Katelynn pulls back and smiles again. “I can’t believe you came for me.”
“What did you think we would do?” I seriously ask. “Go home and forget about you?”
She shrugs.
“You mean a damn lot to me,” I tell her.
Her cheeks blush and she drops her face.
Hunter takes a chair from along the wall and drags it over to the other side of my bed. “The police got Bennie Whispers.”
“I saw.”
“Brad too,” Katelynn says.
“And what do you think of that?”
Her nostrils flare. “There’s not much room for my opinion. He did this all to himself.”
“Good girl,” I tell her. “Now you need to stay as far away from him and Will as you can.”
“I plan on doing that.”
“Where have you two been?”
“The police station,” Hunter explains.
My stomach drops. “Fuck.”
“I talked to our parole officer. We’re off the hook. They believed our stories about you and me going to rescue Katelynn.”
“You’re fucking shitting me.”
“Nope.”
He cracks a grin. Relief fills me. “Hallelujah,” I say. “Everything is settled then.”
Hunter and Katelynn are silent.
“What?” I ask Katelynn.
She purses her lips. “I want to apologize. I think I overreacted over you telling me about your pasts. I shouldn’t have left the bar.”
“It’s fine,” Hunter says.
“No, it’s not.”
I purse my lips and look at my lap. It’s not my place to berate Katelynn for having her own mind.
Katelynn huffs. “It changed the way I saw you two. It scared me. I’m sorry for that.”
My chest tightens. I’ve wanted to hear these words bad. Having Katelynn say them is the cherry on top of a happy ending.
I raise my face and look into hers. “Thank you. It’s understandable, though.”
“That doesn’t make it right. I judged you without knowing your stories.”
“You still don’t know them,” Hunter points out.
Katelynn squeezes my hand. “I don’t need to hear about everything you’ve been through to see that you’re good men. You put yourselves at risk for me. Most people wouldn’t do that.”
I raise her hand and kiss the top of it. “I would have done anything to get you back.”
Katelynn
Katelynn bites into her bottom lip and smiles. “Thank you.”
I kiss her hand again. “Stop saying that. Just stay with us.”
She eagerly nods. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Hunter’s eyes relentlessly nudge me. I turn my head and look back at him.
“We should tell her,” he simply says.
“Right,” I agree.
“Tell me what?”
“About our pasts,” Hunter says. “What we served for.”
Katelynn’s eyes float down and flick across the bedspread. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
I rub her shoulder. “We want to, and. you should know. I was in prison for seven years and Hunter for three. It’s a big part of our lives.”
She presses her fingers against the corner of her mouth and gives a short nod. “When did you get out?”
“I left in January and Hunter in May.”
“May?” She looks at Hunter. “That’s about the time we first saw each other at the gas station.”
“Yep. I hadn’t been out long at all.” Hunter clears his throat. “I was in for trumped-up illegal weapons possession and intent to distribute charges. Jake’s cousin got us into some shady stuff. We were idiots at nineteen years old. I’d have to be, to ditch getting an education so I could sell firearms… And that’s about the whole story.” He snorts. “Dumbest thing I’ve ever done.”
Katelynn’s eyes glimmer with tears. “And you ran into Jake there?”
“We knew each other from high school,” I explain. “But not long past school we stopped talking and didn’t see each other for years… Not until we met again in prison.”
Katelynn’s face falls. She looks like she’s in pain.
“Does it change your opinion of me?” Hunter asks.
“No,” she says right away. “You just said it was the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. You regret it and you’re a different person now. I care for the men I see. It would take a heck of a lot to change my feelings for you now.”
I’m going to wimp out. I speak without checking my words. “What about you hearing that I killed a man? What does that news do to you?”
Dead silence fills the room. Katelynn looks at me with level eyes. Her words come slowly. “I asked you in the truck if either of you had killed someone… And you didn’t answer me.”
My throat burns like it’s on fire. “I didn’t answer because I didn’t want you to know I did.”
Katelynn stares at me with a flat expression. “What happened?”
I swallow and think back to that time. I don’t usually go there, but that night is a memory I’ll never be able to erase.
“It was a bar fight, but I wasn’t drunk. I’d only had one beer. I was out with my friends and this girl I was dating. This guy started getting in our space at the bar. He elbowed my girlfriend out of the way. I got real mad and pushed him. He brought out some brass knuckles. My friends were going to help me out, but I didn’t wait. I lost it. I jumped on him. I broke a beer bottle to scare him with and we fell to the ground. I didn’t even know he’d fallen on the glass until my friends pulled me off of him. His artery was cut. There was blood everywhere.”
I push back against the shudder threatening to run through me, but it comes on anyway.
Katelynn’s hand covers her mouth. “Oh God,” she says through her fingers. “Jake, that’s insane.”
I grind my teeth together. “It is what it is. I wish I hadn’t lost it like I did, but it’s what happened.”
“It wasn’t your fault. I can’t believe you got sentenced for murder for that.”
“They gave me involuntary manslaughter,” I explain. “And it was an accident, but I was still reckless. It’s the witnesses who testified on my behalf who helped the judge reduce my sentence. That and I got out in half the time. Early paroled for good behavior.”
Katelynn shakes her head, deeply saddened. “You can’t blame yourself for that. We all act without thinking sometimes.”
I clamp my teeth together. Talking about blame and guilt is a whole new can of worms. It’s best we open it up some other time.
“Now you know about us,” Hunter says. “There’s nothing bigger that we’re hiding.”
“And what about after prison?” Katelynn asks.
“We started looking for jobs,” I explain. “But no one wanted to give us a chance. Except for John. He loaned us the money to start the shop and we went for it.” I pause and consider what else needs to be said. “We’ve been real careful about hiding this. Not just because we’re still on parole. We have our new business to think about.”
“Of course,” she agrees.
We fall into silence. Voices float in from the hallway and a heavy pair of shoes clomp by.
“What now?” Katelynn asks.
I look at her with fear. She said she trusts us, but that was without knowing my story. She can say that man’s death wasn’t my fault all she wants to, but that doesn’t change the fact that she might still be scared of me.
And she still might leave this hospital and never look back.
“Whatever you want,” I tell her.
They’re hard words to get out, but if Katelynn doesn’t want to stay I can’t force her to.
“I want to watch some TV.”
“Huh?”
“I want to watch TV,” she says again. “Until you’re discharged. Do you know what time that’ll be?”
“No,” I dumbly say. “My nurse should be back soon. I’ll ask her.”
>
“Great.”
She jumps up and snatches the television remote from the table against the wall.
“Come here,” I tell her. I hold my good arm out to her. She perches on the side of the bed and I hook my elbow around her waist. Hunter settles back into the spare chair and rests his feet on the end of my bed. A smile stretches from one of his ears to the next.
She’s not going anywhere, his grin seems to say.
It’s too good to be true, but there it is. The three of us are alive and well. We’re free of Bennie Whispers and his thugs. Hunter and I aren’t going back to prison. Katelynn’s not leaving us. We’re out of the woods.
And we’re together.
That last part is the one that matters most.
39
Katelynn
The heat simmers as I cross the parking lot and unlock my car.
“Bye Katelynn!”
I look over my shoulder and catch sight of Mary-Jewel, who’s climbing into her own car a row over.
“Have a good weekend!” I call.
“You too, hon!”
I plop down in my seat and start the engine. It’s Friday and I couldn’t be in a better mood. I’ve only been at my new job for a week but I love it already.
It’s a normal secretary position. Working in the office of the head of a logistics warehouse isn’t exactly a job jam-packed full of action.
Which is why I love it.
No Russian mobsters. No busted-up windshields. No bullets flying or having to look over my shoulder with every step.
All of that is behind me.
I haven’t talked to Will since everything went down three weeks ago. He never showed up at work after that day, and the rumor is that he’s left town. Brad is out of the picture, too, though I don’t know what’s happened to him. He also stopped showing up to work. My best guess is he’s headed for prison.
Whatever the case, none of it is my problem. I have a new job and I’m starting over.
I crank the AC and turn my sweating face towards the vents. I have no plans for the weekend other than relaxing with Jake and Hunter tonight, but that’s just fine. I couldn’t ask for a better Friday night.
I sing along to the radio as I drive to the auto shop. Their parking lot is packed, like always. They hired a new employee last week in an attempt to keep up with business, but Hunter and Jake still end up staying late a lot of nights.
I park near the office and go right inside. The place is clear, the chairs already stacked and the television off.
“Hello?” I call. I push open the door to the garage.
Someone steps right in front of the doorway and grabs me by the waist.
“Hey!” I shriek.
Jake kisses me and I shut up. I wrap my arms around his neck and stand on my toes to press my mouth harder against his.
I break away and take a step back to inspect him. His hair is ruffled and there’s a streak of grease on his right cheek.
“I guess your arm is feeling better.”
He reaches around and pinches my butt. “Don’t you know it.”
“Jake!” I swat his chest.
“Just having an appetizer.”
I shake my head and laugh. “That’s not even funny.”
“I never claimed to be funny,” he grins. “Hey, Hunter’s already home. You ready to go over there?”
“Yep. Are you sure you have time to change my tires?”
“We always have time for you.”
I give him my keys and he pulls my car into the shop for the night. Come tomorrow, he and Hunter are going to put new tires on it. They’re always doing those kinds of nice, extra things for me.
They’re exactly the kind of boyfriends I can be proud of.
But no one knows about them. They’re still ‘my friends’ to my parents, although they’re also now the friends who saved my life. This makes them saints in my mom’s eyes. They’ve been over for our last two family Sunday dinners. My mom and Noreen, who has a major crush on Hunter, can’t get enough of them.
My dad is a slightly different story. He’s grateful to Hunter and Jake, and treats them with respect, but I can tell he’s still slightly wary of them—though I think it has to do with the fact that he thinks one of them is my secret boyfriend. Dad’s never been kind to any date I’ve brought home.
There’s not a chance I’ll reveal the real deal any time soon. My parents have warmed up to Jake and Hunter, but they would never be able to stomach the truth of my relationship with the guys. One man in my life they would accept. Two?
They probably wouldn’t know what to think. My father’s head might actually explode.
It doesn’t matter. I have them and they have me.
Jake and I climb into his truck and he takes us on the route to the apartment. I feel like the place has become my second home. I spend more time there than I do at my own house.
“I might have to tell my parents’ one of you guys is my boyfriend,” I say, thinking out loud. “They’ve been asking about where I’ve been getting to every night.”
Jake turns to me. The air is cooling down. He’s opened the truck’s windows. Wind whips his hair around his forehead. “Tell them,” he says with a grin. “I’m proud to have you as mine. I don’t care if Hunter or I play the part.”
Pleasure flows through me. “Maybe I will tell them,” I happily say.
He parks at the end of the driveway and we clomp up the stairs.
“We’re hooome,” I sing out as I throw the door open.
Hunter’s at the stove stirring something in a frying pan. He and I have been cooking a lot together the last few weeks and he’s turning into a regular chef.
“What’s on the menu?” Jake asks, kicking the door shut and wrapping his arms around my waist. His chin presses into the top of my head. I let my weight press against his chest.
Hunter lowers the heat on the stove. “Sautéed Brussel sprouts and ham, bean chili, and biscuits.”
“What’s with all the vegetables?” Jake demands.
“Oh, hush,” I tell him. “We could all stand to eat more veggies.”
“I’ll tell you what I could stand to eat more of.” He lifts me up and carries me to the couch. Giggles erupt from my lips. I don’t know why.
Maybe it’s because I’ve never been this happy. I don’t know what to do other than laugh.
Jake sets me on the couch and lays his weight against mine. His kisses float down my neck and across my shoulder. I sigh and release my weight. Each and every one of my muscles relaxes against the couch. I’m in the safest place in the world. The most comfortable place in the world.
Jake unbuttons my blouse. It falls to my sides and reveals my bra. Instead of continuing with his kisses, he lifts me up and carries me to the bedroom. Hunter follows behind us.
“The food,” I point out.
“It’s on warm,” Hunter growls.
Jake sets me in the middle of the bed and he and Hunter each get on one side of me. They undress me with fluid motions, slipping my slacks and panties off and unhooking my bra.
I close my eyes and release myself to their touches. One set of lips closes on a nipple and another set closes on the other one. Hunter and Jake suck at my breasts while they massage my hips and thighs.
Pleasure clouds my mind and attacks each nerve. Their touches are familiar, but still as magical as they were the first time. They take me to a place of pure ecstasy, where heat pummels my veins and electricity sparks in my toes. I lift my chest up and push my nipples against their mouths. They take the cue and suck harder.
A hand pushes between my legs and teases my mound. I open my eyes and watch Hunter rub my clit in slow circles. Each rotation sends pleasure whipping through me. I pulse my hips against his hand and dig my fingers into his hair.
Jake’s hand joins the spot between my legs. A finger slips between my folds and hits the roof of my channel.
Pure, unbridled ecstasy attacks my body. With both men sucking on my br
easts, one pleasing my clit, and one thrusting inside of me, it’s more than I can handle. I burst with an immediate orgasm.
My torso shakes beneath their touches as the waves of pleasure keep coming. Jake pulls his mouth and hands away from me and stands to undress. Hunter takes his attention to both of my breasts. He massages them tenderly, cupping them and twisting them in circles.
I watch Jake pull the last of his clothes off. With a grin that makes my heart flip, he gets back on the bed and takes hold of my hips. With one smooth jerk, he yanks me closer to him.
I reach down and run my fingers over his dick. It’s fully hard and ready to go. A new pleasure pools in my belly and all the muscles between my legs contract.
Spreading my thighs, he pushes into me. I clench my teeth and groan as his thick width stretches my walls.
Jake keeps his eyes on me while he moves. I gaze back up at him, my pupils tied to his by an invisible string. He smiles a bit and my own lips break into a full-out grin.
The smile falls off my face as he drives all the way into me. Instead, a moan pushes through my teeth. I have just enough time to get in a fresh breath and he hits the end of my channel again.
A pant leaves my mouth with each thrust he gives me. I reach over for Hunter and find my hand brushing across bare thigh. He’s already naked. Jake’s seizing hold of my body completely distracted me.
I find Hunter’s cock and tease its head. My mouth waters at the close sight of it. He seems to know just what I want. That, or he happens to want the exact same thing. He shuffles forward and lands a knee on either side of my head. I open my lips wide and his cock slips between them.
I pump the base of Hunter’s length while I suck on the tip. I open my jaw wider and take in as much as I can. I want to make him moan and dig his nails into my shoulder. I want to bring him the kind of pleasure he and Jake show me on a daily basis.
Hunter pumps into my mouth. His shaft strikes my tonsils and hits the back of my throat. Having him in my mouth seems to bring me almost as much pleasure as having Jake pounding me does.
I wrap both hands around Hunter’s cock and lift my head off the bed. Buried far in my throat, he moans and grabs at my hair.
Between my hips, Jake speeds up his motions. Pleasure erupts and a second orgasm tears through me. I suck heartily on Hunter’s cock. He lets out a curse and explodes in my throat.
Ex-Con Times Two Page 16