Sin for Love Page 13

  Famished

  “Tessa”

  When we got back to my apartment last night, Reese had kissed my tears away and loved me until I’d fallen asleep in his arms. Waking up with Reese in my bed was something I could get used to. Seeing the toned muscle of his chest rise and fall while he snored was enough to make me swoon. I found myself thinking that we could just forget about the expiration date.

  For the next few days, we did everything together. He never left my side, even taking me with him when he had to check in on the shop. We shopped for groceries, went to a movie, and ate too much popcorn; we even showered together. I was starting to really like showers, so we showered a lot. But then I started noticing these little things that he was doing. Like that he always left the toilet seat up after he peed.

  It wouldn’t have been such a big deal until I had to pee in the middle of the night. I didn’t want to wake him up by turning on the light but I wasn’t quite awake myself to remember to check the seat, and I fell in, soaking my butt in cold toilet water. He’s lucky he had flushed because that would have gone too far. When I fell in, I let out a scream loud enough to wake him up and he came running to the bathroom, turned on the light, and then laughed so hard he fell on the floor. I told him that he needed to sit down to pee from now on but I didn’t think he could hear me over his laughter.

  The next day, he had his Xbox delivered to my apartment, and he set it up on my TV, saying that it would be fun to play the game that just released with me. It was some stupid fucking special ops game where you had to go around and kill people. We were on opposite teams and he kept killing me before I could even tell which way I was going. I swear at one point I was just spinning in circles and my stupid-ass guy wouldn’t stop looking at the ground. I gave up and threw my controller on the table. Reese just switched it to single-player mode and then he played it for hours. I mean hours and hours and hours. I started reading a book but fell asleep on the couch next to him before he had stopped. I just didn’t know what was up with him.

  “Reese”

  I’d tried everything that I had heard makes women mad. I had left the toilet seat up, I laughed at her, and I even kicked her ass at a video game and then pretended to ignore her for hours while I played solo. That might have been the hardest thing I had ever done. I didn’t know how many times I almost threw the controller down, said “Fuck it,” and then fucked her.

  There had to be something I could do to piss her off. I knew Myles was good at pissing women off, so I called him the other day and asked him to fly in to see the show this weekend. I needed to pick his brain, and I knew he would know what to do.

  When we arrived at The Happy Valley, I kissed Tessa, told her to knock them dead, slapped her amazing ass, and watched her walk backstage before I slid onto a stool at the bar.

  Myles must have walked in right behind us, because he sat down at the bar next to me and said, “You know they say that spanking is a one-handed round of applause in appreciation of a magnificent ass.” But he wasn’t looking at me while he spoke. His eyes were trained on Sam, who was opening a beer at the end of the bar. The way he was looking at her made me wonder if there was something going on between the two of them.

  “I’ll have to remember to spank Tessa every day then.”

  Myles shook his head like he was breaking away from a trance and turned to me. “Hey, man. Sorry I’m a bit late. I saw this amazing redhead at the airport and I had to get her number.” Just then, Sam slammed his beer down in front of him on the bar hard enough that it started shooting out of the top and he had to shove the bottle into his mouth to keep from wasting his precious ale. There was definitely something going on with them.

  “What’s that all about?” I asked him.

  He waited until Sam was out of earshot before saying, “You don’t want to know, man. You don’t want to know. Enough about my love life. What was so important that you bought a last-minute plane ticket just to talk to me about it? Is the shop okay?”

  “Yes, the shop’s fine. In fact, it is better than fine. It’s great! The problem is that I can’t make Tessa mad.”

  Myles leaned back and looked at me like I should be in the loony bin. He placed the back of his hand on my forehead like he was checking for fever. “Nope. No fever. You must just be crazy.”

  I shoved his hand away. “I’m serious, man. We are so close to being done with all this trial shit, but I can’t seem to get to the last one. I can’t make her mad.”

  “Well, you did call the right person to figure this out I guess. I’m pretty good at making women mad,” he said while glancing over at Sam with a pained look on his face. “Tell me what you’ve tried so far.”

  I told him everything I had done and he said, “Damn, man. Any of those should have been enough to set any normal woman off. But I’m thinking that if she made it this far, she isn’t just any woman, so you might have to break out the big guns.”

  “That doesn’t sound good. What’s the big guns?” I asked, expecting him to tell me some grand secret.

  He leaned in and said, “Tell her about the trial. That’s sure to piss her off.”

  “Huh. Why hadn’t I thought of that?”

  “Well, because you’re a dumbass?” Myles said. “And hey, dumbass, I need another beer. I’m going to go take a piss. Would you order one for me please?”

  Myles got up and I muttered, “Pussy,” under my breath as he walked away. I ordered his beer and waited for him to come back. Just then, the words I had been waiting for came over the loudspeaker and I turned around to watch my beautiful girl do her thing.

  I knew we had just two more, just two more and then we could move on and really start our lives together. And if heaven wouldn’t forgive us for our sins when we were done, I would follow her anywhere.

  We were snuggled up together in Tessa’s bed later that night. It was a dark bliss knowing that she was right here with me. There was something we needed to complete before we could really be together. As much as I wanted to push through and get it over with, I also wanted to just spend time with her, enjoy her. I intended to do as much of that as I could before risking everything.

  Tessa started waking up, her body stretching out from the curled-up position she had been in, her head tucked under my chin on my pillow.

  I kissed the top of her head and whispered, “You are a bed hog. You know that, right?”

  “Hey. My bed, my rules. I’m not used to sharing my pillows, okay?” She giggled and turned to look at me.

  I thought to myself that I would never get enough of seeing her in the morning—her hair a mess, her face clean of the makeup from the night before. She was the most perfect thing I had ever seen. When Tessa’s lips curled up into a Cheshire grin, I knew she was up to no good. She yanked on the pillow and my head hit the mattress. Before I could blink, she initiated a full-on assault. Putting my hands up to protect myself, I blocked a couple of hits before I could catch the pillow. My hands locked on the fabric and I heard a squeal from behind it. She knew she was in for it. Tessa jumped up from the bed and started running.

  “My turn. You can run but you can’t hide.”

  I jumped off the bed and ran after her, pillow clutched in my hand. My steps were cut short when I saw her. She had jumped up onto the kitchen counter, completely naked, her legs open and waiting for me. I barely felt the pillow slip from my fingers and fall to the floor.

  “You hungry?” she whispered, her fingers lightly caressing the soft skin of her thigh.

  “Famished,” I said and quickly crossed the room to her.

  After a quick kiss, I knelt down and buried my head between her legs.

  “Tessa”

  I was one lucky girl. My Keurig didn’t mind me bringing another man into my home. After showing Reese how to make a cup, he said that he was going to put one in each of his shops and that the guys would owe me big time. We wrapped up in our robes and sat at the table by the window enjoying our coffee. I looked at the clock and foun
d that I only had an hour before I was supposed to pick up Abigail to go to the zoo. They had a new exhibit opening up for the polar bears and I’d promised her months ago that I would take her.

  “I’ve gotta get going, Reese.” I stood and rinsed my cup in the sink.

  “Let me spend the day with you. Where are you going?”

  Those words were like music to my ears. I didn’t want to be away from him. Turning back to face him, I said, “I’m taking Abigail to the zoo for the opening of the polar bear exhibit. I promised her a long time ago that we would go.”

  “Would she mind if I tagged along with you?”

  “After you impressed her with your shmallow-making skills, I’m sure she would kick me if I didn’t bring you. I was planning on taking Emily’s car, but can we ride your bike to their house?”

  He stood and walked over to me, pressing his chest against mine while he reached around me to put his mug in the sink. Nuzzling my neck, he said, “You really love the feel of the engine between your delicious thighs, don’t you?”

  “Mmmm, yes, but if you keep doing that, she will have both of our heads for being late.”

  Abigail swung the door open and started stomping across the front yard just as we pulled up. From the way she had her arms crossed and a scowl on her face, I knew we were in big trouble.

  “Auntie, you are late.” Her words were clipped and to the point.

  Reese beat me to the punch in apologizing. “I’m sorry, princess. It was all my fault. I wanted to go with you to see the polar bears and Tessa had to wait for me.”

  “You want to see the bears too, Reese?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “Only if you’re okay with that.” She smiled up at him and he smiled back. She had him tied around her little finger, just like the rest of us.

  “Reese and I are going to go see the polar bears, Auntie. Gimme that helmet,” she said while reaching for the helmet that was still in my hands.

  Reese took the helmet and secured it to his bike “I’ll take you on my bike in a couple of years, princess. I promise. Now let’s go see those bears.”

  But Reese wouldn’t be around in a couple of years. He wouldn’t even be around in a couple of weeks. Reese would be back in Mission Beach, and I would be here with an emptiness that would never go away.

  “Reese”

  By the time we got to the polar bear exhibit on the far side of the zoo, Abigail had already convinced me that she’d needed popcorn, cotton candy, a candy bar, and a souvenir cup filled with fruit punch. Tessa had tried to talk me out of it every step of the way, but Abigail would bat her eyes at me and I just hadn’t been able to resist. I knew that one day we could have another trip to the zoo. The thought that one day we would have our little girl here tugged on my heart.

  I was glad that we had taken Emily’s advice on bringing their big red wagon. There was no way Abigail wasn’t going to crash after all of that sugar. We parked the wagon off to the side and Tessa took Abigail’s hand in hers.

  “There is a big crowd so don’t let go, Abbs, okay?”

  “Okay, Auntie, I won’t,” she agreed as she reached up and took my hand in her empty one.

  We got as close as possible without pushing into the crowd. The zoo had two polar bears and the keepers had just put out big blocks of ice that had treats frozen inside of them. I could hear one of them telling the crowd that the challenge of getting to the treats kept the bears minds’ engaged. I felt a tug on my hand and looked down to see Abigail’s eyes begin to well up with tears.

  I put one knee down to be on the same level as her. “What’s wrong, princess?”

  “I can’t see the bears ‘cause of all these stupid people,” she complained, the sugar crash apparently just moments away.

  I looked up at Tessa, who smiled and nodded, giving me the go-ahead. “They aren’t stupid people, princess,” I said gently. “They just want to see the bears like you do. If you’d like, you can get up on my shoulders.”

  Abigail started bouncing on her toes, so I picked her up and placed her on my shoulders before standing again, her tiny feet tucked under my arms. I felt her little hands wrap around my chin to hold on and she squealed when one of the bears slid into the water.

  After a few minutes, Abigail let out a big yawn and told us that she was getting tired. I put her down and she locked eyes with a plush polar bear that was almost as big as she was.

  “Auntie Tess! I need that bear!” she yelled while pointing at it.

  “You have plenty of bears at home. You don’t need another one,” Tessa sighed, no doubt knowing where this was going to lead.

  “I do I do I DO!” I could almost see the steam coming out of her ears as she was instantly pissed off.

  “We have two options here, Reese. The sugar has taken over and turned her into a little monster, so either we can haul her out of the zoo kicking and screaming until she passes out. Or we can give in and you can go get her that bear. The choice is yours.”

  My wallet was out of my pocket and the bear was settled in the wagon with Abigail in two minutes flat. After making sure they were all set, I turned to Tessa and said, “What is your favorite part of the zoo?”

  She laughed. “The big cats. They are on the other side of the zoo.”

  “Let’s go see the kitties then.”

  Somewhere between the giraffes and the camels, Abigail had shifted to lie down. Using her new bear as a pillow, she closed her eyes and fell asleep. The sun was still high in the sky and we didn’t want her to get burned so we parked the wagon under the shade of a tree. Tessa and I stepped just a few feet away so that we could watch the tiger stalking back and forth while we talked without waking her. I moved to stand behind her with my hands on the wooden post fence in front of her, trapping her against my body.

  “Doesn’t he look like he is just waiting for the right time to pounce and take down his prey?”

  Tessa’s question reminded me of how I felt when I was sitting in the shadows night after night watching her dance. I had been a tiger and she had been my prey. I’d caught her and had no intention of letting go. “He looks like he knows he is strong, the alpha male, like he takes what he wants.” With the last word, I pressed against her, showing her what being near her did to me.

  “What is it that you want, Reese?” Her voice was trembling and barely loud enough for me to hear. I wanted to tell her that she belonged to me and I to her. That we were perfect together. That my future was with her. But I was afraid that like a deer in the forest she would scare easily and run.

  “I want to be inside you with your nails digging into my back and your thighs wrapped around me. I want to feel your muscles clench around me until we can’t stand. I want you, Tessa.” She shivered against me, her whole body vibrating from the energy coursing through it.

  “You’re a bad, bad man Reese Nichols.”

  “I wasn’t lying when I told you I could give you what you needed. Let me give you that, Tessa. Let me take care of you.”

  She turned around and, with my arms still around her, looked up at me, her eyes glistening with the threat of tears. “You did, Reese. You showed me that you accept who I am and I’ll cherish that forever. You have no idea how much that meant to me.” She looked over at Abigail, who was still sleeping in the wagon. “She likes you. I’m sure she really would have liked to go on a bike ride with you in a few years.”

  “She will. I don’t break my promises.”

  Tessa got the deer-in-headlights look, her eyes going wide, and I could see that she was fighting the urge to run. Before she could react, I slammed my lips into hers and kissed her until we were both out of breath.

  Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned

  “Tessa”

  We got back to my apartment late after taking Abigail home. I hadn’t known how I was able to stay upright on Reese’s bike on the ride back. Then, the walk up to the third floor was almost more than I could take. I was exhausted. We walked inside and Reese dropped t
he bomb on me—the words that nobody wants to hear, when he said, “We need to talk,” as he sat down at the table by the window.

  “That doesn’t sound good,” I said and sat across from him. What could have happened?

  “There is something I’ve got to tell you, something I’m not necessarily proud of. But you need to know.”

  “Okay…”

  “That night, so long ago, when we were at the carnival?” He waited for me to nod my head then said, “Something else happened earlier that night.” I was instantly awake, eager for him to continue. “A bunch of us went to see Madame Miranda. We were buzz-drunk on beer and wanted to get our fortunes told, so we went in her tent. We all took our turns, and for some reason, she decided to tell all of us how we would find our soul mates.” Reese took my hand in his, rubbing the back of my hand before he continued on. “When it was my turn, she first told me that I would hurt myself doing the right thing, it would change my life forever, and I’d suffer for it.”

  “Ruby,” I whispered.

  “Yes, Ruby. And I would do it again a million times, no matter what it cost me,” he said, “but that’s not what I’m talking about. I need you to know what Madame Miranda told me about how I’d find my soul mate.” He stopped talking and was just staring into my eyes.

  I was confused and couldn’t figure out why he kept using the word soul mate. Reese’s blue eyes were pleading, wishing for me to understand, but I didn’t. He ran a hand through his hair and started again.

  “I didn’t even believe her until after I shattered my ankle. Lying awake in the hospital, waiting for surgery, I had a lot of time to think about what she had said, and while I was hopped up on pain killers, I made a plan. I was determined to find the one who would be my other half.”