Loyalty

by L. P. Maxa

  I didn’t realize it until the spinning had stopped and the radio was no longer blaring, but I was breathing heavy. “Yeah, it’s like an adrenaline rush or something.” Endorphins? Maybe I was so over-the-top happy that my body was spazzing out. Cash came around to my side of the truck and opened my door. He leaned against it, and I turned to the side facing the rest of the crowd. Crue was now parked next to us. “I feel like I could go run a marathon,” I called out.

  Crue locked his arms around Avory’s middle, pulling her back against him and nuzzling her ear. “There are much better ways to burn off that energy, Katie Baby.” He winked and Avory giggled. Those two were worse than Halen and Beau. Was this a Devil’s Spawn thing? Were all these kids perpetually horny? Was Cash? Did he wish we were doing that right now? I glanced down at him and he smiled, reaching up to wipe mud off my cheek with his thumb.

  He was so good, so kind and easygoing. Avory was right. After getting to know these kids over the last few days, Cash really was the best of them.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Cash

  I was pretty positive that making Katie laugh was my favorite thing to do in this world. Well. Maybe it was a close second to those little moans I got when I was kissing her. I refused to push, ever, but man did I want that girl. It was more than physical though. I liked her. I wanted to be next to her. I missed her when she wasn’t with me, and I wanted to be part of her every first so badly it made my heart ache. I’d never felt about anyone the way I did about Katie. I craved her, all of her.

  “What’s next, C Money?” Beau threw his arm around my neck, getting mud in my ear in the process.

  “Next, Katie and I ditch you loser for a few hours.” I shoved him off of me. “We’ll bring back food though. We can BBQ dinner down at the pool house.” I stepped up to where Katie was sitting in my truck, her legs moving to make room for me automatically. “You ready to get out of here?” I looked up at her behind my aviators, silently begging my dick to stand down.

  She wrinkled her nose. “I’m a little dirty.”

  “Don’t worry, Katie Baby, that’s how all us Devil’s Spawn like our girls anyway.” Crue stepped past us, Avory slung over his shoulder.

  I put my hands on Katie’s knees, squeezing lightly. “We aren’t going anywhere nice, and by the time we hit the grocery store all the mud will be dried and gone.” I shut her door and then jogged back around to the driver’s side.

  “That was a lot more fun than I thought it would be.”

  “You’ll find that I’m always right about such matters, Katie Baby.” I winked and put my hand on the console, palm up, silently asking for hers.

  She obliged. “This nickname of mine…since Crue is using it now too, I assume it’s going to stick?”

  “I’m afraid so.” I drove slowly, heading toward the rear entrance of the compound so we didn’t have to drive through acres of fields to make it to the main gate. “It’s always been a thing in our family. My dad calls my mom Pix, short for Pixie. And all the uncles have nicknames for the aunts. Kitten, Cher, Doll. When we were born, we got nicknames too.” I’d never thought of it as odd until Benson had pointed it out when we were in junior high. He’d been at my house for a sleepover and he asked who the hell my dad was talking to when he kept calling for my mom.

  “Yours is C Money?” Katie turned down the radio as we exited onto the county road that led into town.

  “Yep.” I turned on my windshield wipers, spraying the glass with cleaning fluid to help with some of the leftover grime. “Crue is Mötley Crue, like the band. Aunt Lex calls my dad Lukey when she’s feeling sentimental. Evie and Emmie go by nicknames already, but us kids shorten them even further to Evs and Ems. Beau calls Hales Sweets. Brody calls Landry Baby Cakes or Bad Girl, which is really TMI.” I shrugged. “And you get Katie Baby.”

  “I guess as nicknames go, it’s not bad.”

  “No joke. Aunt Lex is the reason we call Dylan Aunt Dilly.” I took a left into our school parking lot then drove around to the baseball practice field. “We’re here.”

  “Hate to break it to you, C Money, but I’ve spent more Sundays sitting at a baseball field than I care to think about.”

  “Ah, but not like this you haven’t.” I climbed out of the truck, grabbing an ice chest from the floorboard of the back passenger side before opening Katie’s door. I loved the happily wary look on her face. It was the way she went into every little adventure I set up for her. Excited more than concerned. We walked out onto the field and into the home team dugout. It was made of concrete and cinder block, plus it stayed in the shade for most of the day. Which meant it was a little cooler than being outside. “You hungry?”

  She sat down on the metal bench, kicking her feet up on the dugout wall like I’d done a thousand times. Her dress was hanging down and blowing in the slight breeze. “I’m actually starving.” When I handed her a turkey sandwich she immediately took a bite. “I guess being dirty takes a lot out of you.” My eyebrows rose, and my dick did too. Only a little—he had manners. She covered her mouth with her hand. “Shit. I think I meant, like, playing in the dirt?”

  “Was that a question?”

  “No?” Her eyes narrowed. “I did it again, didn’t I?” She pointed at me. “That one was a for real a question, albeit rhetorical.”

  I sat next to her, crunching into an apple. “Does your little brother play in some kind of club ball? You guys go to private school, right?”

  “I went to private school. There were like three people in my graduating class.” She took another bite, chewing and swallowing before she continued. “My little brother started going to public school two years ago. One day he came home and put his foot down. He wanted to play sports, he wanted friends, and he hated wearing our school uniform.” She started to pick at the crust on her bread. “Kasen is tough. He stands up for what he wants.”

  “You don’t?” To me, Katie was tough. She’d jumped out of my truck the second I’d disappointed her, that was for sure. But it was more than that; she handled every situation thrown at her with humor and grace. I knew she was sheltered, but I had a hard time imagining her not standing up for herself.

  “I was born surrounded by some pretty terrible circumstances.” She twisted open a bottle of water, taking a long drink. “I think my parents kind of carried that fear and loss with them when it came to me. Reporters were relentless for a long time. I think my dad took at least twelve of them to court for taking pictures of a minor.”

  “What about now? You’ve graduated, you’re legally an adult, right? You told Halen you were planning on college in the fall the other day at brunch.”

  For some reason, thinking of the future unexpectedly terrified me. Katie was here for a week, which meant maybe four more days. Then she’d be gone. She’d be in Europe, finishing her dad’s tour. Then what? Would I ever see her again? Would she want to see me? Was this a little summer fling to her? Something to pass the time? Hell, I was headed to college in the fall too. Were we doomed before we started?

  Why was this the first time I was thinking of this? Why was I freaking out like a little bitch? I cursed silently. I should have never brought up college.

  “Yeah, I applied to a lot of schools.” She cleared her throat. “My parents want me to go close to home, obviously. But I really want to go out of state.”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. “You should go where you want to go, Katie. It’s your future.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I know.”

  This particular topic seemed to bring her mood down, and it’d freaked me the hell out. So I decided to change the subject. “Did you bring your list?”

  “It’s in the truck. I put it in the center console, since we seem to hang out in there a lot.”

  “We need to cross off mudding, and drinking on a sports field after hours.” I reached into the cooler, digging to the absolute bottom and pulled out two ice-cold cans of beer. I cracked one and handed it to her then opened mine. “Cheers, baby
.”

  She sat her sandwich down and knocked her drink against mine. “Cheers.”

  After we each took a sip, I gestured out toward the field. “Come on, let’s go play some ball.”

  She hopped to her feet, without hesitation. She didn’t care that she was in a dress, she didn’t even think to worry about her hair or her nails. “I’m batting first.” She headed to home plate, grabbing one of the bats that was leaning against the chain-link fence. Her form was pretty perfect, which was too bad. I was hoping I’d need to slide up behind her and help her out. I guess I didn’t really take into consideration that her little brother played.

  I pulled a ball from the bucket sitting next to home plate. I may or may not have come first thing this morning to get everything prepared for us. “Ready?” When she nodded, I lobbed her a pitch.

  Before it could even make it to her she stood up straight, one hand going to her hip and a what the fuck look on her pretty face. “Seriously? What the hell was that?” She shook her head, pointing at me with the bat. “I don’t need to take a line drive to the head, but I think I’m above little league coach pitch.”

  I chuckled, holding my hands up in surrender then leaning down to get another ball. “Sorry I offended you.” Man, too many more days like this and I was going to be head over heels in love with her. When I threw her a better pitch, she made contact. The ball sailed over my head and into the outfield.

  She dropped the bat and started running bases. “Betcha didn’t think I could do that. Did ya?”

  Halen had whacked a line drive to my head one day that made me scream like a baby and fall on my ass. After that I never underestimated a chick’s bat-wielding skills. But instead of sharing yet another Devil’s Spawn anecdote, I chased after Katie. I caught her right after she rounded third, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Nice hit, baby.” I set her on her feet and she turned to face me, her hands coming to rest on my chest.

  “Today was fun.” She took off my ball cap and placed it on her own head. “In case I forget to tell you later, today was a lot of fun.”

  I used the bill of the cap, spinning it around until it was backward on her head. “You’re welcome.” I put a hand on her jaw, my thumb caressing her cheekbone. She stood on her tiptoes and fused her lips to mine. I hooked my other arm around her hips, holding her tight and getting her as close as I could. And it still wasn’t enough. I walked us backward, into the visitors’ dugout. I sat down and instantly, she crawled onto my lap, straddling me and taking my face in her hands.

  We’d kissed a lot for people who had known each other a couple of days, but it’d never been like this before. She was leading, she was taking things further, she wanted more. I didn’t know if she even realized that she was grinding against me, creating friction and breathing heavy. She rested her forehead against mine. “Cash, I…”

  I lifted her chin, making her eyes meet mine when she tried to continue to look down. “What’s wrong?”

  “I’ve never, uh, I never done anything like this.” She looked so damn gorgeous, her lips swollen from my kisses and my cap still on her head. She was a fantasy come to life, and by some miracle, she was choosing me for these firsts. For these amazing moments in her life.

  I ran my hands down her bare arms. “You are in control here, baby.” I kept eye contact, really wanting her to hear me. “You decide what comes next, what you’re comfortable with. Only you. Okay?”

  She nodded, pulling her lip between her teeth. Well. That was hot as fuck.

  “We need to head to the store and get dinner for everyone.” I stood, taking her with me and then placing her feet on the ground. I kissed her lips, chastely, showing her that every kiss didn’t have to lead to more. Every kiss didn’t have to make her feel like she was out of control and heading in a direction she’d never been.

  I wanted every moment she was with me to be memorable, to be perfect. I wanted to give her everything that she’d been missing.

  I wanted to show her what it felt like to live, because showing her was reminding me.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Katie

  After careening through the grocery store, each of us with a shopping cart, we drove straight to the pool house. And pool house was a bit of an understatement. The pool was huge, and the house it was connected to was modern and glass and the size of the Conners’ actual home. When we got there, smoke was coming out of the grill, music was blaring from the outdoor speakers and most of the Devil’s Spawn were in the water. Even Marley, with her giant black shades and her modest black swimsuit.

  I hadn’t brought a suit with me, but Cash had sent me inside to the third door on the right. Inside was a bedroom and a closet filled with bikinis in every size and color. Were these something the parents had for guests? Or were these what the girls these guys hooked up with put on to go for a late-night swim? I decided not to think on it too hard; no sense in letting my runaway brain ruin a perfectly good day.

  I walked out of the house and straight into the pool. The concrete was hot from the sun and the water looked so inviting. Before I could make it all the way in, Cash snaked his arm around my waist and spoke against the shell of my ear. “You look fucking amazing.” He kissed my neck and chills spread over my body despite the heat. “In case I forget to tell you later, you look fucking amazing.”

  I laughed when I realized he’d used my words from earlier, and when he released me I waded in until I was shoulder deep.

  “Cocktail?” Avory gave the floating bar a gentle push toward me. “Brody made a pitcher of sangria.”

  I poured myself a drink, my eyes searching the area. “Are they here with Wyatt?” I’d be down to play in the pool with that adorable baby. I’d been fighting the urge to break into their house and kiss his chubby cheeks since I’d met him yesterday.

  “They got a sitter.” Avory gestured with the drink in her hand toward the house. “They’re changing, or fucking, I guess.”

  “Landry has been working insane hours and Brody has been recording and taking care of Wyatt.” Halen floated up to us in a bright pink flamingo. “I’m glad they decided to come hang out.” She held her drink out and Avory topped her off. “Where did you and Cash go?”

  “Baseball field.” I took a sip, hoping they’d let me leave it at that. I didn’t have sisters, and I didn’t really have any girlfriends. But I assumed oversharing was typically part of the deal.

  Luckily Crue saved me from having to say anything more. “You went where?” He was sitting on the steps at the pool entrance and his question was screamed across the patio to Cash who was at the grill. “I thought that was a disregard for the religion of baseball?”

  Brody walked out of the pool house, talking over Cash and Crue’s impending argument. “I believe in the Church of Baseball. I’ve tried all the major religions and most of the minor ones. I’ve worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things.” His odd monologue stopped when he was standing between the twins.

  Cash and Crue spoke at the same time. “For instance, there are one hundred and eight beads in a Catholic rosary and one hundred and eight stiches in a baseball.” Then Cash pointed to Crue. “I don’t want to hear a word from you about it.”

  Crue held his hands up in surrender and I spoke quietly to Avory. “Brody has tried a lot of religions.” And I had absolutely no idea who Isadora Duncan was.

  She’d just taken a sip, so when she snorted some of it came out of her nose. “It’s a quote from Bull Durham. I’m pretty sure the only things Brody worships are Landry, Wyatt, waves, and weed.” She coughed, still trying to recover. “And the drums, I guess.”

  “Oh.” I’d never seen Bull Durham. I assumed it was about baseball, although that title didn’t give me any helpful clues.

  “Hey, C, your girl’s never seen Bull Durham.” Crue had a smile on his face. Little fucker had been eavesdropping. Or, you know, simply listening, because we weren’t whispering and we were maybe thre
e feet away from him.

  Cash closed the lid to the grill and hopped into the pool, creating a small amount of turbulence. “Well, one flaw won’t hurt her.” He winked and dipped down, letting the water wash over his shoulders. He reached out and grabbed my hips, dragging me toward him.

  Maybe it was the sangria, maybe I was still buzzing from the kiss we’d shared in the dugout earlier. Either way, I put my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck. I didn’t care anymore that we had an audience. “Maybe we can watch it sometime.” I rested my forehead against his.

  His arms tightened around me and he kissed the corner of my mouth. “I think it’s supposed to rain all day on Wednesday.” He moved back so I could see his face. “You ever made out in a movie theater?” His wicked little smirk was adorable.

  “No.” I frowned. “Is Bull Durham a new movie? One that’s in theaters?” I hadn’t ever heard of it before.

  He shook his head, chuckling. “Oh no, it’s old. Like we’re talking nineteen-eighties old.” He placed a kiss on my jaw. “But we have a media room, and a popcorn machine, so…”

  “What are y’all talking about? You’re going to watch Bull Durham? I want in. It’s been forever since I’ve seen it.” Brody reached out, taking Landry’s hand. “What do you say, Baby Cakes? You want to watch Bull Durham with these two on Wednesday?”

  “Sure.” Landry rolled her eyes. “It’s been…let’s see how old is Wyatt? Ten months. So it’s been nine months and three weeks since the last time Crue and Cash made me watch that damn movie.”

  “Blasphemy.” Crue swam toward our little group. “Don’t speak ill of that movie.”

  “I was on bed rest. I wasn’t supposed to get up. Or get stressed.” Landry pointed at the twins. “You two basically held me prisoner and forced me to watch it a hundred times.” Maybe pointing for emphasis was a family trait; maybe they had to do it because there were so many of them that if they didn’t point, no one would know who they were talking to or about.