“I’m beginning to hate that thing,” I say to myself with a sigh as I wait on the porch for Micky.
It isn’t long before the crunch of tires on the gravel signals the Bentleys arrival. Micky climbs out of the driver seat with a bag full of ice cream, and I take it inside and safely stow it in the freezer. I don’t know Henley well but I know that it should bring a smile to her face.
“What are you grinnin’ ear to ear about?”
“Nothing,” I reply trying to draw my face into a frown.
“Mmm Hmm. Just like I thought.”
“The hell does that mean?” I ask as we climb into the car.
“It means exactly what it means,” he replies before starting down the driveway, and back toward the city. It only takes about an hour with traffic, but that gives me a whole hour to get worked up about Henley. An hour to wonder if she will call me back. An hour to wonder if she will brush me off. An hour to work myself up. And after several meetings and three phone calls from my mother asking if I’m all right, damn Aiden and his big mouth, I still haven’t heard from her.
This meeting is dragging, this day is dragging, and it’s only noon. The potential investment in front of me talking away should have my blood excited, but I’m just nervous, and I haven’t been able to pay attention to a single thing thats been said. Thank God I pay for the best, so my team is asking the questions I should be asking, and paying attention to the things I’m missing. And my assistant is writing everything down. He probably knows I’m not paying attention. I’ll have to give him a bonus. My fingers are tapping on the table as I pretend to listen almost as fast as my foot is tapping.
When I feel the phone go off in my pocket my whole body freezes. This is it. It has to be. She has to be awake by now. When I look at the screen it’s a number I don’t know, and my heart ratchets up in my chest. When I open the text my whole body relaxes in relief. Nobody but Henley would send me a picture of lace panties.
‘What do you think Angus?’
I keep the phone under the lip of my desk, and study both pairs intently. The pair on the left is more intricate, but the pair on the right is black lace and sheer. And anything sheer enough for me to get a glimpse of that perfect ass through it looks good to me.
‘The pair on the right. What’s the occasion?’
‘Lunch date.’ A smile pulls at the corners of my lips, she wants to have a lunch date… that is until the second text comes in. ‘Gotta go or I’ll be late.’
My hand tightens around my phone to the point that I can feel it creaking under my grip. Less than twenty-four hours ago she was screaming my name, and now she is going on a date with someone that isn’t me? That coiling poisonous feeling returns, but this time I recognize it for what it is. Something I’ve never felt until Henley. Something I never want to feel again. Jealousy.
Chapter 11
The day went by in a blur, but the blur wasn’t fast enough. By the time I got off work and drove to Henley’s house, my anger had steadily built into an inferno. We could have been great together while it lasted. We could have been amazing. I could have pampered her. Nobody would have been able to give her the things I could have. She knew she had a date today, but she let me fuck her anyways.
When I finally pull my Maserati into her driveway I’m fuming. I’m beyond fuming. So I stomp my way up to the door, and bang on it. Hard. When it opens, I’m prepared to let out a verbal tirade, but the words stick in my throat when I’m confronted with a doe eyed little girl. Henley’s a mother… she’s a mom. She’s probably married. Shes…
I sink to my knees with a weak smile. “Hi there, is your mommy home?”
“Why would my mommy be here?” She asks her face screwing up.
“Ah, well…”
“Emily! I thought I told you not to answer the door?” Henley sounds exhausted as she jogs to the front door, her eyes land on my kneeling on the ground and there is an almost smile hidden in their green depths. “Hello Angus.”
“Well he doesn’t look like a serial killer,” the little girl Emily replies softly.
“But he could be,” Henley says sternly.
A little boy hops up from behind the two of them, “He looks like he could be, Mommy says-”
Henley’s hand clamps down on the little boys mouth and she gives him a warning look. “If anything your mother said comes out of that mouth it’s getting washed with soap. Got it?”
Both kids nod solemnly, and the little girl leans in like shes going to tell me a secret. “Mommy has a potty mouth,” she says her eyes very serious.
I should be so angry at Henley for keeping this a secret. I should be angry at Henley for a lot of things at this point. But all I can do is smile at the adorable little girl. She reminds me of Gwen.
“So aunt Henley… do we let the maybe serial killer man in or not?”
My whole body sags in relief. Aunt Henley. She’s not married. And at this point it should come as a relief that she doesn’t have kids… that these aren’t her kids. But I find that it doesn’t matter to me one way or another, as long as she doesn’t belong to another man, she’ll still belong to me.
“Let him in,” Henley says with a shake of her head, shooing the kids away from the door. “Come on Angus.”
I follow her into the house, and she leads me back to her bedroom and closes the door. I just watch her. Everything I have to say fights to get out. I don’t want to verbally attack her. No matter how angry she makes me when I see her like this, I just don’t want to hurt her.
“Where’s your date?” the words come out as an accusatory whisper. And they hurt me just thinking about Henley with another man.
Her eyebrows arch up toward her hairline as she frowns. “Is that what this visit is about Angus?” I stay silent and she continues. “My date just answered the door, and now is probably in the living room playing ‘Just Dance twenty billion’ or singing along to Justin Bieber.”
“But you sent…”
“I was just teasing you Angus, I wore my spidies today,” she replies with a soft laugh pulling the band of her pants away from her body. And instead of sexy lace, there is a pair of blue and red spiderman panties. I feel like an idiot. “Why Angus… you look and sound quite jealous.”
“Oh little author.” I say with a sigh pressing my lips against hers.
She puts her hands on the sides of my face holding me to her as she begins to kiss me deeper. I groan and pull her body flush against mine. All the want and need from the morning returns to me in a flash, before she pulls away.
“You’re contract says I can’t be with other men while I’m with you,” she says with a smile, “I’m a stickler for the rules.”
Her words bring a smile to my face, and all my anger is gone. She is mine. Still mine. I lean in to kiss her. To kiss her full lips. Her flushed cheeks. But before our lips connect there is a wild banging against the door, causing us both to jump apart.
“Aunt Henley!!! Stop wrestling and feed us! We’re starvin’!”
“Wrestling?” I mouth toward Henley and she just shakes her head before heading to the door with an exasperated sigh.
She wrenches it open, effectively cutting off the knocking, and glares down at the pair of children giving her their most pathetic faces.
“Are you done wrestling now?” The little boy asks with a grin, “Cause I’m starvin’.”
“Hunter,” the little girl says insistently. “Aunt Henley doesn’t wrestle, remember mommy said-”
Henley clears her throat loudly cutting Emily off. They both turn to her, and their eyes are wide, the kind of wide kids eyes get when they know they’ve said something they shouldn’t have.
“You’re not starving you ate like two hours ago, but what do you want for dinner?” Henley’s body is stiff, and I know it’s because I’m hearing things that are personal to her, things that are far to personal for someone she is attempting to keep at arms length.
“Pizza!” The two kids shout in unison.
Henley lets out an exaggerated sound, rolling her shoulders as she looks down at them. “Of course you want pizza, do you eat anything besides pizza?”
“Nope,” they chirp out in unison.
“Fine, fine,” Henley replies with an exhausted sigh. “Pizza it is. Let me get the number.”
“I’ll get it,” I offer with a smile as I pull out my phone. “I’ve got it on speed dial.”
The phone rings twice, before Micky picks it up with a “Yes boss.”
“I need pizza.”
“… What kind?”
“What kind of pizza do you eat?” I ask turning toward Emily and Hunter.
“Pepperoni!” It’s a unanimous decision.
“One pepperoni and…” I look at Henley, and she is watching me with a strange expression on her face. An expression I don’t want to look too far into. I give her a pointed look, and she just shakes her head with a smile and mouths ‘Hawaiian’ before turning back and shooing the kids, and her ugly dog out the back door. Hawaiian. A sweet pizza. I should have been able to guess.
“And? Did you forget I was here or something. My feelings are hurt.”
“One pepperoni, one Hawaiian, and uh… something with meat on it. And dessert. Something sweet.”
“You know there is an up charge for this service don’t you?”
“I guess it’s a good thing my brother is the one that pays you then isn’t it? Take it up with him.” I reply with a laugh before ending the call.
I step out into the back yard, the kids are running around, and the dog, the ugly dog, is actually behaving like a dog and chasing them. I walk down, and with a sigh sit back next to Henley on the porch swing. I put my arm around her shoulders, and scoot her closer to me, until she is tucked tightly next to me. Right where she belongs.
“You’re… you’re a good man Connor McKerrick,” she says with a soft sigh.
“Was that ever in question?” I ask with a laugh. I know I’m a good guy… sometimes.
“Yes it was,” she replies with a soft laugh.
The incredulous snort comes out before I can stop it. “When? When was I anything but a great guy? I’ve always been a perfect gentleman.”
“When you accosted me in the women’s restroom. Twice.”
I can feel my lips pulling into a smile that I try to fight, but it’s no use. “Well… I just know what I want that’s all.”
“You’re hard to understand Angus.”
“That’s not a bad thing though right? It means I’m mysterious. Spontaneous. You’re a… porn author,” I reply unable to hold back my laugh. “Women eat that shit up don’t they?”
Luckily for me Henley seems really hard to offend, as she starts laughing right along with me. “Porn? I’ve never heard it put quite like that. Maybe you’re right, but I’m not most women Connor McKerrick, I cannot claim to know what goes through anyone else's head.”
“I don’t know anything truer than that. You are not most women. You’re not even like some women. You’re unique Henley. I’ve never met anyone like you. Maybe that’s why I can’t seem to leave you alone.”
“I don’t know why you can’t leave me alone,” she replies with a soft smile, her eyes sparkling like emeralds. “I don’t even know why I can’t leave you alone. Maybe it’s because you’re tall, dark, and mysterious.”
Henley gives me one last smile before she hops off the swing and runs after Emily and Hunter. It was only a short time where Henley let her guard down, but in that moment there was such a depth to her I don’t know if I will be the same if I let her go. But now that her shields are back up whoever Henley really is, is securely hidden behind that insurmountable smile.
It didn’t take long for Micky to show up, which tells me he was probably nearby the whole time. Keeping a watchful eye out for my over protective little brother. When the Bentley pulls into the yard, Henley freezes, watching the car roll up the drive before dragging her eyes to me in question. I get up off the swing, which was my perfect Henley watching vantage point while she played with the kids, and make my way toward the car.
When Micky gets out, the kids huddle up behind Henley, and even Henley looks a little nervous. I have always thought of myself as the master of my little world, with nothing to be afraid of, but seeing Henley tense up makes me take a second look at Micky. I can see why people would be afraid of him. I’m six-three… Micky is taller. I’m muscular, but where I’m a thinner muscle, Micky looks like he could wrestle a bear… and win. It doesn’t help that his bald head, in fact most of his body is covered in tattoos. And his too tight shirt prominently displays his muscles, and his gun.
“Do you know how hard it is to narrow down ‘something with meat’?” He calls out as he leans into the back of the Bentley. When he comes back out his bear sized arms are full of pizza, soda, and ice cream. “So… I just got all the meat.”
I can feel my lip twitch as I ask the question, “all on one pizza?”
“Yep. Pepperoni, salami, sausage, ham, bacon, chicken-”
“That sounds…”
“Yeah. If you die… it’s your own fault.”
I shake my head and look over the rest of the haul. “All you got was soda and ice cream. You could have been more inventive with dessert.”
His eyes narrow suspiciously. “I got vanilla ice cream and root beer… root beer float? The nectar of the gods? I swear you-”
“Root beer float!” The kids chime in dashing next to Micky before turning back to Henley. “Can we have it aunt Henley? Please?”
Henley just shakes her head and comes to stand next to me. “After you eat. After.” The kids snatch the ice cream and root beer from Micky with a laugh and run inside.
“Quite the pizza delivery boy you’ve got Angus.”
“Ah… this is Micky. My bodyguard.”
Henley’s green eyes appraise the situation, while that always present half smile graces her lips and for the first time I realize what it is. Sharp eyes and a smile is her personal shields at maximum defense.
“Ah well miss, not like he uses me for bodyguardin’ anyways, more like I’m runnin’ womanly interference… or fetchin’ food and coffee.”
“Womanly interference…” Henley’s smile is so big now it’s scaring the shit out of me. It’s a smile that brings bad tidings.
I lock eyes with Micky who is realizing that he just lobbed ammo to Henley so she could shoot me down, and try my best to smile politely and hope he gets the hint to beat it.
“Ah well… I better head… out,” he stumbles out with a smile.
“Yep, bye Micky,” I reply, and he nods and practically runs back to the Bentley.
Henley’s smile is still warm, but her eyes are arctic, and I don’t know what to do about it. Whatever I had built today between us. Whatever bond I had started to create, is locked behind those frigid eyes.
“Henley…” I don’t know how to start this conversation. She had to know I slept around. She called me a tramp after all… she had to know.
“Angus don’t get any weird ideas. We are both adults. That was just the reminder I needed that no matter how sweet you are, this is only temporary.”
But it could be so much more. The words stick in my throat. Because I don’t know if I am ready to deal with the feelings behind them. Henley and I could be so much more, if I believed that there could be more between anyone. Happily ever after? It’s a sham. I’ve seen it so close to falling apart, that I can’t believe in it. Henley almost makes me want to believe in it again. And even if it doesn’t exist Henley makes me want to hold on to her as long as possible. But I don’t know if I’m ready to throw away all my rules and commit to a woman that may or may not feel the same, so I stay silent as I follow her into the house.
I set down the pizza, and the kids are staring up with big pleading eyes. Starving indeed.
“Hands,” Henley says, and they dutifully go wash their hands as Henley pulls out plates and serves up the kids pizza, before giving me that swee
t sort of sad smile. “Angus… thanks for the pizza.” She takes the box of Hawaiian, and makes her way to the sofa, and starts a kids movie as the kids come running back to grab their plates. They curl up on the floor in front of the TV and I seat myself next to Henley. I’m on slice three before either one of us speaks.
“Taste that good huh?” Henley asks with a sidelong glance around a bite of pizza.
“Nope, chimera pizza is weird. I’m just really hungry.”
She just smiles and shakes her head. When she is done with her pizza she leans onto the arm of the sofa, but stays curled up. So I let out an exaggerated sigh, and uncurl her legs and drape them across my lap on the sofa. I can see the twitch in her lip as she tries not to smile, as she tucks her arm warmer clad arms under her head like a pillow and keeps watching the movie.
I use the chance to touch her, nothing sexual since there are children in the room, but even so I enjoy it. I genuinely like touching her. I drag my fingers against her calves, massaging the tight muscles. And with every second that passes Henley’s tense body loosens, and by the time the movie is over she relaxed enough to fall asleep. They are all asleep. Apparently I’m the only one that survived the horrible B rated children’s movie.
I slip out from under Henley’s legs, she barely notices, and I bend down and scoop up Emily. Hunter comes awake enough to stand himself up and stumble to the only door I haven’t gone into. I follow him with Emily tucked securely in my arms, as he climbs into the top bunk, so I slide her into the bottom one. I make sure they are both tucked in, before I head back out for Henley.
She hasn’t moved. Her body is still sprawled on the sofa, her cheeks flushed, her lips parted, but her eyes are open now. They are watching me curiously in that half asleep state, but her body is languid and she doesn’t move, so I scoop her up in my arms too.
Her legs wrap easily around my waist as we make our way to her bedroom. Her hands glide across my shoulders and fist in my hair, sending goosebumps across my skin. Her pink tongue darts past her lips, licking against the skin at the base of my throat. With a groan I lean back against the door closing it, and stumble toward her bed. Her body stays tight against mine, as I drop down to my elbows on her bed pinning her against me. Her body writhes beneath me in wanton abandon, as her lips and devilish tongue blaze a trail to the shell of my ear.
Torn (The McKerricks Book 1) Page 8