Cruise

by Laramie Briscoe

  “I can’t go back,” he’s screaming. “I can’t go back, just let go.”

  “Stop resisting!”

  I’ve got him down on the ground, but he’s strong, trying to flip me over, and I can’t get his arms behind his back. We’re still for a moment, each of us trying to get the upper hand on the other. I use my feet to brace against the asphalt, put the legs that managed to almost let me be a pro football player as leverage.

  Risking it for a moment, I manage to key my radio. “I need assistance, I can’t get him cuffed.”

  It’s the longest seconds of my life as I hear other officers calling out where they are, and I almost cry with joy when I hear the stomping of boots in my direction. “I’m here, I’m here!” It’s my dad, and I’ve never been more thankful in my life.

  He and Tank were riding together, both take over as I roll off the guy, completely wasted of strength, and trying to regain my surroundings. Adrenaline is flowing through my body, and I’m shaking with the exertion it took to hold him still. As Tank and my dad get him cuffed, other officers arrive.

  “You okay?” Dad asks me quietly as he bends down so that we’re eye-level. He reaches out his hand, helping me up.

  “Yeah,” I pant. “He was strong, I just couldn’t get him cuffed.”

  He pulls me into a hug while Tank waits his turn. “Lost fuckin’ years off my life when you said you couldn’t get him cuffed and we didn’t hear anything else on the radio. Thought he’d hurt you.”

  “I’m a big guy, but he was strong.” I lean over, pressing my hands against my knees.

  “Not wanting to go back to jail makes you do things. You’re bleeding, and your pants are torn. You sure you’re okay?”

  “I think so.”

  “Let Blaze check you out.” Tank grabs me in for a hug around the neck. “Fuck that was scary, man.”

  “Yeah, try being there,” I laugh, because now that’s all I can do.

  “C’mon over here, let me check you out, stud muffin,” Blaze yells from her ambulance.

  I’m not even sure when they got here, but as I have a seat, I’m feeling very lucky that I wasn’t hurt. This could have gone a very different way.

  Ruby

  “Are you okay?” I ask Caleb, as he walks through my front door.

  We were supposed to meet after work, and while I was at the grocery store, I ran into Morgan who asked me how Caleb was doing. It was a shock to find out what had happened, and I’ve been losing my mind ever since.

  “I’m fine,” he answers, enveloping me into his arms. “I’ve never had a scare like that before though. I couldn’t get him cuffed, and I was scared I wasn’t going to get him cuffed.”

  “When Morgan told me what happened, I was worried he was going to tell me you’d been injured.”

  I’m shaking as I hold him in my arms, running my hands all along his body, making sure he’s okay.

  “It’s just part of the job, Ruby. There are days like this when things happen, and then there are days when nothing happens. I’m glad to get to come home to you, though. It made filling out all the reports and waiting to get checked out worth it.”

  “What do you need from me?” I ask, my eyes searching his, looking to see if he needs me to be what I was after the hard night his dad had.

  “I need you,” he answers, his voice hoarse. “I need you to be exactly who you are, and us to be exactly who we are.”

  He’s got the stench of sweat on him, probably from the adrenaline that pumped through his body and the exertion of trying to save his own life. “C’mon.” I grab his hand, leading him to my bathroom.

  I sit him down on the toilet, as I start to fill my bathtub up. He’s despondent as he gazes off to the side, not focusing on much of anything. I can understand he’s got a lot going on in his head, and I want to help him work through all of it. But I know him, he’s not ready to talk about any of it. What he’s ready to do is not have to think.

  Once the tub is full, I go to work on taking his shoes off, then his pants, and finally his vest and shirt. When he’s naked in front of me, he seems to come back to the present. “Sorry, I’m a little out of it.”

  I kiss the space over his heart. Before I move to the road rash spots on his arms and knees. I’m so thankful he wasn’t hurt worse. The reality of the situation is scary, but I also realize how lucky we are. “You’re fine, let me help you.”

  When we’re both naked and I’ve put him the bathtub, I kneel next to it, taking the time to wash him off. I massage the tight muscles and do my best to ignore the one between his thighs that’s now resting on his flat stomach. Every once in a while, I watch as he reaches down and gives himself a few strokes, but I want him relaxed before I do anything. Finally, his head leans back against the tub, and his eyes close.

  His hand is still on his cock, jerking slowly, to a rhythm only he hears in his head. It’s hot, watching him do this, knowing that he’s doing it for me. Knowing that he’s completely lost all inhibitions around me. Quickly I jump into the tub, hoping to not disturb him. I know I’ve accomplished that when I learn forward, take his length down my throat, and he levers up out of the water.

  “Son of a bitch, Ruby, I wasn’t expecting that.”

  It doesn’t take him long to get with the program though. His thick fingers dig into my hair, pushing me up and lifting me down. “Stop, stop,” he pants, pulling me up by the thighs to straddle him.

  “We’ve never…” he swallows roughly. “We’ve never had the conversation, but I would really like to go bareback in you tonight. Can I do that? Are you protected?”

  God, just the words he uses is enough to turn me on.

  “Yeah, I am. I’d love to do that with you.”

  There’s no hesitation, in one push he’s inside my body, mouth at my breast, and the world as I know it has completely turned on its axis. Because unprotected sex with Caleb? Feeling him with absolutely nothing between us? Better than I ever imagined it could be.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  Ruby

  May

  “Okay ladies and gents, you have five minutes before the bell rings, and that’s all I have for the class. Talk amongst yourselves, but please keep it down,” I tell the juniors that make up my history class.

  History isn’t my first love. If given the choice, I would have taught English, but I can do both and there was a need for a History teacher, so here I am. Using my five minutes wisely, I go ahead and start in on next week’s lesson plans, because I plan to spend as much of this weekend as I can with Caleb. A smile toys against my lips as I think about the guy who has so unexpectedly come into my life. We’ve been going strong for months now, definitely longer than any other relationship I’ve ever had. With other guys, I didn’t stay at their places, they didn’t stay at mine. I know part of that is growing up, not being in the dorms anymore, and not having to worry about roommates, but I feel adult in this with him. Like he and I could make a go of this, if we continue to travel down the path we are. I’ve never felt that with another man.

  The bell rings and my class dismisses. As is my custom, I watch them as they leave, and then stand out in the hall until most of the crowd disperses. I broke up a fight once, and since then I’ve continued to do this. It’s important that none of the students get hurt on my watch. I take it very seriously.

  “Ruby!” I hear a loud voice coming down the hallway, and it’s a voice I’d know anywhere, one that’s started to make me smile.

  “Hey Kels.” I wave as I see her and Caleb coming down the hallway.

  Lord I love to watch Caleb approach, it’s nice to watch him leave too, but watching him approach legitimately makes my heart beat faster. The asshole, he knows it too, I can see his smirk from where I stand.

  He’s working today, wearing his MTF uniform of tactical pants and a t-shirt with a bullet-proof vest reading MTF on the chest in bright yellow letters. His badge hangs around his neck, and goddamn if he isn’t sex on a stick. I watch as he slows his wal
k down, the loose-legged gait becoming lazy as he eats up the distance between us. Kelsea beats him to me, and I reach down to give her a hug.

  “See ya, Ruby, I gotta go find Mom.”

  “See ya.” But my eyes aren’t on her, they’re on her older brother.

  He hasn’t shaved today, and it makes his brown eyes pop against his tan face. When he’s finally within a few inches of me, he reaches out with his left hand, the exposed ink on his arm catching in my peripheral, and cups my jaw, before shoving his fingers into my hair, tilting my head to the side and claiming my lips with his. The kiss, compared to many of the others we share isn’t even steamy, but this is Caleb. Everything he does is a turn on. When he breaks away, his voice is deep, rough. “Missed you today.”

  Not able to take it, I step forward, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Missed you too,” I answer, before leaning in for another kiss.

  When we break apart again, he pulls his bottom lip in between his teeth after he licks the fullness. “Sucked not waking up next to you this morning. We’re gonna have to do something about that, Ruby Red.”

  “At some point we will,” I agree, because I hate waking up alone too.

  “Soon?” he moves his hand forward, using his thumb to wipe at my bottom lip.

  “Soon, hot stuff, really soon.”

  He sighs. “I’m gonna go say hi to my mom, wanna come with me?”

  “Yeah, just let me lock up my classroom.”

  He’s a gentleman, standing in the door until I’ve done everything I need to do and then shutting off the light and closing the door for me. I fumble with the key because he’s standing so close. There’s something about his presence that rattles me, but in a good way. As we walk down the hallway, he puts his arm around my neck, pulling me close.

  For a moment, I flash back in time, wondering what it would be like to walk these halls with him when I was in high school, if I had been just a little older. He and I would have at least been in this school at the same time. Chances are he wouldn’t have even noticed me, but I can still imagine what it would have been like walking these halls with him.

  “Did you walk down this hall with your high school girlfriend?” I tease him.

  He throws back his head, groaning. “Yeah, we walked down this hall, but I wasn’t nearly as excited to see her as I am to see you.”

  I’ll take what he’s giving me, even if sometimes I don’t fully believe it. Unfortunately I’m a cynic, but it’s gotten me this far in life, so I’ll take what I can get.

  Cruise

  “I’ve never told a woman about my past, never managed to get close enough one to trust her enough with the information. Opening up about how I grew up isn’t easy, at all.” I hold her close, kissing her forehead to give me comfort as I consider opening up and baring myself to Ruby. I’m not even sure why I’m doing it tonight, but the things we’ve been through recently have made me want to share every part of my life with her. Knowing she doesn’t judge me and she doesn’t blame me are huge parts of why I trust her.

  “You and your dad seem like you had a decent life before Karina came along.” She leans up, kissing me on the neck.

  I’m torn between her believing these things about me and being completely honest about the path I took to adulthood. “My parents had me at sixteen and my mom left before my second birthday. I’ve only ever seen her once, and never officially met her.” I lay my dirty secret down at her feet, wondering if this will change her perception of me.

  She pushes herself up on her elbow, her blue eyes moving up and down my body. I wish I knew her thoughts, could see inside her mind and see if it surprises her. “She left?”

  “Yeah.” I reach over, running my fingers through her hair. “She left. Which is why Dad and I are so close now. It was just us for a long time, except when I was little and he was deployed.”

  “Who took care of you then?” she questions softly, running her fingers along my bare skin.

  “My grandmother. We don’t have a relationship now because of some things that went down between my dad and his dad, but at least I had someone to take care of me when he was gone.”

  “Did you like staying with her?”

  I swallow roughly, tightening my arms around her. “No, I hated it. The only thing I wanted back then was my dad. I didn’t understand why he was gone, what he was doing, and why I had to share him with the world. I remember him and other people trying to explain it to me, but I could never get it to compute in my head. I always thought he was my dad, and there was absolutely no reason I should have to share him. I felt the sacrifice early, and I reacted badly to it. The second time he was deployed, I was a complete shit. I acted out, got into fights, and was literally a holy terror. After that, Dad didn’t take another deployment and got out.”

  “From there, where did you go?”

  It’s hard to explain this vagabond life to someone who’s only known me as a person who’s had a stable existence, but I want her to know me. The real me. “We lived in a few different towns in Texas before we ended up settling in Laurel Springs. It wasn’t until we came here that I realized what a home was and felt like I belonged.”

  “I’m glad you did.” She finally relaxes, putting her head on my shoulder. “If you hadn’t, I never would have met you. I’m a firm believer, given the way I grew up, that everything happens for a reason. Your mom leaving directly brought you and your dad here. To the Moonshine Task Force. To Laurel Springs, and in the end, to me. I can’t hate her for that, Caleb. I just can’t. I can tell you she missed out on knowing an amazing man, but I can’t hate a life that directly affected bringing you into mine.”

  Wrapping my arms around her, I realize how blessed I truly am.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Cruise

  June

  “Wow!” Her gaze falters on me as she hops into the Jeep and gets a good look at the shirt I’m wearing. “That shirt is bright.”

  “Yeah, I know.” I look down at the hot pink shirt covering my body. “The Hurricanes got to pick out their colors, and they decided on hot pink and black. I’m very well aware that I look like a goddamn highlighter. The perks of coaching and having to attend softball games.”

  She laughs, covering her mouth with her hand. “Mason wears it too?”

  “What can I say? Kels makes us do shit we never thought we’d do. Like wear hot pink and spend our weekends during the summer and fall with ten-year-old girls. But I’d rather them be with us than some tyrannical coach who doesn’t give two shits. I did that enough in football. These girls are learning valuable lessons. Even if I do catch a few of their moms checking out my ass.”

  Her blonde hair whips around. “I’m sorry? What? They’re checking out your ass?”

  “Well I mean, it’s a nice ass.” I give her a wink. “But just in case, I got you a little something to wear today.” We come to a stop at a red light, and I reach into the backseat of the Jeep, holding another hot pink shirt.

  She opens it up, smiling big as she sees that it has the team name on it, and then turns it around where it sports Kelsea’s number and it says Coach’s Girl on it. “Great, so now people will think I’m with your dad.”

  “We’re both coaches,” I correct her.

  “Aren’t you assistant?” She giggles, busting my balls.

  “Fuck that, I’m out there on the field, in the hot sun every day. Besides, Mom has one that says Coach’s Wife; he wouldn’t have a wife and a girlfriend. Everyone knows that. Mom would cut his dick off. Everybody will know you’re mine. Especially when we walk in together and you give all those women the evil eye for staring at my ass.”

  She reaches down, managing to grab a little bit of skin to pinch. “Damn right, Harrison. That ass is mine, and they may as well just get used to it.”

  Damn, I love this woman. Love the way she makes me feel, the way she’s fully integrated into my family, and the fact she’s not ashamed to be with me. If I’m honest that’s something that’s hindered
me for a lot of years. Because my mom left, I always got the feeling people were ashamed to be seen with me. That they didn’t love me as much as I loved them. Ruby is showing me that I’m capable of being loved. I’m capable of accepting love, and maybe just maybe, I can take it at face value and not question it. After all, I was able to get it with Karina, I give it to Kels, and my dad with no question. To a point I give it to Ruby too, but opening myself up is hard. I’m learning though, with this woman, and it’s worth it.

  Ruby

  “I see you graduated to the official shirt,” Karina greets me as I make my up in the stands to sit next to her.

  “I did.” I take a drink of my water bottle and pull my sunglasses down further on my face. “When he gave it to me, I had to give him shit and tell him that people will think Mason has both a wife and a girlfriend.”

  Karina laughs, throwing her head back. “Oh my God, I told him that too. I told him he should have put assistant on there.”

  “He got made fun of by both of us.” I smile softly as I gaze out onto the field.

  “It’s cool, he’s used to being made fun of.” She smirks. “That’s basically our relationship.”

  “At least he’s a good sport.”

  “Caleb’s always been a good sport about everything. When I tell him and other people that Kelsea’s lucky she got the brother she did, I’m not kidding at all.”

  The two of us people watch as other parents, friends and family members arrive for the game that’s about to start. I want to talk to Karina about Caleb, but I’m not sure how to approach the subject.

  “So I went by Caleb’s the other day, but I saw your car parked beside his Jeep and was scared I’d interrupt something if I went in.” She gives me a grin.

  I try to think back to what day she’s talking about, wondering if she would have really interrupted anything. Chances are, with us, she would have, but I don’t want to tell her that.

  “It was Saturday, and I knew he had to work that night. It was late enough in the afternoon that he was probably taking a nap.”