“Okay, sure…well, I love you, bro.”
“Love you, too, Beau. How are the folks?”
“Tensions are running pretty high. Dad’s sick, spends most of his time in bed. Ma just flutters around the house like a sad Florence Nightingale or something, doing her best to keep him comfortable. They’re both miserable.”
I didn’t respond. I didn’t know how. What words are there really when your father is dying?
“Lee?”
“Yeah?”
“You should make peace with him. With both of them. Soon.”
“I will. I’m trying,” I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“I’m sure you are. Just, you know - hurry up.”
“I hear you,” I replied, my heart sinking.
“Is everyone coming up for the competition?” I asked, desperately wanting to change the subject.
“No, the folks are staying here this year. Just gonna be me and George. Finn said he’d stay behind and help Mama just in case she needs anything.”
“Finn’s a good kid,” I said.
“He’s not a kid anymore. None of us are.”
“Yeah, I know that,” I replied, a flicker of irritation sparking inside of me. I knew what he was implying. What he didn’t know is how much all of this had changed me. I’d aged a hundred years, it felt like.
“I’ll see you in a few days,” I said. “Take care of everyone. Tell them that I love them, okay?”
“Why don’t you tell them yourself? They want you to call.”
“I’ll call. But until then, just do what I said.”
I hung up the phone without letting him get the last word, which is what he always felt the need to do. He drove me crazy, in a way that only a brother can do. Guess it didn’t matter that he was only my half-brother, he still had the same effect.
I’d set out to start my morning feeling a little better and a whole lot worse. I hadn’t called my folks or Crit yet, but at least I’d called Beau and that was enough to make me feel like I’d accomplished something.
The next thing on my list was asking Lily out on a proper date and now I’d done that, as well. I was picking her up at her apartment at eight o’clock.
It was going to be a good day.
But it was the evening with Lily that I was looking forward to.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
LILY
If Lee kept this up, I was sure to have a heart attack. He was such a paradox. Gentle and kind, almost too polite. A totally different man than I’d heard so many women talk about in the past.
But when he kissed me, there was no denying the animalistic sexuality that lay just under the surface. I wasn’t sure why he was holding back. He kissed me like he was taking possession of my body, and then he backed off and asked me out on a date like we were in high school again.
The last thing I wanted him to do was stop kissing me. The last thing I wanted him to do was stop looking at me like that. The last thing I wanted him to do was stop anything, for fuck’s sake.
Every move he made translated to sex. His hands, his biceps, the tight ass that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on under those Wranglers. The way his hair blew in the breeze, the way his eyes turned up the heat like they were made of sunshine. Every inch of him screamed sensuality.
Why in the world was he holding back? So far, all he’d done is kiss me, and while they certainly weren’t the most chaste kisses in the stable, they were still just kisses.
I wanted so much more. I wanted to feel his hands on me, sliding over every inch of my skin. I wanted to feel his naked body lying on top of me, moving against me. I wanted him inside of me, our hips rocking together. I wanted to see his face, look into his eyes, as he slid into me.
And yet all he’d done was kiss me.
Why didn’t he take me in the tack room? Or in the back of his truck, under that enormous star-filled sky? Or, even in my apartment after he’d dropped me off that night?
This was not the Lee I’d heard about, that was for sure. Most girls never even went on a second date with him. I’d heard whispers the last few years that he was doing it for money, but I wasn’t sure if I should believe all that.
Lee was a gentleman, through and through. I loved that about him. I felt safe with him, emotionally and physically.
But damned if I wasn’t ready for him to cut the nice guy act and take me like I’d imagined all these years.
Do I sound like a total harlot? I don’t care. Brock had only taken his own pleasure, never caring an inkling about mine. I’d usually end up in the bathroom taking care of myself after he’d fallen asleep immediately afterwards, leaving me feeling lonely, empty and used.
I knew Lee wouldn’t do that.
But he sure was moving slow. I guess asking me out was a start, right? I made a vow to myself to be more open to him tonight, to show more interest and be more affectionate. Maybe show a little more leg, a little more cleavage, just to tempt him past the point of resistance.
I mean, I was pretty sure he was holding back because of some preconceived notion of my innocence, but who are we kidding?
We’re both adults. We both want the same things.
Why wait to buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?
I know, I turned that around.
But I was thirsty.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
LEE
“Let’s just go to JR’s,” Lily said. She was sitting next to me in my truck, right next to me. Once she’d jumped in, she scooted over close to me. I couldn’t help but smile at how comfortable she was. She wasn’t shy. She was just herself, and as easy as that sounded, I envied her ability to do that so effortlessly.
She was also drop-dead gorgeous. She’d replaced her worn out jeans that she wore around the barn for a pair of skin-tight new ones that wrapped around her ass like they were holding on for dear life. Her hips were deliciously curvy, matching the voluptuous curve of her cleavage that was tempting me. Her top was so low cut, I couldn’t help but stare. If her shirt moved down only half an inch, I was sure I’d see her nipples. I bit my lip, trying to control myself and not rip her shirt off right there in my truck. I tried to shake off the desire ripping through my body but it was no use. I’d be a man on the edge all night long now and I knew it there was no use trying to fight it.
“Are you sure?” I asked. JR’s was the place I’d run into Brock twice, and I wanted to protect her from seeing him as much as I could. And maybe a part of me wanted to protect her tits from his creepy eyes, too.
“Yeah, sure. My friends and I hang out there all the time.”
I nodded, keeping quiet. All the while, I was hoping Brock wasn’t there. Maybe we could get away with a quick drink and then sneak off somewhere else. Lord knows I wasn’t going to last too long sitting across from her and staring at the teasing package that had just been presented to me.
I had to circle the block a few times to find parking, but I finally snagged a spot not far from the door. Lily turned to me before sliding out of the truck and kissed my cheek quickly, pressing her breasts into my arm.
I couldn’t help but smile as my cock sprang to life, ready for action at the first hint of affection. You can’t tame a wild beast, I thought to myself.
“I was going to open that for you,” I said, as Lily jumped out before I could get a chance to open the door for her.
“Oh, sorry! Should I hop back in?” she asked, teasingly. I bent down and brushed a kiss across her lips.
“No, but next time, remember that I’m a gentleman. Gotta allow me to be one or it’s just a lie.”
“Duly noted,” she nodded, her smiling green eyes turned up at me. We strolled into JR’s, her leading the way, my hand on the small of her back.
We found a booth in the back and sat down. I went to the bar to order drinks for us, and by the time I got back, Vivian had joined us. The two girls sat frantically whispering to each other, but once I walked up, they shut up faster than lightening.
> “Hey Lee,” Vivian drawled, looking me up and down like I was a pork chop sitting on her grandma’s china plate. “Nice to see you again.”
“Good to see you, too, Vivian,” I replied, although it really wasn’t. I wanted to spend time alone with Lily, but I guess it wasn’t very gentlemanly of me. Hell, I didn’t even have my own place, it’s not like I could invite her back for a romantic evening in the tack room. I’d just have to grin and bear it.
I sat down across from them and looked around the room. It was just like the night before, only more crowded, if that was possible. Lots of young, athletic, beautiful people flittered around, as if they had their whole lives just waiting for them like a gift they just hadn’t opened yet.
“So, Lee, Lily tells me you’re doing a great job out at the pen,” she said.
“I’m trying,” I replied. “Doing my best. It was mighty kind of Mr. Morgan to give me a job.”
“So, how’s your family?” Vivian asked. Lily shot me a quick glance of sympathy. She knew everything, but I didn’t want anyone else knowing. Not yet. “I was friends with Finn at Sugar Hill High. We were in the same biology class.”
“Finn’s good. My family’s getting by, I guess.”
“Good to hear! He was always a nice guy. And your family lives right next to the Hope’s place, right?”
“That’s right,” I replied, inwardly groaning.
“I was friends with George Hope, too.”
I nodded politely. “George married my brother, Beau. She’s a sweetheart.”
“Oh, that’s right! They sure do make a cute couple.”
“Reckon they do,” I replied. “Beau’s real happy now.”
“Good for them,” she said. “Did you ever — oh! Well, look what the cat drug in!” I followed her gaze and spotted Brock walking in the door, flanked by two women at his side. He had an arm thrown over both of them and they strolled in like they owned the place, though all three of them were stumbling.
I glanced over at Lily and saw her face go pale.
“Lily, do you want to leave?” I asked.
“No, no,” she replied, her eyes glued to Brock. “It’s fine. I’m fine. I don’t care.”
She smiled a steely smile at me, which made me question if she really didn’t care. That looked like a woman who cared to me, but what did I know?
“I’m fine, really,” she replied to my questioning eyes.
“If you change your mind, let me know,” I said, taking a draw off my beer bottle as I kept one eye on the prick. I wasn’t about to let him get anywhere near Lily.
“Thank you,” she whispered, smiling at me. I nodded and winked at her, once again wishing we were alone. But we weren’t. There was Vivian, right in the middle.
“Brock Tyler is such a piece of shit!” Vivian said. “And look at him stumbling! He’s drunker than Cooter Brown!”
Indeed he was, I noticed. He stumbled up to the bar and loudly demanded three whiskeys.
The bartender took one look at them and shook his head. That’s when shit hit the fan.
“Don’t you know who the fuck I am?” Brock roared and the whole bar stopped what they were doing and watched.
“I don’t care if you’re the fucking governor, I’m not serving your drunk ass. Get a cab. Go home.”
“Fuck you!” Brock snarled, before turning to look around the bar. He spotted us right away. His eyes landed on Lily, then Vivian, then he looked over at me and snarled again. When I saw him begin heading our way, I groaned.
“Fuck. Here comes trouble,” Vivian said.
“Shit,” Lily mumbled under her breath.
It took him a while to get to us, because the room was so crowded you couldn’t cuss the cat without getting fur in your mouth. By the time he made it over, I’d had plenty of time to assess the situation - meaning just how drunk he was - so I knew what I was dealing with. The scowl on his face told me he wasn’t coming over to exchange pleasantries.
“Lillllly,” he drew out his words like he didn’t know the end of them. “Cooomeee with me.”
I guess he forgot he had two other women practically attached to his Wrangler-clad hips, because they both looked up at him in surprise.
“Why, on God’s green Earth, would I go anywhere with you, Brock?”
“Because you belong to me!” he said, before a huge burp escaped from his mouth.
Vivian and Lily both cringed and I did my damnedest to keep from laughing. This guy sure was smooth.
“You’re insane. And you’re drunker than a billygoat, Brock. Go home!” Lily said.
“Not without you!” he reached out across the table to grab her arm and I shot my arm out to block his way. His hand ran right into my arm, and he turned to look at me, seemingly for the first time, considering he looked at me like he’d never seen me before.
“Who the fuck is this?” he slurred.
“My name’s Lee Haggard,” I replied. “Lily’s not going anywhere with you.”
“Are you her boss?” he asked, swaying on his unsteady boots.
“Nope. Don’t matter who I am, really. She ain’t going anywhere with you, so why don’t you just high tail it outta here?”
“Fuck you!” he spat the words and saliva went flying everywhere.
I stood up quickly, towering over him and looking down at him. His dark eyes were bloodshot and glassed over. Hell, I could probably blow on him and he’d fall over, he was that drunk. And yet, more than anything, I wanted to knock his ass flat out. I fantasized about it as he stood there looking up at me, imagining how great it would feel to slam my knuckles into his pretty-boy face.
“I’m just going to pretend you didn’t just say fuck you to me and let you walk away,” I said, staring into his dull eyes.
“Lillllly!” he yelled, turning back to her. “Why are you such a bitch?”
“That’s it. Get the fuck out of here, you drunk prick, before I knock your head off.” I said, pushing his chest to push him away from our booth. He stumbled backwards away from the girls, catching himself on a chair.
“She’s my girlllllfriend!” he said, slurring his words.
“God, Brock! Not anymore! You’re embarrassing me, please just leave!” Lily’s voice rose above the chatter that had begun as everyone crowded around us waiting for a fight.
“Who are you?” Brock asked me again. I shook my head, infuriated by this asshole upsetting Lily.
“I told you once already,” I said, pulling him up by the front of his shirt and getting right in his face. “Name’s Lee Haggard. And we don’t know each other, but my boot is going to get real intimate with your ass if you don’t walk the fuck out of this bar right this goddamned minute, you hear me?”
He swung at me. I knew he would. But I was holding him so tightly, his swing was too close, which resulted in him flailing around wildly, making him look like even more of a fool.
“Alright, let’s go,” I said, still holding onto his shirt, and pulling him towards the door.
“Let me go, you bastard! Don’t you know who I am!?” he cried, his feet shuffling under him as I threw him out the door and onto the sidewalk.
“Like I give a rat’s ass who you are. Stay the fuck away from Lily, or you’ll find yourself six feet under, you hear what I’m saying?” I said, standing over him.
The girls he was with followed us out, standing over him and looking at me in awe as I stormed away.
Dammit. Now, he’d pissed me off. And I didn’t want to be pissed off, I wanted to have a nice night with Lily, and now it was ruined.
When I returned to the table, Vivian was comforting a crying Lily, which only served to make me even more angry. I had half a mind to run back out and knock some sense into that asshole, but I knew he was dumber than a can of soup, so I didn’t. There was no fixin’ a man like that.
“Lily, I’m sorry about that,” I said, sliding back into the booth across from the girls. Lily reached over and grabbed my hand, tears shining in her pretty eyes. I could
go my whole life without seeing her cry, and I’d die a happy man, I thought.
“It’s not your fault, Lee. Thank you for making him leave,” she said. “And thanks for not kicking his ass, even though he deserved it.”
“He definitely deserves it,” Vivian muttered, catching my eye. I wasn’t sure if she’d seen me last night when Brock was coming on to her, because I’d left quickly afterwards, but it didn’t matter. I was glad I’d seen what I did. It showed me what a good friend she was to Lily, in addition to cementing the fact that Brock was a grade-A asshole.
“I’d be happy to go back and kick his ass, if you change your mind. You just let me know,” I said, winking at Lily. She smiled through her tears at me.
“Thank you, Lee. You’re a good man.”
Damn. In all my years, not once had someone said those words to me. I was the playboy, the player, the loser, the disappointer. Never, ever was I the good man. It felt damned good that Lily thought so.
“How about we move this party somewhere else?” Vivian said, clapping her hands together. “It’s getting really crowded in here.”
“Actually, I’m getting a little tired. I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow. Lee, would you take me home?” she asked.
“Of course,” I replied.
Vivian looked disappointed, but she didn’t say anything. She hugged Lily goodbye, then turned to me.
“Lily has nothing but good things to say about you,” she said, hugging me. “It’s all so different than the things the people in Sugar Hill say about you.”
I laughed and winked at her.
“Don’t believe everything you hear, Vivian.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
LILY
Lee pulled up to my apartment complex and shut off the truck, silence blanketing over the Waylon Jennings song that had kept us from having to talk to each other on the way over.
I didn’t know what to say. I was humiliated that Brock had caused such a scene. I was embarrassed that Lee had to deal with him.
I stared straight ahead in the darkness. I could feel his eyes on me, burning into me, waiting for me to say something.
THE HOPE BROTHERS: The Bad Boys of Sugar Hill Page 36