Autumn's Healing

by HK Carlton

  “Aw, Salem,” she said, burying her face in the crook of his neck. She worked her hips in the most exquisite circular, then up and down, combo.

  “Fuck, you have one hot, beautiful pussy,” he murmured. She moaned and her inner walls clenched. “Mmm, ya like that, baby?” he asked, as he thrust. “You want me to talk dirty?” He raked his teeth over her collarbone and was pleased when she shivered.

  “I like everything you do. You make me feel…alive. Uhh…” She flipped her hair and rocked back slightly as they continued to pelvis bump. She looked so beautiful. A sheen of perspiration made her skin glow. Her eyes were heavy lidded and sexy. She trapped her full bottom lip between her teeth, releasing it slowly, coyly, teasing him. No doubt she was up to something. “You have one fine cock.”

  Her words made him jerk. Salem grabbed her hips and pulled her down on him, hard. “I want in so deep, Kay,” he growled, all kidding aside. The scent of her arousal wafted around them, making his mouth water, his head spin.

  She clamped her legs around him and rubbed, grinding against him in the most amazing way.

  Salem planted his hands firmly on the bed and thrust upward.

  Soft hiccups escaped her as he bucked her on his lap. He could feel the tension growing inside her, mirroring his. She squeezed him with her internal muscles. He savored the first tiny tremble. It wouldn’t be long, and it was a damn good thing. He couldn’t hold out.

  “Come, baby. Come,” he demanded, butting his thumb up against her clit. It had the desired effect. Her body jerked and a myriad of delicious pulses surrounded his dick and he joined her in yet another staggering orgasm.

  * * * *

  When Mikaylah and Salem finally reached the house, the guys were digging around the foundation by hand, though she did note that Taggart was not among them.

  Only slightly embarrassed to be walking into her place wearing the same clothes she’d worn yesterday at the street dance, Kaylah held her head high as she dashed inside, leaving Salem to deal with the crude hazing she was sure was to come.

  After a quick shower and some fresh clothes, Kaylah made a pitcher of iced tea for the men. Even though it was only midmorning, the crew already looked parched, sweaty and dirty. She placed it on a tray, along with some plastic cups.

  On her way to the front door, she heard raised voices from outside.

  “Get your fucking shit out of my truck, Thompson. You are not bunking with me another night. I’ve got a hot date this evening. And if all goes well, I’ll be grinnin’ like a fool, just like our fearless leader is right now.”

  “Pfff. It’s not like your night is gonna end up as good as Salem’s,” Piquet taunted.

  Kaylah’s step faltered and she stopped by the open window.

  “I’ve seen your idea of a hot date, and it ain’t nothin’ like—”

  Salem clamped down on Piquet’s shoulder before he could go any further.

  Kaylah made herself move again and used her toe to open the door. It squeaked, attracting everyone’s attention. Her cheeks flamed. “Could anyone use some sweet tea?”

  Several of the guys gathered around. She served them as Thompson and Fray continued to argue.

  “So, where the fuck am I supposed to stay? In my fucking car? Oh wait, I sold that to pay your fucking rent.”

  “You can bunk at my place, Thompson,” Salem offered.

  “Naw, bossman. I don’t wanna horn in on your uh…new sleeping arrangements,” he said quietly but still loud enough for Kaylah to hear.

  Salem’s jaw tightened as he caught her eye. She couldn’t help but smile.

  “Throw your gear in my truck.”

  “Thanks, boss.”

  “Does that offer stand for all of us?” Kraft cleared his throat. “I’m losing my room at the end of the month, too. The VA only guaranteed me a year after discharge. My time’s up.”

  Salem took a deep breath. It was obvious he was shouldering a lot, trying to keep his men afloat.

  “I know this place needs a lot of work,” Kaylah interrupted, “but the rooms are solid. Anyone who needs a place is welcome to stay here.”

  All attention turned back to her.

  “That’s real nice of ya, ma’am. Thank you,” Kraft said, removing his cap.

  “I’ve got some things to do inside. I’ll leave the tea here.” She set the tray on the rail.

  Several minutes later, from the entrance, Salem called her name.

  “I’m in the kitchen.”

  The moment she saw his expression, she knew she’d overstepped.

  “That was real nice of you to offer the guys,” he began.

  “But?” she asked, sensing one.

  “Look. I know this is real new and all, but I don’t think I like the thought of them being around here when I’m not. If that makes me sound possessive, well, I really don’t care.”

  It did sound possessive but it was okay with her. She was feeling a bit territorial about Salem, too. She didn’t care that they barely knew each other. She wanted to spend every second she could with him.

  “Then move in, too,” she blurted, surprising herself.

  Salem shot his look to her.

  “There’s lots of room,” she rushed. “Pick one.

  Salem made a huffing sound, as if he couldn’t quite believe what she was saying.

  She moved closer. “Though there’s lots of space in my room. I wouldn’t mind sharing with you,” she whispered. Her focus dipped to his still-open mouth. She leaned in and kissed him, but it didn’t remain that way for long. Salem slid his arms behind her. He cupped her ass and pulled her forcefully against his hard body.

  Everything in her turned liquid as she melted into his embrace.

  “Get a room,” Fray said as he walked in on them.

  Salem raised his head, breaking the kiss, but he didn’t release his hold. His eyes were slightly unfocused but oh-so-sexy.

  “We were just discussing that,” Salem replied, looking at her mouth.

  “What do you want us to get started on in here?” Fray waited, staring at the ceiling.

  “The plumbing and the wiring are the most pressing.”

  “Yes sir. I’ll get Piquet on the wiring and Kraft on the pipes.” Fray did an about-face, leaving them alone once more.

  “You know how crazy it is for you and I to even be discussing moving in together?” Salem asked, cautiously.

  “I know it is. We’ve only known each other a few days.” Regardless, disappointment flooded Kaylah.

  Salem watched. His eyes shifted back and forth, searching. His erection pulsed against her mound. Her pussy clenched in response. “It might be crazy, Salem, but you have to admit, it feels real good.” She raked her teeth over his chin.

  “Now you quit that or I’m gonna rip your shorts off, plunk you on that counter and fuck you like there’s no tomorrow, and I won’t give a fuck who walks in!”

  Her inner muscles contracted. Mikaylah opened her mouth on a silent moan. “I want you to fuck me like there’s no tomorrow.” He had no idea. She tipped her hips and added more pressure to his impressive hard-on.

  “You’re playin’ dirty, lady. I have work to do.”

  “Well, technically, you work for me.” Am I actually flirting? “I might have something I need you to take care of in my room.”

  “That’s convenient.” He jerked his hips.

  Like a pair of randy teenagers, they raced to her bedroom.

  After the fastest quickie in history, they lay in a heap, gasping. Salem hadn’t even managed to get his pants all the way off.

  He reached over and wiped her hair from her face. “Now, about moving in.”

  “I’m sorry. I know it’s way too soon to be—”

  “I’d rather you spend the nights with me at my place.”

  Surprised, she blinked. It probably had more to do with the strange goings-on here than it did with her.

  “It’s no fun living through a total renovation,” Salem continued. “I often rec
ommend that if the homeowners can afford to stay somewhere else while the work is going on, to do so.”

  “But what about the guys who need a place to sleep, Salem?”

  “They can stay here, if it’s all right with you?”

  “Absolutely. It’s kind of what we’re going for, right? A boarding house?”

  “So, what’d’ya say? Roomies?”

  “I don’t care where I sleep, as long as I wake up next to you.” She meant it. It’d been a long time since she’d fallen for someone so hard, so fast. Salem held the things at bay that she’d rather not think about.

  Chapter Eight

  As expected, once the crew began to renovate and upgrade the house, other problems came to light besides the wiring, foundation and plumbing, but, weeks into the project, slowly but surely they were making headway. Though everything that could possibly go wrong seemed to.

  Today, the team was replacing windows. The one in Autumn’s room needed extra work. As they’d done in all the upstairs bedrooms, Salem had torn out the old plaster and replaced it with the more modern drywall sheeting. Though they were going to try their best to keep the plaster walls intact on the main level, if possible, it wasn’t really an option on the second floor.

  After replacing some wood support, Salem and Fray hefted the new window into the freshly framed-in rectangle.

  “Careful. We don’t want to fuck this one up, too,” Fray cautioned.

  “Fourth time’s a charm, Fray,” Salem replied, shoving a shim between the vinyl and the wood.

  “This is the third effin’ pane, not to mention the week we spent fixing the rot and replacing the strapping and drywall. Don’t ya think it’s weird, Salem? We put windows in all over this house but never had the problems we’ve had with this one.”

  “Well, the first one was obviously my fault. I must have measured wrong.” Though he was certain he hadn’t. Or perhaps the measurements had been recorded wrong on the order with the glass manufacturer. “The second one, though the right size, arrived broken, and we had to send it back. The third one, Thompson and Kraft broke putting in,” Salem recapped.

  “But, seriously, boss, it’s not just this room. Almost every part of this reno has been a nightmare. Everything that possibly could go wrong, has. We’ve never had problems with the distributors like we’ve run into on this job. From late supplies or discontinued product to backorders and material arriving either warped or completely wrong… I just don’t get it,” Fray ranted.

  “I know. It’s like we’re never supposed to finish this house or something.”

  “I think we’ll be done remodeling the rest of the entire place before you get this one room completed. Everything you’ve done in here has gone to shit. What else could possibly go wrong?”

  “Shhh. Don’t say that out loud,” Salem cautioned, while eyeing the window. Though every time they hit a snag with the refurb—whether it be structural or a delay in getting materials—Salem was secretly pleased. Anything that would keep Kaylah near him longer was a welcome setback. He was in love with her. There was no getting around it. She’d wound her way into his heart

  “Ya got this?” Fray asked.

  “Yeah, thanks, I’ll finish shimming it up, spray in some foam to seal it, then it’s trim time.”

  “You gonna get Kaylah to paint all the trim in here, too?”

  “Probably.”

  “She’s really gotten into the swing of it, eh? Painting and peeling off all that gaudy wallpaper. I swear every room on this second level had it. I never thought she’d get it all off. She doesn’t mind gettin’ her hands dirty.”

  “Yeah, she seems to be getting into the process. She learns quick, too. Did you check out that powder room downstairs? Kaylah did all the tile work and the grout.”

  “I did. You’d better watch it, boss. I think Thompson had a bit too much fun teaching her that stuff.”

  “I know it. But I think half of you guys would push me off the roof if ya thought you had a chance with her.”

  “And I think you’re underestimating,” he said, as he disappeared down the hallway, his evil laugh fading as he went.

  “Loyalty’s a lost quality,” he mumbled to himself. “Now what did I do with that level?” He’d thought Fray had leaned it against the wall. “And where’s my fuckin’ tape measure?” Reaching into the leather pouch slung about his hips, he also came up empty. Salem looked around the room then started bellowing, but as usual, no one heard him.

  After carefully navigating the stairs, he made his way to the living area where the majority of the work was centered for the moment, but the room was empty.

  “Does no one work around here, anymore?”

  He snagged the first tape measure he saw then followed all the noise and commotion to the kitchen where he found Piq and Thompson carrying groceries in the back door. The counter was littered with fresh vegetables, fruit and a massive turkey.

  Soon the other guys followed with more.

  Salem set the tape measure on the sideboard and grabbed an apple from the big bowl in the middle of the table.

  “What’s all this?” Salem asked, as Kaylah entered with several bags in her arms.

  “Fixin’s for Thanksgiving dinner,” Piquet crowed. “And this is just the first wave.”

  “The first wave?”

  Kay set the bags down then picked up a pencil. “I still have to go out and get baking supplies for the pies—coconut cream for you.” She eyed him as he devoured the seasonal Empire. He was about to make a totally inappropriate comment about Kaylah-cream. As if she knew exactly what he was about to say, she talked over him. “Pumpkin for Piq. Blueberry for Thoms.” Salem tried not to roll his eyes, as she’d affectionately begun to call Thompson ‘Thoms,’ for fuck’s sake.

  “Cherry for Kraft and Fray.”

  Fray flexed when she said his name, though Kay didn’t even notice. Instead, she jotted another list on a notepad by the phone as she spoke. “And butterscotch for Tagg.” She gnawed her lip for a second. “Though he said he’d get me his gran’s recipe, he hasn’t gotten back to me yet. I’ve never made one of those before.” Kaylah bounced the eraser end of the pencil on her lip, distracting him.

  “Tagg?” Salem questioned.

  Kay’s lovely baby blues lit as she focused on him. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. The other day when Tagg called to speak to you, I invited him, and he agreed to come have supper with us.”

  “Huh?” Salem choked in surprise. “He swore not to set foot in this house.”

  “Well, there’s the catch. We’re going to eat outside.”

  “Like the pilgrims,” Piq chimed in. Salem had never seen Piq so excited about anything. He was a big kid.

  “The guys and I are going to set up tables in the front yard,” Kaylah explained.

  The guys and I?

  “Weather permitting?” Salem asked.

  “Weather won’t matter, bossman,” Thompson added. “You know first-hand we can set up a ten by sixteen tent in two minutes-forty seconds flat.”

  “You’ve got this all planned out, huh.” He was impressed. “You know you don’t have to do all this, Kay.”

  “I know, but I want to. I want everyone to have that little taste of home, and I want us all to be together.”

  Salem poked the turkey. “That baby has to be a twenty pounder, at least.”

  “You’re close. Twenty-five,” Kaylah replied.

  “Holy crap, woman. Are you planning on feeding the entire neighborhood, too?”

  “Nope.” She looked around at the men. She softened her gaze and grinned. “Just my own little army.”

  If possible, at that moment, he fell a little bit more in love with her.

  Perhaps she didn’t have Autumn to mother on a day-to-day basis for the time being, but she certainly made up for it by taking care of his motley crew. And they lapped it up. But the caring was mutual.

  “I can’t wait.” Kraft rubbed his hands together. “Kaylah makes the best roast c
hicken I’ve ever had. Makes my mouth water to think what she’ll do with that ginormous bird.”

  “Well, I for one can’t wait to meet Autumn,” Salem said. “When do you expect her in?”

  Kaylah’s expression drooped and she looked down at the floor. “She’s not coming home,” Kaylah murmured in a whisper.

  “What do you mean, she’s not coming?” He frowned. “This is the first big holiday since you two have been separated—the perfect opportunity for her to visit. The pair of you need to see each other.”

  “She’d have to spend the entire holiday traveling. She has class until Wednesday at four. It’s a ten-hour drive. She’ll sleep, eat, then be back on the road for the trek back. It’s just not practical, Salem.”

  “Is it money? I’ll buy her a plane ticket myself.” Though, he was more than confident it wasn’t a financial issue. Every time he needed more supplies, the money was there and every installment they’d agreed upon had been paid on time and in full, which was more than he could say for any other job he’d ever taken.

  “We’ll chip in, Kay,” Piq piped up. “The guys and I can’t afford much right about now, but we’ll take up a collection, see what we can scrounge up.”

  A tear ran down her cheek as she slowly reached out and squeezed Piq’s wrist. If he wasn’t mistaken, Piq’s eyes glazed as he watched her.

  “That’s lovely of you to offer—all of you—but it’s not the money. That’s not a problem. It was her decision not to come. Besides, she’s already made other plans with her friends, even if she could secure a ticket at the last minute.”

  “Well, we know what to save up for Christmas, fellas, ’cause this ain’t happenin’ again,” Thompson ranted. “I don’t care what her excuse is, that girl is coming home for December twenty-fifth, come hell or high water, even if we have to go up there and get her ourselves.”

  All the guys nodded.

  “I love you guys,” Kaylah murmured, her lips trembling.

  Well, it wasn’t quite what Salem had imagined the first time she said the words, including his whole company and all, but he’d take it. And, by the gentle looks on all their goddamn ugly mugs, they would, too.