Carolina King (Drive Me Wild Book 2) (5 page)

We’d managed to convince my dad to let us leave early. The restaurant was dead and there were just a few people sitting at the bar. Drew had the night off and was headed with Woody to a race. I think this was also the reason Harley chose tonight to go to Charleston to pick up her box. While I didn’t like sneaking around behind my brother’s back, I also wanted to be there for Harley. I envied everything about her. She was gorgeous in a natural way. She never bothered doing anything special to her chocolate brown hair, but it always seemed to fall perfectly into place. Her makeup was minimal and she couldn’t care less about clothes or if she wore the same outfit twice in a week. Harley just wasn’t bothered by that kind of stuff. However, my favorite thing about her was that she spoke her mind. No filter and no hesitation. It was the way I wanted to be.

Growing up as the baby of the family and the only daughter with two older brothers, an overbearing mother, and a father who spoiled me rotten, meant that I had to fight for independence. I learned early own that my attitude would rattle them enough to back off a little. I was constantly trying to prove that I could handle way more than they gave me credit for.

And sometimes I was even right.

“So, what about this ex-boyfriend? Is there going to be any drama?” My thoughts went back to Travis. I didn’t know if anything was worth getting from his house if it meant seeing him again.

“No, he’ll be cool. It wasn’t like we were in love or anything,” Harley replied and looked out of the window.

“How long were you with him?”

“Five years.”

“Five years?” I repeated. “That’s a long time to be with someone and not be in love.”

“I don’t know.” Harley shrugged. “I wouldn’t say it was love so much as being with someone for a long time and tolerating each other. I think I could have loved him if I’d let myself.” She added the last sentence almost as an afterthought, then let out a long breath. “He could be good when he wanted to, but he also knew how to screw up pretty badly. I’d just had enough of the highs and lows. Plus I never really saw much of a future with him, not the way I do with Drew.”

“It looks like you made the right decision then.” I smiled at her and turned my focus back to the darkened road illuminated by my headlights.

We arrived in Charleston just before midnight. Harley gave me directions until I was driving down a street lined with small houses on either side. It looked like a working middle-class neighborhood, not a bad area, but it wasn’t exactly great either. We stopped in front of a one-story brick house with an attached garage with two large industrial-looking black bay doors that was almost as big as the house.

We got out of the car and walked across a small patch of grass that was in serious need of a mow. All of the lights were off and there weren’t any cars in the driveway. I looked around and whispered, “Harley, I don’t think he’s home.” It was annoying that we drove all the way out here and the guy wasn’t even around. “Didn’t you tell him we were coming?”

“No,” Harley replied, and then walked past me. “He doesn’t need to be here.” She hurried to the side of the house and lifted the latch to the back gate.

“What are you doing?” I squeaked, but ran to keep up with her because there was no way I wanted to be caught snooping around by myself. When I found her she was jiggling a small window up until she was able to make enough room for her fingers to fit through.

“Help me,” she called out, and so I stepped up and worked with her to lift the window. It groaned on the rails as we worked it open. It was in obvious need of a little WD-40, but with enough muscle power and persistence we were able to make enough room for Harley to slip inside. Seconds later she appeared in front of the back sliding glass door. She unlatched it and let me in.

“You need to hurry,” I said to her as I followed her through the disaster of a house. Beer cans, empty pizza boxes, and ashtrays full of cigarette butts were all over the place. Gross. There were clothes all over the hallway. I followed her into a bedroom, which was surprisingly neater than the rest of the house, but not by much. All of the clothes were thrown into one pile on the floor in the corner, and one half-empty beer bottle was on the nightstand. You could, however, see the brown carpet much better in here.

Harley pulled open the doors to the closet and then stood on her tiptoes to grab a medium-sized box. She laid it on the floor and was about to close the closet back when we heard keys slide into the front door lock. Harley’s eyes went wide as she looked over at me.

“Oh, shit,” she whispered. I searched around the room but didn’t see anywhere to hide.

“Shit,” I repeated as my heart started to pound a hole in my chest. We stood there like statues as footsteps drew closer and walked right past us into the bathroom at the end of the hall.

“Let’s go,” Harley whispered as she grabbed her box and ran from the room with me right on her tail.

We’d almost made it to the front door when a loud voice boomed, “Stop,” followed by the unmistakable sound of a gun being cocked. We both came to a halt immediately and slowly turned around. The house was dark so I couldn’t see his face very well, but I did make out that he was indeed pointing a gun at us, so I lowered my eyes to the floor.

“Shit. Harley?” the guy asked. “What the fuck are you doing and what do you have in your hand?”

“It’s just a box of my stuff,” Harley replied, not sounding the least bit worried. “If you put down the damn gun, you can see for yourself, Brando.”

Brando? That name sounded familiar. When the light flicked on a man with tattooed forearms and tousled black hair stepped forward and I recognized him as the guy I’d seen with Mack the other night. Harley’s ex-boyfriend was Brando?

“Let me see.” Brando lowered his gun and grabbed the box from Harley. “Sorry, I gotta look. You know how it is.” Harley nodded as he ripped the tape off the box, then rifled around in the contents. I immediately thought it was strange. I didn’t know what he would be looking for, but I did know for sure that any man who felt he needed to hold his ex-girlfriend at gunpoint and then insisted on looking through her box was definitely up to no good.

From what I could see, the box contained picture frames, papers, and some sort of material with a cherry pattern. It was exactly what Harley said— items from her Gram’s house.

“See. Happy now?” Harley huffed and pushed Brando away from the box and began to reorganize the items so the box would close again. He moved away without much fight, then stood with his arms crossed, glaring at her. Just as Harley closed the flaps on the box, the front door opened and in walked Mack. He stopped midstep with one foot through the threshold and the other still outside. His eyes scanned the room as he assessed the situation. His gaze went from Harley to Brando and then to me. It was obvious by the way his eyes grew wider at seeing me that he was just as surprised as I was.

“Mack,” Harley said as she lifted the box into her arms and straightened.

“What are you doing?” he asked and narrowed his gaze at her.

“Getting my box.”

“So, this is it then?”

“Yep.”

“No coming back.”

“I don’t plan to.”

Mack’s expression was unreadable as he pushed the door open all the way and gestured his hands for Harley to leave. She threw me a look that meant that I should follow, but I was frozen in place at the exchange between the two of them.

Why did I feel like I was missing something big here?

Harley walked past Mack and spoke to him in a low voice, but I couldn’t hear. Mack hesitated before jerking his head into a nod. She placed a kiss on his cheek before stepping outside and into the darkness. My feet were moving, but I was unaware of who was controlling them. I was stunned by the scene before me, because I was one hundred percent certain that Mack was Harley’s ex-boyfriend, not Brando. This unexpected realization was like a knife to the gut. There were so many things wrong with this scenario, but as I tried to make my way past Mack he grabbed my hand gently.

“Jonna.” I stopped walking but kept my eyes to the floor. “Look at me.” Slowly I complied with his request, somehow hoping that my conclusion wasn’t true, because it hurt too much.

“You and Harley, Mack?” I asked, my voice coming out small.

“You didn’t know?” Disbelief flashed across his face, and I shook my head. “Jesus.” Mack looked to the ground and shuffled his feet from side to side. “Listen, we need to talk but now is not a good time.”

I nodded again, although I felt numb. There were so many things to digest. So many questions, so many emotions to sort out.

“I’ll come and pick you up tomorrow night, okay?” Mack stated, but I didn’t respond. “Say okay, Jonna.” I shook my head and shrugged.

“Mack, I don’t think I can . . .”

“Catch the midnight ferry tomorrow night to the mainland, and I’ll be there to pick you up.” When I remained silent, he added, “Say yes, Jonna.”

“Bye, Mack.”

“I’ll be there tomorrow night waiting for you.” I didn’t respond and instead walked past him and out to the car just as Harley was closing the trunk and walking to the driver’s side.

“See, easy.” She grinned. “I’ll drive back. Throw me your keys.” I was in no mood to argue, so I tossed my keys to her and settled into the passenger’s seat. The entire way home all I could think about was how I’d made it my goal in life to know everything I could about Mack King, yet I failed to learn that he’d had a girlfriend for five years. And that girl has been working with me every day for the past month and a half, and never once did her face provide any sort of recognition to me. I looked over at her and she seemed so carefree as she hummed along with the radio. How could I ever tell her that I’d been fucking her ex-boyfriend. Suddenly, the idea of her learning that terrified me, and I didn’t think I ever wanted her to find out.

I didn’t get on the last ferry to the mainland, and I hoped Mack wasn’t surprised. I needed time to figure out how I felt about the fact that he and Harley used to be together, and how Harley would feel if she found out. I knew there was nothing positive she could say to me about him. She’d broken up with him for a reason. If he were good, she would have kept him for herself, right?

I’d woken up in a bad mood, which meant no one in my path was safe. As shitty luck would have it, Travis was at the gas station that morning, and I noticed he was sporting a black eye.

“That guy won’t bother you again. I promise you that.”

I realized that Mack had made good on his promise, because as soon as Travis saw me he made a beeline for his car and sped away. Things got even worse when I went into Catch to start the dinner shift, and Mama informed me that she hired a new girl named Carina. She was about my age and pretty enough, I guess, with bright red hair I was positive she dyed regularly to keep it so vibrant. She was also a member of the mysterious Risto family, who moved to the island about a year ago. We didn’t know much about them except they had lots of money, which made it odd that Carina took a job as a waitress. However, one thing I did learn about her was that she was a ridiculous overachiever in an annoyingly accurate kind of way.

“Excuse me, miss,” an elderly man called out to us as we walked by his table. “What time is it?” Carina and I both pulled our phones out of our aprons at the same time but gave different answers.

“It’s almost eight o’clock,” I answered.

“Actually, it’s seven fifty-three,” Carina corrected from behind me, and I turned to glare at her before storming off. She hurried after me, whispering, “What? He might need to take medicine or something. What if he ends up taking it too soon? Seven minutes might make a difference.”

I whirled around and scowled. “If his old timer’s disease is so bad that he forgets to wear a watch, especially if seven minutes makes all the difference when it comes to his medication, then he shouldn’t be out alone.”

“Do you mean Alzheimer’s Disease . . .?”

“Listen, I don’t need you to correct me. I know what it’s called and I said it the way I meant it. I don’t care how you
interpretate
it.”

“
Interpret
, and if I were you I would stop talking.” She twisted her mouth and cocked her head to the side in amusement.

“Just shut up and go refill water glasses or something,” I snapped, and then shoved a pitcher of water into her hands. When my mother appeared from the kitchen I immediately stalked up to her.

“Mama, we have to talk about Carina. I don’t like her.”

“Jonna, you don’t like anybody, so that’s not saying much.” She shook her head dismissively as she walked past me to deliver two hot food plates to a table.

“Yeah but she . . .”

I stopped speaking midsentence as Mack and Brando walk through the door. His eyes slowly scanned the room until he found me. His lips immediately drew into a tight line before his gaze shifted to the pool tables to the right. He began walking in that direction with Brando following.

“Great,” I mumbled and was about to send Carina over to take their drink order, but Harley was already approaching their table and waving her arms frantically. Mack was also speaking and shaking his head. He crossed his arms and glared at Harley while she glared back at him. When Brando started talking she transferred her gaze in his direction, and Mack shifted his eyes to me. I knew instantly that he was angry, but it wasn’t with Harley. He was angry with me. It was almost like I could read his mind and he was saying,
Come here, Jonna.

I broke eye contact with him, because there was no way I planned to be seen talking to him, especially by Harley. It would just open up a line of questioning I wasn’t prepared to answer right now. Plus I wasn’t sure there was anything more I wanted to say to Mack, so I busied myself with the other side of the restaurant, dragging Carina along behind me.

Since neither Harley nor I made any effort to go over to that side of the room for the remainder of the night, Brando had to go to the bar every time they wanted another beer. I could feel Mack’s eyes on me the entire time, but I refused to acknowledge him. I was also aware of the swarm of girls that seemed to gather no matter where he was.

God, he was like a skank magnet. It was really pathetic the way girls could be so obvious and almost desperate in their attempts to get his attention. Like cheering over enthusiastically every time he sent a ball in its pocket or constantly tossing their hair from one side to the other, and making sure their cleavage was in full view. It reminded me of the night of the party and how I’d done the exact same things to get his attention. Embarrassment warmed my cheeks. God, I was no better than any of the girls here tonight.

When things died down I begged my mom to send Carina home so that I could get out of here. Harley, like most nights, was scheduled to close since she always waited around for Drew to take her home. I quickly finished cleaning up my area, then headed out of the side door and up the stairs to my apartment.

I’d taken a long hot shower while I tried not to think about which of the skanks downstairs got to be the one to leave with Mack. I was leaving the bathroom when I heard loud pounding on my front door. Cautiously, I gathered the towel tightly around me as I walked to the door and peered through the peephole, fully expecting to see Travis, but instead I saw Mack glaring back at me.

My heart began beating rapidly in my chest. How did he know I lived here? I glanced down at my towel-clad body and knew there was no way I was going to let him in, especially looking like this. I slowly backed two steps away and was about to turn when I heard his voice through the door.

“Jonna, I can hear you moving. Please, open the door.”

“Why?” I called back.

“Because I want to talk to you.”

“Well, I fell for that once. I know what you mean when you say
talk
.”

I heard him chuckle softly. “While I’m definitely not opposed to that kind of talking, I want to actually talk to you.” When I remained silent, he added, “Please, Jonna. Just hear me out.”

I really wanted to tell him to leave. To go to hell. To go
talk
to one of his groupies downstairs. Wait, no. I didn’t want him to do that.

“Fine,” I said, cursing my weak resolve as I unlocked the dead bolt and pulled the handle open. Mack was immediately pushing open the door and stepping inside as if anticipating I might change my mind. His heated gaze traveled down my body, and I felt my breath quicken.

“I’m going to, um, change. Be right back.” I didn’t wait for his reply as I hurried to my dresser drawer and pulled out a tank with a shelf bra and a pair of yoga pants, then went into the bathroom to dress. I don’t know why I did that. Mack had already seen me completely naked. Maybe it was for my own protection. I couldn’t take the way his eyes were darkening with want, just the way I’d seen them do the times we’ve had sex. Scorching hot sex. Just thinking about it made my heart race, so I splashed cold water on to my face and forced myself to focus. I needed to think with my brain and ignore the pulsing need growing in my lower region.

When I emerged from the bathroom I didn’t feel any more protected from his hungry gaze. He was sitting on my small sofa, his large body nearly taking up the entire space, with one arm across the back, his legs bent and planted firmly apart. His eyes smoldered when they reached my breasts. While the shelf bra provided decent support to my C-cups, it did nothing to conceal the way my tight nipples strained against the material.

I crossed my arms over my chest to cover my traitorous bosom and walked to stand near him. Besides the high-back stools at the counter my dad recycled from the restaurant, the sofa was the only other place to sit. There was no way I’d be able to sit next to him, though. My mind lost all rational thought and allowed my body to do the thinking when it came to him. It was something I couldn’t let happen right now. Mack smirked at me, fully aware of my dilemma. So instead I sat down cross-legged on the floor, just on the other side of the coffee table.

“How did you know I lived here?” I decided to start the discussion with a question.

Mack shrugged and answered, “I make it my business to know everything about people in my life.”

In his life? Was I in his life?
What sort of life did he lead where it was important that he had to know everything about everyone he came in contact with? The kind of things that needed to get handled or someone would be handled?

As if he could read my mind, he started speaking. “Jonna, there are things going on right now. Things that I can’t get into with you because I don’t want you involved in them.” He rubbed a hand over his face and sat forward. “Look, I never claimed to be a saint. I’ve done things that I can’t undo, but I’ve reached a point in my life where I’m ready to put it all behind me. It’s just not that easy to walk away from some of it.” I decided that I didn’t want to know the kind of things he was referring to and was grateful that he didn’t want to share it with me. My mind couldn’t even fathom what they could be, but I did remember the scene out front of Jamie Risto’s house, and how it didn’t look like a friendly conversation. When I didn’t say anything he kept speaking.

“But I want you to know that none of this has anything to do with Harley or your brother. Maybe it did at first, but not anymore. The other night at my house was about ending something that should have been over a long time ago.” His words confirmed what Harley said about their relationship. “I made a lot of mistakes where Harley was concerned, and I was too stupid to realize it for a long time. The box she took had been at my house since the first day we met, and she kept it there for five years, even with all of the times that she took off and would disappear for weeks at a time. I somehow knew as long as her box was there that she’d be back. When she took it the other night it symbolized the end for good. I didn’t know how to feel about it at first. I still cared about her even though she was an expert at causing trouble in my life. But after she walked out of the door, and I saw you standing in my living room, I realized I was more concerned about you, not her.”

“Mack . . .”

“Listen, I don’t know what I’m really trying to say, but I just wanted you to know that you aren’t some kind of casual fuck for me. I’m not in any position to promise you things, but I do know that I’d like to be able to see you, that is, if you’d like to see me.”

“S-see you? H-how?” I stammered, feeling tongue-tied.

“From the moment I laid eyes on you, I was drawn to you. I can’t seem to stay away from you. I don’t want to stay away, but I don’t need you to be involved in some of the things I have going on right now. Would you be willing to be with me when it safe to have you around?”

My heart did a flip, and I chewed on my bottom lip as I studied him. I really had no idea what to say.
Safe to have me around?
What did that mean? I was trying to force my brain to think rationally, but my body wanted him in the worst way, so instead I felt myself softening to the idea of being with him again. Images of him using his tongue on me while I was pressed against the wall as he stroked himself filled my head. I heard Mack’s sharp intake of air and noticed that his eyes were focused on the way my hardened nipples were visible through my top. He licked his lips, then lowered himself to the floor where he lunged forward until his face was just inches from mine.

“Say yes, Jonna.” His intense eyes held me captive as he waited for my reply. My breath grew shallow, my throat felt dry, but I was soaked between my legs.

“Yes.” My voice was barely a whisper. The corner of Mack’s mouth drew up with a grin of satisfaction before his lips were on mine.

“Now”—he pulled away to speak—“about that
talk
.”