I spun her chair around waiting for those beautiful, green eyes of hers to clash with mine. She was really mad, I could practically feel it radiating off her body. I could also see it in her eyes. I knew that she would never show her emotions with her body, but with her eyes.
“I never meant to insinuate that you were a home wrecker. I know that you would never sleep with a married man, least of all Mace. I just…I don’t know what came over me. I felt so much anger build up inside me at the sight of you two. You make me think wild things. I feel more than I have in years, because of you. I’m really sorry, baby. I can’t promise it won’t happen again, but I can promise that I’ll work on it.” I took her face in my hands and laid a tender kiss on her forehead. She took in a deep breath, and quickly released it.
She nodded then gave me a shaky smile. I bent and touched my mouth to hers. I was sure she thought she was making the wrong decision by forgiving me, but I would show her that it was the right choice. Although we had only known each other for a few short months, I felt like we had this connection. I felt that I had known her my entire life. Sure we had the physical connection, but it was more than that. I knew we had an emotional connection, too. She was something special, and what we had going was something special.
I was standing in the parking garage at work, next to Sloane’s car. She was set to get off work any minute now. I had a bouquet of white roses in my hands and I was nervous as hell, and I couldn’t figure out why. I had planned on asking Sloane to go out to dinner with me, hoping like hell she would agree.
Sloane walked out of the elevator, digging for something in her purse. Preoccupied with what she had been doing she hadn’t seen me. She pulled out her keys and mumbled, “gotcha,” excitedly. I chuckled, causing her to scream and whip out a gun. She trained the gun on me, her hands shaking slightly.
“Killer, it’s me,” I threw my hands up, roses still clutched tightly.
She relaxed a little, then lowered her hands and put the gun back in her purse after ensuring the safety was on.
“I could have freaking killed you!” She yelled, thrusting her hands in her face to remove the hair that had fallen there.
“What the hell were you thinking? Sneaking up on me like that.” She moved around me to open her car door and throw her purse in.
“In my defense I didn’t sneak up on you. I’ve been standing here, in plain sight, for 15 minutes.” I really tried not to be a smartass, but I couldn’t help it. I knew her nerves were frazzled so it wasn’t the best time to be joking.
“Seriously, not the time to be cracking jokes. I could have killed you. I have really good aim, and an itchy trigger finger. Do not ever do that again!” She ended on…yep, you guessed it, a yell!
Setting the flowers on the truck of her car, I motioned for her to come to me. Sloane, being the defiant woman that she was shook her head no.
“Sloane. Come. Here,” I demanded.
I held my arms open, waiting for her to take the invitation. She leaned her weight on one foot, biting at her lip, and then rushed into my waiting arms. Her head crashed into my chest and her arms wrapped around my waist, squeezing. I cradled her head with one hand and rubbed her back soothingly with the other.
I allowed her enough time to calm her nerves before I asked, “why are you carrying anyway?”
I felt her entire body tense with my question and I wasn’t exactly sure why.
“It’s just a precaution. You could have been anyone, so at least I was prepared.” She shrugged her shoulders.
It made me feel better knowing she had a gun. I knew that she knew how to shoot. Speaking of which…
“How’d you learn to shoot?” I inquired.
She titled her head back so her chin was resting on my chest. “My father taught me before he passed.” I nodded, kissed her forehead, and continued to hold her.
Had that response came from anyone else, I’d be inclined to believe it but something just didn’t sit right with me. From my understanding, Sloane was fairly young when her father had passed away, and they never had much money. What was a father doing teaching his young daughter how to shoot and where did he get the money to afford a gun and ammo? My gut instincts told me she was lying, and my gut was right more times than not. I didn’t understand why Sloane would lie to me though. Still holding her close, I decided I wouldn’t probe her further in fear that I would piss her off again. Pissing her off once a day was enough.
“Let me make up for scaring the shit out of you?” I requested, though I was sure she knew it wasn’t a question.
“Yeah, what do you have in mind?” She stepped away from me and opened her door again to grab her purse.
“Leave it, Killer. We can take your car.” I said as I went around to the passenger side and slid inside. She followed suit and dug her car keys out.
She started the ignition, but didn’t move. “Wanna tell me where we’re going?” She cocked on eyebrow at me.
“The beach, if you must know.”
“I don’t have a swimsuit,” she told me, putting the car in reverse and backing out of her parking spot.
“Good thing I took a guess and bought you one.”
“So we need to stop by your place first?” She asked.
I nodded and she turned her left blinker on to head to my place.
An hour later we were in a parking spot, climbing out of the car. I still hadn’t seen Sloane in the bikini I bought her, and it was killing me. When she walked out of my bathroom she had slipped her work clothes on over the bathing suit.
I grabbed the two towels out of the car then walked around to meet Sloane. I took her hand in my free one and we walked to the nearest parking meter.
“Have you been to Daytona Beach before?” I asked as we walked down to the water.
“No. Never really had the time for pleasure.” She answered, halting my steps.
“You’ve never been here before?” You lived here for six months and still haven’t gone?” I was appalled.
“Like I said, never have time for pleasure.”
“You sure did find time for me, and if I remember correctly I gave you plenty of pleasure.” I winked at her and noticed her cheeks took on a light pink color. She didn’t respond though, probably too embarrassed to.
We came to the beginning of the sand and I dropped Sloane’s hand to take my shoes off. After I had mine off, I moved to stand in front of her. I tapped her ankle, indicating her to lift her foot. She did so and I slid her heel off. At this moment I should have shuddered in revulsion because I hated feet, with a passion. The only other time I have touched someone’s feet was when Araylia was having a really shitty day and I was asked to watch over her. Her best friend, Dakota was there and we thought it was best that she put her feet in my lap instead of her head. But I didn’t shudder like usual. I actually found that Sloane’s feet were quite cute.
I stood back up with both our shoes in hand we continued our trek into the sand. The beach was beautiful, the waves lapping at the shore. It reminded me why I loved coming here. When we got close enough to the water I stopped and laid our towels out. Sloane was standing with her hands on her hips, looking around awkwardly. It was nice to see her out of her element. She was usually calm, and collected.
“Want to get in the water?” I asked, taking my shirt by the neck and dragging it over my head.
She began taking her own clothes off. She unzipped the back of her skirt and shimmied it down her hips. Soon her hips, thighs, and legs were bared to me. She made my mouth water without doing anything. Her hips were small, but there was enough there for me to hold on to. Her thighs were thick, but not overly so. Her legs were shaped and toned as if she worked out often. Her blouse was next to come off, and I was pretty sure I had started drooling. I had bought her a plain white bikini, but seeing the top on her I realized it wasn’t plain. It had some kind of push-up thing in it, making her breasts high and perky. I needed to do something to conceal my raging hard on, so I bent and ran to
wards her. My shoulder hit her stomach and I lifted her.
She began beating on my bare back, getting some pretty good shots in. “Put me down, you ape!”
“Not a chance in hell, Killer.” I laughed, swatted her ass, and kept heading toward the water.
The water hit my legs, but I wanted to get far enough in so I could throw Sloane.
“I’m threating bodily harm if you don’t put me down, Ryan!” She yelled, her little fists pounding harder.
The cold water finally hit my hard cock, instantly releasing its pressure. I twisted Sloane a little differently then threw her in the water. I knew that I would have to pay for that. She came up sputtering and moving the hair from her face.
“You are so dead!” She continued on her war path. I smirked at her, and went under the water. I opened my eyes and searched for her legs. When I found her I took a hold of her legs and pulled her underneath with me. She opened her eyes and yelled at me some more, even though I couldn’t hear her.
I swam to the top and waited for Sloane to do the same. Her head bobbed up and she glared hard at me.
“Oh, don’t give me that look. You’re having fun and you know it.”
She still glared but didn’t say anything. She knew I was right. She was having fun, but wouldn’t admit it.
“‘Mere,” I crooked my finger at her.
She shook her head ‘no’ and swam in the opposite direction. I growled and went off after her. She only got a few feet away from me before I caught her around the waist and pulled her into me. Her hair was slicked back, leaving her neck bare. I leaned in and started nibbling at her shoulder. I bit then sucked the same spot to soothe the sting. As I got farther up her neck, she tilted her head to the other side, allowing me more access.
I reached her ear and whispered, “turn around.”
She complied. Wrapping her legs around my waist, she felt my hard bulge. Her eyes went wide and her mouth formed an ‘O’ shape.
“See what you do to me,” I growled in her ear.
She took one of my hands in her own and moved it down her stomach.
“Slo–” she cut me off with a kiss and resumed moving my hand. Her tongue snaked in my mouth at the same time our hands reached her pussy. She pulled her hand away and let my continue roaming. I teased her clit and felt her breathy moans in my mouth. My two fingers slipped inside and found that she was slick with desire.
“Feel what you do to me,” she breathed in my ear.
She wrapped her arms around my back and started rocking on my fingers. I curled them so I hit her G-spot and almost came in my shorts from the sounds she was making. We were far enough in the water that no one on the beach would be able to see us unless they came closer out in the water.
“Please, Ryan,” she begged.
“Please what?” I asked, slowing my movements.
“Ah. Don’t stop!” She cried out.
“Shhh, sweet girl.” I mumbled and picked my pace back up.
“Tell me what you need,” I demanded.
“I don’t…I don’t know.” She cried in aggravation.
I completely stopped fucking her with my fingers. “Tell. Me. Now,” I growled.
“I need you to make me come!” She ground out between her teeth, frustrated that I stopped the pleasure I was giving.
“Good girl.”
I sped my fingers back up and curled them again, making sure I was hitting the correct spot. She continued rocking against them and gained speed, searching her release. When I knew she was close I moved my thumb so it was resting on her clit, and moved it from side to side. Within a matter of seconds she was crying out her release, and I hushed her with my mouth. I lapped at her own mouth and tasted saltiness.
Sloane came down from her orgasm and sagged against me, her body having gone limp. Her breathing was still ragged, but she managed to squeak out, “thanks, really needed that.” I chuckled at her. She acted as if I was just a means to an end, and maybe all those months ago when we had sex I was. But now, it was more than that. I wasn’t only an escape. Our relationship had grown into more. I didn’t think Sloane would admit to that though.
“Want to go back to shore?” I asked her.
She nodded against my shoulder and I carried her in my arms all the way through the water and to our towels. I set her down on hers and sat down on mine then flopped on my back. My cock was still throbbing, but that wasn’t unusual since meeting Sloane. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Sloane had lay down on her side and had her head in her hand.
“When you asked me if I had been here before, you made it sound like you come here often.” She mentioned casually.
“I do come here a lot. Whenever something’s troubling my mind I like hearing the waves lapping at the shore. It clears my head, or helps me make a tough decision. Before things got bad when I was a kid we used to go to a beach in Arizona. I loved it, and still do.” I said, wistfully. I missed those times more than I could express. I missed my mom being happy, and my dad being a good man. I missed being a carefree family. In my kid mind everything was perfect, but in reality it wasn’t.
I felt Sloane’s small hand squeeze mine. She was giving me silent support and it meant the world to me.
“If you don’t mind me asking, what happened?” She asked in a timid voice. I assumed she was scared of overstepping her boundaries.
I was about to answer when I heard a tiny voice yell, “Ryan!”
I sat up abruptly and grinned at the little boy that was running full force at me, and the big boy that was chasing after him. Liam was a force to be reckoned with and wouldn’t stop even though his mama and daddy were yelling at him to. I got off my towel, bent to give Sloane a kiss, and ran toward Liam. It was ironic that they decided to come here while we were here.
I caught Liam and hoisted him up on my hip at the same time Mace reached us. “What did I tell you about running away, little boy?” He reprimanded Liam, causing him to hide in my shoulder.
“I sorry, daddy. I saw Wyan,” he mumbled, peeking out at his daddy.
It was amazing how much Mace’s life had changed after meeting Araylia. His entire life he had been running from his past. His mother, father, and sister were murdered when he was a teen, and then his wife and daughter were murdered while we were in the Marines. He never faced his demons, and Ray made him. She had a pretty horrid past as well, but handled it better than Mace did. Thank God he met Ray or he would have slowly deteriorated. I have never seen him happier, and I believed it was because of Ray and Liam.
Sloane came to my side and slid her arm around my waist, and rested her head on my other shoulder. Liam snuck a look at her and cried, “Swoane!” He twisted in my arms and held his hands out for Sloane to take him. She took him from me and blew raspberries into his neck, making him giggle loudly. I looked at Mace and he had the biggest grin on his face, having forgotten about Liam being in trouble.
I noticed up the hill, Araylia waddling/trekking through the sand, and burst into laughter. She was noticeably pregnant with their second baby, and having trouble getting through the sand. I got Mace’s attention and jerked my head in her direction. He gave me a nod, and went after her. I would have helped, but I was sure Mace would have torn my hands off. Instead of holding her hand and helping her down the hill like any normal husband would do, he picked her up bridal style and carried her down the sand. I could see Araylia bitching at him from here. When he came to stand in front of us he put her down and she smiled an embarrassed smile. Her cheeks were flushed from the heat and she was finishing her rant to Mace.
When she was done I bent my head to kiss her cheek. “How are you doing?” I asked, and gestured to her protruding belly.
“Baby Jones is giving mommy a hard time,” she sighed, “I feel like a whale and it’s getting hard to carry him/her around.” She was only six months pregnant, but looked larger. She and Mace had decided to wait until birth to find out the gender of the baby. If I ever decided to have a baby I wouldn’t
be able to wait. I have some patience, but not enough to wait to find out if I were to be having a boy or girl.
“So, what are you and Sloane doing here?” Araylia asked, leaning in to give Sloane a side hug and a kiss on the cheek.
“I believe Ryan was trying to make up for being an as–jerk.” She caught herself before the curse slipped out of her mouth and looked down at Liam sheepishly. It was hard for some of us guys to watch our mouths around Liam, but Sloane was adamant on keeping it to a minimum. She and Araylia were the same in that department.
“Ryan, I swear I thought you were the only one that knew how to treat a lady right. Well my opinion of you was just shot out of the water. What’d you do?” She was in full blown ‘mom mode’ and there was no stopping her rant.
“I caught her and Mace hugging. Acted like a douche and insinuated that she was a home wrecker,” I told her, and hung my head in shame. I was such an ass, but at least Sloane forgave me.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sloane talking to Mace then walking away with Liam holding her hand. I looked up and started to take off after her, but Ray caught my arm and shook her head. I stared at her in confusion, but she didn’t give me a hint as to why I couldn’t go after Sloane and Liam. Ray turned to Mace and said, “Honey, could you go get my chair? My feet and back are killing me.” He nodded and kissed her forehead before jogging off.
“You want to sit down on my towel?” I asked, moving to her side to help her walk to my stuff.
“We can go stand over there, but I can’t sit down. You would have to call the paramedics to get my ass up, if I did sit.” She laughed at her own joke, and continued waddling.
Mace came running down the hill with two chairs and a cooler in his hands, making his way toward us. He unfolded the bigger of the two chairs, and set it down in the sand. Ray sat down and gave Mace a little moan of appreciation. He opened the cooler and took out a beer and silently asked if I wanted one. I shrugged, and thought what the hell, why not? I wasn’t driving.
The Missing Pieces Page 7
