The Boys Next Door

by Sierra Dafoe

  Annie just looked at him. God, he amazed her. “Tommy Ambinder, you are just too good to be true.”

  His grin turned wicked. “I ain’t that good.” The twinkle in his eyes attested to that, all right—it was downright evil. Pushing himself to his feet, he held out a hand. “Dance with me.”

  “But…” she protested weakly as he pulled her from her seat and onto the dance floor. He shook his head again, pulling her into his arms.

  “No buts. Just dance, Annie.”

  Chapter Four

  Grunting, Judah hefted the heavy sledgehammer, swinging it in an arc and bringing it down with a solid thud on the flat head of a fence post, driving it deeper. He stood a moment, his chest heaving, the muscles in his shoulders aching with weariness. Then he slowly drew the sledgehammer back up and swung it again.

  This time, he could feel the impact all the way to his spine. Letting the head of the sledgehammer slide to the dirt, he reached out and gripped the post, testing it.

  Not so much as an inch of wiggle. Satisfied, he slapped the new post once with his leather-encased hand and then leaned against it, folding his arms across the flat top as he tugged off his work gloves to let the sweat dry.

  Sunset had long since faded, leaving only a band of ruddy purple low against the Montana hills. Overhead, stars were already coming out in the deep vault of the sky. But stringing fences wasn’t the sort of job you left half-done—not when there had only been five more posts to go, and you would have just had to come all the way back out again tomorrow.

  He couldn’t begin to count how many fence posts he’d pounded today, high along the ridges surrounding their land, or how many lengths of new barbed wire he’d strung between them. It was a chore he’d been putting off for weeks, although it had needed doing—so had everything else, it always seemed.

  But today… Today being alone up here had been exactly what he’d wanted. The mindless rhythm of the work, the satisfying thud of the sledgehammer, had given him the perfect outlet for his frustration.

  Now he leaned against the fence post, sucking in deep draughts of the clear night air, feeling clean, emptied out of confusing emotions. His gaze swept across the landscape, tracing the rumpled hills. He loved it out here, he admitted. He loved the rugged wildness of eastern Montana, the weathered hills, the steep arroyos and sudden, unexpected patches of verdant green.

  Far to the west, he could see the bulky thrust of mountains like a shadow against the horizon. To the south was a hazy glow of light.

  Melgrove. Judah gazed steadily at the distant lights, feeling his heart thudding heavily in his chest as his pulse slowly eased.

  He’d never begrudged Tommy anything before—not his easy-going good looks or his chance to play sports, a chance Judah, as the elder brother, had never had. Okay, so sometimes when they were younger he’d felt a twinge watching Tommy and Annie play, the two of them as easy together as puppies. But as often as not Annie would look up at him, those big hazel eyes shining with welcome, and reach out to tug him into whatever goofy kid game they’d invented. He’d play for a while—just to appease her, or so he’d told himself—and then go back to simply watching.

  Even now he could remember the feel of her tiny hand taking his.

  What had made her come back? Now, after all these years? She’d wanted to see if they were all right, she’d said. But that seemed too easy, somehow. Too pat.

  Well, why shouldn’t he ask her? After all, what could it hurt? A quick beer with an old friend couldn’t hurt anything, right?

  If you want a beer, Judah, there’s plenty in the fridge at home.

  Slinging the sledgehammer into the back of the truck, he climbed into the truck and turned it around, leaving the engine running. Pulling his work gloves back on, he held the barbed wire firmly in place as he hammered the staple into the fence post by headlight. Finished, he gazed back along the line of fresh, gleaming wire.

  He couldn’t ignore the irony of stringing fences, today of all days.

  The question was, was that really what he wanted? To shut her out, pretend that she’d never been there? This afternoon, he’d been certain of it. Now he wasn’t so sure.

  It had taken five years for Tommy to start speaking to him again. Till then they’d managed to live in one house like strangers, never saying a word more to each other than they’d had to—although Judah had tried a few times, that first year after Annie had disappeared, his heart aching every time he’d heard Tommy’s muffled sobs from the next room.

  Crying was an indulgence Judah hadn’t allowed himself. Couldn’t allow himself. There’d been too much to be done.

  For five years he’d lived in a strange kind of limbo, watching his dad get paler and thinner, his Ma’s worried gaze shifting from her husband to her two estranged boys.

  It had taken the loss of their father to finally bridge the gulf Annie had created. Was he really willing to risk opening those wounds back up just to see her again?

  He wouldn’t necessarily have to, he realized. Tommy didn’t know she was here. It would be easy as pie to sneak off into town, go have a beer with Annie at the pool hall with no one the wiser.

  He could feel his mind coming up with excuses—the same kinds of excuses he’d let himself use when he was younger. He needed to get gas anyway; the truck was running low. He wanted to see that action movie everyone had been talking about last summer, maybe he’d stop by the video store and rent it.

  But he wasn’t twenty anymore—he was almost forty-one. Too old for horniness to be a defense for his actions. And far too old to let himself act without thinking.

  He slung the extra barbed wire into the back of the Silverado, hearing it rattle against the metal sides as he started back toward the house.

  The night air was soft, coming through the open window. The buttery glow of a rising half-moon filled the truck cab with shadows. In them, he could almost picture Annie still sitting there, on the seat beside him, could almost catch the faint trace of her scent…

  Swearing to himself, he pulled the truck over and shut it off. Damn, why couldn’t he just get her out of his head? It had been twenty years, for chrissakes. How after twenty years could this woman still have so much hold on him?

  She is sixteen and smiling as they jounce along the creek track, squeezed between him and Tommy on the narrow truck seat. Her breasts, which have filled out seemingly overnight, jiggle beneath her halter top at every bump. Distracted, Judah misses the gear and throws the farm truck into low, stalling the engine. Annie laughs and he shifts uncomfortably, trying to hide the straining bulge in his crotch.

  That night, he knows, he will think about her. He tries not to—he knows it’s wrong—but even the Playboys he’s got hidden under his mattress can’t compete with the fresh, vibrant sweetness of her.

  “Hey, Ju, you want me to drive?” Tommy teases, grinning. Annie laughs again. Judah scowls and restarts the truck.

  Annie’s leg is pressed against his, teasing the hair which has started coating his thighs. They’re both wearing shorts—they’re going swimming—and the feel of her soft, tanned skin against his is almost more than he can bear.

  Somewhere over the past two years she’s gotten leggy, and he can’t help a quick peek downward, following the line of her thighs up to where they disappear beneath her cutoffs.

  His cock throbs eagerly, and Judah yanks his gaze away.

  Tommy’s arm is wrapped companionably around Annie’s shoulders. She leans into him, seeming blissfully unaware of how this pushes her thigh even tighter against Judah’s. She whispers something in Tommy’s ear and for that one second Judah hates him, hates him with all the passion of Cain for Abel. It is too easy to imagine her whispering in his ear, her warm, sweet-scented breath making his head spin.

  His imagination goes further, picturing her lips moving against his earlobe, her tongue flicking inside…

  The gears grind as he downshifts viciously and jerks the truck to a halt.

  “Whoa there,
Captain. I dinna think she can take anymore.”

  Annie bursts into giggles at Tommy’s lame-ass imitation. Gritting his jaw, Judah reaches over and unceremoniously opens the passenger door, dumping Tommy, who has been leaning against it, half onto the ground. “Hey!”

  “Go on, you two. I’ll catch up in a second.”

  Tommy dusts himself off and grabs the picnic basket from the back, but Annie hesitates a moment after she climbs out, leaning back in the open window of the door she’s just closed. “Ju? You okay?” Her hazel eyes are flecked with worry.

  For him.

  Judah closes his eyes a moment, swallowing. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

  She watches him dubiously, as if she doesn’t quite believe him. Why should she, after all? He’s lying—and she knows it, the same way she somehow knew he felt left out when they were younger.

  But unlike then, this isn’t a game she can invite him into.

  She lingers until he smiles and jerks his chin after Tommy, who is disappearing down the creek bank. “Go on. I’ll catch up.” Reluctantly, she leaves, looking back once over her shoulder.

  A moment later, Judah hears a loud splash and the sound of two voices laughing. He closes his eyes again, his heart and his hard-on both aching.

  Judah stared out the windshield at the glimmering surface of the creek. All around the truck, small night noises created a kind of rustling silence—the gentle burble of the water, a hush of breeze through the cottonwoods, the pinging of the engine. Even the moonlight, he fancied, created a kind of soft hum, just below the threshold of hearing. It vibrated in the air, in the darkness, in his blood…

  The truck door thunked solidly shut behind him as Judah strode toward the creek, unbuttoning his denim work shirt as he went. At the edge he stopped and peeled his sweaty T-shirt over his head. He stood there a moment in his jeans and work boots, feeling the night breeze play through the dark hair dusting his chest.

  Tilting his head back, he imagined soft fingers running over his skin, down his stomach…

  Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Judah dropped to his knees at the edge of the creek and shoved his arms in the water, splashing it over himself until the grime and dried sweat were washed away. Running a hand through his wet hair, he smoothed it back, grateful that he kept it short enough not to tangle. He used the T-shirt to towel off, then drew his work shirt back on.

  For a while he simply sat on the creek bank, watching the moonlight shimmer atop the flowing water. The image of Annie haunted him. He could picture her sitting there in the pool hall, maybe with a beer propped in front of her, waiting, wondering if he’d come.

  Why had he done that? Why had he suggested it, if he’d never meant to go?

  He glanced at the crest of the hills to the south, where the wash of lights from Melgrove glowed like milk against the sky. He stared at that distant glow, something like an old bruise aching deep in his chest.

  “It’s good to see you, Judah.”

  Her voice seemed to whisper in his ear. Judah closed his eyes, scowling against the sudden hunger those five words provoked. He wanted to see her again, he finally admitted to himself. He wanted it so desperately he’d even told her where to meet him.

  He wasn’t going to go, though. Not this time. Not tonight.

  Yanking his shirt back on, he headed back to the truck, starting it up with an angry roar. Dirt kicked beneath the tires as he gunned it, feeling beleaguered.

  Even now, he could still see her in the truck cab with him, the afternoon sunlight sending gleams of honey-gold through her brown hair…

  Ah, hell.

  Tromping on the brakes, he sat there a moment. Then he spun the wheel, turning the truck southward, away from the house and toward the distant lights.

  The jukebox had switched to a ballad, something slow and heartfelt. Tommy held her close, his body brushing lightly against hers. Annie rocked to the music, her pulse racing pleasantly. She couldn’t help but be aware of all the small changes, the way his body, no longer adolescent-skinny, had filled out until his arms around her felt like solid oak. Walling her in. Keeping her safe. Unable to help herself, she leaned her head against his chest and closed her eyes.

  The scent of him filled her nostrils—warm, familiar, totally male. She felt him feather a kiss across her hair. Annie smiled, hugging him closer. “So you’re not married, I take it.”

  His chest was so broad under her cheek, the solid muscles of his back shifting against her palms as he hugged her in return. “Nope.”

  “No kids? No farm in Washington?”

  “Washington?” He drew his head back, giving her a puzzled smile.

  “I guess not, huh?”

  “You guessed right. Why would you think that?”

  “No particular reason.” The words were out of her mouth before she thought about them. Annie shifted uncomfortably, biting her lip.

  Why was she protecting Judah? After all, he’d lied to her. The sudden certainty of it roused her anger for the first time. That he hadn’t wanted her to see Tommy was one thing, and pretty damn obvious. But to deny her even news of him, to make up a whole wild goose story…

  She still didn’t know why. And really, it just didn’t matter, she told herself sternly. She wasn’t going to wreck this moment over Judah, damn it.

  Tommy watched her another moment, then gathered her to him, tucking her head back under his chin as he held her close.

  Her eyes fluttered shut and she sighed, letting go of her anger. God, how long had it been since she’d felt like this—this warm, this protected?

  Twenty years, Annie.

  She was drifting in a dream, she thought hazily. It had to be a dream—nothing in life ever really felt this good.

  Did it?

  She leaned her head against his shoulder and let her gaze play over the darkened room. The dance floor was empty now. She could see Wally watching them from the bar, a friendly smile on his face as he polished glasses.

  Overhead, the mirrored ball glimmered in the darkness, small flecks of colored light dancing here and there across its surface.

  “I’ve missed you, Tommy,” she whispered.

  “I missed you too.” His arms tightened around her, pressing her closer. She could feel the warm, firm swell of his erection against her belly. Annie closed her eyes again.

  God, it was like her insides were melting. Sweetness pooled inside her like liquid honey. Tommy’s lips traced the line of her neck and Annie sighed into the sensation, feeling her entire body go boneless and limp.

  He could do anything he wanted with her, she realized. Anything at all. She couldn’t say no. She didn’t even want to.

  Tommy tilted her chin up and looked down at her. Annie thought she might melt entirely under the gentle heat of that gaze.

  “Annie…”

  Then she felt him stiffen, his gaze moving past her. The softness in his warm blue eyes hardened, growing colder. His arms tightened around her, pinning her against his chest so she couldn’t see, but she knew.

  She knew.

  Oh God, how stupid could she be?

  Chapter Five

  Tommy is moving inside her, slow and easy. He’s already peaked once and hardened again, and now is stroking her with a long, lazy rhythm he knows drives her crazy. Annie tosses below him, shoving her hips up impatiently.

  Tommy’s mouth quirks upward. “I thought you were the one who kept telling me to slow down.”

  “That was earlier, Tommy,” she whispers, irritated. “C’mon, it’s my turn now.”

  “Is that so?” he murmurs, but—thank you, God!—he presses into her harder, his hand closing over her breast as he tugs at her nipple. Biting her lip, Annie concentrates on the fierce fire building inside her, willing it higher, higher, wanting it to explode.

  Behind them the door slams open, and Tommy jerks out of her, leaving her gasping.

  “Tommy, you better get your ass out of—” Judah breaks off suddenly, seeing Annie. His eyes are huge, d
ark, seeming to fill her whole world as his gaze locks on hers.

  She stares back, a blush heating her cheeks, unable to look away. Her ears are ringing, her body still throbbing around the sudden emptiness inside her. She is distantly aware that her T-shirt is pushed up past her breasts, her nipples hard and exposed.

  Judah’s gaze drops to them. His pupils dilate. Tommy scowls and covers her quickly.

  “Jesus, Ju! Don’t you ever knock?”

  “Didn’t think there was any reason to,” he answers—but his eyes move back to meet Annie’s. Something shifts in their depths, but she can’t read it. Her heart is pounding too hard for her to think clearly.

  Tommy’s ears have gone red with embarrassment, or annoyance. “What do you want, Ju?”

  Judah glances at his brother, and Annie gulps, grateful for the reprieve. “Ma and Dad are on their way home. I didn’t think you wanted them catching you still in bed.” His gaze swings back to her. “Especially not now.”

  Mortified, Annie wishes she could sink straight through the floor. The look in Judah’s eyes is almost more than she can stand. His usual cool indifference has been replaced by something harder, something hot and judgmental.

  And yet having him stare at her, naked under the sheet, makes her breath come short in a way she’s only imagined. She’s dreamed about him so many times, watching his long legs pump up and down as he bikes in front of her, or sneaking glimpses at his profile as he drives her and Tommy to town.

  Now he’s looking at her, really looking. And all she can do is stare back in silence.

  Then he is gone, tugging the door shut behind him, and she slumps back against Tommy’s pillow, so aroused and embarrassed she is nearly crying.

  Tommy looks down at her, his forehead creased with suspicion. “What the hell was that all about?”

  Annie whirled in Tommy’s arms, her cheeks flaming. Judah stood there, his mouth twisted into a flat, grim smile, his dark gaze seeming to bore right through her. Not so much as a hint of amusement reached his cold eyes.