“Kaci, I think you should give me and my girl some alone time, yeah?” Malibu asks. I can hear my sister huffing and puffing before finally coming over to me and kissing the top of my head.
“Get some rest, but we will be talking later. Okay?”
“Yes, Kaci, we will. I promised didn’t I?” I’m sick and tired of her taking on the mothering role when it comes to me. I mean, fuck, we shared the same womb and were born minutes apart from each other. Neither one of us has more life experience than the other. The only thing she has beat me on is becoming a mother. I hear Kaci shuffle out the doorway without uttering a word at Malibu as she brushes past him.
“Well,” Malibu gushes out in a long drawn out breath, “that was… fun.” I slant open one of my eyes and look at the smug look on his face. It’s not very often that he wins a run in with my sister. He’s feeling a bit triumphant right now, but I decide to let him have it. I’m too emotionally drained to give him my sass right now.
“Did you eat, Kassi?” Malibu questions as he comes up and sits next to me on the bed. When the bed dips from his weight, my body slightly bounces which instantaneously causes nausea to take hold.
“Gonna be sick,” I say as I rush out of the bed with my hand cupping my mouth.
11
Malibu
“Kassi,” I ask as I kneel down next to her as she deposits her empty stomach. “What can I do? Is it because you haven’t eaten anythin’?” Worry begins to claw its way through me, I can’t think of anything other than making her better. I have to make things right; this is all my damn fault.
“Probably. The thought of food makes my stomach turn, Malibu. Nothing feels right anymore. My feelings and memories have been flipped upside down. I don’t know what’s right and wrong anymore.” Her tears are like knives slicing through my chest. I’ve seen enough of them the last few days to last me a lifetime.
“What about a bottle of water and some aspirin? That should help, yeah?” I question, trying to think of anything I can do to make her feel slightly better.
“Some water and Tylenol would be great. I don’t usually take aspirin unless I’m recovering from a massive hangover. Maybe some soda crackers if there’s any stocked in the pantry?” Kassi inquires through a moan. “Fuck, I hate it when I get sick. I’ve just started and my stomach is already cramping.”
“I’ll see if we have some, if not I’ll send a prospect out to get you a package. Would you like some ginger ale or something like it to settle some of your queasiness? It always worked for me when I was a kid.”
“Ugh, I hate the taste of ginger, how about a Sprite or 7-up instead?” She’s looking green around the gills again. I step up and grab a wet washcloth for her. Handing it to her, she wipes her mouth and closes her eyes.
“I can do that, how about we get you back in bed and I’ll grab the trashcan and sit it next to you? You need to sleep once we get you rehydrated and get some crackers in your stomach.” I hate that she’s sick, all I wanna do is take her place so that she has one thing going good for her. I know most of this is my fault, and I feel like a damn asshole, but I’m intent to make it as easy on her as I can. I’ve already started looking for a therapist for her. She needs to work through this, find her new place in life now that Fern’s been knocked down from her perch from the top of her totem pole. But I don’t want to talk to Kassi about this now when she’s feeling so down.
Once I have her back in the bed and the trash can moved, I make my way down the stairs. The entire common room becomes silent as I waltz in. “Well, don’t let me stop you from partying. I’m just gonna grab Kassi some water and crackers.” Rolling my eyes as I head into the kitchen, Kaci comes in behind me.
“Is she feeling sick, Malibu? She always gets stomach cramps and gets ill if she’s stressed out.” Kaci questions me.
“She is,” I honestly answer without being a smartass.
“I’ve got some Sprite hidden in the back of the pantry. Let me get a can for you while you make her a cup of ice.” She rushes off as I begin to make the glass.
“Do we have saltines in there?” I call out.
“Yeah, I got her a couple of packages,” she answers, strolling out with her hands filled with five cans of soda, and two packages of saltines. “Just wanted to make sure she had plenty. Word of advice?” she poses as a question, even though I know she’ll tell me regardless of my answer. After I nod my head she continues, “cherry Jell-O, saltines, Sprite and an eighties movie goes a long way when she’s down and out.”
“The only movies I own from that time frame are Terminator and Alien.” I begin to contemplate how I’ll know what movie to get and where to find one. It’s not as if they’re in high demand and on the shelves at the local twenty-four-hour mart. And neither of the movies I own will help her to relax whatsoever. If anything, they’d probably make her more jumpy.
“I’ve got the Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles. I’ll bring them to you,” Kaci supplies with an amused smirk laced on her face.
“They’re chick flicks, aren’t they? I bet they even contain a bunch of teenage shenanigans,” I answer, already knowing I’m doomed to sit through some damn show about teenage love.
“Secretly, you’ll love them. Travler grumbles about having to sit through and watch them with me. But he’ll take that over Twilight any day of the week.” She begins to chuckle.
“Um… yeah, teenage vampires and wolves aren’t exactly my cup of tea,” I admit as I answer her.
“Oh my God! You’ve seen it haven’t you?” She sends a curious yet accusing look in my direction.
“I will neither confirm nor deny that,” I say, taking the load out of her arms and hastily walking out of the room. Her roar of laughter can be heard down the hallway as I escape from her torturous questions.
I have this dreaded feeling that I’ll be mercilessly teased over knowing facts when it pertains to that series. There’s just something wrong about vampires and wolves becoming allies that doesn’t sit well in the pit of my stomach. They are natural born enemies.
And that’s all I’ve got to say about that.
Kassi
Even though I’m exhausted beyond belief from the stress of being sick earlier, I can’t seem to fall back to sleep. I lay here and toss and turn as I wait for Malibu to come back with something for me to drink. My throat feels parched, raw and sore. Something cool is anticipated, along with some soda crackers. Whereas I don’t feel like I have the energy to eat anything, I know that if I don’t want to come down with something vicious, something that I’ll need to be hospitalized to overcome, I don’t have much of a choice. That’s what happens when you deprive your body of liquids and nutrition. I’ve avoided hospitals at all costs since the last time I was there. The night that… that changed everything.
As soon as I begin to travel down the path of memories filled with horrors, the door swings open. “Perfect timing,” I tell Malibu as he juggles a glass filled with ice, five cans of soda and two sleeves of crackers. “That’s a lot, Malibu. It’ll take me days to make it through all of that.”
“Nah, it’ll be gone before mornin’,” Malibu confidently states.
My eyes widen at the prospect of eating all of that by myself. “Malibu, I need to start off slowly. If I attempt to eat all of that I’ll be sick for days.”
“I’ll be here with you tonight, who knows, I may need a snack too.” He winks at me as he saunters toward me. “Your sister is bringing a movie for us to watch while we rest. I think we need some time to decompress. No better way than holdin’ each other and watchin’ some teeny bop movie or somethin’ like that.”
“Teeny bop? Do I even wanna know what kind of movies she’s bringing for us?” Knowing Kaci, it could be any assortment of eras. We have movies we love ranging from the fifties up to present day. Our grandparents used to shower us with musicals and older cowboy movies. We are multicultural lovers of all things film related.
“She said somethin’ about a club and som
e candle something or other.” He shrugs his shoulders as he settles back into the bed.
“Candles and a club?” I tease, knowing exactly which movies my sister plans on bringing me. Two of my favorites growing up. She and I used to watch them back to back when we were stuck in the dorms sick at our boarding school. We didn’t come home for a lot of holidays; if our grandparents weren’t around, we stayed there with the monitors. We’d junk out with popcorn, candy, sodas, chips, cookies… basically any junk food we could get our hands on. We figured if we weren’t bringing in the holidays with the traditional food and desserts, we’d eat whatever the fuck we wanted. The dorm monitor on duty didn't care what we did, as long as we weren’t out and about causing trouble or catching the place on fire. She mainly stayed in her room, and the girls who didn’t go home, stayed together. We’d not just watch movies, but play cards, board games and we even made a few prank calls. It was juvenile, but we were young. That was our way of living on the edge.
Sister comes strolling into the bedroom like she owns the place, my nephew, Cash, securely placed on her hip. “Okay, I brought you two of our favorites, can’t stay long, mister teething man here is in a cranky mood. Here ya go,” she says as she tosses the movies at Malibu. “Bye.” As quickly as she entered she leaves.
“Was that my sister or a tornado that came in?” I ask Malibu who then begins to chuckle at my inquiry. “Shit, she was imitating the Flash. I’ve never seen her so flustered before. Did she even take a breath between sentences?”
“I don’t think so. That was amazin’ how quickly she could take care of what she needed to and disappear. Is that a mother thing?” he questions, scratching the back of his neck.
“Must be, I’ve never seen her do that before. She’s always long winded and overstays her welcome. But she’s my sister so I tolerate her doing so.” I shrug my shoulders, because who in the world is brazen enough to kick their twin out? You’d have to be a special kind of person to do so. I know that if I were to do that, Kaci would make me pay. My shaving cream would be replaced with Nair, my purple shampoo would be replaced with dish soap. She’s vicious like that when she’s had her feelings trampled on.
“Which movie first?” Malibu asks. I point my finger at The Breakfast Club, because holy shit that movie’s funny… and I could use some laughter in my life.
12
Kassi
It’s been a week since I felt ill, but now that I’ve started eating again I’m feeling a lot better. Malibu found me a therapist who was more than willing to video conference with me. I’m still here at the clubhouse, not ready to make it out into the dangerous world around me. When he first brought up me talking to someone, I was offended. I mean, I’ve got my sisters around me twenty-four hours seven days a week. All it takes is a phone call or a text from me and my room would be flooded with them all. Even though I put up a fuss about talking to a stranger, it really has been helpful.
She’s helped me compartmentalize the unfortunate position Fern must’ve felt she was in. I still don’t agree with the way she handled the entire situation, but we’ve broken it down into different scenarios. She had to have known either way that she was going to die that night. The part that I still struggle with, is that she had to make a choice. To me, she made the wrong one. Did she think she chose the the lesser of two evils? Or was she willing to sacrifice me for her brother? These are questions that I know will never truly be answered. We can sit around and second guess it all, but at the end of the day… the past can’t be changed. If I had a magic time machine, I’d go back and have a serious conversation with the both of us. I’d also warn my past self to be nowhere around the apartment that night, but I can wish for salvation in one hand and shit in the other, and they would all end up weighing the same.
Nothing is a guarantee in life, but I’m a survivor and I will eventually get through this. It may take me a bit, but I’m a stronger person than I give myself credit for. Malibu has been my rock, he’s even stayed by my side, holding my hand, while I’ve conversed with the therapist. He’s had to take off a few times throughout the week; I’m assuming he’s going hunting for Granger. The devil on my shoulder wants him to find him and make him pay, but my other shoulder holds that pain in the ass angel; who’s constantly whispering in my ear that I shouldn’t wish his punishment upon him. He is a person as well. But why should I worry myself about putting someone else’s well-being at the top of my list? He didn’t give a damn about anyone else when he was betraying the Bloodthirsty Bastards. He knew they’d retaliate, it’s who they are. People like them won’t give you a free pass for screwing them over. These are hardened criminals that we’re speaking of. They’d behead your partner while you sit and watch. Then, they’d clean the blade with their tongue… disgusting creatures.
Malibu yanks me from my thoughts as he comes strolling into our room. “Did ya eat today?” He asks the same question every time he’s been away from me for a long period of time.
“I did, Skylar brought me a chicken sandwich earlier. And before you ask, yes, I ate every bite of it.” I smile in his direction; he’s been so worried about me.
“Good. I have a meetin’ with the brothers in about an hour. Wanna shower with me?” he asks, and I can see the mischief and lust dancing in his droopy, hungry eyes. He wants to do more than cleanse our bodies, and mine jumps to life and awakens from its slumber. It’s been a long time since we’ve had an intimate moment together. And I’m actually looking forward to his hands caressing me.
“I’d love to,” I admit as I leap from the bed in a single bound. My nipples are already pebbling in anticipation of his mouth licking and sucking them into stiff taut peaks.
“Come on, beautiful.” He reaches his hand out for mine. Once I place my hand in his, he guides me into our attached bathroom. One thing Malibu and I have always had in common is that we like the temperature to be super-hot. We’ve always been the two who’ve showered together; we conserve on water and have fun while bathing each other.
“Are we doing normal hot or supernova hot?” I ask Malibu. There is a difference, hot means the heat grazes your skin, super-hot means that it settles deep into your bones, warming you from the outside in. I personally love the heat when it settles into my bones, keeping me warm for hours on end.
“We’ll do normal hot and I’ll be your supernova heat source today.” He winks at me as he uses his foot to shut the door behind us.
“I’m intrigued,” my words come out as a purr. My inner kitty cat is coming out to play, Malibu loves my sharp claws. When my nails dig into his skin, he comes alive and it spurs him into action. Yes, I’m more than ready to share this time with my man. I need him, and he somehow knows that I do. Since making it home from the cottage, he’s been more attentive and we’ve managed to bond with the two of us again, something that was lost and I wasn’t sure we’d ever recover.
Malibu
Finding Granger has turned out to be more of a hassle than I thought it’d be. He’s hiding good, but eventually, he’ll have to rear his ugly head somewhere. He has a lot to answer for, and I plan on being the man he has to face. It’s an unwritten and unverbalized vow with my brothers that whoever spots him, has to hold him for me. Initially, I wanted to get my hands on him for what happened to his sister, but now, it’s all about avenging my angel… my Kassi. She’s had a rough life, one where she’s always felt alone and abandoned, she won’t be feeling that way from here on out. I made a silent promise to her that I’ll never betray her trust again. If she ever finds out I had a hand in her forced memories, I’ll lose her forever. If I have to kill Creed to ensure his promise of silence is kept, I’ll do it no matter how much it ends up costing me in the long run. I may be compromising my freedom for a cinder block wall, but it’ll be worth the ultimate price if she’s never aware of the part I played.
Lifting Kassi up and sitting her on the bathroom counter, I walk over to the shower and turn it on, making sure the hot water knob is turned more than the col
d. Walking back over to her, I instruct, “Lift your arms, baby.” She immediately complies as I pull her top up and over her head. Tossing the material on the floor, my eyes move to her upper torso; taking in the luscious globes of her protruding breasts as they plump up, spilling over the top portion of her bra. “Your breasts are a work of art.” Her eyes become lustful as I rid her of the confining device. “That’s better,” I huskily whisper as my dick jumps to life from the visual in front of me. My hands lift of their own accord and massage the handfuls of gloriousness. My fingers pinch and tweak her nipples. She throws her head back and closes her eyes as a moan escapes her throat. I’m mesmerized by her tongue as it comes out and swipes along her bottom lip. Not being able to help myself, I lean down and capture those wet lips with my own. She opens up slightly, allowing my tongue to breach the voluptuous entrance of her soon to be swollen lips. Our tongues begin to furiously duel with one another's. We’re both ravenous and hungry for the taste of one another. It’s been so long since I’ve felt the urge to own and dominate her.
As I pull back, both of our chests are heaving, trying to resupply our loss of oxygen that was lost in our lungs as we tried to crawl inside one another’s mouths. “Malibu, we still have too many clothes on,” she supplies through a whine, as she then grabs voraciously at the bottom of my shirt with her hands. “We should be on an equal playing ground here.” I sit back and allow her to lift it up over my head, then see out of the corner of my eye as she tosses it to join her own. Her hands glide down my chest, her fingernails scrape my sensitive skin causing a hiss to leave my mouth. I clench my teeth, and grind my jaw as her fingers roam over my pecs and abs. “Your body is sinful, Malibu.”
Forever Yours: Rage Ryders Templeton Chapter Book 2 Page 8