Wood U (Carved Hearts #4)

by L. G. Pace III

  Kelly.

  No fucking way.

  I took a deep breath and hit answer. “Hello.”

  “Mac, it’s Kelly.” Her voice was light and airy, and I instantly wanted to see her.

  “Yeah. I know.”

  Silence.

  Her sigh was deep enough to resonate through the phone. “Hey...what I said...well, I meant what I said. But I hate how I said it.”

  It’s wasn’t what I’d hoped to hear. “What do you want, Kelly?”

  More silence.

  “Are you still there?” I finally asked.

  “I want you to come over.”

  I stopped what I was doing and looked up at the ceiling. Maybe I thought I’d find my self-respect up there, but all I saw was the smoothed out plaster I’d busted my ass on. “Looking to make another error in judgement?”

  I heard her exhale. “Yes.”

  I hung up without another word, and I immediately dialed Mason.

  “Hey!” He boomed into the receiver. He sounded buzzed, but it was Friday night, after all.

  “Hey.” I responded. “Are you at home?”

  “Yep.”

  “Can y’all watch Junior for a couple of hours?” I asked.

  “Why? Gotta hot date?” He huffed. When I said nothing, he perked up. “Shit! Really?”

  “I’ll be back by 9:30,” I explained. “Can you do it?’

  “Sure,” he chuckled. When he spoke again, his snarky tone made me smile. “Don’t rush on our account.”

  Minutes later, I hustled Junior into the car.

  “Where are we going, Dad?” he whined.

  “You’re going over to Uncle Mason’s and Aunt Robin’s.” I replied, without any need to fake enthusiasm. One of us was going to have a good time.

  He scowled, his small face scrunched in disapproval. “But dad! We were gonna watch WWE.”

  “Don’t you want to see your cousins?” I pressed, knowing exactly how to push his buttons.

  “I just saw them last Wednesday.” He grumbled.

  I whipped my head in his direction. He’d been with his mother the week before. “You did?”

  “Yeah.” He stuffed more popcorn in his mouth from the Ziplock I’d brought for him. “Mom went out.”

  Mason had WWE on his plasma screen when we arrived, thank goodness. Junior ran for the TV and plopped down on the couch next to my brother and nephew.

  “Was Junior here last week?” I asked Robin, who’d been the one to let us in. She seemed hesitant, but nodded.

  “Patty said she had an A.A. meeting.” She replied, and I blew out a heavy breath. Patty at an A.A. meeting was as likely as me at a born-again virgin rally.

  “Does this happen often? Her bringing him to y’all?”

  “Mac…” Robin raked a hand through her frosted hair.

  I fixed her with an interrogator’s stare. “Robin…”

  “About once a month, maybe a bit more often lately.” She replied, rubbing her lip with her painted nails anxiously. “We don’t mind having him, but when she leaves him overnight on a school night, I worry. I don’t think he gets a lot of sleep over here.”

  “Next time call me.” I sounded curt, and even when I saw the sting in Robin’s face, I didn’t apologize. “I’ll come get him.”

  “Mac!” Robin hissed, looking over her shoulder to be sure Mason and Junior hadn’t heard her. “You know we love M.J.”

  “I’ll be back before 9:30.” I replied and slipped out of the door. I was livid, and adrenaline coursed through my veins. I was sick of Patty shirking her parental duties and felt like my own family was keeping her secrets from me. Then I felt like a hypocrite for that anger, since I had bailed her out on a regular basis. By the time I got to Kelly’s apartment door, I was pretty spun up, and my knocking seemed to shake the entire building.

  When she opened the door, I pushed my way in without a word. Her eyes were bright and a little scared; but she’d asked me to come, and I planned to do just that.

  Her face was scrubbed free of make-up, and she was wearing a long white t-shirt. It was obvious that she thought I’d turned her down, and she was ready for sleep. Frankly, the t-shirt was fucking sexy, far hotter than any Victoria’s Secret shit she could have come up with. Her hair was all down around her, and my hands were fisting it instantly. She opened her mouth to speak, but I didn’t allow it.

  My mouth was on hers, and though she hesitated for a second, it was exactly that before she gave back what she got. Her hands raked through my hair, tugging my mouth closer to hers, her tongue reminding me just what she was capable of. I slid my hands down to her bare thighs and lifted the shirt over her head.

  “Mac…,” she sighed, as if ready to launch into another one of her lectures about how we shouldn’t do what we were about to do. I looked down to see that she wasn’t wearing a bra, and a primal growl escaped me.

  “Shhhh,” I urged, backing her against the wall and caging her between my arms.

  “But—” She whimpered, and I froze, cocking my head to the side.

  “Do you want this?” I asked.

  “What kind of question—” she started, a fire lighting behind her milk chocolate eyes.

  “Yes or no, Kelly?” I interrupted. She stopped short, her eyes darting back and forth as she assessed the message in mine.

  “Yes.” Her breathless response was accompanied by her hands reaching for my zipper.

  I interrupted her attempt to undress me, running my hands down the back of her panties and hoisting her up until her legs were around my waist. Her breath caught, and her arms wrapped around my neck. I moved in to kiss her again, loving the taste of her glossy lips and her sweet tongue. She moaned into me, grinding against my waist. I could feel the heat of her even through my t-shirt, and her arousal drove me to get her naked, pronto. I stumbled blindly in the direction of her bedroom, taking my hands off her ass long enough to feel my way through the doorframe. Kelly clung to me, sucking on my tongue, making all the blood rush away from my brain and in a southerly direction.

  I rested her back onto the bed, pulling back from her so I could take in every inch of her beautiful body. She froze, her expectant eyes locked onto mine, glassy and wanton. I hooked my finger in her panties, and she raised her narrow hips, a silent consent that I was taking full advantage of. Once the last slip of material was out of my way, I dropped to my knees between her silky thighs, and the sight of her slick and ready to go was nearly too tempting.

  “Fuck me, Mac,” she moaned, but I was fully dressed and planned to stay that way, at least for now.

  “Oh, I will, Sugar.” I drawled, trailing kisses up her inner thigh. “But I want to taste you first.”

  A frustrated sound escaped her, but the minute my lips were between her legs, she seemed to come around. Alternating meandering kisses and quick flicks of my tongue, I slipped a cautious finger along her wet opening. She spread her legs even wider, and I read her message loud and clear. I slid my finger deep inside her, and she rocked against me enthusiastically, her fingernails gliding along my scalp as she pulled my face harder against her.

  She picked up her speed, and I gently added a second finger, driving them deeper into her, massaging her upper inner wall in response to her whimpers. Unable to resist, I pulled back for a moment to watch her, but my fingers continued their exploration. Kelly’s back was arched, and her hands were on her gorgeous breasts. The sight of her working her way to an orgasm nearly convinced me to ditch my jeans and give her what she’d originally asked for.

  “Please, Mac,” she groaned, as if reading my filthy mind. I clucked my tongue at her.

  “Not yet. I wanna watch you come.” I replied, turning my attention back to the sweet taste of her. Sucking gently on the erect bundle of nerves that she so eagerly presented to me, I could feel her clenching around my fingers. Her pace picked up as she undulated against my hand and mouth, and I lashed my tongue against her, matching my strokes with her rhythm until she cried out. She grip
ped the back of my neck, bucking wildly. I could feel her insides convulsing around my fingers, clamping down on them in regular intervals. I locked onto her clit with my lips, applying firm pressure as she thrust against my face, crying out unintelligibly.

  When she finally released my hair, I kissed her one last time between her legs. She still had a death grip on my fingers, and I gently eased them out of her, eager to get at my zipper. Yanking off my shirt, I hurriedly wrestled with my fly, the sight of her glistening on the bed before me, hair tousled all around her, was enough to drive me mad.

  Kelly’s dark eyes were fixed on me, watching as I rolled on my condom, making a lazy attempt to push herself up on both elbows. Unwilling to wait, I flipped her over onto her stomach and when she spread her legs eagerly, I accepted her invitation, shoving myself into her all the way to the hilt.

  She sucked in a breath, and I paused, worried that I might have hurt her. When she rocked her ass back against me, I felt a dirty smile appear on my lips. She tossed her dark hair in my direction, I gripped a handful of the long waves, pulling her head back gently.

  “Oh yeah,” she gasped, and I knew without a doubt that I’d met my perfect playmate. That’s when I knew it wasn’t going to be so easy for her to dismiss me this time.

  Releasing her hair reluctantly, I gripped her hip with one hand and I reached around between her legs, stroking her swollen clit with the pad of my middle finger. She slammed herself back against me again and again, and it took every ounce of my self-control not to lose it right there.

  I slowed my pace, backing off the depth of my thrusts as a way of drawing things out. But Kelly would have none of it. She reached a hand back and dug her nails into my thigh, pulling several leg hairs in the process.

  I chuckled, and it sounded sinister even to me. “More?”

  “Please,” she whimpered.

  I ran both of my hands over her ass in slow, deliberate circles. “This is mine.”

  “Yes,” she agreed, tossing her long hair across her back once more. I bent over her back so I could whisper in her ear.

  “Say it,” I demanded, and she arched against me, turning her head enough to that I could feel her hot breath.

  “It’s yours.” Her husky reply was the last straw. I buried myself in her hard and fast until the rush of my intense release overtook me. After, I nearly collapsed on top of her, but managed to move aside at the last second. We lay in the dark, our breathing ragged and labored. Finally, I stood, snagging my pants off the floor and strode into the bathroom.

  I ditched the condom and washed my hands, splashing some water on my face and rinsing out my mouth. There was no way I could leave this place with her taste on me. I looked at my weary reflection in the mirror and warred with myself. Mostly I wanted to go back in and get into bed with her, but the rest of me wished I’d never come to her place at all.

  Even after the sex, my frustration was at an all-time high. I fixed things. It’s who I was…what I’ve always done. But Kelly didn’t want to be fixed. That was probably for the best, because I was starting to think there was no fixin’ her.

  And there I was, throwing my energy at a woman who didn’t appreciate me. Again. Only this time, she wasn’t the mother of my child, and I was the one ditching my kid to go and get laid.

  I heard the faint but unmistakable sound of bed springs as she moved, but I ignored it, pulling my pants up and buttoning them. When I stepped out of the restroom, she was in the hall, her sheet wrapped around her like the world’s luckiest toga.

  “Where—” she started, but I was already past her, slipping on my shoes. To my astonishment, they were somehow still tied.

  “I’ve got somewhere to be,” I snapped, and as I turned in her direction, the look on her face made me regret it. As beautiful as she was, her foundation wasn’t built on level ground. It’d be easier to tear her down and start from scratch than try to fix her. I didn’t have the right tools for the job, and with the problems I had to deal with daily from M.J.’s mom, I certainly didn’t have the time. A darker part of me pushed all thoughts of sentimentality out of my head.

  This one could use a taste of her own medicine.

  I stood and walked past her out of her apartment. As her front door closed behind me, I thought I heard her call after me, but maybe it was just wishful thinking.

  MAC’S ABRUPT EXIT stung, but it wasn’t terribly surprising. I knew I’d hurt him the week before, leaving like I did. I’d been beating myself up about it ever since, imagining how I wished things had gone versus what really happened. I’d wake up in the night, and picturing his wounded eyes made it impossible to get back to sleep.

  It had been all I could do to keep from breaking down in front of him after Jerry’s texts. A sickening mix of panic and humiliation had my head spinning.

  Paula.

  What a bitch.

  I still had no idea what I’d done to cause her to do something so horrible and unnecessary. After leaving Mac standing in my living room, I’d hurried away from my apartment, angry tears streaming down my face. I had no destination in mind; I just knew I had to get away. I needed to think, and Mac’s touch made that impossible. I needed distance, and before I realized it, I was jogging down the sidewalk.

  By the time I’d exhausted myself, I was in the middle of Zilker Park. People were milling around everywhere, but I managed to find a secluded place to sit behind the outdoor stage, where a sign said The Taming of the Shrew. The irony of seeing that title brought the ghost of a smile to my face, and I sat in the grass beneath a small tree to rest.

  My first instinct was to call Annette, back in Detroit. I was desperate to hear a friendly voice, but I discarded the idea almost immediately. I was a sucky friend. It was hard enough to keep up relationships with people when you saw them every day. After leaving town, I’d probably called her four times. I cringed at the thought of calling her after so long, just to tell her about my troubles. I was a pretty shitty long-distance pal, but I could be a better friend than I had been.

  I guess that’s the problem with long distance relationships, romantic or otherwise. Out of sight, out of mind is not a testament to how much you love someone from your past. Miles are a very real obstacle to overcome. Lives get busy, things change, and people lose each other in the tide of time. Near tears, I told myself I needed to try harder in the future if I wanted to have anyone worth having in my life.

  I called Jerry to tell her I was on my way to her place. By the time she picked up, I was sobbing and barely able to talk. My fury at Paula, and her smug, self- righteousness had me shaking. I felt violated, and there was nothing I could do about it. The craziest part of this was that I wasn’t even her friend on social media, and I would never have even seen the picture if it hadn’t been for Jerry. With all that and my distress about Mac, I was overwhelmed. I knew my retreat was knee-jerk and that he’d deserved a better explanation, but I was far too emotional and embarrassed to give him one. I’d needed to break down in solitude. It was best to distance ourselves from each other anyway, considering. Jerry tried to sooth me, but after a couple of minutes of attempting to get me to spit out anything intelligible, she snapped.

  “Don’t you dare drive over here in this state; take a damned cab! I’ll see you in a minute.” The phone went dead.

  When I got to Jerry’s, she had fresh- brewed coffee waiting, and she’d pulled out some individually wrapped coffee cakes. She took one look at me and ushered me into a chair. Thought I tried, it was impossible not to think about Mac and everything we’d done the night before. I felt dirty and not in a good way. It wasn’t because I was ashamed of anything we’d done. I’d loved every second of it. I was angry at myself for bolting without finding the nerve to tell him about the post. I still couldn’t wrap my own brain around it.

  Jerry’s face was as red as her hair. She dropped the box of coffee cakes on the table in front of me in order to give me a hug. Not realizing how badly I needed one, I broke down again. I couldn’t
help it.

  When I got myself together, I poured a cup of coffee with a shaky hand. I asked her to tell me anything she could about the Paula situation, and she sighed.

  “She’s a meddling bitch.” Jerry snapped, as if she’d been holding it in since she’d sent me the screenshot.

  “She came up and said ‘hello’ to us. She was on a date. Why would she do something like this? I’ve been nothing but nice to her.” I felt my face scrunch as I tried to rationalize Paula’s destructive attack on me.

  “She told me Friday that she was going to a reception with her cousin last night.” Jerry grabbed her phone and she quickly scrolled though Facebook. “Is this the guy?”

  “Yes,” I sniffed, seeing the picture she’d posted of herself and the handsome blonde.

  “Paula’s worthless. She does nothing in that office but cause problems.” Jerry seethed, shaking her head. “She probably likes Mac. His kid isn’t even your student, and since he’s older, he never will be. The whole thing is total bullshit. Did you report her?”

  I blew my nose for the eleventh time. “Report her? To whom?”

  “Instagram.” She replied.

  “I don’t even have Instagram.” I sighed.

  “I reported her when I sent it to you.” She grabbed her phone. “It’s still up. I should tell Shannon and Kim so they can do it too.”

  “No!” I wanted to vomit up the one bite of coffee cake I’d managed to choke down. “Don’t tell anyone anything. Please don’t draw any more attention to this!”

  “They can’t do anything to you. You weren’t on school grounds or on school time,” Jerry said. It all sounded perfectly reasonable, but I still wanted to go home and crawl under the blankets and not come out for a week. Only the blankets still smelled like Mac’s cologne.

  “You need to talk to Cynthia,” Jerry advised, referring to Principal Higgins by her first name. “You need to stay ahead of this. What did Mac have to say?”