Blood and Sympathy (13 page)

Within minutes, I had changed into a pair of
cutoffs and was sitting on the end of the dock with my bare feet dangling over
the edge and into the water. The lake hadn't had a chance to warm up much since
it was so early in the season, and took some getting used to. The shallows were
crystal clear near the shore and tiny fish darted back and forth.

I leaned back on my arms and let the sun soak into
my skin. A tear slid down my cheek, humbling me to my humanity. I wasn't sure
what my beliefs were about God, but I thanked the sky just the same.

Brogan Sayer

Driving the back roads took longer than it would
have if we'd taken the highway. It was late afternoon by the time we pulled up behind
Aja's house. She lived in a dump; I think it might have been painted yellow at
one time. Now it was anybody's guess.

I took in the scenery and frowned. "What the
fuck kind of shithole you live in, Aja?"

She shot me a glare from hell. "It's
cheap."

"From what I can see, the fuckers should be
paying you to live here." I shook my head and got out.

"Beats sleeping in the car."

I snorted. "Not by much, it don't."

"What the fuck ever, Brogan."

I followed her through the back door into the
kitchen. To her credit, she'd fixed the place up kind of cute, and it looked
almost livable standing in the cramped but clean room.

"You hungry?" she asked, raising a thin
eyebrow at me.

I shook my head and went into the living room to
check things out. I crossed the room and stared out the front window toward the
street. Some grubby looking brats were riding their bikes up and down the
sidewalk.

"Hey babe," I called out.

She moved behind me and wrapped her arms around my
waist, brushing her firm titties against my back. "Hmm?" she
murmured. Her hot breath on my skin made me forget what the fuck I was even
going to ask.

I let the curtain drop and turned to face her.
Half Asian, half Mexican, Aja was one hot bitch even if she was ten years older
than me. My eyes dropped to her full lips and my dick strained against my
jeans. She lowered her gaze to the obvious bulge in my pants. The way she had
me out of my britches so fast, she was a regular fucking magician.

I stepped out of the tangle of clothes at my feet
and growled. Yanking her close, I cupped that firm, round ass with both hands.
She wrapped her legs around my hips and rubbed against my throbbing erection. I
thought I was going to lose my friggin' mind when she began tugging my ear
between her teeth. Aja was experienced and knew what she wanted. She pressed
her lips against mine, sucking my tongue into her mouth.

I pulled back and looked at her through
heavy-lidded eyes. "Damn, woman, you better stop trying to swallow my
tongue that way." I said breathlessly.

She smiled wickedly and dropped her feet to the
carpet. She didn't say anything as she took my hand and tugged me toward the
back of the house. I yanked the bottom of my t-shirt up over my head, never
losing sight of the way her narrow hips swayed as she strutted in front of me.

Aja didn't waste any time getting undressed, and
my hand gravitated toward my rock hard shaft. Sure, I was an expert at pleasing
myself, but I'd been locked up since I was twelve years old, and I had no idea
how to please a woman. I pushed her down on the bed, ready to bury myself
inside of her. She scowled and put her hand on my chest, keeping me from doing
just that. "Whoa, wait a minute there, big guy," she said. "You
need to hold your horses and make sure your woman's ready before you go diving
in."

My face heated and I rolled onto my back.
"Why don't you show me what to do, then? Some of us ain't been around as much
as others." My words had more bite to them than I'd intended. I was one
horny bastard about two strokes from squirting all over her pretty burgundy velvet
comforter.

If my tone turned her off, she didn't let on. She
faced away from me and straddled my thighs. Leaning forward she gave me a
million dollar view. She was shaved bare, except for a tiny tuft of silky dark hair.
She took my hand and moved it between her legs. I pressed my fingers against
her wetness. I slid my middle finger inside and started moving it in and out.
She was already so slippery, wet and hot.

She moaned and writhed against me.

I guess she was getting off, but I needed a little
reciprocation. Do unto others and all, but I was a selfish fucker and I needed
to blow my wad in the worst way. I pulled my finger out and grabbed her hard by
the hips. She didn't protest when I lifted her up and impaled her with my thick
shaft. I think I nearly passed out from the pleasure, my vision went fuzzy at
the edges.

She threw back her head and rode me like there was
no tomorrow. When she let out this cute little whimper, I was a goner. I don't
know how long we stayed there like that before she climbed off of me. "I'm
going to go clean up."

I grunted something unintelligible and closed my
eyes. I must've dozed off, because when I woke up, the room was dark and there
was a breeze blowing the window blinds back and forth.

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and sat up. Aja
was lying beside me, snoring softly. I nudged her. "Hey, wake up."

Her forehead creased and she rolled away from me.
"No."

"Come on, Aja. I want you to teach me how to
drive."

"I will tomorrow."

I slapped her bare ass and grinned as her skin
took on a rosy hue, the shape of my hand. "Now."

She shot me a dirty look over her shoulder and
sighed. "Patience isn't one of your strong suits, is it?"

"Fuck no. I'll sleep when I'm dead," I said,
resisting the urge to smack her ass again. "Come on. Chop, chop."

I hopped off the bed and went to find my clothes.

We were in the parking lot about twenty minutes
later. I was nervous getting behind the wheel for the first time. At least with
sex, even doing it wrong felt good.

Aja giggled and I glared. "I'm glad you think
this is so funny."

"It's hysterical, Brogan. You look scared
enough to piss your pants."

"Ha-friggin-ha. Shut up, woman, or I'll take
you over my knee and spank you until your ass is the color of that stop sign
over there," I said, nodding in the direction of the street. "Now
what do I do?"

"Um, start the car?"

"Smart aleck," I muttered, putting the
key in the ignition and turning.

"Okay, now make sure you adjust the mirrors
and fasten your seat belt. Safety first." She was having way too much fun
at my expense.

"Got it. Now what?"

"Put your foot on the brake pedal and move
the gearshift to D. Let your foot off the brake and press down on the gas. Nice
and slow." She pointed toward a dumpster sitting at the end of the alley.
"Drive down to there."

Easy for her to say. My fingers gripped the
steering wheel and my knuckles turned white as I proceeded to inch forward.

After a few minutes of practice, she let me take
it out on the street. There wasn't a lot of traffic, so it was easy to drive
right down the middle. I didn't have to worry about sideswiping a car that way.
"Maybe I'll go do some fishing in the morning."

Claire Copeland

Saturday night before I went to sleep, Olivia
knocked on my door. "Can I
come in?"
she asked.

"Yeah." I braced myself for another ass
chewing, but when she came in, she looked almost sympathetic.

"Do you need anything before I got to
bed?" she asked, sitting down beside me.

I blinked and hung my head. "I'm sorry about
your car, Liv. It wasn't my fault."

"Did Alistair really run you off the
road?"

"Yes." That she took the time to hear me
out made me feel a little better. Dad always sided with Olivia, and if she told
him she believed me, well, he might reconsider the punishment he'd handed down.
"There wasn't anything I could do."

"You could have tried to outrun him."

I shook my head. "Have you ever been on the
road on the way to the Mills' house? There was no way in hell I would have been
able to lose him."

"I suppose you're right." She patted my
leg and stood to go. "Hopefully, the car's not a total loss."

"Looks like you'll be running in the morning
without me."

She folded her arms in front of her chest and
huffed. "Tell me you didn't screw up your ankle on purpose just so you
wouldn't have to train with me."

"Right. Because crutches are so much fun to
walk on." I rolled my eyes at her and she laughed. "How are we
getting to church in the morning?"

"When Dad talked to Jeb Sayer about you
taking that job at the bait shop, he arranged for him to swing by and give us a
lift."

Oh shit. Braden. I felt the color drain from my
face. "Okay."

With all the shit that had happened during the
past twenty-four hours, I'd forgotten about Braden and what he must think. I'd
have to find a way to let him know why I wasn't there when he got released.
Maybe with the golf ball-sized knot on my forehead and the crutches, he'd see
that I hadn't done it on purpose.

***

By the time Olivia left for her run, I was wide
awake. Stress will do that to a person. I stared up at the ceiling and listened
to her and Dad's muffled voices downstairs. I assumed he was going to take her
to the trail.

I got up and eased to the bathroom to take a
shower. The swelling had gone down some in my ankle, but I couldn't say it felt
any better. After my shower, I got dressed. I had to sit on my butt and slide
down the steps with my crutches in tow. I was surprised to see Dad still home.
He glanced up from the papers spread out in front of him on the table.

"How did Olivia get to the lake?" I asked,
hobbling to the counter.

"I took her."

"Oh. Are you going to go pick her up before
you leave for church?" I untied the bread wrapper and put a couple of
slices in the toaster.

"She said she'd just run back. Something
about it being her long run for the week," he said. I turned my back on
him and concentrated on my breakfast, as if it were the most fascinating thing
I'd ever seen. "I trust you'll be ready for church when Jeb gets here to
pick you up?"

"Yep."

"Excuse me?"

I took a deep breath. "Yes, sir."
Give
me a friggin' break, will you
?  The air in the room was so thick with
tension I thought I'd suffocate. Finally, he left without a goodbye as I was
buttering my toast, and my whole body shrank with relief. God, he could be such
an insufferable prick.

After I ate, I waited for Olivia to get back.
She'd miss her ride if she didn't hurry. I heard Jeb's truck pull up the driveway
and glanced up at the clock. Even he was late, and Olivia still wasn't home. I
tucked a few stray strands of hair behind my ear and wrestled with the front
door.

"Oh hey, let me help you with that."
Though I'd only heard him speak a few words, I'd recognize that soft drawl
anywhere. Braden's voice reminded me of hot chocolate. The kind with those tiny
marshmallows melted on top.

My heart skipped a beat when he wrapped his arm
around my waist and let me lean against him. I admit, I probably leaned a
little closer than I would have had it been anyone else. But damn if he didn't
smell fucking fantastic.

Jeb sat beneath the wheel of the pickup truck
grinning like a fool.

"Jeb Sayer, are you laughing at me?"

"No, Miss Claire," he said, shaking his
head. I wasn't convinced. My eyes drifted between Braden and Jeb and back
again.

A yelp escaped my lips when Braden swooped me off
my feet and deposited me on the seat next to Jeb. He threw my crutches into the
bed of the truck and slid in beside me. Waves of heat radiated between Braden's
thigh and mine, causing me to overheat.

"Is your sister coming?" Jeb asked.

"She went for a run this morning and isn't back
yet," I said, fanning myself.

Jeb shook his head. "We can't wait. We're
going to be late as it is."

"It's okay." I had butterflies in the
pit of my stomach, and I wasn't sure if it was from having Braden so close, or from
wondering if something was up with Olivia.

Braden leaned down and whispered in my ear,
"Somebody broke into the marina last night."

My eyes widened. "Oh sh--crap, did they steal
anything?"

"They made off with the cash box. And of all
the damn things they could've taken, they stole that boat anchor your daddy had
personalized for me." Jeb heaved a heavy sigh.

"That sucks, Jeb. Who would do such a
thing?"

"Oh, don't worry none." He smiled and
nodded at my foot. "Your daddy said you had a little mishap with Olivia's
car. How you feeling?"

"I'll be better as soon as it stops throbbing
with every beat of my heart." Especially given the fact that my heart was
beating triple time right then. Braden stared out the window, oblivious to how
he affected my libido. I nudged him with my elbow. He turned the hottest pair
of blue eyes in my direction, and I sucked in a quick breath before dropping my
gaze to my lap. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you yesterday. I really did
want to come. I hope you know I'd never tell you I was going to do something
and then not do it without a good reason."

"It's no big deal." He shrugged. "I
forgive you."

I don't know if I ever swooned before, but I was
pretty sure that's what I did when he pinned me to the seat with those soulful
eyes. Damn if I didn't want to crawl into his lap right then and there and steal
a kiss.

When church was over for the morning, I began to
worry in earnest. Olivia would never, and I mean
never
, miss church. So,
unless hell had frozen over and the devil started wearing long johns, something
had happened to her.