She said good-bye to everyone and told Cindy she would see her in a few days when she visited for lunch, and then she headed out.
* * * *
“What do you mean you didn’t give her a ride home? Why not?” Buddy asked Trent over the phone. Trent and Johnny had just gotten home and noticed that no lights were on in the apartment. Johnny knocked on the door and no one answered. He called his brother to see if he knew where she was.
“She never called either of us,” Johnny said.
“Where could she be? Where would she go and not tell anyone? I don’t like this. I don’t like the secrets, the lying about her name.” Buddy raised his voice in frustration.
“She lied about her name?” Johnny asked and looked at Trent who now seemed angry.
“What’s her real name?”
“I don’t know. I think Nina is her real first name but her last was a lie.”
“She’s hiding something. Definitely,” Trent said in the background.
“What should we do? Do we go looking for her?” Johnny asked. Just then the sound of thunder rolling in the background drew their attention.
“Shit. If she’s out there, she could get caught in the storm,” Johnny said with concern. “I’ll swing around past Angel’s Wings and see if she’s there working. We don’t even know what hours she works or what days. We’re going to have to find out,” he said and then disconnected the call.
Johnny put down his cell phone. He ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what it is about her, but she’s special. I could tell right away. I have never felt so instantly possessive, protective, or hell, interested like this in a woman.”
“It’s her eyes, Johnny. Her eyes are stunning. But she has secrets. She could be involved with some guy or something. We have to tread carefully here.”
“We?” Johnny asked and smirked as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“I’m not saying anything more right now. I admit I was attracted to her immediately. Something drew me in, but I don’t play games. Too fucking old and experienced for that kind of shit. Plus this case, this job takes a lot out of me.”
“We talked about this, Trent. We talked about our careers, about sharing a woman like our cousins and friends do. Like our parents do out in Fairway. Rarely have the three of us been attracted to the same woman, and even when it did happen it felt nothing like this.”
“I know what you’re saying. I want answers, too, though. If I’m going to get to know a woman, I need to know who she really is, not who she’s hiding behind.”
Johnny thought about that a moment and it made sense to him, too. “Should we go look for her?”
Trent mumbled and then stood up. “I suppose we should or we’ll sit here worrying until she gets back.”
“I’m worried plenty right now,” Johnny said and then covered up the food they prepared for dinner. As they headed outside, the rain was coming down hard. He glanced to the right and there was Nina running down the driveway.
“Nina?” Johnny called out as Trent remained in the garage and texted Buddy to tell him she was back.
She ran into the garage, joining them. The woman was soaked, her knee was bleeding, and her clothes were completely see-through. As if noticing them both staring at her nipples, she pulled the shirt away from her body only for it to cling back against a really nice set of breasts. She was voluptuous for such a petite thing.
“Oh God, I thought I would make it before the downpour,” she said, water dripping from her hair, down her lovely cheeks between her lips that just asked to be kissed.
Johnny continued his perusal until his eyes landed on her bloody knee. “You’re hurt,” he said, bending down. He reached for her leg and she stepped back.
“I’m fine. I tripped and fell. It’s no big deal, Johnny,” she said with an attitude.
Johnny was shocked, but then Buddy pulled up in his truck got out, closed the door, and ran to the garage. “Damn, it’s coming down heavy,” he said and then took in the sight of Nina. His eyes zeroed in on her breasts, rightfully so, and it was difficult to avoid looking.
She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Well, I should run to my place.”
Buddy grabbed her upper arm to stop her. His expression was of concern. “Where were you? How come you didn’t call Johnny or Trent for a ride?”
She pulled her arm from his grasp. “I told you I didn’t need to inconvenience them. I had things to do.”
“Like what?” he pushed.
“None of your business,” she said and stared at him.
He squinted his eyes at her. Johnny knew that both Trent and Buddy had short fuses when it came to being ignored when given an order by them. It seemed that Buddy had been worried about her. He watched as Buddy took a deep breath and released it.
“I’m not trying to boss you around, Nina. We were worried. Last I remember was us talking about you getting a ride from Trent or Johnny. It’s a six-mile hike to here from Sullivan’s.”
“I went to Angel’s Wings to see Fannie. She was worried. Then I headed back here after I ordered some things from the farmers market and store near it.”
She turned to look at Johnny.
“I was going to ask you if you were selling that bike with the big basket in the front and back. I need a form of transportation.”
“We can bring you anywhere you need to go even for deliveries as you get more orders,” Johnny told her. She shook her head and stepped back from the three of them. Johnny felt his chest tighten with concern. She was scared of them. Why?
“Are you selling the bike or not?” she asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest. He eyed her over from head to toe and felt his cock harden against the crotch of his jeans. Damn, she’s beautiful.
“I was thinking about it. I need to fix it up first. It needs some work.”
“I can do that. How much?”
“Just take it whenever you need it.”
She shook her head. “How much?”
“Nina, it’s a hand-me-down. It needs some work and has been sitting there. Just take it and use it.”
“I’ll work on it tomorrow.” She turned to look at Trent and Buddy. “Sorry if I worried you, but I’m not your responsibility. If staying here means you want control over me and to know everywhere I am and who I’m with, then I should start looking elsewhere right away.” She started to head out. All three of them were surprised by her statement. Buddy stopped her. He placed a hand on her waist and one against her cheek, cupping it.
“Oh God.” She gasped but Buddy remained holding her.
“You’re not looking somewhere else. We want you here. We want to be certain that you’re safe and that you know you have friends here in town. There’s no need for you to feel scared. We would never hurt you, Nina.”
She nodded her head, but Johnny could see the tears fill her eyes as she stepped away. “Please don’t touch me. Don’t say things like that to me. I’m just trying to survive, to live a normal life.”
Johnny took her hand and she tried to pull away haphazardly. He locked gazes with her.
“What happened to make you so scared of people? Why won’t you tell us your real name? Why won’t you let us help you, Nina?” he asked.
She held his gaze and then glanced at the others. “I do alone better, Johnny. It takes more time than most for me to feel comfortable around new people. This attention, all this wanting to help is overwhelming and foreign to me. Where I come from, there is nothing like this. Not the help, the compassion, none of it. People don’t care to do things just to make someone feel special or because it’s the right thing to do. People expect things in return. They demand and if they don’t get what they want, then it’s dangerous.”
“By people, you mean men?” Buddy asked her.
Johnny’s eyes widened. Had a man hurt her?
She pulled her hand from Johnny’s and stepped back.
“I’m going to head inside. Please respect my privacy
. I need it. I’m not used to having it.”
She turned to walk away when Johnny stopped her again. “Nina, let me get you some stuff for the cut. I don’t think there’s a first aid kit in the apartment.”
She ran her hands over her hair and pulled the long brown locks to the side and squeezed out the water. She was shivering.
“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Trent said, watching her as Johnny handed her a small first aid kit from the shelf. They had a few of them on hand for their trucks.
“Thank you.”
They watched her run across the driveway and up the stairs to her apartment. She pulled the key from under her shirt. She opened it, glanced at them, and headed inside.
“What do you think?” Buddy asked.
“Someone hurt her. Bad enough to make her question our assistance. She thinks we’re going to expect her to return the favors, and I can’t help but to think she means sexually,” Trent said in a huff. He turned and headed toward the inside door.
“Fuck, he’s right, I get this feeling someone physically hurt her and I don’t like the directions my mind is traveling in. I’ve seen enough crazy shit in this career. Men can be such assholes,” Buddy said, walking inside.
Johnny stared back at the apartment. If that was the case and someone hurt her so badly she was adamant about men and relationships, he wanted to change her mind. He wanted to help her heal. Hell, he just plain wanted her. She was sweet, courageous, talented, and a good person. If this was her second chance at establishing a new life, a career, and making it on her own, then having his brothers around to protect her and support her could be exactly what she needed.
Now if only they could convince Nina of that. Then came the fear that she could be pulling some scam over them. Thanks to Tara, he wasn’t exactly too trusting either. He hoped that Nina was legit and not about to turn on them, press charges on them, and say they forced themselves on her. Damn, the thought made him feel angry, on edge, and sick to his stomach. He looked back at the apartment, and he thought about Nina and that look in her eyes. She was scared. She wasn’t scamming. Something more would come of this. It had to be positive because the thought of not getting closer to her and kissing her made him feel like shit.
Chapter 5
Nina had the worst night’s sleep in a long time. She tossed and turned and kept waking up in a cold sweat thinking she had killed Rico and that the police were hunting her down. That led to envisioning Trent and Buddy arresting her and showing their disappointment and hatred toward her. She of course cried in her sleep and felt Johnny comforting her only for him to shove her away when his brothers informed her that she’d killed a man.
It was crazy. She wondered why she kept thinking about the guys. She knew why she dreamt about Rico. She knew that he was alive because if he had died, then the police would have tracked her down months ago. No, he was alive and well and looking for her.
He told her several times that he would never let her go, that she belonged to him, and that he would help her to succeed in her business dreams. She’d bought it all. She’d allowed him to control her, take her mind, soul, and of course her body.
She opened her eyes and looked around the room. She recalled Rico telling her over and over again that he in fact owned her forever by taking her virginity and that no man would ever mean as much to her. He spoke about it often, and would whisper in her ear when they were out in public or at his club.
“You see those women over there? They’re nothing but used goods. You, you belong to me now, baby. You gave me the most precious gift that you can only give one time, and it was given to me.” She remembered him caressing his palm under her dress below the table and cupping her mound. She felt the tears roll down her cheeks right now remembering his control, his possessive behavior. It made her feel weak, dependent on him and whatever he commanded. So many times that night when she left, took off scared out of her mind, she debated about returning to him. She thought she needed him to survive and to live.
“You can’t ever leave me, baby. There’s no reason to. No man will ever touch you as deeply or own you as deeply as I do. There’s no use in leaving ever. You understand me, Nina?” he’d asked, pressing a finger under the elastic of her thong panties and stroking her cunt. “Yes.” She’d submitted back then. The fear of his words and how capable he was had intimidated her. But now as she recalled that moment she instantly felt like shit, knowing how trapped she was back then.
“No other man will ever want you. The more I make love to you, the more I fuck you, the deeper my mark remains inside of you.”
“Oh God, will I ever get him out of my head, out of my body?” She covered her head with the pillow and cried.
* * * *
A week had passed and Johnny wondered why Nina hadn’t tried fixing the bike. He knew that Serefina stopped by twice to pick up pies for Sullivan’s, but it seemed that Nina wasn’t showing her face. It bothered him. But Serefina left over an hour ago and he was just about finished cleaning up the bike she wanted to buy from him. He didn’t want to take money for it. He would love if she used it. Their mom had left it here years ago.
Just then he heard a door close, and when he looked up, he saw Nina slowly making her way down the stairs.
“Hi, Nina!” he called out and waved. She waved back and slowly headed toward him. When he looked at her, she looked kind of pale and like she lost some weight.
“Nina, are you feeling okay?” he asked.
“You’ve been working on the bike?” she asked, purposely ignoring his question.
“Yeah, I started it when you didn’t come down looking to work on it yourself. Been busy making some pies?”
“Yes. It looks great. What else does it need? I can buy whatever parts are necessary.”
“Nina, I said I wanted to give it to you. It was just sitting here anyway.”
“Buddy said that you were going to fix them up and sell them.”
“Originally I thought about it, but life got in the way. I’m serious now. You can have it.”
“That’s great. I need to go to the store for some things.”
“Do you need a ride?”
“No, that’s what the bike is for,” she said. When she bent over to see if she needed to raise the seat, she sort of lost her balance. It was like she got dizzy.
Johnny grabbed onto her. “Whoa, are you okay?”
She placed her hand against her head. “Sorry. I think I’m just a little light headed. Like I said, I need to hit the store.”
“Have you been eating?” he asked, immediately concerned.
“I’m fine.”
“I haven’t seen you bring any groceries up except for the stuff for the pies.”
“I eat. Don’t you worry.” She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.
He reached up and cupped her cheek. “You look pale, and seem weak. Are you eating enough? Three meals a day and lots of water to hydrate?”
“I don’t eat three meals a day and I have plenty of water upstairs. There’s a thing called a faucet,” she replied.
“When was the last time you ate?”
“Last night, dinnertime.”
“What did you have?” She tried pulling away as she exhaled in annoyance. “What did you eat?”
“A granola bar.”
“For dinner?”
She raised her eyebrows as if saying, “Yeah, so what.”
“That’s not enough, Nina. Not with working and baking. You need to eat. How the hell are you going to ride this bike five miles to the grocery store? That’s insane. Then back here with both baskets loaded up? I’ll drive you and help you.”
“No, Johnny.” She pulled away only for her to lose her balance and almost fall backward. Johnny wrapped his arm around her waist and hoisted her up against his chest. She could have hit the truck. Instead her back pressed against it. He was staring down into her eyes and saw the fear, the weakness in her eyes. They weren’t bright. They were sad.
“N
ina?” he questioned. When she licked her lower lip and held his gaze, he couldn’t resist. He leaned forward and kissed her.
* * * *
Nina didn’t know what came over her, but being in Johnny’s arms and feeling his masculinity and strength as he kissed her made her forget everything. It lifted her spirits and made her forget why she was depressed and sad. Her weakness from not eating must have weakened her resolve to resist her attraction to him. She wasn’t pushing him away or even panicking.
He explored her mouth and ran his hands over her ass, her back, then pressed her harder against the truck. He smelled so good. His cologne was enticing, consuming as it filtered through her nostrils and throughout her body. She pressed her hands against his rock-solid chest and was in awe at his perfect physique. He was gorgeous and sexy, and towered over her, surrounded her with his manliness and capabilities.
But then came the crazy thoughts. The bad memories of the nightmares she experienced night after night. Rico’s words, his threats telling her that she would never be accepted by another man again. He owned her, marked her, possessed her, and no one else would ever compare. She applied more pressure to Johnny’s chest, indicating for him to stop. Slowly he did, trailing kisses along her jaw and then her neck.
“Damn, Nina, that was incredible.” He held her gaze and kept his body pressed against hers. She was locked in place and in shock at what just happened. For the moments when he kissed her, all the fear, all the pain, all the bad memories didn’t exist. She was happy.
“Why did you kiss me?” she asked him as she kept her hands against his chest. The solidity and warmth of his pectoral muscles burned through his dark T-shirt and straight against her palms. She was aroused, sexually, emotionally, and she needed to end this before she lost control.
He went to speak and she shook her head. “Forget it. Don’t say anything. That can’t happen again, Johnny. I’m sorry.” She tried pushing away, and he cupped her face between his hands and held her gaze.
Hearts on Fire 4: Kisses Sweeter Than Pie (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 8