Tapped (Totaled Book 2) (31 page)

            “Wow!” Brett exclaimed. “You’ve thought of everything.”

            “Well, what was I supposed to do? Leave it up to you numbskulls? You’d never even get off the ground,” I joked. “I also need you all to read and pay special attention to the paper that I typed up of dos and don’ts.”

            “What do you mean?” Liam asked innocently.

            “This is a different country and a completely different culture. There are quite a few ways to screw up and I really don’t want to have to bail you out of an Arabic prison.” I could only imagine how difficult that task would be. Little did they know I had something up my sleeve.

            “Like what?” Dad fretted, clearly shocked by all that was involved in their traveling out of the country.

            “Will you just read it?” I growled. “Everything in these packets is very clear.”

            “Holy shit! Women can’t drive?” Tony questioned, noticing that very fact as he flipped through the packet of information.

            The rest of the men rushed to locate the information, the looks on their faces ranging from shock and awe to irritation and offense.

            “It says here we need to be dressed in business attire when out in public,” Brett pointed out with uncertainty in his tone. “What is that…like a suit and tie? ‘Cause I only have one suit; I wear it to funerals.”

            I wasn’t trying to make him feel stupid, but I couldn’t suppress the laugh any longer. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to wear your funeral suit for an entire week,” I teased. “You just have to wear slacks and a dress shirt. No necktie required. But you probably should bring your suit with a few dress shirts to switch out underneath.” The collective sighs and scoffs that every one of them gave almost in unison was impressive. “Y’all should really be more focused on the fight and less on your wardrobe.”

            “What’s this about saying the traditional Muslim greeting to be polite? I don’t even know how to say these words—ass lam ally cum?” Dad attempted, completely butchering the phrase and making it sound quite inappropriate.

            I corrected him with the proper pronunciation of
assalam alykum
and explained that it meant "peace be upon you" and instructed them that they would also be expected to return the greeting with
alykum assalam
, meaning "peace be upon you, too." They all stared at me like I had sprouted an extra head on top of my body.

            “Come on, guys, where’s your sense of adventure?” I thundered. “Aren’t you excited about getting to go across the world and experience something new?”

            “I’m excited. I just didn’t know there was homework involved.” Liam snickered, trying to fit in by being a smartass.

            “Listen!” Drew announced sternly. “Bree obviously went to a lot of trouble here, and you all should be a little more appreciative. Show some respect!”

            Brett and Tony stiffened in their posture and promptly quit snickering. Dad looked indifferent and maintained his poker face.

            “If you don’t want to take five minutes to study up on how to not get yourself in trouble, then don’t go. I’m not gonna be embarrassed,” Drew threatened as he stood up from his seated position on the floor. He cut his eyes to Liam. “And I’m damn sure not gonna have
any
of our people getting into any fights.”

            Liam simply nodded once in agreement, his eyes quickly looking down at the floor.

            Drew took a step closer to me and grabbed my hand, squeezing it firmly but kindly, and held on for just a few seconds while he looked sincerely into my eyes. “Thank you, Bree…for all of this.”

            I offered an appreciative smile. “You’re welcome. You’ll have Chris there to keep you all in check.”

            He let go of my hand and turned to address the group. “Now everyone needs to get home and start packing. We have to be at Jacksonville International Airport at three tomorrow afternoon, according to our itinerary.” He glanced at me with an expression that said “I’ll talk to you later,” which thankfully went unnoticed by the rest of the group, who’d started chattering amongst themselves.

            Everyone filed out and Liam, moving a little slower than usual, lingered behind.

            “You okay?” I asked him, concerned that he had perhaps overexerted himself in training.

            “Yeah, I guess,” he replied. “I’m just a little nervous about all of this.” His gaze was cast down as he packed away his gloves and sweat towel into his bag.

            Everyone else was leaving, on their way out the door, so I sat down on the bench next to his bag and tried to dig deeper. “Nervous about what? Let’s talk about it.”

            He sat beside me on the bench and opened right up. “I don’t want to screw anything up,” he confessed. I tilted my chin to look at him, eyebrows raised slightly in confusion. “This is a big deal for Drew and that was a lot of rules.” 

            “Yeah, it is…but you’ll be fine,” I tried to reassure him. “How about this? I’ll give you a ride home and we can study it tonight, just like the good ol’ days. I’ll make a quiz for you and pretend I’m a Muslim woman with a head scarf on so you can practice.”

            He seemed encouraged by my offer and relaxed a little, continuing to ask questions the whole way home. I wished more than anything that I could tell him I’d be there with him. I wanted to not only watch over him but also share the experience. But I couldn’t risk it. I couldn’t chance that he would blow it for me.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

DREW

            It was just after one in the morning when I finally heard a rap on my door. The look I gave her at the gym seemed to be understood, but I sent her a couple of texts a few hours later to make sure.

Me: I want to see you before I go.

Me: I NEED to see you.

            A few minutes passed, feeling more like hours, before she replied with a text message of her own. My only reaction was to smile as big as I could when my phone dinged.

Bree: You will.  ;)

            It certainly wasn’t the most detailed response, but I knew exactly what it meant. I knew that she was going to make every effort to come be with me. I sent Mick on his way, thanking him once again for keeping me company, but most of all for keeping me accountable. He was an amazing source of strength for me to draw from when I needed it and was so supportive of my urgency to reunite with Bree on my own terms. He listened without judgment and instead of always trying to offer advice or a suggestion to fix the problem, he seemed to know when I just needed him to hear me and offer nothing but his ear. The man was truly a saint and I made sure to tell him as much. He, of course, responded with his to-be-expected humility and thanked
me
for my hospitality when in actuality he was here helping me. I walked him out, loading his duffle bag into his truck and as he was pulling out of my driveway, he rolled his window down to yell, “Tell Bree I said hey!” with a wink. It cracked me up that he knew exactly why I was shooing him off before morning. I had no apprehension that he wouldn’t keep his little assumption to himself.

            I absolutely hated when I had to hide or keep things secret. It’s a tough thing to be a grown adult and feel the need to sneak around, but I kept reminding myself that I’d made my bed and now needed to lie in it.

            When the soft and gentle knock sounded, I knew it was her. Shy and quiet, unsure of herself. I wanted her to be sure. I wanted her to never, ever doubt what we have another day of her life. I wanted her to feel safe and secure and be able to trust that I was never going to let anything happen to her again, at my hand or by anyone else’s. 

            I opened the door wearing loose gray flannel pajama pants that rode low on my hips and no shirt. Her gaze slowly slid downward as if she were photographing me with her eyes.

            “I wasn’t sure you were going to show,” I baited. My voice came out dry and almost unrecognizable after I took in the sight of her. She was beautiful in a simple tank top and maxi skirt that clung to her hips and thighs like spandex but then hung loosely down to her toes. Her hair was down and disheveled by the sea breeze, blowing wisps of it around to frame her face. “Come in,” I invited, opening the door wider. When she walked past me, so close that I could feel the heat of her body, I could sense her trepidation. She was nervous and I hated it.

            She continued into the house, her steps slow and tentative; I followed a few paces behind, trying to read her energy. She removed the purse that was slung across her chest and placed it casually on the counter. Her hands fidgeted in front of her and when they weren’t, she kept smoothing loose strands of hair back behind her ears.

            “Why are you so nervous, Bree?” I confronted, moving towards her.

            She leaned her back against the counter and tried to look more casual and relaxed. “I’m not nervous,” she insisted, but I could see the pulse in her neck throbbing with adrenaline. “Are you all packed?”

            “I am,” I answered simply, moving even closer. Her throat bobbed with a hard swallow and I put my hands on the countertop on each side of her, caging her in. “Are you thirsty?” I asked softly, gently angling my head down to place a soft kiss at the hollow at the base of her throat.

            She leaned into me and slightly nodded an affirmation. I trailed my lips up the side of her neck, dragging them along her skin in a languorous movement. Her breaths were clipped and ragged and she stood completely still, letting me explore her.

            “I’ve been thinking about what I wanted to say,” I whispered into her hair just before I took her earlobe into my mouth, sucking and nibbling on it. The sweet scent of her shampoo was intoxicating. Her response was just an exhaled breath, the faintest of sighs escaping. “But now that you’re here…” I continued to kiss and nip at her neck and brought my right hand down to rub soft circles over her bare arm, barely allowing my fingertips to connect. Her soft skin instantly became covered in goosebumps and I backed up enough to see that her eyelids were hooded—almost closed. I let my forehead rest on hers, our noses just touching, and I breathed. “I’ve missed you.”

            “Show me,” she murmured with lust.

BREE

            His strong hands came down in a fury to lift the fabric of my skirt up from the floor and cup my ass, bringing me up in one swift movement to straddle him, wrapping my legs around his waist. The electricity from his touch shot through me. As he carried me away from the kitchen, my arms found their way around his thick neck. Our eyes searched each other’s. His were like a storm, raging with frenzy and passion but clouded with pain and conflict. He wanted me but he needed permission and I knew in that moment, with crystal clarity, that I had to show him just how much I’d missed him too. 

            I leaned in with parted lips and met his, my bottom lip sucked into his hot mouth and released slowly by the gentle nibble of his teeth. A quiver surged through my veins and my nipples beaded and tingled against the fabric of my tank top. I throbbed—everywhere—and kissed him hungrily to ease the ache coursing through my body and pooling between my legs. But he was intent on leading and set the pace of our kiss much slower, pulling away when I pressed further forward, slowing his tongue when I started to speed mine.

            Lost in the moment and oblivious to what planet I was even on, I didn’t realize he’d carried me into his bedroom until he brought a large, firm hand up to cradle the back of my head as he carefully lowered me onto the bed. He stared at my face, his eyes intense and deliberate, and I wanted nothing more than for him to bury himself inside me. I thought I would have more trepidation about being there—in the very room, on the same bed—where it all happened. But it wasn’t the case at all. I was in the moment, loving the fact that we could make new memories in what was the scene of such a traumatic one for both of us. I felt cherished and loved—safe.

            As he stood before me, I locked my focus on the perfection of his body, allowing my eyes to roam over him. The corded muscles of his chest flowed into the hard ripples of his abs. The chiseled V was even sexier than I remember it, leading a path for my eyes down to the tented bulge under his pants. My legs were trembling and my palms were sweaty.

            He lowered himself over me and covered my mouth with his, tenderly tasting and kissing, taking his time. I felt as if I could explode—would explode—any moment, the ache in between my legs needing desperately to be soothed. He lowered the left spaghetti strap of my tank top and laid soft kisses along my collarbone. It was the best kind of sweet torture. When his thumb grazed over my nipple, my body bucked off of the bed involuntarily and a whimpered “Please,” escaped my mouth.

            “Shhh… Let me love you,” he whispered, his breath hot against my skin. He pulled the other strap down, my arms lifting for him, and rolled the fabric of my tank top down, exposing my pebbled nipples to the air. “God, you’re beautiful,” he complimented, circling my nipple with his warm tongue.

            My legs, shaky with craving, squirmed beneath him as I tried to appease the pounding in my core. He lifted his head from my breasts, curling his lips into a taunting grin, knowing exactly what he was doing to me and enjoying being the tormentor. Coming up onto his knees, his hands grazed over my exposed chest to grip the edges of my tank top and inch it down, my elastic jersey skirt coming down with it. I was almost bare, with nothing but my lacy underwear, which I was sure were soaked through already at how turned on I was.

            I watched his every move, every flex of his muscles, clenching when the tip of his tongue snuck out to rewet his lips. He admired me and brought his large hands down to my ribcage, his thumbs teasing my nipples. His hands were rough against my skin—callused and thick, strong and worn from fighting—but he touched me so tenderly. His lips found their way down to my stomach, kissing around, searing a path down to my hip. My skin tingled everywhere he passed. I couldn’t take much more before my heart burst and he seemed to sense it.