Chasing His Fox

by Debra Kayn

  A police officer cut him off, blocking his way. "Hold it right there."

  Angered, he pulled Scarlett behind him to protect her. "It's my place."

  "Everyone knows who lives here." The officer's gaze narrowed, and he shined his flashlight in his eyes. "Move back and put your hands on the car."

  He clamped his mouth shut and put his hands in the air as he walked backward. Scarlett jumped out from behind him.

  "He didn't do anything." She grabbed for Nelson. "Leave him alone."

  "Move away from him." The police officer turned Nelson and pushed him against the car.

  He should've put Scarlett on his motorcycle and kept riding.

  Chapter 23

  Scarlett

  "WHAT A JOKE." SCARLETT put the last of the dirty glasses in the dishwasher. "They wouldn't even listen to Nelson until they'd frisked him and looked through the bags on his Harley. I should file a complaint with the police department or write to the editor of the Missoulian. People need to know how he was unfairly treated."

  It'd taken an hour for the police to leave last night after they'd arrived at Steel Mechanics, and she'd spent until daybreak with Nelson trying to scrub the paint off the doors before it dried completely. She was running on zero sleep, and the more time that passed, the more pissed she became over how the police force acted as if Nelson was the one responsible for vandalizing his own property.

  "He spent ten years in prison," said her mom.

  "So?" She crossed her arms. "Do you honestly think anyone believed he sprayed graffiti his own building? His home?"

  "I don't know." Her mom exhaled. "You don't know either. He's a criminal, Scarlett. You just need to stay out of whatever he's wrapped up in. I can't believe you went on a ride with him. It was bad enough when his dad was killed, and we were dragged into his mess."

  She gawked at her mom. "Nelson didn't kill Mr. Steel."

  Her mom raised her brows without saying anything, obviously not believing that. She hadn't shared that she'd been talking to Nelson since he got out of prison or that they were sleeping together.

  It wasn't anyone's business. She was an adult. If she stayed somewhere else at night, her mom could assume she was on a date or with someone. Why was her mom suddenly caring about who she chose to spend time with now?

  Her mom had an open mind about premarital sex. Her many marriages proved that. She'd raised her and Hazel to be independent women. What was perfectly acceptable for grown men to do, women could enjoy, too.

  "The last thing this neighborhood needs is more trouble again," said her mom.

  Before she could respond that it wasn't Nelson who was doing anything, the front door opened, and Hazel called out.

  "We're in the kitchen." Her mom wiped down the table. "Have you eaten?"

  "Yeah." Hazel walked into the room. "Are you ready?"

  "I just need to grab my purse." Her mom turned to Scarlett. "If we're not back by the time you leave for work, make sure you lock the doors, okay?"

  Hazel took off her sunglasses. "I heard what happened last night. Nelson Steel is going to ruin the neighborhood being back, that's for sure."

  Livid, Scarlett glared at her sister. "That's not how you felt about Josh when you were younger."

  Hazel's mouth opened and shut. "Right, and I grew up. Maybe it's time for you to mature."

  "Whatever." She grabbed her water bottle and walked around her sister and mom, and went upstairs.

  No one had a right to talk about Nelson or how she felt about him. It was the main reason why she hadn't told them that she was seeing him or that they were more than friends.

  She picked out the clothes she'd wear to work. In her current mood, she had no desire to be around others. She was tired of everyone talking about things that were none of their business.

  Stripping off her clothes, she jumped in the shower. By the time she got out, she was still fuming. Besides the police, were other people in the community treating Nelson the same way her mom and sister were?

  The phone rang. She hurried downstairs and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

  "Hey."

  Her heart warmed. "Hey, you."

  "I'm going to follow you to the bar."

  "Cause you miss me?" She used the towel to dry the ends of her hair.

  "That...and with the shit that's been happening, I want you protected."

  She stilled. "Why me?"

  "Because people are desperate to run me out of town, and I don't know if they'll harm you in the process. I don't want you caught in the middle. Once you're at Riverside Bar, a few members of Tarkio will protect you."

  "I get that you're concerned, but I don't think that's necessary. I stay inside at work, and there's always a few people around me." She pulled on the phone cord, twining it around her finger. "I'm more concerned about you. What can I do to stop everyone from harassing you? It's unfair."

  "I don't want you doing anything." His voice deepened. "Because of me, all this shit is hurting you. I want you far away."

  "I'm not going to stop seeing you."

  "Not saying that, fox. There's no reason for us to be out in public together right now. You can come over here but use the back gate. If you see me at the gas station, store, or the bar, pretend you don't know me. I shouldn't have taken you on the Harley or to the river. That's why I'm going to have the Tarkio members watch out for you. When you leave your house tonight, go around the block. I'll follow you at a distance. That way, if anyone is watching, they don't see us leaving together. After work, even if you don't see me, I'll be there," he said.

  She pressed her finger to her temple. It was insane that people were harassing him. He'd more than paid for any trumped-up crime they suspected he committed.

  Even her mom and sister disappointed her. They made assumptions about Nelson without knowing the truth. Nobody knew the truth, and maybe she should've told them exactly what kind of childhood Nelson had growing up and how he'd refused to fight back, even as an adult.

  For them to act scared and worried about her safety and telling her to stay away from Nelson was ridiculous.

  "Are you still there?" he asked.

  "Yeah." She closed her eyes. "I leave at six o'clock tonight."

  "Go around the block. Don't stop. I'll be ready to follow." He paused. "I'll take care of this, Scarlett. I won't let anyone hurt you."

  "I know," she whispered.

  "I'll let you go."

  She held the phone to her ear, refusing to say goodbye.

  "You're not hanging up."

  "I don't want to," she said.

  "I've got shit to do." He still stayed on the phone.

  She leaned against the wall, letting go of the curled phone cord. "You hang up first."

  "Bye, fox."

  "Bye." She waited.

  He chuckled.

  She kept the line open. "You first."

  "Okay."

  The dial tone played in her ear. She hung up the phone, already wanting to run over and see him.

  It was unfair that Nelson had to handle the troubles hitting him. If it was her or her mom or Mrs. Philamin, each one of them would call the police for help. After seeing how law enforcement treated Nelson last night, they already assumed he was guilty.

  Everyone treated Nelson as if he was the problem. It sickened her.

  At five minutes to six o'clock, she opened the front door to leave for work and almost ran into Lorraine standing on the step. "Oh, hey, I was just going to work. Is my clock wrong?"

  "No, you're on time. Can I catch a ride with you?" Lorraine pressed a hand to her chest. "I went out to my car, and I have a flat tire."

  "Sure." She jingled her keys. "You should've called and saved yourself a walk. I could've picked you up at your house."

  Lorraine tapped her head. "I didn't even think. I tried to get ahold of Billy, and he's out on a job site. I could hear the tire hissing in the garage. I must've run over something. I swear it happens every summer when there's road construct
ion going on."

  "Bad start to your night." She opened the car and got in, waiting for Lorraine to buckle up. "Remind me tonight before the bar closes, so I don't rush out and forget to take you home."

  "I appreciate this so much." Lorraine sagged against the seat. "I have to admit that lately, I'm a big chicken leaving work by myself when Billy isn't home. With everything happening in the neighborhood, I jump at every noise."

  "What's going on in the neighborhood?" she asked, backing out of the driveway.

  "Didn't you hear? There's a guy on the next street over who just got out of prison for killing his father and running a huge drug ring. I heard he even killed someone while he was serving time. I never thought we'd have a serial killer walking around with us."

  Scarlett slammed on the brake.

  Lorraine yelped, grabbing the dash. Scarlett, blinded with anger, stared at her.

  "Who is telling you all that?" Her stomach tightened.

  "My neighbors. We're looking out for each other. Mr. Hattershield is even talking about starting a neighborhood watch and handing out stickers to everyone to put on their door."

  Knocked speechless, Scarlett put the car in Drive. She had no idea people's sense of stupidity had risen so high that she forgot to go around the block to let Nelson follow her to work and only realized her mistake when she was ten feet from the back door of the bar, and the rumble of a motorcycle went down the street.

  Chapter 24

  Nelson

  THE GATE SWUNG OPEN, and Scarlett hurried toward Nelson. He'd had eight hours to fume, and he was no way near being done.

  "I'm sorry." She stopped in front of him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "God, I'm sorry."

  Without a way to reach her when she never showed up in front of Steel Mechanics before work, he'd had twenty minutes, imagining the worst, until he'd seen her with his own eyes walking into the bar.

  If someone had gotten ahold of her, he had no idea where he would look. He still had no idea who was after him.

  "Lorraine showed up at my door when I was leaving. She needed a ride to work because she had a flat tire, and she got to talking, and I forgot." Scarlett leaned back without letting go of him. "I promise I won't forget again."

  Scarlett remained tense. He gripped her shoulders, making her look at him. She wasn't telling him the whole story.

  She always had a habit of talking fast when she was hiding something.

  "You didn't want Lorraine to see you driving around the block. Why?" he asked.

  "You told me—"

  "You wouldn't have had to say anything, or you could've lied and told her you wanted to drive by Steel Mechanics to see what everyone was talking about, because, fox, they're talking. You're going to get hit a lot with information about me, and you'll need to let it go. I don't want or need you defending me." He tilted her chin. "Are you hearing me?"

  Her mouth puckered. "I truly hate people."

  "Welcome to the club, fox." He kissed those tight lips. "Are you staying or going?"

  "Staying." She hugged him, clinging to his side as he walked her into the garage.

  He took a keyring off the pegboard and handed it to her. Amused at the look of confusion on her face, he kissed her.

  "What's this for?" she asked.

  "One is for the backdoor. The other is for the door upstairs. That way, you can come over, and if I'm not around, you can wait for me."

  Her face broke out in a smile, and she squeezed the keyring in her hand. "Thank you."

  Taking her upstairs, he kicked the door shut. It'd been a long fucking night.

  "Can I jump in the shower?" she asked.

  He reached behind his head, grabbed the collar of his T-shirt, and pulled it off. "Only if I can watch."

  She laughed softly. "It's not very exciting."

  "Maybe not to you." He eyed her breasts. "But seeing you all wet and naked is about the most exciting thing that's happened to me."

  She caught her bottom lip between her teeth and gazed at his chest. "Yeah?"

  "Oh, yeah," he murmured.

  He guided her to the bathroom, turned on the water, and then the showerhead. His clothes came off faster than hers, and he stood back and ogled her body as she slowly stripped off her bra, her panties.

  His cock pulsed to life, and he opened the sliding shower door. Motioning her in, he got a view of her ass as she lifted her leg over the wall of the tub and stood under the stream.

  She sighed, running her hands over her arms. He followed her. She moved to the side, letting the water hit him.

  The more relaxed mood, the pleasure in her eyes, her gorgeous body, wet and near, excited him. He trailed his finger under the heaviness of her breast, watching the water roll off her tight nipple.

  "Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?" He kissed her, reaching behind her for the soap.

  He'd forgotten a washcloth and lathered up his hands. Seeing his intent, she backed under the showerhead and tilted her head, getting her hair wet. Her breasts lifted higher. He cupped the mounds, spreading the soap suds.

  His balls ached in pleasure at the slick, smoothness of her skin. Moving down her ribs, he rubbed over her stomach, her hips, and slid his soapy hand between her legs.

  Scarlett moaned. Her eyes closed as she lathered her hair, and he washed her lower half. A curtain of white bubbles rolled down her breasts, merging and sliding over her belly button. Lower, over the thin line of auburn hair covering her pussy.

  Being careful not to get soap inside of her, he moved to her inner thighs. Bending at the waist, he worked his way clear down to her ankles and back up.

  She rinsed her hair, turned toward the water, and sprayed the soap off her face. He used the new position to wash her ass. A perfect ripe peach, he squeezed her cheeks and wiped the soap away with his hand to see the two dimples on each side, above her butt.

  Bending again, he kissed the small indentions. He'd never seen any woman have those marks, except in magazines. They made her sexier than hell. Like little thumb-holds when he gripped her hips.

  "You know what those are called?" Her arm came behind her, and she tangled her fingers in his hair. "Venus dimples. Legend has it; they're marks given to only the women with many sexual talents."

  His head came up, and he straightened. She'd gotten his attention.

  Scarlett slowly turned. Her smile turned to giggles, and then she tilted her head back and laughed.

  "I'm joshin' you." She leaned forward and kissed him. "You should've seen your face."

  He chuckled until her hand gripped his cock. She might've made the whole legend thing up, but he would swear on his life, she had many talents he hadn't even discovered yet.

  Scarlett soaped her hands and caressed his stomach down to his cock. The up and down motion curled his toes. He grew harder, bigger, wider in her hands.

  "Jesus," he mumbled, reaching out to brace himself against the shower wall.

  She weighed his balls in her hand, rolling each one. His heart pounded. He was going to come if she kept touching him like that.

  Then, she let go of him and moved out of the way of the water. Once he had all the soap off, she stepped into the spray.

  Her face reddened. His chest tightened. He always loved how her pale skin blushed over the simplest things, and now he could add when she was aroused.

  She kissed his neck, his chest, and sank to her knees in front of him. She pressed her lips against the small indention at the front of his hip and smiled up at him.

  He brushed her hair out of her face and stroked her cheek. Consumed with everything about her, there wasn't a minute that went by that he settled for what they had together. He wanted more. He wanted everything.

  Every thought that entered her head.

  Every one of her exhales on his skin.

  Every smile she gave when she was happy.

  But, he couldn't give her everything she deserved. All he was doing was pulling her into his world. A world too harsh for h
er.

  She leaned forward, taking his cock in her mouth. His knees weakened, and he caught himself. The warm suction an instant relief from the wild ride of emotions he rode all night when she went to work without letting him protect her.

  His hips moved, thrusting forward, pulling back. The light spray of water bouncing off her body onto his heightened his senses. Wanting to feel her body against him, he slid his hand under her chin and lifted, bringing her to her feet.

  With her mouth open and her heated gaze focused on his eyes, he turned her around and pulled her back to his chest. Running his hands over her breasts, down her curves, he hooked her waist with one arm and pressed his hand to her upper back, manipulating her into position in front of him.

  Her ass brushed his cock. A groan echoed in the shower stall. It came from him.

  Blindly sliding his hardness between her legs, he aimed for her pussy. The slickness took him a few tries to find home. Then, he was there.

  Her tightness sucked him in, and he ground against her. Her head snapped up, flinging her wet hair down her back on top of his hand. He grabbed the strands in his fist and held her in front of him. Cupping her hip, he moved in and out, gazing down at where their bodies joined.

  A wave of pleasure went down his spine, tightening his ass.

  His thumb pressed against the small dimple on her lower back. She bucked against him, and he swore he grew another inch inside of her.

  His body pulsed, never missing a stroke. Over and over, faster and faster. His head pounded, and he pulled her hair, keeping her close.

  Scarlett moaned, wildly moving in the tight space he allowed her. He imagined her breasts, swinging freely, erratic with her movements, wet, hot, ripe.

  His name slipped from her lips. "Nelson."

  The syllables drawn out on a moan caressed his balls. Her pussy squeezed down on him as her orgasm came, held, and continued.

  He plunged fully inside of her, holding her still, not giving her an inch to move, and climaxed. Pleasure hit him hard, deep, and shook him. He shot his come in one, two, no three, long streams.