Convincing Her (5 page)

“No one says bodice anymore. What have you been reading?”

“My brother Pete came across some of my mom’s old novels when he was
twelve. We may or may not have flipped through a few pages.” He admitted with a
low laugh. That had been an eye-opening experience, to say the least.

“So you were what, fifteen?”

“Yeah, I’d just turned fifteen actually. I didn’t look my mother in the
eye for a year.”

“Sometimes I wish I was British.”

“That came out of nowhere. Why?” The girl never ceased to surprise him.

“They have really cool accents, and they can use words that just don’t
sound the same when we say it.”

“Like what?”

“Having a wank sounds so much better than the phrases we have for it.”

He frowned, confused, “What made you think of that?”

“I was thinking about you and your brother, and what you probably did
after you read your mom’s books.  Am I right?” She wagged her eyebrows
suggestively.

“Well, yeah. At least I did. I’m not sure if he was doing that yet.” He
wasn’t ashamed. The better part of his fifteenth year was spent taking really
long showers.

“I mean, masturbating sounds so – clinical, you know? And jacking off?
Where did that term even come from?” She asked curiously, pulling out her
phone, “I’m going to look it up.”

“What does it say?”

“I’m not getting very far. One guy says he thinks it’s comparable to the
motion you make when you’re jacking up a car. I’m mostly getting a punch of
links to porn sites.” She rolled her eyes again.

“What do you call it when you do it?” He bit his tongue after the
question passed his lips. Was that going a little too far?

She snorted, “I don’t call it anything. You do it, not talk about it.”

“We’re talking about it.” He had to point out.

“Yeah, let’s not, sorry I brought it up.” She squirmed in her seat. “So
what’s the plan when we get there?”

He settled into his seat, “No plan. That’s the whole point right? We’re
going to relax. Pete’s been up there since last night. We’ll fix something to
eat, maybe have a few beers.”

She started working her lower lip between her teeth again. “No plan.
Okay. I can do that.” She didn’t sound convinced.

“It’ll be fun. Just trust me.”

She nodded and turned her body, looking out the window. “So how far out
in the woods is this place?”

“It’s only thirty miles or so to the nearest town. We’ll make a weekly trip
to get anything we need. You’ll be okay city girl. I’m here to take care of
you.” He reached over and placed his hand on her shoulder, massaging gently.

Instead of responding with a comment about him being sexist she just
nodded. She didn’t pull away from his touch either. He told himself that was a
good sign.

“Rich?” She was so quiet he barely heard her.

“I’m listening.” He wasn’t sure if he wanted to hear what she had to
say, but he was listening.

“I’m willing to – we’re going to be – dammit I don’t even know what I’m
trying to say.” She let out a frustrated huff of air, “Look, I want to try
this, whatever this is. But I can’t promise anything after this trip. Can we
agree to just enjoy this time without making it something more than it is?”

He took his time answering her, considering the possibilities. Of course
he was thrilled that she was willing to be more than friends, that she was
actually going to give him a shot despite the fact that she’d promised him
years ago they’d never cross that line. But was he willing to take this short
time with her and be done? The answer was a resounding
no.
He wanted her
now, yet he wanted a chance at a future with her as well.

“No, I can’t agree to that.” He shook his head, “Not can’t, I won’t make
a promise I can’t keep.” Gripping the steering wheel tightly he glanced at her,
“I want you, and that won’t stop after we leave here, especially not once we –
if I get a taste of you being mine, I won’t be able to just give that up.”

“What if I don’t give you a choice?” She challenged, raising her chin at
him.

“You’re not that cruel. You won’t discard me once you’ve had your fun.
Remember, I’m the
use
r
,
not you.” He made a sound of disgust in
his throat, hating the way he felt as he thought of the way she’d looked at him
that night so long ago.

Her eyes widened and she looked away, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I’m sorry about that.” She whispered.

“You don’t have to be sorry. What you said was true, to a point.” He
waved his hand dismissively, “We’ve known each other a while, but you don’t
know everything about me, not yet. There are reasons that I’ve never had a
relationship, just like I’m sure you have your reasons as well. I don’t expect
you to tell me now. I can be patient but I want to give this a real shot.”

His heart beat forcefully in his chest as he waited for her answer,
wishing with everything he had that she wouldn’t ask him to turn the car
around. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, her hand moved slowly
across the seat until she made contact with his thigh.  

The rest of the drive was silent. He didn’t mind. It was actually sort
of nice to just sit with her even if he did wonder what was going on in that
busy mind of hers. She’d tell him if she really wanted him to know. When they
finally pulled up in the drive she uncurled her legs and stretched before
taking a few deep breaths.

“It’s really pretty out here Rich.” She scanned her surroundings as she
stepped out of the car.

“It is pretty amazing. I haven’t been out here in years.” He took a deep
breath, enjoying the musky smell of the earth.

“That’s a big fucking house.” She shielded her eyes from the sun as she
took in the place.

“I told you there were enough rooms for everyone. It’s really old too.
My parents had to get an electrician to rewire everything when they first
bought it. I was only ten or eleven then.  A few years later they redid
the plumbing. Hopefully everything still works.”

He grabbed her hand and began leading her to the house, “There’s a lot
of history here. I broke my arm climbing that tree over there,” he pointed to a
huge old tree to the left of the property, “and Pete almost drowned in the lake
when he was fourteen. I was so scared.”

She squeezed his hand, “Thanks for bringing me here.”

“Thank you for coming with me.” He tugged her forward.

“What if I don’t get along with your brother’s girlfriend?” She
whispered as they approached the front the steps.

“Then we’ll stay away from her. Like you said, it’s a big place.” He
wasn’t worried. Angie might not see it in herself, but she was very personable
when she wanted to be.

“I love this porch. I want to sit out here reading and drinking coffee
the whole time.” She ran her hand over the worn wood.

He’d seen his mom do the same thing many times. The wrap-around porch was
one of the reasons his mom had insisted they buy the place. She’d said it
looked like something right out of a painting.

The door opened and he recognized Pete instantly, though he had changed
in the time they’d been apart. He was a lot more muscular for one thing, and
he’d shot up a few inches, still shorter than Rich’s six-foot frame but taller
nonetheless. He still had almost white-blond hair, and those blue eyes were
still a shocker. He could understand how his brother did so well with the
ladies. “Look at you little brother, all grown up.” He shook Pete’s hand,
noticing the firm grip that was returned.

Pete shot him a smile, “You haven’t changed much. How you been?”

“Good. Busy. The normal stuff I guess, school, work, chasing after this
one over here.” He nodded towards Angie who was standing quietly beside him.

“You convinced her to come after all.” Pete reached out and shook
Angie’s hand as well, “Good to meet you.”

Her cheeks were pink, but she nodded her greeting and returned the
handshake.

“So Charlie and Trevor are inside, and I’m sure Tracy will be out here
any minute.” Pete motioned to the house, “We were thinking of going fishing.
Catch something to cook up later.”

“How much of a disaster is it in there?” Rich dipped his head towards the
house.

Pete chuckled, “Actually, Trevor drank a shit-load of Red Bull on way up
here. As soon as we unloaded our stuff he went crazy on the place. He was still
dusting when we finally crashed early this morning. We can’t use the oven yet,
but the stove top still works fine. I think mom had someone come do some basic
stuff. The bathrooms are spotless and all the beds had clean linens. Charlie
set up the wireless router. The password is written on the fridge.”  

“Well that’s a relief. We’ll have to call mom and thank her. Fishing
sounds good to me, everything still out in the shed?”

“All covered in dust, but yeah it’s there. You won’t believe what’s in
the garage.” Pete motioned to his left, “Mom and dad got us presents.”

Rich was surprised, “What’s gotten into them lately? Last time I talked
to mom I was sure she was drunk. It was like talking to a different woman. Show
me what they got us.”

“Thank god you got her to come. I did not want to be stuck out here with
a bunch of guys for six weeks. I was not looking forward to hanging out with
three teenagers.” A tall blond, well mostly blond since the bottom of her hair
was pink, stepped onto the porch and walked right up to Angie. “I’m Tracy.” She
nodded in Rich’s direction in a quick greeting, “Let me show you the house,
it’s fucking huge right?”

Angie’s eyes grew wide and she shot a worried glance in his direction,
“Um, I have to pee.”

“You’re going to love the main bathroom. It has one of those old claw
tubs. I spent an hour in there this morning.” Tracy grabbed Angie’s hand,
pulling her away.

Rich frowned, worried. He was pretty sure this was exactly what she had
been worried about. She shot him a small smile and followed Tracy into the
house.

“So that’s Tracy. She’s interesting right?” Pete let out a short laugh,
“C’mon, she’s harmless, just a little loud. It works for me since I’m not.” He
motioned to the garage, “Let’s check out our gifts.”

Rich followed, he was curious after all. He trusted his brother, and
maybe it would be good for Angie to have some female companionship other than
Teresa for a change. “Where’d you meet her?”

“At the gym, she’s an aerobics instructor where I work out. She goes to
my school too, she’s a junior.”

“You got yourself an older woman, good for you.” Rich slapped his brother
on the back.

Pete blushed, “I figured you’d approve.” He opened the garage door,
“Check this shit out.”

Rich gasped as he stepped in the garage and flipped on the light. “They
got us jet skis?” He walked over to get a closer look. One was cherry red, the
other a metallic grey. “These are sweet. It looks like we’re going to have to
put some thought into our Christmas gift this year.”

“I figured we could take them out as soon as the water warms up, should
be fun.”

Rich pulled out his phone, sending a quick thank you text to his mom. He
shut off the light and followed Pete back up to the house, wondering if Angie
was all right. They headed into the kitchen and Rich introduced himself to
Charlie and Trevor, thanking them for straightening up the place and getting
the wi-fi going. He grabbed a beer out of the fridge. “Did Tracy buy this?”

“Yeah, another good think about dating an older woman.” Pete joked,
leaning up against the counter. “You guys ready to fish?”

“I should probably check on Angie, see if she wants to go.” Rich
wondered where the girls had gone off to. The house wasn’t
that
big.

“I’ve never known a girl who actually wants to go fishing. They’ll be
okay.” Trevor motioned to the cooler, “We’ve got beer and water, what else do
we need?”

Rich knew the kid was just trying to reassure him, but he wasn’t going
to leave without seeing if she wanted to come with them. He had promised her he
wouldn’t leave her alone.

Pete grabbed a bag of chips off the top of the fridge, “We can wait and
see if they want to go.”

Rich was glad his brother had his back.

“You guys are already talking about leaving us? What’s up with that?”
Tracy sauntered into the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Pete’s shoulders.

Angie caught Rich’s eye, glanced at Tracy, and rolled her eyes.

He grinned as he took another swig of his beer, “Want to go fishing?”

Angie made a face, but then plastered on a smile, “Yeah, that would be
fun.” The enthusiasm in her voice was convincing, almost.

Tracy gave Pete a noisy kiss, “If she’s in, I’m in.”

“Great.” Charlie muttered sarcastically.

“Is it still too cold to go swimming? Maybe I could just lye out and get
some sun. We still have a few hours of sunlight right? I’ll go change.” Tracy
raced out of the room, talking to herself the whole way.

Rich offered Angie a beer, “You look like you need this.”

She nodded her head eagerly and grabbed the beer, downing half of it.
“I’m going to grab my Kindle.”

“She’ll calm down eventually, I promise.” Pete called after Angie as she
made her escape. He turned to Rich, “Sorry about that. Tracy can be a bit
overwhelming at first.”

Trevor snorted, “At first? Whatever, at least she’s hot.”

“Yeah, there’s that.” Pete laughed and finished his beer.

“Who would have thought? You’re more like me than I thought.” Rich
elbowed Pete as he walked by, “I’m going to go unload our stuff before we go.”

This vacation certainly promised to be interesting.

“So you guys are really brothers? Like biologically?” Angie asked as she
reclined in her lounge chair.

She’d chosen a spot away from the others, and Rich had let her be for a
bit as he threw in his line a few times. He’d sauntered over with a smile,
offering another beer.

“Yeah, it’s weird huh? I take after my mom’s side of the family. He
looks like my dad. Believe it or not, he used to be a lot smaller. He’s really
bulked up. It’s weird seeing him all grown up.”

“He seems nice enough.” She remarked as she pushed her hair out of her
face.

“He’s a good guy. Sorry about Tracy, I didn’t mean to stick you with her
like that.” He grimaced, “You don’t have to hang out with her if you don’t want
to.”

She laughed and took a sip, “She’s actually not that bad. We’ll be
fine.”

“Good, I want you to enjoy yourself here.” He stood there awkwardly,
unsure what to do now that he had her here. “I’ll leave you alone. Enjoy
reading your smut.” He winked and headed back over to the guys.

They actually did pretty well, catching eight catfish in about two
hours. Years ago the lake had been stocked, but he hadn’t been sure if they’d
actually get a bite. Charlie and Trevor were both pretty drunk. They’d both
downed a six pack each. He didn’t want to have to babysit them all night so
he’d cut them off.

The sun had started to set, and the view was beautiful as he looked out
across the lake. He glanced back at Angie and she was doing the same. She shot
him a dazzling smile.

“You ready to head out?” If she wanted to stay he’d hang out with her.

“Sure, I’m getting pretty hungry over here.” She called, gathering her
things.

Pete grabbed the cooler and they all carried their chairs back up to the
house. It was a short walk, only taking about ten minutes. Angie was at Rich’s
side, seeming to enjoy the scenery.

She took her chair to the garage and then made her way back over to him,
“I’ll eat the fish but I’m not cleaning it.”

He laughed, “We’ve got it covered. You might want to grab a sweater. It
still gets pretty chilly at night.”

She wrinkled her nose, “I didn’t bring a sweater.”

He led her into the house, “I’ll grab you one of mine. We’ll handle the
fish and the fire.” He rummaged through his bag until he found an old grey one.
Walking over to where she stood leaning against the wood paneling, taking in
the front room he offered the sweater, “Lift up your arms.” He lowered it over
her head, pulling it down around her hips. He stood back and smiled, “It looks
good on you.”

“Thanks.” She whispered, looking up at him.

He leaned in, unable to resist her scent, “Can I kiss you?”

She lifted her face in answer, wetting her lips with her tongue.

That’s all the invitation he needed. He placed his hands on the wall on
either side of her head, lowering his mouth to hers. Taking his time, he
brushed his lips lightly against the corners of her mouth before sealing their
lips. Her tongue snaked out, licking at him tentatively, seeking entry. He let
her explore, meeting the thrusts of her tongue with his own.

“I could kiss you forever.” He murmured before dipping down for another
kiss.

“Hey Rich, you ready to clean these fish – ah shit, I’m sorry man.”
Pete’s head disappeared from around the corner.

“You should go hang out with your brother. You care if I pick my room?”
Her fingers traced her bottom lip as she spoke.

“Go ahead. I’ll take your stuff up later. Don’t be too long.” He gave
her another quick kiss before forcing himself to pull away.

After he was
sure she was up the stairs he adjusted his package and headed outside. He knew
he was smiling like an idiot but he didn’t care.

Rich wiped his hands on an old towel, it’d been a while since he’d
cleaned a fish but he’d done all right. Pete had been surprisingly helpful,
despite Tracy making gagging noises from where she was perched on a cooler in
the corner. She said there was no way she could eat the fish after watching
them chop the heads off so Charlie brought out some hot dogs to shut her up.

“Hey Trevor, can you grab the marshmallows?” Rich called, gathering up
the fish to take over to the fire they’d stoked earlier.

“Did someone say marshmallows?” Angie rounded the corner smiling.

He returned her smile, “I thought that might get your attention.” He
followed Pete out of the garage, “The girl likes her sugar.”

“Damn straight.” She followed after them, Tracy on her heels.

“I should have stayed inside with you. That was the most disgusting
thing I’ve ever seen. One of the fish had eggs in her. It was pregnant!” She
exclaimed, making another gagging noise.

Rich could almost hear Angie roll her eyes. He placed the old metal rack
over the fire, surprised when she offered to hold the plate of filets so he
could arrange them over the flames.  He sat in the lounge chair beside her
when they were done, grabbing her hand. She didn’t seem to mind that he was all
fishy.

The others soon followed, grabbing beers and sodas and arranging
themselves in their chairs.

“This is really great guys, thanks again for letting us hang out.”
Trevor had sobered and it appeared he was sticking with soda for the remainder
of the evening.

“No problem.” Rich nodded his head, “I’m glad you thought of this Pete.”

“So what are you guys majoring in? Rich, did you know Pete’s going to be
an engineer? Isn’t that exciting?” Tracy gushed.

He eyed his little brother, “No, I didn’t know that. I’m proud of you.
I’m majoring in business finance – dad pretty much insisted.” He wondered how
Pete had gotten their dad to relent on his major. Their old man had always had
it stuck in his head that they’d both follow in his footsteps.

Charlie chimed in, “I’m a business major too. It’s boring as shit
right?”

“I would have failed business calc if it wasn’t for Angie, she’s a great
teacher.” Rich squeezed her hand.

“You would have done fine.” She squeezed back. “I’m still undecided. I
have no idea what I want to be when I grow up. I’m getting all the basics out
of the way.”

Rich was surprised at that. He couldn’t believe he’d never asked her
what her major was.

“I’m majoring in kinesiology. I want to be a physical therapist.” Tracy opened
a bag of chips, “It’s going to take forever, but it’ll be worth it.”

Angie raised her brows in obvious surprise, “That’s pretty impressive.
What made you choose that career?”

“When I was thirteen I was really into gymnastics. I tore my ACL, twice,
and during my recovery I had the most awesome physical therapist. She was so
enthusiastic and positive. I wanted to be just like her.”

“I’m with you Angie. I don’t have a clue what I want to do yet.” Trevor
interjected, “Right now, I want to eat this fish. I’m fucking starving.”

Rich had already flipped it once, “Just give it a couple more minutes,
you want to make sure it’s done.”

“You could always start a cleaning business. That was pretty impressive
last night.” Charlie joked.

“Maybe I will.” Trevor answered, stretching in his chair.

Tracy stuck a hot dog onto a skewer before holding it over the flames.
She blew a kiss at Pete, and he blushed when he saw Rich watching his reaction.
He reached for his beer, taking a long draw. “So what do you guys want to do
tomorrow?

“I want to sleep in. It’s been too damn long since I just woke up when I
felt like it.” Rich stood and grabbed some paper plates, using a fork to plate
the fish.

“You’re a man after my own heart. If there was a way I could sleep for a
week I’d so do it.” Angie leaned back in her chair, fiddling with her braid.

“That’s no fun. We didn’t really grab much on the way here. I figure
we’ll head into town, you guys should make a list tonight of anything you want
or need.” Pete stuck his own hot dog into the fire, giving it a good char. He
shot Rich a look before commenting, “We’ll probably be gone for a while.”

Rich chuckled, “Way to be obvious little brother.” He glanced at Angie,
relieved when she didn’t look bothered by his brother’s innuendo.

He devoured his fish, realizing that Angie had to be starving too. She
picked at hers, eyeing the marshmallows the whole time. Tracy grumbled about
not having everything for s’mores but she quieted when Pete pulled her onto his
lap and nuzzled her neck.

“That’s our cue man. Let these lovebirds have their romantic evening by
the fire.” Charlie stumbled a bit when he stood, balancing himself by grabbing
Trevor’s shoulder. He’d started drinking again after they’d lit the fire.
Trevor laughed and shook his head as he stood, saying a quick goodnight before
leading his friend into the house.

Angie grabbed a skewer, shoving three marshmallows on the end before
shoving them in the flames. When they caught fire Rich pulled them close and
blew out the flame, waiting until they were cool enough to touch before
slipping one off the end and popping it into his mouth.

“Hey! Don’t you know ladies are supposed to be first Dick?” Angie
stuffed the other two in her mouth whole, her cheeks bulging.

He laughed, dipping a paper towel in the water from the cooler to help
her clean her face. When he glanced up he noticed Pete and Tracy watching them
with big smiles on their faces.

Angie giggled, still licking her fingers, “Hey, Pete Remington sounds
sort of like a porn star name too. Is your full name Peter?”

His brother nodded and chuckled. Tracy ran her fingers through his hair,
“Maybe you missed your calling.”

“That’s what he said.” Angie grabbed another soda and pointed at Rich.

He settled into his chair, happy that Angie had finally started to
relax. They sat and talked for another hour or so, finishing off the
marshmallows and chips. Angie yawned and they excused themselves to head to
bed. He wrapped his arms around her as they entered the house, giving her a big
hug. “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”

She nodded her agreement, yawning again. “I was serious about sleeping
in tomorrow. You want to jot a few things down on a list while I take a quick
shower? I smell like smoke.”

He kissed her forehead, “Sure, what do you need?”

“Surprise me.” She walked up the stairs, looking back at him over her
shoulder, “Thanks again for inviting me Rich.”

“Thanks again for agreeing to come.” He hurried to the kitchen, grabbing
the notepad that was always in the junk drawer. He wasn’t sure what all she’d
brought with her but she only had one bag so he tried to cover all the basics.

After carrying their stuff upstairs he stripped off his shirt and
settled into the chair in his room, waiting for his turn in the shower. 
It was the same room he’d always stayed in as a kid with Pete. It was huge
compared to his tiny dorm room. His eyes drifted closed as he looked back on
the day. All in all everything had gone extremely well.

A soft knock sounded on his door and he opened his eyes to find Angie
peering in at him, looking adorable wearing nothing but a long t-shirt.

He stood, “I’d ask you to stay with me but I know you’d shoot me down.”
He took in her face, clean of make-up, not at all surprised that she was as
beautiful as ever.

“You are a smart one.” She walked over to him, “I wouldn’t refuse a
goodnight kiss though.”

How could he resist that? He brought her into his arms, “How about a few
goodnight kisses?” He started at her nose, moving to each cheek before finally
placing a soft kiss on her lips.

“Goodnight Angel.”

“Goodnight Rich.”

This was going
to be the best vacation ever.

Rich woke up to the smell of coffee brewing. Glancing at the clock on
his bedside table he smiled, it was after eleven. Damn it felt good not having
to wake up to an alarm. The others were probably gone by now so he could only
assume Angie was the one assaulting his senses with the delicious scent. He
didn’t bother with a shirt, throwing on a pair of sweats and making a quick
stop in the bathroom to brush his teeth and relieve the pressure on his
bladder.

He found her standing near the sink drizzling syrup on a rolled up
pancake. He took a moment to drink in the site of her. Her hair was wavy and it
appeared she hadn’t done much more than run her fingers through it before
coming downstairs. She was still only dressed in her baggy t-shirt which
exposed a fair amount of thigh. “Good morning.”

Angie jumped with surprise, “You’re just in time for coffee. And someone
made pancakes. They’re cold but I don’t care.” She took a huge bite and walked
over to him as she chewed, “Want some?” She mumbled as she gave the syrup
bottle a little shake.

“I’m good, thanks.”

She swallowed and tipped her head at him, licking her lips. How could he
resist that? He leaned in for a kiss surprised when she beat him to the chase,
pressing her mouth to his before biting his lower lip playfully. He gasped and
she shoved the remaining pancake in his mouth, laughing.

“You play dirty. I like it.” He finally said when he’d swallowed. He
tried to grab the syrup, all sorts of naughty ideas popping into his mind, but
she twisted out of reach.

“Oh no you don’t, I don’t want to get all sticky.” After opening a few
cabinets she grabbed two coffee cups, filling them both before offering one to
him.

“Did you sleep well?” He took his first sip and eased into a chair at
the small breakfast table in the corner.

“Yes, better than I have in months.” She joined him at the table after
finding an almost-empty bag of sugar, pouring the contents into her coffee.
“Sorry, did you want some?”

“I’m good.” He sipped, the realization dawning on him that they were
completely alone. He shifted in his chair, attempting to adjust his hard-on.

After several long moments of awkward silence Angie tipped her head to
the side and narrowed her eyes, “What are you thinking about?”