Broken Hearts

by Sam Crescent

  ****

  Martha was developing a huge crush on Dick. When he’d been in the rehab center, she’d found him attractive, but he’d been a patient, someone to care for. Now, with his shirt removed and sweat glistening on his body. He looked hot, sexy hot. Any thought of him being a patient who needed help had disappeared. She licked her lips, imagining licking the sweat from his body. Ew, what was wrong with her? Dick made sweat look good.

  She ducked her head, and pulled up the latest weeds in her late potato bed.

  Focus, Martha, focus.

  The job she was currently doing would usually only take her a couple of minutes to get done. With Dick distracting her, she couldn’t focus on anything but him. He was driving her crazy, and she was turned on. Working on potatoes while being aroused wasn’t good. When did a woman get horny while gardening? Okay, so not many women had a hot man like Dick close, but she wasn’t a teenager. She had control over her urges and needs. This was not something she suffered with. It had been a good two years since she’d been turned on, maybe even longer. There was a short time she believed her pussy had stopped working because she didn’t get aroused anymore.

  She didn’t know whether to be happy or sad that her body was suddenly waking up, letting her know she was in fact alive. For the longest time she’d forgotten what it meant to be a woman. She was the good daughter, the good sister, the doormat, or the whore’s sister. There had never been a chance where she could literally be herself. Dick wasn’t expecting her to be anyone else, or pretend. He wanted her to be herself, and it really was refreshing.

  He mowed her lawn, and she found herself watching him more than she was watching what she was doing. Dick stopped, wiped at his brow, glanced her way, and smiled.

  “You like what you see?”

  “Yes.” Heat filled her cheeks, and she started to stutter. Dick didn’t help matters by sauntering over to her. His arms still held the old track marks. She’d recognize them anywhere, but she didn’t find them repulsive. They showed the kind of man he was, a fighter to the core. They were a sign of the battle that he had in life. “Erm, it’s a little hot. I’ve, erm, I’ve got to get some drink.”

  She placed her trowel in the ground and stood. Dusting the mud off her hands, she moved around him, not trusting herself to be near him, or to touch him. She wasn’t used to feeling this lack of control. Was his skin hot to the touch from the sun beating down? This was completely out of her comfort zone. Keeping her head bent down, she rushed into her kitchen. Seconds later she heard the lawn mower start up. Taking a deep breath, she rested against the counter, and tried to think of sheep, or something that would cool her body off.

  Staring out of the window, she watched his back move over her lawn.

  “He’s just a guy. There’s nothing going on here. It’s nothing. He’s just a guy, a friend. A sexy, hot, really great friend. Stop it, Martha. He’s not here for that. Focus.”

  It wasn’t nothing, she knew that.

  When Dick had been in rehab she’d grown attached to him, enjoying his company far more than anyone else. Becky had once accused her of using the center to pick up men. She hadn’t, but she would look forward to seeing him. Dick had been the highlight of her visits. He didn’t call her names, shout, or curse her. He made her feel welcome when that should have been Becky’s job. Her sister never appreciated her visits, so there was no point in trying too hard for Becky. She’d tried for Dick.

  I’m a horrible person.

  What kind of person tried harder for a man she barely knew? He always seemed to enjoy her visits while Becky just complained. She would complain about the heat, the lack of comfort, the food, the men, the lack of money. Everything Beck could find to complain about, she did.

  Pouring out two large sweet teas, Martha walked back out.

  Dick stopped mowing the lawn and moved to her side.

  “So are you seeing anyone else? Anything casual?” he asked.

  “No. There’s no one. I mean, the postman comes throughout the week, but there’s nothing going on there. I’m alone here. I like the quiet.”

  “When was the last time you dated someone?”

  “Are you asking me out on a date?”

  Dick tilted his head to the side. “I’m not.”

  “Of course you’re not. I mean, we barely know each other.”

  “It’s not because of that. We know each other. We know more about each other than most people would in a lifetime.”

  “That’s true, but it has been two years since we’ve seen each other. A lot can happen in that time.”

  “I don’t care about the time between. We know each other where it matters most.”

  She took a deep breath, barely believing what she was hearing. “It’s a long time. People change.”

  “I’ve changed, Martha. I’m not the same man I was in the rehab center. I’m clean. I’m sober, and at times I find that hard.”

  “Why?” she asked, staring up at him. It took every single ounce of willpower not to stare at his body. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and it was hard for her not to look at his glorious body.

  Dick was a handsome man. In the center, because of the withdrawal and drugs, he’d lost a lot of weight, too much. He’d been skin and bones. Now, he’d filled out in all the right places with muscles everywhere.

  “Life is hard. It’s hard, and it’s painful, and it’s so fucking unfair. I figure a high is worth it.”

  Her gut tightened. There was no other word to describe it. Becky had always been an adventurous person even when they were growing up. She’d wanted to try everything, to be everything. The life and soul of the party, but it all came with consequences.

  “So you get high for a few hours, but the thing is, everything stays the same.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Getting high doesn’t take the problem away. You get high, waste the hours it’s taken to forget about the problem, only it’s still there. Becky, she got high when our parents died, and after her high and forgetting everything, they were still dead.”

  “I’m not trying to condone—”

  She held her hand up. “I know you’re not trying to condone or even take her side. I’m telling you the way I see it. I suffered right along with my sister. I didn’t do drugs. I didn’t drink. I faced everything head on. I acknowledged our parents’ deaths. I dealt with it. Becky, she would always come down, and the facts would remain the same. Our parents were still dead, and each time she came back to reality, she hated it. That’s not dealing with anything, or even getting high. It’s trying to escape something that can’t be escaped from.”

  “I never thought about it like that.”

  “I dealt with my parents’ deaths. It took me a couple of months to accept it, and over time, it got a little easier. Becky ignored the truth, and so she suffered all the time. She couldn’t handle what was right in front of her.” Martha took a sip of her drink. She thought she’d be close to tears, but she wasn’t. The time for mourning had passed for her. She had accepted what had happened, moved on, and dealt with it. Becky had thought she was heartless as she stopped crying. Her sister was never there for Martha in the beginning when she did cry all the time. She’d be standing in the kitchen, grab a wooden spoon, and sob remembering her mother’s cooking.

  No, she wasn’t heartless. She simply didn’t run away like everyone else.

  Crying was the last thing she wanted to do.

  “Getting high is a waste of time?” he asked.

  She chuckled. “It doesn’t exactly help. What are you trying to get away from?”

  Dick looked away. “You’re the first woman to ever ask that.”

  “Is there someone back home?”

  “No.”

  “You don’t sound too sure about that.”

  “I thought I was with someone, and I can’t stand her. I was only helping her out. I thought she was the kind of woman I deserved.”

  Jealousy struck Martha hard. “Deserved?” She ho
ped he didn’t detect the bitterness in her voice.

  “I’m not a good man, Martha. I’ve never done good things. There are things I’m not even proud of. I guess I figured if I was that ashamed of what I’d done, I didn’t deserve any kind of real happiness.”

  “So you’re punishing yourself by being with a woman you can’t stand?” Martha asked.

  “No. One of my brothers already took care of the talk for me. He told me that I deserved to have as much happiness as I wanted.”

  “Brothers? I didn’t know you had a family.”

  “I don’t. The club I’m with. That’s my family. They’re the guys that will always have my back.”

  “You sound very close together. It must be nice.”

  “They’re the only family I’ve got. Yeah, they drive me fucking crazy, but then, that’s life.”

  “Yeah, that’s life. We win some, we lose some.”

  He looked so sad. Closing the distance between them, she wrapped her arms around him, keeping him close. It wasn’t about sex for her. She wanted to offer him comfort.

  Dick wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. Martha closed her eyes, inhaling his scent. He was the first man she’d been close to. It had been well over three years since she’d been with anyone. With Becky, men gravitated to her sister more than her. Martha had not minded, or at least she’d tried not to care. Martha would introduce any boyfriends to Becky before she slept with them. They always ended up wanting Becky more than they wanted her, until Dick entered her life. He’d only been interested in her, and she’d liked that about him.

  When his hand ran down the back of her shirt, the fabric was so light that it was almost as if he was touching her skin. She closed her eyes, licking her lips. Her body came to life at his touch, and she didn’t want him to stop.

  “What’s the matter, Martha?” he asked.

  His voice seemed husky as if he was feeling the tension as well.

  “Nothing.”

  You’re arousing me in ways a man never has before.

  He moved his hand up to the back of her neck, gripping just a little tighter. She gasped out at the pressure, and he pulled her closer. Dick leaned in while she stared at his lips. What would it be like to have those lips on hers, attacking hers, devouring her?

  Martha wanted to know, she needed to know, and yet what would happen if it took their relationship to the next level, and they weren’t ready for that?

  It was as if he read her mind.

  Dick pulled away, giving her a smile. “I better get this lawn finished so I can work on something else tomorrow.”

  Pushing away her disappointment, Martha simply nodded. “Sure.”

  She grabbed the two glasses of sweet tea and made her way inside the house.

  “It was stupid to think he’d kiss me. Why would he? I’m a no one. A no one who has nothing to do with his club, or anyone else. I bet he has a lot of hot women at the club who’ll be with him all the time. Here I am, talking to myself.”

  She washed the glasses before making her way outside. Forcing herself to not look at him, she went back to weeding through her plants even with the sun high in the sky. At some point Dick walked toward her, and placed a cap on her head. “Keeps the sun out.”

  They didn’t speak to each other for the remainder of the day.

  ****

  “Dick made it where he needed to go,” Devil said, coming downstairs from putting the kids to bed. He was back home in the house that he’d bought for his family, close to his friend Vincent. Devil never thought he would settle down, be in love, and have a family of his own. He’d been on the road all of his life, growing his club, but it had happened, and he was grateful for it.

  “Where did he go?” Lexie asked.

  He followed her as she walked back into her kitchen, admiring the curves of her ass. She’d given birth to three of his children, and to him, her body was still as beautiful as the day he first met her, dancing on a pole. His love for Lexie had rivaled that of his club. She was everything to him. Lexie and the kids had become his world, and she’d embraced the club even though it scared the living hell out of him at times the danger she was in.

  “I don’t know. He needed to get away from the club, open his mind up, and I wasn’t going to stop him. It’s the first time he’s come to me in a long time.” He took a seat at the kitchen counter while the scent of baking permeated the air.

  Lexie loved to bake, and he’d been taking more and more delicious items into the clubhouse with him daily.

  “It’s not like him to need a break from the club. Dick’s usually the one driving people crazy.”

  “Dick has had it hard the last couple of years. He was always a great guy for the club. Stuck up for us, and all he did was do drugs. Sure, he hit the drugs hard, but he could always take a shot for a brother. He never had a problem risking his life for the club. I respect him.”

  Lexie moved away from the stove and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You shouldn’t feel guilty for making your boys get clean. They shouldn’t feel anything for you but being grateful to you. If you hadn’t done it, they might have ended up in a worse place now.”

  “I promised them I wouldn’t interfere with the way they ran their life. Chaos Bleeds was about no rules, and to respect the road.”

  “That was when there was no threat, but everything changed. You came to Piston County not just for your son, but to find a place to call your own. So you met me, and we got married. Things change. The club didn’t change because of you, Devil. They changed because you had to keep your boys safe. There was an outside force here. Don’t forget that.”

  No, he wasn’t going to forget anything anytime soon. Gonzalez had taken a great deal from him, and yet, he’d given a great deal of his club their life back. If Devil hadn’t sent them to rehab, they would have eventually ended up dead at some point.

  “Whatever sent Dick away, he’s dealing in his own way.”

  “I hope he’s not using,” Devil said.

  He loved all of his men at Chaos Bleeds. There wasn’t a single man that he wouldn’t die for. It was what made Chaos Bleeds so deadly. They were a deadly wall, each brother willing to stand up, take a bullet, and fight for another day.

  “Dick’s many things, but his love for the club is never shaken, Devil. If he wanted to cheat the club, he wouldn’t have gone to rehab, and he’d have left when you gave him the choice.”

  “He’s a dick to the core.”

  Lexie chuckled. “I don’t think he is. Sure, he pisses everyone off with his shitty attitude, but really, I believe it’s a front. I don’t think for a moment he’s always honest with himself. He had to get away because of Lydia. He can’t stand her. No one really likes her.”

  “The guys like that she is easy.”

  “Dick was going to take her as his old lady until he got his head out of his ass.”

  Devil had to admit that there was more to Dick than him riling people up, getting a rise out of them. “He deserves a good woman.”

  “He’ll be good, and when he’s ready, he’ll come back to us. Hopefully with a much better woman than Lydia.”

  Taking her hand, Devil pulled his woman down to his lap. “How long until this cake is done? I need to be inside you.”

  “It’s already done. When did you start asking for permission?”

  Chapter Five

  After Dick almost kissed Martha, they’d gone to either end of the garden. He wanted to kiss her, and he didn’t know what stopped him. She had looked a little uncertain about the kiss, and so he’d released her. He couldn’t help but watch her every now and then, just because she was so beautiful, and he didn’t want to look away. The woman, who was now picking strawberries, was nothing like Lydia. Personality, looks, or just general interests, they were nothing alike. Lydia was a selfish bitch who lost her friendship with Jessica. She liked to fuck, and that was about it. He couldn’t find any other reason to like her, whereas he liked everything about Martha. He lik
ed the way she smiled, the way she tucked her hair behind her ear, rubbing her forehead with the back of her hand. All of it was charming to him.

  Martha held a variety of interests, and he’d seen some of those interests in the how-to books she had in abundance. She cared about her friend, and he didn’t see Martha calling Lynne for a guy that was torturing her. Martha would be the kind of woman who’d die before letting any harm come to her friend.

  Resting his chin on the rake, he simply admired her curvy ass. She filled out a pair of shorts to perfection. Even though he saw the outline of her panties, he found himself getting more aroused by the sight before him. She spun around, bent down, and he had to look away. The top gaped enough so that he saw the rounded globes of her tits.

  Raking at some of the weeds, he kept working. If he didn’t work, he was going to walk over there, and fuck her. There was no one around. They could fuck out in the open without fear of anyone looking at them. It would be so easy to. He was hard as fucking rock, making it impossible to move around.

  Minutes passed, he didn’t know how many, when she finally came over.

  “I’ve got a couple of steaks. Would you like them on the grill?” she asked.

  “Sure, bring them out.”

  He wiped the sweat from his forehead, and made his way over to the grill. His cell phone started to buzz, and he answered without looking at the screen.

  “Hello,” he said.

  “When are you coming back to the club?” Lydia asked.

  Any arousal he had disappeared. Nothing like the reminder of his mistake to dampen his need for another. Why the fuck did he even think he’d be able to put up with that bitch? No one could handle Lydia long term. She was too needy, too bitchy. The list was endless.

  “What do you want, Lydia?” he asked. He glanced toward the kitchen to find Martha still inside. He didn’t want to have to explain Lydia to her.

  “I’m bored. I’m needy, and I want you.”

  Closing his eyes, he rubbed at his temples. “I’m not coming home.”