by L M Terry
After we shove all of our purchases in the trunk we head back to the hotel to pick up the rest of our belongings and to get Addy and Liam. We are only going to the zoo for a few hours and then heading up to the cabin. We want to get there before the dark settles in.
“You’re going to change right?” Dani asks me as she packs her hairdryer in her bag.
I look down at my attire. “What’s wrong with what I have on?”
“You’re in a suit. We are going to the zoo, Anthony. You can’t wear that. Besides it’s too hot.”
My hands fidget with my tie as I think about it. I’ve always worn a suit or at the very least dress pants with a sweater. The guys have all seen my tats, they know my story. But, not the girls. I wouldn’t say I’m hiding behind the suit, I know they will accept me for who I am, if I let them see. Maybe it’s the rest of the world I’m hiding from. No, I’m not hiding. It’s just that I was a punk, gang member living on the streets, hustle was my middle name. I wear the suit to remind of who I am and how far I’ve come.
I met Manuel during one of his rescues. He was looking for the two girls that my friends had picked up. Humans were becoming a hot commodity right alongside guns and drugs. It made me sick, literally but what was I supposed to do about it. I was an eighteen-year punk kid trying to make it the world on my own. The guys in my gang took me in, they became my family. But, I couldn’t sway them from this new endeavor.
When Manuel and his team came in I was in the alley throwing up. The girls we had taken were crying and my stomach just couldn’t take what we were about to do to them. Sell them into a world of slavery. Manuel stumbled across me in that alley and handcuffed me but instead of turning me into the authorities he took me to his estate. He made me into the man I am today, and I guess I use the suit to remind me that I am better than the boy he found in that dank alley tossing his cookies, all those years ago.
“Anthony, please wear something more comfortable. Do your friends know about your tattoos? Is that why you wear the suit?” She starts removing my jacket as she speaks.
“Liam has seen them but I’m not hiding, Dani.”
“No?” she says cocking her head to one side. “I love the suits. I do but they are not practical for the zoo. You will still be Anthony in jeans and a t-shirt, and I guarantee you will turn just as many heads as you do in a suit, maybe even more. Come on I know you can do it. You’ve worn jeans and sweats around me.”
Sighing loudly, I begin to remove my clothes. She bounces over to my bag, tugging jeans and a blue v-neck t-shirt out for me. “Laying out my clothes for me now are we?”
“Don’t get too used to it but today, yes. You’re smokin hot in jeans,” she says wagging her eyebrows at me.
After getting dressed we finish packing and head down to the lobby to meet Addy and Liam. Addy is jumping up and down. “I am so excited, the first exhibit I’m going to hit up is the giraffes. I love them,” she squeals. She grabs Dani’s arm and they climb into the backseat together nonstop chit chat. No one even gives second notice to my tats or the fact that I am not in a suit.
Dani tells Addy that she googled the zoo earlier and was most excited to go to the butterfly pavilion. For some reason this piques my interest. Suddenly I am excited to go to the zoo, anything that helps me understand who Dani is.
I’m surprised as the day progresses how much I am enjoying everything. Addy and Dani are always about twenty feet in front of us. Heads together laughing. It makes me happy. I knew she would get along great with my friends. After a few hours we decide we should probably get headed to the cabin. Liam and Addy want to hit the gift shop, so Dani and I decide to visit the butterfly pavilion since we hadn’t had a chance to go there yet.
Dani’s mood shifts when we enter the pavilion. “Today has been fun. The shopping, this,” she swirls her finger in the air.
“It has been fun, even for a zoo hater like me.” I tell her.
She watches a large blue butterfly flit near us, and I watch her. “I’ve always loved butterflies.”
“There are some impressive ones here, they are beautiful,” I say reaching out to take her hand. She looks down at our fingers intertwined and then up at me. Sadness briefly flits over her face, but she quickly masks it with a small smile, averting her eyes back to the winged creature who has decided to perch on a tree branch hanging above us. “What is wrong?” I ask.
She doesn’t look at me, but surprisingly she does answer. “I’m scared,” she tells me in a voice so quiet I have to lean in to hear her.
“Of the butterflies,” I tease, squeezing her hand gently.
“I’m scared this is all going to end,” she whispers.
“This moment will end but this,” I motion between the two of us, “this doesn’t have to end.”
She looks at the ground and I see the tiniest of smirks lift at the corner of her mouth. “Thirty-eight,” she says.
“Thirty-eight what?” I shake her hand in mind trying to get her to look at me.
She looks up at me slowly, when her eyes meet mine she says, “thirty-eight women stopped to check you out today.” Her grin widens as she speaks.
“Forty-five,” I counter not missing a beat.
“What?” she shakes her head laughing lightly in confusion. “I counted, it was thirty-eight, I think you are being a little conceited now,” she teases.
I stare into her eyes and draw my finger down the side of her face. “Forty-Five men stopped to take notice of you today, Dani.”
“No,” she says trying to take a step back from me.
Pulling her close I bend down and whisper into her ear. “Forty. Five. And, I wanted to kill every one of them.”
Addy and Liam come walking up to us as I pull away from her. She bats her eyelashes, looking at me like I hung the moon and the stars. I need her too look at me like that until the end of my days. I tip my arm to her. I cannot wait to introduce the love of my life to my family. She takes my arm. Her eyes never break from mine. A smile passes between the two of us, the realization that we are together, Anthony and Danielle, a couple. It washes over us in the same moment. Life is good.
Chapter Eighteen
Danielle
◆◆◆
On the way to the cabin Anthony tells Addy of my talent for painting people or places that are described to me. I guess four years ago Liam and Addy were staying at the cabin we are going to, well not the exact cabin because some a-hole burned the original one down. Anna had it rebuilt and that is why they are all meeting here for Sophia’s birthday and the fourth of July. Anyhow, the last of her pictures were in the cabin when the place burnt to the ground. The only photos she had of her father.
I grabbed my sketch book without hesitation and now quietly in the back seat she is describing him to me. The guys talk about work and sports in the front. I listen to her voice. She is normally a burst of childlike innocence but now I hear the sadness. Maybe I should have at least grabbed some photos of my parents. I left with nothing…again.
When I’m finished I remove the sketch from my book and hand it to her. “Oh, my god. Dani, this…oh, this is…it looks just like him!” The guys pause when they hear her exclamation. She leans forward in her seat to show Liam. He looks at it and then at me.
“Dani, wow, you are very talented. How do you do that?” he asks.
I shrug my shoulders at him. “When someone starts to describe things to me I just get a clear picture in my head as they speak. I know it’s a bit creepy.”
“I don’t think it’s creepy at all,” Addy says, an expression of awe twinkling in her eyes.. “I think it is magical.”
Liam tilts it so Anthony can see. “I told you she was brilliant.” He winks at me in the rearview mirror. Addy takes the sketch back and tears start to fall from her eyes. “This is so special, Dani. My god, you have no idea what this means to me. I can’t wait to show Dylan and Anna. Thank you so much.”
“Your welcome. If you would like more I would be happy to sketch o
r paint them for you. I am good at painting entire scenes,” I tell her.
“Dani, this is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.” Addy lovingly runs her finger over the sketch. My heart swells, this is what I love. There is nothing better than someone getting to lay eyes on someone or something they haven’t seen in a long time. It is priceless.
When we finally reach the cabin, Addy has quieted down and looks nervous about being back here. She told me about the man that burned the previous cabin down. He sounds frightening, she stood up to him though. I wish I would have been strong enough to stand up to Ted, but no, I was a chicken shit teenager afraid of what people would say about her if they knew about her story, or about the things Ted made her do.
Addy puts on a brave face as people from inside the cabin come pouring out. She is strong, stronger than I will ever be. I would have never come back here if something like she described happened to me. But, here she is with a smile on her face.
Anthony opens my door for me and draws me out. He keeps a strong arm around me as we approach his friends, his family. He introduces me to everyone, there aren’t as many people here as I thought. The first couple is Luis and his wife Rosemary (aka Mrs. Cortez). Luis is Liam’s dad and they look a lot alike, both of them have the kindest eyes. Rosemary is the sweetest looking woman with rosy cheeks and a laugh that is contagious.
Next in line for introductions is Dylan and Anna. Anna is beautiful with the most exquisite blue eyes. She is adorable with a swollen belly. She is carrying her and Dylan’s third child. But, it’s Dylan that makes my pulse pick up. I remember him. He was there when I was rescued. He was the one who I gave Anthony’s suit jacket to. He had approached me with a photo of a girl, a girl he said was his sister. He was looking for her. He also had a picture of a man, a scary man. I hadn’t seen either of them, so he moved on to the other four girls asking them the same questions. Please god, don’t let him recognize me.
Anna guides us all inside. Dylan doesn’t seem to remember me. I remind myself that they save people all the time. There is no way that they could even possibly remember them all. Everyone is kind and they seem very interested in the girl who caught Anthony’s attention. However, it has been a long day and I just want to be alone.
“Let me show you guys to your room. The kids are in bed already, it was a long day of traveling for us. Addy told me that you all went to the zoo. Dylan and I talked about taking the kids before we fly home. Did you enjoy it?” Anna asks.
“It was fun, Sophia would love it!” Addy squeals.
“It smelled terrible,” Anthony interjects.
Anna and Addy both smile at him. “I like the new look, Anthony,” Addy says as both of them run appraising eyes over him, stopping to take extra notice over his arms before landing on his eyes.
“It’s not a new look. Dani tells me a suit is not practical for trips to the zoo, she made me change.”
They both raise their eyebrows at the same time and look at each other. If I didn’t know better I would swear that they were sisters. “Dani, you got Anthony out of his suit? We are going to have to have some serious girl talk tomorrow,” Anna chides.
Anthony tucks me closer to his side as Dylan scolds them. “There will be none of that. Give the girl some time to get used to us before you start asking her to spill her and Anthony’s secrets.” They don’t seem to be concerned about his scolding because they both get the giggles.
“The cabin looks beautiful, Anna,” Addy says walking backwards looking around her as she does.
“We added more rooms and each one has a private bath. I wanted this to be a place for all of our families to be able to come together.” Anna gives us a quick tour before showing us to our rooms.
I love it here. It feels warm and cozy yet open and inviting. I especially love the porch swing out front. My mind is already thinking of all the places I could possible find to sit down and draw or paint. This wasn’t as bad as I pictured it. Everyone is laid back and welcoming. Anthony has been watching me closely and when I cover my mouth with the back of my hand to stifle a yawn, he announces that we are heading to bed.
“See you all tomorrow, thank you again for letting me tag along with Anthony,” I tell them.
“It is a pleasure, we are all looking forward to getting to know you,” Luis says smiling at me warmly.
Once inside our room Anthony sits down on the bed and pulls me to sit beside him. “You okay?” he asks brushing my hair over my shoulder.
“I’m good, just tired.”
“You seemed to be a bit hesitant around Dylan. He is all bark and no bite. You don’t have to fear him.”
I lean back confused. “I’m not scared of him, why do you think that?”
“You avoided eye contact with him.”
I shrug my shoulders. “I guess I didn’t notice I was doing it. I promise he doesn’t scare me. Anyone can see that he loves his family very much, nothing scary about that.”
He breathes a sigh of relief. “Good, Addy was afraid of him for the longest time. I’m glad you’re not. I want you to feel comfortable here.”
“I am. Thank you for bringing me with you.” I run my finger over his forehead, smoothing out the worry lines that had formed there. He visibly relaxes.
“We are a package deal now.” He winks and pulls me up leading me into the bathroom. “I could use a shower before bed. Got to get that zoo stink off of me. Join me.”
I laugh at him. “Is that a question or an order? I feel like this is an excuse to get me naked,” I tease.
“Abso-fucking-lutely and it wasn’t a question,” he says grabbing the hem of my shirt and lifting it over my head.
Eventually we make it to bed, and I think I’m asleep before my head even hits the pillow. Sometimes I think Anthony keeps my anxiety at bay by keeping me in a constant state of post orgasm and tired. Don’t get me wrong, there are no complaints from me on this front. Having his hands on me is my new favorite drug.
The next morning, I wake before him which is unusual. Anthony doesn’t seem to require much sleep, so I have become accustomed to waking up in bed alone. I almost always find him dressed and sipping coffee with the paper in his hand. It is nice he is still in bed with me. My hand roams lightly over his chest and I study his tattoos at leisure while he snores lightly. Some of them are truly frightening, he said he got them when he was young and in a gang. It’s hard to picture him in a gang, it’s almost impossible to think of him as anything other than chivalrous.
He is so brave, so sweet, so demanding. So, mine. I sit up and hover over him, pushing the covers down exposing him. Fuck, he is magnificent. He never lets me explore his body, usually I am tied up and he is in control. My eyes wander over him, putting every inch of him to memory.
“See something you like?” he asks without opening his eyes. I totter back on butt, startled out of my ogling session. He chuckles still content with keeping his vision confined to the back of his eyelids. “Go ahead, it’s all yours.”
All mine.
Hesitantly I sit on my knees beside him. My fingers cautiously flit over his forehead, drifting over his eyes before roaming over his neck pausing to feel his strong pulse beating a steady pace. His skin is so smooth, his body rock hard. I straddle him and lower myself so that I can rub my breasts over his chest. He groans and I smile. I slide lower letting his cock drag between my breasts, I stop momentarily to squeeze them around him, his eyes finally flash open and he hisses.
“I need your mouth on me, princess.”
I oblige grabbing the base of him tightly in my hands, stroking his shaft up and down. I let the tip of him bounce lightly over my lips, glossing them with the pre-cum that has beaded there for me, only me. I watch him, he wants to take control. His eyes are black as night and his tongue keeps snaking out to wet his lips. He is itching to grab me and force me to bend to his will.
I hear the cabin come to life beyond our room. His eyes drift to the door, he is thinking the same thing. Quickly I swallow
him down. His hips jerk and he moans my name quietly. I peek up to see him biting his fist trying to keep quiet. Oh, fuck, yes. I’m going to make him come apart. Reaching up I take his hand and place it on the back of my head before clasping my hands together behind my back.
He shoves my head pushing it all the way down until my nose is pressed up against him. I inhale his masculine scent. My toes curl into the bed and my nails sink into my own hands as I fight the panic. The panic I should hate, but with him I love. There is nothing better than being his, I want him to take me how he wants, how he needs. This is everything. He pulls my hair, yanking my mouth away from him. I gasp in a few deep breathes and spit on him before he shoves me back down. Again, and again until he comes hard, shooting down my throat, I swallow, and he curses…loudly.
I stay in position, continuing to swallow everything he gives me until he begins to go soft in mouth. He pulls me back harshly. “You little fucking minx, I’m going to take you into the forest and tie you to a fucking tree for that.”
“Promise,” I whisper.
He growls and pulls me by my hair up to his face. “You. Are. Going. To. Kill. Me,” he breathes over my lips before releasing me.
I slink down in the covers beside him and lay my head on his chest, listening to his heart struggle back to its normal rhythm. “I was happy you were still in bed with me.”
He hugs me tighter and places a kiss on top of my head. “We need to remember that we aren’t alone. The others will hear us,” he says still not breathing normally.
I smile into his chest. “I’ve been quiet as a church mouse.”
He swats my ass hard making me yelp. “You’re being a brat today.”
Just then the door opens and a tiny girl with a full head of dark curly hair comes bounding into the room jumping right up on our bed, scurrying over the top of me to get to Anthony. “Uncle Tony!” she squeals as she places her tiny hands on each side of his face.
