Fighting Me (8 page)

“Look out,” Mack shouts, making Brannon jump in his arms. “Big Man’s got jokes.” Walking around me, Mack heads inside grumbling something about how being on bottom sucks.

“Depends who’s on top, my man,” Aiden laughs.

Henry’s eyes are on me again, but he says nothing. Around us, the guys all continue laughing and joking, so I excuse myself to go clean up and put things away before dinner. Walking through the doors, I head through the living area and wave at the girls who are setting the long rectangular table for dinner.

“Do you need my help?” I ask Camaron, who is putting out plates while Daisy and Chase are bringing out side dishes from the kitchen.

“No, we’ve got this, go ahead and get changed.”

Nodding my reply, I head down the hall and into my bedroom, closing the door behind me. After cleaning out the day bag, I pull a pale pink maxi dress on over my bikini and slip on my white flip flops. I brush out my hair and pull it into a high ponytail before checking my blood and giving myself my evening dose of insulin. Grabbing my cell phone from the nightstand, I check for any missed calls and texts, which are all from my grandmother, except one from Tuesday asking if I’m enjoying myself.

I reply, saying that everything has been great and thanking her again for thinking of me for the job along with calling Gram and telling her that I’m fine and will tell her everything about my trip once I get back, promising to stop and grab her a souvenir from somewhere.

“Can you bring me a sexy cabana boy back with you, honey?” she cackles down the phone. “I’d sure love to get my hands on a fine piece of man meat.”

“There aren’t any cabana boys here, Gram.”

“Then what in the hell is good about goin’ to the beach and diggin’ sand out of your ass if a sexy man in a pair of stretchy undies isn’t bringing you somethin’ tasty to suck on?” she asks, making me damn near choke as I take a sip of water.

“Gram!” I shriek, just picturing her sitting at the table with her coffee, honey bun cake, and crossword puzzle while picturing me surrounded by oiled up waiters in thongs. The woman’s imagination is better than Jasmine’s some days.

“Little girl, I’m old,” she snorts. “Far from dead.”

“I love you, Gram. I’ll call you later.”

“Love you too.”

Powering off my phone, I set it back on the bed side table and head back up the hall since I’m sure everyone is already eating without me.

Everyone is gathered around the table, passing bowls and plates back and forth. Jazzie is sitting between Luke and Chase while Brannon is in his highchair sipping his juice. My eyes scan the table, finding the empty seat, which is on the end next to Henry. I grin to myself, knowing that he can’t avoid me now. Squaring my shoulders, I walk over and take my seat.

“Rae, you want a baked potato?” Mack asks, offering me the plate from across the table once I place a small steak on my plate.

“Sure,” I reply.

Chase and Camaron are busy going over some details for decorating the beach for the wedding with Daisy while everyone else makes normal dinner conversation and talks about their days. I, however, am not talkative. I eat, but the close proximity to Henry has my senses on high alert. My mind spins, playing back the kiss and our time in the bathroom over and over. I know there is more to him than the guy everyone sees and I got a taste of that. There’s no denying that I have spent a lot of time the last few days wondering what it would be like to feel his lips on mine again, to feel his hands on my body.

It’s all I can think about sometimes and I want more.

Shifting in my seat, I look around and notice everyone is busy chatting and eating. So, I make my move. Brushing my hands down the front of my dress, I let my hand brush the outside of Henry’s thigh. I saw him in a different way the other night; he was losing his grip on the control that I am learning is very important for him to maintain at all times. Right now, what I want most, is to see it happen again.

Henry’s body tenses. His hand grips mine beneath the table, his fingers wrapping around my wrist, causing my breath to catch. “Shouldn’t you be focusing on your dinner?” he mumbles under his breath, not looking up from his plate as he forks a bite of baked beans.

“Maybe that’s not what I’m hungry for,” I fire back just as he takes a bite causing him to choke.

Henry sputters and coughs, releasing my hand to cover his mouth. Grinning victoriously, I pick up my silverware and cut into my steak.

“Damn, Big Man,” Hunter says, reaching over and slapping him on the back. “Dude… inhale, exhale, chew, swallow, repeat. It’s an easy concept.” Grabbing bacon off his plate, Hunter crumbles it over his baked potato before covering it with cheese, sour cream, and more bacon.

“Would you like a little potato with your bacon, Hunter?” Henry tosses back, nudging Hunter in the ribs with his elbow. “You have no clue what real food is,” Henry says, gesturing to the big portions of meat and potatoes on his plate, all covered in hot sauce.

“Bacon is a food group, asshole,” Hunter argues before shoving a bite in his mouth. “It’s all I need. Occasionally, I like to spice it up and add potatoes, or cheese, or French fries.”

“French fries are potatoes,” I giggle, reaching for the unopened can of soda sitting beside my plate. “I’d bet my paycheck you couldn’t even go a day without bacon.”

Everyone stops what they’re doing immediately the minute the comment flies out of my mouth. I’ve seen Hunter eat other things besides bacon, but it’s easy to see he needs a meat-ervention. All eyes are on Hunter as he sets his fork down and his piece of bacon back on his plate. He looks over at me, a grin spreading across his face. “Rae, I know that you’re new here and everything, so you may not understand the ramifications of what you’ve just said.” Cracking his knuckles, Hunter arches a brow. “The word ‘bet’ isn’t used lightly. It’s a tradition.” Leaning toward me, crowding Henry’s space, Hunter places an elbow on the table. “Name your terms.”

You could hear a pin drop right now. Apparently, I’ve crossed some line into Shaft Tradition.

“Eat your food and shut the fuck up,” Henry says, shoving Hunter back from his plate. “Rae doesn’t want to play around with you.”

“Actually,” I reply, leaning into Henry’s space and am rewarded with a low growl. “You can count me in.”

E
veryone laughs
, all beginning to place bets on how long piggy boy will last without his precious meat. Rae stabs a piece of steak with her fork before lifting it to her lips, ignoring me completely while I watch her. I’ve been dying ever since she kissed me to taste her again. The way she felt in my arms had me ready to surrender even though I know it’s a bad idea.

It’s the worst idea, but I want her, and she knows it.

Now, she’s teasing me.

Setting down her fork, Rae turns and grins at Hunter. “Okay, from now until the reception, since I’ve seen the menu and don’t expect you to live on lemon wedges. If you do it, I’ll work the two weeks for free, minus room and board of course.”

“And if I don’t?” Hunter asks, putting on his poker face. Grabbing his beer, he takes a long pull.

“I get double,” Rae says without batting an eye. “And you replace the shoes your furry menace destroyed before we left Nashville.”

“Done.” Hunter reaches out his hand for Rae to shake.

“Agreed,” Rae says, shaking on it to seal the deal.

“Holy shit,” Chase laughs, clapping her hands. “No bacon until the wedding? I don’t think I’ve ever seen him go one meal without it.”

Aiden jumps from the table and comes back with a piece of paper and a marker. “Okay, place your bets. We need a pool going on how long he can stay bacon free.”

Leaning up in my chair, I grab my wallet from my back pocket and toss two hundred dollar bills at Aiden. “He’ll never last, but I’m putting the two hundred on it being a breakfast meal that breaks him.”

“Where’s the faith, Big Man?” Hunter asks, grabbing the plate of ribs. “I can do this.”

Scooting back my chair, I stand to my feet. “It’s not a lack of faith, Hunter,” I say, patting him on the back. “I just know you too well. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to check things out.”

“You’re off duty tonight,” Chase calls as I head for the door.

“No habla ingles,” I toss out and head down the deck stairs to the beach.

The quiet of the beach and the trails that run along the island don’t clear my mind of all the racing thoughts in the way I had hoped. Instead, everything is gone from my mind, except Rae. She has taken over my thoughts, pushing everything down the totem pole a spot or two. It’s taken everything in me not to touch her, kiss her. Mack was more than happy to take over kid and nanny duty, but it left me unsettled, so I watched every chance I got from a distance.

Only problem is, she’s figured me out and has decided to push back.

My concern now is that if she continues to test my limits of control, it’s only a matter of time before I lose my will power. She is in no way prepared for that.

By the time I make my way back up the beach, I can see the lights from the main house on in the distance. Instead of going toward the house, I go up the other side of the beach, away from the dock. Stopping, I turn and stare out at the water, watching the last bit of sunlight disappear into the horizon, I let my eyes adjust to the darkness.

“You’re the only man I know who wears sunglasses at night.” Turning around, I see Rae lying on the same blanket she and Brannon played on earlier this afternoon. Leaning up on her elbows, she assesses me. “Actually, there’s very little time when you’re not wearing them.”

“Sun and the stage lights hurt my eyes,” I shrug, giving her the stock answer I always use when someone asks, which honestly, isn’t often.

“Why is it that I don’t believe that’s the whole story?” she asks, tilting her head sideways, the moonlight framing her face. “You’ve got darkness behind those eyes, Henry.”

“What are you doing all the way over here?” I ask, ignoring her last statement, knowing that no one walks this far away from the house after it starts getting dark. There aren’t any solar torches this far out so it makes it harder to see. “You could get lost without the extra light now that it’s dark.”

“Since I have the night off, I wanted to lie here and look at the stars without the light reflecting from the houses. Sometimes it’s a good thing to just get lost, Henry. It reminds us that the world is so much bigger than us and our problems.”

“Some things you can’t run from,” I reply, running a hand through my hair, wishing it were just that easy to get lost for a while. “The shit you run from is always going to be there waiting when you get back.”

“It’s not hiding, Henry, it’s regrouping. Self-preservation at its finest. Sometimes the best thing you can do is say fuck it. Sure, your shit will be there when you get back to it, but you won’t be in the same frame of mind. Everyone has things they don’t want to face, but it’s how we handle them that make us who we are.” Patting the sand beside her, she gestures for me to sit. I don’t even move. She’s dangerous in a way that she can’t even begin to understand. “Oh, Henry. I’m not gonna bite,” she purrs. “Although, after the other night…” she pauses, making my knees nearly fuckin’ wobble. “If you ask real nice, I might nibble a little.”

“You’re not being fair.” Walking over, I sag to the sand beside her. “Do you have any idea how hard it is not to roll you beneath me right here and take what I want, Rae?”

I can hear her sharp intake of breath, but she runs her fingers up my arm. “Last I checked, I wasn’t stopping you.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying, Rae,” I warn, closing my eyes tightly.

“I want to see your eyes when I talk to you.” Rae grabs my sunglasses, yanking them off my face. My eyes fly open in shock as she hitches up the bottom of her dress and straddles my thighs. Wrapping her arms around my neck, she leans in so that our lips are nearly touching. “Henry,” she whispers, “I’m going to say this once, and only once, then I’ll never mention it again. Something clicked when I kissed you the other night, I don’t know what that thing was, but it clicked, sparked, and I liked it. Here’s what you can do: either tell me you don’t want me and I’ll go to bed right now, alone, or you can get lost with me, right now, and kiss me.

“Us doing this could complicate things, Rae,” I warn her, knowing that it’s happened a lot thanks to Mack. Nannies get nervous about shit and bolt the moment the group knows what has gone on behind closed doors, or in Mack’s case, not even with the doors closed. “Are you prepared for the consequences?”

“I’m a grown ass woman, Henry. I can handle whatever you’ve got to throw at me.”

“If you’re sure about that.” Gripping her hips, I fist her dress in my hands. “Then there’s only one more thing you need to know, Rae.” Rolling her to her back, I cup her face with one hand. “This is a place where I’ll be runnin’ things too,” I say, running my index finger over her lips before skimming it down her neck and chest, coming to a stop at the trim of her dress. Her breasts are rising and falling, faster and faster, pushing against the fabric teasing my raging appetite. Her eyes heat as she stares up at me. Nodding slowly, she sinks her teeth into that juicy bottom lip that I know all too well tastes like green apple chapstick.

I can’t take it anymore. My hand cups the back of her head and I slam my mouth to hers. Instantly, she opens for me and I groan at the taste of her on my tongue. Her hands slide around to my back, her fingers digging into my skin through my t-shirt. Fuck, it’s amazing.

My dick is already pressing painfully against my jeans, but there’s no way in hell I’m unleashing him just yet. I’d go off like a rocket in under a minute and I don’t want this to go there. Not yet.

Rae moans into my mouth, her tongue tangling with mine and I feel all my control going down the drain so fast it has my head spinning. My hands slide down her body, cupping her ass through her dress so that I can rock my hips into her to give us some kind of friction.

My mouth leaves hers, making a trail across her jaw and down her throat. “Mmm… Henry,” she moans, arching her back, causing her to grind harder into my throbbing cock.

Reaching her breasts, I yank down the stretchy top of the strapless dress and free her breasts from the bikini top. Tiny barbells with pink rhinestones twinkle up at me in the moonlight. Leaning down, I circle one pierced nipple before doing the same to the other. Rae lets out a long moan and wraps her legs around my waist, her hands sliding down to my hips. Her fingers curl into the belt loops of my jeans and she tugs.

Sucking her nipple into my mouth, I flick my tongue back and forth over the metal, making her body tremble. Rae moans again, her fingers sliding up my back and under my shirt. Leaning back, her nipple slips out of my mouth with a loud pop. I look down at her as she stares up at me before tugging my shirt over my head and tossing it to the sand beside us. Her fingertips skim along the tattoos on my abdomen and chest, tracing the lines of black script that lays against the vivid colors. Every inch of my ink tells a story. Her fingers stop on the monster tattoo and where it looks like he’s ripping my flesh away to the bone to escape. I can see the questions in her eyes, ones that I don’t want to answer. I don’t want to talk, not now. I just want to feel her, to hear my name on those beautiful lips again.

Grabbing her hands, I pin them both above her head before leaning down to take her mouth again. It’s not that I don’t want Rae to touch me. I do. She has no idea how good it feels, but I’m struggling to hold onto my last shred of control as it is.

Every touch feels so much more than skin deep.

My phone goes off in my back pocket and I groan.
Not this, not now. This can’t be happening.
Breaking the kiss, I jerk back and grab it from my pants. “Henry,” I bark into the phone a little harsher than I mean to.

“Big Man, main house, now,” Mack shouts frantically into the phone before the phone beeps alerting me to the lost call, making my blood run cold.

“Fuck!” I shout, grabbing my shirt.

“What’s wrong? Is it the kids?” Rae asks, already up and putting herself back together.

Every possible scenario is running through my mind while I make my way up the beach to the house with Rae keeping right up with me. What in the hell could possibly have happened? My heart is nearly beating out of my chest, my lungs burning like wild fire as I force air in and out. This feeling never gets old, and I never get used to it. The fear, the preparation of going into an unknown situation. You can never quite prepare yourself for the drop your stomach does in these moments.

By the time we climb the steps to the back deck of the main house and I fling open the closed patio door, I am damn near gasping for breath. Frantically, I scan the room, but don’t see Mack anywhere. “Where the hell is Mack?” I ask, everyone looking up at me in confusion.

Hunter looks up from the table where he sits with Cam and Aiden. I look over to the couch where Daisy sits curled up with Grayson and Brannon, watching a movie with Luke and Kionna. “No clue, Big Man,” Luke says, standing to his feet.

“What the fuck is going on?” I ask, scrubbing a hand over my face. “He called and scared the shit out of me. You’re telling me I hauled ass back here and he’s not even here?”

“Dude, you run fast for an old man,” Mack says coming in behind us, laughing his ass off. “You should see your face. Fuckin’ priceless.”

Before I can even speak, let alone react, Rae pushes by me and steps up to Mack. Her small frame shaking with fury as she stares him down, her eyes looking damn near explosive. “Are you kidding me?” she yells, her fist connecting with his jaw. “I nearly had a panic attack thinking it was one of the kids. What the hell is wrong with you?” she shouts, shoving him. Mack stumbles backwards into the wall, chuckling as he fights her off. Turning on her heel, Rae storms off, disappearing down the hallway.

“Damn, all I gotta say is that chick has a hell of a right hook,” Mack says rubbing his jaw.

“What the hell were you thinking, Mack?” I ask, nearly ready to show him what a hell of a right hook really feels like.

Mack shrugs, throwing his hands up in the air. “I thought that since we were perfectly safe on this island that playing a prank on you would maybe help you relax. I really didn’t think you’d fall for it since you know how secure we are here,” he explains, blowing out a breath. “I’m sorry dude, I really am, but I thought you’d laugh and loosen up a bit, then tell me to fuck off or something.” Mack looks down the hallway, before swiping a hand over his face, guilt filling his features. “I had no idea she’d hear. I’m… Fuck, I messed up again.”

“Yeah,” I snap, my eyes going down the hallway.

“If she quits because of this, Mack, I’m going to tie you to a bedroom door and your prankin’ ass will be sailin’ home Jack and Rose style, bitch.” Standing to his feet, Hunter walks over and stands beside me. “According to some cockblocking wedding ‘tradition’,” he says, air quoting. “I’m not even allowed to see her pussy, let alone fuck it until after Chase has my last name.” Stepping closer, Hunter points a finger in Mack’s chest. “Nothing, and I repeat nothing, comes between my cock getting at that ass. Especially not one of your monumental fuck ups.”

“I get it, okay?” Mack replies, holding his hands up in defeat. “What do you want from me? I already said I was sorry, you don’t have to be such a crab ass.”

“I’m all for Henry unwinding, but nothing about that shit was okay,” Daisy says, pushing to her feet. “You’ve not been here the entire time, of course, but I know you remember that Taser to the balls.”

“Yeah, we don’t fuck around like that. Emergencies are just that,” Cam adds. “We have made it to this place because we don’t take what we’ve been through lightly. Yes, we joke, but some things just aren’t funny. Ever.”

Hunter looks at me, his lips twisting into a grin. The wheels are working overtime in his head, and that’s never a good thing. Except for now. Mack needs to be schooled and Hunter’s crazy fuckin’ ass may be thinking on it, but he isn’t the only person wanting to handle that.

“Don’t worry, Mack.” Leaning in, Hunter pats him on the back. “I’m not mad at all.”

Chuckling, I shake my head. “I’ve had enough excitement for the night,” I say, making my way through the room. “How about you don’t call me unless there is
really
a problem? Thanks for covering the night shift again, Mack.”