Sweet Temptation

by K. C. Lynn

  “NO!” I scream. But by the time I grab the guy’s arm it’s too late- the gun goes off, hittin’ Chuckie.

  “Chuckie! Oh God, oh no!” I sob, my heart shattering to a million pieces just before rage fuels me. “You bastard!”

  The guy is still lookin’ at Chuckie, giving me the advantage. I claw the huge gash that’s on the side of his neck, from Chuckie’s teeth, my fingers getting lost in blood and raw flesh.

  He hollers out in pain and falls to the side, cupping the bloody wound. Rolling over, I start getting up when he grabs my ankle and rips my foot from underneath me, causing my already busted-up face to smash into the hard floor.

  “You fucking bitch!” He delivers a few heart-stopping blows to my back, before turning me over and jamming the gun against my forehead with brutal force.

  His eyes are wild and furious. “I’m going to make this as fucking painful for you as possible!”

  “Why? Why are you doing this?” I sob, confused as to why this man wants to hurt me so bad.

  “I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out yet. Especially considering how much I look like my brothers.”

  My heart stops. Oh my god, now I know why he looks so familiar, he has the same eyes as Miguel.

  He smiles malevolently, “Yup, another brother that no one knew about. I grew up in Missouri, with my whore of a mother who got knocked up by the same man who fathered my brothers. Brothers I never knew existed until Miguel found me. I had just finished high school when he told me he wanted me to come to Florida and be a real family with him and Emilio.” He briefly gets a distant look in his eyes before his expression turns enraged once again. He shoves the gun harder into my broken face, making me cry out in pain. “But then you had to go and fuck it all up. Emilio is dead because of you!” he screams. “And now Miguel is back in prison, after all my fucking hard work of getting him out!”

  Everything became achingly clear. “Oh my god, it was you. You killed the forensic scientist.”

  He smiles again, this one more evil than the last, “You bet I fucking did. This plan, Grace, has been three years in the making. I started Criminal Law at Florida University and I got to know a lot of people, the right kind of people. Like judges,” he chuckles, “and fuck was Judge Robinson such an easy fucking target. Get some drinks into the guy and put some pussy in front of him and that shit was in the bag. I blackmailed that motherfucker to make sure he let Miguel out after I finished with the forensic scientist. It was fucking brilliant. And as bad as I wanted to come with my brother to find you, to make you pay, I couldn’t risk being found out so I stayed.” His smile disappears now, his expression going hard once again, “Then I find out all of our fucking hard work was blown to shit. That Miguel is back in prison. You keep taking my fucking family from me!”

  I laugh, I can’t help it, and it’s a “crazy I’ve lost my mind” laugh because what a statement for him to make. “I took your family from you? Your brothers raped and killed the only family I had.” Tears start streaming down my face. “A woman who was the kindest most gentle person, who never did nothin’ to no one, was raped and stabbed thirty-seven times by your fucking family!” I’m screaming now, anger replacing the hurt, “Emilio deserved to die and so does Miguel. They both deserve to rot in hell for what they did.”

  I barely finish the last word when he wraps a hand around my throat, cutting off all my air supply. “Shut up! You shut the fuck up! I’m going to make sure you suffer the same fate as your fucking mother.”

  Easing up on my throat he goes to grab my shirt when a loud banging starts on my door. “Grace, baby, open up!”

  Oh god, Sawyer!

  Relief fills me for only a brief second before Miguel’s brother slaps a hand over my mouth. “You shut up! Or I swear to God I will put a fucking bullet in his head.”

  Just the thought has me sobbing. “Grace, I fucking mean it. I’m not going anywhere until you hear me out.”

  “Shit! Fuck, fuck, fuck!” he breathes out quietly but harshly. He looks down at me trying to decide what to do. “You fucking get rid of him, one wrong fucking move from you and he’s dead. Got it?”

  I nod. Darn, what am I goin’ to do? Think fast, Grace.

  I have to give Sawyer a sign. As terrified as I am for him, I have to trust that he will be able to get us out of this.

  “Grace! Do not make me break down this fucking door. You know I will.”

  A low whimper falls from my lips as I’m pulled to my feet by my hair. “I mean it, not one wrong fucking move,” he threatens quietly in my ear.

  As I get to the door, he stays behind me and shoves the gun painfully into the back of my head.

  “Sawyer?” his name falling as a sob, I stop and try to pull myself together.

  “Grace, baby, please don’t cry. Let me in. Let me explain.”

  Of course he thinks I’m cryin’ over him. What a stupid, stupid reason for getting mad at him.

  Taking deep breaths, I try to form words, “Sawyer, you need to leave… “No! I’m not fucking leaving until you hear me out!”

  I feel the gun press harder into my head with warning.

  Think Grace… .

  “Please, Sawyer. Go back to yours and Cooper’s apartment. We can talk about what happened with Kayla tomorrow, I promise.”

  He goes silent…

  Please, please let him understand what I’m sayin’.

  I wait for his response. “Fine, tomorrow. But know this, I’m not fucking going anywhere, Grace. We will be dealing with this.”

  Do his words hold meaning too?

  I hear the pounding of his shoes down the front steps as he leaves, then his truck starts up a minute later.

  Oh no, where’s he goin’?

  Suddenly, I’m yanked back by my hair, a second before a painful blow gets delivered across my face, knocking me to the ground. I don’t even have time to get my bearings before Miguel’s brother is on top of me again.

  Sweat beads across his forehead, and his face is pale as blood spills from the gash in his neck. “Time for you to suffer the same fate as your mother, just like Miguel wanted,” he threatens shakily.

  Wiping the sweat that’s falling into his eyes, he puts his gun on the table behind me. “After I’m done fucking you, I will stab you thirty-eight times instead of the thirty-seven your mom got. The last blow that will take your fucking life will be for Emilio.”

  Oh god, Sawyer, where are you?

  Grabbing my thin sweater he tries to rip it, but it barely tears, ripping only past my breasts to hang off my shoulder.

  Realizing how weak he is, I start fighting with every bit of strength I possess. I kick, scream and scratch. “No! Stop! Get off of me!”

  I barely register the enraged roar. One minute his weight is crushing me, his hands roughly grabbing at my clothes, then the next I feel nothing, my hands hitting only air.

  “You motherfucker! I’m going to fucking kill you!”

  Rolling to the side, I see Sawyer on top of Miguel’s brother, his expression savage as he delivers blow after blow to his face. His fists fast and deadly.

  “Sawyer, stop!” I scream, worried he’s really going to kill him.

  Stopping his blows he pulls a gun and shoves it under the guy’s chin. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t blow your fucking brains out right now.”

  Oh God.

  “Sawyer, please don’t!”

  He ignores me, his arm shaking from restraint at not pulling the trigger. “Who the fuck are you!”

  I’m just about to explain who he is when the guy smiles maliciously from his beaten and bloody face. “I’m the guy who’s going to fuck and chop your girlfriend into a million…”

  Not letting him finish, Sawyer rears back and knocks the guy out cold with the butt of his gun.

  I sit stunned, my body trembles violently from fear and adrenaline, while I try to process what just happened.

  Sawyer looks over at me for the first time and his thunderous expres
sion softens. “Jesus, Grace, are you okay, baby?” he asks, as he begins cautiously approaching me.

  His concerned voice snaps me out of my shock, and that’s when I realize I’m cowered in the corner against the wall. Not wanting to be away from him a moment longer I start crawling over to him, meeting him halfway before I break down in his arms.

  His hands rub up and down my back soothingly. “It’s okay, baby. Everything’s okay.”

  I’m not sure if he’s reassuring himself or me. Pulling back, he holds my face gently and assesses what I’m sure is a swollen, bloody mess.

  His jaw clenches with fury. “Jesus, I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry. I shouldn’t have left you.”

  I shake my head, “It’s not your fault. I’m just so glad you came. I didn’t know what to do. I never had a chance to even try and get the gun. Then he said he would kill you if I said anythin’…”

  He cuts off my hysterical words and pulls me against him again. “It’s okay, baby. You did good, Grace…”

  “He was already here waitin’ in my closet when I got home, and Chuckie…” I gasp, rememberin’ Chuckie.

  Pushing away from Sawyer, I start rushing across the room to his side. “Sawyer, he shot him. Chuckie attacked him when he was hurtin’ me and he shot him.”

  There’s a small pool of blood under him, but I can see his belly rise and fall painfully from his labored breathing. “Oh thank God, he’s still alive, we have to help him.”

  Sawyer comes over and puts the gun down beside me. “Okay baby, wait here with him, I’ll go get towels. Coop should be here any minute, I called him before coming in,” he says as he rushes into the kitchen.

  I bury my face into Chuckie’s neck. “It’s okay boy, just hold on,” I choke out sadly, prayin’ he makes it.

  Hearing the police sirens, I stand up and start walkin’ to the door when Sawyer’s command stops me cold… “GRACE, GET DOWN!”

  Turning, I see Miguel’s brother, now conscious, with his gun pointed directly at me.

  “FUCK!” It happened so fast; I hear the blast just as Sawyer slams into me, taking me to the ground.

  The breath gets knocked out of me in one painful swoosh. Before I can even register what’s happening Sawyer has already grabbed the gun he left beside me and shoots Miguel’s brother in the head. The loud blast has me flinching underneath him.

  Deafening silence falls around us as I try to take in a breath, but Sawyer’s body is still crushing me, making it impossible for me to get air.

  “Fuck!” he groans out. He rolls off of me to the side, and that’s when I see blood all over me. My hands start frantically searching myself, trying to see where I was hit, until I realize it’s not my blood- it’s Sawyer’s.

  “Oh my god! Oh my god! Sawyer?” I sit up in a panic. Grabbing the towels he was runnin’ with, I start applying pressure to the right side of his chest, close to his shoulder, where blood is spilling out.

  A second later my door busts open and five uniformed officers come rushing in, guns drawn.

  I sob with relief when I see Cooper. He takes in my bloody state. “Shit, Grace, are you all right?” he asks, rushing to my side. “What the fuck happened?”

  “That motherfucker shot me!” Sawyer replies with a painful groan.

  “Because you threw yourself in front of his bullet, ya idiot! What were you thinkin’?” I cry, yellin’ at him. Even though I want to kiss the hell out of him.

  “I was thinking about saving your sweet ass, Cupcake… Fuck!” He sucks in a sharp breath when Cooper adds more pressure to his wound.

  “Jesus, you’re bleeding like fucking crazy. Did the bullet go through?” Sawyer grinds his teeth against the pain and shakes his head.

  “Oh god! I’m so sorry. I love you so much! Please don’t die, Sawyer,” I sob, resting my forehead against his, my tears falling into his face.

  He wraps a hand around the back of my neck and presses a soft kiss to my lips. “I’m not going to die, baby, it just hurts like a motherfucker.”

  The paramedics rush in a minute later and load Sawyer onto the stretcher even though the stupid man tried to tell them he would walk.

  Cooper offers to take Chuckie to the animal hospital for me so I can be with Sawyer. I feel terrible not bein’ the one to be there for him, especially since he’s hurt because of me. My heart is breaking that the two I care most about in the world are shot and bleedin’ because they saved me.

  Turning to the side, I hug Chuckie gently. “Cooper’s goin’ to take good care of you boy, okay? I promise I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  I watch Cooper cover him and carry him to his car, before I follow the paramedics to the ambulance.

  The rest of the night happens in a blur. My mind is still in shock by everythin’ that happened and my heart is heavy with worry for Sawyer. I’m so happy to see all of our friends already in the waiting room when I arrive at the hospital. Cade, Jaxson, Julia, Kayla and even Katelyn.

  All the girls wrap me in a group hug. “I’m so sorry, Grace. We shouldn’t have let you leave, we should have went with you,” Kayla says guiltily.

  “No, none of this is your guy’s fault,” I reply sadly. “No one knew there was any danger and I had needed to be alone at the time.”

  Except now, the whole reason why I was upset in the first place all seems so stupid.

  Kayla and Julia sit on either side of me, both of them keep an arm around my shoulders to offer comfort while we sit patiently and wait for Sawyer to get out of surgery.

  No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to stop cryin’. Excusing myself, I go to the bathroom on my own, hoping I’ll be able to compose myself. I don’t look in the mirror, knowing if I see my face, it will only make me feel worse. I let out a heavy breath and gently splash some water on it, wanting to wash away my tears, fear and heartache.

  A few minutes later, when I’m feeling a little more collected, I walk out of the bathroom to see Cade by himself, pacing nervously. When he looks up and sees me, his expression softens… well, soft for Cade.

  Knowin’ he’s worried about Sawyer, I walk up and wrap my arms around his waist. He tenses only for a brief second before huggin’ me back, and it’s a real hug not his usual awkward pats.

  “He’s going to be okay, Grace, trust me. I’ve been trying to get rid of him since I was eight fucking years old, he’s not going anywhere.”

  And for the first time tonight I smile, rememberin’ Sawyer’s story about the two of them.

  I pray he’s right, because if not, if I lose Sawyer too, I know I won’t survive it.

  The sound of deep, quiet male voices begins to pull me from sleep a second before I hear the sound of a door clicking shut. Feeling a big, warm hand in my hair, I open my eyes and wake fully. I sit up quickly and wince, my body brutally aching from the night before. But my pain completely fades the moment I lay eyes on Sawyer, sittin’ up in bed.

  He watches me with a sexy smile. “Hey, Cupcake.”

  Relief fills me at hearing his voice; it’s been almost twelve hours since he’s been awake. Coming to sit beside him on the bed, I lean down and give him a gentle kiss. When I go to pull back, he threads his fingers in my hair and keeps my lips against his and gives me the softest, slowest, most delicious kiss.

  My heart breaks when I think about how close I came of never gettin’ to feel this again. Sliding his hands down to frame my face, he pulls back just slightly, keeping my face only an inch from his.

  “Hi,” I say softly, givin’ him a small smile, “sorry, I wanted to be awake for ya when you woke up.”

  As his thumb moves across my cheek tenderly, I turn my face slightly to press a kiss to his palm.

  “Don’t be sorry, baby. You should have gone home with Jaxson and Julia to get some sleep.”

  I look at him in surprise, wonderin’ how he knew. “That was Cade who just left. He told me they’ve been trying to get you to leave and get some rest. You should have gone, Grace.”

  I
shake my head, “No. I’m not leavin’ here without you. Well except to go check on Chuckie. But then I’ll be comin’ right back.”

  He falls silent, and as his eyes roam over my face his expression turns savage. “It looks worse than it is,” I lie.

  When he still says nothing, I change the subject: “How are ya feelin’? Are ya in any pain? Do you need anythin’?”

  His expression softens, “Just you, baby.”

  I swallow past the lump in my throat, my heart warming and breaking at the same time. “I’m so sorry I got mad at ya,” I choke out sadly. He shakes his head, but before he can say anything I continue, “I was just hurt, Sawyer. You promised me you wouldn’t ever go there. I hate that Jaxson and Cade know what happened when I haven’t even told my own best friends. It’s somethin’ I’m embarrassed about and I really didn’t want anyone ever knowing.”

  His eyes narrow. “Embarrassed? What the fuck are you embarrassed for?”

  I shrug, not really knowin’ how to explain it. “Because I stayed. I stayed even when I found out he wasn’t who he made himself out to be. I was too scared to be on my own with nothin’, until it got too bad and it was almost too late.”

  He runs his thumb along my lower lip. “Never be embarrassed about that, baby. You didn’t do anything wrong. Everything that happened with that son of a bitch was his fault not yours,” he pauses briefly and lets out a heavy breath, “I’m sorry I hurt you, Grace, but I couldn’t let him get away with it, he had to pay for what he did to you.”

  “Please tell me you didn’t kill him, Sawyer,” I ask fearfully.

  “I didn’t kill him, even though I really fucking wanted to. It’s one of the reasons I had Jaxson and Cade come with me. I just roughed him up a bit… And I might have fucked up his truck beyond repair,” he adds with a dirty grin.

  A small level of satisfaction fills me at hearin’ that, and I can’t hold back a smile of my own now.

  Sawyer clears his throat and his expression becomes serious once again. “Even though I wanted him to pay for what he did that wasn’t the only reason I went there.”