Unleashed: Volume 1 (Unleashed #1) (18 page)

Defiant, I refused to
look up and meet his eyes. He didn’t own me. I decided that the
only thing to do was throw myself back into waiting tables. And
flirting.

“Hey there.” I had
a big smile for the table of fly fishermen, especially my Ken doll.
He ate it up, going so far as to ask when my shift ended for the
night.

“I’ll get back to
you on that.” I sparkled back at him, giving him a wink. I arched
my back, thrusting out my breasts and could almost hear the guy suck
in his breath, giving a low whistle of appreciation. I put some swing
in my step, letting that tiny skirt have its way with him as I headed
off to another table. Let Declan eat his heart out. He might think he
had me conquered, but I’d show him.

Back at the bar, I
laughed at Trent’s latest line, something about how there was
something wrong with his phone. It didn’t have my number in it. I
gave him a wicked smile, licking my lips and saw his instant
response, the light teasing in his eyes flare into something more
fiery and urgent.

Trish sidled up next to
me. “Don’t look now but the hottest guy in town just walked into
the bar. And I swear he’s looking right at you.”

I had a sinking feeling
I knew exactly who Trish was talking about.

“Declan Hunt,”
Trish whispered, as if saying the name of a rare and delicious
dessert. “He owns this whole building. Don’t look now, but he’s
standing right in the corner.”

My whole body could
feel the heat of his stare, the magnetic pull to his muscle-packed
form lurking in the shadows. But still I resisted it.

“If I could have one
night with him…” Trish trailed off, at a loss for her customary
quick patter of words.

“I’m sure he’s
not all that,” I replied like a petulant child.

“He’s all that and
more,” she insisted. “Scorching hot and filthy rich.”

Man, this guy had the
whole stinking world at his feet. Not me, though. Working it in my
boots and mini skirt, I sashayed back to the bachelor party.
Shoulders back, I let the twins do their work as I made my way
through the crowd, catching more than a few admiring glances my way.
I liked it, the power, the ability to use my body to turn men on. I
hadn’t wielded it in years.

“How you doing?”
some guy asked, wrapping his hand around my waist.

Ken doll jumped to his
feet, rushing over to my rescue. “Hey, man, back off,” he said,
his arm up around me, too.

I put my hands up. “OK,
guys, play nice.” The new one backed away while the blond guy kept
next to me, close.

“You OK?” he asked,
as if I’d been attacked. And as if he wasn’t doing exactly the
same thing, hitting on me, his hand now wrapped around my waist. He
stood a few inches taller than me and had a nice face, handsome in a
generic Hollywood type way. I almost wondered if he were an actor.

That’s the last thing
I remembered before huge, powerful arms wrapped around me, hoisted me
up into a fireman’s carry across a strong, broad shoulder and stole
me away.

Declan

Six
Years Back

I revved the motor too
hard and nearly peeled out of Harlan’s ranch. I’d kept my cool
when he’d asked me for the favor, but right now I felt anything
but.

That little girl of his
was nothing but trouble. Big trouble from a not-so-little girl. My
boss’s only daughter, his princess, off limits in every way, shape
and form. Too young, too innocent, I knew better than to mess around
with the one thing that would most definitely get me fired.

But lately, things had
gotten tougher. That day she’d washed her truck, I’d nearly
fallen off the tractor. The soapy water sliding down her smooth skin.
The spray of the hose plastering her bikini top to her perfect
breasts. The shape of her ass as she’d bent over the hood of the
truck, exactly the way I’d want her if I fucked her from behind.
I’d have her spread her palms out on the hood of the truck, then
I’d grab her hips and sink into her deep.

She wore that goddamned
cheerleading outfit around all the time. Whoever thought up dressing
high school girls in uniforms like that was either a genius or a
lunatic, depending on how you looked at it. Because that was the
thing, you couldn’t think around a girl like Kara in a cheerleading
skirt. Riding up so high you could nearly see the curve and swell of
her ass cheeks. Innocent and sexy as hell all at once.

I’d seen a lot, taken
in my share of strip clubs and the strippers, themselves. Nasty girls
who loved to fuck and had no problem acting out any fantasy you could
come up with—and at 21 I had a whole lot.

But Kara. There was
something about that girl that got me rock hard. Those lips, so full
and lush and berry-pink. Her perfect tits straining against her thin
cotton t-shirts. The other day she’d been standing on the porch and
she’d raised her arms up over her head and stretched. My jaw about
dropped, seeing that back arched, her eyes closed for a moment with
those arms overhead, wrists crossed just so. That night, I couldn’t
get it out of my head. How she’d look stretched out like that for
me and me alone.

Slamming the brakes on,
I stopped at a red light. Fuck. Harlan and his damn favor.

Guess the princess’s
truck needed a new carburetor and daddy had promised her he’d pick
her up from school. Only Harlan couldn’t make it so he’d sent me
in his place.

I didn’t know why she
couldn’t just hitch a ride with one of her friends. Or her spoiled
pretty-boy boyfriend. But, no, that wasn’t good enough. Harlan had
tried to call her and let her know he couldn’t pick her up but she
hadn’t answered her cell phone. He didn’t want his angel to have
a moment of worry, a furrow on her perfect brow when she stepped out
on the lawn and didn’t see her daddy waiting in his truck.

So here I was, picking
up Kara Fucking Brooks from her goddamn high school. Exactly what I
needed, some quality alone time with her in the cab of my truck. It
would be a long 20 minute drive back to the ranch, I knew that much.

A sunny, warm afternoon
in late May, seniors were set to graduate next week. A bunch of kids
milled around outside of the front entrance. A couple of guys tossed
a Frisbee around like they thought they were California dudes out at
the beach. I pulled up into what looked like the pick-up area and
idled the engine.

It took me all of three
seconds to spot Kara. Like a spotlight shone down on her, she stood
surrounded by kids looking at her, watching her movements, admiring
her. Like bees to her honey. Her long, golden hair shining in the
sunlight, her long, golden limbs graceful and posed just so on the
front steps, she was the center of attention and she loved it.

She threw her head back
and laughed, thrusting those breasts out as she did it. I wasn’t
the only guy who noticed. Two meatheads in varsity football jackets
stared right at her tits the whole time. Assholes. I gripped the
steering wheel tighter.

Kara didn’t seem to
mind. She knocked one of them playfully on the shoulder. He didn’t
look like her boyfriend, but they all looked alike to me. Dumb and
soft. What drove me crazy was these guys thought they were so tough.
They thought because they threw around a ball with some other guys
and won a few games that they were the shit. I’d love to sign them
up for one month at any one of the foster homes I’d so very much
enjoyed growing up. They wouldn’t last a week.

Kara didn’t notice
me, so I sat like a dumbass behind the wheel of my truck waiting. I
wasn’t going to climb out and fetch her like a damn dog. I thought
about leaning on the horn but she was bound to look over soon. As
soon as she took her eyes off of that guy in the letterman jacket.

He was all chin and
grin, that guy. A sheltered girl like Kara probably thought he was a
real stand-up guy, the kind of man who’d hold doors open for you
and shake your father’s hand. I knew better. I knew what he had
going on in his head right now. With Kara standing next to him in
that tiny cheerleading skirt, he was probably half-hard already
wondering how quick he could talk her out of dating his buddy old pal
Bruce and spend some time with him so he could bend her over and bury
himself in her, deep.

Because that’s how
guys were. It’s how I was, and any other healthy American male
standing next to a girl with her porn star body. Girls like Kara,
though, they thought about roses and poetry and wedding rings. She
had no idea what she was really playing with.

She dropped a book she
was holding. A guy scampered to pick it up, of course, but she leaned
over to get it herself. Bent over, ass up in the air, that tiny skirt
barely covered a thing.

I leaned on the horn.

Startled, Kara looked
up and saw me. Her month dropped open a bit, surprised. Pissed off, I
motioned to her to get into the goddamn truck. She rolled her eyes
and turned her back to me, taking a few slow steps toward the truck
while she still talked a mile a minute to a couple of girlfriends.

I leaned on the horn
again.

Huffy, she turned
toward me and finally made her way over. She fumbled with the door
handle as she still held her books. A gentleman would have leapt out
and helped her, carrying her load while also holding open the door. I
stayed put until she figured it out herself.

“What are you doing
here?” she asked as she slid in on the cracked leather seat. Duct
tape had worked for a while. Now the edges peeled through. It wasn’t
the first time I’d had a girl in my truck. It was the first time
I’d wished it were nicer. I didn’t like the feeling.

“Your daddy asked me
to pick you up,” I grumbled, pulling us into gear.

“I could have gotten
a ride with a friend.”

“Yup, that’s what I
said. But someone wasn’t answering her phone.”

“Oh.” Her perfect
lips formed a pout and she searched around in her purse for her cell
phone. She fiddled with it while I pulled out into the street. Good,
maybe she’d do that the whole ride.

“So he sent you to
get me?” The question seemed to answer itself, me sitting next to
her and all, so I let it sit there in silence. I pushed a button on
the dash and popped on the radio. Some country crooner came on
pouring his heart out over the girl of his dreams. I punched it off.

Kara crossed her legs,
her skirt riding up, her creamy thighs bare. I cleared my throat. The
air felt thick and hot.

“Well, thanks. But
you didn’t have to honk the horn,” she complained.

“You should have run
on over the second you saw me.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, really.”

“Is that how all the
girls are with you, Declan?”

“That’s how good
little girls are when their ride shows up to take them home from
school.”

She pouted. “I could
have gotten a ride with a friend.”

I shrugged. “Like I
said.”

“Or Bruce.”

I snorted.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing.”

“That was not
nothing.”

“What are you talking
about?”

“You snorted. Do you
have a problem with Bruce?”

“Why would I have a
problem with… what’s his name again?” I knew full well but I
liked getting under her skin.

“Bruce. He’s the
mayor’s son.”

“Ooh. That’s a big
deal.”

“It is.” She sat up
tall and pissed off. I liked it when she got all huffy.

“This is a real big
town.” I kept it dry and cool.

“It is a big deal to
be a mayor. It’s hard work.”

“Mmm-hmm. All that
hand shaking and baby kissing.”

“It’s more than
that.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“You’re just
jealous.”

“Sure, sugar.”

“I’m not your
sugar. And yes you are jealous. What, do you think you could be the
mayor of this town? Not likely.” She huffed back down into her
seat.

I had no idea why, but
that last part stung. No way would I ever want to be a mayor of a
two-bit town like this. I had bigger plans, all of which involved
bigger cities and a lot bigger money. But still.

I kept my eyes on the
road up ahead, my hands on the wheel at 10 and 2.

“I’m sorry.” Her
voice like honey, sweet and warm, dripped over me. She put a small
hand to my bicep. It felt good there. “I didn’t mean that, it
came out wrong.”

I shrugged. “I don’t
care.”

“I know you don’t.”
She pulled away.

The gas light popped
on. Shit. With this truck, once the light came on you were out.
Normally I paid close attention to that kind of thing. Today, Harlan
had sprung his favor on me and I’d been too agitated to think much
ever since. That was the problem with girls like Kara, they got
inside your head. Add it to the list of reasons to keep her as far
away from me as possible.

I turned into the next
gas station. After I hitched up the pump to the tank, I headed in to
buy a soda. I needed to cool off.

When I came out, I got
a show. Kara in her cheerleading outfit, washing my windshield.
Reaching across real far with the squeegee, bending over my truck.
What. The. Fuck.

I wasn’t the only one
who noticed. Some guy with his gut hanging over his belt had his
tongue hanging out the side of his mouth, too, standing there staring
at Kara.

That girl had no sense
in her head.

“Give me that.” I
strode over, took the squeegee out of her hand and plunged it back
into the water next to the gas pumps.

“I was just trying to
be nice!”

“Get in the truck.”

She did as she was told
while I hooked the nozzle back up. She had no idea what she was
playing with, what kind of fire would rain down on her if she kept
waltzing around like that, teasing and taunting, offering up what men
couldn’t have. Someday soon, someone would lose patience with that
shit.