Vote Then Read: Volume II

by Lauren Blakely

  I didn’t give a shit as long as one thing remained true—

  Iris Kettles was breathing, safe, and sound. And very fucking far away from my maniacal sperm donor until his offspring could morph into the monster to annihilate him.

  Later that evening, we order Chinese take-out from our favorite little restaurant. I agree to pay a small fortune to have it delivered across Houston to our loft, but I don’t care.

  After her nap, Kaci had chimed up, “I need cashew chicken.” I was on the phone in seconds and begging the manager, who knew us from our frequent visits to please do a delivery out of their usual area. He said he’d do it personally, after quadrupling the delivery charges.

  Fuck it.

  On the flat screen, the football game plays out like everything is normal. Kaci is curled up on the sofa in her old Houston Oilers blanket. The fire blazes and the beer – at least for me – flows. “Thank you for the bath when I woke up.”

  “Of course! Thank you for the sex,” I say with a wink as I caress her cheek. “It was incredible.”

  “It would have been better,” she replies, grabbing my hand. “If I had the energy to let you go for two.”

  I smile. “One was beautiful. Just like you.” A knock at the door segues our conversation. “That was fast. I only ordered forty-five minutes ago,” I say as I head for the door. “There is no way they made it fresh and made it across 10 in that time.”

  I unlock the row of thirteen latches Kaci insisted we install. It was a pain in my ass and nothing more. She seems to forget she sleeps with a crackshot who keeps a loaded Glock within reaching distance almost all of the time. Finally, I swing open the door to see the short brunette, holding a dog and standing beside her luggage.

  “Dear God, what are you doing here?” I say as she sets the dog down.

  “Come here, Fluff!” Kaci calls from the sofa. “Come here, boy!” The ball of white jumps onto the sofa and excitedly licks her face. “Yes, I’m so glad to see you, too!”

  “… Babygirl,” I mutter as she jumps into my arms and wraps her legs around me. She feels so amazingly good.

  Whispering in my ear, she says, “I took a few weeks off from the club. I’ll be here for you. Whatever you need. Anything.”

  “Thank you for coming on such short notice, Mae,” Kaci says from her spot on the sofa as she pets the dog. I set the one girl – who knows my shit better than anyone – down, but I don’t want to let her go. “And I don’t mind you bringing Fluff at all. My home is your home; please take care of Sal.”

  “Thank you for asking me, Kaci,” she says, walking over and holding her hand. “But please, Mae East is just my stripper name. You can call me Amber.”

  7. Simple Things

  Tuesday, December 14

  18 days before…

  After a night of cheering and a few bites of Chinese food, Kaci passes out on the sofa. I carry her to our bedroom and tuck her in.

  “Sorry about that,” I say, returning to the living room. “She’s not…”

  “Sal, don’t say another word,” Amber coaxes, tossing the sofa pillows into the chair and pulling out the hideaway bed. “It’s okay.”

  “Here, let me help you,” I politely say as I acknowledge why she is here. “You didn’t have to come.”

  She steps back as I yank the bed out and flip it open. “Right, like I would make you deal with this alone. I’m staying until you tell me to go away.”

  We flop on the bed, side by side, and share a joint—old school, rolled paper, and none of Kaci’s crazy pipes. It’s good.

  Simple things.

  I stare at her for a long while. She’s a gorgeous little doll out of “Nawlins” who strips at a club called Gina’s. She also happens to serve as my submissive practice slut. She is seven years older than me and understands all too well the desperate need to run away as she is a flee-and-ask questions later type. With both of us being specialists at self-preservation, we have formed a unique, deep friendship.

  “I met with Fink,” I admit in my doped up high.

  “And how did that go?”

  I shrug. “They all want something from me.”

  “I don’t,” she says with a smile as she rolls over and props her head in her hand. “All I want is you to make it through this. Everything else we can fix later.”

  “I love how you say we,” I reply, tossing her a stare. “It’s my ass on the line.”

  “Not entirely, you need someone to serve as a sounding board. Someone you can bounce ideas off of. And by your texts, that certainly isn’t Jaid, because all you can think about with her is how to get your dick wet without upsetting Kaci.”

  “That was unnecessarily graphic.”

  “It’s also true,” she contends, resting her hand on my arm. “You want another?”

  I laugh. “That’s a dumb question.”

  She digs in her bag as I sit up and strip off my shirt. Turning back to me, I hear the hitch in her breath. “Removing clothes already, Nero?” I blush as my nickname drips from her mouth like honey and she touches my wrist. “You still wear the bracelets.”

  “I have one from every visit,” I admit, lifting my arm for her inspection. “You remember what is in this one with the charm? You wrote down your name and number and told me it was for wishes.”

  “Yes,” she whispers as the street lights from outside reflect in her eyes. “You showed up at the bar and said – Fix. Everything. – I haven’t stopped trying to do that for you.”

  I smirk at the memory that seems so long ago. “And now…”

  “I’m here,” she says, unbuttoning her blouse. “To fix everything.”

  “My wife is right next…”

  Hastily, her finger presses to my lips. “Your wife called me. Your wife asked me to come. Your wife is paying me a lot to stay here and be your fuck toy until she passes, so let’s make sure she gets her fucking money’s worth, alright?”

  “Jesus,” I mumble as her lips press softly against mine. “Fuck.”

  “You can call me whatever you would like, but I would prefer if you would at least get the gender right.”

  “I could call you Aphrodite,” I charmingly banter.

  “Goddess of sex?” Her hair bounces as her head tilts back and forth. She is thinking and considering it. Her smile shifts to a quick frown until she comes back with a retort, “You could just call me A.”

  “Amber Leigh,” I mumble as my hand drifts between her breasts. “You know how terrible this all is?”

  She tugs her shirt off and whispers, “I know if you don’t get your hard cock inside of me soon, you will leave me with no other choice.”

  “… And what will you do?”

  “I’m going to fucking masturbate in front of you,” she says, giggling. I erupt with a massive grin. “Don’t put it past me, Sally!”

  “I put nothing past you, Amber.” I lay back against the pillows as my fingers continue to trace between her breasts. “Nothing at all.”

  Our fingers latch, and I pull slightly, encouraging her to come to straddle me. “She knows you feed off of this. It’s your fuel. No one is as safe as me, and you know that.”

  “I just feel so lost,” I mumble, dizzy with the drugs. It’s good—so good. Amber always provides.

  “Let me find you.”

  The second her lips hit my chest; I fall prey to this girl. While I can keep Jaid at a distance, my desire for Amber is rampant and irresistible. She is my best friend and favorite fuck buddy all rolled into one. And her kinky streak is just the cherry on top of an already decadent dessert. Kaci’s plan is ludicrous in some ways and brilliant in others. Fuck Amber until I die is Kaci’s silent vow to me.

  Her lips push against mine as our limbs tangle with one another. We are wrapped up, contorted and twisted, and nothing is stopping us. “If we start this…”

  “We aren’t going to stop, and I’m not going anywhere, I promise,” she says, locking my soul to hers in what has to be the hardest job any of them hav
e. I’m not easy. I’m stubborn and hardheaded. I can be difficult and unruly at times. I can be her worst nightmare on my best day. She keeps bringing it without even so much as a blink. “I can take your shit.”

  “Baby, look at the big picture,” I say as my hands speak the words I cannot. “You are asking for the position no one wants.”

  “I just want to be your girl.”

  I don’t have to ask what she means. She doesn’t need a declaration of my love to know it exists and she doesn’t need a girlfriend title to achieve my girl status with me. She wants protection under my wing. She wants guidance with my thoughts. And she wants a warrior to fight for her when no one else will because she loathes the idea of a commitment and a boyfriend. The concept of marriage is like a lethal poison to Amber.

  “You are always my best girl,” I confess in the darkened room as I undo her bra and drop it to the floor. If there were a girl ever to be considered my traditional mistress, Amber would be mine. And I plan to keep her in that position as long as possible. I find comfort in her. She doesn’t want shit from me. She only wants to spend time with me and share in our respective journeys together. Ignore the fact that she is one of the kinkiest bitches as it rarely plays into our spiritual interlocking. “You will always be my best girl.”

  Our bodies slide together slow as we kiss and rekindle where we left off weeks ago. The magnetic magic isn’t easily explained, but I soak up the dust we give off and know this was the best gift Kaci could have ever given me. “Do you know how much I hate to see you hurt?”

  “If it is half as much as I hate it when you hurt… I’d kill for you.”

  “I’m very well aware of who and what you are,” Amber breathes against my lip. “You play a dirty game, Nero. And if they cannot keep up, you knock them out of the way.”

  “You are so fucking incredible,” I mumble as her lips seduce the skin on my neck. She loves to kiss right along the edge where the chain of my crucifix sits. “So damn good.”

  She stifles a giggle as she remains buried in my neck. “I think that about you.”

  “You know a lot of people would say you are doing this for one reason.”

  “I know,” she says, running the tip of her finger over my lips. My mouth opens, and I suck her flesh into my mouth. “But it has absolutely nothing to do with your last name and everything to do with how confident you are. I won’t get hurt under your watch.”

  “They’d call you names…”

  “And you would serve them up a lesson because you know I’m not Juliet quality,” she says as I take her hands in my own. “I’m not made of that.”

  “Aphrodite, in some ways you are better.”

  Her smile radiates through her being as she soars down my body with her wet mouth. She draws up kisses around my navel and bites at my jeans. With a firm tug of her teeth, the button pops and I graze the back of my hand on her cheek as her blue eyes completely paralyze me. “I fuckin’ love you.”

  “I fuckin’ love you, too,” she whispers with a blow across my belly. “We are going to get through this, babe. I promise. I won’t leave until this is over.”

  Her fingers pull the zipper, and her lips press against my happy trail as her tongue runs laps around the base of my cock. It is a heavenly feeling as she avoids touching me with her hands. I want to drown right now as nothing matters but the two of us. Amber is what I crave.

  “Take your pants off.”

  “Yes, Sir,” she says with a wink. “Would you like me to pull yours off while I’m up?”

  Despite how I distract her with my toes rubbing her belly, she eases my pants off of my body. “You got more…”

  “Of course,” she snickers. “Shall I roll another?”

  “I’ll grab the whiskey,” I declare, “And Amber, the good book is in the drawer.”

  Her smile upturns as a brief giggle escapes. “Salvatore, I got you. I know how you like this.”

  Damn does she.

  I check on Kaci, who is sound asleep and snoring, and I snatch the whiskey off the bar. I’m taking a swig when I walk upon Amber, sitting with one leg bent on the bed. I’m offered a lovely view of her red lace covered present. Leaning over, I kiss her neck, sucking and teasing as she attempts to roll me a joint. “I’m going to spill this…”

  “Tell me how wet you are,” I growl, stroking two fingers against my girl. The thin fabric is warm and damp. My dick throbs with a need.

  “I had to get off on the plane.”

  I lick my lips and grumble, “Fuck.”

  Carefully, I move her crafty project off to the side and take another swallow of whiskey. She doesn’t argue or fight or say a word. She lets me drive her to where I want. And it is perhaps Amber’s greatest gift—her complacent, demure attitude with which she handles me. She trusts me. And because she gives me her complete trust, it makes loving her so much easier. A lot of women like to quibble, but it’s a fucking waste of time.

  Fucking trust me.

  I tuck my fingers beneath the fabric and pull them gently from her body. Her ass lifts high in the air, and she smirks as I lower on top of her. We are practiced and rehearsed in our dance. She knows my steps, and I know hers. Amber and I are everything that Kaci wanted for us to be, but we never made it. “She’s…”

  “Sal… Fuck. Don’t think. I can take whatever badass shit you are going to throw at me. And I will come back tomorrow. And the next day. And the day after that until you’re okay. That is my job as your submissive. Now, fucking use my body. And don’t you dare hold back because you are hiccuping.”

  As much as I didn’t want to admit it, Amber was right. I was hiccuping. We stopped and restarted no less than a half-dozen times. We’d kiss for a bit, get high, have some heavy petting, and end up in a philosophical discussion of clouds. We were bouncing off one another as we fell into the vibe of our energy. The return of our normalcy finally emerged at five in the morning.

  I had a squad of women, all on my team, and each serving a particular role in my world. I could count on Serene to feed my masochist. Jaid offered a wicked flirtation of what I couldn’t have. Charlotte proved a hot standby. Anna kept my head on straight, and Georgia brought her lips to my shaft without falter. Amber’s role as my mistress was to repair my broken, so I could continue strutting about as Sal Raniero would. With every word, she reminded me of who I was and forced me to look at that big picture I so enjoyed preaching to her about.

  An acceptance arrived with Amber that night. One I had failed to see. I had relationships to tend to post-Kaci, and ultimately, I needed to decide which ones were worth saving. When someone is terminal or dies, you find out who your real friends are.

  Who would hold me up?

  I had no doubt Amber would, but as far as I could tell—she might be the only one. I didn’t know how Jaid would be after the dust settled. For all I knew, she might be using me to make Kaci jealous. I didn’t know Jaid that well. But hell, I wanted to.

  In my efforts to coordinate the pieces of my puzzle, I must understand the perception. What the fuck did I need Kaci for?

  I loved her more than anything, but what she needed more than anything was for me to be whole. She demanded the stability of that swag stud she fell for, but by the time we said I do, he was long gone.

  Did I marry her because she wanted my last name? Yes.

  Did I love her passionately? Yes.

  Was she going to say goodbye and break my heart? Absolutely.

  After all of the submission I gave to Kaci, I listened to her when she said fuck around and have fun because I was conditioned to accepting whatever she said. She directed the dance, cast the roles, and produced a hell of a show, all to keep me being Sal.

  It was a tremendous gift. But it put us on opposing sides as the closer she came to dying, the more I wanted to run and live, and not just survive, but thrive. Her bringing Amber here assured her of one thing—I would get my shit straight with her sex drug. I could’ve walked away from any of the rest of my troo
ps, but Amber was an essential and necessary component of my continuation.

  “What are you thinking about over there all dazed?”

  She’s sitting up on the bed with her back on the sofa as I lay flat and flipped with my head at the foot of the bed. She kisses my toes. “I’m thinking about trees.”

  “… Trees?”

  “Ya,” I reply, lifting my hands and staring at them. “When one gets struck by lightning, do you think the other trees cry? Do they mourn?”

  “Trees don’t speak, Sal,” she gently says. “You are fucking stoned out of your head.”

  “Yep, and it’s so fucking good.”

  She giggles, but it seems to go on for hours. I smile, listening to the glorious sound. “Do you need anything at all?”

  She wiggles my toes and delicately brushes her talons in my leg hair. We’re both naked, and my cock has been up and down all night, but Amber—she is disciplined just as I am. She won’t fuck just because she can. The magic must be present and the connection explicit. There cannot be a kink in the wires especially if we’re going to engage in the more erotic arts.

  Her teeth graze against my toes, and she says, “Do you need anything before I pass out?”

  “To come in your pussy,” I reply, shooting her a distinctly seductive gaze. I reach for her as she crawls upon me. “You have gorgeous tits, babe.”

  She straddles over me, weaving back and forth with happiness splashed on her face. I wrap my fingers around her arms and pull her down to kiss me. Our tongues explore, ravenous and passionate with a surging desire. We are bound to one another with a sensual longing. My hands move to cup her ass as my cock throbs against her warmth. “I want inside of you. Get on all fours.”

  “Oh fuck,” she whispers, stunned. “You’re serious this time.”