Truth and Humility

by J. A. Dennam

  Attention on the ceiling, his lips quirked. “Now you’re giving me moonlit blow-jobs by that very same pond.”

  Her mouth opened on a scandalized laugh and she threw her napkin at him. “You’re terrible!”

  He laughed with her, shrugged. “I don’t care what you say, that’s some funny shit. Hell, I thought you were a boy.” Unfolding himself, he leaned forward and soon had her beneath him, the glow of humor surrounding them both. His hands cupped her breasts, drawing them up. He took one taught nipple into his mouth, sucked. Then he settled comfortably between her legs and simply gazed at them in adoration. adoratnbssp; HIf I’d have known you were a girl I would never have come at you naked like that.”

  The way he nestled on top of her, so comfortable, so relaxed, suckling her, made her go mushy inside. Her hand played with his thick, dark hair. “You mean you were modest back then?”

  “Unlike you.”

  Air pushed through her lips. “No boobs, no hair, no pink frilly crap in my bedroom...believe me nobody knew I was a girl. Not even me.”

  The image of her dressed to kill the night she’d molested him in a public parking lot came forth. “Well, you sure know how to flaunt it now.” He lifted his head, propped a hand under his chin while the other continued to stroke lazily up and down her side. “All I wanted to do when you and your pink tools first sauntered onto my yard was find out what you had beneath the boy clothes.”

  Should she be shocked by that? “Bull. You wanted to crucify me.”

  His smile was crooked beneath the weight of his palm. “I did when I expected Dan Connor a.k.a-Bennett. But, honey, guys have a one-track mind. One look at those swinging hips and you completely switched the rails on me. I was just too cranky to admit it.”

  Danny adjusted her head to give him a full-on look. “You know...” she smiled slightly, “You’re pretty fun when you aren’t so cranky.”

  Meaning he hadn’t been until now. Who could blame her for thinking it? His issues with Derek had all but consumed him...until the man’s little sister tiptoed into his life. Considering how much she’d changed things, he would have to tread carefully in order to avoid hurting Danny. Her feelings were more important to him now than revenge.

  The acceptance of that was what brought him here. To lurk outside her fortress under the cover of darkness, awaiting her anticipated arrival like a lovesick teenager. For three days he’d lived with gut-wrenching regret for his decision to let her go. And now, as he cavorted in her surroundings, he was getting a more detailed look at her life, how she lived it, what she dreamed of, what she was capable of. And he was fascinated.

  While he’d taken the traditional route up the walnut tree via rope ladder, she’d taken her own as naturally as if the ladder weren’t an option. Sure, she’d earned the nickname “monkey” for climbing trees in front of the crew. But doing it naked...holy cow. Monkey was the last thing to come to mind.

  Instead of climbing the branchless trunk of the walnut, she’d stepped back and taken a running leap at the neighboring oak. He’d been waiting for her on the deck. Having come twice already, he figured an erection wouldn’t be forthcoming until they’d rested a while. But damned if his dick wasn’t at full attention by the time she jumped for a rope and swung from oak to deck in one graceful finale. “Show off,” he’d teased. Her eyes had wandered down. “Back at ya, Cahill.”

  And once inside her fort, he was able to admire the attention she’d given to every rustic de ver shtail. From the combination of milled and natural woods to the introduction of modern household features like a small kitchenette, recessed table and chairs. Hell, even electricity. As he’d admired the rough-sawn beams overhead, she’d explained how she planned to add glass windows to replace the one-panel shutters as soon as the right ones came along. Everything she’d used had been taken from torn-down houses. Crudely drawn plans littered the walls, some had already been applied, some not. Some were purely fantastical, perhaps to be implemented when technology made it possible. But the woman was motivated; there was no doubt about that.

  It reminded him that he’d come with gifts. He moved to the pile of clothes they’d unceremoniously plunked beside the door and produced a book.

  “Thought you might want to keep this,” he said casually, holding it out to her, completely oblivious to the emotions the gesture had wrought.

  Danny had taken the book that boasted structural design for fire safety in the title and almost cried. He had no idea what the big deal was, but she seemed to appreciate it...a whole, whole lot.

  Now that the two of them were spent and he’d run out of rubbers, his curiosity focused on something else other than her delectable body. “Does that lead to the tower overhead?” he asked, indicating the narrow ladder that hugged the tree trunk by the bed. He’d had his suspicions about the tower the first time he’d scoped out the fort from the ground.

  “Mm-hm.” It was getting into the early morning hours, but Danny was in no hurry to see him go. “Would you like to see what’s up there?”

  “Nah. I should get back.” He bent, placed a kiss in the hollow between her breasts. “We both have work tomorrow and you need your sleep.”

  She thought of her original plans, to set up her study area, to experiment with her newly purchased Internet, to earn some grades. None of that sounded as appealing as before.

  Danny took in the beautiful male lounging beside her and sat up. “Come on. I’m not ready to start tomorrow when I’m not finished with tonight yet.”

  Austin groaned and missed her warmth already when she bounded up. He’d created a monster. “I don’t think I have another round in me, sweetheart.”

  “Come on, get up.” Danny yanked on the sheet beneath him until he reluctantly rolled off. “We’re taking this with us. And no, not to roll around in once we’re up there. It’s starting to get chilly.”

  “And what if I do have another round in me?”

  There was no doubt in her mind he could manage one. Somehow. “Sorry, Cahill.” She ascended the steps and pushed at the trap door overhead. “But my privates are flat-out raw.”

  “You have the most beautiful ass I’ve ever seen,” he observed loudly from below, seemingly oblivious to her last statement.

  Danny shook her head and laughed from above, waited for him to come up.

  When he cleared the landing, he looked around in awe. “Wow. This is terrific.”

  “You can see so much more from here,” she said, pushing two lounge chairs together. “This is the old tree house. The one you remember.”

  “That’s what I thought at first, but you’ve cut the walls out.”

  “For the view. Kind of like a watchtower. Derek and I hang out up here to map out our buildering plans without anyone overhearing.”

  Buildering. The word was a familiar one from a time when he and Derek had been friends. “Buildering...like in climbing buildings?”

  Danny plunked the sheet down, sat and patted the spot beside her. But he didn’t notice as he leaned over the rail, gauged the distance to the ground below. She sighed and got up again, ambled to the railing beside him. “I fell out of here once,” she said, staring at the bank below. “Since then I’ve learned how to jump far out and hit the water just right.” The man was chewing on something, she could tell. “What is it?”

  “I once watched your brother climb a five-story office building.”

  She took in a breath, exhaled slowly. “Yeah.” Here it comes.

  “It’s dangerous. I thought he’d fall at any second and I’d have to deal with the aftermath.”

  “Climbing buildings isn’t so bad. It’s predictable, I guess you could say.”

  “And illegal.”

  “Were your back-alley cage matches legal?”

  He turned to face her, something dark clouding his visage, but his voice remained soft to cushion the words. “That’s different. Sure, there’s plenty of blood and people get hurt, but fighting in a cage is hardly the same as falling to your de
ath. I can’t believe you’d put your life on the line like that.”

  The corners of her mouth turned up slightly. “You don’t need to worry about me, Austin.”

  “I guess I wouldn’t so much if you’d use safety gear.”

  So, he’d been paying attention to her ramblings at the bar. “I do...when the time calls for it. But you have to understand, everyone in our group likes the challenge. I mean,” she shrugged helplessly, “we live in the Queen City of the Ozarks, the perfect environment for it with all these cliffs and cave systems. Baker’s the worst, he has the knobbiest knuckles I’ve ever seen. Always wrapped up, plum full of gobies and the man can still finger jam like he’s in no pain at all.”

  “English.”

  Right. “Well, gobies are these nasty sores you get, mainly from crack climbing, which is what he does a lot. Terribly hard on the hands.”

  For a moment, Austin almost forgot he had a point to make. She was adorable when speaking gibberish, but she didn’t realize how vague her explanations were to a normal person. Crack climbing? Finger jam? Better off not knowing, he decided, especially after that last disturbing bit of information. “All it takes is one slip. One fall.” His look became deadly serious. “I don’t know if I can lose you, too, and survive it.”

  Whoa. That came from somewhere deep. It was then Danny wondered if he could possibly feel the same way about her as she did him. He’d loved Rena so much...did that mean he loved her, too?

  A slight breeze kicked up and moved around them as they watched each other. Emotional, Danny lifted up on her toes and brushed her lips against his. “You won’t lose me. I’m hooked.”

  His breath skimmed over her face. “Promise?”

  She nodded, fought some tears. “As long as you can put up with me.”

  They settled onto the lounge chairs and enjoyed the cooling night air. The panoramic view encased more than just the surrounding trees, but also the shimmering pond, the stars in the sky, the gentle symphony of nature. Their own private space. As they lay in each other’s arms beneath the sheet, their personal thoughts mingled with that of the preening crickets and frogs. All Danny could think was how perfect her life was at that moment.

  “Did you notice there aren’t many mosquitoes out here,” she asked softly, careful not to disturb any critter that may be slumbering within earshot.

  He ran a hand up and down her arm. “I wondered about that. We’re always battling the suckers this time of year.”

  “Purple Martins. Hundreds of them.” She lifted a hand, pointed. “All over the place. They swarm around like bats in the daytime, it’s something to watch.”

  Maybe some day he’d get the chance.

  Reading his mind, she sighed heavily. “How are we going to manage this, Austin?”

  “We’ll figure it out.” In all that was holy, he’d find a way.

  Her hand covered the hard muscle of his chest. “And the feud?”

  “We’ll survive it.”

  She to

  ok her bottom lip between her teeth. “What about Derek?”

  Austin propped his arm behind his head and inhaled deeply. “One day at a time, Bennett. All I know is that my priorities have changed. Let’s leave it at that for n at hiow.”

  Comforted by his words, Danny settled into the crook of his arm and let the sound of his heartbeat lull her to sleep. And despite the vow to stay awake, Austin buried his face in her hair and fought sleep until he, too, succumbed to the inevitable pull.

  What seemed like moments later, Danny opened her eyes. A noise had invaded her sleep…a noise that sounded frighteningly like the racking of a bolt-action shotgun. Still foggy, she blinked, focused on the chest beneath her cheek. That chest was hard, tensed and sinewy, like the chest of a man bracing himself for battle. On a gasp, Danny looked up. To her ultimate horror, her eyes followed the length of two iron barrels, from the stock to the tip of the side-by-side boar.

  And the boar was pressed firmly against her lover’s forehead.

  Chapter 19

  “You’ve gone and done it again, haven’t ya, Cahill?” Derek observed in a deep, chilling tone. He stood there, shirtless and pumped, itching to pull the trigger. “Tell me. What makes you think you can continually move right in? Just take what you want? First Brynn, all slick and warm in the back seat of your Mustang.”

  “Derek…” Danny stammered, terrified by the deadly countenance on her brother’s face. But his complete focus was on Austin.

  “Now, you have the balls to trespass on Bennett land to FUCK MY SISTER!”

  Austin’s arm tensed possessively around her shoulders. While Danny’s breath froze in her lungs, his came out just as strong as her brother’s. “It’s not like that, Derek. I have feelings for Danny.”

  A dangerous laugh came out low and slow. “You may be able to sell that shit to her but I’ve been dealing with you far too long.”

  Having had enough, Danny shoved the barrel away from Austin’s head and clung to the sheet as she rose up on her knees. “Back off, Derek. We’re not hillbillies, for Christ’s sake, and you don’t decide who I sleep with.”

  Just as Austin was about to rise to his feet, the barrel came back around and took aim at his chest. “Don’t push me, Danny. We discussed this, remember? You swore to me you weren’t going to let him in.”

  “Don’t blame her,” Austin interjected, keeping his eyes locked on his opponent’s. “We both tried to stay away from each other.”

  “Oh, I don’t blame her, Cahill. Danny’s a far too trusting soul, which is why it was so easy for you to take advantage from the moment she walked through your gates. Now, get up.” Derek wasn’t satisfied with the slow pace. “I said get up! You leave her the sheet, I want you to stand there with your dick hanging out when I blow your chest apart.”

  But Danny wouldn’t have it. Tangled in the sheet, she stumbled off the lounge chair to shield Austin from whatever might come his way. “You don’t have it in you to shoot anyone, Derek, not even Austin.”

  “I’m not worried, Danny,” Austin said from behind her, moving her out of the way. “I’ve wanted to do the same thing to him for the last eight months, but I didn’t have it in me, either. It’s past time we did this.”

  “I offered myself up to you on a silver platter in order to keep her safe from you, Cahill. But it wasn’t good enough for you then. You had to test me, see how far you could take this before I snapped. Well, congratulations, asshole!”

  “Derek, that’s enough!” Danny’s voice came out shaky despite her attempt at a harsh tone. “Just let him leave, we’ll all talk about this like adults as soon as you calm down.”

  “This has to end now, Danny. I can’t have him sniffing around you, I won’t have it.”

  “Go ahead and shoot me, then!” Austin roared, tired of the threats, tired of the fight. “But you better aim true, because if I live through it, it won’t change how I feel about your sister.”

  Both pairs of eyes were on him. Derek felt the weight of their emotions drain him of the stamina he’d been clutching to for so long. The look of his baby sister, fresh from a night of rigorous sex with his worst enemy, clearly in love and torn between loyalties. Just how Cahill had wanted it.

  But Danny was his to protect. Always had been. And he’d tried his best, but, dear God, he was exhausted.

  Derek’s chest weighted with the decision he’d been forced to make. All he could do at the moment was pray it was the right one. Quietly, slowly, he lowered the shotgun. The heavy weapon thunked upright into the corner and Derek stepped back to use the railing for much needed support. The secrets he’d been keeping for over eight months had taken a hard toll. Now it was time to come clean…for Danny’s sake.

  “I can change it,” he declared, his voice resigned, tired. He didn’t need to look up to know their eyes were on him. “I’m ready to tell you what happened to Rena.”

  The pair stood together, squaring off against him as a unit, tensed as one body in the early m
orning air.

  “Derek…” Danny warned, a wave of unease quickly spreading through her bones.

  But before she could finish, Austin gave her shoulders a reassuring squeeze as if he needed her as a barrier now that the shotgun was no longer in play. “It’s okay, Danny. This is what I’ve been waiting for. I need to know. If Iow. should’m going to get past it, I need to know what he did.”

  Feeling painfully alone, Derek ran one hand through his hair, fisted tightly. Shit. “Not what I did. That eyewitness saw someone fighting with Rena that night, but it wasn’t me.” His tortured gaze locked onto his sister’s and his brow creased with an unspoken plea for forgiveness. “It was Danny.”

  It took a moment for the words to register. When they did, Danny straightened her spine. “What?” she blew out incredulously.

  “I’m sorry, Danny.”

  Austin was furious. “What kind of coward are you, putting this off on her?”

  Derek continued, speaking only to his sister. “All we wanted to do was protect you.”

  “From what?” she shouted, sinking back into Austin’s arms as if she’d just been burned.

  “I found you in the river, hanging tight to some crap by the bank, near drowned. You were hypothermic, delirious, knocked out from exhaustion.”

  “Are you seriously trying to convince me I was there when I know I wasn’t?”

  “You only believed what we told you.”

  Her shoulders tensed beneath Austin’s hands. He transferred his attention to the top of her head. “Believed what?”

  “Danny’s been under the impression she was injured on the job that day. Fell and hurt her head, which explained the loss of time. As long as she didn’t know, we didn’t see the harm.”

  “If I ever laid eyes on Rena,” Danny spat hatefully, “I would have remembered. I saw pictures of her in Austin’s house!”

  “You didn’t remember anything from that night, baby. That’s what scared us most. Especially knowing the woman had gone missing.”