The tiredness which had been raining down on me disappeared at the thought of having to pay two months’ rent. I’d saved that money for a reason, and I’d worked my ass off for it. But now it felt like it was for nothing. I’d lost count of the number of times I’d had to dip into my savings, and ten times out of ten, it was because my mom was too high to even remember to pay the rent.
“Hey,” I greeted Knox as I opened the door and slid into the passenger seat.
“What took you so long?” His voice was deeper and more annoyed than usual.
“Tony wanted to see how school was going.” The lie slipped so easily from my lips, but it was a lie I hadn’t even thought about not telling. There was no way I’d tell him what Tony really said to me. Knox thought he knew me inside out, but the reality was I only ever let him see the surface because anything more than that was too much to handle.
“He’s a nosy fuck,” Knox gritted out before he wheel-spun away from the trailer park, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake. I clipped my belt in as he sped down the road and away from the rough side of town. He hated being here, and although I wanted to get out as soon as I could, I’d lived in this part of town all of my life. I had friends here, people who looked out for me, but Knox didn’t know that. I wasn’t sure he knew much about me when I really thought about it. Either that or he chose to ignore all the obvious signs.
I stared out of the window as we made it into his side of town, the side which housed our school, but also the neighborhood he grew up in. I’d been to his house more times than I could count, and I thought that was where we were going until my next shift started, but when he turned away from his house and toward the hills, which landscaped the good part of town, I knew what he wanted. He didn’t have to say any words for me to understand today wasn’t about us spending time together, but for him to get what he needed, then drop me home.
My shift started in three hours, but I had to be home in two, and that was just enough time for Knox—at least I hoped it was. We’d been to the lookout point a handful of times in junior year, and once during the summer. Everyone knew you only went here when you wanted to make out, although nine times out of ten it was taken further, something I’d only done once and didn’t intend on doing again anytime soon. I hadn’t told Knox that, but I’d shown him with the way I acted—I hoped.
Knox’s hand moved to my jean-covered thigh, and I tried my hardest not to tense up. He was still driving, but that didn’t stop him from moving his hand farther up. We went higher into the hills, and as soon as I saw the sign for the lookout, I gritted my teeth. If I’d have known this was where he was going to bring me, I would have said I was busy and gone into work earlier.
With only four hours of sleep after working late last night, and a dance practice at the studio this morning, my body was begging for rest. Rest I could have been having before I did another six-hour shift later, but instead, I was here, staring straight ahead as Knox parked the car and turned the engine off.
The silence surrounded us, but Knox’s hand moved higher until he was clasping the waistband of my jeans. His thumb flicked my button open with ease and he murmured, “I missed you, babe.” I didn’t know how to answer him as he unclipped his belt and leaned over the center console. His breath fanned over my neck and was closely followed by wet kisses trailing to my mouth. I didn’t want to turn and face him. I didn’t want to press my lips to his. But I knew I had too. I had no choice—
His hand came up to my throat, his fingers biting into the soft flesh as his other hand pushed its way into my jeans. “Don’t fuckin’ ignore me,” he warned, and the dangerous tone he’d started using more and more came out. He tensed his fingers on my neck and gave it a warning squeeze. Not enough to stop my breath, but enough to have my eyes widening and my head turning to face him. This wasn’t the first time he’d put his hand around my throat, but it was the first time he did it at the same time as shoving his hand into my underwear.
“Knox…” His name was a whisper floating on the air, and I wasn’t sure what I was trying to say with the two syllables, but it didn’t matter, because he wasn’t listening to me. He wanted what he wanted, and I could either put up a fight or go along with it.
“What?” he asked, but he wasn’t really asking. He was only appeasing me as his fingers thrust inside. I wasn’t ready for him, I never was, but that didn’t matter, not to him anyway. I winced and pushed my back farther into my seat. My body was trying to get away from him, but my brain was trying to get away from me.
I should have fought.
I should have told him no.
I should have done a lot of things, but instead, I did nothing. I let him take what he wanted because it was easier.
His hand stayed around my neck and guided my face to his. I squeezed my eyes closed as his lips met mine and his fingers thrust in and out of me at lightning speed. He had no idea how to be gentle and make me wet and ready. Or maybe he did but didn’t want it to be comfortable for me. His fingernails scraped against my inside walls, and a choked sob worked its way from my chest to my throat, but it was halted by his hand applying more pressure.
“Get my dick out,” he demanded, and the second I started to move my head in the negative, he clamped his hand down on my neck, effectively cutting off my air supply. “Now.”
My shaking hand reached for his jeans, and I mentally admonished myself. I just had to go along with it. It would be over before I knew it, and then hopefully, the Knox I remembered would come back, and everything would be okay. In the grand scheme of things, it was such a tiny proportion of my day, and once I was away from him, I could push it to the back of my mind, lock it away, and pretend it never happened. I was getting better and better at being able to do that.
If I really thought about it, it should have scared me, but that was another thing I didn’t do: think. Because if I thought too much, I was frightened of what I would remember. So, this way was better. Push through and forget. Forget the way his hand down my jeans felt. Forget about the threat of his hand around my throat. Forget about the past and concentrate on what would happen in the future—if I ever made it there.
I gripped his zipper, and I pulled on it, the sound like a bomb exploding in an open field. And the second my hand touched his hard cock, I felt tears spring to my eyes. This wasn’t the first time I’d touched him, and I knew it wouldn’t be the last. I just had to keep telling myself that it was temporary.
“That’s it, babe, faster.”
I sped up, wanting this over and done with, and I soon realized the more I touched him, the less he fondled me. He was too entranced to put all of his efforts into me, and slowly his hand left my neck. It felt like a chain had been freed from me the moment he relaxed back in his seat, and I swallowed, telling myself I could do this. If I had to sacrifice doing things to him so he wouldn’t do what he wanted to do to me, then I was okay with it. I’d rather touch something than be touched.
“Lean back,” I whispered, and he did as I said, causing his hand to slip out of my underwear and jeans. I put all my effort into rubbing his cock, doing it the way he liked it. My arm burned from the constant movement, and I gritted my teeth, not letting myself slow down. Because if I did, it’d take longer to get out of here, and all I wanted right then was to be alone.
“I’m gonna blow my load,” he gritted out, and his eyes sprang open. The blue orbs were darker than usual as he lifted his hand and placed his palm on my face. This time he was gentler, his fingers rubbing back and forth, and I sighed, knowing the Knox buried deep down had finally come to the surface. It had taken me this long to realize this was all he needed to bring out the Knox I knew and loved and not the Knox he’d become over the last couple of years.
“Fuck!” he shouted, and turned in his seat, blowing his load all over my T-shirt. The warm stickiness seeped through the thin material, and even though I cringed and hated how it felt, at least he wasn’t touching me. At least that part was well and truly over.
<
br /> And as he leaned back in his seat and turned the engine on, I breathed a sigh of relief. He’d been satisfied for now, but I wasn’t sure how much longer I could take it. Time was running out.
I just didn’t know what would happen when the timer went off.
ASHER
“I swear to god, Asher, I nearly throat punched her right then and there.” Belle’s narrowed gaze focused on me, a storm brewing in her blue eyes as she told me her story. “Who the hell bleaches a dog’s fur because you want it to be fashionable?”
I opened my mouth, but she spoke before I could get a word in. “She looked at me like I was talking Chinese when I told her she can’t do that to a dog. What did she expect to happen? Now the dog is bald, has a skin infection, and she doesn’t want it anymore.”
“What a bitch,” I finally managed to get out.
“Right?” Belle spun around, her arms flailing in the air. “So, I took the dog and told the skinny bitch to get off of my property.” Belle laughed, her head flying back and revealing the faded scar on her neck. It had been fourteen years since she’d gotten it, and I knew she was conscious of it, even after all the time which had passed. It wasn’t like you could hide it unless it was winter and you were wearing a scarf, but I didn’t think she wanted to conceal it. She wasn’t ashamed of it. It was her battle scar, and I knew all too well about those.
“So, where is the dog now, then?”
Belle opened a cabinet in the kitchen and passed me a bag of chips, then a jar of salsa. “Sleeping in the living room.”
I snorted and shook my head. “Should have known you wouldn’t leave it at the shelter.”
“What?” Belle asked, her eyes wide and an innocent expression on her face. “She has no fur, Asher. She can’t sleep there.”
“Right.” I dragged the word out and dunked a chip into the salsa. “Because it’s not like you got everything state of the art when you bought the shelter.” I raised a brow, my lip quirking on the side. “But, I believe you.”
“You should,” she huffed out and sat across from me at the dining table. “Because it’s the truth.”
“So, you’re gonna adopt it out once the fur is back, then?”
“Hell to the no.” Belle chuckled and rolled her eyes as if I should have known better. “She’s mine for the taking.”
“And Ford?”
“What about him?” She shrugged and put a chip in her mouth. “It’s been a couple of years since Lottie passed away. The house is too quiet without a pet. And Leo is practically a man now.” She sighed and folded her arms on the table. “You know he moved up another grade? He’s a senior now. He’s gonna graduate at fifteen. How is that even possible?”
“Well, we know it wasn’t your genes that made him that smart—”
“What the heck is that!” a voice shouted, and it was followed by a yip and then footsteps. “Mom! What is this?” I turned to see Leo standing in the doorway of the kitchen with what looked like a bald rat at his feet.
“It’s our new dog,” Belle told him simply.
“What? Why?” Leo scrunched his nose up and looked at me as if I could better explain it, but all I could do was grin as the dog nibbled at the bottom of his jeans, trying to get his attention.
“Some stupid bimbo—I mean, unsmart person—brought it into the shelter today after trying to bleach her fur. And I couldn’t leave her there. So…” She raised her hands in the air. “Surprise!”
Leo stared at Belle for several seconds, and when the dog yipped at him again, he bent down and held his hand out to it. The naked dog sniffed him, licked him, and seconds later, Leo picked her up and was holding her like a baby against his chest. “I like her.” His lips spread into a wide grin. “What breed is she?”
“No idea,” Belle said, crunching on another chip. “I think she’s a mix. Probably a terrier. The vet said she won’t grow much more than this.”
The dog’s eyes closed, and seconds later she was snoring in Leo’s arms, her little paws in the air, and even I had to admit she was cute. “I’m gonna call Gram and ask her to knit her a sweater so she doesn’t get too cold.” Belle and I both burst out laughing at the idea of Mom knitting something wearable. Ever since Belle had given birth to Leo, Mom had tried to learn how to knit and crochet. She’d failed epically but wouldn’t admit it to anyone.
“You do that, son,” Belle said, trying to get her laughter under control, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the first sweater she’d made Leo. One arm was higher than the other, and the front was longer than the back. Belle had refused to put it on Leo, but Ford hadn’t hesitated. He’d been Mom’s best friend for as long as I could remember, which had made it interesting when Belle and he had gotten together.
Leo pulled out his cell, jabbed at the screen, and walked away, murmuring to Mom on the other end of the line while still holding the dog with his other arm.
“Oh, man.” Belle shook her head and leaned back in the chair. “I dread to think what Mom will make.”
I snorted. “She’ll probably go and buy something and pretend she made it. Remember when she did that for the cake sale one year?” I slapped my palm on the table, causing it to vibrate. “She was all proud of the cupcakes she’d brought—”
“And she left the price label on them!” Belle bent over, laughing so hard tears were streaming down her face. “I’ve never seen Mom go so red in my entire life!”
She was right, I hadn’t either, not even counting the time when she found out Belle and Ford had been sleeping together while he was supposed to be guarding her against the cartel. “She’ll never live that down,” I grunted, trying to get ahold of my laughter.
“Nope, she won’t.” Belle shook her head and grabbed another chip out of the bowl. “Amateur, everyone knows to put store-bought cupcakes into a box from home first.” She pointed at me with a raised brow. “That is how you work the system, little bro.”
“So, I take it you’ve done that too, huh?”
“Hell yeah, I have.” She pushed her chair back and rolled her eyes at me as if the suggestion she had wasn't ludicrous. “Ain’t no one got time for baking.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “I think you meant to say: ‘I can’t bake.’”
“I can too!” Belle shouted, planting her hands on her hips and staring me down, exactly like she used to when we were kids. We both were in our thirties, but that didn’t mean anything when it came to how we behaved together. She’d always be my big sister, and also the biggest pain in my ass.
“Yeah?” I raised a brow, my mind already spinning with a challenge as I slowly stood. “Bet you a hundred bucks you can’t make cupcakes as good as the store.”
Belle extended her arm at lightning speed, offering me her hand. “Challenge accepted.”
I reached for her hand but stopped at the last second. “I get to buy the store cupcakes, and it’s a blind testing.” She nodded in agreement. “Two people of your choosing, two of mine.”
“It’s on like Donkey Kong,” she taunted, and finally, I placed my hand in hers, gave it one solid shake, then let go. “You’re so going down, little Asher.”
“That’s what she said,” I quipped back, snorting as she gagged. “That too,” I said, pointing at the action with a huge grin on my face.
“Ew! Stop it! You’re disgusting.”
I shrugged and stepped back, knowing I had to leave to get to the studio on time for my evening of clients. “Nope.” I popped the p. “That’s what your cupcakes will be.”
“Ohhhh, you’re so dead.” She growled and darted for me, but I managed to get away and to the front door before she could catch me. She was never good at being able to get me, and we both knew it.
“Lost again!” I shouted, flinging the door open and running to my car. “You’re used to that feeling, huh?” I was rubbing it in now, but I couldn’t help it when it came to Belle. She was the one person I didn’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing to.
“I’m gonna ki
ll you,” Belle warned, standing in her doorway, but the smile on her face was a complete contradiction to the words she was saying. She loved me, and I had no doubt I was her favorite brother, even though Cade liked to think he was.
“You wouldn’t.” I opened the driver’s side door and stared over at her. “You love me way too much.”
She snorted. “Ain’t that the truth.” She waved her hand at me to shoo. “Now leave, my neighbors are probably ogling you.”
I flexed my muscles. “They can look all they want.” I posed another couple of times and pressed the tip of my finger to my bicep, wincing. “So hot, it burns.”
“That what you do in front of the mirror each morning, Asher?” Belle asked, leaning on her doorframe and grinning in amusement. “Do you speak positive quotes to your reflection too?”
“And what if I do?”
“I’m gonna be great today,” she mimicked, lifting her arm and flexing her bicep. “I look extra pretty today.”
I gasped, my hand flying to my chest. “How dare you.” I shook my head. “I’m pretty every damn day.”
“Sure, you are. That ‘beard’ is super pretty and delicate.” I ran my hands over my stubble, pretending to stroke it like it was a full beard and feeling like the old man who used to sit on the bench outside the MMA gym I trained at as a kid. I’d been trying to grow a full beard for a decade but never got much more than stubble. “Get out of here,” Belle said, pushing off the doorframe. “I need to go check on my new naked dog.”
“Good luck with telling Ford!” I shouted, getting into my car.
“Good luck with being a douche face!”
“Love you!” I waved, grinning like a madman at her.
“Love you too.”
I waited until she closed the door and chuckled to myself. Belle and I had the kind of relationship people were jealous of, but what they didn’t understand was the pain each of us had been through. We’d had so much shit happen in our lives, that when we got together, we liked to reminisce about the good times and laugh and banter as much as we could, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t tell her things about my time on tour, and that she couldn’t tell me about the nightmares she still had. We knew how to balance the good with the bad, but most of all, we knew we always had each other, no matter what.
Burned Duet: Asher & Elodie: Fast Burn & Deep Burn (Easton Family Duet Boxsets Book 4) Page 4
