Twisted Freedom

by J Grayland

  Without even looking at me or moving the book she was reading, her voice came from behind it. “Keep it in your pants, because it’s not going to happen today,” she almost sang.

  “Come on, you are torturing me. First, you run your soapy hands all over my body, and now, all I can see are your beautiful naked legs,” I moaned.

  Still ignoring me, Casey lifted a hand to the blanket draped over the back of the couch and pulled it down to cover her legs.

  “Smartass,” I said, tossing a pillow at her, making her finally drop the book she was reading onto her lap. “What the hell are you reading anyway? Looks like a telephone book.”

  “It’s a medical, surgical book. I have to read up on American protocols to pass the exams.”

  “Crap, I forgot about those. When are they scheduled?” I asked, absently rubbing my forehead, noticing that the pain was starting to move into a dull ache.

  Casey stood up, went to the kitchen, and came back with a glass of water and two white pills in her palm, holding them out to me. “Take these, they’ll help.” I swallowed the pills with half of the water. She sat next to me and gently stroked her fingers across my brow. “Just close your eyes for a while. I told you getting horny would hurt.” Ignoring her smart remark, I closed my eyes and relaxed into the soft touch of her fingertips as they moved slowly back and forth across my forehead. It felt so good that the pain started to subside a little, beckoning me back to sleep.

  The next time I woke was to a spicy aroma in the air. I slowly sat up and planted my bare feet on the polished wooden floor and realized I actually felt good. The relentless pain in my head was now a low, dull ache at the back of my skull.

  “Hey, how’s your head?” Casey said, coming to stand in front of me.

  “A lot better, thanks to you,” I said, sliding my hands up her outer thighs to grip her hips and drag her down onto my lap.

  “Hey!” she exclaimed in a little squeak.

  “It’s okay. I think I learned my lesson earlier. No dirty stuff. Well, at least for the night. I just want to hold you,” I said, pulling her tighter into my arms and inhaling her wonderful vanilla scent.

  “But dinner is ready.”

  “Fuck dinner,” I said, making her chuckle against my neck. God, she felt so good, and that was where we stayed for the next few minutes, just sitting and absorbing each other’s warmth until she stood and mouthed the word, “Dinner,” to me. We ate out on the deck. The combination of the setting sun over the ocean and the cool salty breeze was almost as picturesque as looking at Casey. I couldn’t believe that everything I had done in my life had brought me here, right now, with her. My mom always said life had its own plan for each of us, and I think it just hit me how right she was, because this was something I had never envisioned for myself…ever. Yet, here I was, content and consumed by this woman and all she had to offer me.

  I woke early the next morning, this time with Casey wrapped around me in a tangle of limbs. I was relieved that I managed to talk her out of sleeping in the damn chair again. She argued that it was easier for her to keep an eye on me, but I pulled the old wounded dog look. You know, droopy, forlorn eyes. I explained that I slept much better knowing that she was lying next to me in the bed; therefore, causing me less pain and distress through the night. I gave myself a silent victory high five when she slipped under the covers next to me. Pushing down my morning wood and the temptation to ravish her naked body took immense strength, but I promised her I would try and behave for a few days.

  But now, as I gently tried to untangle myself from her naked body, I wondered if it would be worth annoying her for a quickie before I headed into work. Mulling it over for a few minutes, I realized that I had an even bigger problem: telling her I was going to work. So at this stage, I decided to forego the quickie with pained reluctance and quietly extricated myself from the bed. I stealthily moved into the bathroom for a quick shower, quietly grabbing some clean clothes on the way. But on exiting the bathroom, now dressed, I was confronted by an annoyed Casey standing with her legs apart and her hands locked onto her hips.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “Going into work.”

  “Ah, I don’t think so.”

  “Ah, I do.”

  “Nate,” she growled at me, and it sounded so adorable and sexy.

  “I’m good, babe. Honestly, I feel great. I think it helped to have my own doctor looking after me,” I said, walking over to her and casually giving her a kiss on her firm, angry lips.

  “Well, this doctor thinks you need more time,” she huffed out as she followed behind me into the kitchen. Her arms were now folded across her chest with one hip leaning against the counter, and she watched as I poured myself a cup of coffee and took a sip.

  “I promise, I feel as good as new,” I tried to reassure her. “I need to help Paxton with the bank project. I keep dumping stuff on him, and he never complains, but I know he would like to spend less time behind a desk right now.” With the sudden softened look on her face, I knew she got what I was talking about. So much had been happening that Paxton hadn’t had much time to spend with Lynda and Emily, especially with our trip back to Australia. Walking to me and placing her palm on my chest, she just nodded and gave me a knowing smile.

  When I got outside, Paxton was parked, waiting for me in my SUV. He had kept it until we could get back to the hospital to pick up his car.

  Getting into the passenger seat, I was assaulted by a strong, pungent smell of musk. “Holy shit, my car stinks! Whatever you’re wearing, I think you overdid it this morning, bro.”

  “Good morning to you, too, and it was a gift from Lynda,” Paxton said, smiling as he took off down the driveway. “So, how are you doing?”

  “I’m good. Just a slight headache, but that’ll pass.” I waved off his look of concern.

  “You sure? I can handle everything if you need more time.”

  “Thanks, but I need to get back to work so I can give you some time off.”

  “I’m fine,” Paxton insisted.

  “Yeah, but I don’t think your wife shares the same sentiment as you,” I said, grinning at him.

  “What, why? Has Lynda said something to Casey?”

  “No, not that I know of,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m just taking a guess. You’ve spent so much time covering my ass that you haven’t had nearly enough time for your family.”

  “It’s cool, Nate. Don’t worry.”

  “It’s not cool, and it needs to change, so I’ll take the reins next week. You spend some time with Lynda and Emily, okay?”

  “What? No, impossible. We’re in the middle of the West Bank project!” he said.

  “I know, so do what you can by the weekend, and I’ll get into it next week. No buts, Paxton, you need a break.”

  Blowing out a sigh, he said, “Okay, if you’re sure.”

  “Very sure, and Paxton?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I appreciate everything you do for me.”

  “You’re welcome. Anytime.”

  Stopping in at the hospital on the way in, we picked up Paxton’s car, and he followed me back to the office. The rest of the day was as hectic as I thought it would be. By lunchtime, I felt my head starting to throb again, so I asked Laura to hold my calls for an hour. I took a couple of pain killers and closed my eyes for a while until it started to clear, then it was back to work. Giving Alonzo a quick call later in the afternoon, he told me that the barman had given up his buddy in crime, and they had both been charged with intent to sell and supply drugs and assault with a deadly weapon causing bodily harm. Alonzo thanked me several times and gave me an open invitation to bring Casey to the club any time with drinks on him. The only problem was that I had no intention of taking Casey to the club. It seemed like every time I went to the place, I had a bad experience. Nope, hopefully I wouldn’t have
to step foot in that place again any time soon.

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Casey

  I was just putting the plate of sandwiches I’d made into the refrigerator when I heard a knock at the door. Lynda was bringing Emily over for lunch today. She’d had a tour of the house when it was empty, but now it was full of furniture, and as I looked around with pride at our home, I was excited to see what she thought. I threw open the front door to Lynda’s bright smile. She had a bottle of white wine in one hand, a baby bag on her shoulder, and Emily in her car seat. “Here, let me help,” I said, rushing to take Emily from her.

  “Thanks,” she said, following me inside and down to the kitchen where I sat Emily’s car seat on the kitchen bench top. Lynda dropped her bag and slid the wine into the refrigerator, then gave me a hug. “It’s so good to see you!”

  “You, too!”

  “Wow, this place looks magnificent,” she said, walking into the living room and looking around.

  “Thanks! Come on, I’ll give you a tour, then we’ll have some lunch,” I said as she unstrapped Emily and placed her on her hip.

  “Lead the way!”

  After the tour, we sat outside and enjoyed some lunch with a nicely chilled glass of wine while Emily kicked up her legs on a blanket on the floor between us. “So, are you enjoying it here?” Lynda asked.

  “Yes, it’s wonderful! What about you? Have you managed to do any painting?”

  “Not yet,” she said with a frown.

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t know. I get Emily down for a nap, but then there’s always something else that needs attention, like bottles or laundry. By the time I’m free, she’s awake again. Not that I’m blaming her or anything. I think I need a little more time to get into a good routine,” she said, taking another sip of her wine.

  “Well, I can always come over and watch her for a while and help out while you paint, or you can bring her here for a few hours, if that will help.”

  “Sounds tempting, but I don’t want to intrude on your time and force you to be a babysitter.”

  “Nonsense, it’ll be fun.”

  “Really?” she asked, and I knew exactly what she was thinking with the slight look of sadness she gave me.

  “Yes, really. I would love to. That is, if you trust me, of course?”

  “Are you kidding me? Did you really just ask me that question?” She almost glared at me, and I just shrugged. “Of course I trust you, you idiot! I just didn’t want to put you in an uncomfortable situation.”

  “It’s all good. I love spending time with her, and it will be good for both of us.”

  “Sounds great to me! You just let me know when it’s a good time for you. I know you have your exams coming up.”

  “I know,” I groaned. “The first one is next week.”

  “I see you’re not looking forward to it then.” She giggled at my lack of enthusiasm.

  “Not really, but it’s a means to an end. As soon as I take the exams with the medical board, Paxton has arranged for me to do some volunteer work at a free clinic in Portland.”

  “Yeah, he told me that. Is that a good thing?” she asked tentatively, trying to read my reaction.

  “Well, it is for me. I mean, although I love being a lady of leisure out here in my own private paradise, I need to get back into it or I’ll start losing my clinical skills. Besides, my mind is starting to get lazy.”

  “And Nate?” She raised a brow at me.

  “Nate is Nate. He’s not happy about the area where the clinic is located, but he’s okay with it as long as Nick drops me off and picks me up,” I said, rolling my eyes.

  “That’s not a bad thing, Casey. Sometimes those free clinics can attract some bad people.”

  “I know, but even bad people need medical attention. I think it will be a good experience.”

  “Well, as long as it’s what you want to do, that’s great.”

  After Lynda left late that afternoon, I took one of the frozen lasagnas Carmel had brought over out of the freezer and sat it on the bench to thaw along with some garlic bread. Then I went into the bathroom and ran a hot bath, filling it with a silky, sweet-smelling bath oil that I had brought from the penthouse. I stripped down and sank into the luxuriously steamy water. That, combined with the sound of the waves outside crashing against the shoreline, and the mingling scent of salt and bath oil was so relaxing and decadent. I was perfectly accurate with what I had said to Lynda over lunch. This was definitely my little slice of paradise.

  I must have fallen asleep in the tub because when I opened my eyes, it was dark outside. Pulling the plug and getting out, I wrapped a fluffy towel around my body, still covered with soap suds, and ran into the bedroom to get dry. I selected and put on a pair of black panties and grabbed a long loose t-shirt to throw on, but as I turned, I noticed myself in the full-length mirror in our bedroom. Standing up straight, I dropped my hands to my sides and gazed at my reflection. I couldn’t remember the last time I actually had a long look at myself in a mirror, and I was momentarily shocked at what I saw. Bringing my hand up to my stomach, I ran my fingers over my scars, feeling the bumpy, flawed skin along the zigzag scar tissue that ran in a line just under my belly button. I looked at the raised dots and further up to the red, perfect slice marks around the areola of my nipples. A flash of a thin, silver-tipped blade invaded my mind, then the hot, glowing red tip of a cigarette. I inhaled sharply with a hiss, remembering the burn and the slight smell of charred flesh. Closing my eyes tightly, I tried to squeeze the tears back as I concentrated on my breathing, willing myself to escape the memory. I felt a single tear run down my cheek, and I heard a soft, low voice behind me.

  “Baby?” The intrusion made me jump. I opened my eyes to see Nate standing behind me, his eyes filled with concern. I quickly pulled the t-shirt I was still holding tightly in my hand up to cover the front of me when I felt his arms snake around my waist. Nate pulled me back against his chest. He said nothing, just breathed into my neck, holding me so tight that I knew he was trying to absorb the pain that I was feeling.

  “Please, don’t cry,” he whispered.

  “I’m sorry,” I said as I wiped away the tear with the back of my hand.

  “You know you have nothing to be sorry for, sweetheart. Just talk to me,” he pleaded.

  “I don’t know. I just saw myself in the mirror…and remembered how flawed I am.”

  “No, no, no. You’re not flawed at all, baby. You may have some battle scars like me, but you’re perfect. Let me show you,” he said, reaching around to take the t-shirt from my hands and dropping it on the floor. Kneeling down behind me and placing his palms against the outside of my calves, he slowly ran them up my legs and settled on my hips. “Beautiful, long, tanned, and soft legs,” he said. His hands then moved around to my bottom, where he gently squeezed. “A luscious, biteable ass, beautiful hips, and beautiful, soft skin.” His hands moved over my belly and up to cup my breasts. “Plump, soft breasts with the tastiest nipples.” Then, his hands slid up my throat, and he turned me to face him. “You are flawless,” he said, cupping my face and rubbing his thumbs over my cheeks. “The most beautiful woman I have ever known. There is no one like you, baby, and you are mine.”

  I closed my eyes when his lips softly brushed across mine and I just felt him.

  “I love everything about you. Don’t you ever doubt that.”

  I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I just got lost in a memory, that’s all.”

  “And I’ll always be here to find you and bring you back to me, okay?” Giving him a nod, I rested my cheek against his chest.

  “How is your head?” I asked him.

  “It’s fine. Don’t worry. Right now, I’m more interested in you.”

  “I’m okay,” I reassured him.

  “I have an idea, but I need you to trust me,
” he said, making me look up at him questioningly.

  “I think together we’ve experienced a lot of pleasure, but maybe you need to get to know your own body again, explore the changes in it, trust it, and take back some control.” Nodding, he led me over to the bed and slid my panties off, motioning for me to lay on the bed. “I’ll be right back,” he said. He left the bedroom and came back several minutes later with my iPod, a pair of earphones, a sleeping mask, and an unlabeled bottle. I watched as he unbuttoned his shirt and let it drop to the floor, followed by his boots and jeans, leaving just his black boxers on. Lifting my legs, he sat on the bed, draping them over his thighs so he was cross-legged in between my legs. He took my iPod and flipped through the playlists, plugging the earphones into it.

  “Now, if you feel uncomfortable or uncertain at any time, just tell me, okay?”

  I nodded, and he placed the sleep mask over my head. “I’m going to cover your eyes and put the earphones on you, and I just want you to get lost in your music with no sight distractions. I just want you to feel, okay?” I nodded hesitantly. He placed the mask over my eyes and the earphones over my ears. Then, with a faint click, I heard the sound of Enigma filtering through. He chose a beautiful, relaxing song, and even though the darkness of the sleep mask was a little daunting at first, I knew that the only two people in the room were Nate and myself.