“This is Lauren. Remember I told you about her?” Lucy stood up, wearing my shirt. It swept her toned thighs and made it painfully obvious she wasn’t wearing a bra.
“No, you didn’t tell me about her until I dragged it out of you last night.” I was going to kill her. “Nice to meet you, Carmen.”
“Lauren,” she gritted through clenched teeth.
“Carmen is a nicer name,” Lucy shrugged. The claws were out. I didn’t think twice before slamming my sister against the wall, crushing her beneath my weight. That’s what she did to me. She made me forget who else was around and what else was going on, especially when she was being a fucking brat.
“Ouch, Abel. You’re hurting me,” she whined. It would have seemed like I really was hurting her to anyone else but Lucy knew how her whining pulled me in and turned me on. She bit her lip and everything.
“Lauren, can you give us a minute?” I growled. My forearm was pinned across Lucy’s throat making her cognac eyes wide and scared. She was pretending though because she knew I’d never hurt her.
“Are you sure? Is everything okay?”
“Everything is fine. I need a minute with my sister.” Once I heard Lauren walk off, I let Lucy go and she gasped for air.
“You dick,” she called out breathlessly.
“Stop being a bitch.”
“Whatever. She called my car dirty then acted like she had a problem with me yesterday.”
“You said you’d behave. I’m holding you to it because I know you don’t lie to me.” Lucy huffed and let her shoulders slump. She was a lot of things but a liar wasn’t one of them. We had a bond that was unmistakable. I never lied to her and she never lied to me.
“Okay, I’ll be nice.”
“Be nice at dinner tonight too.” I leaned over and bit her poked out bottom lip.
“I will if you do more of that.” She was such an expert at sucking me into her tornado that I barely realized I was swirling around and around. Before I could stop myself, my hands were in her hair and my lips were on her neck. “Abel, don’t push me away this time,” she whined when I sucked the sensitive spot on her neck that drove her wild.
She was intoxicating.
That’s exactly why she couldn’t stay with me. We clicked. There was never a time where we didn’t. I was drawn to her free spirit even when Mom and Dad told me she was my sister to protect and teach. I wanted to do more. She wanted to do more.
It was never that way with Nora. I never looked at her as anything but my little sister.
But Lucy was a flame and I was a moth.
“Luce, I need this relationship to work.”
“Why?” She asked.
“Because I need to prove to myself that I’m not a fuck up addicted to his little sister. I need to show myself and you that I can have a normal, functioning relationship.”
“Who needs a functioning relationship? See what it did to Nora?” Her reasoning was awful, so I ignored it and went to get ready for work.
“Why don’t you go downstairs and talk to Lauren? Get to know her a little.”
“Why don’t I jump out of the fucking window while I’m at it, Abel?”
“Or you could do that. Wouldn’t have to worry about your apartment situation anymore.”
“Fuck you, asshole.” She flipped me off after she slid into her denim shorts. The ones that barely covered her perfect ass. I shook my head while I watched her knot one of my t-shirts at the hip then haphazardly use her fingers to comb her thick hair. Everything Lucy did was to the beat of her own drum even something as mundane as combing her hair.
I thought for sure I’d step out of my room and hear an argument or a fight once I was done getting ready. All I heard were quiet voices. I paused at the doorway and stared at Lauren and Lucy. Lauren clutched a mug of coffee in her hands and forced a smile at my sister while Lucy wore the same pained expression. They were talking about the weather but at least they weren’t killing each other.
“Hey, Abel, you ready to go? We’re gonna be late and you have that meeting with the charity about their media blitz.” Lauren scrolled through her calendar as I grabbed coffee.
“Okay, let’s go, right after I get some caffeine.”
“We’re already a little late. Not terribly, but enough.” Lauren pushed out a heavy breath and I hurried a little, splashing coffee on the counter.
“Slow down, Abel. Don’t let her rush you.” Lucy handed me a paper towel and scowled.
“I’m fine. Thanks, Hell Raiser.” I leaned in and kissed her forehead, making her smile. You need to go too. I want your things packed up at the apartment and call Nora.” Lucy moved toward the front door but she was dragging her feet. I knew if I let her, she’d lounge around my house all day long, sleeping and drinking and not doing anything she was supposed to do. I hated to kick her out but I had to. Tough love.
“You’re really not going to let me stay here for the day?” She whined in the foyer. Lauren stood there as well, her eyes swinging from me to Lucy.
“No. If I do you’ll drink your problems away. You have a week to move out Luce. Go pack. Dinner is at seven.” I knew she had to be to work at nine so I figured two hours was more than enough. By then I’d probably want to pull my fucking hair out.
“Fine.” Lucy grabbed her bag and stomped outside like a baby.
**
CHAPTER FOUR
Better Brands and Advertising was my home away from home. I felt as comfortable in my office as I did in my kitchen. I smashed the charity meeting I had and presented them with several media blitz packages to choose from, all of which I designed personally.
I wanted to take myself out for a celebratory lunch. I waltzed out to Lauren’s desk and sat on the edge. “I’m a goddamn marketing genius, baby and to celebrate that genius, we’re going to go to lunch. You ready?” Lauren gave me a brilliant smile. It was that smile that pushed me to ask her out six months ago when she started working in my office.
“Yeah, let’s go.” She shut off her computer and grabbed my hand. Lauren always looked at me like I was the world. I wanted to be the world for her. I also wanted to help her unwind a little. She was so uptight sometimes. It made her an amazing secretary but an annoying girlfriend.
We had lunch and a few celebratory drinks at a nearby spot with amazing seafood. Lauren sat across from me, her sharp bob sweeping her shoulders and her cappuccino skin glowing from the sun filtering through the window. She was beautiful. Not in the same way as Lucy but that’s why I picked her.
Lauren was pulled together and on top of everything. She was as far away from Lucy as I could possibly get with a woman. Those two were day and night.
“I don’t know about this dinner tonight, Abel,” Lauren sighed as we left the restaurant. I held her hand while we walked back to work.
“What do you mean?” I knew exactly what she meant. She could sense the tornado in Lucy and she didn’t like it. Nobody did. That’s why I stuck in my sister’s corner so staunchly. I’d never seen someone so hated just for existing the way Lucy was.
“She’s…” Lauren searched her mind for the right words but there were none. How do you describe a tornado with gentle, pretty words? How do you compliment a hellraiser?
“She’s Lucy,” I said with more bite than I meant to have. Lauren forced a smile and rubbed the back of my hand.
“Right. She’s Lucy.”
“Listen, you’ve got to understand that you’re not the first or the only person Lucy has rubbed the wrong way. Be patient and let me deal with her.”
“Okay, I will. I don’t take disrespect from anyone though, Abel. Lucy included.”
“Like I said, let me handle my sister.” My eyes were stern and Lauren held her hands up in surrender right before we stepped back inside the office. Tonight would be interesting and I wondered if Lucy would behave or would she start to churn and spin and darken the sky?
**
Lucy was late as usual but this time it was only fifteen m
inutes. She breezed into the house wearing a shredded black shirt and ripped jeans with fishnets underneath. Lauren shot me a wide-eyed look and took a long sip from her glass of wine.
I smiled when I saw my sister though. She looked amazing. Before I could even open my arms for her she crashed into me. “You’d be so proud of me. I got like twenty boxes packed.” She spoke against my Adam’s apple like she always did and Lauren eyed the display.
“Not you. Not Lazy Lucy,” I chuckled.
“Fuck you. I did it. Now I need twenty more boxes and I’ll be done. I still don’t know where I’m staying though.” She released her grip on me but I still held her waist. We got so close to fucking last night and my dick remembered. I had to talk it down a few times before I let go of her.
The look in her brown eyes let me know she was well aware that I was using her to hide my erection. “Later?” She asked.
“Later,” I told her with a nod.
“Hi, Carmen,” Lucy sighed.
“Lauren,” I corrected her.
“Oh, I thought we decided Carmen was a better fit?”
“I thought you were supposed to behave,” I growled in her ear.
“I am. She knows I’m just fucking with her, right…Lauren?” She flashed a fake smile and Lauren rolled her eyes.
“Let’s cook dinner.” I clapped my hands together hoping that somehow the sound would erase the tension mounting in the kitchen. We were having meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and summer squash. Lucy was busy cutting the potatoes while Lauren seasoned the meat.
“This is more like it. My favorite girls hanging out in the kitchen, cooking.” After I finished peeling the squash, I tossed an arm around both of them.
“So, Lucy, what did you go to school for?” Lauren asked, trying her best to lighten the mood. Lucy had been pretty tight-lipped the entire time and she chopped through the potatoes like she was decapitating someone.
“Visual and performing arts.”
“Oh, that’s…nice. What is it that you do for a living?”
“I’m a bartender at On the Rocks.” Lucy stopped quartering the potatoes to look at Lauren. She was waiting for the judgment and I cringed, wondering if she’d find it.
“Oh…well, are you planning to go back to school for another degree since your art degree isn’t cutting it?” Bingo. There it was. I sighed heavily and interjected before Lucy could.
“Lucy is doing fine. She’s the most popular bartender there and I’m still not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing since it seems to draw all sorts of attention.” I glared at her playfully and she crinkled her nose up at me.
“All my attention is for you, Abel,” she gushed and made sure to pour extra sugar on her words.
“Better be.” The possessive grunt slipped out before I could snatch it back and I cleared my throat nervously. I sure as hell hoped Lauren didn’t pick up on anything between Lucy and me.
“So, how much older than you is Abel?” Lauren washed her hands in the sink and grabbed a pan for the meatloaf.
“Eight years,” Lucy’s tone was back to being icy.
“He seems very protective. You must have had a ball growing up.”
“Oh…we did.” She looked over her shoulder at me and I shot her a warning glance. Those fiery copper eyes held so many secrets. They were dark and deep and never needed to see the light of day.
“Why didn’t we order food, Abel? Look at all the dishes we made. Now, who do you think is going to have to put them in the dishwasher later tonight?” I looked around the messy kitchen and shrugged.
“Not you, lazy bones.” I shoved her and she laughed, hitting my chest.
“I’ll clean up,” Lauren offered. She was helpful. That’s what she did at work and at home. She was safe and comfortable like worn jeans.
“No, you won’t because you won’t be here tonight.” A bottle of whiskey materialized in Lucy’s hand as she trailed out of the kitchen.
“And why is that?” Lauren demanded, right in step with my sister.
“Because I’m staying the night again. We need some brother-sister time.” Lucy flopped on the couch and I sat beside her. Lauren sat beside me. Perfect. A sandwich.
“Yeah, it’s okay Lauren. I’m helping Luce through a situation right now. Just me and her tonight.” Lauren looked at me like she could throw daggers from her pupils.
“She really has you wrapped around her little finger, wow.”
“Always has, always will,” Lucy sang and took a long drink from the Jack Daniels bottle in her hand.
“Lucy, did you talk to Mom and Dad about your situation?” I asked; trying to use anything to get out of the uncomfortable moment I was stuck in.
“No. All they’re going to do is sigh and act like I’m a huge fucking disappointment. Then they’ll call you to round me up. Which is why you should let me stay here until I get things settled. We can just skip the middleman.” She smiled up at me and I shook my head.
“No. You know you can’t stay here. If I let you stay here every time you got evicted, we’d be roommates.” Lauren let out a short laugh at my statement and muttered something into her wine glass.
“Something funny, Carmen?” Lucy cocked an arched brow at my girlfriend and Lauren looked at me.
“I’m gonna go check the food,” she said, standing to her feet. Once she was out of earshot, Lucy leveled me with a glare.
“Your girlfriend is about to get her ass beat.”
“No, you’re about to get your ass beat if you don’t calm the fuck down, Lucy,” I grumbled.
“Beat my ass then, Abel. You’ll have to fight tooth and nail to bend me over though.” She was challenging me. I hated being challenged but I knew she was baiting me into a compromising position.
“I know what you’re doing,” I warned her. “It’s not going to work.”
“Whatever. I wonder what little Carmen would do if she came in here and saw me on my knees, blowing you.”
“Lucy…”
“I mean…spit running down my chin while the tip of your big dick knocks my tonsils out. That kind of blowjob.”
“Lucy,” I growled.
“The kind you used to love when we were younger.”
“Lucy!” I snapped and yanked her over to me, my fist in her hair. “Cut. It. Out.” I let her go with a shove and she giggled. She was such a little shit.
“Everything okay in here?” Lauren sat down beside me. Her spine was stiff as she stole a glance at Lucy.
“Fine now, Carmen.” Lucy winked and downed more whiskey. It would prove to be an interesting night.
“So, how is it being a bartender, Lucy? I imagine you meet some wild characters.” Lauren did her fake laugh. I hated it. She sounded like a talk show host. I liked it much better when she moaned.
“I do. The crazier the guy the better the dick. At least that’s what I’ve learned.” The muscles in my neck tightened. I hated when Lucy talked like that.
“Wow. You’re colorful, aren’t you?” Lauren must have noticed how tense I was because she started rubbing my neck to smooth me back out. “Abel, what are these scratches on your neck?” She rubbed her fingertips over them and I remembered Lucy scratching me last night. I didn’t care at the moment but while my neck was being studied and examined, I wish I hadn’t got caught up in that damn tornado.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged at Lauren.
“I did it,” Lucy spoke up with a crooked grin. Color inched up my neck but not from embarrassment, from anger. Lucy was getting shitfaced and letting things slip. Things she knew needed to stay private.
“What?” Lauren laughed.
“We play around and fight a lot. I scratched him.” She flashed her long nails and tipped the bottle of Jack up. I snatched it from her and marched into the kitchen. I knew she’d follow.
“Lucy, what the fuck is your problem? You’re drinking before you go to work, and you’re being a brat when you promised you’d behave.”
“I hate her, Abel. Te
ll her to go home. I want to have dinner with you, not you and your uptight bitch of a girlfriend. Plus she’s judging me. I hate when people judge me.”
“You’re giving her a hell of a lot to judge.” I seasoned the mashed potatoes and Lucy helped.
“Fuck her. Fuck everyone.” She grabbed for the whiskey again but I put it out of her reach and watched her pout.
“Come here, Luce,” I dropped my guard and hugged her tightly.
“What am I going to do, Abel? You won’t let me stay here and Mom and Dad won’t let me stay there. I don’t have any money in savings and I make decent money but I need time to save.” Her slender body shook with sobs and I felt my chest squeeze. I hated seeing her cry.
There was nothing I wanted more than to offer her my house but I couldn’t. “Look at me,” I said through gritted teeth. “We are Waters kids. We don’t let things like this get us down. You have to call Nora. You’re twins. You two love each other more than anyone else in the world.”
“Not more than I love you,” she pouted.
“Even more than you love me.” The way Lucy and Nora interacted was magical when they were on speaking terms.
“Nope,” she insisted but I knew the truth. Nothing was stronger than the bond twins shared. The bond Lucy had with me was different. It was beautiful but I didn’t want it to run as deep as it did. I wanted us to be brother and sister but God, she was tempting.
“Yeah, sure.” I gripped her jaw in my strong fingers and watched her full lips turn down. “Do me a favor? Drink some water. Eat some bread. Sober the fuck up, and be nice to Lauren. I know she’s uptight but I’m working on her.”
“Can you make me cum again tonight?” She whispered, her breath sweet with whiskey.
“Yes. I’ll make you cum so fucking hard, Luce. Just behave.” I bit her earlobe and a small squeal escaped her.
**
I sat at the head of the table to avoid being caught in the middle of the two women I liked fucking the most. Lucy had ice water, Lauren was on her fifth glass of white wine and I was praying to the Gods that a pitcher of beer would fall from the ceiling. It never happened.
LUCY Page 3