Against All Odds

by McKeon, Angie

  I nod. I get that he’s been pulled into our nightmare. He was a part of it, because I slacked off and he had to do my job. He fell in love with her, and as angry and jealous as that makes me, I get it.

  “I’ve fucked up a lot, Gray. I keep fucking up, but I love my wife. It’s taken me a while to get here, but I won’t give her up without a fight. I’m thankful for what you did for her, but she’s mine. I need you to understand that.”

  “I don’t think you can take care of her. You take off as soon as things get tough, and she deserves better than that. I can give her more,” he says.

  “This is my fucking wife.” My anger churns thickly at his insistence that he can take care of her better than I can.

  “I know that, but I want her taken care of. I can’t stand the thought of you leaving her when things get hard.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.”

  His eyes close as he struggles to let Kylie go.

  I feel the room shift, and before I know it, I’m confessing something I swore I’d never tell him. “I haven’t been fucking around on her, Grayson. I’ve only slept with Layla.”

  His eyes shoot to mine. “What?”

  “I’ve only slept with Layla, and it just started happening. I caved after Kylie left with Nate.”

  “But Kylie said something about a Jessica.”

  “That’s the girl she saw at the bar,” I say. “I never went through with it. I left, got my own hotel room. I couldn’t stomach going back to our room.”

  “What the fuck, Cooper? Why’d you keep this from me?” he asks, frustrated.

  “I didn’t want you saying anything to Kylie. I don’t know how much she’s told you, but you know we had issues with… with me touching her intimately. Something fucked me up there. I didn’t want anyone else; I just wanted time to get myself together. But every time she came home smelling like a different man, I retreated until it became impossible to be near her. So I avoided her.”

  He sighs. “Does she know?”

  “No. We haven’t talked about this yet.”

  “For God’s sake, Cooper. We’re all so fucked up,” he mutters, scrubbing a palm over his swollen face. “Maybe we all need counseling. Everything’s a damn mess.”

  I take a tormented breath. “Can you tell me something?”

  He looks at me and nods.

  “How many men has she been with?”

  Gray stills, his body tensing. His eyes tell me that I don’t want to go there.

  “Fuck.” I look away, jealousy cutting deep into my aching chest.

  “It’s not worth knowing that. And does it really matter?” he whispers, his voice urging me to think about what I’m asking.

  “I don’t know. I need to wash them from her mind and body,” I admit.

  “I can’t go there with you, bro,” he breathes, looking away.

  I grimace when I see the pain on his face. He loves her. He really fucking loves her and he’s having a hard time letting her go.

  “I’m sorry for all this, Gray.”

  “That’s life,” he murmurs, not meeting my eyes.

  We’re both exhausted, and there’s not much left to say. “Maybe eventually we’ll all be okay?”

  “I don’t know.” His tear-filled eyes connect with mine. “I need a break. I can’t do this with you guys anymore. You’re drowning me. My life’s being taken under.”

  I swallow hard, my body throbbing over what’s happened. I feel restless, bruised and broken. I don’t know where to go from here. I think of Kylie at home. How will she feel with Gray gone? Will this hurt her? Will she hold it against me?

  “Go home to your wife, Cooper. But I’m gonna tell you one last thing. If you hurt her again, if she calls me and asks me to come… I’m coming for her and I’m not letting her go. Mark my words, I’ll never allow her to go back to you. Second chances are rare. This is your one and only.”

  It takes everything in me to hold back the vicious reply that burns my tongue, but I do. I do because I deserve his anger. I deserve his disdain. I’ll use those threats as motivation to fix our lives and show him who owns my girl. She’s mine, and he’ll know that I love her with every part of my heart and soul. I’m not perfect. I’ve never claimed to be, but I can learn from this. I will learn from this. I take it, pulling in a deep breath and pushing down the anger I feel.

  “She’s not going to call you.” My voice is low and serious. I get up to leave, hoping we’ll all recover eventually. As I get to the door, I hear his voice sweep the air, it’s ragged and pained, but his words strike me right in the heart. They almost break me.

  “I love you guys, Cooper. We just need time.”

  I open the door and swing my head back. I bleed for the pain I’ve caused him. I nod, close the door behind me, and head home to my wife.

  I sit in my car and stare at our home. My heart thrashes violently, my palms sweat, and my body aches as anxiety swarms me. It’s three a.m. and the porch light glimmers, illuminating the shrubs surrounding the entrance. When I pulled up, I saw every light in the house was on. Kylie’s probably worried sick over me being so late. She sent several texts while I was with Gray, asking when I’d be home. I didn’t see them till I left, and by that point, there was no reason to reply.

  I’m so fucking nervous about going in there. I don’t know what to say. I know I have to get out of this car and go inside, but my body is battered and bruised. My jaw is swollen, my eye is cut, my lip is split open, and blood is caked on my face. She’s going to freak when she sees me. I don’t think I have the energy to calm her down.

  Everything feels screwed up, and after the shit ton of information that was thrown at me, I don’t know how to approach her. I don’t know what to say to her. I’m exhausted, yet I ache to hold my girl. I want to go inside, not say a single word, and lay claim to her body. I have the urge to pummel through our home like a raging bull and find a way to wash her clean of the bad things that have happened.

  I’m like a caged animal. On edge, wild and restless.

  But I know I can’t go in there like that. I need to treat her with care, handle her delicately, but my raging soul makes that impossible. My heart is fucked, my life feels fucked, and there’s so much I need to fix. I can’t do it alone. I need help. Kylie and I need help together. And admitting that feels like failure.

  My wife and I have so much unsaid, so much that needs to be put on the table. I lay my head on the steering wheel, giving myself a couple more minutes to calm down. I listen to the silence. I breathe deeply, letting it lull me into nothingness. My muscles are just starting to relax when I hear a slamming sound, causing my head to jerk up.

  I see her like an angel in the darkness. Her face is washed in concern, her eyes straining to see through the tinted windows. She looks exhausted and panicked. She’s wearing a nightgown and her pink robe is slung sloppily. My body comes alive at the sight of her curves and her long black hair. Just as she gets to the car door, I click the locks.

  She opens the door, peering in. “Jesus, are you okay? What took so long?”

  I close my eyes, take a last fortifying breath, and say, as composed as I can muster, “Everything’s fine, baby. We just had a lot to talk about.”

  I get out of the car and slowly shut the door. I look at her, the moonlight shining on us, and pull her into my body. I need her to calm me. She melts willingly and sighs. My heart bursts as her scent wraps around me, warming me.

  “I was so worried,” she mumbles.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t see your texts till I was already on my way,” I murmur into her hair. “Did you have fun with Cali?”

  “No. I wanted you home.”

  It feels good to hear that she missed me and wished I was here. “I’m home now. Let’s get inside.”

  She steps back and grabs my hand. I feel as if a knife is cutting into my chest. As soon as we get inside, she’s going to get a good look at my face, and shits going to hit the fan. Stress rolls off me in waves. I feel as
if I could explode.

  When we get inside, I let her go and walk into the kitchen, grabbing a beer and two Ibuprofens. I hear her lock the door as I slam back the beer and pain meds. A second later her tap, tap, tap filters through the kitchen, and I brace my hands against the counter. I cringe, knowing this is going to mess her up. The moment she sees that Gray and I fought over her, it’s going to kill her, and if it kills her, then it’s going to destroy me. I can’t take anymore. The only thing I need is to love, feel and breathe my wife. I need time to regroup.

  I feel her silky hands glide around my waist. I put mine on top of hers and feel her face rest against my back. My body twitches with the need to take her, to remind her who she belongs to and who was made for her. My breathing gets deeper, more labored. We stand for a minute, both of us silent and taking in the moment. It’s what I need, and she seems to understand.

  Eventually she breaks the silence. “Are you going to tell me how it went?”

  I sigh and turn slowly in her arms. She looks at me, her eyes getting huge, and a gasp pulls from her mouth. Her sexy, pouty lips form an O.

  “Oh my God,” she cries, her eyes welling with tears. “What happened?”

  “Shh… It’s okay,” I say. “It needed to be worked out.” There’s almost a numbness to my voice. I have nothing left to give. I’m tapped out.

  “With your fists?” she cries. She puts her hand on my cheek, running it soothingly under the bruising. Her other comes up to rub my jaw and lip. “Oh my God. How could he do this to you?”

  I see the distress emanating from every ounce of her frame. Her eyes close, and two tears drip down her cheeks. I wipe them with my fingers and lean in to kiss her forehead. Her body lurches with a sob. I know what she’s doing; she’s putting the blame on herself. I hate that. I hate it so much, and I won’t let it happen.

  “Stop! Stop doing that right now. Please. Don’t.” My voice is gruff. Her eyes fly open, and the sorrow in them hits me in the chest. “This is not your fault. We’re grown men, but sometime things get worked out immaturely. We’ll live. Gray and I had words, but I’m okay. Everything’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not,” she says. “Are you hurt?”

  “I’m fine. I just need to see my beautiful girl right now.” I smile to reassure her. “Why are you still up?”

  She gives me a shaky smile. “Did you think I’d sleep without you?”

  “I guess not. I’m sorry it took so long.” I try to tell her with my eyes that I missed her, that I need her. I drag my gaze down her body, my heart aching over what happened to her. I think of what Gray told me, and my body burns to string that asshole up by the balls. I want to make her forget all the bad things she felt she had to do to get my attention, to find something I wasn’t giving her.

  “We should ice your face,” she says, wincing as she looks over me. “It’s pretty swollen. I’m sure tomorrow it’ll be worse.”

  “It’ll be fine. I just took something. I need a shower, though.” I arch a brow and watch her cheeks turn pink. “Can you wait for me for five minutes? Then we can talk. I just need a minute to clean up.”

  “Yeah, sure. Are you hungry? I can fix you something while you’re in there.”

  I’m starving, but not for food. I’m starving for her touch, her wet heat, the look on her face when I make love to her, those soft breaths before she tips over the edge. I’m starving to lick the sweat from her breasts, to bite her neck, to come in her, and mark her. Fuck, I don’t need food, I need my wife, every damn inch of her. She’s my reprieve, my escape. I need her now more than any other moment in my life. I want to touch every inch of that beautiful heart, every ounce of that sexy body, and every thought in that brilliant head.

  “I’m starving, baby, but not for food. Will you wait for me?” I ask, searching her eyes.

  She trembles, a sweetness crossing her features as want takes over. “I’ll always wait for you.” She leans in to kiss me.

  I kiss her back and smile against her lips. How I could I do what I’ve done and ever deserve her again? I’ll never know. “I love you, Kylie. I swear, I’m going to make everything up to you.” I touch her cheek and run my other hand up her neck, gripping her hair. “I’ll earn you back. If it kills me, I’ll deserve to be your husband again, and I’ll never abandon you.” I ghost my lips across hers and wait for her to open those eyes I love so much. When she does, I smile. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Okay.” Her voice is raspy, and her eyes are heavy lidded with yearning. We both need each other.

  I walk out the kitchen, heading to the bathroom. I turn on the shower, shed my clothes quickly, and step in. The water pelts my skin, and I turn it hotter, letting it run over my muscles, urging my body to relax. Everything inside me is crying out to take her. I want so badly to shove all my thoughts aside and lose my heart in her. I want to reach into her, smooth and fix the hurts I put there.

  My cock hardens as I think about her beautiful curves and the feel of her skin. Everything about her is soft, feminine, and sensual. Gray’s right; Kylie’s gorgeous, but what’s on the inside of her is golden. She’s a free-spirited, tell-it-like-it-is sex kitten. She’s owned me from the moment she opened her mouth. God, when I think of her mouth, my body heats. I think about what I’m going to do to her, how I’m going to take her. I picture my hands running over her waist up to her tits. I see myself grabbing her nipple with my teeth. I can taste her skin. Her face is seductive, erotic, and enticing…

  Boom.

  I’m hit with an image of another man sliding his hands down her body, his mouth locking on that same rosy bud I just had in my mouth.

  My muscles tense, and bile burns its way up my throat. I lay my forehead against the cool tile of the shower wall, splaying my hands in front of me, and take a few deep breaths, urging my head to clear of these insidious thoughts. “Fuck you, you stupid bastard,” I say to myself. “You fight through this, you worthless piece of shit.”

  Breathing deep again, I force myself through the wretched pain and think about my hands gliding down her body, moving to the lips of her pussy and finding her clit. I see her spread her legs as I tease her slowly. She groans loudly, spurring me on. I make sure not to put too much pressure against it, but just enough to get her sexy pussy to glisten with want. I picture myself spreading her wider, watching her bare herself to me completely. Our gazes connect as my tongue snakes out to graze her tender nub.

  Boom.

  Another tongue gets in the way. I watch her throw her head back in pleasure as her cheeks get rosy, those icy blues glistening with ecstasy. My chest convulses and pain rips through my torso as the bastard slips his fingers into her heat.

  My pulse skyrockets, my body in total distress from the mental image. Anger kindles like sparks from a lit match. “You bastard, don’t. Fuck, don’t do this,” I whisper, tortured into the space. “Please don’t do this.”

  I take two deep breaths. Jealousy still eats at my soul like an animal dismantling its pray. I fight through the crushing, heart-wrenching pain. I push it away, grab my cock, and stroke it roughly. I think about picking her up and pinning her to the wall as the water drips down around us. I see fire blaze through her as she grips my shoulders and digs her nails into my back, drawing blood and begging me to thrust into her. I surge my hips up and…

  Boom.

  Someone’s holding her by the throat. Her legs are dangling, not reaching the floor. Her bra is gone; her tits are on display for them to see. She’s naked, her pussy is bared to him. A surge of pain for my girl burns deep. An inferno of anger already lit at the deepest recesses of my soul ignites in an open flame. My control snaps, and a full-fledged fire erupts as I tense to fight. He enters her, and a vicious roar pulls from low in my throat, reverberating against the walls.

  My heart crumbles. My body gives out as I fall and growl in pain. “No, fuck!” My life is out of control. My sanity splits and spirals into oblivion. I break when I think of what she’s done and what I’ve
let happen. I slam my fist into the wall, pounding my anger out, needing a place to expel the carnivorous pain that enslaves me.

  “Cooper?” Kylie’s desperate voice tries to cut through my fog. “Oh God, please, what’s wrong?”

  I dig deep, using everything I have left to face my wife. I stand and turn around, seeing her anguished face. She’s shaking and crying, and she looks as broken as I feel. Before I know what I’m doing, I’m opening the shower door and grabbing her hips. I drag her inside and desperately tear at her clothes. She yelps in surprise as I pick up her naked body and pin her to the wall.

  My eyes bore into her, pleading with her to let me take it all. “I need you. Please don’t talk right now. Just let me have you.” I can’t contain the emotions that are bleeding from my pores. My arms flex and burn as I grip her ass tightly and rub my cock against her core.

  “No,” she whispers, her face falling in betrayal. “Please, Jesus, he didn’t. Tell me Gray didn’t tell you.” Her voice cracks, and her eyes close. “Why, why would he do this to me?”

  I still my body and ache for the way she reacts. I fucking hate this.

  “It’s okay, baby,” I say, trying to soothe her. My heart thrums rapidly, and my throat clogs. I want to take this from her so badly, wash all the guilt from her. “I’m sorry, Kylie. God, I’m so fucking sorry, I wasn’t there. Please forgive me. Please forgive me and give me your pain. Let me take it. Don’t keep it from me anymore. I want to love you. I want to take care of you. I don’t care what you’ve done. It doesn’t matter to me.”

  She opens her tear-filled eyes. “He promised. He swore to me.”

  “It doesn’t matter what he said. You were never supposed to be there, and that piece of shit should never have even been able to look at you,” I growl. “This isn’t your fault. It’s mine. You tried to call me. Where the fuck was I? It doesn’t matter that I know. It changes nothing. You let me carry that guilt. Please, it’s not your fault. This is my burden. Mine.”