Saving Us

by Jennifer Foor

  “I’m being serious Conner. There is no way I can shoot a gun.”

  I kissed her cheek and then the side of her lip. “Blaze, do you trust me?” I moved my nose around her neck and then up to her ear. As it glided across her skin, I could feel her swallowing. I had her attention.

  “Yes,” she whispered.

  I kept my lips close to her ear. “I need you to do this for me. You may never have to use it, but I need you to know how. Just do it for me.” This was not the time for her to get all stubborn on me. I needed her to be prepared for this fucker.

  She nodded. “Okay. It just scares me so much.”

  “Well, what scares you more? The idea of using a gun, or not havin’ protection if Rick comes near you.”

  “Him! I’m scared of him!”

  I stood up from the couch and pulled her into my arms. She looked right up at me. “I need my woman to know how to protect her family. It’s a southern thing. Ain’t you ever seen them old ladies on television? They chase the bad guys off their property?”

  She giggled. “Are you comparing me to an old lady?”

  I shook my head and laughed too. “No! I am wantin’ you to be able to handle yourself. I think it’s best if I have John do this with you. Maybe just knowin’ that he is the sheriff will make you feel better. In the meantime, I need you to come up to the main house with me.”

  “What about Rick’s threats?”

  “Amy, he ain’t here. The gates have security. Hell, he probably doesn’t even know where we are. He can threaten all he wants. It don’t mean he is really comin’. It’s been months. I’m sure he’s gotta be gettin’ desperate.”

  “Why are we going up to the house? Nobody is there but Lucy.” I had to come up with a good excuse to get her there.”

  “I did something special and I want you to see it for yourself. Will you just come with me and stop tryin’ to spoil it. I promise you will like it and it may even take your mind off of the whole Rick thing.”

  She finally agreed.

  When we walked in that house and she saw her father sitting there, I thought she was going to scream out of excitement. She turned around and smiled before walking over to give him a big hug. “When did you get here?”

  “About an hour ago. Conner wanted it to be a surprise,” Her father explained.

  She walked over and gave her step-mother and brothers a hug. “It’s so good to see you guys. I miss everyone so much.”

  Her father walked over to me. “She’s looks good, Son. Thanks for taking such good care of her.”

  “The pleasure is all mine, sir. Amy is very important to me. In fact, I asked you here for a reason. I suspect you have heard that Amy’s marriage to Rick wasn’t legal. As soon as the lawyers get everything figured out, I’d appreciate it if you let me make an honest woman out of her. I realize we did everything backwards, but I can promise you that I will continue to take care of her. She will never need for anything.”

  He smiled and shook my hand again. “Conner, I don’t doubt that at all. Your family seems to run a very lucrative business. It pleases me very much that she found you. It would make me a very happy man to have you as a son-in-law.”

  My father would have been proud for me asking for her hand. I was just happy that the old man said yes. He could have told me Hell no.

  Amy spent the whole weekend with her father and his family. I showed him around the ranch and introduced him to Colt and Van, who were nice enough to make them a very nice dinner that included my mother and John. It was the first time that I was able to spend some time getting to know Amy’s family, which I enjoyed very much. She needed the distraction and her father was a good reason for it.

  When the weekend ended, they had to head home. Her little brothers still had school that they couldn’t miss. Amy’s father didn’t leave without giving her a check from the insurance company. While the building was easily repaired from the damages, they had opted not to turn it back into a salon, so Amy received a check for what it would have cost to replace all of the furniture and equipment. I was guessing that she didn’t expect it.

  Later that night we cuddled up in bed. “Thank you for bringing my family here, Conner.

  “I’d do just about anything to see you smile. Well, unless it had something to do with me and a farm animal.”

  She slapped me. “You are so sick!”

  “Ahh, come on, Blaze, you know you love it.” I thought I had a pretty good sense of humor.

  “You know what else I love?”

  “The way I make you scream when I’m between your legs?”

  She laughed again. “That and the way you always make me feel loved. It’s more than I could ever ask for.”

  “You better get used to it.”

  She reached her hand down under the covers. I felt her fingers sliding inside the elastic of my boxer briefs. “I don’t think we’re going to have a problem pleasing each other. In fact, I think I owe you a little something for being so good to me.”

  Her head slipped right under the covers. “Yeah, I can definitely get used to this.”

  Chapter 25

  Amy

  After my father left, it was hard for me to not think about the phone call from Rick. In fact, once Conner left to work out on the ranch Monday morning, it was all I could think about. When someone knocked on my door, I got even more freaked out and screamed. I had been standing next to the kitchen window and they were close enough to reach in and touch me.

  Come to find out, it was the local delivery man with a package that I had ordered myself. I apologized to him for being so startled. I felt like a total idiot after he pulled away. It was that moment that I knew I was going to have to talk to John after all. Mine and my child’s safety was too important.

  Miss Karen was very sweet when I called her to explain the situation. I had a feeling that Conner had already filled her and John in on me learning to shoot. John picked me up that afternoon and took me to a gunsmith shop. I was shocked at how many guns were just hanging all over the place.

  John realized my dismay. He put his arm around me and led me over to a small case. “These would be a more comfortable gun for you to shoot with. We will get out one at a time and let you hold them. We need to make sure it feels right in your fingers and you can maneuver it quick enough to react accordingly.”

  I held up my hands. “Whatever you say. I have no idea about any of this.”

  In all of my life I had never wanted to have anything to do with guns. This was all for Conner. I knew it was almost necessary at this point, but it still made me very uneasy. Once we picked out one that was appropriate for me, we filled out all of the necessary permits for me to own one. In the meantime, John took me out to the shooting range and let me fire one that was similar. He had one of his friends attach a silencer to it, because I was scared it would hurt the baby. He assured me that pregnant women fired guns, but it seemed a little too unorthodox for me.

  There was a wait period after you applied for a gun, so after the time was over, John and I went to pick it up. I wasn’t as excited as him and Conner were, but it was pretty cool that I owned something so powerful. Even my father had joined the bandwagon and was getting on me to listen to the guys when they were trying to teach me to be able to defend myself. Conner brought home this sign and put it over our welcome sign.

  It read “We don’t call 911” and then had a gun next to it. It was both funny and scary at the same time. I don’t know if I would want to proceed into some people’s houses with a sign like that outside.

  Conner showed me the combination to his gun safe and he bought me a very special box to keep my gun in. Of course, it was pink and it had initials on it that included the last letter being an H. It was very sweet and even though I didn’t care for the gun, I really did like my box.

  After my father had given me that money, I thought about what I could do with it. It wasn’t like Conner or I needed anything. We didn’t have a house payment. Our bills were har
dly anything. Conner had a pretty good amount in savings and we were very comfortable with the things we had.

  I put the money in a savings account for the baby. The interest would accumulate and later, if we didn’t need it for anything else, I could put it into a college fund for him or her. Conner was pleased with my decision. He took me out to dinner for a big fat steak. It was funny, I never liked steak until I got pregnant. Then I wanted it every single night.

  After dinner we drove right home. My belly was getting bigger by the second, so after eating everything on my plate, I needed to shower and get into some comfortable pants before I busted at the seams. Conner waited in the bathroom for me to climb out of the shower. A smile formed on my face when I saw him standing there with a towel in his hands. “Thanks, babe.”

  “You’re welcome, darlin’.”

  Once the towel was tucked around me, Conner followed me into our bedroom. We had a bunch more space since we took his mother’s master bedroom. Plus, the bathroom was separate from the one that everyone used. Conner sat me down on our bed. He had an ornery look on his face and I knew he was up to something. He stood over me and started unbuckling his belt, which wasn’t unusual. I decided to make a joke and see just what kind of mood he was in. “You planning on spanking me with that thing?”

  He looked up at me and quivered his lip. “Why? Have you been a bad girl?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Then I suppose that I’m goin’ to need to punish you.”

  I let the towel fall off of my body. I knew my belly was the first thing he saw. For a second it made me feel self-conscious, but there was something about the way Conner was looking at me that made me feel like I was the most beautiful girl in the world.

  To make myself feel better about my body, and attempt to turn on my boyfriend, I rolled over and got up on all fours and looked back at him. His smile was even bigger than before. I smiled back at him and then licked my lips. “Be gentle.”

  I turned around and prepared myself for whatever Conner was going to attempt. I trusted him completely and knew he would never hurt me. His warm hands made contact with both of my ass cheeks. Then he worked in a circular motion, before traveling up to my lower back. Small kisses were placed all over my right cheek and then he did the same to the other side. I felt him climb up behind me on the bed. Right away, I could tell that he had dropped his jeans. The smooth skin of his erection was pressing against my leg as he continued to kiss up my back and around my neck. It tickled and gave me chills all at the same time. I was so hot for him; so ready for whatever he wanted to do to me. I was his completely, even without the piece of paper. I loved this man so unconditionally that just being around him made me feel like I was the luckiest woman on the planet.

  Conner reached around and slid his hand over my belly. His hot body pressed over my back. I heard a soft growl come out of his mouth, before his lips grazed my ear lobe. “I want you.”

  I moved my butt around, so it was brushing against him. “You can have me.”

  Conner’s hand left my body. It was soon being used to position his erection at my entrance. He rubbed it up and down my hot sex, getting it wet for him to slide right in. I gasped when his length entered me. He moved slowly, then steadily picked up the pace. I kept my ass up high, allowing him to hold onto my waist as he continued pumping his hot love into me. The faster he moved, the better it felt. Being pregnant wasn’t always the easiest when it came to making love. Conner was gentle enough that it wasn’t uncomfortable. He knew how far to take things without hurting me. He also knew just where to touch me to make me forget that I even had a big fat belly. His strong hands came up and pinched one of my nipples. I moaned, making him do it again. His speed picked up again and I felt my body getting that euphoric feeling. I let go, screaming out in pleasure. While I clung to my blankets, Conner thrusted a few more times, before tightening up and leaning his weight on my back. He placed small kisses on my shoulder, before sitting up. I turned over and realized my body was full of sweat. I wiped the beads off of my forehead. “Shew, I guess I should have waited to get a shower.”

  “I got no problem takin’ you back in that bathroom and washin’ every single inch of you.”

  I grabbed his hand and pulled him down next to me. “Just turn on the fan and lay with me. I’m too tired to move.”

  Conner got up and turned on the ceiling fan. The cool air started to hit me before he was back down beside me. I cuddled my naked body into his. “I love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  The following morning Van asked me to watch Noah while she took Christian to the doctors. I was going to head over to their house, but he just showed up on one of the golf carts. He came walking right in the kitchen door. “Aunt Amy, are you in here?”

  I came around the corner and saw the kid standing there in full camouflage. “Hey, I would have come to your house.”

  “Dad said I could come here instead. Uncle Conner lets me watch that show he records. Dad doesn’t let me watch it.”

  I poured myself a glass of milk. “Did you want some?”

  “You got any cereal?” I looked down at his feet and saw that he was wearing his favorite cowboy boots.

  “Just pick out what you want. You know where the cabinet is.”

  I grabbed the bottle of chocolate syrup and started pouring it into my glass of milk. My mouth was watering just imagining how the chocolate was going to taste. Noah grabbed a box of Lucky Charms and I handed him a bowl. He started to pour it and cereal went everywhere. It wasn’t just all over the counter, it was also all over the floor.

  “Oh no! I’m sorry, Aunt Amy.” He looked as shocked as I was.

  “Noah, it’s fine. I will clean it up.” I poured some milk into his bowl and handed him a spoon. He sat down at the kitchen table and started eating, while I got down on the floor and started picking up cereal. When I heard a scratch at the door, I got a better idea of how to clean up the mess.

  Sam went wherever Noah went. That dog was so attached to the kid. I opened the kitchen door. “Come on, Sam. Look what I got for you.” Right away, he started eating up the spilled cereal. Noah started laughing and watching him.

  Once I got the counter cleaned up, I looked down to see that the floor was clean. Sam was sitting next to Noah, waiting to drink the rest of his milk.

  I left Noah in the kitchen while I straightened up the living room. After a few minutes, I heard the kitchen door open and shut. “Noah?” I walked into the kitchen and saw that he was still sitting there. “Did you open the door?”

  He shook his head and pointed toward the corner of the kitchen that I couldn’t see. “No. That man did.”

  Chapter 26

  Conner

  My day was going just like every other. Colt and I were working on a broken fan in one of the chicken houses. After nearly three hours, we weren’t any closer to getting it to work. Once it was time for lunch, I decided to head home and eat where there wasn’t the smell of chicken shit around me. Colt decided to come with me, since Amy was watching Noah.

  We were pretty far away from my place, so Colt drove us in one of the ranch trucks. “What kind of lunchmeat you got at your house? I ain’t eatin’ that liverwurst shit again.”

  Liverwurst was this awful shit my mother used to buy. It tasted like liver; cold liver. “We don’t buy that nasty ass shit. Amy likes roast beef and turkey. Sometimes she buys me bologna, but she calls it a flat hotdog.”

  “A what?”

  I laughed. “She says that bologna and raw hotdogs are the same damn thing. Since she hates both of them that is what she says when I want to eat it. Last time I asked her to buy it, she slapped it on two pieces of bread with mustard, ketchup and relish. Now, I hate to say this, but it did taste just like a freakin’ hotdog.”

  “You probably ate the whole thing, too. Simple. That’s what you are.” Colt just shook his head and kept driving.

  “Come on, I know there has to be somethin’ Van cooks that makes y
ou shake your head like that.” Colt may act like Van was perfect, but every woman has some flaws.

  He started to laugh. “Yeah, there was this thing she went through where she was watchin’ all those cookin’ shows on television. She would write down how to make it and try somethin’ new every night. A couple things were pretty good, but a bunch more were just plain terrible. The first time she asked me to be honest, so when I told her I hated it, she went to bed cryin’. After that I would tell her that I liked it, but not enough to have it all the time. She started to get the hint, but it’s a touchy subject. Over the years she’s learned what we all like and she cooks those things. That woman can make one hell of a breakfast though.”

  I knew she could. I’d eaten there enough to know that. “I agree.”

  “You should have called and told her I was comin’ with you.”

  “Why is that?”

  "Who knows what you all do?" I looked at Colt like he had three heads.

  "Your son is at my house. Surely you don’t think I would do somethin' while he's in the next room. I mean, don't get me wrong, if Amy wants to get freaky, I've never turned her down."

  Every man I'd ever been around had taught me that. I knew to never turn down your woman's offers. Even if I was mad, it was always worth it.

  We walked up to the kitchen door and I opened it for Colt to go inside first. Once he was past, I followed behind him. I should have known that something was wrong when the television was blaring. We both walked into the living room to find Noah sitting in front of the television with a jar of peanut butter and a spoon.

  Colt grabbed the peanut butter out of his son's hand. "Boy, you know better."