She hiccupped, and I wrapped my arms around her when I realized she was going to be a while.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, patting her back lightly.
She cried brokenly into my neck, and I looked over to see Attie doing much the same to the kid. Mace.
He gave me a nod, and I returned it before I started for the front door, Aspen still in my arms.
“Your brother’s going to be here soon,” I told her, starting to reach for the front door, which burst open before I could capture the handle with my fingers.
Downy rushed through, a look of pure panic etched across his features.
“You okay?” He questioned, pulling Aspen from my body and crushing her into his arms.
“Yes!” She wailed
The room filled up, then.
Police. Firefighters.
They filled Aspen’s living room, and chaos ensued.
“Guess it’s good that we got an ambulance here since this badass took care of the problem,” Tai said teasingly a few minutes later.
I gave him a look.
“I’m not thinking the fucker needs a ride in the ambulance,” Downy growled. “I’m thinking he’s well enough to go straight to the station.”
Aspen giggled and Downy’s eyes warmed slightly.
His body, though, was still extremely tense.
Wary.
Waiting.
I almost smiled, knowing for a fact that if that kid got in the car with Downy, he’d likely come back a couple of broken bones worse for wear.
Something which Luke, as well as Nico, knew as well.
“I’ll take him,” Nico offered at the same time Luke said, “You’re not taking him, Downy.”
Downy snorted and said, “You can try to stop me, but it’s going to happen.”
Then Luke pulled rank.
“You’ll keep your shit together,” Luke grumbled, walking to the boy that was now sitting in a kitchen chair with his hands cuffed behind his back.
Without another word, he took the boy by the elbow, who had sense enough not to fight the big man, and walked out with him.
“Cleaners are here to get the gas cleaned up,” someone said from the front door.
Booth.
I nodded at him and let Aspen go.
“Go talk to your brother,” I gestured. “I have to go talk to my girl.”
“Aspen!” A woman’s voice called. “Where are you?”
Aspen sighed.
“My mom’s here.”
I wanted to smile, but didn’t dare.
“Go take care of Downy and your mom.”
She nodded. “Save me in a few minutes, okay?”
I winked.
“I can do that.”
“Who is in charge here?” A man’s voice boomed.
That must be the father.
“That’s my dad,” she confirmed, before she kissed me on the cheek and slipped away to circumvent her parents coming inside.
I waited until she was out of sight, then went to find my daughter.
Chapter 21
Where the fuck are my cookies?
-Text from Aspen to Drew
Aspen
“Where’s your brother?” My mom asked thirty minutes later. “And when do I get to meet your new man?”
I pointed at Drew.
“He’s talking to our neighbor,” I gestured to the two men.
My mom smiled.
“He’s handsome,” she said. “Older, but handsome.”
I nodded.
Drew was beautiful.
Even now, his hair a mess and his eyes wild, he was a handsome devil.
“Did that man next to him get hurt today, too?” My mother questioned.
I looked back at Raphael, his arm now exposed to me, and I shook my head.
“I don’t know how he got hurt,” I told her truthfully, and likely never would. “But I will be sure to ask in a minute.”
Raphael was like a wraith, and I wasn’t really sure what his role was in anything that was related to me.
He was there, though, and I found that I liked it…even if he was quiet and reserved.
“And your brother?” Mom persisted. “What’s he so mad about?”
Brows furrowing, I followed my mother’s gaze to find Downy barreling towards us, gathering the attention of everyone he passed, even Drew.
“I can’t begin to tell you,” I informed her. “He wasn’t that mad when I sent him after my clothes.”
He hadn’t been, either.
In fact, he’d been almost…nice.
Which for him was incredibly impressive.
Then I got a good look of what was in Downy’s hand, and my stomach dropped.
Downy, eyes wide, came out of the house, a packet of papers in his hand, and his face white as if all color had leached out that he’d been able to get back once he’d found out I was alright.
“You…your…what the fuck is going on? What does this mean?” He asked, my mom and me looked at him.
My mom looked confused.
I, on the other hand, started to freak out.
“Downy,” I said, holding my hand up. “Sto…”
He turned and glared at my father.
“Get away from me,” he said.
My father’s eyes narrowed.
“You can’t tell me that. I’m her father. I deserve…” Downy interrupted him.
“You’re not her father now, are you?” He challenged.
My father’s mouth thinned, and he turned accusing eyes to my mom.
My mom, who’d already been pale, became even paler.
“Attie,” I whispered softly. “Why don’t you go over there and check on Mace?”
Attie’s eyes, which had been avidly watching both me and Downy, turned without another word as she hurried in Mace’s direction.
Once she’d reached him safely, I turned back to my mom, brother, and father.
“Guys,” I started. “This isn’t the time, nor place, for this.”
Downy shot me a furious glare.
“Shut it,” he said.
I sighed and held up my hands, knowing better than to mess with my brother when he was angry.
And boy was he angry!
In fact, he wasn’t just angry. Oh no, he was livid.
All of those emotions swirled together to create the mask of fuming fury on my brother’s face.
My eyes narrowed at my brother, and I opened my mouth to rip him a new one when his wife came running up out of nowhere, her arms going around Downy’s chest.
What was this? A fucking family reunion?
“Don’t think we won’t talk about this,” Downy said through clenched teeth, his eyes going down to his wife’s hands that were wrapped around his chest, then back up to my mother.
My mother nodded very slowly, her eyes wide and wary as she looked back to her husband.
“I think that’s best,” she whispered.
Something inside me loosened, and I backed away.
“I’m going to talk to Drew,” I squeaked.
Not one of them acknowledged me, their eyes still locked in a strange sort of intense stare down that I was ready to move away from.
Which I did seconds later, turning and hurrying in the direction of Drew and Raphael.
The two of them were standing loosely, but the moment Drew saw me coming he opened up his arms, holding his hand out to me as he continued to speak.
“Wasn’t about me at all, but about Attie,” Drew was saying to Raphael. “That would’ve been helpful to know.”
I bit my lip and looked over to where Attie and Mace were currently laughing in the back of the ambulance.
His arm was in a sling, and he had a huge black mark over the left side of his face that was quickly becoming a bruise which would be even larger and more vividly colored tomorrow for sure.
“What happened to you?” I asked
Raphael.
Raphael’s eyes turned to me, and his mouth smiled.
His eyes, however, didn’t.
They showed pain, exhaustion and anger.
“Got on the wrong side of my boss,” he said softly. “Nothing to worry about, darlin’.”
I blinked.
Drew’s squeeze on my shoulder told me that I really shouldn’t continue to pursue the topic, so I just nodded and turned my face into Drew’s chest.
“Are you off for the day?” I asked him. “Is that why you’re here?”
He dropped a kiss down onto the top of my head, and shook his head.
“No. Power’s out at the station, the generator’s frozen solid with no hope of getting it running, and they told us we could move home base within five miles of the station, which happened to be my house. We were coming this way because we were cold. How fuckin’ ironic that we walk in on that little shithead starting a fire.” Drew shook his head.
“That’s why I called you earlier,” Raphael said, bringing my attention back to him. “Saw the kid in his yard when you left. Watched him until I was called to report in on the status on my case.” Raphael shook his head. “Think he watched your place for over an hour before I had to leave. He didn’t move once.”
Shivers raced down my spine at remembering how cold and methodical Ellison had looked as he’d poured gas throughout the house.
“He was going to burn us all alive,” I whispered, my eyes narrowing as I remembered what he’d said and done just after seeing him point that gun in my face.
My thoughts turned south, and I wondered what would’ve happened had I not been able to think as quickly as I had.
“I’ll check in with you later,” Drew’s voice jolted me out of my thoughts.
I blinked quickly as Raphael nodded once and turned to head back inside his own house, but Drew didn’t move until he was well out of range.
Then he hugged me, and that one act said more than enough to me. More than any words ever could.
“You mean the fucking world to me, Baby,” Drew whispered gruffly. “When I arrived and saw that gun pointed at your head…” his body shook. “I seriously wanted to cry. Scream. I almost barreled through the front door, but Booth stopped me.”
My eyes followed to the other firefighters.
They’d set up a grill on Drew’s front lawn and had started barbequing.
Tables and chairs surrounded the grill that served two purposes—keeping them warm while cooking their food, and feeding them at the same time.
Tai and Booth were on either side of the ambulance doors, talking to the two kids that were sitting in the open doors with their feet dangling.
Attie’s head was resting on Mace’s shoulder as she stared at him adoringly.
“I need to tell you more,” I said softly.
Drew’s body tensed.
“Let’s go inside,” I said softly. “Just for a minute.”
Five minutes later, after I’d gotten all the words out that needed to be said, I feared for that kid’s life.
“What are you thinking?” I asked, taking a step forward.
His eyes closed and he squeezed them so tight that I was worried he’d hurt himself.
Was it possible for your eye to pop out with your eyelids closed?
“I’m thinking that I should’ve fucking killed that motherfucker while I had the chance,” his eyes opened and they were practically spitting fire.
“Drew,” I stepped forward to take his hand.
He shook my hand off his and started for the door, but I threw myself at his back.
He growled and spun me around to his front, then tried to set me away from him, but I clung.
“Get off!” He hissed, eyes pissed off. “I don’t want to do this right now. I don’t want to hurt you, or say something that I’ll regret.”
I shifted myself up, grabbing his face so I could look directly into his eyes.
“You can’t do anything to me right now that I’ll be mad about later,” I promised him.
His eyes narrowed even further.
“Oh yeah?” He asked, grabbing my hair and yanking it back. “Are you sure about that?”
My heart started to beat frantically in my chest.
He’d never been that rough with me before. However, I can’t say that I didn’t get a little thrill out of it.
Which I told him.
“You’re what?” I asked. “Going to punish me? Have at it, big boy. I can take whatever you dish out.”
He tried to pull me away from him, clearly seeing the error of his ways, but I clung even tighter.
“Don’t,” he ordered. “Not right now. I’m barely hanging on to my control.”
I laughed in his face, then dropped my legs from around his hips.
When my feet touched the ground, I immediately dropped down to my knees and started yanking at Drew’s uniform pants.
He hissed and tried to step back, but I held on, following him as I worked first the belt off, then the zipper.
His hand went back into my hair and pushed me away from him, but I held on and started yanking down his underwear, baring his hard cock to my heated gaze.
“What are you?” I asked, knowing he wasn’t going to let it go this time. “Chicken?”
His eyes narrowed and he stepped forward.
I either had to take his cock into my mouth, or I’d have it shoved up my nose.
Okay, well, not really. He likely would’ve stopped before it’d gotten that far, but I chose to open my mouth anyway.
And he didn’t stop until his cock was in the back of my throat, and I was choking.
“You want me like this?” He asked. “I’ll give you me like this, but you have to take all I have to give. Don’t waste my time by teasing me. I don’t have it in me to be nice right now, Aspen”
I sucked the head of his cock hard as I moved my hand up to cup his balls, and his eyes darkened.
I bobbed my head with the movement of his hips, and we got our rhythm going.
He’d thrust as far into the back of my throat as I could take him before he’d pull back out again.
It didn’t take long before his balls drew up.
“Ahhh, God,” he moaned, pulling out.
His hand immediately went to the base of his cock, his fingers an improvised cock ring that held his orgasm at bay.
“Get up. Take your pants off. Get on the bed so I can fuck you.”
I scrambled out of my pants, threw them somewhere in the general direction of my clothes hamper, and dove for the bed.
He didn’t laugh, but I barely contained my giggles at how funny I must have looked.
“On your back,” he ordered when I started to turn over to my hands and knees.
I followed his direction and opened my legs wide.
He picked up each of my thighs, closed them, then turned them to the side to rest on the crook of one elbow.
The other hand went to his cock, which he aimed at my entrance.
Slowly, he sank inside, filling me up so fucking perfectly that I screamed into my pillow.
My legs jolted as I tried to move them, but the strength of Drew’s grip on my knees had me jerking and moving with no progress.
“You’re so fucking good,” he breathed, his hips jerking backwards.
He filled me again without warning, making my legs jolt again.
“Jesus,” I said, my insides protesting at how far he was able to get inside of me. “You’re going to break me.”
“I will not,” he ordered. “Move your hips with me,” he urged. “That’s it.”
I did what little I could, jerking my hips from side to side while he continued to thrust inside of me.
His eyes had gone glassy as he looked down at where we were joined, his lip between his teeth as I gripped him firmly.
He grunted, pushing in so hard that I lurched sideways, causing my whole body to roll wi
th the movement.
“Stay still,” he ordered me, slapping me lightly on the outside of my thigh before he rolled me over completely.
I went with the movement, my knees automatically going underneath me as he stayed connected the entire roll.
Without another word he started to pound inside of me. His hand grasped tightly around the length of my hair, using it to control my movements. I began to pant with the effort it took to stave the orgasm off that I could feel building.
“Fuck, yes,” he growled, his hand coming down hard on the swell of my ass.
The tips of my breasts drug deliciously along the bunched up sheets underneath my body, and I started to moan into the pillow beneath my face.
I felt Drew’s thumb gather some of the wetness leaking out from between the lips of my sex, then drag it up to my rear entrance.
He eased it inside, and I saw stars.
The orgasm that’d been building caught fire as it pulsed through my body causing me to practically scream into the pillow as goosebumps broke out all over my heated skin.
My pussy and ass clenched down on the dual invasions, and my eyes crossed as the most powerful release I’d ever had raced through my body.
I felt like I was flying as ecstasy poured through me.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Drew growled, pumping his hard cock into my pussy, a bit slower as my pussy clamped down on him tightly making it harder for him to push in and out.
He emptied himself inside of me in four long bursts, filling me up and stealing my breath as he twitched inside of me.
“You broke me,” I moaned into my pillow.
He ran his fingertips down my spine, coming to a rest at where his thumb still filled my back entrance.
“You should’ve taken me there,” I whispered.
He pulled his thumb free and squeezed both of my hips.
“One day I’m going to take you here with my cock,” he growled. “But when that time comes, it won’t be while I’m angry. I’m going to be in complete control, okay?”
I could do nothing but nod as he pulled himself from me and walked to the bathroom, his dick sticking out of his uniform pants that were still up around his hips.
“Be careful not to drip,” I told him. “It’d be hell trying to explain to the guys just what that crusty white stain is.”
He tossed me a look over his shoulder, and I smiled at him.
Oxygen Deprived (Kilgore Fire Book 3) Page 19