Saige

by Shannon McFadden

  Butterfly, I’m sorry about earlier. Enjoy the books, flowers, and tea. Cotton

  I smile as I pick up the books on my bed to look at. Oh my gosh! He just got me the new book by two of my favorite authors, that they co-wrote. The other two books are also by them. I grab my phone and text him a thank you. I need to hurry in the shower so that I can read these. Once I get out of the shower, I comb out my hair, brush my teeth, grab me some tea out of the fridge, get my tank top and boy cut panties on, then sit on the bed. Oh, it feels so good to be in these to sleep in, my favorite pjs. When Loki is in here, I sleep in t-shirt and pj capris. I get too hot wearing those, and get all tangled up in them when I toss and turn. I prop up my pillows, leaning back on them. I grab the bear Cotton got me to look at. It’s so cute. It’s white with a pink nose, holding a honey pot. I set it beside me, grab a book and start reading.

  I wake up in a cold sweat gasping for breath. At least I didn’t scream this time, I think. I can still see Pyro as the nightmare slowly fades away. I go to the bathroom and wet a rag. I rinse my face and arms off. I just want these nightmares to go away, maybe I should talk to the counselor. I just feel like I can’t trust her, so that makes me clam up. Bexley has been talking to her. Turning back into my room, I see Cotton standing by my bed in a pair of basketball shorts, his arms crossed over his chest. Looks like I did scream out. “What are you doing in here?”

  “I heard you screaming through the wall, also, Bacon came banging on my door when you screamed. Saige, have you talked to anyone about the nightmares? Or about what happened to you?”

  I shake my head no, “I talked to the counselor at the hospital but haven’t talked to anyone since.”

  Sighing he runs his hands through his white hair. His chest and arm muscles flexing as he does. I can’t help but stare at him. That perfect v that he has, those washboard abs. “Come on. Get over here and sit with me. Talk to me about whatever you need to.”

  I slowly go over to sit on the bed. He’s staring at me, I see his nostrils flare and notice he is breathing heavier. It’s then that I remember what I am wearing. I hurry to sit down on the bed, covering my legs with my blanket. I feel the bed dip when Cotton sits beside me, putting his arm around my back pulling me into him. “Okay, is this alright?” he asks. I nod. “Alright, tell me about whatever you need to. You have to get this out and talk to someone, otherwise it will eat you alive. Trust me, I know.” I look up into his beautiful gray eyes, wanting to drown in them.

  Sighing I start, “I can feel him on me still. See him, smell him. I try fighting with all that I have in me. But I’m still handcuffed to that bar. I can hear Bexley screaming then suddenly she stops, so I know he has done something to her. Then he’s standing back over me, naked, rubbing himself. He tries to put his mouth on me, but I keep my thighs together as much as I can, twisting my legs. That’s when he punches me in the side. It hurts so bad that I can barely get a breath. That’s when he bites my thigh, forcing my legs apart, sticks his fingers in me. Telling me he can feel the thin web of my virginity, that it won’t be his fingers that he takes it with. That’s when he tries to climb on top of me. It took all the strength I could muster to get my leg up enough to kick him like I did. I was trying to think of something to do if he came at me again, because I knew he would, and that’s when I saw you come in through the door. I knew that I was going to be okay, that I was safe. I knew you would be the one to find me. I think the hardest thing about all of this is the betrayal from people I considered to be friends and family. I’ve known Pyro since I was five. Poppy and Lilly were in daycare with Loki and me. How do you get past something like that?”

  I’m crying, Cotton is stiff, but pulls me so that my head is on his chest and both his arms are around me, his chin resting on my head. “I’m just sorry that we didn’t get there sooner, babe. I wish that I could take all this pain away from you.” He squeezes a little tighter and I gasp in pain. “Oh God, Saige. I’m sorry, are you okay?”

  I catch a breath, “Yeah. I’m okay. It’s okay.”

  He relaxes a little, kisses the top of my head. “I’ve never meant to hurt you, in any way.” I rub his arm lightly.

  “Cotton, thank you for letting me talk to you. I just don’t think I could’ve told any of that to Dad, Coop, or Loki. I don’t know why I can talk to you about things, but I can.” I try not to yawn but he sees it.

  “Hey, why don’t you try to get some sleep. I’ll stay here with you.”

  “You mean like this?” I look up at him.

  Smiling he says, “Yeah. Maybe this will keep us both from having nightmares.”

  “Do you want to talk about your nightmares? I’ll listen if you want or need to.”

  “No, butterfly. My nightmares, they aren’t something you need to hear. They… anyways no. You try to get some sleep.” He leans down, brushes his lips across mine. I lay my head back down on his chest, feeling safe, his heartbeat under my ear lulls me back to sleep.

  I wake up and I feel like a furnace is on top of me. I am wrapped up in Cotton. My head is on his chest, my arm around him, our legs tangled together. He has both his arms around me. I look up at his gorgeous face, to see that he is still asleep. I take the time to study him. He looks so peaceful. I rub my fingers over the tattoos covering his chest. I love his big Marines tattoo on his left pec, the words Life after Death across the top of his chest. He has half a sleeve on his left arm. I am lightly running my fingers across the tat on his pec, when he says, “Saige, you are playing with a fire you don’t want or need right now.”

  I stop and look up at him. His eyes are still closed but he has that damn smirk on his face that I love. “I’m sorry,” I say.

  He smirks, “Don’t be. Just know that touching me like that, it does things to me that you’re not ready for, Butterfly.” He opens his eyes and kisses the top of my head. “How did you sleep?”

  I push on his arm so that I can sit up. “I actually slept great. No more nightmares. How about you?”

  He smiles as he sits up, slinging his legs over so that he is sitting on the side of the bed, his back to me. I study the tattoo that covers his back. The club emblem. The huge pit viper wrapped around a skull. “That was the best sleep I have had in a long time, to be honest. I didn’t have any nightmares. I slept through the night, for the first time in a long time.”

  I smile at him. “That’s good. Thank you, Cotton. I think we both need to get dressed though. I have to get to the bakery. I have a special order that I have to get done today.”

  “Yeah, okay. I’ll go get ready. I’m driving you today.” I watch as he walks out of my room shutting the door. I get dressed in a tank top that has the bakery logo on it, Saige’s Sweet Treats in purple with a cupcake that has a little skull that has a pink bow on top of it, and a pair of jean capris. I braid my hair, brush my teeth, and head out the door.

  I go into the common room to wait on Cotton. It’s unusually quiet this morning. The guys must’ve partied hard last night. Dad comes up to me, giving me a light hug, kissing my forehead. “Hey, Daddy. How are you this morning?”

  “I’m good, baby girl. I have a question to ask you and Tires about Leilani.”

  I look up at him smiling, “Dad, are you finally going to ask her to be your old lady and marry you?”

  He looks at me kinda shocked then smiles. “Yeah, if it’s okay with you and Coop. But by that smile on your face, I take it as a yes from you.” He laughs.

  “Absolutely. Coop and I have talked, we both wondered if you would ever ask her. Hey Coop! Come here a sec, please.” He walks over to us smiling.

  “What’s up, Sis? Dad?”

  “Dad wants to ask Leilani, finally.”

  Coop breaks out into a huge smile and does that man hug thing with Dad. “About damn time!” We all three laugh.

  “Saige, I need you to make me a big cupcake that you know she likes, then put this ring on top of it. Then put it in a gift box. Can you do that for me?” I smile and nod yes, thinki
ng of what flavor to do, then it hits me. Leilani loves pineapple and coconut. So I am going to make a pineapple cupcake with a coconut rum frosting. She said that those were her favorite when she lived in Hawaii.

  “I’ve got the perfect flavor, Dad. Don’t worry. I got this.” He gives me the box with the ring, and I slip it into my purse. I hug them, then go get a bowl of cereal. I just get done eating my Cookie Crisp when Cotton finally comes in the room.

  “Hey, are you ready to go?” he asks.

  “Yeah. Sloane and Bexley are already there.” He nods as we walk out to his truck. The ride to the shop is a quiet one filled with tension. He’s gone back to snippy for some reason. I’ve no clue what happened when he went to his room this morning up to now, but I just have to brush it off.

  Twenty-Two

  Cotton

  I was almost in my room when Dayna came around the corner, and ran over to me, putting her arms around me. “Oh, Cotton, you look so good with no shirt on. You know how you could look better? With those shorts off and me on you.”

  I pull her arms off of me, shoving her away, yet again. “Didn’t Stone have a talk with you last night? One about leaving me alone, about causing trouble, and that if you didn’t stop, you would be out on your ass?”

  She crosses her arms over her chest and sneers at me. “None of you will throw me out. I’ll leave you alone for now, but eventually, I’ll have you. You’ll love every minute of it too.”

  “Don’t hold your breath, bitch.” With that I slam the door in her face and lock it. I need a shower. I grab some clothes, then turn the shower on. I get in letting the water run down my back, trying to ease the tension. I close my eyes and when I do, I see Saige curled up on me. God she is beautiful and felt so good in my arms. Her rubbing her fingers along my chest. Damn, my dick is rock hard at just the image, remembering how she felt. I grab my dick, giving it a squeeze, running my hand from base to tip. I keep my eyes closed, picturing Saige as I rub one out. I imagine her on her knees, my dick in her beautiful mouth. Her sucking on me, looking up into my eyes, while playing with her clit. Holy shit! That’s the fastest I have ever cum. I spray the wall in long spurts, moaning her name. Oh man. The tension I felt is slowly releasing. I hurry to get cleaned up, knowing that Saige is waiting on me.

  I check in with Tech right quick before I go get Saige. “Hey, man, anything new?”

  Tech looks up at me shaking his head. “Not really. Just the same stuff. I’m running a new program to see if I can’t find this bastard. I’ll let you know if it works.” I give him a nod then head out to the common room.

  Saige is sitting at a table talking to Coop and her dad, eating a bowl of cereal. Ten to none it’s Cookie Crisp. She says she buys it for Bethany and the kids, but she eats it more than they do. They’re all smiling, I hope she always has that look on her face. I wish I was the one putting it there. Dayna is standing in the corner watching me, and she sees me looking at Saige. She gets the ugliest sneer I have ever seen, before walking away. I see more trouble headed our way. I am so irritated that I am short with Saige again, and don’t talk all the way to the bakery. Pulling in, I see that Loki and Wolfe are here, along with Bacon. He’s been a good prospect for the most part, he takes his duties seriously. Especially since he has been assigned to watch over Saige.

  “Hey since Wolfe and Loki are here, I need to run an errand. I’ll be back in a couple hours.”

  “Oh okay. Thanks for the ride. Be safe.” Bacon comes over, opens her door, helping her down, and I get jealous of his hands being on her. I want to rip them off his body and beat him with them. I drive away without looking back. Knowing that I’ve hurt her again. I could see it in her eyes when she looked at me. Damn it!

  The cemetery is quiet. I walk in between the tombstones until I get to the one I am looking for. It has some leaves and little twigs on it that I brush off. I kneel down. “Don, I sure wish you were here. Maybe if you were, I would feel like I was worth something, that I would be worth being with someone, could protect them without screwing up their lives. I miss you, bro! Why did things have to go down the way they did?” I stare at the tombstone for a bit, getting lost in my thoughts, after half an hour, I walk back to my truck. I just sit in it. It’s not until I feel something wet hit my arm that I realize I am crying. I wipe the tears from my face, start the truck, and turn to leave. I just drive around for a bit, then see the pizza place that Saige goes to. I call in, placing an order for several pizzas to be delivered to the bakery, and head back to it. I know that they’ll need something for lunch, and I am starving.

  I walk in through the back and stop at the table Saige is working at. She has a pan of cupcakes that smell amazing and she’s putting coconut frosting on them. I see a ring box on the table, so I pick it up, opening it. “Who’s this for?” I ask.

  “Oh hey, that’s going on top of this huge cupcake, then my dad is going to give it to Leilani. These others are going to be at the clubhouse for the party. I have a few boxes over there ready to go. Dad is going to ask her tonight.” I must have a goofy look on my face or something, because Saige starts laughing.

  “What?” I ask.

  She just shakes her head, “Here, try this. I can hear your stomach from over here. At least I hope it’s your stomach. Otherwise there is a bear in my shop. “

  I take the cupcake from her laughing. “Thanks. I’m starving. I ordered some pizzas and salads for lunch. They should be here soon.” I bite into the cupcake. Wow, the flavor just explodes in my mouth. “What is this called? I think this is my new favorite cupcake.” I eat the other half in one bite, reaching for another one. Saige is still laughing at me.

  “Those are the strawberry lime. I think you just ate the whole strawberry in the middle without even knowing it was there.”

  I nod. “So what other flavors are you doing for the party?” I ask around the bite of cupcake I just took.

  She points to the boxes, “The top one is Margarita, then there is Chocolate cherry coke, pina colada, kiwi lychee, and the dark chocolate bacon. For some reason you men want bacon in everything.”

  “So pretty much doing the exotic Hawaiian type theme.”

  Saige nods as I watch as she places the ring on top of the big cupcake, putting it in a box with a huge bow on top. She sets it on top of the others and then stretches. Doing so makes her shirt pull tight, and I see the outline of her breasts. Remembering how they felt pushed up against me last night, I nearly moan out loud. I hurry and turn away, reciting numbers in my head to get my dick to go down. Bacon walks in and sees her stretching, only he doesn’t hide his moan. I move in between them blocking his sight of her.

  “Hey man, there are all kinds of pizza and salads out front.” He is grinning at me sheepishly.

  “Thanks, now get back out there and keep your eyes to yourself!” I snarl. He seems startled at my tone and goes. I turn to get Saige to go eat and she is looking at me funny. “He was practically eye fucking you, Saige! That isn’t going to fly! Are you hungry? I got you a spinach Alfredo pizza and salad.” Her eyes are so big, but she follows me out.

  “Thank you, Cotton. I appreciate it.” Damn. I need to stop this.

  We go out front to sit at one of the tables. I have Saige sit with the girls, with her back to Bacon. Asshole is looking at her like he wants to take her on top of the table. Just as I get my plate and go to sit down the door opens. In walks Tires, he has a huge scowl on his face. “Hey, brother, come get a plate. What’s going on?”

  “Thanks, man. I finally got Mr. Sanders’ bike done, only he didn’t want to pick it up unless Saige was at the garage. I told him she isn’t working there anymore. He got all pissed. Hung up on me.” He is shaking his head. “He’s never been there when she was there to begin with. So, I’m thinking it wasn’t even him. Sadly, the number was blocked, and when I tried to call the number we have for him, no one answered.”

  We share an unspoken look and sit down to eat. We’ll have to be even more vigilant now. Once the
girls get done eating, Saige lets me know that we are closing early, so that we all can get back to the clubhouse and get it set up for Stone to ask Leilani. We help them get the place cleaned up, I get all the cupcakes in my truck. I help her in, and we go.

  Twenty-Three

  Saige

  I have no clue what is going on with Cotton. He’s hot and cold all the time, but I am beginning to think it doesn’t have a lot to do with me, just something he doesn’t want me to know. We’re quiet on the way back to the clubhouse. I am so ready for a shower. When we get there, Cotton helps me carry all the boxes in and set up. Everyone knows not to bother them until later. I run back to my room to take my shower. I turn the radio on and laugh. Will Smith’s ‘Getting Jiggy Wit It’ is on. I haven’t heard that song in a while. I turn it up, dancing towards the shower. I decide to leave my hair down, getting dressed in a club tank and shorts. I try to hurry as I lock my room. As I am going down the hall, I turn to go towards the kitchen, and I run right into Dad. “Sorry, Daddy. I wasn’t watching where I was going. I was trying to get to the kitchen, make sure everything is okay and ready.”

  Hugging me to him, he squeezes a little tightly. “It’s okay, baby girl. I know things will be great. Just watch yourself. We’ve had a few talks with Dayna. She won’t leave Cotton alone, and she’s on a roll trying to cause trouble. I told her if she starts anything else, she’s gone. One of the other girls said she was complaining about you earlier. Anything I need to know?”

  “It’s okay, Dad, I can handle Dayna. I haven’t had anything to do with her, so I’ve no clue why my name was in her mouth.” I smile at him, then continue into the kitchen. Bex and Sloane are already there. “How’d you two get in here before me? I know y’all showered too.” I laugh.