The Nauti Boys Collection

by Lora Leigh

  His gaze sliced to her silently.

  Yeah. That was what she figured.

  “Go talk to your son, Zeke.” She picked up her clothes from the floor when she really wanted to sink to the tile and sob. “I’ll get dressed and head home. Maybe I’ll see you again … sometime.”

  She turned away from him. She wanted him to say something, anything. To blame her, to rage, whatever. After all, his teenage son had just caught him getting a blow job in the kitchen. It had to be a major catastrophe in any man’s life. It was sure as hell a major catastrophe in her life.

  “Go home,” he told her, his voice hard despite its very softness. “We’ll talk later.”

  Uh-huh. She just bet they would. Like never.

  She glared at his retreating back as she jerked her bra on and hurriedly clipped it. With shaking hands she pulled her shirt over her head and jammed her arms into the proper holes. She held back her tears. She held back her anger.

  Until she backed the Harley out of the garage. She hit the gas, spun enough gravel to leave a trench, and raced for the main road.

  Fuck him. Fuck it all. She’d had enough.

  EIGHT

  Shane was slightly in shock. He paced the back deck, ran his fingers through his hair, and mumbled another curse. Hell. Some things a guy didn’t need to know about. Sometimes, a guy needed to be a little more careful.

  Hell, he’d seen the Harley in the garage; he just hadn’t thought. His dad never brought women home. It was just something that never, ever happened. Especially in the middle of the day.

  Sheriff Zeke Mayes didn’t do “nooners.” Shane almost laughed out loud. Hell, he didn’t know if he should be mortified or laughing. Because he’d wondered if his dad was some kind of fucking monk or something. At least now he knew that one wasn’t happening.

  But hell, walking in on him? Him and Rogue Walker?

  Shit. He’d had enough fantasies about Rogue himself; he didn’t need to see his dad doing her.

  His dad was going to kill him. It was that simple. Shane had seen his face. His dad was freaking going to kill him. He flinched at the sound of the door opening behind him and closing softly. He paused, took a deep breath, then turned around.

  Yeah, Dad was going to kill him. He was scowling at him, arms crossed over his rebuttoned uniform shirt, his expression forbidding.

  “Look, I didn’t think.” Shane cleared his throat and tried the honesty route. “It just didn’t occur to me, you know?”

  His dad was damned freaky about his privacy anyway. He was one of the most secretive people Shane knew, especially about his private life.

  “Where’s your car?” his dad asked carefully.

  Shane winced. “At the garage. I had a friend drop me off earlier. It was rattling. You know it had that rattle, Dad. I came home to get it fixed. And there are no classes tomorrow.”

  He could feel the flush on his face and rubbed at the back of his neck nervously. He wanted to cuss again, but knew better with his dad scowling at him like that.

  “Sorry, Dad,” he finally muttered.

  His father drew in a harsh breath before dropping his arms and stalking to the porch railing. They both listened to the sound of a Harley starting. The low throb of power, then Shane winced as it roared. Oh hell, Rogue was pissed off.

  He glanced at his dad and watched his shoulders tighten, the way his jaw bunched as the cycle’s motor ripped through the silence of the valley on its journey to the main road.

  “She’s pissed at me, too?” He sighed.

  Zeke shook his head. “She’s not pissed at you.”

  She was hurt. He’d seen that flash of pain in her eyes and hadn’t known how to deal with it. Hell, it wasn’t every day a man’s son walked in while he was getting blown.

  “I didn’t see anything. Much,” Shane ventured hesitantly. “I turned my head. Fast.”

  Zeke glanced over at him. “You saw enough.”

  Shane cleared his throat before turning and gripping the railing. He stared out at the lake, his youthful expression still a combination of amazement and shock.

  “Yeah. Enough.”

  Shane rocked against the railing and this time, Zeke didn’t chastise him for it.

  “It won’t happen again,” Shane ventured. “I mean, I moved out. I should, like, knock first or something. Not just barrel in when I know you have company.”

  “That would be a start,” Zeke said heavily. Though he doubted there would be more “company.” Hell, he’d be lucky if Rogue didn’t kick his ass the next time she saw him. And he’d deserve it.

  He should have said something. He should have promised to call later. Something. Hell, he’d just shot his cum down her throat and threw her out. He could feel himself cringing inside.

  “Sorry, Dad,” Shane apologized again, but Zeke could hear the amusement in the boy’s voice. He didn’t blame him for being amused.

  “I’ll kick your ass if you ever bring a girl here and let me catch you,” he warned Shane, just in case. Sometimes, with a boy that thought he was a man, it was best to lay the ground rules out front and center.

  “Uh, yeah. Wouldn’t blame you.” Shane sounded as horrified as Zeke felt.

  Shit. This was his son. There were things a man should never let his son, no matter how old he is, know about, let alone catch a glimpse of. And Rogue. She was gossiped about enough, she didn’t need her name tarnished further.

  “And this won’t be mentioned,” he warned Shane. “Especially to your aunt Lucinda.”

  Horror shaped Shane’s face. “Oh my God, you think I’d tell Aunt Big Mouth?” he gasped. “Come on, Dad. I like Rogue. She’s cool. Too good for you, but she’s cool.”

  Zeke’s brows arched as Shane flushed again.

  “Didn’t mean it the way it sounded,” he muttered.

  “Then how did you mean it?” Zeke asked him carefully.

  He mumbled.

  “Come on, Shane,” he ordered. “If you’re going to run your mouth, be a man and stand by it.”

  He had never let Shane shirk his responsibilities or his punishments. If he could run his mouth, then he could back it up.

  “I didn’t mean to insult you.” Shane finally shrugged. “Well, kinda, I did.”

  Zeke stared back at the boy silently as he turned and faced him. Shane’s eyes met his as his brows lowered into a fierce frown. He looked like an adult when he did that. Zeke didn’t like admitting Shane was becoming an adult.

  “Look, I know Rogue’s half crazy over you,” Shane said then. “Even when I was in school and you came for those stupid parent-teacher conferences that year, I could see it. She likes you. Maybe too much. And you’re all about no ties. She deserves better than that.”

  Zeke crossed his arms over his chest and faced his son then. He’d be damned if he was going to let his son stand and chastise him over something he didn’t know or couldn’t understand.

  “That’s not your call, Shane,” he pointed out firmly. “What’s between me and Rogue stays there. Understand? I don’t need your advice.”

  Shane looked away for a moment, and Zeke was struck by the maturity his son had achieved in the past year at college. Hell, he’d missed it. Shane’s face had lost that youthful fullness. It was becoming more honed, closer to Zeke in looks rather than his mother’s father.

  Hell, it was a defining moment, Zeke thought, realizing his kid looked like him. And that his kid was berating him over a woman. There was something about that that just clashed in his head.

  “I’m not trying to give you advice.” Shane turned back to him, eyeing him fiercely now with eyes almost the same color as his own. “I’m telling you, Dad. You break her heart, and you won’t be the man I’ve always respected.”

  It was all Zeke could do to keep his jaw in place. Hell. When had reality shifted?

  In his kitchen with his dick down Rogue’s throat, another part of him reminded him.

  “Son, you’re getting big enough to hit,” Zeke warned
him, though he knew hitting the boy wasn’t in question.

  Shane snorted at that. “Yeah, sure, Pop. And you’re old enough to know better than to mess with a girl like Rogue without being serious about it. You’re older than she is. And you know things she doesn’t.”

  “Things like what?” Zeke gritted out in a snarl. Maybe he should rethink the hitting part.

  Shane flushed, then straightened his shoulders and glared back at him. “I’m your son,” he snapped. “Don’t make me spell crap out. It was bad enough walking in on you like that. I’m a man, not a kid, and I know I’m not always normal in some things. I figure I got it from someone and I’m figuring after hearing tales about Grandpa, that I get it from your side. Okay? So be careful. I like Rogue. She’s cool, and she doesn’t treat me like a stupid kid. You break her heart and I’m gonna be pissed. That’s just all.”

  With that, Shane turned on his booted heel and slammed back into the house, rattling the door on its hinges as Zeke stared at it in shock.

  Fuck, he needed a beer. He needed a beer, a long nap, and then he needed to get his head screwed on straight where Rogue was concerned. She was pissed. Shane was pissed. And Zeke couldn’t blame either damned one of them. The question now was damage control.

  He rubbed the back of his neck as he grimaced. When he’d been married and pissed his wife off, all he had to do was leave her alone for a while and she forgave him. When Chaya was pissed at Natches, he said the best thing to do was leave her the hell alone. He’d seen various Mackay men moping at the diner when their wives were in a snit. Rogue couldn’t be much different, could she?

  Hell, it was humiliating to realize how little he knew about this female’s quirks. He was thirty-seven years old, he’d been married, and he hadn’t exactly been celibate over the years since his wife had died.

  But, he reminded himself, neither had he actually had relationships. Not that he had one now. Did he? He shook his head. Hell no, he didn’t have one now. Rogue wasn’t a relationship. But she was definitely going to be a lover. He’d give her a few days, let her get over her mad, then he’d find her.

  He nodded to himself. That was all he had to do. Because the next time he found her, he was fucking her. It was that simple. He’d come down her throat today with a force he hadn’t known in his entire life. Watching her, seeing her innocence, realizing how she was struggling with the act and trying to hide the fact that she had no idea what she was doing. And still, she’d gone down on him with a sensuality and a hunger that amazed him.

  And when he’d filled her mouth, she’d come with him. Not the way she was going to come once he got his lips between her thighs or his cock buried deep inside that hot little pussy he knew would drive him insane. But she had come from the sheer sensuality and excitement, with him. He wasn’t about to fight this much longer.

  He’d managed to hide the darker core of his sexuality for most of his life; it was second nature now. He’d hide it with Rogue as well. He’d have to, because he knew he had to have her. There was no other option.

  He would hide it from Shane, he’d hide it from the county. He knew how to hide his lovers and he knew how to hide his interest.

  If something warned him it wasn’t going to be that easy with Rogue, then he pushed it aside. Rogue was hotter, more of a temptation, more of a forbidden fruit because of her age, he told himself. It wasn’t emotion. Zeke had learned long ago not to let himself get emotionally involved. He wasn’t involved now.

  Was he?

  He wasn’t, he decided. Cranston’s idea had merit, too. He could have Rogue, he could let the killer think his focus was divided while Cranston and the Mackays asked their questions. Hell, they were going to do it anyway.

  And he wouldn’t be using her, he assured his guilty conscience. He was dying for her. His attention was divided, it was too focused on his hunger, and he’d end up missing things. This way, he’d at least have a clear head for the investigation.

  And he was making excuses. The plain and simple fact was he simply couldn’t stay away from her any longer.

  Rogue showed up at work the next day even though she didn’t want to. She felt raw inside, rejected, used. She felt as though she had been stripped to the bone and had no idea how to heal the wounds; she only knew how to hide them.

  She pasted on a smile after a careful application of makeup. Smoky eyes were sensual, and they hid the shadows of emotional catastrophe. Bronzed lipstick made her look seductive.

  She wore chocolate ankle-strapped stilettos and a matching slip dress that just barely hid the band of her bronzed stockings. She spent hours straightening her long curls until the mass of red gold strands hung to her hips like a shimmering ribbon. Parted on the side, it framed her face with rakish appeal and gave her a slight ego boost if nothing else.

  She didn’t ride the Harley into work but had Jonesy drive her in with a promise to pick her up later that night. He was silent, moody, and obviously not exactly happy with her style of dress.

  He approved of the leather, no matter how skimpy she got with it. He thought it was tasteful. To Jonesy, silk was a trick and her straight hair was a come-on. Go figure.

  She stepped into a full restaurant, took over for Tabitha, and kept a smile on her face. She fielded advances, she laughed at the flirtatious comments, but something inside her felt as though it was breaking.

  Okay, so it was pretty bad having your son walk in while you were getting a blow job. She could only imagine how horrifying that was. It was bad enough getting caught, period. He was shocked, needed to yell at Shane a little maybe. She excused that. She was pissed, hurt, but she understood.

  She understood all night. She watched the hands of the clock tick by and felt the knowledge that she didn’t matter enough to seek out growing heavier inside her.

  The dinner crowd moved through, in and out, until the doors were locked and she gave one last peek as she turned the sign to Closed and realized he wasn’t going to show up.

  Showing up would mean others would see him. It would be an acknowledgment that she was more than just a casual little fuck, she admitted.

  But how could she have expected anything less?

  Ignoring Janey and Alex’s concerned looks, she strode through the restaurant back to the office and started putting receipts together to begin the paperwork for the night.

  She often finished up in the office while Alex and Janey went on home. She called Jonesy and told him she would be late. She’d get a cab. He wasn’t happy, again. It seemed Rogue had lost the ability to please anyone who mattered to her that day, she thought with a scowl.

  Damn men. When had she started caring what any man felt?

  The day she’d met Zeke Mayes, she admitted to herself. God, she was such a fool for him. It was insane, completely pathetic actually.

  She looked up as the door to the office opened and Janey and Alex stepped inside. She knew that look on her friends’ face, and she knew that evidently she hadn’t hidden her emotions as effectively as she had hoped. Great, now Janey would have questions. And what Janey knew, Alex would know. What Alex knew, he would probably say something to Zeke about. And well, didn’t she just know how private Zeke was?

  “Everything okay, Rogue?” Janey asked casually as Alex closed the door behind them.

  “Actually, no.” Rogue pushed the receipts back as Janey looked at her in surprise. “Sheriff Mayes has no idea who killed Joe and Jaime. Grandma Walker hasn’t stopped crying, and Lisa won’t let me help.” She rubbed at her temples. Those were concerns, and they were heartbreaking, but that wasn’t what was digging gouges out of her soul.

  “Forensics hasn’t come back yet, Rogue,” Alex stated. “I’ve been checking on it, and the coroners haven’t finished their tests on the bodies yet. We should know something conclusive soon.”

  Rogue shook her head. “Grandma won’t be with us much longer.” Her lower lip trembled despite her battle to keep her emotions in check. Acknowledging that was a bitch. She would have
to bury the boys with no one to comfort her, and she knew that soon she would be burying their grandmother the same way.

  How had she let this happen? How could she let herself care for a man she couldn’t even lean on in her grief?

  “Is there anything we can do to help?” Janey moved to the front of the desk and sat down gingerly in one of the chairs.

  Her forest green eyes were somber and filled with compassion, but there was an edge of suspicion in them as well. She knew when Rogue was hiding things, when she wasn’t talking. That was the risk you took when you let someone become your best friend.

  “Yes, there is,” she said softly. “Don’t ask questions.”

  It was the closest she could come to admitting anything.

  Alex snorted as Janey’s lips compressed. “That’s not fair, Rogue.”

  “It’s very fair,” she told her friend. “I have to deal with family right now, Janey; I don’t have the strength to deal with more.”

  “Aren’t you telling the wrong person that?” Janey asked her.

  “No.” Rogue shook her head, her voice roughening. “I’m telling the one person that should understand I need time right now. And I need a chance to figure things out on my own.”

  Janey stared back at her for long, silent moments.

  “You know we’re here,” she offered. “For family things or anything else.”

  She couldn’t risk it.

  “Rogue?” Alex spoke then. “I can leave the room. Anything you tell Janey would go no further, you know that.”

  No, she didn’t know that. She knew men. She knew they talked and gossiped worse than women. And she knew Janey. Before she knew it, the entire Mackay clan would be privy to Zeke’s secrets, and that whole privacy rule he had would be shot to hell and back. Hell, she felt sorry for his former lover now.

  “Not a problem, Alex.” She smiled tightly. “I just want to get these receipts finished and head home to bed. It’s been a damned long day and it doesn’t look as though things are going to get any better for a while.”

  They were likely to get worse. It was normally not a good thing to threaten or attempt to commit bodily harm on an officer of the law, and she knew one she wanted to shoot with his own gun.