Skin Deep

by J. M. Stone

  She and I laughed and traded stories back and forth quietly until the guys all started ambling in from different directions in the house. Then we got up and made breakfast and just enjoyed the weekend together.

  In the weeks that followed the Halloween party, Luke and I spent pretty much all of our free time together. He never complained about Sunday breakfast at my parents’ house; even Brandon and Jackson tagged along. Brandon was always the first to the car to go over there, and I teased him that he was sweet on my mom’s cooking, to which he replied that it was more that he couldn’t wait to see what my brother and I would argue and fight over each week. Jackson admitted that that was primarily the reason he went, as well.

  I tried to just ignore Calland so I wouldn’t give them more to laugh at, but I couldn’t help it that my brother was such an asshole. But I could not sit back and let him have his way about everything. We had enough of that growing up. My sisters and I had dubbed it the “Penis Rule” and my family had ran with it. Calland was fond of saying, ‘He who has the penis makes the rules’ and, my parents, Lord love them, thought it was hilarious.

  This rule was brought up last week at breakfast, and was more than likely the reason that neither Brandon, nor Jackson, would ever miss another one. Well, that and the scalloped potato incident…

  Last week we had all gone over to my parents’ house for breakfast. Allie had come, as per usual. There were very few Sunday breakfasts that she’s missed in all the years we’ve been friends, and they’ve been mostly in the last couple of years. Since all three of the guys have been coming, she’s started showing up like clockwork again, which my mother adores.

  My mom had made a big batch of scalloped potatoes for dinner on Saturday night, which all of us kids love. After breakfast, I had asked my mom if I could take the leftovers home with me, and (of course) she said I could. I reached in the fridge to get them and sat them on the counter to grab my purse and give hugs and goodbyes. The guys had all headed outside with my dad to look at something he wanted to show them, and when I turned to grab the potatoes, they were gone.

  I spent a good five minutes looking everywhere for them, and it hit me. I headed out to the garage yelling for my brother. When I got out there, he was standing just outside the garage with the bowl in his hands. I had stomped over to him and demanded that he give me the potatoes. That’s when things went to hell and I ended up being brunt of about a million jokes, not to mention the 2,000 and counting hits on the Youtube video that my dear brother-in-law, Noah, had so kindly posted.

  He said it was too funny not to post, what with Calland opening the lid and licking the potatoes inside the bowl so I wouldn’t want them. Which made me stomp and tattle to my mother (don’t judge me), and then Calland had told me I could have them if I could get them from him, but I couldn’t cross the imaginary line he marked across the driveway with his foot. Long story short, I chased him around the driveway screaming like a banshee trying to get the potatoes while everyone laughed at me. (I didn’t get the potatoes back.)

  Since then, I’d tried not to let my brother get a rise out of me, but it never turned out well. Thanksgiving was next week and he was threatening to hide the homemade mac n’ cheese from me. Asshole. Always.

  The Monday before Thanksgiving was hell for some reason. I drove myself to work because Luke had told me that morning after his shower (we were running late, so I didn’t get to share it with him) that he would be working late tonight.

  The phones were ringing off the hook and Floyd was out of the office for the week. I only had to work Monday and Tuesday, because I have an awesome boss and got to take Wednesday, Thursday (obviously), and Friday off for the holiday. I was looking forward to having a five day weekend and getting to spend some time down at Luke’s shop with him. I’d even tentatively picked out a new one that I wanted Luke to give me, but I hadn’t asked him about it yet.

  My phone rang again and I put the client currently crying on my shoulder about her case on hold while I answered the second line.

  “Floyd Grim’s office, can I help you?” I said into the phone.

  “You forgot to say good morning, my love.”

  “Excuse me? This is Floyd Grim’s office…is there something I can help you with?” I tried again, not sure I really heard what I thought I did.

  “You always say good morning or good afternoon. You didn’t say it, sweetheart. And you should have.” The voice continued speaking in a harsh whisper, deep, guttural, and chilling.

  “I’m…sorry? Is there…can I help you?” I stammered, caught off guard by his words.

  “I call you all the time to hear your voice. Figured it was time I actually spoke to you. I’m going to miss hearing you while you’re out on holiday, my love.”

  I really didn’t know what to say, and he was starting to freak me out. “Sir, this is a law office and if you aren’t calling to speak to someone in that capacity, then I have to ask that you not call again. Good day, sir,” I said quickly and hung the phone up.

  My phone beeped, reminding me that I had another call on hold, and I jumped. Laughing at myself, I picked up the phone and tried to calm the poor lady down. After promising that Floyd would call her at the beginning of next week, I hung up and immersed myself in the million and two other things that needed my attention before I closed the office for the holiday tomorrow.

  I didn’t think much of that weird phone call until I was tucked under Luke’s arm in bed that night. It hit me that the creepy guy had said he called all the time to hear my voice, and I wondered if he was the one that kept calling and hanging up. I made a mental note to speak to Floyd about it when he got back on Monday and drifted off to sleep.

  “Emma,” a voice whispered in my ear.

  I jerked up and winced, rubbing my forehead where it had connected with Brandon’s chin. Pause…rewind…Brandon?

  “Shit!” I shrieked as I scrambled for the sheet to cover my naked breasts as I glared at Brandon sitting calmly on the edge of the bed where I was laying, rubbing his face where my head had hit while he grinned unapologetically at me.

  “What the hell are you doing, Brandon? Where’s Luke?” I yelled at him.

  “He called and said he wanted to let you sleep a bit but he forgot to the reset the alarm for you. He had to go in early because we were getting some new supplies in that he had to be there for. Asked that I wake you up. So, wake up!” He sounded entirely too cheerful, and I suspected that he was up to something. I just wasn’t awake enough to figure out what.

  “Okay, I’m awake! So, get the hell outta here so I can get up!” I shooed him out with one hand, the other tightly clasping the sheet to me so he wouldn’t get another peep show.

  He got up and walked to the door, throwing one last parting shot over his shoulder. “Nice rack, by the way. Now get in the kitchen and make me some pancakes, woman!”

  I lobbed a pillow at him but he ducked out the door into the hallway before it connected and I sat there shaking my head at his audacity, listening to his laughter fade as he ran down the stairs.

  I showered and got ready for work, foregoing my usual attire for a tight fitting pair of faded jeans and an oversized hot pink hoodie. Floyd didn’t care if I went casual sometimes, and I really wasn’t anticipating much traffic in the office this close to the holiday.

  I headed to the office still grinning at the image of Brandon’s face as I left him sitting at the table. He’d been in his bedroom when I came down and I had knocked on his door, telling him his pancakes were getting cold. He’d come flying out of his room, babbling that he had been kidding, but since I was so nice and really made him pancakes then he was going to love me for all time and Luke could just get over it.

  I didn’t think Luke would have anything to get over, since I didn’t make him pancakes. Instead, I had popped a couple of blueberry waffles I had found stuffed in the back of the freezer into the toaster and slapped them down on a plate in front of him, laughing out right at the shocked and almo
st pained expression on his face when he realized he really wasn’t getting what he wanted.

  Tuesday was a decently slow day and I was finishing up lunch at my desk when my cell phone chimed in my purse. I looked at it and smiled when I saw that Luke had texted.

  Hey, sugar. Sorry I didn’t get to see your smiling face this morning. I miss you.

  I hit reply and began to type. It’s okay. I just wish I could have seen your face when Brandon told you what I did to him this morning! =)

  Emma? What do you mean what you did to him? Should I be jealous?

  No! Luke, come on! Seriously? That’s why I hated texts because you never really could tell when someone was playing around unless they came out and said it.

  No. You know who you belong with. I’ll just spend even more time tonight making sure you know it. In fact…

  What? I replied when he didn’t say anything else.

  It was about fifteen minutes later when I got the reply, and it made a shiver work its way up my spine.

  Just be ready, baby.

  I breathed a sigh of relief as I closed up the office for the week and headed out to my car. Luke had texted about twenty minutes ago, letting me know to head over to Skin Deep because he was still finishing up a client and had another one booked.

  I got out to my car and completely melted when I saw the white rose tucked onto my windshield. I grabbed it and held it to my nose, smiling at the thought of Luke sneaking over to do something sweet like that.

  I pulled up at Luke’s shop and headed inside, clutching the rose in my hand. He was standing behind the counter, finishing up the aftercare instructions with his client, and when the man walked away, I went directly to him and wrapped my arms around him, tipping my face up for his kiss.

  “Thank you for the rose, Luke. You’re so sweet…” I whispered to him.

  Luke drew himself out of my arms, pushing me back and holding me at arms length with his hands on my shoulders. “What rose?”

  I blinked up at him in confusion. “The white rose you left on my windshield today.”

  “Emma, I didn’t leave the shop all day today. I’ve been busy.”

  “Oh…okay? Well someone left me a rose on my car. Oh, God! What if it was meant for someone else and they put it on the wrong car? That’s so sad…” I shook my head and then shrugged. “Well, its pretty anyway.”

  Luke pulled me in and kissed my forehead before calling his client back. He shot me a look of concern over his shoulder as he walked away.

  I wandered back down the hallway to Brandon’s office to see what he was doing. He was sitting at an angled drawing table, sketching out a design. I peered over his shoulder, watching as he shaded a curving line.

  “Its really good, Bran,” I said by his ear.

  He jumped, twisting around on his stool to stare at me in surprise. “Emma! I didn’t hear you come in. What’s shakin’, bacon?”

  I shook my head and rolled my eyes at him. “Nothing, Luke just took someone back so I wandered down here to see what you were doing.”

  “Eh, just working on a design for this lady. This is the fifth time I’ve drawn something because she keeps Googling tattoos on the internet and changing her mind. If she doesn’t like this one I think I’m going to scream and tell her to get fucked!” He grinned at me.

  “Yeah, right. You’re too nice to do that. Well, you’re nice to other people, anyway.” I grinned back at him.

  “Speaking of nice, you witch! How could you toy with my stomach’s emotions like that? You promised pancakes and left me with frozen waffles! You could have at least buttered them and put syrup on ‘em!” Brandon whined, pouting like a child with his lips stuck out.

  “No,” I replied laughing. “That was just funny! You should have seen the look on your face!”

  We sat in companionable silence as Brandon worked on his drawing, stopping every so often to see what I thought about something he had added. Luke popped his head in a little later and I looked at my watch, surprised to see that an hour had gone by.

  “Ready, guys?” he asked.

  I nodded, and with a devilish twinkle in my eye, nudged Brandon with my shoulder as I asked Luke, “So, did Brandon tell you what he complimented me on this morning?”

  Brandon’s head came up with a jerk, his eyes widening as he looked at me with an I’m-gonna-kill-you-you-bitch look. I laughed as Luke turned to Brandon, asking him what I was talking about.

  My grin widened as I interjected Brandon’s stammering. “He came to get me up this morning. Maybe next time you’ll make sure I have a shirt on or something before you send someone in and then I wont get complimented on my ‘nice rack’!”

  I laughed as Luke swatted Brandon in the back of the head. “You ass! I told you not to go in, just to knock on the door and she’d get up! You ogled my girlfriend’s tits? Man…”

  “First off, dude…ogled? What are you, eighty? And I only saw them for a second. Trust me, didn’t give me a stiffy, just maybe half a bone! She’s hot and she has a nice pair but-”

  “Brandon! You’re digging a hole here, man!” I said, laughing even harder at Luke glaring at Brandon and Brandon trying to justify himself.

  “Luke, its okay. He really didn’t have time to see anything and I got him back. Ask him about the pancakes this morning and I’m gonna go stop by Griff’s and get us a pizza to take home for dinner. Meet you guys there.” I stood on tiptoe to kiss him before heading out to my car.

  As I walked away, I heard Luke say, “You saw my girlfriend’s girls and she made you pancakes? You are so dead!”

  I waited for the pizza at Griff’s and then swung by my house to grab my mail on the way home. Leah had been staying there since I was living at Luke’s now, and Calland even crashes there sometimes if he’s close by instead of going home to his apartment. Leah has been collecting my mail for me and putting it in the decorative bowl on the sideboard table by the door. I keep reminding myself that I need to go ahead and just change my address, but I was a little afraid to take that last step.

  I got to the house and Luke was walking down the stairs, fresh out of the shower when I walked in the door. Brandon was watching tv on the couch with Doug, who was cuddled up on his lap. Geesh. Over one hundred pounds and he thinks he’s a lapdog.

  I sat the pizza down and Brandon pushed Doug off his lap before we all crowded around the table and ate. I had just taken a drink of my pop when Luke glanced at me and asked, “So you tortured my brother with frozen waffles this morning after he ogled (he glared at Brandon as he said it) you in my bed?”

  I choked and barely managed to swallow the mouthful of pop as I started laughing. “Yeah. His face was classic!”

  Luke smiled at me while Brandon glared at me and said, “You owe me pancakes, woman. And this time they better be REAL pancakes. With blueberries. And whip cream!”

  I rolled my eyes at him. We finished eating dinner and Brandon pushed back from the table, winking at me and disappearing into his bedroom. He came out a few minutes later wearing tight, dark rinse jeans and a tight white t-shirt with the shop’s logo written across the chest in tribal style black lettering. He’d put on his black leather boots and had his black leather jacket in his hand, his car keys in the other.

  “Going out for a while. Don’t wait up!” he said teasingly, before he grinned at us and walked out of the house.

  Luke and I cleaned up dinner and I headed upstairs to take a shower while he lounged on the couch for a bit. I lingered under the hot water, and when I finally stepped out of the shower to dry, there was a large towel laying on the sink counter and my clothes that I had brought in with me were gone. Under the towel was my corset from my Halloween costume and a very small pair of black lace panties that Luke must have dug through my drawer to find.

  Anticipation shot through me when I realized that Luke was making good on his words from earlier. I put on the outfit and took the time to brush out my hair and twist it into a knot on top of my head. I brushed my teeth
and when I reached for the doorknob to leave the bathroom, there was a black satin scarf hanging on it with a note stuck to it that said, ‘put me on and open the door, but don’t move.’

  My pulse sped up as I complied, covering my eyes with the silky material and tying it at the back of my head. I reached out with my hand to open the door, and I barely turned the knob before I felt it slowly open towards me and Luke’s hand touched mine. He checked the blindfold to make sure I couldn’t see anything and led me into the hallway. From the way he turned me, I could tell he was leading me toward the bedroom.

  When we finally stopped walking, I felt Luke’s lips press against mine in a fleeting kiss, barely there and gone in a heartbeat, before placing tiny kisses along my jaw line until his lips were by my ear. “Do you trust me, baby?” he whispered.

  I couldn’t get my throat to work, so I nodded. “No, Emma. Tell me, out loud. Do you trust me?”

  “Yes…” I whispered.

  His lips brushed my ear with every word, making me shiver as he said, “Good. If anything gets too much, just tell me and I’ll stop.”

  His lips pulled away from my ear and I heard him move around the room. I stood still, not knowing where exactly I was in the room and unwilling to risk face planting (again) in front of Luke. I felt the air swirl by my shoulder a split second before I felt Luke’s hands settle something cold and metallic around my neck. I gasped at the coolness resting on my flushed skin and raised my hand to feel what it was. Before I could get my hand all the way up, Luke grabbed my fingers, tsk-ing under this breath.

  “Ah-ah, Emma. Stay still and no touching.”

  I gasped as his hand came down sharply on my ass with a stinging slap, then rubbed it gently. He turned me and one of his hands grasped my hip as the other urged me to bend forward. I instinctively put my hands out to catch myself and felt the softness of the mattress give beneath my palms. He pressed me down until I was bent over the bed, cheek against the coverlet, my arms trapped under me. He whispered for me not to move and I felt him draw away from me.