by L. Ann Marie
I like this position and kiss him running my hands over his chest. He moans and lifts me with our mouths still connected. Once he slides in, I pull away. I love how he watches my eyes like he’s telling me how much he loves me without the words. His hands move to my face and he pulls me back kissing my lips and running his tongue across my scar to my ear sending a shiver down my spine. I love that too.
“Love to see the ink on your body babe,” he whispers in my ear and it sends heat right through me.
I sit up and ride him as he’s moving under me. Putting my hand on a nipple, he never looks down, but moans and moves his fingers to our connection putting pressure on me and I grind into him. “Yes, harder Brantley.”
His eyes get intense and he moves me faster. I arch my back so I’m rubbing harder against his hand and moan. “Please.” His mouth is on me moving down my neck and latching on to my nipple. I cry out his name splintering into a thousand pieces. He moves fast and I’m on my back before my brain catches up. Pulling one leg over, he holds it across me with my knee at the opposite hip and slides back in feeling so damn good. “Holy shit it feels good,” I moan out. All I can do is hold on. He’s deep and hitting everything right, watching my eyes with that sexy look on his face. I yell his name feeling like an explosion rocked my body. Myself thinks I’m going to die pulling air in and this is definitely the way to go.
“Love you beautiful Holly.”
If I’m going to be dead, I should at least acknowledge his love so I moan. He lifts me up and puts me on my pillow. My eyes close, but I hear him laugh. I don’t care. I’m basking.
I feel his hand on my cheek and open my eyes to his baby laugh. I have no idea how he does it, but it makes me laugh. “Hi my little happy boy.” He laughs again and rolls to sit himself up then leans in for a kiss. “We have school today.” He signs, ‘yes.’ He’s so damn cute. I kiss his little cheek getting another laugh. I’ve never seen a baby laugh so much. He was definitely dipped in the happy river.
Brantley lifts him up. “I love my mornings with you two.” He swings Mucimi up getting a giggle and turns. I flip over wondering what he’s doing. When he moves he’s looking down smiling. “You like that little dude?” Mucimi careens across the floor laughing pushing a plastic walker. It looks like a Playschool version of an elderly walker with a tray on the front. I laugh watching him. “Jeremy said he’s ready.”
Oh shit. I pull the covers up covering my naked body. “He’s not coming in. He would warn me.” I relax back and he pulls me up. “Nope. You need to get up.” He lifts me and does his morning routine. While he’s drying himself I get dressed fast putting on my new kryptonite panties. I’m covered before he sees them.
I turn Mucimi following him out and smile at Jeremy and Jacob making breakfast. “Morning guys.” Mucimi laughs rolling across the floor toward them.
Jacob laughs. “He loves it. Morning.”
I kiss their cheeks and warm a bottle up. When I put it on the walker tray Mucimi swipes it off. What the heck?
Jacob looks at me. “He doesn’t want to sit. He thinks he’s big.” He laughs.
What does that mean? “Like he needs a cup?”
He looks at Jeremy then back at me. “I guess we can try.”
Freaky kid shit isn’t very helpful this morning. I think there was a cup from the boys left here so I hunt through the cabinet. “Yes.” I pour the bottle in and put the cap on and put it on the tray. He laughs and lifts it with both hands like his bottle. He takes a drink dripping formula down his face and coughs. Shit! I reach for the cup.
“No!” My hand freezes and I look at Jeremy.
“He’s going to drown himself.” I look back at him and he’s drinking with no problem, but a little messy. “Or not.” Dripping formula is an easy clean.
“He says let him learn,” Jacob tells me. I think of the list Jeremy wrote. This is what he means. I nod. It cost him something to do that for me. I need to watch I’m not jumping before they figure things out.
“Yes,” Jeremy says, as I get the table set.
Brantley comes in and laughs. “Mucimi, I’m not sure I’m ready for the damn cup.” He puts his hand on the table and laughs. “I’m definitely not ready for that.” He looks at me. “He thinks he’s big enough to play on the slide, running to climb the ladder.”
I crack up and Jeremy gives me a look. “Sorry, but he just figured out how to drink from a cup.”
Jacob saves me from the look. “I’m with Holly. Fuckin’ kid needs to give us time to get used to one thing before he’s running by tonight.”
I nod. Jeremy plops a plate of scrambled eggs on Mucimi’s tray and I look at Brantley. He’s trying not to laugh too. Mucimi grabs eggs and mashes them on his face and I can’t hold it in. Everyone laughs even Jeremy. Jacob gets our plates as Jeremy sits in front of Mucimi. I eat watching him get more in his mouth without mashing them all over his face. Jacob slides Jeremy’s plate to Brantley and puts a spoon on it. Brantley hands it to Jeremy. No one says a word. Freaky kid shit. By the time we’re done Mucimi is holding a spoon. I’m relieved it isn’t well, but he’s holding it and trying to eat. Myself tells me he won’t be running by tonight, but he did good. I get a nod from Jeremy and wonder how to keep him from hearing me talk to myself. He laughs at me.
I get happy boy washed and dressed hearing Brantley talking to Jeremy. “HS is spread thin. Prez is out of the yard. Just order your shit like a normal Brother.”
I walk out ready to go and stop at the looks going back and forth. Me and Mucimi go to the living room and I check the bags. Someone has them ready with the cup inside making me smile. My bag is all set too. I love the freaky kid shit.
Jeremy isn’t happy, but he takes Mucimi and Brantley takes the bags kissing my forehead. “Ready?” I nod and he guides me out and into his truck. Jacob drives us to the daycare with Brantley following.
***
Brantley
In my office I have the Ops board up while I work. I’m working on the mercs’ connections but my eyes are drawn to the board stopping any real progress. I’m relieved when my phone rings. Nunánuk? I swipe her on, smiling.
“Stop my foolish grandson. Christian is too upset to speak.”
I look at the board and pull up tracking. “Who Nunánuk?” Fuck my heart is pounding.
“Jeremy. Be swift, Grandson.”
Sonofabitch! I call in to Billy. “Find Jeremy and get HS with him.” I hit Darren’s door. “Jeremy is out of the Compound.”
“Fuckin’ kid!”
I keep running. In Ops, Billy is pale. “I sent a Family from the daycare and the closest Security to him. The gate guard is at the daycare.” He’s not an Ops lead, so I just nod and look at Darren.
“Call Jax to get PD support and get out there. I have no fuckin’ open HS that can keep up with him.”
I pull a helmet and run out the door calling Jax. He’s sending two patrols. I roll my eyes and fly out of the parking lot. “Coder to Ops. Two patrols are headed his way.”
Billy: “Roger Coder, he’s heading north parallel to 95. I have your board up.”
Me: “He’s heading to the baby store.”
Darren: “What? We’re fuckin’ strapped here and he wants to shop?”
Me: “I told him no this morning.”
Darren: “Pass PD. Maybe they’ll fuckin’ move.”
I blow by them and around cars. A Brother is up ahead waiting for a car to pass on the southbound. I ride the breakdown and fly by. He follows. Where the fuck is Security? I see Jeremy at the top of the hill and speed up to one-ten.
Me: “I have a visual VP.”
Darren: “Roger Coder. We have a car moving west tagged away. It’s moving fast. Security is following a truck heading south toward him. Something’s off about both. You’re going to intersect with the car Coder, be ready.”
Fuckin’ kid. I pull my gun watching the intersection on the right. Jeremy rides through never slowing down. The car makes the corner before me with
the passenger shooting at him. “Fuck.” I shoot the tire and the car swerves.
Darren: “Hit the pussies!” I’m already shooting as I come up to them. “Like that. Fuckin’ Brother.” I hear a crash, but keep moving. Fuckin’ Jeremy doesn’t even look back. “The truck’s less than a half mile, coming fast. Find a way to stop him Coder!”
Me: “Roger.” ‘Jeremy if you don’t stop I’m shooting your fuckin’ tire.’
‘No! I’m just going to the store!’ Sonofabitch! I see the truck barreling down and swerve. Security is shooting!
“Cease Fire! They’re gonna hit him!” I shoot the driver then the tire. Jeremy swerves onto the shoulder and loses control. My heart stops as I see him jump off the bike. He lands on his feet and I breathe again. A shot and he’s bent over. “NO!” I turn and shoot the fuckin’ pussy in the passenger seat then run.
‘I’m okay. I’m okay. It’s just my arm Brantley.’ When he stands up I punch him.
I’m fuckin’ pissed looking down at him. “I told you to stay on the fuckin’ Compound! We don’t have anyone to spare and you pull this shit so you can buy fuckin’ baby cups! It’s not worth fuckin’ losing you over!”
‘I’m sick of fuckin’ visions! No one cares about what I want! Just fuckin’ visions!’ he yells in my head, standing up holding his face.
“Is that what you think? It’s not fuckin’ visions I was chasing! You’re my brother Jeremy. I’m not losing a part of my life for a fuckin’ cup. I told you I’d take you tonight. You’re worth more to me than any fuckin’ vision.” I hug him to me trying to get my heart to slow down. “I love you, you fuckin’ crazy kid. Mucimi.”
He holds on shaking, so I don’t let him go. “I’m sorry.”
Darren: “I’m glad he gets it, but I need him back in the yard.”
Taylor: “Sniper to Ops. I got him VP. I’ll take him to the store if you can lose Coder for an hour.”
Darren: “Fuckin’ Blackhawks. Hurry the fuck up! I have two that were aiming for him. You’re all fuckin’ crazy.”
Me: “Roger VP.”
Jacob stops behind Taylor and pulls Jeremy off me. “You’re lucky he already hit your fuckin’ stupid ass.” He hugs him then looks at his arm. It’s just a graze.
While Jacob looks after Jeremy, I help Taylor pick the bike up and hear Darren talking to Clean-up. I shut my mic off. When the bike’s on the road he checks it then looks me in the eye. “Thank fuck you got him Brother.” I notice how pale he is.
I hug him. “He’s okay. His arm is just a graze.” He nods and walks to Jeremy handing him his helmet. “Let’s go get your fuckin’ cup.”
At the store Jeremy moves fast. Taylor stays at the door and I follow him through with Jacob holding the shit he’s throwing at us. Jesus he wants more than a fuckin’ cup. We’re at the checkout getting eyed by the cashier within twenty minutes. Jacob bags the shit and hands us each a bag while Jeremy pays. He’s smiling as we walk out. “Thanks.”
Taylor gives him a look. “We’ll talk when we get back. You ride with us or I’ll shoot your fuckin’ tires out from under you.”
Jeremy looks down. “I will.”
I leave them at the gate happy to see the guard back in place. I hand him the bag, throw chin and get to Security. Darren is still pissed when I walk into Ops. “Thanks Darren.”
“He needs a fuckin’ leash. He’s lucky Prez is out. Good fuckin’ job Brother. Not many Brothers can keep up with him on a fuckin’ bike. How bad is his arm?”
“Just a graze.”
“I called Nick. He’s headed there now. He’s pissed he got hit. You better call your dad.”
I nod. “I need to call Nunánuk. Christian couldn’t talk to get me the warning.”
“Jesus.”
I call Nunánuk and let her know he’s okay. She tells me the reader is with the spirit world, I guess that’s something and Christian is at the lake.
My phone rings before I can swipe call out. “Dad, I was just going to call.”
“You fuckin’ hit him! He was shot and you hit him!”
Fuck. “He took off alone. Had a car and truck shooting and aiming for him. He wouldn’t stop. All so he could buy a fuckin’ baby cup! Yeah I hit him and I would have hit Jacob or Taylor for the same fuckin’ thing!”
“He’s Jeremy! He was shot and scared! You don’t fuckin’ put hands on him!”
Everyone is watching so I turn around and look at the back wall. “You’re as bad as everyone else up there. He’s not fuckin’ twelve anymore! He needs to be treated like an adult or you’re guaranteeing these childish acts of his. Family was pulled from the daycare, they had the fuckin’ gate guard with the kids and Christian saw more and couldn’t fuckin’ talk. Nunánuk called me with the warning! What he did almost got him killed right in front of me. Watch the fuckin’ feeds and call me when you’re fuckin’ calm.”
I swipe him off and put my hands on my knees. He’s going to come down here and fuckin’ shoot me. I shouldn’t have hit him. Jesus.
A hand on my shoulder has me standing up. “Sorry Brother.” Sonofabitch could this get any worse. “Prez.”
“You’re right and I would have hit him too. You’re trained for HS, but he put you in a job that wasn’t yours to take on. He’s lucky you were here because Taylor wouldn’t have made it.” Fuck that hits me. I just nod. “Go get some water Brother. I’ll handle your dad.”
“I could use the water, but I need to take the call from my dad. He’s fuckin’ pissed right now. I did that.”
He nods. “You’re a good son and brother Brantley.”
I throw him chin and walk toward the door then turn back. “Nunánuk said the reader is in the spirit world.”
He nods and I walk out. When my stomach settles I drink some water and head back to Ops.
Jeremy is on the board and Prez is watching it. He sucks in a breath when Jeremy is hit and bends forward. I look away. Billy is watching me. “Thanks for covering Brother.”
He nods. “I need to get trained here. There’s no fuckin’ way I could do that.”
“You wouldn’t be asked to, but you can train. I’ll get with Taylor and get you on the next rotation.” He throws chin and turns back.
“Brother, you’re not scheduled on Ops. Go get your shit done. I got this,” Darren says.
I walk out, happy to be away from the boards. There was a time when I would be the one showing the crazy shit the Brothers do up on the boards. Since Mucimi, I don’t do that. Now I see why it bothered them. My phone rings as I sit at my desk. I look and relax. “He’s fine Christian.”
“Yeah. Thanks Brantley. His arm’s not bad?” He’s calm. Thank fuck.
“No, it’s just a graze. Darren had Nick take care of him. Dad’s pissed at me though.”
He doesn’t say anything right away. I look to see if he’s still connected then wait. “It was so much worse Brantley. He’s going to get himself killed if he keeps doing stupid shit.”
“I hit him Christian. Just like any other Brother, I hit him.”
He laughs. “Maybe it will knock some sense into him.” His voice goes low. “I saw him die. I don’t know what to do with that Brantley.” Jesus.
I suck in a breath. “Tell him. Bring Nunánuk up and tell him in person so he sees it. The MC keeps him sheltered like a kid. He needs to see this. He never sees himself. It will help you too. Seeing him, holding him, will calm you.”
“I will. I’ll see if we can get there before Dad takes him home.” He’s gone.
Fuckin’ hell! Dad’s probably on his way. I pull up the MC’s tracking and see he’s in New York. Thank God. I jump out before Geek catches me and try to focus on the mercs again. When I’m done, I send Mitch an email about the contract telling her to take it. It’s not asking for exclusivity and it’s a well-known company. I copy Ricky and Diego so they see what I told her.
Grabbing my bag, I head for the door. Prez is walking toward me. “Anything from your dad?” I shake my head no. “He’s drop
ping Dakota and Jessie. You’ll probably see them all soon.”
“Fuckin’ great. Christian is coming with Nunánuk to see Jeremy. He was fuckin’ freaked.”
He stops walking. “Is he okay now?”
“Yeah. He said it ended a lot worse for him.” I think Christian’s words for him.
His hands go through his hair reminding me of Pres. “I don’t want to add to the fuckin’ circus, but I want to see Christian.”
“Maybe you can stop my dad from shooting me.”
He smiles. “There’s always that. I’ll check with Ops and see when they’re due. Take Security with you.”
I throw him chin and hit my watch. From what I get from Jeremy, nothing jams from our own satellite. I wondered how the government did that. I shake it off and wait for Security to show in the lot. He follows me to the gate. Uncle Danny’s just pulling in and follows me to my house. “You doing okay Brother?”
I smile. “I’m fine, it was Jeremy that got hit. It’s just a graze.” He nods and follows me in.
Jeremy is on the floor in front of Mucimi with his walker. He’s smiling with his new cup and toys on the tray. “Holly’s with Jess,” he says slow, looking up at me.
“Oh fuck.” His eye and cheek are black and blue. My dad’s going to fuckin’ kill me.
“What the fuck?”
Shit. I put my head down. My dad won’t make it if Uncle Danny’s this close. I look at him. “I hit him for taking off alone today.”
He laughs. “About fuckin’ time someone did. He’s going to kill himself riding like he does through traffic.” His eyes get hard. “What’s with the arm?”
I don’t say a word. Jeremy waves it away and hands Mucimi a squishy bike. “You shot him?” His voice is deadly.
“Fuck no! Pussies aiming for him did before I shot the passenger.”
“Jesus Christ, does your father know?”
I’m surprised. “Pres didn’t send you?”
He shakes his head. “I’m on for Dakota tonight and Jessie tomorrow. Focus Brother. Does your father know?”