Damaged and the Cobra (16 page)

Lark had a fake happy smile plastered on her face.
She had also covered her freckles and brushed her wild hair into a ponytail.
While she looked hot in the pink jumper dress over a purple tee, I knew she was
planning to pretend to be anyone except the real Larken Dawn Foster.

My mother would have none of it though.

Maryann Barnes wasn’t a woman to buy into
pretensions. She had a way of making everyone feel comfortable. When she and my
dad worked as a team, they could get anyone to smile and open up as if speaking
to their oldest friends.

Lark never had a chance. The minute Mom hugged her
then Dad surmised she was a tiny little bruiser, my girl was charmed. She
immediately lost her fake smile and revealed the grin that warmed my heart
every time.

“It’s time to make Aaron squirm now,” Mom said and
I knew the photo albums were coming out.

Lark must have known too because her eyes lit up.
“I hope our baby looks like you.”

My mother heard the word “baby” and squealed. When
I told my parents on the phone, I warned them not to freak out Lark. Of course,
they weren’t intimidated by my threats. They just wanted a grandbaby before it
was too late for them to enjoy the experience.

“How are you feeling?” Mom asked, sitting with Lark
on the couch while Dad retrieved those embarrassing albums.

“I’m still dizzy off and on, but I’m on prenatal
vitamins and iron pills. The doctor said I’m doing fine. I don’t have to go
back in until my second trimester.”

“Oh, I remember when I was pregnant with Anna. I
felt great the whole time. Those last weeks were a pain, but I was due in July.
The heat will drive a pregnant woman mad. Otherwise, it was easy. Don’t let
anyone tell you horror stories and scare you.”

“I won’t. Farah is trying to have a baby. Maybe
we’ll go through it together.”

“Baby Cooper and Aaron running around causing
trouble,” Dad said, setting an album on Lark’s lap. “Aaron was a very good
baby. Didn’t cry at all. Not once.”

When I laughed, Dad gave me a wink. “Here was our
boy at three months.”

Lark looked at the picture and laughed. Knowing
exactly what she thought was so funny, I explained, “They thought they were
adopting a girl, so I wore pink those first few months.”

“Babies grow so fast at that age,” Mom said. “No
reason to waste money on new clothes when he wouldn’t know the difference.”

Lark laughed at this comment and kept laughing
until the pictures reached when I was three. Her eyes moistened and again I was
the one to explain.

“Lark’s little brother died around that age.”

As Mom and Dad descended on her with hugs, I never
saw my girl look so startled. Life was different for her now. No longer was she
struggling to survive in a dysfunctional family of revolving fathers and a cold
mother. Now, she was a Barnes and we were fully functional and only slightly on
the weird side.

“You have curls,” she cooed, running her finger over
a picture of me at five.

“I loved those curls,” Mom said.

“She put barrettes in those curls,” I muttered,
standing behind the three of them as they looked through the album. Ignoring my
parents’ laughter, I continued, “I begged to have my hair shaved short. Once it
was, I never looked back.”

“I hope the baby has curls,” Lark said.

When she looked up at me, I knew for the first time
she was truly excited about our baby. No more fear or guilt, Lark embraced her
future as a mom.

Even young and inexperienced with kids, I felt
fearless too. Lark was my girl and she was having my baby and everything just
fit.

A few hours after the sun set, I heard a knock on
the door. Aaron was out back with the dogs. Even though he said not to answer
the door at night because he had loser friends who showed up drunk, I peeked
out the curtains to find a familiar grumpy face.

Throwing open the door, I smiled at my sister.

“Preggers, huh?” she said, pushing messy blonde
hair away from her blue eyes. “Aunt Raven has a nice ring to it.”

Lunging for her, I melted in her embrace. All those
months of anger at her leaving faded as she embraced me back. I had called and
she hadn’t ignored me.

“I missed you,” I whispered. “I can’t believe
you’re here.”

Raven looked down at me and sighed. “I fucked up
and it was easier to pretend otherwise without you knowing the truth.”

“I don’t understand.”

When Raven glanced around, I realized we should go
inside.

“This is your man’s place?” Raven asked as I shut
the door. “Homey and artsy. Who is this guy?”

“Aaron is amazing. He’s out back with the dogs.”

“I’ll meet him in a bit, but we need to talk
first.”

Expecting a lecture about the baby, I sat at the kitchen
table with Raven who pulled off her leather jacket and hung it from the back of
the chair.

“Are you here alone?” I asked when she said
nothing.

“I’ve been alone for months. Fucking Dexter took
our cash and ran off with some bitch he met at the cash checking place. He left
me a text about how she didn’t hassle him like I did. She was cool, you know?
Man, he’s lucky I couldn’t track down his ass or I’d have kicked it so hard
that he’d be shitting from his mouth.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, patting her hand.

To my surprise, Raven grabbed my hand and held it.
“You thought I left because of you? How fucking stupid are you sometimes?”

While I tried to pull my hand away, she kept it
tight in hers. “I had this stupid idea that I could leave my problems behind,”
she said in a rough voice. “Like I was drowning in shit because I lived in a
shithole. In reality, I take the shit with me. Everywhere I go, there I am.
When I left, I wanted to prove something else. I didn’t and was embarrassed to
admit that to you. It’s why I avoided talking you. I mean, how lame am I to
have Dexter dump me? He wasn’t even that fucking hot and he was stupid as shit
and I wasn’t good enough for him.”

“What have you been doing for money?”

“I tried stripping for a month or so. Made good
money too and that’s how I had enough cash to get home.”

“Stripping?” I asked, grinning.

“Hey, I’m coordinated and hot. I was a fave for
some freaks, but then I got fired for punching some fuck in the face. He
grabbed one of the girls and the bouncer was too busy flirting with his phone
to notice. Apparently, we weren’t supposed to defend ourselves. Asshole owner
thanked me for helping out then fired me. I still had enough money to get
here.”

“I’m sorry Dexter got away. I can imagine how much
you wanted to kick his ass.”

Raven smiled, but her eyes were sad. “You are a piece
of shit, Lark. The worse fucking person ever.”

“Why?” I balked.

“I heard that message about you thinking I ditched
you. I fucking cried and you know how I hate crying. You’re a cunt for making
me cry, but I’m glad you called. I wanted to come home, but I was embarrassed. There
are things worse than embarrassment like my little sister thinking I didn’t
care about her. You needed me and I’d been dying without you. Turns out, I’m
not likable enough to make friends who aren’t my sister.”

Laughing, I kissed her hand. “I’m glad you’re
here.”

“I’m staying too. I can strip anywhere. Or get a
job that doesn’t involve smiling at ugly guys,” Raven said. “I don’t want to
lie to myself. I’m the problem and I need to face my shitty habits and make
better ones.”

“It’s not all your fault.”

“Yeah, we had crappy parents, but we’re not kids
anymore and I need to fix what Mom broke. I don’t want to be forty and married
to some Larry shitface and asking for permission to take a piss. At this rate
though, I’ll be married to that fucker by thirty.”

“It’ll be okay, Raven. I found Aaron and he’s
really good inside. Not a dick hiding behind a hot bod. Just a really great
man.”

“Yeah, but you’re not me. You’ve always been
smarter. Remember in high school when I couldn’t figure out how to use my
combination lock and you had to help. What the fuck?”

“You’re tired. I can tell because you’re cussing
more than usual.”

Raven grinned. “See how perceptive you are? That’s
my little sis. I can’t believe you’re going to be a mom.”

When I lost my smile from worrying over being a
mom, Raven reached over and yanked on my hair.

“Don’t get gloomy on me. That day we lost Phoenix wasn’t about you. That was our shit stepdad. He wanted us to go away and play
somewhere, but he wanted Phoenix nearby. It was his fucking fault and you were
too young to understand. I was mature enough to get what happened. It’s why I
never blame myself.”

“Mature?” I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

“Yes, I hit my maturity at nine then stopped.
That’s so me. Advanced then delayed. I’m special that way.”

Laughing, I stood up and got her a Coke from the
frig. When I handed it to her, Raven stared at my flat belly then leaned her
face against it.

“You’re so lucky,” she whispered. “Your mommy will
make you laugh and kiss away the tears. She’ll read you books about self esteem
then sing you awful songs until you sleep out of boredom. You’re going to grow
up so loved and you won’t know any other way.”

When Raven looked up at me, she smiled at my tears.
“I wish I had a mom like you, Lark. Everyone does. You’re going to love the
shit out of this kid and you’ll make it look easy. No worries, okay?”

“Okay,” I whispered, caressing her face. “I’m so
glad you came home.”

“Me too.”

The sound of dogs’ claws on the wood floors ended
the quiet moment.

“Thank goodness we have company,” Raven said. “I was
gonna start bawling.”

Startled by a new person in the house, Pollack
descended into a barking fit while Professor played tough guy by growling.
Raven barked back at Pollack who decided she couldn’t argue with crazy and ran
away.

Already laughing before he turned the corner, Aaron
took a minute to realize who was sitting with me.

“Raven came home,” I told him and he smiled wider.
“She speaks dog too.”

“Pollack has never met a challenge she couldn’t run
from,” he said then glanced down at a growling Professor. “Hush.”

The dog grudgingly quieted, but kept an eye on
Raven who stood up and shook Aaron’s hand.

“You planning to make an honest woman out of my
sister?” she asked in a voice more suiting of a protective dad.

“Yes, sir.”

Laughing, I hugged Aaron who wrapped an arm around
me.

“Do you have a place to stay?” he asked Raven.

“I have cash to get a motel rom.”

“Fuck that. We have a spare room. I’ll need to
clean out some shit to make it more comfortable, but you should stay here.”

“How did you even find Aaron’s place?” I asked,
bending over to pat a still agitated Professor.

“Mom told me. I think she was just praying I didn’t
try to stay at her house. What the fuck is that?”

I started to stand up when she grabbed me and
pulled up my tee. Knowing she saw the faded bruises, I also knew what she would
do.

“Did you do that?” she screamed at Aaron who
blocked her punch.

“No,” I said, pushing her back. “It was Larry. When
he found out I was sneaking out to see Aaron, he freaked and attacked me.”

“Fuck!” she hollered, pacing back and forth as
Professor returned to growling. “Did your man at least fuck up Larry?”

“No,” I muttered, checking on Aaron who likely
thought Raven was nuts. “He trashed his car though. Ruined it.”

Raven stopped pacing and stared at Aaron. “You
killed Gloria?” When Aaron nodded, my sister’s eyes lit up. “I bet Larry wept
like a little bitch over that too. Oh, man, he loved that damn car. Loved it
more than his balls, I bet.”

“You can’t attack Aaron,” I said, staring up at her
with my pissed off face.

“Oh, stop. He’s a big boy and he has some fast
moves too. No worries. I just can’t believe you killed Gloria. That’s fucking
beautiful. I never would have thought of that, but the old man loves his car.
Way to cut out his heart and make him look at it.”

“Apologize,” I snapped.

“It’s not necessary, Lark,” Aaron said, being too
nice again when it came to girls. “She was just protecting you.”

“Fuck that. She could have hurt you because she’s
stupid.”

“Stupid?” Raven growled.

“I said Aaron was a good man. Would I really say
that about a guy who hits me?”

“No, but Aaron’s right. I was protecting you. I’m
just tired and cranky and hate men. I’m sorry I tried to crush your pretty
skull, big guy.”

“Apology accepted.”

“And I’m sorry I upset you, Lark. You’re fragile
now and I’ll need to keep that in mind when you push me like you just did.”

“I’ll kick your ass if you touch my man again.”

Raven squinted at me. “I get shivers when you turn
Thunder Kitten on me.”

Smiling grudgingly, I sighed. “What now?”

“Show me the room then the shower and I’ll wash
away my grumpy attitude. It’ll be all rainbows and snowmen afterwards.”

“Snowmen?” Aaron asked.

“She really likes snowmen.”

“Fuck yeah, snowmen rock.”

Aaron smiled at me and I could see he was truly
okay with Raven staying. I had worried especially after she freaked on him, but
he understood that Raven was more than my sister. She was my best friend and
she was finally home.