by J Grayland
Waking, I rolled onto my stomach, running my hand over the empty space next to me, and, just for a moment, I had to think of where I was. Damn jet lag gave me brain fog until I smelled something delicious wafting from downstairs that instantly made my mouth water and my stomach growl in hungry protest. Getting up, I pulled on a clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt and headed downstairs, following the aroma that, if I wasn’t mistaken, was a fat, juicy steak cooking. When I get to the kitchen, Casey was leaning against the kitchen counter, chopping salad vegetables. She stopped and looked up when I walked into the kitchen. Now, most normal people would just see a woman chopping and tossing salad into a bowl, but me? I saw a pair of smooth, long, tanned legs fitted sinfully into a pair of shorts and a tank top that clung to every delectable part of that body that I promised to leave alone for a few days.
“Hi, did you sleep well?” she asked, smiling as she continued chopping.
“Yeah, fine,” I said, rubbing a hand over my face, trying to scrub the remnants of sleep away. Moving up behind her, I leaned down and nuzzled my nose against the soft skin of her neck, giving her a kiss just as the sliding door to the outside opened and Flynn walked in carrying a tray full of what looked like an assortment of barbequed meat that he placed on the kitchen counter. “Hey, Nate, just in time for some food! You hungry?” Flynn asked, passing me a plate.
“Starving,” I said, taking it.
“Then dig in, mate. I cooked extra, I figured you could handle it on account of your size,” he said with a grin.
After the meal, I gave Casey a hand with the dishes. Flynn handed me a beer and motioned for us both to sit on the couch in the living room. Taking a seat himself, he took a pull from his bottle before speaking.
“Okay, so the biggest decision that you have to make is how you want to present your victim statement,” Flynn said, looking straight at Casey.
“So, what are our options? I mean, how does this all work?” she asked.
“Well, there are two ways it can be done. You can do a written statement and then it will be my job to read it on your behalf to the parole board. Or you can attend yourself and make an verbal statement.”
Before Casey could answer, I said, “She’ll be doing the written statement.”
Casey’s head whipped around to face me. “What?”
“There’s no need for you to go anywhere near the hearing, and this way, you will have time to think long and hard about what you want to say.”
Casey leaned back into the couch. “Well, thank you for making my mind up for me, Nate. I mean, it’s not as though I have a perfectly good mind of my own,” she said in the acidic tone of hers that I loved so much.
“Baby, listen. You have a beautiful mind, and I know that you’re very capable of making your own decisions, but I also know how hard-headed you can be, and I think that facing the board is an unnecessary stress that you have the power to avoid.”
“But what if I don’t want to avoid it? What if I want to have my say, Nate?”
“If I thought it would help you in the way that you’re thinking it’s going to, I would say go for it, 100%. But a parole hearing is not going to get you the closure you’re looking for, baby.”
Casey stared at me hard, then turned to Flynn. “Flynn?” she asked, and Flynn nodded.
“He’s right, babes. If it was an open court, and you could look right into the bastard’s eyes and tell him everything you wanted to, then I would agree. But with a parole hearing, he’s not going to be there. It will just be the judicial officer and a few others, like a corrections officer from the prison, a medical expert, and maybe a representative from the community, and as far as they’re concerned, he’s done his time, and he’s kept his nose clean.”
Casey stood quickly, her voice suddenly raised. “Fuck that! He hasn’t done his time,” she spat out.
“According to the law, he has, and that makes him eligible for parole.” Flynn’s voice was low, and Casey started to pace the room, chewing on a fingernail. I hated seeing her like this, her body so tense with pent-up anger. Then she turned, looking at Flynn.
“I want to speak at the hearing. I don’t give a shit if it makes no difference on the outcome. I want to speak.” She enunciated the last four words with such determination that I knew there was no stopping her. Flynn let out a weary sigh and ran a hand down his face.
“Fine, if that’s what you want, then that’s what we’ll do, okay?” He stood and pulled her into his arms, rubbing a hand soothingly over her back for a few minutes. When he pulled away from her, she looked relieved at the choice she made. This woman had so much strength, and my chest swelled a little with pride.
“So what do you need me to do?” she asked Flynn.
“Nothing right now. Just relax, go enjoy some sights, and show Nate around Sydney. I’ve taken care of everything, I just need to take a run up to Gosford…” His words tapered off like he just realized he said something he shouldn’t have, and by the way Casey was staring at him, I had a feeling this place called Gosford was not a good place for her.
“Why do you need to go there, Flynn?” she demanded.
“I…err…just need to pick something up.”
“Flynn? This is me you’re talking to. You do realize that, right?”
Flynn let out a curse under his breath and sat down on the couch, leaning his head forward in defeat.
“You remember the people who bought your parents’ house, right?” Flynn asked. Casey nodded.
“Well, the same couple still owns it, only they’re older now and have been doing some renovating. Well, they wanted to extend the ceilings, and they had some work done on the roof. Apparently, they found an old box up there that seems to have belonged to your parents.”
Casey dropped onto the couch next to me. The look on her face at the mention of her parents was a mixture of shock and maybe…sadness?
“What kind of box?” she almost whispered.
“They didn’t say. Just a box that feels like it has something in it, but it could be worth a look, Casey. I was just hoping to look at it myself before telling you,” he said, grimacing at her.
“It’s okay. We’ll go pick it up,” Casey said with confidence.
“No, no. I don’t want you up that way, sweets. Just let me get it.”
“It’s okay, I think it’s about time I put that place to rest, as well. Don’t you?” she asked him.
Flynn shook his head before saying, “Fuck, you’re a pain in my arse.”
“Hey,” I growled at Flynn, and he put both hands up, surrendering to my warning.
“Calm down, it’s all in jest, big guy.”
“I know, just watch your mouth,” I told him. I know it was said in fun, but fuck if it didn’t piss me off, and he needed to know where I stood on protecting Casey.
Chapter Five
Casey
I placed a hand on Nate’s thigh and looked at him. His eyes were full of turmoil, and I was hoping the calming stroke of my hand over his thigh would help to ease the wildness I could see growing in those deep, steely eyes of his. Since we arrived at the house, he’d been pretty quiet and taken a back seat to the relationship between Flynn and me. I understood how protective and dominant he was, and what was normal banter to Flynn would be a new experience for Nate. I knew that he was used to being in control and in charge of situations, and it was hard for him to see Flynn taking charge of my protection, physically or emotionally. I needed to reassure him that I was alright.
Smiling at him, I said, “It’s okay. He’s my annoying big brother, remember?” Nate sighed at my words, and I saw the storm in his eyes starting to retreat as he gave me a slight nod, and I leaned into his chest. “What do you say we get up in the morning, and I’ll show you around Sydney? You know, to get in the tourist stuff, and take some photos to take back to Paxton and Lynda?” I asked, looking up at
him as he reached out and slid a stray strand of hair away from my eye, tucking it behind my ear.
“Sure, baby. Whatever you want,” he said, smiling at me.
“I want what you want.”
“I want this over and you back in our home,” he breathed into my ear.
“Soon, babe. That reminds me, I need to go through some of my things and pack what I want to take back with me.”
“Just pack it all, we’ll take it,” he said.
“No, I need to go through it. There’s probably a lot of useless rubbish in that room.”
“So, what room should we start in?” he asked.
“It’s just my room, upstairs,” I said, and he shot me a puzzled look.
“Just your bedroom? That’s all you own?”
“Yep, apart from maybe some stuff in the kitchen, but that can stay.”
“So, none of the furniture?” he asked, sounding a little perplexed.
“Nope, it’s all Flynn’s.”
Nate pulled me into his lap, wrapping his arms tightly around me. He just held me for a while, running his chin back and forth over the top of my head.
“Nate?”
“When we move into the beach house, the first thing I want to do is take you shopping, and I want you to buy anything and everything that you want, okay?” he said, his voice cracking a little with emotion that I recognized was Nate not coping with the fact that all I owned in this world was contained in that one small bedroom, so I gave him this one. I snuggled deeper into his hard chest and said, “Sure, you just try and stop me.”
It seemed that while Nate and I were lost in our own little bubble, Flynn had left us alone, and that was exactly where we stayed until we decided to go up, get into bed, and try and recover from traveling. As soon as we slipped in between the sheets and into each other’s arms, we were both out in a split second.
I awoke sometime in the middle of the night to fingers making soft swirling patterns against my thigh, and I felt a warm breath against the back of my neck that sent an instant shiver through my body. I buried myself deeper into Nate’s arms, against his hard body, and felt his equally hard shaft pressing into my back. My movement caused a deep groan in his chest that vibrated through my own body. His hand snaked under my back and up between my breasts. Then, his fingers slowly slid up the front of my throat, gently pulling my head back, giving him access to the side of my neck. I felt the warm wetness of his tongue glide across my shoulder as he gently nipped and bit at the tender skin there before placing warm open mouthed kisses across my neck until he found that small area where I could feel my own pulse racing as his tongue glided over it.
“I need you,” he breathed into my neck.
I placed a hand behind me, running it over the taut muscle in his thigh. “Good,” I said, giving him the answer that I knew he wanted. His fingers gently circled the delicate flesh of my throat. He moved his hand up to stroke the pad of his thumb over my bottom lip, and I sucked it into my mouth, running my tongue over his calloused skin, making him growl. I felt his other hand as it slowly moved down my body, directly to the core of my sex. He ran his fingers through the wet folds, causing my body to arch into his palm with a desperate cry of frustration of needing more.
“You want more, baby?” he asked. I couldn’t see his face, but I knew he had a wicked, sexy grin on it right now. He knew exactly what he was doing. I released his thumb from my mouth with a pop, and responded, “Do you?”
“So much more, sweetheart.” His voice was tense with lust as he moved closer behind me, lifting my leg up slightly to give him just enough access to my slick entrance, where he rubbed the hard head of his shaft along my folds, coating it in my wetness. Then, in one thrust, he pushed inside of me, making me gasp with his palm still at my throat. His other palm splayed across my stomach, pulling me harder into his body as he whispered into my ear, “Okay?”
“Yes,” was all I managed to say before he started to move in a slow rhythmic motion. Reaching behind me, I dug my fingers into his thigh, pulling him harder against me, encouraging the depth and speed of his thrusts.
My craving for him was palpable and fierce. I needed him to never stop possessing my body like he did when he was inside of me, causing me to get lost inside of myself, only wanting to be found by him. His thrusts started to ram forward with an urgency to match my own building climax, and as his palm slid from my stomach and back down to the apex between my legs, he pressed his finger against the sensitive flesh. I was completely lost in the heightened pleasure of my orgasm as he found his own release, flooding my body with his warmth as he let out a succession of curses as he bit into the tender flesh of my shoulder.
He held me tightly against him, breathing hard while gently kissing my shoulder, and that was where we stayed, still connected, until our breathing calmed and we dozed back off to sleep again.
Waking up early the next morning and pulling Nate out of bed was hard work. He had plans of his own that included spending most of the day in bed with me, but I had other plans for us today. Knowing just how shit this week was going to progressively get, I wanted to start it off by showing Nate around my city and doing the whole tourist thing today. After a shower and a quick breakfast, we took Flynn’s Jeep into the hub of Sydney, the Circular Quay, where I was lucky enough to find somewhere to park. I watched as Nate’s eyes widened with pure awe as he got his first close-up look at the Sydney Opera House and the vast expanse of Sydney Harbour with its iconic bridge standing strong and proud across it.
We strolled along the harbour, his fingers threaded through mine as we took in the wonderful sights. We snapped selfies on the stairs of the Opera House, and we made our way down to the ferry terminal and hopped on board a ferry across to the Taronga Zoo. As we crossed the water, I pointed out Kiribilli House, explaining that was where our Prime Minister resided. When we got to the zoo, I pulled him on board the sky cable cart as it took us over the top of the zoo for a bird’s eye view. Placing his arm around me and pulling me close, he gave me a playful, child-like smile, and said, “I haven’t been to the zoo since I was a kid.” All I could do was smile at his enthusiasm as we looked down at the animals.
The day was magical, and it felt good being the one in charge for the day and leading him through an area that was all new to him. After we finished up at the zoo, we hopped onto another ferry, where we stood on the deck, his arm wrapped firmly around my waist as he pressed a kiss to my lips. Once back at the main ferry terminal, we walked back along the upper promenade to a sea of tables along the waterfront where we found somewhere to sit and grab something to eat. I even took the lead when I ordered him a typical Aussie Burger and watched as he dissected it to see what was on it before he took a huge bite and moaned with satisfaction.
“I would have never believed that beets could taste so good on a burger. This thing is phenomenal,” Nate said before taking another bite. I leaned over and wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin just in time to catch the drop of sauce that threatened his t-shirt and laughed.
“See, I told you the good old Aussie burger is the best,” I said, smiling.
“Damn, baby, you’re not kidding,” he said through another muffled bite.
After lunch, I took him to an historic area of Sydney called The Rocks. We browsed around the open market stalls, and I managed to pick up some small gifts to take back to Paxton and Lynda, which included shirts bearing the Australian flag with the words “Awesome Australian Tourist” written across the back in bold letters, and a tiny, matching pink one for Emily.
We walked around, taking in Sydney’s old buildings until it started to get late, so I took him down to one of my favorite Italian restaurants, which was tucked away beside a sandstone wall with its quaint little courtyard of small tables covered with red and white checkered table clothes and a tray filled with candles. Pulling out my chair for me to sit, then taking the one opp
osite from me, Nate let out a huge breath. “This place is great. In fact, the whole day has been an experience.”
His words made me smile. “So, you had fun today?”
“That’s an understatement. I’ve been to a lot of places around the world, but unfortunately, Australia was not one of them, so to actually see the things I’ve only ever seen in books and movies is fucking mind-blowing.”
“I just wish we had more time. There’s so much more for you to see, but with our limited time here, I at least wanted to show you something that you’ll remember.” He reached across the table and took my hand in his, running his thumb across my knuckles.
“Hey, we will be back. I promise you, okay?”
“Yeah, I know we will,” I said, giving him a small smile.
A tiny knot formed in my stomach as I said those words. I would be leaving my home and Flynn for an unknown period this time. Nate must have seen through my wry look and into my thoughts.
“I mean it. I will bring you back here as often as you want, baby, and Flynn can come and stay with us whenever he likes.” I smiled at him, glad that he understood how important Flynn was to me.
“Speaking of which, I’ll need to book our return flight. Any idea what day we are looking at?” Nate asked, taking a drink from his bottle of water.
“Well, I guess once the parole hearing is over, it’s pretty much open. I mean, I don’t have much to take back with me, plus you need to get back to King Security. Otherwise, Paxton will be pulling his hair out.”
He laughed. “Yeah, I guess, but I need you to decide when it’s right for you, sweetheart.”
Taking in a deep breath, I looked away from him for a moment before I spoke. “To be honest, I want to leave as soon as the hearing is over. I don’t want to be anywhere near him once he’s out.”