by Skyla Carter
She had no doubt in her mind now that he would go back to her. Maybe they're brief fling had been exactly what he'd needed to see things in perspective.
"Well, you're here now, so I might enjoy it as much as I can," she smiled. "How do you feel about trying my world famous waffles?"
"Sounds good," Nate smiled back.
Corey was nervous as fuck when he knocked the door the next morning, a bouquet of white and red roses in his hand. The girl at the shop had assured him Rae would be pleased. Apparently, the red ones were the universal sign of love and the white symbolized unity, purity and some other stuff like that. He'd had no clue, because he'd never bought flowers before. Not even for his dear mother.
He'd had a good soak in the tub, shaved and gone to have his hair cut. And for the first time in a while, he was sober.
This was the first day of the rest of his life; he had to make sure he got it right.
The door opened, unfortunately revealing the Crusher’s on the other side.
He swallowed nervously when the man's eyes narrowed coldly on his.
"Um... morning, sir," he started.
"What do you want?" Irving asked.
"Um... Can I talk to you for a minute... sir?"
How had he thought this was a good idea? The man looked ready to kill him; he could actually see smoke coming from his ear and nostrils.
"We're in the middle of breakfast," Irving growled before he turned away.
The door was about to be slammed in his face when he stuck his foot through.
The thing they never told you about this when you saw it on TV was how that shit hurt like a mother fucker. He would have screamed like a little girl if Irving hadn't immediately swung the door wide open and stepped out to put his face an inch from his.
"Unless you want me to break your little punk ass neck for what you've done to my daughter, I suggest you move along," Irving growled.
"Please," he whispered. "I really need you to hear me out."
Maybe it was how pathetic he sounded, maybe it was the sincerity in his eyes, he couldn't be sure; but the Crusher’s stepped aside and let him into the house. He let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding as his eyes quickly scanned the hallway, hoping to catch a glimpse of Rea, but the kitchen door was closed.
He heard voices in there, though, and his heart constricted again at the thought of its strongest desire just on the other side of those doors.
Then out of nowhere, he was grabbed by the collar and quickly pushed into the den.
"Talk. And make it quick," Irving growled when he'd closed the door behind him. "And if you waste my time, believe me you won't be walking out of here in one piece."
Maybe he wasn't safe after all. Irving certainly looked unsettled, like he just wanted to finish him off before he got a chance to talk to Rae again.
God, the things people did for love.
Nervously, he cleared his throat again. It was now or never.
"Where has that man got to?" Sara asked as she covered Irving's food and took it from the table.
"Oh, you know dad. He'd do anything to avoid eating my food," Rae chuckled as she cleaned her little brothers up and helped them off their chairs before they noisily ran out of the room to go and change as she'd instructed them to do.
"What are you talking about? This is the best breakfast ever," Matt said as he took his plate to the sink. "Thank you Rae, I haven't eaten so good in a long time."
"I could tell," she teased, referring to his cleaned plate.
"I'm a big man, I'm allowed to put so much food away," Matt said, defending himself.
"Excuses, excuses," Nate chuckled as he got up from the table, too.
"You boys don't need to do that," Sara protested when Shane got up as well and started clearing up.
"Ma'am, it's the least we could do," Shane said, easily pushing Sara's protest away. "The three of us will have this kitchen spotless in no time."
"Maybe I should have married a Southern man," Sara chuckled.
Rae looked over at John, who was sitting back in his chair next to Mandy with his hands over his stomach and shook her head.
"Shame? Guilt? Anything?" she asked.
"Not a damn thing," John grinned. "If them boys want to clean up, let them. "I'm fine right here."
She chuckled as she took the last of the dishes to Nate.
"Thanks," she said to him.
"Not a problem," Nate smiled.
"See. Those boys from the South love doing stuff like that," John called out. "Now, if you excuse us, I think I'm taking this party by the pool. Bring the drinks out, will you Rae?"
Rae shook her head again as she watched John pull Mandy outside.
"Yes, Your Highness," she mocked.
"Damn right. And be quick about it, too."
She laughed as she went to do as she was told. John hadn't said anything else about Corey the previous night so she assumed he had given in to her reasoning. She didn't think he'd be shocked, though, when he eventually learned of her new plan.
Since Corey had destroyed the bar, she'd started keeping the drinks in the store cupboard next to the kitchen. She hadn't been exactly in the mood to do any redecorating.
It was still early and she knew all her friends had to work that night so she didn't take out anything strong; just something for a few light mixes and a bottle of crisp white wine. As she was closing the door, Drew and Timmy ran past her and almost knocked her over in their haste to return to their fighting idols.
"Whoa, boys, slow down," she laughed.
"Rae..."
It was said softly, but she heard it loud and clear. Turning quickly, she saw Corey standing with her dad by the sitting room door. Her heart started pounding loudly in her ears.
How the hell did he do that? How the hell did he look so good? He stood as tall and godlike as ever, maybe even more so now as she couldn't help eating him up with her eyes. His chiseled face, those intense baby blues, the lips that could drive her to the brink and back again... He'd lost a bit of weight lately, but his very toned body still looked perfect beneath the blue shirt he wore. And those jeans... they hugged him up in all the right places; those large, muscular thighs; the bulge between his legs that she just couldn't wait to get her hands on.
He was lethal. She knew straight away that her first plan of remaining just friends would have been shot to shit seconds ago.
She didn't even notice her dad walk up to her to take the bottles she had in her arms from her.
"Hi," Corey said awkwardly.
She opened her mouth to speak but she forgot straight away what she'd been about to say. How did he expect her to think with him looking the way he did? All she could do was drown in those eyes and hope no one ever pulled her out again.
"I got these for you," he said, finally walking to stand in front of her.
It was only when the roses came into her line of vision that she was able to drag her eyes away from his.
"Flowers? Wow," she whispered, knowing Corey had never bought flowers before.
He must have really missed her.
"Thanks, Corey. They're perfect," she said.
Did he even know what they meant, or had he just bought them because they were pretty? She decided to go with the former, just to feed her imagination. She knew he would never have bought anything that was associated with love if he'd known.
"Is that it? I get you flowers and I don't even get a hug? Maybe even a little kiss?"
She looked up at him and saw his signature smirk on his face. Her heart immediately melted. Did he even realise what he was doing to her?
With a little smile of her own, she gladly went into his arms. It had been too damn long since Corey had held her like this; with his huge arms around her lower back, firmly securing her against the hard wall of his body. She put the flowers down on the side table that was next to her so she could savor the moment. Both her hands found their way to the back of his neck while she buried her face in the c
rook of his neck, breathing his intoxicating scent in.
Her whole body came alive at the contact and she couldn't help holding him a bit tighter. Would it be rude to lure him to her bedroom now, with all those other people in the house?
She couldn't be sure, but she thought she felt him hold her a bit tighter, too.
"I missed you, babe," he whispered.
Oh, God! Was she supposed to take it slow? Would he run off again if she were to rip his clothes off where he stood?
"I missed you, too, baby," she answered.
The kitchen door opened behind her and she almost screamed at the interruption.
"Whoa! Wow. This... Should I kick everyone out?"
It was John. She rolled her eyes and reluctantly let go of Corey all the while thinking of ways to kill John.
"Hey," Corey said, nodding his head to his old friend.
"Hey," John replied, walking towards him. "How you doin'?"
"Good," Corey answered.
John noticed the flowers on the little table; then looked from Corey to her then back to Corey again.
"Flowers, huh?" he asked with a grin.
"Yeah," Corey answered easily.
"You have my blessing, kid," he smiled, lightly punching his arm and giving Rae a wink before he turned to walk away again.
She had missed something, she was certain of that.
"Um.. do you want to come by the pool for a drink or something?" she asked.
She was kind of hoping he'd say no, then pick her up and take her upstairs to ravish her.
"Sure," he said instead.
She picked her flowers up and led him to the kitchen, which was now as spotless as Shane had promised.
"I'll just find a vase for these. I'll be with you in a minute."
As he walked away from her, she couldn't help looking at his butt. Some would argue that there was a definite lack of butt, but that was the sexiest derriere she'd ever laid her eyes on. She had to bite her bottom lip to stop herself from groaning out loud.
Shit, this friend thing was a lot harder than he'd first thought. If he was to take her upstairs right now and make love to her, would she really say he hadn't courted her? He'd bought the flowers, wasn't that enough?
He was only a man, damn it! He wasn't designed for such self control!
As he stepped out, a loud laugh caught his attention, followed by Drew and Timmy's delighted squeals.
No! No! Noooo! The fuck was Nate doing there? He wasn't supposed to be anywhere in the picture. He broke her heart... he left her... why the fuck had she let him talk his way back?
His eyes narrowed angrily as he stopped in his tracks. He'd made all these big plans, and none of them had taken into account the fact that Nate could pop up any time. Why the hell had Irving let him go through what he had, when he'd known what lay on the other side of the kitchen door all along?
"Corey, come on," John called out. "I've got a cold beer here just for you."
John's bellowing brought attention he really didn't need, not since he couldn't take his eyes off the man who'd ruined his life. He still wanted to kill him.
What would his chances with Rae be if he maybe drowned the freak in the pool? Would he still be able to win her over? Probably not.
Shit! Shit! Shit!
"Corey, are you all right?"
It was Mandy this time. He dragged his eyes away from Nate's to give her a fake smile.
"Of course," he lied.
Rae came out just then to stand next to him with the biggest smile on her face. She'd already been in a good mood before she'd noticed him standing with her dad. Now he knew why.
He looked away from her quickly to look over the faces around him. John, Mandy, Matt and Shane were sitting together, just looking at him. Matt seemed worried but John had the stupidest grin on his face. Irving sat in the shade close to where his little boys were playing with Nate. All he did was raise his beer at him.
Swallowing hard, he turned away. They were all making a fool of him, punishing him. He should never have come.
How the hell had he thought he could overlook the fact that the woman he was in love with loved another? He wanted all of her; mind, body and soul. He had no room in his life for Nate as well. He couldn't share, not this time. So it had come down to all or nothing. And by the little scene in front of him, he guessed he'd picked the card with nothing.
"I can't do this," he whispered hoarsely before walking back into the house.
What other option was he left with now? He'd already confirmed he couldn't live without her. And he certainly couldn't kill Nate like he wanted to.
He was already by the door when he stopped himself, when he let his anger take him over.
He'd been to hell and back without Rae, he'd be damned if he was going to let some face-paint loving freak send him back there again. And he'd be damned if the last half hour he'd spent with the terrifying Crusher’s had been all for nothing.
He was going to take his shit back, whether Nate liked it or not.
Angrily, he stormed back down the hall and into the kitchen. Through the windows he saw Rae standing exactly where he'd left her less than a minute before; it only took him a second to turned her around and crush her body to his.
"If you think for one second, that I'm going to let you walk out of my life again, you've got another thing coming," he growled, just before he crushed his lips to hers.
Chapter Seventeen
"Eeewwww!" both Timmy and Drew screeched, covering their mouths before falling into a fit of giggles at their dad's feet.
Their dad watched them for a few seconds before turning his attention back to his daughter. He had no doubt in his mind that the stupidity that had covered both Rae's and Corey's eyes like a wet blanket was about to be lifted very, very soon. This movie was about to have a very indecent ending. Not that he wanted to witness that punk violating his daughter. He probably would have stopped it if the punk in question hadn't just spent an enlightening half hour or so with him. And he had to say, Corey begging was quite a sight. And he'd quite possibly acquired a babysitter for as long as he wanted and a nice new car. What? He'd got carried away. The boy had literally offered his soul, damn fool. All for nothing, as well. Rae was Corey's, whether he approved or not.
"Sara," he called quietly, beckoning his wife from where she stood with a smile on her face right by the table they had set the drinks on. "Maybe you should take the boys out for ice-cream or something."
"Maybe I should," Sara giggled, probably having come to the same conclusion as he had. "Come on, boys."
The boys jumped to their feet eagerly and followed their mother to the house, stopping only briefly to let out another, "Eeeewww," as they passed by the still kissing couple.
Of course, Rae and Corey didn't even hear them. He put his drink down and wondered if he had to go over to them and prize them apart. They seemed to have forgotten that there were other people there with them.
Nate sat himself on the lawn right next to his chair, looking on. His face was expressionless, so he couldn't quiet tell what the young man was feeling. It couldn't be easy, but he knew the boy was a lot stronger than he thought he was. Nate had let go of his love for Rae a while ago, he just hadn't realised it yet. And if he could find a way to look past their time together, he would be the best kind of friend for his daughter. Nate had proved himself invaluable, even to him, over the past few weeks.
"You all right, Nate?" he asked.
"Yeah," Nate answered. "But maybe I should go. I'm feeling a bit awkward now; I mean, Rae did kinda put me in the middle of all this."
He just waved that off. Nate being there was a good thing. Who knew what kind of horrors were going through Corey's mind because of it? He knew Corey wouldn't have made a move like that if he hadn't seen the Enigma there, not if the carefully laid out plan he'd told him about earlier was anything to go by. Courting Rae? While that was a good plan for other couples, he thought that ship sailed a long time ago when it came to
Corey and Rae. They had shared a bed and God knew what else for years before they had finally got together in every sense of the word, they knew everything about each other. While courting would be a good way to get the talking again without the complication of sex, he knew that the moment they did talk and they realised the truth, that horny little bastard would drag her to his bed as soon as he could.
Well, everyone knew what they said about the best laid plans.
"Stay. Grab a drink," he said to the younger man. "If we're lucky, this shit ends today."
"You think Corey will do the right thing?" Nate asked.
He could only smile at that as he brought his cold drink to his lips.
"I know Corey will do the right thing," he said finally.
Nate's eyes widened as he looked back at the couple.
"Good for Corey," Nate said genuinely. "He's a good guy; he'll take care of her."
"I know. I just wish he'd take his tongue out of her damn mouth and get on with it, already."
"I knew I should've made popcorn," John muttered as he watched the steamy kiss his friends were sharing.
"I know you're happy for your friends and all, but I don't really feel like watching a make-out session so soon after breakfast," Shane chuckled.
"This is more than a make out session, my friend," John stated, raising his beer in salute to the couple even though they'd probably forgotten they had an audience. "It's the day we all get to breathe again. He bought her flowers."
"He bought her flowers?" Mandy asked. "Wow."
"How is that a big deal?" Shane asked.
The other occupants of the table looked at him as if he'd grown a couple of horns.
"Have you met Corey?" Matt chuckled.
"He just stays well clear of stuff like that; just in case the girls get the wrong idea," John explained.
"Plus the fact that he finds it completely unnecessary," Mandy added.
"Yeah. He thinks he doesn't need any help getting himself into any woman's bed," John chuckled.
"Well, he obviously did this time," Matt stated, looking on at the couple.
John shook his head.
"He didn't do it to get into her bed. He's courting her."