Whiskey Dreams (Rebel Walking #7)

by Hilary Storm

  We drive back to the cabin and both work to get ready for our fishing day after we unload the groceries. I pack the ice chest and throw the rods and gear in the back of my truck. I don’t expect her to drive out to our pond. The brush down the path would fuck us up in her Jeep. Hell, it scratches my truck the whole way down the path. That’s why I usually use the four-wheeler to get down there.

  She comes out in a pair of shorts and tank top. I’m trying with everything inside me not to look at her tits as she comes down the steps. She’s wearing one of my hats that I left here in the past and I’ve never seen anything sexier than this look right here. If my mouth wasn’t hanging open, I may have remembered to take a picture. Get your shit together, Cowboy.

  “I hope you don’t mind if I borrow this hat?” Hell no I don’t mind. Let’s see what you look like in one of my shirts next.

  “Nah. Looks good on ya.”

  “Thanks, I don’t want to get too much sun on my face.” It doesn’t matter what her reasoning is. I love her in my hat.

  “I think I have everything loaded.”

  “You don’t want to take mine?”

  “This pond is down a terrible road and we’ll get scratched all to hell.”

  “Ok. Let’s go.” She’s smiling and I can already see how easy this day is going to be. She gets in on the passenger side and closes the door as soon as I do. She looks over at me and I wish like hell this girl wasn’t associated with Luke like she is.

  “I’m excited! This is brand new for me! Move this truck, big guy and teach me how to fish.” I kick it in drive and we take the short drive to the pond. It’s on this property, just down a shitty road. Her tits bounce the entire time in that low cut tank and I swear I feel my cock trying to bust out of my jeans. Damn it.

  We park and I drop the tailgate. She reaches for one of the rods and watches me as I bait my hook. She follows my lead and does it herself. Now I’ve lost my fucking mind for sure. Because I found that sexy too. Fuck. I need to get over this shit. I may have to take an extra-long shower when we get back and handle business before shit gets out of control. I didn’t realize I’d turn into a damn teenager around a woman again.

  KIMBER

  I’m trying not to look at him. I’m trying to not appreciate him more and more as the day goes by. When he surrounded me to show me how to cast a rod, I almost turned around in his arms and just let him hold me the right way. How can a man smell so good out here with all of nature? I’m not sure, but he does.

  I feel a bite on my line and do what he has been doing all day. He has a stringer full of fish and I keep losing any that take interest in my hook. I just want to get one and then I’ll feel successful. I’ll be honest, I bought extra food at the store because I was worried we wouldn’t catch our dinner. I’ve seen this man eat and the last thing I want to do is share a little minnow sized fish with him for dinner.

  He moves in beside me and talks me through catching my first fish. It’s not near as big as some of the ones he’s caught, but it’s my first fish.

  “This is fun! Take my picture.” I hold my fish up proudly while he uses his phone to snap a picture of me. Who knows, maybe I’ll start a journal of new things I do in my life. This can be the first in the book.

  He puts my fish with his and we both move to the truck to fix our lines. I grab us both another beer and slide onto his tailgate. He stands next to me, leaning against it and we both stare at the water. He takes a drink before he starts to talk and I just listen to his deep voice. “I’ve been fishing here more times than I can count. This is really my peaceful place. I used to always escape here when life got hard.”

  “I can see why. It’s beautiful here.” The trees surrounding us make it cool and block any chance of wind ruining our day. I can hear birds chirping and other noises coming from the depth of the trees surrounding us and I find it strangely relaxing.

  “Fishing is really a calming sport.”

  “I’ve always thought so. Plus, I like a challenge.”

  “So tell me something deep about you, Cowboy. You know so much about me, but I feel like I only know what I’ve seen of you.”

  “Ok. What do you want to know?”

  “Well. How many times have you had your heart broken?” He smiles and fidgets a little before he answers.

  “Once. And that’s enough for this lifetime.” His Southern twang was very apparent in his response.

  “How long ago?”

  “Three years ago.”

  “Is she still around?”

  “I haven’t seen her in probably two years. She was the girl I was gonna marry.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. She did me a favor. We had different goals in life and after we broke up I found out she had cheated on me so; in the end I guess everything happens for a reason.”

  “Damn. People suck.” I hate that someone did that to him. In just the short time that I’ve known him I can feel how bad he was devastated from something like that.

  “Some do. Some make up for the others.” He takes a few steps before he tosses his beer bottle in the bucket with the other two.

  “Well, I’d say this is mission accomplished. What else would you like to do today?”

  “I’m good just being in the sunlight.”

  “I want to knock out some more of your firsts. Have you been on a four-wheeler?”

  “No I can’t say that I have. It’s pretty safe to say anything country like this and I probably haven’t done it.”

  “Alright, well before I’ve had more beer, let’s get back and get you on a four-wheeler.” I rode Luke’s motorcycle so it has to be easier than that. I hope he’ll be driving and I’ll take the back willingly. Who wouldn’t be willing with that body in front to hold on to?

  Chapter Seven

  AIDEN

  I close my eyes as she climbs on behind me. She’s not supposed to feel so good. She’s not supposed to get to me like she continuously does. I’m not supposed to want her to lower her hands and take hold of the speed of everything between us. Because if she would just show me one sign that she’d be ok with anything more, I don’t think I could tell my body no. She has been torturing me for literally twenty-four hours now and I want nothing more than to show her how a real man handles a lady.

  I’m sure Luke took care of her. Shit, what am I thinking?

  “Are we just going to sit here?” She wraps her arms around my waist and leans forward so that her tits are against my back. I inhale and tell myself no.

  I start the engine and take off slowly, then speed up once we get to the path I usually take. I know this like the back of my hand, so it’s easy for me to move quickly through the trees. Her grip on my waist tightens and I slow down some.

  “You alright back there?”

  “Yes.” I take off again and just let the wind hit us in the face. She wraps herself even tighter around my waist and this time I don’t stop to check on her. I just enjoy the moment.

  We get to the stream and I slow way down. “This is where I love to ride. I usually take it straight down this stream and kick up mud the entire way.”

  “Let’s do it then!” She doesn’t even hesitate. “Can I do it?” I’m about to take off when I hear her.

  “I want to drive it.”

  “You have to keep us moving and if I see something, listen to me and do exactly as I say.”

  “I can do that.” She slides off the back and I slide back a little bit. I appreciate everything about her as she works her way in front of me and I don’t stop my hands from holding her inner thighs to stay on. Her waist is tiny and my hands need something to hold on to in case she takes off without me.

  “Now this is your throttle. Ease up on it before you go into the stream.” She takes us on a smooth ride along the barrier of the stream for a few hundred feet, then turns back around to enter the mud. I’m going to either love this or hate this. There won’t be an in between.

  She does well at the first, the
n it gets muddier and shit starts flying. This is the part I was afraid of. See when you ride solo, you can lean forward and throw mud up the back. Well, she’s throwing mud alright. I’m positive I’m wearing most of it, but I don’t stop her because our asses will be stuck.

  She slows down and I know we’re getting ready to stall out.

  Fuck. I shift us both forward and slide her legs up so that I can get mine under hers and reach forward for the handles. I wrap my hands around hers and take off. I can see over her shoulder as her ass sits right on my cock. This is true fucking torture and I get us out of the stream the second there’s an opening.

  We come to a stop and she gets her footing to lift off of me. I slide off and start to walk around. The thick mud caked on my jeans starts to slide down as I move. I look at her and she busts out laughing. That’s a laugh I could get used to.

  She’s also a muddy mess and her laughter runs through me, so I start laughing with her.

  “You look like you were dipped in shit!” She speaks through her laugh and begins removing mud off herself.

  “You do too.” She takes a blob of mud from her leg and throws it at me. I notice she’s about half muddy and I’m covered from head to toe. After she throws mud at me, it’s on. I take off running to her and wrap my arms around her, making sure to rub mud in every clean place.

  She’s hysterical and I’m not letting up. We end up slipping on the soft ground and both fall to the ground and if I had watched this happen, I’d think this was one of the biggest fucking Hallmark movies I’ve ever seen. But in the moment, it feels great to have her in my arms even if she can’t stop laughing.

  We land and I stop myself from falling on top of her. Call it a pushup stance as I blanket over her. We both stop laughing and look into each other’s muddy faces.

  “You know that laugh could be hard on a guy’s ego.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. I love hearing it.” I stay frozen above her and my eyes lock with hers. I watch her eyes darken and then feel her arms wrap around my back until she’s pulling me down on top of her.

  Her lips land on mine as she lifts her head to meet mine and I quickly slide to my side and roll us over so that she is fully in the driver’s seat on this.

  God, she feels so good on me like this. I’ve craved her and honestly the fact that I know so much about her now makes me cherish this so much more. She’s not one to do this with just anyone.

  She straddles me and begins to desperately tug at my shirt. I lift off the ground and let her remove it. She sits up and watches me as I slowly let my back lower to the ground once again. Her eyes are about the only thing that isn’t smeared in mud at this point.

  She slowly lifts her shirt over her head and I watch her let her hair out of the hat, tossing both to the side. She’s wearing a black lacy bra and I can see through it perfectly. Fuck, she’s gorgeous.

  She lowers her head to mine and begins to kiss me again. I lay with my arms beside me and let her make every single move at the beginning, then I can’t stand not feeling her body in my hands. I may only get this one chance with her and I don’t plan on regretting a single fucking thing.

  I won’t push for anything, but I sure as fuck won’t turn her away when she has consumed my every thought since I met her.

  KIMBER

  What am I doing? I’m obviously not thinking about what I’m doing. But shit. He just feels good. He looks at me like I’m beautiful and that just doesn’t happen to me. Luke didn't even do that. He always had a look of guilt in his eyes because of his own hurt.

  Can I really just let myself continue attacking him? His tongue. His hands. His chest. I just want to rub the mud on his body. Or maybe I want to rub the mud off his body in a shower. I don’t know. I just know I’m enjoying this right now and if we stop, I may never have the boldness to dive into it again.

  His hands cover my ass and I find myself wishing he’d let his fingers slide up and under my shorts just once. God, I’m pathetic. I sit up with an urgency and lift off of him to get my shirt. I hate myself for what I just did and now I’m going to have to deal with the awkwardness of the rest of this day. Shit.

  He stands and hands me the hat I just threw and then tucks his shirt in his back pocket. I look at the ground so I don’t have to look at his perfect torso and chest as he probably searches for an answer of what the hell just happened.

  “You alright?”

  “Yes. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t ever be sorry with me. Kimber. Look at me.” I can’t. He’s too fucking deep for me in this moment and I know he’s going to tell me I did nothing wrong. When I know I did. I took advantage of him and the situation.

  I look up and see him smiling.

  “Stop beating yourself up. Remember… you were going to learn to live. I’m thinking you were just living for the moment right then and I can honestly say I fucking enjoyed that. So tell me the next time you want to live for the moment and I’d be happy to help you.”

  “I’m terrible. It wasn’t you that I was kissing the entire time. I kept flashing to him. Why can’t I let myself accept that I walked away from him?”

  “Because love does wacky shit to you. We’ve known each other for twenty-four hours. Just like anyone else in the world, we both have our pasts.”

  “But I want to move forward. This is about me moving on to a new journey and away from the past. How can I do that when the guy I keep pulling toward is tied to my fucking past.” He looks at me and I contemplate whether or not I should continue.

  “Aiden. You’re easy to be around. I’m drawn to you and your love of life more than anyone I’ve ever seen. I wanted more than anything to let us be together last night and consider you like my passage. I finally talk myself into it, then BAM. You tell me you’re his friend. How can you be my passage when you’re a damn door that leads right to my past?”

  “That’s deep shit to talk about while I’m standing here covered from head to toe in mud. All I can say is I’m attracted to you. I felt a connection to you the second I met you and it hasn’t stopped since. That’s why I was blowing off my friend’s person at the cabin all evening. I wanted to spend more time with you.”

  “You know if you would’ve met me in the cabin as Kimber in the beginning, neither of us would’ve even considered letting it go beyond a simple hello. Now you’ve seen my tits and we’ve kissed twice. You can’t say you accidentally kissed someone twice.”

  “Neither one of my kisses were accidental.” His words stop my thoughts.

  “Mine weren’t either.”

  “Then why don’t you stop over thinking things? We can just take it easy the rest of the day and see where it takes us.”

  “But don’t you see? We can never let this be anything more than what it is right here. No matter how much I want to touch you right now.” He walks closer to me and I take a few steps back until he starts talking.

  “Yes we can. You’re not in a relationship and neither am I. So as far as I’m concerned we can do what the fuck we want. Do you really think Luke wants you to swear off men for the rest of your life?”

  “No but it’s only been a week since I left him. One week. That’s seven days.”

  “Right. And he was literally with someone the second you left him. So what is your point?” His words hurt. They are true, but they hurt. My eyes begin to tear up and I don’t know why I even let my tears build up in the first place. I left him. I walked away from him, so none of this is anyone’s fault but my own. And fate. Stupid fate or destiny.

  “I didn’t mean to sound insensitive. I’ll never pressure you for anything more than you’re willing to give. I know you plan to leave soon, and I just want you to be able to fucking live when you walk through that passage you’re creating.” He wipes my tear. Just like Luke always did and now I want to fucking scream.

  “Why did you do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Wipe my tear with your thumb. Is that some fucking
Southern bullshit? He did that too.”

  “Of course he did. Well, honey. That’s just the gentlemanly thing to do when a woman you care about cries.” Cares about. I heard that. “I’m sorry your guys before us were assholes. I never want to make a woman cry. I want to be the reason she never feels the need to cry again.”

  “Oh. My. God. I can’t take all of this. This day was supposed to be simple. You’re not supposed to be something I’m curious about. You’re not supposed to tempt me the entire day. Aiden. How am I supposed to think straight when you look like you do?”

  “Well maybe you should just get me out of your system. Then you can do your thinking.”

  Chapter Eight

  AIDEN

  She’s so angry, and I want more than anything to take away her hurt, but I can’t. Time will heal, or so they say.

  Today has been a great day even though we had the heated conversation on the ride. She didn’t say a word as I drove us back to the cabin. We both went our separate ways and I can assume she hit the shower since she was covered in mud, that’s what I did.

  Now I’m outside cleaning fish so we can fry them for dinner. I have a beer to my right and Jack to my left. I’m not sure which I’ll drink first, but I can assure you they will both go down soon.

  I hear the door slam and look to see her sitting on the back deck. Her hair is wet and she doesn’t have any makeup on. She’s perfect even like this.

  I grab the Jack and throw it back. I need a friend here. Jack never lets me down. She sees me and starts to walk my way, so I go back to filleting this fish.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Cleaning fish.”

  “Can I watch?”

  “Sure.” She watches as I finish this one and pull the next one out to start on.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I told you. Don’t be sorry around me.”

  “But I am sorry.”

  “What are you sorry for?” She moves into my view and leans up against the outside wall of the cabin.