The Hurricane (7 page)

The oven started to beep so I walked into the kitchen, holding up one finger at Ryker to let him know I would be right back.

“I’m going to put Mustang in the cage,” she said, and ran to her room.

“Do you need help?” I yelled after her as I pulled the dish out of the oven.

“Nope, I got it,” she said from her room. I pulled the aluminum foil from the lasagna and examined my work.

I felt him walk behind me and put his hands on my waist.

“Do you know how hard it was not to kiss you?” he whispered into my ear. My eyes instantly fluttered shut and I leaned my back into his chest.

“I do actually,” I whispered as he planted soft kisses on my neck.

“You look beautiful,” he whispered, his lips grazing against my ear, his hot breath causing goose bumps along my shoulders. He felt so good against me. And his smell was intoxicating. I was drawn to it, to him.

The next second he moved away from me and I was jerked back to reality.

“Do you need help?” Ryker said casually as he looked at Brooklyn walking out of her room, and then back at me, winking again.

“No, I got it,” I said in the same casual tone. “Go, sit.”

Ryker did as I asked, and Brooklyn followed right behind him, planting herself next to him. I started to set the table and noticed Brooklyn examining Ryker’s arms. He stared at her, smiling; he didn’t speak, he just let her move his arm up and down staring at all the designs. One particular one must have caught her eye, because she stilled his arm and concentrated. I held the silverware in my hand, watching.

“Fig . . . fig . . . fig.tt” She was trying to read. We had been working on her letters for some time now. She could read a few things, and knew most of the sounds the letters made. But she was a little stumped.

“What does that say?” she asked.

“It says fight without fear,” he said, and then pursed his lips together tightly.

“What does that mean?” she asked curiously.

I was curious to hear his answer. Brooklyn had a knack for putting him on the spot.

“It means always be brave,” he said, and glanced over at me, giving me a small smile.

“Cool.”

“Are you guys ready to eat?” I asked, interrupting.

“Always,” Ryker said with a smile as he stood up.

“Sit next to me, Ryker,” Brooklyn said as she led him by the hand to the table.

Please don’t let her heart get broken. I pleaded to myself, to God, to whoever would listen.

So fucking persistent

“She finally gave up,” Natalie said quietly as she walked out of Brooklyn’s room, and sat beside me on her oversized couch. She tucked her bare feet under her and pulled that sexy ass blue sundress over her knees, brushing her shoulder against mine.

“Is she a hard sleeper?” I asked, tired of keeping my hands off of her.

“Most of the time,” she whispered and lifted her head, piercing those green eyes into me. I slid my arm around the small of her back and lifted her onto my lap. The little shriek of surprise that came out of her was so damn cute.

“I need to kiss you. Now,” I said softly as I put my hands around the back of her neck, pulling her closer to me.

“Now?” she whispered with a grin as she swept her lips across mine without making full contact.

“Right fucking now,” I said and pulled her into me. A quiet moan escaped her lips as our mouths met. Her hands went to my head and she threw my baseball cap onto the couch. The way she ran her fingers through my hair caused my dick to stand at attention.

“Fuck,” I whispered as I grabbed her ass, and pulled her closer to me. I needed to feel her. I didn’t want to push her, but she felt so good, I needed her closer. Our kisses became more intense as I ran my hand over her breast. I could feel her heat against me, and I thought my dick was going to explode out of my jeans.

“You feel so good against me,” I whispered into her neck as she started to grind against me. Her quiet whimpers matched her movements. The buzzing of my phone caused her to still and she pulled away slightly, and looked into my eyes.

“Do you need to get that?” She asked through ragged breaths, running her fingers through her hair.

“Nope,” I said as I pulled my phone from my pocket, declining the call without giving it a glance. I threw it on the couch beside me and pulled her to me again.

I kissed her lips and waited for her to open her mouth for me. I slid my tongue inside her mouth, craving the taste of her and wanting more. My phone started buzzing again and I reached next to me, declining it again, without breaking our kiss this time.

When it started buzzing once again, Natalie broke away from me. She was so fucking beautiful. Her hair was a little wild from my hands, her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen and red. Fucking sexy.

“Maybe it’s important,” she whispered, touching her fingers to her lips. I let out a loud sigh and ran my hands up her bare thighs; her dress had made its way up to her panties. I took one look down and wanted to bury my face there.

The buzzing of my phone jerked me from my thoughts and pissed me off.

I looked down at the screen. It was Cain. I wanted to decline it again but knew I probably shouldn’t. He never called multiple times in a row. If I didn’t answer, he usually just left a voicemail or sent me a text.

I nodded my head and kept one hand on her thigh as I picked up my phone with the other.

“This better be important,” I said into the phone.

“Did I interrupt something, bro?” he asked, and then it was followed with a deep chuckle.

“You did. What’s up?” I asked.

“I take it you’re not alone,” he said.

“No, what is it? I’m a little busy.”

“If your cock is buried in someone, I’d rather you take it out so you can concentrate for a minute,” he said, laughing again. My eyes went to Natalie, who was staring above my head, biting her bottom lip, looking sexy as hell, but I could tell she seemed nervous.

“Is this something that can wait?” I asked, getting irritated.

“I have a proposition,” he stated. It had something to do with money. I could tell by the change in his tone.

“I’m gonna call you later, bro,” I said. I wasn’t interested in talking to him now; I wanted to concentrate on Natalie.

“Momma?” I heard a voice in the distance, followed by the quiet squeak of a door and the swift movement of Natalie launching to her feet.

“Ryker, this is important!” Cain said sternly.

“I’ll call you later,” I said, and disconnected the call.

“Honey, what’s wrong?” Nat said in a sweet voice as she walked towards Brooklyn’s bedroom door. She was standing in her doorway, rubbing her eyes and gripping a teddy bear.

“I can’t sleep,” she said with one eye open, and her fist in the other.

“You look like your still sleeping,” Nat giggled, and looked over her shoulder at me, mouthing the word “Sorry.” I shook my head at her and gave her a grin.

“Will you lie in my bed, just until I fall asleep?” she asked, and I heard Natalie’s quiet sigh.

“Go get in bed, I’ll be there in just a minute.”

“Ok, goodnight Ryker,” she said and turned her back, shuffling back to bed.

“Night,” I said quietly.

“I should get to her,” Nat said, apologetically. “She’s been going through this phase for a couple of months now.”

“Ok,” I said, and ran my finger over her nose.

“I’ll walk you out,” she said as she ran her hand down my arm and intertwined our fingers, leading me to the door.

“Can I call you tomorrow?” I asked as I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her to me.

“Of course” she said as she put her head against my chest.

“Look at me,” I said quietly as I touched her chin, and guided her face in my direction.

She stared up at me, her green eyes shining in the moonlight.

“God, you’re beautiful,” I said, and pressed my lips to hers.

“Goodnight,” I whispered when our lips fell apart.

“Goodnight,” she repeated, our hands touching until we couldn’t reach each other as I started down the sidewalk, making my way to my bike. I rolled it out backwards, waiting until I got to the street to start it, not wanting to scare Brooklyn with the roar of the engine. I kept my eyes on Nat until I put the bike in gear. She hadn’t moved. She stood there, in all her perfection, watching my every move. I gave her a grin and a nod as I rode away.

As I walked into my apartment, I felt the buzz of a text message. It was Cain. I had missed two more calls on the way home.

“Fucking persistent, dude,” I said into the receiver when he answered immediately.

“You know I’m not patient,” he growled.

“No shit,” I said.

“Johnson wants a rematch.”

“Fuck that, Cain. I’m done with that.”

“5k just to fight, 20 if you win. It’s a sure thing brother,” he said, and I could feel his grin. Money meant a whole lot more to my brother than it did to me.

“I told you, I’m out.”

“He’s talking a lot of shit, Ryker. You need to put this fucker in his place.”

“Nope,” I said flatly as I kicked my boots off.

“He said you fixed the last fight.”

“What? I won that fucking fight fair and square.” He knew that would get my attention.

“People are talking.”

“Cain, I’m out of the game. I don’t want it anymore. Let them talk,” I said, convincing myself it didn’t matter.

“Just think about it, Ryker. I’ll call you in a couple of days,” he said, and I heard the clicking sound of the phone disconnecting.

Fuck that. I won that fight. I didn’t need to prove to that pussy that I could beat him.

I was out of the game. I was out of the game. I was out of the game.

I walked into my spare bedroom and threw my fist into the punching bag that hung from the ceiling.

The Whole Truth

The beach. It’s where I came to remember. It’s where I came to forget. It gave me peace. For so long I tried to deny my reasons for being drawn to this place. I mean, I grew up in Amarillo, not a beach in sight. But I always longed for this place. When I was young, it was about the fun. As I grew older, it was about the peace it gave me. The waves crashing; the wind blowing through your hair was amazing during a Texas summer. All of that was great, but it reminded me of him. It reminded me of the way he made me feel. Even though he hurt my teenage heart, he still gave me comfort. And he was back in my life, which was the crazy part of all of it.