The life I led, I saw a lot of shit. I knew love because of my grandmother. I knew loyalty because of my brothers. I had family because of Ellen Sue.
Learning all of this, Enissa’s character somehow chiseled away at the wall I’d built around myself over the years. The one where I refused to let anyone in, but little by little the more I learned, the more I craved to know.
Having her here in my space, listening to her talk to her mom, watching her relax for even the briefest of moments, she captivated a piece of me that I wasn’t sure I would ever have back.
Did that make me a pussy?
Fuck no, because I wasn’t about to stop the game of power I was playing.
Did that make me an asshole?
Again, absolutely.
But I was who I was, and I wouldn’t be apologizing for it.
Walking to the beach, the board under my arm, I was thoroughly excited to get out into the water. The sun was warm, and water glistened. It was perfect.
When was the last time I was excited about anything?
I couldn’t recall. This, though, right here, made me happy. Letting go and doing something I normally wouldn’t. That was what life was supposed to be, right? Taking chances and having fun. I hadn’t had much of that, and it needed to change.
Enissa was on the beach laying out in what had become her favorite spot. She was in that black bikini that hugged her body perfectly. Laying on her stomach, she was possibly asleep as the golden sun rays glistened against her body. Her curved ass was on full display, and my hand itched to touch it. Squeeze it and hear her moan.
As I approached, she lifted her head and gave me a soft smile.
“Like what you see, kitten?” I asked, and she blushed, shaking her head at me, but didn’t deny it.
I laid the board out on the sand and then myself beside her, close on the blanket.
“Personal space, Garrett,” she muttered, not turning over.
Wanting her attention, I put my body in a plank position over her. Sensing me, she turned her head to the side and squinted up at me.
“Do you have to prove that you’re giving me space in this way?”
“I rather like the way I give lessons, kitten.”
She huffed, but it wasn’t heavy like she was angry, more like she didn’t know what to do with me. Hell, I wasn’t quite sure I knew what to do with myself at this point.
“Maybe you should take your board and go surf?” she suggested, putting her head down on her blanket.
I laughed and leaned down, pressing myself to her but not putting my weight on her. Today wasn’t the day to crush her. “Kitten, that’s a paddleboard. Surfing here is a reef break. I don’t think you’re ready for that. So today, we’re paddleboarding.”
Her body jolted, brushing with mine. “What?”
“Paddleboarding, you and me. I’m going to take you out so you can see the beauty mother nature has. Unless you know how to surf. In which case I will go to the house and grab the boards. A reef break is not safe for beginners, so I thought we could have some time paddleboarding.”
“Garrett, I grew up in Pennsylvania. I only go to the beach on vacation. I haven’t had a vacation in years. So no, I don’t know how to surf. Hell, I don’t know what a reef break is. And before you try to explain, I don’t need to know. However, what I do need is space where your body is not over mine.”
“Aww but, kitten, this is my favorite place to be.”
“While that may be, it’s not mine.”
I pushed up and stood, and she rolled over. Scooping up the paddleboard under my arm and picking up the paddle, I extended my hand to her. For the briefest of moments, I wondered if she would take it or if she would decline the invitation altogether. She leaned up, taking my hand and, like every touch shared between us, the energy rushed through me. Standing, she kept her hand in mine as we made our way to the water.
Steadying the board, she climbed on and sat. Keeping it balanced, I climbed on and stood. Paddling us out, I got away from the shore but not into the breaks.
“Look at the reefs!” She pointed with such exuberance. “It’s beautiful, Garrett.”
“Yes, the view most certainly is,” I replied while keeping my gaze firmly locked on her. “Stand up,” I instructed. “I want you to see something.”
She shook her head. “Garrett, we’ll tip. I’m able to swim, but maybe not back to shore,” she muttered, looking back to where we came from.
“Trust me,” I commanded.
She hesitated at first, but when she finally began to try, my soul leaped in happiness. This was a good thing. I could feel the board tremble under my feet as she tried to steady herself and remain calm.
“Promise you, kitten, I’ll never let you sink. I’ll never let you drown.”
Her eyes locked to mine, and she relaxed like she believed me. That was the biggest high I could’ve felt at the moment.
“That’s it, kitten,” I encouraged, and she turned around to look ahead of us.
“Are those dolphins?” she asked as she spotted the mammals swimming just after the break.
“Yes.”
“They’re beautiful.”
I nodded. They were, but so was she.
“There are so many of them,” she noted.
With the paddle, I showed her where more were following behind the two she just noticed. “Dolphins swim in pods. Rarely will they venture out alone unless it’s a male. Females like the security in the pod. Males get curious and do dumb shit sometimes, much like humans.”
She laughed. “Safety in numbers I guess.”
“Kitten, just so you know, you never have to swim alone.”
That statement meant more than I ever planned to share with her, but I simply left it at that.
Enissa would not go through life alone and struggling anymore.
The man I was refused to let her have that life ever again.
13
Enissa
Relaxed.
I didn’t understand, it but my entire body was relaxed. Yesterday, Garrett took me paddleboarding. The reefs, the dolphins, it was all something I knew I would never in a million years have seen. The crystal blue water was the stuff for postcards. Easily I could get lost in each moment. Maybe it was my way to cope, but in the pain and the fear of what may happen to my mom, I found this reprieve with Garrett. It was like he somehow became the light I could cling to in the darkness of my situation.
That was why the guilt was eating at me.
I told myself I should make the best of my situation, but I felt guilty that I had moments of happiness in this. Logically, I knew my mom would want me to enjoy the times I could. Since I didn’t have the first clue what Charles Beacon intended for me, or when he was going to take me away from here, I clung to the moments like yesterday with Garrett.
Garrett had this way about him. It both scared me and encouraged me to take chances. When he said the words trust me … I didn’t understand why, but my very soul felt safe with him.
Was I losing my mind?
Trust was hard. Trust wasn’t something I easily gave. Except with Garrett, he had this energy that connected to the deepest parts of me, down to my soul, allowing me to fall. I didn’t know what to do with the way I was feeling, but I certainly had strong emotions for the man sharing my bed.
Which left me hoping I wasn’t making a mistake.
I stretched in the bed after another night of blissful sleep. My body was completely sated after a long bath, recharging my muscles from balancing on the paddleboard and then Garrett building me up for yet another intense orgasm. He truly knew how to work my body.
Part of me still wanted to resist Garrett. Yet, every time I tried to hold back, my body and my mind would go to war. My instincts yearned for him and all that he wanted to share with me.
Slowly waking up, I realized Garrett wasn’t in bed with me.
It surprised me to find myself longing for him.
When I arrived here, I didn’
t think I would get any sleep in bed with him. Now I missed him. How could I get so twisted up with him? While I couldn’t explain it, and I was certain people from the outside would think I was absolutely insane to let myself feel anything for the man, I couldn’t help that my heart was in it. Deciding not to dwell on it, I got up and dressed for the day.
I was in a pair of linen shorts and a t-shirt when I walked into the living area. Off to the side overlooking the beach view from the windows sat an easel. Stacks of blank canvases were beside it along with a box full of paint and other supplies.
Tears filled my eyes.
Art had always been my escape. In recent years, I didn’t have the time for my passion, nor the money. Garrett came from down the hall, and I turned to him.
“You’re awake, kitten. I hope you slept well,” he stated casually, strolling through the space like this stuff had been here all along.
He wore blue board shorts that hung low on his hips. The man’s body was a work of art, and I found myself turned on.
I wanted to ask him if the art supplies were for me, but I didn’t.
Shaking my head, I pushed back my lust as I followed him in the kitchen. He went to the coffee pot and like every other morning, he poured himself a cup along with one for me.
I sipped the warm brew and decided to ask, “Your tattoos?”
He smirked. “Body art is therapy. Seeing your own ink, I figured you liked art, so I had some things shipped in. If you would like to paint, everything you need should be in the living room. If not, let it be and I’ll send it back.”
My eyes lit up with joy. “Actually art is truly my therapy.”
He studied me. “Share with me.”
I sighed. “Garrett, growing up, we didn’t have much. Mom did the best she could. Sometimes she would mix Kool-Aid packets with water so I could paint because she couldn’t afford real watercolors.”
“You prefer watercolor?”
“I love it all. Charcoal, paint pours, watercolor, and even basic sketching. There is something about closing my eyes and envisioning a scene then bringing it to life.”
His eyes danced in mischief. “You’re a work of art yourself, kitten. Curves of your frame, the shades of your skin, the way your pussy glistens with your arousal and your lips grow pink as the blood flows to them just before I make you come.”
“Garrett,” I half panted his name.
“Kitten, art can be erotic,” he teased.
“Everything is not sexual, Garrett.”
He laughed. “Oh, kitten, but it is. Life is born from sex, correct? Therefore, every breath we take is laced in some form of sex. Be bold, kitten. Embrace the beauty of your body and what it can do.”
I sipped my coffee because, frankly, if he kept this up I was going to fuck him here in this kitchen.
“You seem to know a lot about art? Did you study?”
He shook his head. “I appreciate art. I see the beauty in it. That’s why I have so many tattoos. It’s an expression.”
I nodded because I agreed. “What made you choose a compass?”
His eyes grew dark, and he hesitated. For a moment, I thought maybe I went too far. That I’d crossed a line with him. Then he spoke, and my heart swelled.
“My grandmother used to carry my grandfather’s compass around in her purse. Every holiday she would hold it to her heart and say, ‘guide me, keep me, forever with thee, I will be’. After Grams passed, I realized that when life stressed her out she held onto that compass for encouragement. My grandfather loved to travel, hike, roam, as she would tell me stories. But he always carried a compass with their picture inside it so he would always find his way home. He died before I was even a thought, but my grandmother is my compass, my guide. The back piece is for her.”
Powerful.
My grandparents had all passed on, so I knew that longing. I wanted to know more about Garrett, but I didn’t want to pry.
“Your turn,” he challenged.
I sipped my coffee.
“Trees, you got a thing for the woods, kitten?”
I laughed. “It’s a birch tree.”
“Is this like a Bob Ross happy tree thing? Are you a hippie, kitten?”
The way Garrett said it, I found myself laughing even harder. “No, Garrett, I’m not a hippie. Although, I believe in love and peace over war. I love to paint trees, and maybe that comes from watching too much Bob Ross on the public access network. We didn’t have cable, so my television options were limited. When my mom got sick the first time, I found myself sketching birch trees. When I looked into them, I learned birch trees symbolize renewal, rejuvenation, and the spirit to be different. Face challenges other people would not.”
“Like giving yourself to a man to secure hope for your mom?”
The air became thick between us. I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. While I did this for my mom and knew it was for the best, the way he said it made me feel wrong. I didn’t like it.
“Kitten, do not be ashamed of what you’ve done,” Garrett spoke, revealing exactly what I was feeling. “Beacon manipulated your tragedy. That’s his burden to bear. You did what you could for your family. That’s a trait few people in this world have. Very few would have the courage to sacrifice everything in the name of love.”
I let the tears fall.
“Look at me, kitten.”
I did as he commanded.
“We all fuck up. We all are guilty of some wrong. But do not for one second think doing everything within your power for your mother is something to bring shame to yourself or your family. I think you’re giving your mother the most beautiful gift in the world.”
He leaned over the counter to me and cupped my chin.
“You’re giving her life, kitten. And knowing you, having this time with you, kitten, you’ve breathed new life into me.”
Standing in the kitchen leaning over a counter between us, his eyes locked to mine, and that was when it happened.
That was when Garrett Monroe breathed life back into me.
The very moment I fell, and I fell hard for the man who accepted what I had done and found beauty in it.
14
Garrett
One Week Later
At the driveway, I greeted Ellen Sue with my best smile. She emerged from the cab with the same glow to her face she’d had since she came into our lives. Taking long strides to her, I reached the only motherly figure I had known since losing my grandmother in a tight embrace.
“Thank you for coming, Ellen Sue,” I said on a sigh before kissing the top of her head.
“Anything for my boys,” she told me proudly, and it was true; she’d do anything for us. And we’d do anything for her.
“Enissa is on the beach. She doesn’t know I have to leave. I’ll be back in a few days. Keep the alarm on even when Case is here.”
She nodded. “Will he get here before you leave?”
“Onyx was briefing him, and his flight will arrive in an hour or so. As long as he’s not delayed then yes, I will still be here.”
“What do I tell the woman on the beach?”
I smirked, thinking of the beauty in her bikini. “Whatever you’d like, Ellen Sue.”
Ellen Sue didn’t know where I was going. The easy and safe assumption was I had work to attend to. Only the work I was handling wasn’t for my day job. I trusted Ellen Sue not to share my deepest secrets. I also knew exactly how much information about Enissa I had shared with the woman, and the amount of information Ellen Sue could divulge wasn’t much. Ellen Sue wasn’t one to ask questions of us. Therefore, she accepted whatever information we gave to her and would never betray any of us. Ellen Sue didn’t care, not because she was heartless but because she never asked us any questions. She accepted the four of us as her boys, and she did what we asked without asking for the whys, the hows, or any other details. She trusted us, and we trusted her.
I took her purse and carry-on bag from her, and we walked in stride together into the house. Ellen
Sue had her own room here with a closet full of clothes, a bathroom stocked with her favorite toiletries, and she knew her way around. This made traveling easy because she only ever had to bring a carry-on wherever she went. It was one of the locked doors that I didn’t allow Enissa to go into.
“I’ll leave your purse here,” I told her as I sat it on a table in the living space. “I need to go check on Case’s flight, and I’ll take this to your room.”
She nodded, and I took the bag to her room then retreated to my office.
Leaving here sucked.
It had never bothered me like this before. Alas, I had a minor bump in the road that needed my personal attention. On the off chance Beacon found out where Enissa was and decided to grow some balls and show up here, I had Onyx send our head of security down. The updates I had received alerted me Beacon knew I wasn’t in Arizona with her, so he would be digging. I couldn’t be too careful.
Regularly, Case was stationed at The Manor, which was Onyx and Torryn’s primary home. Onyx had a grand mansion behind a gate that truly was set up like a manor for a king or lord of some land. Case lived in a private guest house on the property where he had rooms of computer monitors for each security system in each property we owned. Case had a full staff of bodyguards and security personnel he was in charge of, but I wanted him here personally. Setting up his system with a small crew, I knew he would keep his men out of sight and my houseguest protected. He was the best.
There wouldn’t be backup staff, but I didn’t anticipate him needing it. In the event he felt a threat was possible, I knew he would take the appropriate measures.
In my office, I sat at my desk. Instantly visions of bending Enissa over this very desk and fucking her senseless washed over me. That would be after I had her on her back with her pussy in my face eating her until she trembled around me.
One day soon, I would make sure this came to pass.
Until then, I needed to give my attention to the matter at hand. Checking on the flight schedules, Case’s plane landed, and he would be arriving here shortly. I sat back in my overpriced leather chair. It was time to put up my board shorts and get back in my suit.
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