Rebuilding Stone (The Stone Brother Series Book 2)

by Saint John, T.

  “Michael is here,” she says.

  Shit. “Okay,” I tell her. “Do not tell Missy, and whatever you do, please do not tell Brayden. Let’s play it by ear.”

  Missy is having a difficult pregnancy. She’s had a few scares with cramps and was only told last week she could get off bed rest. If Brayden catches wind that his girlfriend’s rapist is a few feet away, well, I will be arresting him tonight for murder. Actually, we don’t know if Michael was the guy, we only know for sure of Jackson. Missy remembers three guys but she doesn’t remember what they look like or what they sounded like.

  Kerrigan

  I have no idea what’s going on with Lani and Maddox right now. I do know that Brayden, Evan, and Noah won’t allow us girls to get up to go to the damn bathroom. Wondering if I'm missing something, I start looking around the bar.

  It’s a bit difficult to figure out exactly what I’m looking out for, though, because there are so many people here tonight. I’ve already forgotten the kind of characters that hang out at this bar. The funniest part is that ninety percent of its patrons are young professionals, who, after a few beers, act anything but that. It’s all harmless fun, though, and it’s one of the things I miss most when I worked here.

  I keep looking around, and my eyes slide past a guy. Something in me makes me pause shortly, and then I keep going. But I’ve learned to listen to my gut, so my eyes go back to that man.

  “Where’s Maddox?” I whisper to Brayden. He looks at me and just shrugs his shoulders. Missy doesn’t have a memory of that night, but I do. I was drunk, but I wasn’t drugged. I know who this man is. SHIT! I’m guessing Lani knows too, since she took Maddox with her. What aren’t they telling me? Missy seems clueless as well. I decide to not say anything right now because I don’t want to upset her.

  “I need to use the bathroom,” Missy says to Brayden.

  “Molly, can you go with Missy?” Brayden asks.

  “What’s gotten into you? I don’t need an escort to the bathroom!” Missy snaps back.

  “I’ll go,” Molly says. “I've got twins sitting on my bladder.”

  I start to stand up to go with them, but Brayden glances down at the seat, letting me know to stay put.

  Molly turns to me and asks, “You coming?”

  “Nah. I don’t have any babies on mine.” I don’t look up because I don’t want both of them to get suspicious and feel like something is up.

  After they get to the bathroom, Brayden wastes no time.

  “Who do you see, Kerrigan?”

  “The guy who was holding Lani that night, I think, but I’m not certain he was one of the three who raped Missy. I don’t know. I do know he had a hold of Lani. He was the one she elbowed.”

  Shit, Maddox, get back in here. Brayden and Evan both jump up; ready to fuck up that man. I look at Noah as he throws back his glass of scotch. He puts the glass down, leans back in his chair, and then crosses his arms.

  Now I know for sure that they’ve known something for a long time and have formed some sort of idiotic plan. Noah is a nice guy, and if he isn’t rushing to stop these two, then he must be a part of whatever MORONIC plan they’ve formed. I give Noah a death glare, and with that same damn cocky grin Maddox has, he shrugs his shoulders. IDIOTS!

  “What are you guys doing? Sit down.” I say.

  “No. Go to the bathroom. Keep the girls in there.” I’m so torn, but decide to go to the bathroom because neither Missy nor Molly needs any added stress.

  Maddox

  Lani and I walk back inside. I notice the girls are no longer at the table, and neither are Evan and Brayden. Seems they’ve made their way to the bar. Noah is sitting relaxed at the table. Shit. I make Lani go to the bathroom with the girls. She doesn’t question me because she knows she shouldn’t be seen.

  Michael is hitting on a girl who clearly isn’t interested. She is scooting away from him. It takes Brayden all of two seconds to start talking to Michael.

  “Man, it seems like you’ve had a lot to drink.”

  “Nah, man,” Michael replies, “just a couple of beers.”

  “Well, why don’t you leave this lady alone?”

  Michael replies in a threatening tone, “Why don’t you go find someone else to hit on? There are plenty of women here.”

  “You're sure you haven't had too much to drink?” Brayden asks again.

  “No. Want to smell my breath?”

  “Yes.” Brayden responds.

  What, Brayden? You sick bastard.

  Michael moves to let out a breath into Brayden’s face, and without warning, Brayden head-butts Michael right in the nose. Michael grabs his nose. As he starts falling to the ground, Brayden delivers punishing punches to his face. It takes both Evan and I to pull Brayden off of him. I rush Brayden out the door before the cops are called. Not too long after, Evan is pushing Michael out the door.

  “What the fuck, dude?” Michael literally cries.

  I can’t believe this bitch is crying. I start laughing.

  “I’m calling the cops,” he says, still crying.

  “Yeah. Go ahead,” Evans says. “When they get here, I’ll tell them a story about that time you raped a chick in high school and how you haven’t stopped since. I also plan on sending a letter to your wife.”

  The guy goes straight-faced, realizing that we know his secret. Still, he tries to deny it, but we continue telling him details of what happened that night.

  “Call the cops,” Brayden says, handing Michael his phone.

  “Nah. I can tell this is all a misunderstanding.” He tries to make nice and get us to believe him.

  Evan calmly walks towards Michael, and out of the blue, he knocks out Michael with a sharp blow to the chin.

  “Evan!” I yell. “What the hell!”

  “What? It was my birthday gift to myself,” he says, and walks off.

  Chapter 29

  Kerrigan

  We’re in the car and I’m happy to be out of there. The anger has been building up in me since I realized they've been keeping something major from me. It takes me no time before I rip into Maddox.

  “What was all of that about tonight?” I ask.

  “Nothing you should worry about. We have it handled,” he says.

  “It didn’t look like you had it handled. Tell me, Maddox.” I’m giving him one shot to open up to me.

  “Kerrigan, it’s our only night out. Leave it alone.”

  “No, Maddox. I know who Michael is. I know what he did. I know my friends are in danger. How long have you known?”

  “Kerrigan, stop,” he says, “Evan, Brayden and I have it handled.”

  “Maddox, pull the car over.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we are about to have our first fight, and I want it done before we get home.”

  Maddox cocks his eyebrow and just keeps driving.

  “Maddox, pull the fuck over! NOW!”

  Again, he looks at me, but finally pulls over into the empty mall parking lot.

  I know and appreciate that Maddox wants to protect me, but I hate that part of him still sees me as weak. I’m not weak. I’ve faced the devil and lived to tell about it. He needs to understand that I want an equal partnership. I want to know when I should be worried and when I shouldn’t be.

  Maddox

  Kerrigan is pissed, that much is obvious. It’s cute, I have to admit, but I don’t want to fight with her. She doesn’t need anything else to worry about. With two busy boys, a new job, and home renovations, she already has enough to deal with.

  “What, Kerrigan?” I don’t mean to sound irritated, but I am. I want a normal day-to-day life with my wife and kids. I want this shit to be over.

  “Tell me everything, Maddox. Everything.”

  “Why? Kerrigan let it go.”

  “Maddox, don’t pull this shit with me. Talk.”

  I can tell that if I don’t tell her everything, I’ll have a pissed off wife for a long time. So, like a damn schoolgirl, I st
art spilling everything. I tell her about the threats to Cade and Lani, and how Jackson is off the grid. How we’ve not really heard anything in the past few weeks, which concerns us more than the threats.

  “Does Missy know?”

  “No.” I say.

  “I’m calling her right now.” Kerrigan gets her phone out, and I rip it out of her hands.

  “No, you’re not. We have someone watching over her and Cade. Brayden will kill anyone that gets near them.”

  “I know that Evan is a caveman,” she says, “and I can see a little bit of caveman in Brayden and Noah. I’ve never seen that in you until right now. So, Missy doesn’t get to know because she has a vagina? I mean, why else wouldn’t you tell her? She’s a girl. She is also fucking tough. Keep my phone. I’ll use the one at the house.”

  “You’re not calling her, Kerrigan. We have this handled.” I know Kerrigan and I aren’t going to see eye to eye on this.

  Kerrigan

  Maddox is being a total ass, so I’m about to prove a point to him and let him get a taste of his own medicine.

  “Okay. Go ahead; keep it from Missy. You know, I had been debating if I should tell you about something that has been scaring me,” I say, hoping he takes the bait and that I can at least lie a little bit.

  “What? Do you know something?” Maddox asks with concern in his voice.

  “Oh no. Nothing about what’s going on with you all. I got a few phone calls from Aaron.” I look away from him because I suck at lying. I hear Maddox’s breath pick up.

  “When, babe? What did he say?” Maddox asked. There’s my sweet husband.

  “It’s nothing. I just didn’t want to worry you. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

  Maddox grabs my hand and runs his thumb over it. “Kerrigan, please.”

  “It was stupid threats. I know he couldn’t possibly do anything. I was worried about our family’s safety.”

  “What the fuck did he say, Kerrigan?”

  “Nothing. I just wanted to show you how STUPID you are for keeping shit from Missy. If Aaron made that threat to me about Eli, would you want me to keep it from you? No, you wouldn’t. If he made that threat to you, would you keep it from me? Or would you want me to be aware of what’s going on around my kids or me? Give me the fucking phone. I’m calling Missy.”

  Maddox

  Shit. She’s right. I know she is.

  “Can we get everyone together and talk about it next weekend?” I ask. “That way, it gives me time to talk to Brayden and Evan. Also, Missy finds out what’s she’s having this week. It will give us time to come up with another plan. One that involves everyone.”

  “Alright. I swear, Maddox, if you hear anything else you better tell me. Lani and Missy are my best friends. Please don’t keep stuff from me.” Kerrigan’s eyes are pleading with me.

  “I’m sorry,” I say, “I just worry about you. I love you.”

  “You aren’t protecting me if you’re keeping the truth from me. I know you think you are, and I love you too.” She leans over for a kiss.

  I did think about having sex in the car earlier. I haven't been inside her in a week; it's going to be quick. I slide my hand up her skirt and make contact with her clit. She lets out a moan in my mouth and it causes my to dick to stand straight up. She reaches over and undoes my buttons. I arch my pelvis up so I can pull my pants down. I move my fingers back to Kerrigan and start stroking her slit. My fingers are soaked. Kerrigan moves my hands away and leans over my crotch to wrap her mouth around my dick. Oh hell. That feels so good. I lean back, and Kerrigan continues to suck me deeper into her throat. Her mouth has a tight grip on my cock and it’s moving fast. I think I set a record. It took less than two minutes for me to spill my cum into her mouth. As awesome as it was, I need to be inside her. I want her pussy and to have her tits in my mouth.

  “Climb on over here,” I instruct her.

  "I’m pretty sure that after what you just shot into my mouth, there’s nothing left.”

  “Kerrigan, I’m an endless fountain when it comes to you.” I smile and motion down to my totally erect cock. A beautiful smile crosses her face. She climbs over on top of me and impales herself on my hard cock. I squeeze her ass as tight and help her grind against me as hard as she can. Her pussy is so tight, squeezing my cock. I kiss her, and then trail my tongue up against her neck. Her clean scent invades my space and turns me on even more. The smell, the sounds, and movements in this car are maddening in the best possible way.

  “Maddox,” she breathes out. Her pussy clenches down on my dick and I release again inside her.

  Kerrigan

  I can’t move. I just had amazing car sex.

  “We should fight more often,” Maddox teases.

  “We should,” I mutter in agreement. I lean forward and lay my head on his chest. I’m so exhausted.

  “You ready?” Maddox asked.

  “Yeah.” I’m ready to be home and get a good night’s sleep.

  Except that wasn’t what Maddox meant when he said ready. His fingers rub my clit and he starts pushing upwards. Even exhausted, I’m ready. This will never get old. Ever.

  Chapter 30

  Maddox

  It's a few days before I get a chance to speak with Evan and Brayden about bringing Missy up to speed about what's been going on. Brayden wants to play it by ear since she has a doctor's appointment in a couple hours. He wants to make sure that everything is okay and that it's a happy day for Missy. I agreed and so did Kerrigan.

  Kerrigan is out with Donna helping plan an upcoming wedding. I’m so proud of Kerrigan. She's been working hard, but I know this is her dream job. I worried that it would be too much for her after all that she's been through, but she told me that she loves being busy. She says that it means she’s living.

  I’m still adjusting to having two boys at home. I think it’s funny whenever people say Gavin looks just like me. I’ve grown very close to him; he always wants to be with me. He loves it when I take him to work with me. He always wants to sit in the patrol car and make the siren go off. I love how his little face lights up when I do it. I can see him growing up to be a cop like me, protecting the people in his life.

  With all the overly protective men, it's fortunate that there aren't any little girls in the family. Molly swears she's done after the twins arrive and we aren’t taking on any more children. I’m happy we have the boys, but two is definitely enough for us.

  We'll all have to teach our boys how to treat women with respect. Although, Evan jokes that it probably won’t happen until the boys are in their 30’s - it took us that long to figure things out. I think it'll happen sooner for our sons since they'll grow up seeing how much Noah and I love and respect our wives. They'll have good examples of how to treat women - we didn't.

  Kerrigan

  We're all meeting at Gigi’s tonight for Missy and Brayden’s baby gender reveal. They don’t know the sex of the baby yet, either. The doctor wrote the gender on a piece of paper and they'll put that along with other notes in different balloons. We'll pop the balloons to find the one that has the sex in it. Brayden’s already telling everyone it’s a boy. With five sisters, he's going against the odds.

  As soon as we walk into Gigi’s, Brayden rushes us to the table where everyone is waiting. We're the last to arrive and he starts handing out the balloons.

  “Don’t you want to eat first?” Maddox asks.

  “No. Missy had to tie my hands earlier because I wanted to pop all of these bitches,” he laughs and so does Missy.

  Without another word, we all pop our balloons. Brayden looks at his paper and throws it to the ground. I’m guessing he doesn’t know yet. He looks at Missy and she hands him hers. He throws that on the ground.

  “Who has it?” Brayden demands. I look at mine and then at Maddox's. We don’t have it - mine said toes and his said tiny. We all look around the table to see Noah smiling.

  “Well?” Missy asks.

  “The good news is, she w
ill have seven older brothers,” he announces, referring to our boys and Cade.

  “A girl?” Missy starts crying.

  “Congrats! It’s a girl,” Noah says.

  We all hug Missy and Brayden. I can tell that the moment he heard it was a girl, he let go of his dream of having a boy.

  “Excuse me.” Lani takes off running. I follow her and see her vomiting in the restroom.

  “You sick again?” I ask. Lani was born premature and she catches every virus floating around. She blames her lack of height on the fact that she was a preemie. Lani’s dad is 5’5". It’s genetic, I always tease.

  “Yeah. I swear the doctor put me on antibiotics over a month ago and I thought I’d gotten better. The past few days though, I just stay sick. I’ll go back again.”

  “Lani, could you be pregnant? It’s obviously in the water.” I swear, in a span of three years, we’ve gone from no babies to six, seven, including Missy.

  “No way. You crazy people keep having your kids. There's no way I’m having a kid.”

  “Well, just remember, if you’ve had sex while on or after antibiotics, you could get pregnant.” I watch Lani and can tell by her eyes that she's freaked out.

  “Shit. Well, I’m not late. My period isn’t due until tomorrow. Kerrigan, if I am pregnant - I can’t have this baby. I don’t want to have a baby. Please, support me on this.”

  “Lani, whatever your decision is, I will support you.”

  “Thank you. I’m still sure that I’m not, but you do have me a little freaked,” she laughs.

  “Well, fingers crossed then. Any more news on the Jackson front?” I ask to change the subject.

  “No. Nothing. You’d think I'd be relieved that I haven’t heard anything. But I’m not. He's about to make his move. I just hope I’m ready when it happens. I have a feeling that if he does, it’ll be at my office.”