.”
I ran my finger over his swollen lip. “We’ll go slow and take our time since you’re banged up. We might have to go all night though.”
Nick smiled, but his eyes were tired in a way I’d never seen them. Despite his affections, I sensed the rest of the night he wasn’t really with me, but rather back in the parking lot reliving the beat down with his dad.
Chapter Thirty Four ~ Nick
Holding onto Bailey all night, I felt as if she alone kept my past away. At breakfast, I pressed my leg against hers under the table while we ate with her family. Sawyer was in a lively mood, bouncing around while describing a school project she nailed.
The plan after eating was to return to the apartment with Bailey until time for class. Instead, Kirk stood up and studied his oldest daughter.
“Bay, go with your mom to drop off Sawyer at school. Nick and I need to talk.”
“About what?” she asked, jumping up like maybe she’d challenge him.
Kirk only smirked. “Go.”
Bailey lost all her fire and turned into a little girl before my eyes. “Pop,” she whimpered.
“It’s fine,” I said while standing up to follow Kirk outside.
Bailey grabbed for her father’s arm and stared up at him. “Don’t be mean.”
Kirk rolled his eyes. “You’re too old for such drama. Now go help your mom clean up before you leave.”
Bailey watched us walk onto the deck, staring wide-eyed like her dad was leading me to a shallow grave. I doubted a guy like Kirk would be so brazen. If he wanted me dead, he’d be subtle about it. Maybe make my disappearance seem like I bailed on Bailey or my dad came for me. He could even point the blame at a fighter I beat and who still held a grudge. Kirk didn’t get where he was in life by showing all his cards.
We sat on the farthest end of the deck and looked down at the river below. From the corner of my eye, I noticed the family’s huge dogs chasing a rabbit into the woods. Above me, a hawk circled the area, scanning for prey. Everywhere predators lurked including the man next to me, yet I wasn’t worried.
“Your dad is a piece of work,” Kirk said, lighting a cigarette. “Talking all kinds of shit in jail. Wants to press charges against you, Bailey, Dylan, everyone. Says he’s going to sue. It’s pretty crazy talk for a man in a new place and not knowing the rules.”
“He’s gotten away with that stuff his whole life.”
“What do we do with him?” Kirk asked, looking me straight in the eyes. “I’m not looking to have a trial where the fucker and his friends call witnesses. That won’t do my family any good. Do you understand?”
Studying him, I never considered lying. “No, I don’t.”
“The guy will be out of jail soon. No getting around it, so we’ll need to decide what happens next. Will he go away and stay away? That’s the thing I need to know. No doubt his friends will go back to that tiny town you’re from, but your pop thinks you owe him.”
“He came here thinking he could make money off my fighting. If he finds out Bailey comes from money, he might not walk away.”
Glancing at his dogs, Kirk exhaled. “I don’t like trouble in my town, but trouble keeps coming around. The Smith sisters had those crap parents. Vaughn’s Devils shit bled into my town too. It used to piss me off, but maybe this is the place assholes come to die.”
As I stared at Kirk, he finished his cigarette. Finally, I said the words. “Are you telling me you’re going to kill my dad?”
Kirk focused his dark gaze on me. “No, I’m asking if I can kill your dad? You and my baby are clicking in a good way and I want you to stick around. With that said, I know you’re not going to join the club and know where the bodies are buried. You want that normal life everyone’s always talking about. I figure you might not be okay with your dad disappearing for good, so I figured I’d ask.”
“I don’t know what to say. He’s a piece of shit, but…”
When I never finished, Kirk did for me. “You don’t want to be the one who makes him dead. Fair enough. I just need to know if he was to go away and never come back that you wouldn’t hold it against Bailey.”
“Bailey is perfection in my eyes and nothing is changing that.”
Kirk nodded. “I know you want to stay out of the business and away from the club. That don’t mean you should take shit from an asshole like your dad. Trust me that losers never change. I know people tell stories about them changing. How they find God or go to rehab or something that makes it seem possible. In reality, people are who they are. They might behave, but they’re the same fuckers inside.”
Thinking about how much I wanted to change from the loser I was growing up, I didn’t like Kirk’s philosophy. Kirk lit another cigarette and shook his head.
“You turned out fine, kid. A man like your dad will make you feel like shit or actually turn you into shit. I see plenty of guys who raise their kids like crap and those kids do the same thing to their kids. Your dad is a user. You aren’t. Don’t let your childhood bullshit make you think you’re like him.”
The thought of my dad gone forever sounded good, yet the image of him dying because of me left me unsure.
“He might leave town if you scared him.”
“Maybe, but for how long? Look, I’m cool with scaring the fucker. I just know guys like him only scare temporarily.”
I watched the dogs linger near their hidden prey. The patient predators waited out lesser creatures. While I didn’t want to think of myself as less than my dad, I knew he was patient when time came for revenge and paydays.
“There’s a guy in the club,” Kirk said, sitting on a lounge chair. “Good guy really. Funny. Loyal. Good member. His only flaw is a need to beat on his wife. I don’t know why he does that shit. He’s not a crazy violent guy, but with his old lady, he’s fast to anger and violence. I’m not talking slapping her or pushing her around either. I mean fucked up punching and kicking shit. He finally put her in the hospital and that’s when I stepped in. She didn’t want me to, but the guy was a loose cannon when it came to her. He made me look bad and I got nervous about him killing her. The chick didn’t want saving, but it needed to happen.”
As I sat nearby, Kirk put out his cigarette and sighed. “The guy still wants to hit his wife. They get in real mean fights and I know he wants to bash her face in. The chick just sets him off and he thinks he needs to show her who’s the boss. The thing is he isn’t the boss. I am and I told him if he touch her wrong again that I was putting him in the ground. He’s never hit her since, but not because he’s changed. He just doesn’t want to die. Every time he gets riled up with his wife, he remembers what happens between them doesn’t stay between them. We’ll know if she has a single bruise. Once we know, he’ll disappear, so he behaves.”
Nearby the dogs caught the rabbit they were hunting. I looked away from their bloody celebration and towards Kirk who was studying me.
“We can scare the shit out of him and make him bleed, so he leaves town,” Kirk said. “Like the guy in the club, your dad needs constant pressure to behave. I can’t be checking on the fucker to ensure he doesn’t hassle my daughter and you. So if you can’t make the call now, just know the day will come when your dad will return and I’ll make the call. The truth is, Nick, some people just need killing. Like a rabid animal, you can’t fix what’s wrong with them. You can only cage or kill. Caging your dad ain’t an option.”
Hearing a car engine start, I thought of Bailey. She could have easily been hurt or even killed in the fight. When I faced my father the day before, I never worried about my safety. I knew how to take a bea
ting. Suffering was more comfortable than safety for me. Bailey’s wellbeing was a different matter.
“Do what you need to do,” I said quietly. “I don’t want to know what happens. I won’t feel better knowing the details, but I can’t have him anywhere near Bailey ever again.”
Kirk stood up and gestured for me to follow him. We returned to the house where he rested on the couch. After he flipped on the TV and found a hunting show, he glanced at me.
“Do you really think Bailey is perfect?”
“Yes. Don’t you?”
Kirk laughed then focused on his show. Sitting with him until Bailey returned, we never spoke of my dad again. The issue was settled and the problem handled. My father would never bother me or Bailey again.
Chapter Thirty Five ~ Bailey
Maddy was patient like a good mother even when dealing with a florist. She sat through the reveals of arrangements with roses, another one with tulips, and a last one with weird looking exotic flowers. Once the florist stopped speaking, Maddy smiled.
“I want sunflowers.”
Hiding her disappointment, the florist no doubt wanted clients like those on TV shows, but this was a part of Kentucky where exotic flowers made the wrong kind of impression.
“Sunflowers,” I said as Maddy and I walked out of the shop. “Redneck chic is pretty badass.”
“The key is I really like these things, so it doesn’t feel fake. Being true to yourself is the best.”
“I don’t know. When I was myself, people kept telling me to stop acting like a bitch.”
Maddy grinned. “True, but you were really loud and pointless back then. Now you’re a bitch in a great way.”
“Yeah, I really am. Do you think I’m too much of a bitch still? Like will I scare away my man?”
“If he hasn’t run away screaming by now, he’s a keeper and you shouldn’t worry.”
Even nodding, I thought about my temper and Nick’s issues. I might still say or do something to send him screaming in terror.
“How did you know Tucker wasn’t going to ditch you?”
“I don’t know. I think it was when I told him I was pregnant and he got so excited that I knew he was for real. Of course, I didn’t know he messed with my pills to get me pregnant.”
“Didn’t you? You always say no, but come on.”
“Well maybe,” she sighed. “I don’t know. I took them in the mornings and I’m pretty out of it until I get a gallon of coffee in me. I don’t really think well until noon. Doesn’t matter since it worked out.”
“True. You have my stupid brother and a beautiful daughter who so far doesn’t seem stupid. Pretty sweet life.”
Wrapping her arm around my shoulders, Maddy grinned. “Thanks for being my maid of honor.”
“Thanks for loving my idiot brother. Guys like him either end up with awesome chicks or meth whores. It’s never in between. I’m happy he went the awesome route.”
Maddy smiled like I’d told her she was a princess. She was still wearing the grin when she dropped me off at my apartment. When I talked to Nick earlier, he planned to go shopping. I didn’t know for what, but I soon found out.
The smell of spaghetti sauce hit me as soon as I opened the apartment door. Underneath the delicious aroma of my favorite food, I detected Pine Sol. I found him in the kitchen, stirring the sauce. Getting warm in all of the right places, I shivered at the sight of him in a pair of jeans and wife beater. The dragon tattoo looked fearsome against his tanned skin. His scars caught my eye too, but I still smiled when Nick noticed me.
“What’s all this?”
“I’m making you mine tonight,” he said, watching me in a strange way. “Jodi said spaghetti is your favorite. I’m nearly finished with the pasta, so you’re right on time.”
Nick leaned down and nipped my lower lip. Grinning at his friskiness, I asked, “Do I smell garlic toast?” Nick nodded as I wrapped my arms tighter around him. “Why now?”
“Once I pick up the last thing from my apartment tomorrow, we’ll officially be living together. Sounds like a good reason to celebrate.”
Glancing to the tiny eating area, I smiled at the set table, complete with lit candles. “Hot damn,” I whispered then glanced at a grinning Nick. “Let me shower, so I smell as good as you do.”
After kissing me while squeezing my ass to make sure both buttcheeks arrived home safely, Nick stepped back. “Dinner will be in ten minutes.”
Grinning, I ran into the bedroom, stripped out of my clothes, and hurried into the shower. The scent of his shampoo and body wash put me in the mood for something besides eating. Even after I dressed and returned, my nipples stayed hard at the thought of a naked Nick.
The spaghetti was perfection and I ate two platefuls. Watching the whole time, his eyes were electric. Imagining what all his hunger meant for our after dinner activities, I devoured my food then leaned back and let it settle.
“I want you.”
“I know,” he murmured, still watching me like I was dessert. “Do you believe in us?”
“Of course,” I said quickly.
“I’ve pushed you away a lot and I still get itchy about little things. Does that worry you?”
“No.”
“You’re lying.”
Caressing his leg with my foot, I sighed. “I know you love me.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
We watched each other for a minute then I sighed again. “I worry you’ll leave.”
“I know. I can’t promise I won’t freak out again. I’ve spent so long alone and I’ve faked like I was happy for so long that I have trouble believing I can be real with you. Part of being real means I get scared in thunderstorms and think you’re a princess while I’m a piece of shit.”
“You’re half right,” I said and we both smiled. “I come with baggage too. You accept me and I accept you too. It’s perfect.”
Nick stood up and walked to my side of the table. After holding out his hand, he led me to the bathroom. He tugged off my shirt then shorts. Every time I tried to help or undress him, he shook his head.
“I’m in charge right now, Bailey.”
“Okay.”
Nick gave me a sly smile then slid my panties to the floor. Once I was naked, he stripped as I made approving noises. Nick never lost the hungry look in his eyes. I’d never seen it before and I was both scared and excited.
“You’re mine,” he said, lifting me onto his hips and carrying us under the warm water. “I’ve waited a long time for you and I’ve had trouble letting you close. Now I’m ready and I’m never letting you go.”
“Good,” I murmured against his throat as I sucked at the flesh.
Nick filled me and fucked like he was on a mission. Only getting started, Nick moved our lovemaking to the bed where he explored my damp body.
“Do you trust me?” he asked, walking to the dresser where he kept his clothes.
“Yes,” I said, rolling to my side. “I’m really enjoying the view. Your ass is a work of art.”
Nick grinned at me over his shoulder then turned with two neckties dangling from his hands. Likely seeing my concern, he asked again, “Do you trust me?”
“Yes, but what…”
Nick crawled onto bed and gently lifted one of my arms over my head.
“I don’t like that submissive shit.”
“I need you to prove you trust me.”
“I already said…”
“You lie without thinking,” he said, lifting the other arm and wrapping the tie around the head post then my wrists. “I need you to prove it.”
“Can I tie you up?” I challenged as he finished restraining my wrists.
“Sure,” he said, crawling lower with the other tie. “I trust you.”
“I don’t like this.”
“You want to be in control.”
“Yeah, but…”
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, wrapping the second tie around my eyes. “Nothing bad will happ
en. I’m not other guys. I won’t abuse you. Or bring other men in here to share. I won’t do anything to embarrass you. I only want you to trust me.”
“I do.”
“No, not really. You think I’m other guys who have screwed you over and tossed you aside like trash. You want to believe I’m better, but you don’t yet. You think I’m weak like them. Maybe bad too.”
“I’m scared.”
“Of what?” he asked then his lips sucked at my earlobe.
“What if you are messing with me and videotape this?” I said, panicking at the thought of every evil thing a guy pulled against a chick.
“If I hurt you, I’ll lose you and I need you more than anything else,” he whispered then added, “Oh, and your dad would have me killed slowly.”
The tie feeling too tight around my wrists, I struggled against the panic rising in my chest. Nick’s lips and hands explored, focusing their tenderness on my boobs. Trying to calm down, I focused on the heat of his tongue on my skin.
“So beautiful,” he said softly. A moment later, I felt him spread my thighs. “Do I love you, Bailey?”
“Yes,” I mumbled, pulling at the tie. “Can you let me loose now?”
“Not until you come.”
“I don’t think I can.”
“What do you see?” he asked as his hot breathe teased my pussy.
“I can’t see, remember?”
“In your mind, you’re seeing what’s happening. What do you see? Are you picturing me looking at your sweet pussy? Can you see me spreading you open and tasting you?”
Before I opened my mouth to reply, I felt his tongue. Imagining Nick tasting me, I relaxed. I knew and trusted him. He had his moments of weakness when I needed to be in charge. My man wasn’t weak though and I could trust him to care for me.
Nick kissed my clit then sucked slow and steady until I was too busy crying out to care about my restrained wrists. He loved me and I was safe. For the first time ever, I really let go during sex and I never came so hard.