The radio in the back of the Trumboldt’s house switches from what could be identified as lite rock to a raunchy R&B hit from back in the day. Anybody and everybody can recognize it from a movie about male strippers, and every woman in the vicinity takes notice, all squealing slightly. Including Stella.
“Stella!” Kelsea screams from across the yard, where she’s sitting with Cruise and Menace. “I haven’t heard this song since last year!”
Stella is laughing, covering her face with both her hands, but even in the muted light of the evening descending upon us, I can see that she’s flushed a dark red. “I haven’t either.” She fans her hand in front of her face.
Renegade and Menace look back and forth between their daughters. “Wanna tell me why the two of you are acting like that?” Renegade asks the question I so desperately want to ask too.
“I’ve got it on video!” Their friend Karsyn holds up her phone. “If I can log into my Facebook account on someone’s computer, we can all see it.”
“Oh hell no!” The two girls are protesting.
“Maybe you better tell us before we get it life-size.” Menace stands with his hands on his hips.
My gaze is on Stella as she takes a large drink from her beer, then wipes her lips off with the tongue that’s brought me to my knees on several occasions. “We graduated last year, as you all know,” she explains about the two of them graduating from the Medical Assisting program together. “Our class did something they considered special for the graduating seniors,” she starts in, eyeing Kelsea for help.
“Oh no girl, you got this one. You’re the older of the two of us.” She gestures for Stella to take the floor.
“Seriously?” She glares at Kels for a second before she picks up the story. “In retrospect we should have known something was up. They had us sit in a semi-circle. There were three of us, but we were all talking to one another, not paying any kind of attention, really happy we were done with school. When the three guys walked in, I didn’t think anything about it. One of them kneeled in front of me and handed me some Chapstick he said I dropped, but I didn’t have any Chapstick, and when I went to tell him, this song started.” She giggles nervously, taking another drink of her beer. “And before I knew it, he’d spread my thighs and was doing some sort of belly roll up my body.”
Jealousy eats at me hard as I think about some guy touching Stella in ways I’ve wanted to for years. Never mind that I’m doing it now. I’m still pissed.
Karsyn comes running out to the back, a laptop in hand. “Got one.”
And right now, I want to arrest whoever gave her that laptop.
“I can’t believe this shit is on your Facebook page,” Stella groans as everyone crowds around.
I make sure to stand next to her, and we stand farther to the back. Her hand reaches out to grab mine. “Don’t be mad,” she whispers as she leans into me.
“Not mad, just fuckin’ jealous.”
“I was kind of starting to notice you, even then. I just didn’t know it yet.” She squeezes my fingers in hers.
“I’ve wanted you since I knew what a hard-on was,” I remind her. “This shit ain’t easy for me.”
“I know, and please just know I didn’t really enjoy it as much as it looks like I did.” She buries her face in her free hand. “I was playing along, but it was truly one of the most embarrassing moments of my life.”
“We’ll see, babe, we’ll see.”
My gaze is locked on the video as soon as it’s queued up and started. She’s sitting in the chair, just like she said she was, when a guy comes into the frame. I’m secure enough in my manhood to admit this guy is really good looking, he obviously works out a lot, and he takes care of himself.
The music starts, and he pushes his way between her thighs, rubbing his stomach along her crotch. Grabbing her hand, he rubs it up under his shirt, helping her push the shirt up and over his head. Looking closely at her, I can see the Stella on the screen is enjoying it, but she does seem to be extremely embarrassed.
My blood boils as the guy moves back down her body, grabs her thighs, and stands up, balancing her on his shoulders, his face shoved between those thighs. I fucking growl, I can’t help it.
“Stella!” Whitney’s voice is shrill.
“Mom, there wasn’t a whole lot I could do!” She buries her head in my shoulder.
No one will think anything about this. We’ve always been friends, and we’ve always been a little touchy-feely. “Don’t think I’m gonna save you,” I tell her, my voice low, feral, fucking pissed. “I’d like to unman this dude.” I tighten my fingers around hers.
It’s then that he turns them around in a circle. She’s surprised obviously, and reaches down to grab his hair. Fuck me, it looks like she’s begging for more, the way she grabs my hair when I’m between her thighs. I’m not sure how much more I can take.
That’s when he moves her off, sliding her down his body and then puts her hands on the waistband of his jeans, grinding against her. Make no mistake, she’s moving against him too, loosening up, and that’s when I see his lips brush against her neck. Two seconds away from saying something, I hear Cruise, Menace, and Renegade all tell Karsyn to turn it the fuck off. I forgot that Kelsea was even involved in this.
“Wow, Belle.” Whitney grins over at her daughter. “Did you at least get his number?”
Quickly she lets go of my hand, running it through her hair. “No, but he works at the bank now. I see him sometimes,” she admits quietly.
Talk continues as Kelsea is asked about the man who’d been dancing for her.
“Next time you go to the bank? I’m fuckin’ going with you,” I tell her, as I let the jealousy flow through my veins. Making sure everyone else is preoccupied, I reclaim that little spot on her neck he kissed. Because I’ll be damned if I go through the rest of the night thinking about another man’s kiss on the woman who means so damn much to me.
Chapter 22
Stella
“Are you kidding me?” I try the doorknob of one of the bathrooms in my grandparent’s house, but it’s locked. Karsyn comes up behind me, sighing when she sees me give it a turn.
“I swear, there’s not enough bathrooms for everyone,” she groans.
“I thought we’d be fine since some people have left now that we’ve all started swimming.” I gesture down to my bikini.
“Obviously not.” Her tone is dry, her look is pointed.
“Oh fuck it,” I sigh, hotfooting it down to what looks like a junk drawer in their kitchen. Rifling through, I find the keys I’m looking for. “Bingo.”
Quickly I run out to the backyard, making my way to the pool house. Not everybody has keys to this, or know where they are. Only our family, so I’m confident no one is in this bathroom, and I can get in. The door is still locked as I try it, and I throw up a thank you, as I get inside and try the doorknob. Unlocked. Hot damn, now I can take care of business.
Coming out of the bathroom, I walk over to the sink, washing my hands. When I glance up in the mirror, I almost scream as I see Ransom leaning against the wall. Putting my hand to my chest, I turn to face him. “You scared the ever-loving shit out of me.”
“Good,” he answers, his eyes intense as he stares at me.
“How’d you get in here?” I question. “I was pretty sure nobody saw me come in.”
“If we’re together, I’m watching you, don’t you know that by now?”
His eyes track me as I pace back and forth in front of the sink. I get nervous when he doesn’t move, he just stands there. Looking all hot in his swim trunks with no shirt on. The tattoos on his body stand out in the soft light of the room, the shadows lodging in the six-pack of his stomach, making the ridges of his muscles seem deeper. Our eyes meet, but neither one of us speaks.
“Ransom, why are you here?” I ask softly, scared to break the connection between us.
“Because,” he answers slowly, “I just can’t seem to get the image of that guy kissing you
r neck out of my mind.
“I told you, it didn’t mean anything.”
“Oh, I have a feeling it did for him, especially if you still talk to him.”
Glancing down at the front of his swim shorts, I see he’s hard, and I can’t help the response I have to him. My nipples tighten in the cups of my bikini, and of course this is the one I have with no padding. “Pretty sure you’re the only one who turns me on.”
His eyes move down to my chest, taking interest in what he sees.
“What would you say if I told you I’d like to take back everything he touched. Right here, right now.”
My temperature rises as I watch him. “I’d say both sets of our parents are outside, and we’d have to be very quiet.”
“Would you have objections?” He reaches down, palming his cock.
“None at all,” I whisper out on a breath as he pushes off the wall, taking me into his arms.
It’s all a blur, but the next thing I know, Ransom’s sitting in a chair with his swim trunks pushed down around his knees. He’s got me straddling his lap, facing away from him. My bottoms are on the ground, and he’s got one hand on my clit, the other at my nipple.
“Gotta fuck you,” he growls as he lowers me down onto his length.
“Oh my God,” I hiss, feeling his hard length push inside me, a little louder than I mean to.
“Gotta be quiet, Stelle,” he reminds, at my ear.
Turning my head into his voice, I push myself up and down against his length, loving the frantic pace we’ve set. It’s animalistic, a furious mating of us against one another. His mouth attaches to my neck as he sucks at the spot that made him jealous earlier. I’m moaning as his finger moves against my clit, as his teeth nip at my flesh. He takes my hand, moving it from my thigh up to my mouth.
“You can’t let people know we’re in here, babe,” he whispers. “If somebody comes to that door, they’re just gonna have to watch me fucking you, because there’s no way I can stop.” His voice is a grunt in my ear, turning me on more. “So fuckin’ hard, your pussy is fuckin’ hot, so wet for me. You like this? You like me bein’ so damn jealous I can’t hold off until we get home? You like that I followed you in here, intent on taking what’s mine? Does that get you off?”
“Fuck yes,” I scream against my palm, praying that nobody heard as I feel the orgasm sweep over my body.
“You’re gripping me so tight, fuck, I can’t,” Ransom grunts, burying his face in my back as he empties deep inside me.
We’re panting as silently as possible, moving slowly against one another as we both come down. Smiling, I know I’ll feel this tomorrow, and something tells me nothing will ever feel as good as this does.
Chapter 23
Ransom
“Here!” I command Rambo as the two of us walk into the Laurel Springs Police Department. We’re about to go on-shift and he’s excited. Always is as soon as he sees me put my shoes on and grab my vest. He’s a work dog and loves to do so. The minute we pull into the parking lot, he’s whining, dying to get out of my truck, and barking with excitement. When I let him out, he’s like a child on Christmas morning, running, sniffing everything, saying hello to my fellow officers. Everyone loves Rambo, and he loves them. But I still have to make sure he can obey, and part of that is making sure we go on-shift on time.
“So…” Menace drags out the word as we walk into the squad room. “You’ve got a ride-along tonight.”
“Oh really?” I’m flipping through the shit that’s been put in my mailbox at the office. How we get so much shit handed out in one day fucking amazes me.
“Yeah.” I hear a familiar voice. “My tranny is out on my car; I’ll be riding along with a few of you until it’s fixed. Tonight, it’s you. I can’t wait, I’m excited to see Rambo work.”
I’m speechless as I stare between the man talking and Menace. Menace has a grin on his face. “I’m sure you and Renegade will have a great night.”
Shit.
“I’m sure we will too.” I give him a glare as I answer, turning to him so Renegade can’t see my face.
Fuck me.
“See y’all tomorrow. Be safe out there.” He claps me on the shoulder before he leans in, whispering so that only I can hear him, “It’s character building kid, you’ve got this.”
As I watch him leave, I realize I’ve got no damn choice. Quickly I pull my phone out and text Stelle. Warning her not to text, not to call, and sure as fuck not to show up and surprise me. This whole keeping shit a secret just got a lot more difficult.
“You work a lot with Nick,” Renegade is saying a few hours later as the two of us make our way through Laurel Springs. Some guys drive haphazardly around town, but I have a set schedule that I like to keep, a particular route that takes me by The Café a few times to check on it. As I pass by, flashing my lights at Cutter, who closes tonight, and turn onto the main road outside of town, he continues. “How are things going with him? He holds a lot close to the vest, and I worry about him, as I’m sure any father worries about their kid, but you know as his best friend,” he slows down, seeming to struggle with what he wants to say. “You know Nick’s been through some shit that he shouldn’t have ever been exposed to. While I understand it, and could help him with it, given my childhood, he doesn’t like to talk to me about it. He doesn’t look great lately,” Renegade finishes off lamely.
This is where it gets awkward and I shift in my seat. “All I feel comfortable saying is he’s struggling with some things.”
“I thought so,” Renegade sighs. “Maybe he’s talked to Belle.” He digs through into his pocket. “Wonder if she’d be honest with me.”
The words he’s saying gives me a bad feeling. I know Nick, sometimes he’d rather cut someone off and out of his life than be forced into talking about things he’s not prepared to talk about.
“Can I be completely honest with you?” And aren’t those words just ironic?
“Please do.”
Now I’m feeling like a complete and utter dickhead. One child won’t be honest with him because he’s not sure how to be honest with anyone. The other child is lying by omission because she and I are scared to hurt anyone if we break up. Talk about being in a clusterfuck. It runs across my mind to just tell him. To admit to him how much I care about his daughter, how she makes my days better, how she makes me think about the future, how she makes me want to be a better man. It’s on the tip of my tongue, but I sigh deeply.
“Don’t force him. You know Nick just as well as I do. If he feels like he’s being cornered, he’ll fight like a junkyard dog.”
Renegade sighs just as deeply. “You’re right. I have to trust he’s an adult and he knows what he’s doing. It’s hard.”
“I know it is, I struggle with wanting to help him every day, especially lately.”
Because I know what’s happened with him and Kels. I know him and Kels haven’t worked out anything, and I know they’re both hurting. But we’re all growing up, we’re all changing, and every single one of our crew is learning something about ourselves. I’m about to open my mouth, compound on what I’ve already let slip, but I come upon a car. It’s driving slower than it should be, but something about it puts me on edge. Immediately I stop talking to him, and turn my attention to the license plate, thumbing my radio.
“Dispatch, run this plate.” I give them the plate and wait patiently for her to come back to me.
“Showing it’s a Ford F150 registered to a John Brown,” she answers.
“Hmm.” I glance over at Renegade. “Welp, that’s a problem.”
“Sure is,” he answers as he sits up straighter in the passenger’s seat.
The vehicle in front of me is a Mustang. Flipping my lights and sirens, I send up a small prayer. Something about this doesn’t feel right. Doesn’t feel right at all.
Chapter 24
Ransom
There haven’t been many times in my career where I’ve been nervous as I approach a car on a stop.
Basically from the time I decided to be a cop, I went into it with the realization that every stop could be my last. Tonight, this one’s got me nervous. Renegade is on the passenger’s side, and we glance at each other as we both touch the trunk, walking up on both sides of the car.
“What can I help you with?” the young guy inside asks me before I can even say anything. In my experience, this is cause for concern. Immediately I smell the faint odor of weed.
There’s not a passenger, but I can see the beam of light from where Renegade stands, searching for things in plain sight.
“I’m gonna need your license and registration,” I start off, waiting to see what he says.
“Don’t have it.” He shakes his head, laughing a little.
“You don’t have an ID?” I question, watching a trickle of sweat working its way across his forehead. The air conditioner is on in the car, there’s no reason he should be sweating.
“I lost it, officer.” He holds his hands up. “Haven’t gotten a chance to get it replaced yet.”
“Why don’t you go ahead and get out of the car.” I motion to him.
“Man…” he groans.
For a second I wonder if he’s going to run. I can almost see it in his eyes, but he doesn’t. He gets out, leaning against the car. “Is there anything in the car I should be worried about? Anything gonna hurt me? Anything illegal?” I ask him. “Because I can tell you right now, I smell weed.”
“I smoked it earlier,” he says.
He’s lying. I know he’s lying, and that makes me more nervous than I was to begin with. Someone who’s lying has something to lose, and that makes them more dangerous than the next guy. Immediately I know I want to get this guy cuffed and as far away from being able to harm me as possible. “Turn around, put your hands behind your back.” I hold his shirt at the small of his back as I cuff his wrists, before I start searching his pockets and go down to his ankles.
Ransom: Laurel Springs Emergency Response Team #1 Page 12
