by K. C. Lynn
Then I think about what came after—the memory of her sweet taste that I have never forgotten, or the sound of her whimpering my name in need, the way her body came alive under my touch, my hands remembering every beautiful curve. All of it was fucking perfect, even if it was stupid, up until my fingers glided over her smooth, wet panties and she froze in fear. The look of shame and humiliation that darkened her expression still has my chest constricting with rage. They fucking did that to her, they made a beautiful, innocent woman, who should only know mind-blowing pleasure, feel ashamed and scared…
The sudden ding of a text pulls me from my enraged thoughts. Digging my phone out of my pocket, I see it’s from Evans.
Pain in my ass: Where the fuck are you? I’m serious. Get your ass here or I will fuck you up.
I grunt. Yeah, I would like to see you try, asshole. Ever since second grade, when I saved his rich ass from getting beat and having his fucking shoes stolen, the guy has been nothing but a pain in my ass. Okay, he’s all right sometimes, but most of the time he’s a pain in the ass. Hence my contact name for him.
Shaking my head, I don’t respond since I’m here and get out of the truck. As I get to the entrance the bouncer moves aside easily and doesn’t card me, clearly being able to tell I’m over twenty-one. I’m thankful he doesn’t ask me to remove my beanie. Being that this is an upper-class place I expected him to but I’m glad as fuck he doesn’t.
A loud melody of a piano and a booming voice of someone singing Journey assaults my ears as I enter. I scan the crowded, dim-lit, upscale bar, with red walls and black leather tables, looking for familiar faces. Some chick bumps into me giggling then stops to eye fuck me. I turn away without giving her a second look. Jesus, I fucking hate crowds.
I quickly spot Sawyer with his hand raised, waving me over to where they’re sitting, which is directly in front of the stage. As I make my way toward them, my eyes do a swift scan of the table for Faith and I quickly catch sight of her deep, red hair. My heart kicks up in anticipation and my cock hardens painfully. Stupid fucking dick!
I’m glad to see our table is full of everyone I know. Cooper, Jaxson and Sawyer all acknowledge me with a nod. While Kayla, Julia and Grace give me a smile and a wave. Katelyn gives me her usual death glare, which I ignore, and Red has yet to turn around. I take the empty seat next to Sawyer, which is directly across from her.
“How are you doing, Cade?” At the sound of Kayla’s question, Faith’s head snaps to me and her beautiful green eyes widen in shock. She recovers quickly and gives me a small smile. And it’s the saddest smile I’ve ever seen on her.
I instantly know something is wrong. More wrong than what happened with us yesterday. Because even with her makeup and hair done up, her sweet, innocent face is drawn and pale, and her eyes tired and haunted. She looks like she hasn’t slept in a week. Yet, she’s still the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.
“Hi,” she greets me softly. So soft that I barely hear her over the music.
“Hey, Red. Happy Birthday.”
She smiles again, “Oh, thanks. It’s not for another two weeks. We’re celebrating a little early.”
I feel everyone staring at us, but my eyes don’t leave hers. When I stare at her with questions, she glances away nervously and looks back at the stage again. Yeah, something is definitely up.
Sawyer punches me in the arm and gives me his usual asshole grin. “You got here pretty quick after my text. I scared the shit out of you, didn’t I?” I glare at him, which only makes him chuckle.
Grace elbows him playfully. “Stop antagonizing him.”
“Listen to your woman before I have to embarrass you in front of her.”
He smirks and shakes his head, “Not going to happen, Walker. We aren’t in second grade anymore.”
I grunt. “Doesn’t matter. I can still kick your ass and you know it.”
Grace rolls her eyes at our pissing contest. “Both of you stop. No one is kicking anyone’s ass. You guys are best friends and you love each other.”
Evans and Jaxson both burst out laughing. I do not find it that funny, and am just about to tell her that I do not love this dickhead but before I can reply the song finishes and the place erupts in applause.
“Thanks everyone, you can never go wrong with Journey,” the guy at the piano says into the mic. “Okay, next up. I have been told by a good friend of mine that someone is here celebrating her birthday tonight, and that this someone can sing better than the best.”
Red immediately stiffens and turns to Katelyn. “Please tell me you didn’t.”
“Sorry,” she replies with a sly smile, not looking sorry at all.
“Faith Williams,” the guy calls out pointing directly at her, “come on up here and show us what you’ve got. Katelyn says you’re better than me and I need to hear it for myself.”
I grunt. She is way fucking better than him. I watch anxiety spark in her emerald eyes and visibly notice her start to shake. But since everyone is staring at her, she pastes a fake smile on her face and stands up.
When I get a look at the outfit she’s wearing, my dick comes roaring to life again. The strapless, cream, lace dress fits snug against her perfect breasts then flows loosely to the top of her smooth, slender thighs. A thick, brown belt cinches at the top of her waist just under her tits and glitters with jewels, matching her brown cowgirl boots. Jesus christ, she’s beautiful. The only thing wrong with her outfit is the big, glittery silver cross that hangs far down her chest. I can’t believe she still wears that shit after everything that’s happened. I’m sure that has to do with her father…
Everyone claps, pulling me from my thoughts, and encourages her as she walks up the stage, especially the girls at our table. Kayla and Katelyn whistle so loud with their fingers I swear my eardrums are about to bust.
Faith sits down next to the guy at the piano and waves nervously at everyone, her hand visibly trembling. Again I notice how haunted her eyes seem. What the fuck is going on with her?
“I take it she does not like singing in front of crowds?” Jaxson asks, with a hint of amusement.
“No, not really. But she will be fine once she starts. Although, tonight she seems more off than usual.” Katelyn sends a pointed glare in my direction; obviously thinking this is my fault. Hell, maybe I’m wrong and it is, but she seems worse than when I last saw her.
Kayla breaks the sudden tension, “Well, I can’t wait to hear her, especially if she’s as good as you say.” They all have no idea what they are about to hear.
Smiling nervously, Red leans into the mic. “Well, I am going to kill my cousin after this is done.” Everyone chuckles while Katelyn blows her a kiss. She looks over at the guy beside her. “I am not really sure what to sing.”
“Sing anything you want, sweetheart. Whatever your little heart desires.” His sweetheart remark makes me want to walk up there and punch him in the face.
I watch something pass over her face as she makes her decision. “All right. The song I am going to sing is probably different than what usually gets played here, but it is exactly what my heart is feeling at the moment. There is a story behind it but I will keep it short,” she pauses briefly and clears her throat. “Two years ago I went to Iraq on a mission trip with my church.” My heart stalls in my chest and I feel Sawyer tense next to me. “During my time there I was lucky enough to meet some of the most honorable, brave and courageous men of my life.” Her eyes make brief contact with mine and the emotion shining in her gaze hits me like a punch to the throat. “One of them happened to be an eight-year-old Iraqi boy, who I’m pretty sure loved music as much as me. One evening he came upon me playing my guitar and singing in an open field. He was so in awe over this song that, from that moment on, he met me every night and I taught him how to play it.”
Her smile slips and I watch her swallow thickly. “He was an amazing boy who stole my heart, and he is also a boy who died trying to save my life.” The way those words trail off with a sad w
hisper has pain ripping through my chest. Collective gasps are heard throughout the bar and I sense Jaxson and Sawyer both look at me, but I don’t acknowledge them. I can’t take my eyes off her.
“So the song I’m going to sing tonight is the song I taught him. It was his favorite… This is for you Aadil.” She leans over to the guy and tells him the song. He nods and does some adjusting of the mic for her. Then her fingers start flowing across the keys as she begins playing the melody of the song I remember them singing.
“Oh my god, I love this song,” Grace whispers, her emotion evident in her voice.
Faith’s voice is something I’ve never forgotten; it’s a voice that once you hear you could never forget. But as soon as the first words fall past her lips, and flow through that mic, nothing could have prepared me for hearing it again. It was completely heart stopping. Another unison of gasps sound across the room as everyone is blown away by the beauty of her voice.
I’ve heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don’t really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Halleluuuuujah
“Holy fuck! She’s incredible,” Evans blurts out in shock, voicing what I already knew.
“I know,” Katelyn responds softly with a proud smile.
“What is she doing here and not off in Hollywood?”
Both Katelyn and I end up answering at the same time: “She doesn’t think she would love it as much if she did it for a living.”
Katelyn’s head snaps to me and we make eye contact. Something briefly flashes in her eyes, I’m not sure what it was but it wasn’t a death look so I’ll take it.
Looking back at Faith, I notice something change in her tone and expression. You can always tell she sings from her heart, but this starts coming from her soul. You could see the exact moment memories of her and the kid started flowing through her mind.
Maybe there’s a God above
But all I’ve ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew yaaaa
It’s not a cry you can hear at night
It’s not somebody who has seen the light
It’s a cold and it’s a broken Halleluuuujaaah
Haaaalleluuujah, Haaaalleluuujah,
Haaaalleluuujah, Haaaalleluuujah,
Haaaalleluuujah, Haaaalleluuuuuujaaaah,
As she really lets her voice go, and shows everyone what she’s made of, we all know in this moment we’re experiencing a voice we will never forget and no other will ever measure up. Her head falls back and I watch pain wash over her face from her memories. It’s a pain that strikes me deep, and pulls my chest so fucking tight I can’t take in a breath. Tears begin streaming down her cheeks, but not once does she allow the beauty of her voice to crack or falter.
I chance a look at the crowd and see everyone completely awestruck. Almost every girl in the place has tears streaming down their faces as they witness the pain this beautiful woman has inside of her.
I make eye contact with Jaxson and Sawyer, and their expressions display exactly what I’m feeling. Julia and Grace both have their arms around their necks, and, like every other chick, have tears falling down their cheeks.
After Faith finishes the song, there is complete silence throughout the whole bar for a long moment before everyone gives her a standing ovation. She brings her head forward and looks out across the crowd, but never makes eye contact with anyone. She wipes her tears and pastes a small smile on her face before waving a thank you at everyone. She leans over and whispers something to the guy before standing and quickly escaping to the bathroom.
Both Katelyn and I stand up at the same time to follow her, but thankfully Julia grabs her hand. “Let him go to her, Katelyn.” I don’t wait to hear her response. I start making my way through the massive crowd, not caring that I’m knocking into people. All I care about is getting to her.
As I come up to the girls’ bathroom I don’t hesitate and walk in. Faith is standing at the sink with her arms braced on the counter and her head down. When I notice no one else is in here, I lock the door behind me so we don’t get interrupted.
When she hears the lock click in place, she quickly starts wiping her face and pretends to fix herself in the mirror. She turns to leave and comes to an abrupt halt when she sees me against the door. It takes her a minute to find her voice. “What are you doing in here?”
“I needed to see you,” I tell her truthfully. Her breath hitches as I watch her try to hold in her pain. Not being able to stay away a second longer, I walk up to her and cup either side of her sad, delicate face. Then, leaning down, I trail my lips across her wet cheek, tasting the saltiness of her tears until my mouth reaches her ear. “Talk to me, Red.”
She clutches my shirt in her fists and buries her face in my chest and finally lets go. “I miss him so much and I just can’t let him go. I’ve been able to work past so many things that happened there, but I don’t think I will ever be able to get over what happened to him.”
Her agonizing sobs have my throat feeling like I swallowed razors blades. I pull her in close and hold her, not knowing what to say, wishing there was something I could do to make it better. But I know there isn’t.
“It shouldn’t have happened, Cade. He shouldn’t have died because of me.”
My blood quickly heats at the guilt in her voice. I step back to look at her but she keeps her face in my chest. “Look at me, Faith.” When she doesn’t, I cup her face again and bring her pained gaze to mine. “He didn’t die because of you. He died because of his piece of shit father! None of it should have happened, the kid shouldn’t have been born to the fucker, and you shouldn’t have been taken… all of it. None of it should have fucking happened. But that’s the kind of world we live in, baby. It fucking sucks, I know, but you cannot blame yourself.”
As she stares up at me with her haunted emerald eyes, I can’t hold back any longer. Leaning down, I slowly and softly press my lips to hers, not wanting to push it after what happened last time. She gasps and I’m not sure if it’s a good one or a bad one, so I’m just about to pull away when her fingers spear into my hair under my beanie and she attacks my mouth with a desperation I feel.
Groaning, I bend down and hoist her up, her ankles quickly locking behind my back. I pin her against the door and try like hell to go slow, but she isn’t taking anything slow. My cock hardens painfully at every hot stroke of her tongue. Her taste explodes in my mouth and rushes through my system like a fucking drug. Mix that in with her beautiful scent and it’s goddamn addicting. Her scent reminds me of a rainforest. Fresh, yet a hint of something sweet, just like the woman herself.
She becomes more frantic against me, and it’s getting really fucking hard to hold back. When she nips my lip sharply, I no longer resist. With a growl, I fuck her mouth like I want her body, and when she starts grinding herself against my stomach, I slip my hands under her dress and cup her small, perfect ass to bring her closer. She wiggles down just a bit until she’s against my dick. I groan from feeling the heat of her pussy through my jeans, and if she keeps up, I’m going to fucking come in my pants. I notice her breathing start to change and know she’s close to coming already, but before she can there’s a sudden pounding on the door.
Shit! Shit! Shit! With a disappointed groan I reluctantly pull back.
“No. Please don’t stop,” she begs with a whimper and tries pulling me back to her.
“Someone needs in, Red.”
“Huh?” When the pounding happens again, realization finally dawns on her. “Oh…”
Looking at her flushed face, swollen lips and glossy eyes that are now shining with lust rather than pain, I want nothing more than to say fuck the other person on the other end of the door. �
�What do you want, baby. Tell me and I’ll give it to you.” And I will. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t give her right now if it helped ease her pain.
She looks at me for a moment then cups the side of my face. “I want you to take me home. I can’t be here right now and I want to only be with you.”
I don’t think twice about it. “Okay then, we’re going.”
“I guess I should probably say bye to the others and get my stuff.”
I can tell she really doesn’t want to do that but thinks it’s the polite thing to do, so I shake my head. “No. We will go out back and I’ll text Sawyer to tell Katelyn. She can bring your purse home with her, along with anything else you left there. You don’t need to see anyone right now, Red.”
“Okay,” she whispers with a nod.
Instead of putting her down, I unlock the door and walk out with her in my arms. She hides her face in my neck and I know it’s because she’s embarrassed. There’s a couple of really pissed off chicks but I give them a look, daring them to say anything. When they realize the girl in my arms is the same one who sang earlier, they don’t make rude remarks and get the fuck out of my way.
Thankfully, the back entrance leads right out to my truck because it’s pouring like a motherfucker. I quickly deposit Faith in the passenger seat then close the door. As I make my way over to my side, I try to push aside the niggle of doubt trying to worm its way in, telling me that I shouldn’t be doing this.
I know that whatever happens for the rest of tonight is going to change our relationship and there will be no going back. I just pray to fuck that no matter what happens we both come out unscathed.
*
Faith
I watch Cade get in and start the truck. He passes me his jacket that was left on the seat and I gladly take it. I blanket myself with it and bring it close to my face, loving the scent of it. He turns on the heat next and makes sure the vents are pointed at me. “Can you feel that?” I smile and give him a nod.
I still can’t believe he’s here, that he came for my birthday. And I’m so glad he did, because he is exactly who and what I needed after my awful nightmare of Aadil last night. My heart is still heavy, yet my body is alive and on fire from Cade’s touch. I don’t know what tonight holds for us, all I know is I need to be with him, just him. I need to feel safe and be with someone who understands my pain. And I know he does.
