Four Crows

by Lily White

  Leaning towards Maggie, I laughed softly at the way she stood frozen clutching the shirt I’d given her tightly to her chest. “Do you see something you like? Is that the real reason you ran from me the other day? Are you scared?”

  It was all too apparent that I affected her. The way she struggled to pull in a deep breath, the way her eyes never left my body as if she were memorizing every small detail. I regretted having to toy with a woman who was so obviously lost to the attraction she felt, and I had to wonder why. Perhaps she’d been sheltered by that damn family of hers too much, or perhaps the cause of her behavior was something far more sinister and disturbing.

  Maggie surprised me when she reached out to push me away, my body stumbling back as she moved away from the tree and tipped her chin up with an expression of pure defiance.

  Surprising me again, she held my eyes as she pulled the shirt over her body, the material eventually hanging down to her knees. I’d expected her to throw it down, or if polite, to refuse it graciously and hand it back, but I didn’t believe she would actually accept my offer.

  “Thank you,” she said, her voice as weak as her knees had been moments before. “We really should keep moving.”

  My head fell back and true laughter blew over my lips. Not much took me by surprise anymore, but this woman - this person I should have hated as much as the family she belonged to - she continued to mystify me with every decision she made.

  Shaking my head in disbelief, I stepped towards her and motioned out with my arm. “Ladies first.”

  A grin pulled at her full lips, a flash of something behind eyes that were the color of a forest at dawn.

  As we moved through thicker brush, Maggie kept looking back at me, concern shadowing her expression. “You’re going to get eaten alive by bugs now that you don’t have a shirt covering your chest. Guess you didn’t think about that when you decided to give it up to me.”

  It seemed the ice had been broken between us, and all the tension and indecision in Maggie had dissolved in the few moments I’d attempted to stir up longing inside her. Refusing to miss the opportunity to gain information, I innocently said, “I’m not worried about the bugs. My father taught me to respect women above all else, so I’m just glad to help keep you warm. But I’m sure you know what I mean.”

  Casting me a furtive glance, Maggie shrugged a shoulder. “I guess so. My daddy treats me like I’m the most precious thing in his world. My brothers on the other hand…”

  Her voice trailed off and the tension returned to my shoulders. “I don’t mean to pry, but what about your brothers?”

  She was finally talking, and as long as I didn’t push too hard, I hoped it meant I would gain all the information I needed with this one trip. Perhaps her father hadn’t been involved after all. It was a possibility, but something told me there was more to Jonah Crow than simply a doting father.

  “My brothers,” she answered, her voice far off and hesitant, “they’re, I don’t know. They’re just mean. Not all the time, and Brody is better than Finn, but I think they’re jealous of how much my father loves me.” Her thin shoulder shrugged when she admitted, “I guess they just hate the fact that they have to watch over me all the time. Not that there’s much to watch. I don’t go anywhere or do anything. I don’t have any friends or…”

  “A boyfriend?”

  Her head spun to look at me. Her cheeks stained red with embarrassment, she smiled shyly and replied, “No. I could never have a boyfriend. They’d kill him if he laid a finger on me.”

  My eyes widened in response to her words and Maggie was quick to explain, “I mean, they wouldn’t actually kill anybody. They’d just scare him until he ran off.”

  There was fear behind her gaze, fear that I knew had been placed there by the secrets her family wished to remain hidden. I didn’t want to run her off with too many questions, even if those questions were screaming in my head and causing my hands to tighten into painful fists.

  “Sounds like a typical older brother,” I teased, somehow forcing humor into my voice when all I felt was rage. Not at Maggie. Never at her. But at those men who stole my life away.

  Not responding to what I’d said, Maggie’s expression fell. She turned to walk faster. “The farm should be up this way in another ten minutes or so.”

  Passing the rest of the trip in silence, I took a deep breath when the neighboring farm came in to view. If I was going to ingratiate myself to her, I had to do it soon. The more information I had about the Crows the better.

  “I have a confession to make, Maggie. I hope you won’t get mad.”

  She pivoted on her heel, her eyes meeting mine with true fear behind them. “I got you to the farm, so I should get going,” she snapped, not angry, but there was the trace of terror behind her words. I couldn’t understand the reaction, and I wasn’t about to let her run away until I knew what scared her.

  The woman was quick on her feet, I’d give her that, but I had reflexes that had been honed by my days as a Marine. As fast as she ran past, I reached out to wrap my hand around her bicep and drag her back against me. She fought my hold, but stilled suddenly once my mouth pressed against her ear.

  “I haven’t even told you what I wanted to say,” I whispered. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”

  “I have to go,” she muttered, her heart beating a frantic pulse beneath her skin, her breath coming out in shallow spurts. She was terrified, the trembling of her body, a vibration against my own.

  “In my shirt?” Still practically whispering, I laughed softly, hoping the friendly sound might shake her out of whatever terror flooded her.

  Her body stilled at the question, becoming weak against mine as she stopped struggling in order to listen to what I had to say.

  “You can’t take off in my clothes, Maggie. Not if you don’t want your family to know you were with me.”

  Nodding her head, she reached down to pull the t-shirt up, but I placed my hands on her stomach to prevent her from lifting it over her head. “Before you give it back, can I tell you what I wanted to say?”

  Her back was pressed to my chest, her hair soft against my bare skin. A chill ran through me, tightening every muscle across my bones as the scent of her shampoo struck me. Roses. The beautiful girl that was so terrified she could barely remain standing smelled like the flower that reminded me so much of my wife.

  Gritting my teeth against the onslaught of memory, against the grating pain that tore me apart inside as the whispers of happiness I’d once had echoed in my thoughts, I softened the sharp edge to my voice, my mind focused on the task at hand. I needed Maggie to trust me. I needed Maggie to want me enough that she’d risk everything just to be near me. Without her, I had no chance at getting close to the Crows.

  Bringing my lips down to brush her ear again, I said, “All I wanted to tell you was that it wasn’t an accident I ended up at your place today.”

  Every muscle in her body tensed mirroring my own, but I kept going hoping that she would understand what I was trying to say.

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you after the day I broke down in front of your house. I couldn’t get those gorgeous green eyes out of my mind. I want to know you, Maggie, and I think you want to know me.”

  Pressing closer, I ran my hands down her arms, watching as goosebumps broke out across her skin. “Tell me you want to know me. I’m begging you, beautiful, tell me I wasn’t wrong when I thought there was a spark between us.”

  “I have to go,” I insisted, forcing every word past my lips despite the way they clung to my tongue desperate to remain silent.

  Unsure whether I loved or hated the fact that he released me so quickly, we stepped away from each other as I turned to stare at the first man who’d shot electricity along my skin.

  “Thank you,” he said, a flash of light reflected in his silver-grey eyes from the last ribbons of the setting sun. “You know, for saving my ass and all. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  I watc
hed silently as his mouth twisted into an embarrassed grin, his hand reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. I knew then that it was a nervous habit on his part, much like the way I chewed at the back of my lip when I concentrated or didn’t know what to say.

  Breathing out on a rush of breath, he admitted, “Fuck, that was a stupid thing for me to say.” He laughed, the sound so genuine it made me smile in response.

  “I’m so bad at this romance shit. I -” His voice trailed off, but I wished he’d keep talking. His accent gave him a boyish charm, and the grittiness of his voice tugged at something inside me that caused my thighs to tighten together.

  Shaking my head, I took a step closer despite everything inside me that told me to tuck tail and run.

  “It wasn’t stupid,” I offered, my tone uncertain about everything this man represented. I knew who he was - who his wife and son had been - but I finally allowed myself to believe he had no idea about my family. The thought sent a shot of excitement through my body, my skin blushing with the anticipation of what this could be.

  “It’s kind of creepy that you lied to me about being lost.” I wasn’t lying to say it. I was flattered that he wanted to see me so badly he’d acted like a fool just to get close.

  The setting sun shone like fire against the darkening sky, colors banding out as the moon climbed up from the horizon. Elliot glanced up at the waning light before leveling his gaze back on me.

  “You should get going, Maggie. Or at least let me drive you home. I worry about you in those woods all by yourself.” Flashing me a charming smile, one that caused those dimples to indent into dark points on his cheeks, he apologized. “And I’m sorry for acting like a creep. I just didn’t think there was any other way for me to get to know you besides sneaking around.”

  “Are you really buying this farm?”

  One quick nod of his head was his response before he turned to look out over the fields of grass and weeds. A two story house stood in the distance. Dark and abandoned, it was still more inviting than the small house where I lived. I could imagine myself in a house like that - with a man like Elliot.

  “Yeah. I’ll probably be out here every day for the next few weeks inspecting around. I need to see what should be fixed before throwing down money.”

  I grinned, my weight shifting between my feet because I knew I should get back home. The only problem was that I didn’t want to leave.

  “I can keep a secret,” I said. Giving him a smile I hoped would say all the words I was too afraid to speak, I ignored the frantic beat of my heart. “So, maybe I’ll see you out here tomorrow, if you can keep a secret, too.”

  Some unspoken thought flashed behind his eyes, quickly covered by the way his mouth pulled into a lurid smile. “Darlin’, secrets are all I have. I’m always ready and willing to take on a few more.”

  My stomach fluttered, my body tightening as I forced myself to keep from drawing closer to him. Shirtless and with jeans that hung from his narrow waist, he was the most beautiful man I’d ever seen. His chest wasn’t smooth, but had just enough dusting of hair that it made me wonder what it would feel like against my palms.

  Trailing my eyes down further, I hiccupped over my breath at the muscles that rolled beneath his tan skin. His arms were three times the size of mine and I knew their strength could tear me to pieces if I allowed him to wrap himself around me. I needed to go, needed to place as much distance between Elliot and myself before I did something stupid.

  “Secrets it is, then. I’ll see you tomorrow, Elliot.” Turning to run back home, I stopped short when he called out my name.

  “I think you’re leaving with something that belongs to me.” His eyes roamed over my body and I remembered it was his shirt I wore.

  Breathing in deeply, I savored the smell of him on the shirt, but gripped the hem, reluctant to strip it off and return it. I hadn’t had a chance to lift it off my body before he spoke again.

  “No, beautiful.” His hand touched mine and I jumped to discover he’d closed the distance between us. “I wasn’t talking about the shirt.”

  Flicking my eyes up to his, I admired him beneath the thick fall of my inky dark lashes. “What were you talking about?”

  Strong hands gripped my hips, my body jerked forward until I was pressed against him. Bending over, his lips brushed the rim of my ear when he whispered, “I’ll let you go home to think about that for a while. Maybe tomorrow you can come back and tell me what you came up with.”

  He released me as fast as he’d grabbed me and I stumbled back a few steps.

  A wolfish grin spread over his lips, his eyelids heavy and hooded over the stormy grey. “Keep the shirt so that you stay warm on your trip back.”

  Swallowing down the nervousness that sat lodged in my throat, I nodded once before turning away to walk into the woods between the two farms.

  “And Maggie?”

  Glancing at him from over my shoulder, I waited in rapt attention.

  “Be careful. I’d hate to see somebody so beautiful get lost in the woods at night.”

  Thud. Thud. Thud.

  My heart couldn’t handle the sweet torment of his words. Unable to speak, I nodded again, running away fast enough this time that he couldn’t stop me.

  “Where have you been? The sun set an hour ago and dad’s been looking everywhere for you. We thought a damn bear had dragged you off.”

  With my gaze lowered so that I didn’t have to see the scorn written across Brody’s face, I let myself into the house wishing like hell he would move aside so I could run down the hall and disappear into my room.

  His hand wrapped around my arm, my entire body shaking back and forth as he forced me to look up at him.

  Brody was every bit as big as Finn and my father, but somewhere along the line his hair had turned a sandy blond. His green eyes were the only feature he shared with his baby sister.

  “Answer me, Maggie. You know we don’t like it when we don’t know where you are.”

  “I was out by the stream where I always am, but then I decided to take a walk through the woods. What’s wrong with that?”

  Angry green eyes narrowed on me, the color glimmering with something nefarious and revolting. Having Brody this close made my skin crawl. Stepping away from him, I tried to jerk my arm free. His grip was too tight and I hurt my shoulder from the effort to pull away.

  “Let me go.”

  Dragging me closer, he lowered his head until we were nose to nose. “I’m not letting you go and you’re damn lucky I found you before Finn.”

  A shiver coursed along my spine and I screamed, “Daddy? Daddy, I’m home!”

  Soft laughter drew my attention back to Brody.

  “He’s not here, Magpie. The old man’s out looking for his precious daughter, probably killing himself off faster for being out in the cold.” His voice dropped to a shrill whisper, the words hissing over his smiling lips. “What are you going to do when he dies? Who’s going to protect you then?”

  Tears welled in my eyes and I fought to keep my thoughts from going to Elliot. A man like him could protect me. He could take me so far away from this house I’d be able to forget it ever existed in the first place.

  My voice was an angry drawl when I demanded, “Let me go, Brody. Daddy’s not dying and you’re just going to piss him off by thinking you have the right to put your hands on me.”

  Despite the strength I’d intended to put in those words, they still came out weak. Brody and Finn had many ways to torture me and still stay in good graces with our father. All they had to do was pretend they were looking out for me - that whatever mean spirited thing they’d done was because it was in my best interests.

  My brothers were a large part of the reason I was so sheltered. Constantly whispering in my father’s ear, they kept it so I was always within sight. It didn’t make any sense, especially when they complained about having to take care of me.

  His fingers uncurled from my arm and I could still feel the heat of
them against my skin. More than likely I’d bruise, but Brody would just lie and say I was doing something stupid and needed to be grabbed.

  My dad loved me, but when it came to who he believed, it was always my brothers.

  “Keep telling yourself that. You go ahead and continue believing that Dad isn’t one step away from the grave.” He laughed. “Women are always easier when they’re off guard anyway.”

  Rounding into saucers, my eyes locked to his, my skin crawling in response to the expression on his face. Brody didn’t have the chance to say anything else before the kitchen door slammed open behind me, a familiar cough filling the small room.

  Brody stalked off as my father approached.

  “Where were you? I’ve been out there for over an hour.”

  Batting my eyes, I spoke with as much sweetness as I could. My father never could deny me when I acted innocent. “I took a walk, Daddy. Through the woods and it got late before I realized it. I turned around as fast as I could.”

  Finn stood behind my father, scowling and angry because he was pissed I could play my daddy so well. If it were up to Finn, I would be punished in one way or another.

  My father’s shoulders withered and he coughed so hard and loud that he had to settle himself into a chair just to keep from tipping over. “Don’t do that to me again,” he said breathlessly, his coughing fit shaking his entire body. “I mean it, girl. Don’t run off without telling me.”

  Tears streamed down my face, first for fear of my brothers, and second for the love I had for my father. He wasn’t a saint. In truth, he was closer to a demon. But he was all I had.

  Spoken on a bare whisper, I relented, “I won’t, Daddy. I promise.”

  Seven days.

  It had been an entire aggravating week that I found myself loitering around an abandoned farm waiting for a girl I wished I didn’t know.